Heroes of the Storm Forums

Hello Ladies and Gentlemans! Here she is, Hilde the proud Vrykul who survived through fire and ice. This post is her lore that I wrote myself. Here you can find her concept with all her skills and yes, she's kinda badass.
Wanting a shiver from the deepest Northrend? Don't go any further!
I just need to warn you that I'm from France and I did my best to translate everything. There is some... well... a lot of mistakes, I'm aware of it, but I did my best to make everything understandable and enjoyable.
I hope you'll like her as I do!

Since my birth, I always heard the whispers of the frost through the scathing winds of the north, the grievance of the earth i tread on, and the fires roaring from an ardent heart. A long time ago, my people : the Vrykuls, were so proud of our role attributed by the titans, that in our arrogance, we thought we were the only ones worthy of their heritage. When a curse struck us and started change our newborn into weak and sickly beings, our king Ymiron blamed the titans for abandoning us, and decreed that the deformed infants were to be executed, in order to preserve the “purity” of our nation. In this madness, many of my people, including Ymiron, left for the halls of Gjaberbron to let the cold preserve them through the centuries, and wait for the curse to vanish. Despite the elements warning, and unwilling to become and exile, I joined them and entered stasis.

Centuries went by and felt like seconds upon my awakening. The world had changed a lot, new nations had emerged through the ages, and many wars had mutilated the planet, but the elements were still there. They had also changed.. had become wiser and gotten wilder all at once, as if an evil force drew them to act against their will. My people had started to worship a new entity,“The Lich King”, also called the god of death, who had established his citadel in the frozen lands further up in the north. It sent a shiver down my spine once I felt all the distress of the elements regarding this Lich King.

Secretly I passed what once were the houses of my kin, now rebuilt as proud fortresses at the request of this new god, and discovered through the visions the elements conferred me, the extent of the damage caused by the mortals senseless conflicts. I had no idea what the elements wanted from me, and they had not expressed it. I had to stand guard at the eastern tower of Utgarde Keep, and watch the progress of the intruders who had set foot on our ground. But the whispers insisted for me to investigate further. I was torn between my duties and my doubts regarding this Lich King, but I had to find out.

The earth guided me toward the Storm Peaks, far up north, and had me wander several weeks. My weariness increased like never before as I climbed up the mountain, as if my body would break by my own strength. Barely, but without breaking, I reached the border of the continent. Close to Ulduar, once home to the titans, the earth led me to a group of dwarve refugies. But those one were special, they had not been struck by the curse and were still made out of stone. They were trying to protect their lands and the titan's knowledge from multiple enemies surrounding them. I was, of course, not welcome, and as soon as they saw me, they drew their weapons. But one of them, Bruor Ironbane, stopped them in the attack and came closer, explaining the earth had predicted my arrival. It had asked him to forge me two axe-hammer, all at once tool and weapon,carved with runes of his people, although I did not understand why. The stone dwarf talked a little to me about his people, whom were called “Earthen”. They had been assigned to the protection of Azeroth and the safeguard of the planet. Where my own people, a nation of warriors ruled for such a long time by the strongest and most honorable king in this frozen region had failed, those frail beings, clearly outnumbered, had persisted and resisted all this time. I understood why the earth had lead me here. It was to free myself from pride, and focus on the task at hand. I rested, thanked the Earthen for their help and left for my next destination.

This time I was guided by the frost, asking me to get to Icecrown, close by. Once there, I could see for myself all the might of the Scourge, the Lich King’s army. Thousands of undead filled the valley, a fearless army, feeling no pain or remorse. A shame for my people! There was no glory fighting creatures bereft of free will. The frost lead me through the most icy and stony corners surrounding icecrown. I had to be careful, for the undead were killing every mortal soul that got to close with no hesitation, and the necromancer would bring them back in the shape of a disembodied skeleton to join their ranks, and seal the corrupted cycle. After I passed a base of the Scourge, close to the pass, i saw a strange banner reminding me of a Vrykul clan that i once knew, representing a hand in on a silver flag. The mortals in shiny armors that were fighting the undead, used powers similar to the strong Val’kyrs of the high father Odyn. The frosts whispers had quiet down, and I decided to rest in a cave not too far away while I waited for further instructions.

