The only real civilization is a number of famous Orc clans.

Frostwolf Clan of Frostfire Ridge — Chieftain is Durotan, the Father of Thrall. Thrall gets to see where he came from, hang with his family. Will Durotan join the Iron Horde?

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Shadowmoon Clan of Shadowmoon Valley — Chieftain is Ner'zhul, the original Lich King.

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Shattered Hand Clan of the Spires of Arak — Chieftain Kargath Bladefist. He has blades for fists. Go figure.

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Blackrock Clan of Gorgrond — Chieftain Blackhand. The backbone of the Iron Horde. Blackhand is a jerk.

Warsong Clan of Nagrand — Chieftain Grommash Hellscream. Plays a major role in the story. Will his anger get the best of him? They're like Mongols, riding wolves through the plains. He and Garrosh might have words.

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Bleeding Hollow Clan of the Tanaan Peninsula — Chieftain Kilrogg Deadeye. Lives in what will one day be Hellfire. Shamanistic, dark, tribal, bloody-minded clan. They gouge out their own eyes to see the future. Yay!

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Entering Old Draenor

Players are sent on a suicide mission through the Dark Portal to stop the Iron Horde invasion. They're dropped right into the action, much like Mists of Panderia.

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The Horde start in Frostfire Ridge, a frozen area with towering volcanoes. They'll get wrapped up in a conflict between two competing Orc clans, the Frostwolf and Thunderlord. They'll also battle Ogres to claim the Bladespire Fortress as the Horde's expansion base.

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The Alliance begin in Shadowmoon Valley, changed (or unchanged) drastically from the way it looked in the Burning Crusade expansion. It's an area always bathed in darkness, filled with rolling, moonlit hills. It's the home of Karabor (eventually the Black Temple), the holy temple of the Draenei. The Alliance battle the Iron Horde to free the city to use as their base.

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The Plot Thickens, Spills Over

From these first steps into old Draenor, players will embark on a quest that culminate in a battle with a big bad. During the panel Chris Metzen stressed that that big bad wasn't Garrosh. "He's the guy behind the guy." That battle will spill over into the next, unannounced expansion, the first of many Blizzard has lined up as World of Warcraft encroaches on ten years of operation.