The Story of Rexxar: The Missing Pages of Book of Heroes

Hearthstone’s “Book of Heroes” sets out to tell the backstories of the basic class heroes, following them through their lives as they grow and change to become the version of themselves that we see depicted in their character art. However, many of these characters have stories that have been evolving for years at this point, and summarizing such a lengthy tale in the format of a series of Hearthstone encounters necessitates that many details either being left out or drastically oversimplified. Here then, to fill in the blanks, are the Missing Pages from Rexxar’s story in the Book of Heroes.

Chapter 1: A Disapproving Father

Rexxar is a Mok'nathal, a crossbreed species of orc and ogre from the world of Draenor. They were created by the tyrannical Gorian Empire of ogres when they were in need of new creatures that could be used as labor and make up for the ogres' limited numbers. While the ogres had been a great power in Draenor for ages, their hold had been broken by battles with the Warsong and Shattered Hand clans of orcs who fought to ensure their freedom. An ogre clan known as the Bladespire conducted cruel experiments of sorcery, with the greatest result coming from selective breeding between ogres and enslaved orcs. The children of these forced unions were called mok'nathal, possessing the strength of ogres and intelligence of orcs. The Bladespire kept the mok'nathal in chains and bred them together to create even more. To ensure their loyalty, the ogres threatened to kill entire families if even one of the members rebelled.

The leader of the Bladespire ogres, Imperator Kelgrok, made the mok'nathal fight for him against the orcs of Frostfire Ridge, forming the bulk of the army. Eventually, the orcs managed to capture a number of mok'nathal, including their elder Beastmaster Leoroxx, who they were surprised to learn was a slave who hated the ogres, not a willing servant. The orcs and mok’nathal worked together to destroy the Bladespire ogres and liberate their enslaved creations. After a full day of battle, the ogres were wiped out, with Leoroxx strangling Imperator Kelgrok in his own fortress with the chains the mok’nathal had worn as a slave.

Knowing his people to be half-bred outcasts who could never be truly accepted, Leoroxx turned down an offer from the orcs to live with them in Frostfire, choosing instead to settle in a remote corner of the barren region of Gorgrond. After their bloody liberation, the mok’nathal lived peaceful lives, swearing off fighting and only defending themselves when needed.

However, times changed and the orcs were eventually manipulated into forming the Horde by Gul'dan as part of his plans to turn them into puppets of his demon masters. The Horde rampaged Draenor, destroying all in their path of any race. Leoroxx clung to his isolationist philosophies, but his son Rexxar had other ideas. Rexxar long for glory in battle and believed that the Horde could prove to be noble allies who would help his people survive by finding new sources of food and water. Leaving his peaceful people, he struck out alone to meet with the Horde.

Young Rexxar without his hood, his face showing the blend of orc and ogre features that make up his heritage.

Chapter 2: The Warchief’s Mercy

The Horde was ruled by Warchief Blackhand, a brutal warrior who unknowingly served as Gul'dan’s puppet. Tricked by Gul'dan into thinking the peaceful draenei were a threat, the orcs had followed Blackhand in a genocidal war to eradicate them, committing unspeakable atrocities and capturing their capital, Shattrath City. After this first victory for the new Horde, Warchief Blackhand considered annihilating the mok'nathal. Luckily for them, Rexxar managed to impress him enough to stay his hand in exchange for service as one of the Horde’s champions. At this time Rexxar’s main companion was a large wolf named Haratha who aided him in battle and hunting.

The Horde may have been a puppet to Gul'dan, but Gul'dan was a willing puppet himself of the demonic Burning Legion. The Legion’s leader, the fallen titan Sargeras, had possessed the great mage Medivh, the Guardian of Azeroth, and influenced him to contact Gul'dan and build The Dark Portal that could connect the two worlds of Azeroth and Draenor, allowing the Horde to cross over and conquer it. This was badly needed by the Horde at this point, as their bloodlust from constant warfare and demonic corruption had left their homeworld a barren wasteland. They needed an enemy to fight and a new place to live, and so they built the portal. When they crossed over to conquer Azeroth, Rexxar and Haratha were with them. The following conflict would be known as the First War and end with the fall of the human city of Stormwind.

