The Hall of Thanes

The Hall of Thanes lies deep beneath Ironforge, in the caverns under Old Ironforge, the old halls below the High Seat. It is the final resting place of the dwarven monarchs of old. Its halls include Anvilmar's Rest and, in the last room, the vaults of the Reliquary of Kings.

The tombs were well kept and mostly left alone until the Dark Iron dwarves broke in. They came up from the depths in mole machines. A Dark Iron map seems to show a web of tunnels and underground highways that all meet beneath Ironforge itself. Whatever is happening down there has startled the dead, who are light sleepers, and enraged apparitions and tormented souls now roam the first halls.

Durgen Dirgehammer, the Dark Iron commander, leads the intruders: looters, engineers and summoners. Two stone golems guard him. The spirit of the thane Faldrim Anvilmar, consumed by an ancient grudge, walks Anvilmar's Rest. Two elementals, Magmatus and Plunder, stand between the entrance and the last vault room.

Earthseer Farsen, a Wildhammer dwarf on a hill above Gol'Bolar Quarry in Dun Morogh, reads a map taken from Dark Iron spies. He sends adventurers for Durgen's head, to be delivered to King Magni Bronzebeard. Magni means to seal the breaches and reinforce the lower levels. Afadra Dunwall, Lorekeeper of Ironforge, asks them to put the woken dead back to rest. Thom Filch, who was "patrolling" the vaults (he first says "sneaking") when the Dark Irons came, wants the heirlooms recovered. Inside, a ghostly attendant begs for its thane to be given rest.

One vault holds a tablet with the terms of a peace treaty between the Bronzebeard and Wildhammer clans. It appears to date from just after the War of the Three Hammers. In that civil war, the Bronzebeards took Ironforge and drove the Wildhammers and Dark Irons out. The dwarves guard their sacred burial chamber against the Horde, so Horde intruders must sneak in or fight their way past Ironforge's guards.