The crash of fighting shortened my slumber, and I left the cave to peek at the action. A handful of silver dressed soldiers were trapped in a pass between the two camps, caught in the viscous webs of the crypt fiends. They would not live long. But a man erupted from the silver base, sword in hand, and leapt towards them, freeing the lot for them to fight their way through the undeads. The man then ran through the scourges bastion and disappeared on the other side of the battlefield, while a flow of undeads attacked the silver camp. Was he mad? Or was he a coward who seized the opportunity to flee?

Curiosity and boredom took the better of me, so I followed his tracks to see for myself. It wasn’t difficult to find him, the blood in the snow was leading the way. He was lying there, agonising, pressing his left hand against his wound :

Crusader : « You.. don’t.. come.. closer.. »
Hilde : « I am not here to kill you, even tho you seem to deserve it »
Crusader : « In that case.. leave..you are risking.. »
Hilde : « Are you threatening me in your condition ? »
Crusader : « No.. I am.. infected.. by the.. undead plague.. »


It came back to me. The man had taken a hit to the side by the sharp claws of a ghoul while he was freeing a soldier from the webs. And while he was cutting his foe down, a cloud of plague was thrown in his direction by the [chariots a viande] of the undead. The man had created a light shield, protecting the pass and lessening the effects if the plague, thus allowing the soldiers to retreat. But apparently it had found a way in through his wound.

Hilde : « You are doomed, fled the battlefield and risked dishonor for your kin. Is your life of such little value? »
Crusader : « Each life.. is precious.. we fight.. to preserve them.. all. My biggest fear.. is to become an undead.. and to destroy.. what is swear to protect. If.. my honor.. is the price.. for my survival.. then so be it.. »

I could not describe the pain and hope contained is the words of this dying man's breath. The soldier was alone in the cold, and doomed to die. Out of respect for his courage, I lit a magic campfire next to him, that would resist the cold winds. The voice of the frost started speaking again, and told me the silver warriors had repelled the undead assault against their base, and pushed the fight back to the pass.

Hilde : « Your men have won the battle »
Crusader : « thank you.. »
Hilde : « I will leave this fire for them to notice your presence. The undead will be too busy trying to retake their camp to investigate a solitary flame. »
Crusader : « No.. I may.. infect them.. »
Hilde : « If they share your tenacity, they won’t be in danger. May Odyn watch over you. »

As I left, I could see a band of flying riders come closer to the glowing red signal. Henceforth, his destiny was in their hand.

The frost brought me to a crater, where scourge adepts were performing heinous rituals of dragonbones. But the worse was when I noticed they had also brought Vrykuls back in the form of undeads. Did the dignity of my people disappear over the years? Did we really become hollow carcasses, hungry to fight? It seemed my kind started worshiping this lich king for his ability to break the balance. One of the followers stared at me while i came closer, weapon drawn, boiling with anger. One clean hit of my blade was enough to cut of his head. His companions quickly started chanting their spells, and ordered their Varguls to attack me. The last weeks of walking through the cold, and the efforts had strengthen my body, and each hit was tearing my opponents appart. One of the watchers was finaly able to hit me with a shadowbolt, and throw me into the crater. I cushioned the fall with my left arm, but I felt the pain in all my body. I raised my head and saw the rest of the followers gathering in a circle above me, chanting the melody of my ipending doom. The frost ordered me to slam my weapon into the ground. Having no option left, i crashed my axe-hammer into the ice with all the strength left in my right arm. The runes on the edge of my weapon started to shine and i could feel all the might of the ice flowing trought it. The dark shadow of the followers started to hurl down at me, but the shining had become so bright that it let out a blue blast, jumping out of the crater like a geyser, repelling darkness and followers alike. Once I opened my eyes, I was standing upright, my weapon still sparkling in an icy, bluish light. The followers seemed to have been swept by the blast, and the silence was only broken by the howl of the icy wind.