The Horde’s victory didn’t last long, however, as the survivors of Stormwind gathered aid from neighboring kingdoms to strike back, forming the first version of the Alliance. At the same time, fractures appeared in the Horde, as Blackhand was revealed to be Gul'dan’s puppet and replaced by Orgrim Doomhammer, who defeated him in a mak'gora, an honorable fight to the death. Thus began the Second War. This war ultimately ended with the Horde’s defeat and being driven back through the Dark Portal to Draenor. With Doomhammer captured during the final battle, the Horde was without leadership. Desperate, they turned to the disgraced shaman Ner'zhul, who launched his own invasion of Azeroth to retrieve powerful artifacts that could open portals to other worlds that would be easier to conquer. During this invasion, Rexxar was stationed with Grommash Hellscream and the Warsong clan on the Azerothian side of the Dark Portal.

Ner'zhul’s plan ended in disaster, as he grew too greedy for power and his ritual spun out of control, shattering the entire planet and turning it into Outland. To prevent the shattering from destroying Azeroth as well, heroes of the Alliance destroyed the Dark Portal, removing any possibility of travel between the two worlds. As it happened, Rexxar and Grom were still on the Azeroth side of the portal, now stuck in a land strange to them.

Rexxar in his armor as a warrior with the Warsong orc clan outside the Dark Portal.

Chapter 3: An Unlikely Friendship

After these events, Rexxar became disillusioned by the Horde’s senseless killing and constant betrayals by one leader after another. The last straw was when his wolf, Haratha, was killed by an orcish warlock. Although he was able to kill the warlock, the sense of loss was too great. Trapped on Azeroth with Grom Hellscream and his band of survivors, Rexxar proposed that they settle down peacefully in some isolated land far away from the Alliance. In response, Grom rebuffed him, claiming that orcs were meant to conquer and that he would never leave the Alliance in peace. Enraged by this insistance on war and brutality, Rexxar left the Horde to wander the wilds of Azeroth. Unable to trust anyone, he decided that only beasts were above deceit and capable of true loyalty.

In his solitary travels though the wilderness, Rexxar met and befriended a bear he named Misha as his new companion. The two formed a close bond and Misha would come whenever Rexxar called her to his aid. Together, they traveled to the continent of Kalimdor, where they roamed a region known as the Barrens, being sure to stay away from civilizations and their wars.

Chapter 4: A Call to Honor

Many years later, after the end of the Third War, Rexxar’s self-exile from civilization came to an end when he encountered [Hearthstone Card (Mogrin) Not Found], an orc warrior who was being attacked by a group of savage quilboars. Rushing to the orc’s aid, he was unable to prevent the quilboar from dealing Mogrin a fatal blow by splitting open his stomach. While he didn’t fear death, Mogrin was ashamed that he had failed in his mission to deliver a message to Thrall, the new orc Warchief of the Horde. To preserve the warrior’s honor in death, Rexxar promised to deliver the message himself to the city of Orgrimmar. This city had been newly constructed as the capital of the Horde by Thrall in the desert region of Durotar after their victory against the Burning Legion’s invasion. In honor of the teamwork required to secure that victory, Thrall had signed a peace agreement with Jaina Proudmoore and her Alliance forces, although many others on both sides didn’t care for the idea.

After delivering the messege to Thrall, the warchief invited him to stay in Orgrimmar for a while and considering him an equal in rights to the land. Rexxar agreed, on the condition that he earns his own keep, and volunteered to help out around the city. While running errands and performing quests for the people of Orgrimmar, he teamed up with and befriended a darkspear troll named Rokhan and a Pandaren brewmaster from the Wandering Isle named Chen Stormstout. On a mission to check on a coastal observatory, Rexxar found a suspicious amount of human activity along the coast and reported his findings to Thrall. Upon further investigation with the shaman Drek'Thar, the two found the local thunder lizards had been driven mad, as well as a human lumber mill in the area. While Rexxar was eager to destroy the mill, Drek'Thar stopped him by reminding him of the non-aggression treaty. Out of other options, Rexxar was forced to put down the maddened thunder lizards.

