Pygmy

Pygmy
Faction/Affiliation	Independent,Neferset tribe
Character classes	Headhunter,Scout,Shaman,Thief,Warrior,Witch doctor
Racial leader(s)	Yngwie (Lost Isles)  Sultan Oogah (Uldum, presumed)
Racial mount	Hyena Turtle
Homeworld	Azeroth
Area(s)	Lost Isles,Uldum
Language(s)	Pygmy

Pygmies are a race of small, primitivehumanoids found on theLost Isles and inUldum. According toBrann Bronzebeard, pygmies share an unknown common ancestor withgoblins.^[1]

History[]

On the Lost Isles[]

The pygmies on the Lost Isles are found by theBilgewater Cartelgoblins after the goblins' escape fromKezan. The pygmies have enslaved the monkeys on the island to minekaja'mite. They worshipVolcanoth, and transform some goblins intozombies by sucking out their life-force, while others are sacrificed to their "god".^[2] The pygmies also planned to release Volcanoth upon theTown-In-A-Box, but were unable to do so.

In Uldum[]

In Uldum, after the player followsAdarrah,Budd Nedreck and the others on a camel caravan into Uldum to help them steal ancient artifacts, the caravan is ambushed by pygmy mercenaries. The pygmies bring the prisoners to theNefersettol'vir, who pay the pygmies with coconuts.

Appearance and culture[]

Pygmies are small humanoid creatures, about the size ofgoblins. Their skin ranges in many tones of peach to dark brown.

Pygmies on theLost Isles can be seen ridingturtles, and many wear helmets fashioned from turtle shells. Turtle shells can also be seen in their architecture, ranging from giant shells serving as huts to relatively small ones adorning torches.

Pygmies appear to havetheir own language.

Magic[]

Pygmywitch doctors usenecromancy,shadow as well as elemental magic. However, pygmyshaman use only elemental magic.

Known tribes[]

• Oomgut
• Oomlot tribe
• Unnamed tribe — found inUldum, led bySultan Oogah, and consists of scouts and thieves.

Notable[]

•   Augh <Lost City Tour Guide>
•   Gaahl
•   Malmo
•   Sultan Oogah
•   Teloch
•   Yngwie

Notes and trivia[]

• During the development stages ofCataclysm, pygmies used placeholder models in the form ofgnomes of both genders. They were later changed to have their own unique model, but only males are seen.
• During theCataclysm alpha and beta,Uldum was initially inhabited bysand gnomes, but they were replaced by pygmies later in development.
• Concept art shows that the pygmies of the Lost Isles were initially envisioned as worshipping a giantgorilla named Kong, (an obvious reference toKing Kong), even having a giant wall surrounding his cavern.^[3] Kong was later replaced byVolcanoth and the cavern turned into an escape route for goblin players during the volcanic eruption.
• The pygmy animation skeleton was later reused forgrummles,stewards,Jastor Gallywix, andHarlan Sweete.
• The pygmies on the Lost Isles reference various elements of metal music, particularly Scandinavian musicians.Yngwie is a reference to Swedish guitaristYngwie Malmsteen,Gaahl to Norwegian vocalistKristian "Gaahl" Eivind Espedal, andTeloch to Norwegian guitarist Morten "Teloch" Iversen. Several of these pygmies' abilities are also references to various songs by the aforementioned artists. The pygmy casting animation, much like that of maleForsaken, features thesign of the horns, a hand gesture commonly associated with heavy metal. The sign of the horns can also be seen in the two hand-shaped wooden statues flanking the entrance toOomlot Village.
• The names of the various sub-regions ofOostan (Nord,Ost andSor) are also reminiscent of the words for "North", "East" and "South" in Scandinavian languages. This may or may not be connected to the heavy metal references noted above. On a related note,Malmo's name resembles the Swedish city ofMalmö.

Gallery[]

• 
  Concept art of a pygmy shaman.
• 
  Sultan Oogah, a pygmy in desert attire.
• 
  Augh andLockmaw in theTrading Card Game.
• 
  Pygmy Firebreather in the TCG.
• 
  A pygmy threatened by aworgenrogue in the TCG.
• 
  Three pygmies inHearthstone.
• 
  Wobbling Runts inHearthstone.
• 
  Stolen Goods inHearthstone.

References[]