While I was putting my left arm back in its place, i remembered everything the frost unraveled to me. A cause does not unite a nation, it unites individuals. The silver warriors, fighting only with their courage, had more honor than my ancient brothers who sold their souls to those demons for false promises. A cause is not to be followed blindly. This man, whom i regret not having asked for his name, knew all the extent of the consequences of his actions, but chose to face them alone, to allow his brothers to survive. That was the mindset of a warrior worthy of the Honor Hall. After a violent crack and scream to put the bone of my arm back in place, I extracted myself out of the crevasse and left this cursed place before the arrival of new scourge troops. The frost guided my steps to avoid any further hostile encounters. Once I arrived to the Cristalsong Forest, the frost whispered only three words : “Go back home”

Home? What was the meaning of that? My residence in the fjords? Even though the fire still hadn’t spoken to me? I hated to be led without reason, but I took the road towards Dragonblight. On my way, I avoided the camps of the small lion armored and green skinned beings, but I still watched their actions. Their common goal seemed to be fighting the scourge, but I also noticed a fair number of fights between these two factions, weakening both sides. This led me to believe none of them was worthy of victory against an enemy capable of enslaving the dead. For now I had to focus on my task. On my road towards Grizzly Hills, Voldrune, a town of my people, was attacked by the green skin and their allies. I hesitated for a while to lend my strength to those I once considered my brothers and sisters. I kept going, reluctantly, uncertain of my kins intentions.


The Howling Fjord. I lived there for the bigger part of my life. I learned to fight there, to endure the cold temperatures, resist the pain, and become a true member of the Dragonflayer. This was supposed to be my pride, the sole reason of my existence. Much had changed … As I got closer to Mörg, I was ambushed by my kind. 3 Huntresses erupted from the trees and caught me in their nets.

Hilde : « What are you doing ?! I am one of you ! »
Huntress : « We know. We bringing you back. »

My weapons were taken, and the huntresses dragged me back to Utgarde with shackled hands. As they pushed me towards the catacombs, I realised the resentment my brothers and sisters felt towards me. Val’kyrs were flying across the subterranean halls, bringing vrykuls that had been judged unworthy back in the shape of Varguls. Instead of calling Judgment’s arena, I was freed from my bonds and brought to the High Thane Ivaldir, Ymiron’s right-hand man.

Ivaldir : « Leaving for pilgrimage, are we? You didn’t even bother to inform your family, or our new allies. Hell you didn’t even tell me! And what were those attacks against our new brothers in arm about, hm? »
Hilde : « This journey was mine, and did not concern you, high thane. »
Ivaldir : « That’s what you think, girl. »

Ivaldir stood up, he was much taller than most of the Vrykuls, and his impressive stature reflected the strength he had accumulated in combat over the years. His reputation as a warrior was only topped by the King. In his right hand, he was holding a polearm of ancien times, forged by the titans themselves. It had been given to him by Ymirion as a reward for his services. The tip of the spear was glowing like ember, and it was said that touching it would set you ablaze. He took a few steps forward, slammed the weapon into the ground, and declared :

Ivaldir : « Hilde! You have betrayed your people by deserting our ranks and abandoning your position. You have broken our new pact with the Lich King, and allowed enemies to break into our territory. For this, I sentence you to death. »

The crowd cheered, and my chest tightened at the idea of what would follow my death :

Hilde : « And then what? You bring me back as a Vargul? To testify of dishonor towards our people and traditions? »
Ivaldir : « Why not. It would be a pleasure to kill a traitor like you … twice. »
Hilde : « I saw with my own eyes what the Lich King plans for us at Icecrown! You call this ascension, but it is nothing else than DAMNATION! There is no honor in fighting just for the sake of it ! »
Ivaldir : « And what do you know about honor, girl ? »
Hilde : « I believe, that you are afraid of fighting me. »