Chapter 5: The Root of the Problem

Returning to the outpost, Rexxar discovered that it had been destroyed by humans, and followed the trail of blood back to a camp on the coast. Enraged, Rexxar disregarded any and all treaties by instantly destroying the entire camp. Reporting the human aggression to Thrall, the two questioned whether Jaina had been involved or not. Rokhan urged them to check on the defenses of the troll settlement in the Echo Isles off the coast of Durotar. This worry turned out to be well-founded as he, Rexxar, and Thrall arrived to find the Darkspear tribe already under attack.

After repelling the attackers and allowing the trolls to move to the safety of the mainland, Rexxar returned to Thrall, who was on his way to a peace summit with Jaina. Not trusting the humans, Rexxar volunteered to go in his place, but only found an ambush with Jaina nowhere in sight.

Thrall, suspecting someone was deceiving them, sent Rexxar to meet Jaina on Theramore Island. Bypassing a large human encampment to reach Jaina, he confronted her. Jaina denied any knowledge of the human aggression and demanded to see these soldiers for herself. Returning to the camp together, they found it destroyed by naga. Searching for survivors, they fought off the naga sea witch, Lady Darkscale, and her guard, Scilla Murkshadow. After the battle, Rexxar and Jaina found a dying Kul Tiran solder who expressed relief that Jaina was safe, and said that her father, "The Admiral" would be relieved to see her. Upon realizing that her father was the one behind the attacks on the Horde, Jaina brought a confused Rexxar back to Theramore, only to discover a fleet of ships arriving with Daelin Proudmoore himself in command. In spite of his daughter’s protests that the Horde was no longer their enemy, Daelin ordered Rexxar’s capture. Rexxar managed to escape and returned to team up with the Darkspear chieftain, Vol'jin.

Chapter 6: The Son of Bloodhoof

Upon hear the news of the invasion, Vol'jin left to warn Thrall of the coming attack and suggested that Rexxar travel to Mulgore to request the aid of the tauren. However, Rexxar was disappointed to learn that the tauren chief, Cairne Bloodhoof was unwilling to do much of anything due to his sadness over the kidnapping of his son, Baine Bloodhoof, by cannibalistic centaurs. Convinced that his son was gone for good, he had become lethargic and depressed. Desperate for the military aid of the tauren, Rexxar led an expedition to rescue Baine and reignite his father’s spirit. Upon succeeding, Cairne pledged his aid and returned to the Echo Isles with Rexxar.

Still in need of allies, Rexxar and Vol’jin found an opportunity to recruit ogres to their side. Several ogres had come to Azeroth as members of the Horde, but had split off into clans in the years since the first two wars. One of these clans, the Stonemaul, had recently seen a new cruel warlord named Kor'gall rise to power. Rexxar traveled to Dustwallow Marsh and worked to become a member of the clan. Although he was initially rejected because he was only half-ogre, Rexxar managed to impress them enough with his martial and survival skills, allowing him to officially join. Now a member of the clan, Rexxar asked ogres to aid the Horde’s defense, only to be mockingly dismissed by Kor'gall. In response, Rexxar fought Kor'gall for the leadership of the clan, using the aid of his animal companions to come out on top.  

Now the chieftain of the Stonemaul ogres, he led them to join the assembling Horde forces. In honor of his skills and contributions, Thrall named Rexxar “Champion of the Horde” and gave him command of the entire Horde army to defend against Daelin’s assault.

