Magtol and the Broken Draenei were the first to resettle the Mudswamp Base, becoming its earliest inhabitants.
With nearly ten thousand Broken arriving, the base swelled to its limits—almost requiring a second site. Galen immediately planned for an expansion of the outer walls, but space was not the true concern.
He lacked shamanic instructors.
Galen sought to awaken in the Broken the elemental power once wielded by the shamans of Draenor. Unlike the Holy Light, which the Broken could no longer sense due to fel corruption, the elements remained untouched and pure. Earth, fire, water, and air—the elemental forces—offered strength as formidable as the Light, yet more flexible and primal.
The Horde had long abandoned the shamanic path in favor of warlocks. Thus, Galen turned his sights to the dwarves. The Dark Iron dwarves of the Thorium Brotherhood had shamanic traditions, though many were smiths and reclusive artisans. The Wildhammer dwarves, however, were steeped in elemental communion and more suitable for mentoring the Broken.
Two names sprang to Galen's mind: Maky and Falstad, his old gryphon instructors.
These Wildhammer dwarves had served for years at the Gryphon Knight Training Academy in Streamwind Port. Over time, they had devolved into idle veterans—drinking, napping, and boasting while leaving the brunt of instruction to their sixteen apprentices. Still, they had influence, particularly Maky, who held rank among the Firebeard clan.
Though the Gryphon Academy graduated only a hundred native Arathi knights, Galen had not wasted its dropouts. Those eliminated from knight training became logistics specialists—gryphon managers—key to Galen's growing network of aerial routes. With airships costly and teleportation limited, these routes allowed swift movement and doubled as income streams through merchant tolls.
Maky's clan ties proved fruitful. When Galen reached the Northern Highlands, he found the Wildhammer preparing to migrate.
The fall of Dun Morogh to the Bleeding Hollow orcs and the siege of Ironforge had shaken dwarf society. Though Ironforge remained supplied, Grim Batol—once a Wildhammer royal city—was near panic.
In response, Falstad Wildhammer, a royal descendant and visionary leader, proposed a grand migration: abandoning the scattered holdings of the Northern Highlands and resettling at Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands. Many smaller clans rallied to his call, seeking unity in the face of rising threats.
But the Northern Highlands were not so easily abandoned. Some tribes—such as the Firebeard of Firebeard clan and the residents of Sandmar and Dunwald—chose to remain. The clans were fragmented, and tensions simmered, particularly between Firebeard and Sandmar.
Galen, ever the opportunist, welcomed the division.
He contacted Keegan Firebeard through Maky. Their trade history meant Galen was well-regarded among the Firebeard. Through these ties, he was introduced to Thunder Peak, the spiritual nexus of the Wildhammer.
Thunder Peak, just east of the landing, served as the sacred burial ground of gryphons—a holy site for the clans. From here, Galen negotiated with Grand Shaman Lorkron Magrave, the spiritual leader of the Wildhammer shamans. An agreement was struck: Galen would assist in defending the remaining clans, and in return, a cadre of elite shamans led by Lorkron's son, Grondin Magrave, would be sent to aid the Broken.
With the Dark Iron and Wildhammer both under his sway, Galen's alliance deepened.
Meanwhile, Varian, Queen Taria, and young Vareen had arrived in Minas Tirith. While the Queen prayed daily in the cathedral for the Light's blessing, her son and nephew were unceremoniously handed to the trainers by Aragorn.
Aragorn did not demand faith in the Light—his paladins trained warriors and spell-swords alike. And so, Varian and Vareen endured daily drills, sparring and sweating through lessons once reserved for noble knights.
When Galen returned, he caught sight of the two boys being thoroughly thrashed by grizzled instructors. The sight reminded him of Hogger's own humbling days of training, and he could not help but laugh aloud.
Unfortunately, both boys saw him.
Vareen flushed with embarrassment, while Varian looked momentarily wounded.
"Haha! Don't be ashamed," Galen said, chuckling. "When I first trained, I couldn't last two strikes against my father and old Amor. I got flattened like a pancake!"
The boys grumbled, but the camaraderie of shared hardship settled in. The future king was learning—not just how to fight, but how to endure.