The Earth-Warder

The Earth-Warder is based off of a character from Warcraft lore named Thrall. Serving as one of the most prominent figures in game developer Blizzard Entertainment’s Warcraft franchise, Thrall has been given an in-depth backstory that continues to unfold with the release of new games. Thrall is an orc: a monstrous, green, humanoid race that serves as the sworn enemy of humans in the Warcraft universe. While most orcs crave bloodshed and conflict, Thrall’s upbringing has molded him into a wise, albeit stern at times, diplomat and leader. Thrall became a very powerful shaman and was bestowed the title of Earth-Warder, which tasked him with using the four elements to defend the world from destruction during dire times.

To me, Thrall is sort of a tragic hero, having most of his loved ones killed while growing up and being tasked with keeping peace between two rival factions (even when he led one of them). Brass and percussion seemed like a perfect medium to capture Thrall's solemn heroism. The prominence of drums in the percussion section represent Thrall's race, the orcs, use of war drums. The brass can (naturally) represent the war horns of the orcs, but also provide rich chorale textures. There are moments of quiet introspection juxtaposed with raw power, characteristics I see fit to represent Thrall, the Earth-Warder.