At the Battle of Mount Hyjal, the mortal races of Azeroth banded together in a desperate bid to stall the advance of the Burning Legion. The combined might of their armies fought valiantly against the demonic onslaught, but slowly, inexorably, they were pushed back. Even the massive force gathered at the base of the mountain could not stop the demons’ climb. On the steep slopes of Mount Hyjal, Archimonde gave the world a taste of the true power of the Burning Legion’s fury. The Defiler himself led the vanguard, crushing all who stood in his way, determined to reach the World Tree at the mountain’s peak. In the end, only one power was strong enough to destroy the insidious Archimonde: the Wisps.

Just as the orcs, humans and night elves discarded their old hatreds and stood united against a common foe, so did nature herself rise up to banish the shadow forever. The Legion lost one of its leaders, and the mortal races of Azeroth won a brief respite. Yet as the unknown threats of Outland loom ever closer, and hushed whispers of a Burning Crusade can be heard in the darkest, most secret corners of the world, the night elven druids have once again sounded the Horn of Cenarius, summoning the ancient spirits of the forests to aid the Alliance in their hour of need. The wisps have long been deeply connected with the night elves, and will do all in their power to protect their now-mortal Kaldorei allies in this new and dangerous frontier beyond the Dark Portal.

Even though they are commonly believed to be purely benign spirits of the night elves’ sacred forests, a part of the primal energy that was used to destroy the terrible eredar warlord slumbers in all wisps. Should a wisp decide that its time has come, it can unleash all its energy in one devastating detonation. Although this can potentially turn the tide of battle, the wisp’s energies will dissipate beyond any hope of recovery; the wisp’s detonate ability is the ultimate sacrifice. A heavy cost; but the wisps, the ancient guardians of nature, pay it gladly.

Wisps were featured in the 2006 April Fool’s joke when Blizzard Entertainment announced that Wisps would be the new playable race for the Alliance side. This news was greeted with equal parts outrage and bemusement until Blizzard stated the obvious: it was just a joke. The obvious part comes from the fact that when Night Elves “die” in World of Warcraft, their spirit is a wisp, not a ghost. It is also noted that if one looks closely, you can see the face of a night elf in the center of the wisp’s mass.