The crowd went silent. They looked at the thane, waiting for his answer. He took a few more steps towards me :

Ivaldir : « HA! And why would I accept this challenge ? »
Hilde : « The Val’kyrs judge those who are worthy, and how could you present yourself to the Lich King, knowing you were too afraid to accept a girl’s challenge ? »

Our eyes met for a few seconds, waiting to see who would turn his head first. I knew he wouldn’t turn the challenge down, may it just be for the pleasure of killing me himself. My journey had taught me a lot. Even against a foe like Ivaldir, it was not impossible to win. The Earthly had adapted, and managed to hold their ground while facing many dangers. The silver warriors had pushed back an army that should have swallowed them whole. With the elements help, i might just win.

The High Thane turned around and grabbed his spear.

Ivaldir : « ANNHYLDE! I summon you ! »

A Val’kyr with snow white wings appeared over the throne.

Annhylde : « I heard your call, and witnessed the challenge. Ivaldir, you will duel for the ascension. The loser will be stripped of his rights, and damned for all eternity, and the winner will be elevated, and join the warriors fighting for the Lich King’s glory. You are both allowed to use your weapons, and all the powers you dispose of. »

My weapons were given back to me, and Ivaldir entered his fighting stance on the other side of the room, ready to impale me on his spear. The fire still hadn’t spoken to me. Even though it was worrying me, I could not think about it for the fight to come. The next words of the white winged Val’kyr would summon a storm of violence.

Annhylde : « FIGHT! »

Ivaldir threw himself at me incredible speed, pointing his spear in my direction. I barely managed to dodge the burning tip, but the free hand of the thane struck my stomach so hard that it sent me flying across the room. Ivaldir jumped high in the air, trying to strike me down, but this time my prediction was more accurate, and i attempted a counter attack with my enchanted frost axe. The cutting edge of the blade was not enough to slice through the thick leather pad he wore on his shoulder, and his next hit had me crash into the wall adjacent to the throne. As I stood up, he was already charging head first in my direction. I dodged in the last moment, leaving him no choice but to crash his spear into the stone. Thinking he was disarmed i readied myself to deal the finishing blow, but a circular motion of the polearm drew blood on myself. The rock in which his spear should have been stuck had melted from the heat of the tip, and I could already feel those effects on my skin. It was like laying down on ember. I struggled with standing alone, and could hardly contain my desire to scream in pain, knowing it would only satisfy my foe and his supporters. They wanted to see me suffer for the path I chose. The High Thane was deriding me as if he had already won, and struck towards my shoulder with the blade of his spear. This time I dodged, but Ivaldir was quicker too, managing to pierce my shoulder, and force me on my knees. The fur of my armor started to burn, and I could feel the blood of my wound boiling with more heat than lava. I screamed. The crowd cheered and shouted his name.

Now at his mercy, I tried one last stand with the weapon my valid arm was able to hold. I tried removing the spear with the cleaver size of my weapon, link pulling out a hook. But Ivaldir’s strength was way superior to mine, and he pushed it further in faster than I could pull it out.

But then something happened… the fire… I could hear it! First a mere whisper, but the voice intensified, like an explosion. My surprise of hearing it momentarily made me forget my pain, and I witnessed the same miracle I had seen before in Icecrown. The runes on the side of my axe were sparkling again, suffocating the flames on my shoulder and in my blood. By the time the spear was extinguished, the fire had been assimilated to my weapon.

Ivaldir - « What ?! »

The runes were now shining as bright as a thousand suns, pushing Ivaldir away in a crackling thunder, and at the same time freeing me from the spear. Even though the fire was out, I was still bleeding, and I could barely stand up. His weapons magic being of no further use, Ivaldir would now surely rely on brute force, and i knew I would not last long in close combat with what little strength I had left.
The high thane straighten up, recovering from the blast. Spear at the ready, he threw himself furiously at me. With just one arm to counter-attack, I knew I would not withstand the charge, and the impact would bring me down. I would certainly bleed out.

