Five World of Warcraft expansions have passed since the titan Sargeras drove a colossal sword into Azeroth. The weapon caused the planet to bleed for a time, yet the story has largely left its fate hanging while players wondered when anyone would deal with such an obvious threat.
That may finally be changing. Blizzard appears to have acknowledged the sword again, although the reference was easy to miss: it appeared in the background of a single presentation screenshot during BlizzCon.
The image was shown during the World of Warcraft: What’s Next panel, while associate game director Paul Kubit discussed the final raid of the current Midnight expansion. Called The Worldcore, the raid takes place inside Azeroth, where the multi-expansion antagonist Xal’atath is attempting to consume or control the planet’s world soul.
At the centre of the screenshot is the bright world soul. To its left is a spiny shape that strongly resembles the tip of the Sword of Sargeras.
A Reddit user has made the same connection, arguing that the shape is either the sword itself or its very tip. The comparison is speculative, but the silhouette appears consistent with the weapon.
Sargeras almost hit the world soul! The discussion was posted by u/Freelancer0495 in the World of Warcraft community.
The other significant recent reference appears in The War Within opening cinematic. Thrall and Anduin discuss the sword and suggest that Sargeras may have been aiming at “someone”. Many players interpreted that someone as Azeroth herself—the planet’s world soul—and this new image may support that reading.
The timing raises an obvious question: how could a titan of unimaginable size come so close to striking the world soul without hitting it directly? Perhaps Azeroth protected herself. It is also possible that Anduin’s strange visions were connected to the world soul calling for help, potentially directing him towards the sword and the chamber beneath the planet.
The weapon is not a forgotten mystery, but its continued presence remains difficult to overlook. A blade of that scale embedded in Azeroth should create consequences far beyond an impressive view on the skyline. After five expansions of adventures elsewhere, players may reasonably expect the heroes to address the problem.
Whether The Worldcore will finally bring the story to the forefront remains unclear. The raid’s immediate crisis is Xal’atath’s attempt to consume the planet’s essence, but removing the Sword of Sargeras would be a useful second item on Azeroth’s repair list.
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