Hearthstone Hero Alternatives- Horde Mage

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I got into Hearthstone because I've long been a fan of the Warcraft franchise. Ever since the release of Warcraft II in 1996 (I played it on a Mac). As a result I have seen a comparable bare bones fantasy world transform into a gargantuan beast of a universe. At the moment Hearthstone is at its bare bones, and who can blame Blizzard, it only just got off the ground. But they have a world to draw from; to give these bones flesh.

While balance will always be an issue in a competitive game, Blizzard are also able to make aesthetic changes to enrich the gaming experience even more. This can be done through something as simple as changing the skins of the heroes we play. Warcraft has always been about the ragtag Horde (made up predominantly of Orc, Troll, Tauren, Forsaken, Blood Elf and Goblin) versus the noble Alliance (Human, Dwarf, Gnome, Night Elf, Draenei and Worgen making up a majority of their ranks). This is lost in Hearthstone. It'd be surprising if brand new players to the franchise even knew this conflict existed.

So, today I bring you the Horde's alternative to the Alliance's Jaina Proudmoore. Grand Magister Rommath. In all honesty, there aren't too many 'big name' mages on the Horde side but Rommath certainly fits the bill for being the Horde representative. Not only is Rommath an extremely talented Magus but he has also served two of Warcraft's most prominent lore characters. He was very close to the Blood Elves' now disgraced leader Prince Kael'Thas and is an adviser to the Blood Elf racial leader Lor'themar Theron. So let me tell you something about Rommath and why I think he is the most interesting choice.

Rommath started among the Kiren'Tor, a group of Azeroth's most powerful mages, that lead the city of Dalaran. There he rose to the rank of Archmage, a title that many of the city's rulers also wore. During what is known as the third war (Warcraft III), the dead rose up to serve an entity known as the Lich King. This swarm of corpses was dubbed the undead scourge as it sought to scour the living from Azeroth.

Unfortunately for Rommath and his people, the Quel'Dorei (High Elves), their home nation of Quel'Thalas was one of the Scourge's first major targets. While the elves fought tooth and nail, the capitol of Silvermoon soon fell. The Scourge were extremely thorough in their extermination and wiped out most of the High Elven race. Arthas, leader of the scourge armies, also corrupted a font of power called the Sunwell. The Sunwell fed magic to the entirety of the elven race and without this constant source of power being fed to them, they soon began to experience withdrawal. Rommath and the others who escaped, joined with the last of the High Elven ruling line, Prince Kael'Thas Sunstrider and from this moment on, they renamed themselves Sin'Dorei (Blood Elves) in honour of their fallen comrades.

Once part of the Alliance, the Blood Elves would soon splinter off as the race was put between a rock and a hard place by one of the Alliance's main Generals, Garithos. A massive undead force approached Kael and his peoples' position, however on the eve of the undead attack, Garithos withdrew his foot soldiers stationed with Kael to the front. The Bood Elves, Rommath included, could have been completely wiped out that day if not for the timely aid of the Naga, a serpentine race that actually shares a common lineage with the Blood Elves. When Garithos learnt of this union, he ordered the Blood Elves executed as the Naga were not in the Alliance's good books.

The Naga again came to their rescue and the Blood Elves traveled through a portal to the world known as Outland. Here Kael and his followers met Illidan Stormrage, who taught the Blood Elves techniques to siphon arcane energy to feed their magic addiction. While Kael sought a new homeland for his people, Rommath was sent back to Azeroth to find those of his brethren that still lived and teach them how to siphon arcane energy. With Rommath's help the Blood Elves of Azeroth were able to reclaim a great portion of their kingdom, Quel'Thalas, from the scourge.

Rommath became adviser to Regent Lord Lor'themar Theron, who ruled the Blood Elves in Azeroth until Kael's return. Rommath also lead the magisters, the Blood Elf mages. With the scourge still very much active, the Blood Elves needed allies and found them in the shape of the Horde; the force they were once at war with.

Rommath suffered a huge personal blow when he found that Kael, the prince to whom he had once been so loyal, betrayed his own people and cast his lot in with the Burning Legion, a force that looked to destroy Azeroth. Kael was killed for his treachery and Rommath stayed loyal to Silvermoon throughout the entire ordeal. Since these events Rommath vowed to not simply stand on the sidelines when it came to the future of his people.

He has kept up this notion to this day: He accused the Kirin Tor of doing nothing when his race was sentenced to death, he stood up to Sylvanas Windrunner when he felt she was blackmailing Lor'themar and he even stood against Jaina Proudmoore when she abandoned the Kirin'Tor's neutrality and began to purge the mages of the Horde from Dalaran. Rommath traveled to the city to fight her forces and help his people escape.

Wouldn't it be awesome if your Mage vs. Mage mirror match had some meaning behind it? Not just Jaina vs. Jaina, but two staunch adversaries battling it out for superiority. This tension between Jaina and Rommath and his attitude to never again sit on the fence, in my opinion, makes Rommath a perfect candidate to represent the Horde as a Mage in Hearthstone. What do you think? Should there be multiple character skins for a class? Is Rommath a good choice? Which Mage would you like to see enter the fray? Please let us know because you may think of some one we didn't even consider!