It launched on November 13, 2008 and sold 2.8 million copies within the first day, making it the fastest selling computer game of all time released at that point.

[5] Death knights are fallen heroes of the Alliance and the Horde, raised by the Lich King to serve as champions of the undead Scourge.

Unholy specialization focuses on poisoning your opponent and sending the player's permanent, controllable pet ghoul to attack the enemy.

[13] Players arrive by boat (Alliance) or zeppelin (Horde) either at the Howling Fjord or the Borean Tundra zones, each located at opposite ends of the continent.

The Forsaken and their Banshee Queen, Sylvanas Windrunner, have also arrived with a new contagion that they hope will prove to be effective against the undead minions of the Lich King.

The magi of Dalaran have also relocated, along with their city, to Northrend in order to deal with the rising threat of the Blue Dragonflight, led by Malygos the Spell-Weaver, and the Lich King.

As if on cue, the undead Scourge launched a massive assault against the cities and towns of Azeroth, this time extending its reach far beyond the Eastern Kingdoms.

Under pressure to respond with a full army, Warchief Thrall deployed an expedition force to Northrend led by Overlord Garrosh Hellscream.

At the Wrathgate, many brave Alliance soldiers died at the hands of the Forsaken's Royal Apothecary Society; including King Varian's dear friend Bolvar Fordragon.

In order to diminish the leadership of the Scourge, forces of Azeroth take on the newly rebuilt necropolis Naxxramas that floats in the eastern portion of the Dragonblight region.

At the same time, Malygos, Aspect of the Blue Dragonflight, has been twisted and gone mad, convinced the mortal magic wielders are tainting Azeroth and begins a campaign to purge them.

At the saddened behest of his sister, Alexatrasza, Queen of the Dragons and Aspect of the Red Dragonflight, champions of Azeroth end his crusade and pave the way for a brighter future for the Blue Flight.

The march of Horde and Alliance armies through Northrend led to a number of victories, but these successes paled before a discovery made by the explorer Brann Bronzebeard within the ancient titan complex of Ulduar.

This mysterious fortress had long served as the prison of the Old God Yogg-Saron, a being of unfathomable evil whose influence had spread into the continent of Northrend itself.

Highlord Tirion Fordring organized a tournament to test potential heroes of the Horde and the Alliance, but agents of the Scourge quickly emerged to sabotage the event.

The undead attack culminated with the appearance of the monstrous crypt lord Anub'arak, who attempted to exterminate Tirion's elite force before it could be assembled.

As the final battle against the Lich King approached, the human sorceress Jaina Proudmoore and the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner journeyed to the icy heart of Northrend.

Both had come for different reasons: Jaina hoped to discover whether a part of her former friend and lover, Arthas Menethil, still lived; Sylvanas longed to take revenge on her old enemy.

Ultimately, Arthas was slain with the aid of Tirion Fordring, and the heroes who triumphed over him learned a chilling truth about the existence of the undead Scourge.

Bolvar (revealed to have been altered by the red dragons' flame), steps forward and voluntarily becomes the new Lich King, promising to keep the Scourge contained in Northrend as its eternal jailer.

These include the use of a new shader in areas containing ice,[18] new fire effects, more realistic shadows, and the option to turn down character texture resolution to improve performance.

Patch 3.2.0 added the Crusader's Coliseum raid, a PvP season 7, a new Battleground, Isle of Conquest and some Argent Tournament quests.

Now all players who purchase the original game automatically receive The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King at no additional cost.

[41] This had made it the fastest selling computer game of all time, beating the record set by the previous World of Warcraft expansion The Burning Crusade, which had sold 2.4 million within its first 24 hours.