The fire roared with such rage that I executed it’s order with no further thinking : {STRIKE!}
While Ivaldir was trying to pierce through me again, my next attack hit him with a power, that baffled me. I never struck with such strength before.. his weapon gave in as soon as it touched mine. It was now just a clump of melted metal. The thane threw it aside, and swinged at me with his right hand. My left block wasn’t the fastest, but the heat of the weapon was enough for him dodge.. in vain. The blade of the axe could just cut a part of his gauntlet, but it was enough. The flames of the were already winning ground, and his hand was boiling inside the armor. In a motion of pure rage, he came at me with his left fist. My arm was still recovering, so I tried lifting the right one, still attached to the open wound of my shoulder. I should’ve taken the hit, but the runic cold of my axe slowed him down, and left an opening for me. {FINISH HIM}. Guided by the flames voice, the movements of my wounded arm were driven by several forces, and my blade slit the throat of the thane, before tilting to his right side, leaving me standing behind him. Ivaldir kneeled with revolted eyes, then fell entirely to the ground.

Ivaldir - « Im..poss..ible… »

The crowd was dead silent. The right hand man of the king himself had been slain by a convict. The voice of the flame had calmed down at the death of it’s old tyran. I could finally breathe, as if I had been freed from a storm that had taken me away.

Annhylde - «High Thane Ivaldir, today you have been judged unworthy to serve the Lich-King! But you can still be of use to him... differently »

With a simple gesture of the hand, the Val’kyr drew an unknown runic circle around the deceased man. His body rose, his flesh rotting at an alarming speed, as if he had dried in the sun for several weeks. Soon, all that was left of the mighty figure was a puny carcass.

Ivaldir - « NOoo ! you ***** ! I WILL KILL YOU ! »

The Vargul threw himself at me. His speed was not matching that of his living form anymore, but his hooked claws were advertising the danger to come. I had not have the time to recover, nor was I hearing any of the voices. This fight would be mine alone. A first throw of his claws attempted to hit my face, nothing a jump back couldn’t avoid, followed by a left hand throw. This time, I blocked it with my weapon, but the cold has no effect on the undead, alike to pain. But I realized that too late. He buried his claws into my arms, lifting me off the ground.

Ivaldir - « YOU ARE NOTHING ! DEATH RULES EVERYTHING ! »

Everything ? No. I saw life prosper on the world's roof and heard the serenades sung by the elements before learning about the tales of our people. I watched the decay and ascension of new ideals, stronger than unity or power. Death is part of the cycle, but not the cycle itself. I know what the elements want from me :

Hilde - « Balance above all »

Letting go of my weapons, i froze the claws of the Vargul with my right hand, and incinerated those in my forearm with my left hand. The pain would not make him let go, but as he was going for my head with his fangs, he did not notice his disappearing fingers, and therefore the loss of his grip. Before the brainless creature could realize it, the ground under his feet was giving way by my doings. I watched him lay one floor below me, profaning against me with a broken jaw. This was the last I got to see of the mighty High Thane Ivaldir, before I buried him under a second rockpile. This journey in Northrend had helped me see the world with more clarity. One is all, all is one. Each has to be preserved, and none shall rule. This moment of reflexion was interrupted by the white winged Val’kyr :

Annhylde - « Hilde of the Dragonflayer, You have been deemed worthy to serve in the legions of the lich-king ! I will now gratify you with the gift … »
Hilde - « No. »
Annhylde - « What ? »
Hilde - « Your ‘present’ is a deceit, go now and lose with your master in oblivion »
Annhylde - « Little impudent ! What do you think you are against the lich-king ? »
Hilde - « I serve a cause more essential than the glory of the eternity you claim to offer. And if you want to send more of your challengers to defy me for the power of death, go ahead »

I drew closer to the center of the arena, adressing all my people, whom i once called family, to declare my independance :

Hilde - « I am Hilde Winterfall ! And if you want to fight me, it will be the last thing you do ! »