Chapter 7: A Blaze of Glory

Daelin Proudmoore had lost much to the Horde. They had killed many in both Stormwind and Lordaeron over the last two wars, and Daelin’s own son Derek had been killed in a naval battle during the Second War. Not believing that it was possible for the Horde to change, he had determined to exact retribution for all they had done and ensure the safety of his kingdom. Additionally, he had no knowledge of how Jaina and Thrall had united to save the world from demons. All he knew was that his daughter was missing and that he needed to rescue her. Despite his naval power, the Horde forced him to retreat after razing his stronghold. The fight wasn't over yet, though, as they knew he would strike again.

Making his stronghold in Theramore Island, Daelin barracked himself and prepared to deal with his Horde pursuers. Knowing that there could be no peace while her stubborn father kept attacking the Horde, Jaina made the hard choice to not stand in the way of her father’s death. While Thrall’s forces kept Daelin’s army busy, Rexxar led a team in combat against Daelin and his most loyal retainers, killing them all. With the Admiral’s death came the end of the battle and a Horde victory. Jaina was filled with grief at her father’s death, but Rexxar attempted to comfort her by honoring his skills as a warrior in their fight.

After the battle was won Thrall invited Rexxar to return to Durotar with him and continue in his role as a leader of the Horde. However, Rexxar’s heart still belonged in the wilds with the beasts and he declined. Still, he held to his membership of the Horde and vowed to always come to its aid when he was needed. He also stepped down from his position as chieftain of the Stonemaul Ogres, granting the title to an ogre named Mok'Morokk.

Chapter 8: Protector of the Mok'Nathal

Many years passed, and Rexxar wandered the wilds once again. One day, however, the Dark Portal mysteriously reopened and a demon invasion began to pour in from Outland, the shattered remains of Rexxar’s old home. As the heroes of the Alliance and Horde traveled to Outland to combat this threat, Rexxar took the opportunity to return to his old home. There, he found his father and clan still alive, although his father still held onto his grudge against Rexxar for abandoning them and joining the Horde. Wishing to prove himself to his father, Rexxar set out to protect them from attacks from the Bloodmaul Ogres. These ogres took orders from a gronn named Goc, one of the seven sons of Gruul. By this time, Rexxar had grown his army of beast companions. In addition to Misha, he had a boar named Huffer, a wyvern named Leokk, and a hawk named Spirit. Using his prowess in combat and the aid of his beast allies, Rexxar managed to kill Goc and free his people. Sadly, it is still unknown if Rexxar ever managed to make peace with his father, but no matter what, he would still be willing to fight for both the Mok’Nathal and the Horde when the needed him.

The Epilogue Pages:

After freeing his people from oppression in Outland, Rexxar remained obscure for a long time, continuing his wanderings and helping to defend the Horde during times of upheaval. When the Burning Legion launched its third invasion of Azeroth, he was recruited by a secret organization of hunters known as the Unseen Path. While he was reluctant at first, considering the organization too dull and lacking action for his tastes, he was convinced by the huntmaster of the order that the Unseen Path were just as capable hunters and survivors as Rexxar himself. Operating out of Trueshot Lodge in Highmountain with the rest of the Unseen Path’s hunters, he played a vital role in driving back the Legion from Azeroth. Perhaps their greatest contribution to the war effort was the defeat of Hakkar the Houndmaster, a demon with a pack of felhounds who could consume magic and posed a grave threat to the mages of Dalaran. As they were immune to most spells, Rexxar and the rest of the Unseen Path were recruited by Khadgar to take down the Legion’s own master hunter.

Trueshot Lodge and Hakkar the Houndmaster

While Rexxar found kinship in the Unseen Path, he returned to the Horde with the discovery of Azerite and the beginning of the Fourth War. Stationed in the Horde’s hidden stronghold at Stormsong Valley in Kul Tiras, he aided the war effort on various missions. Later on, he joined Thrall and Saurfang’s resistance against the tyranny of Sylvanas Windrunner when it became clear she was using the Horde and driving it to its own destruction.

Part orc, part ogre; a child of Draenor and Champion of the Horde on Azeroth; lone wolf and true leader; Rexxar was a being of two worlds in more ways than one. Forever finding his place in the world, he would always act as his honor demanded and those close to him needed.