Characters / Warcraft Arthas Menethil

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Prince Arthas Menethil / The Lich King

Crown Prince of Lordaeron, the Lich King

Class: Death Knight (former Paladin)

Voiced by: Justin Gross (English/Warcraft III, Warcraft III Reforged), Patrick Seitz (English/World of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm) (Arthas), Michael McConnohie (English/the Lich King), Vladimir Vikhrov (Russian/Warcraft III), Artyom Kretov (Russian/World of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm), Pierre Tessier (Arthas, French)

"Frostmourne hungers."

The son of King Terenas Menethil, Arthas started out as The Wise Prince, an idealistic, chivalrous hero of Lordaeron, and was also Jaina Proudmoore's lover. Unfortunately, the events of the Third War drove him to abandon his idealistic stance in favor of purging the Plague of Undeath sent by Ner'zhul (the original Lich King). Eventually, the trail set up by the Dreadlord Mal'ganis led him to Northrend and the sword Frostmourne, which consumed his soul and turned him into a Death Knight. He went on to slaughter his people and his father, the king and helped summon Archimonde in a failed attempt (influenced in part by Nerzhul's scheming) to claim the power of the World Tree. Shortly thereafter, Ner'zhul called him back to Northrend to defend against the assault of Illidan Stormrage. Arthas defeated Illidan, then rose to the weakened Frozen Throne, merging with Ner'zhul and becoming the Lich King. Arthas then consumed Ner'zhul's spirit and eradicated Ner'zhul's mind some time after their merge but before Wrath of the Lich King, establishing him as the sole leader of the Scourge.

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• Advancing Boss of Doom: In the Halls of Reflection, his boss "battle" is just running from him as fast as possible while breaking down the walls of ice he creates.
• All for Nothing: As the Plague of Undeath continued to spread across Lordaeron and undead hordes continued to destroy more and more of his land, Arthas took increasingly desperate and morally questionable actions to fight the Scourge that alienated him from his closest companions and even the people he had sworn to protect.
  He made the decision to cull the plague-ridden Stratholme, destroying the second largest city of Lordaeron, killing an untold number of people, some of whom may or may not have been infected by the undeath plague.
  Goaded by Mal'Ganis, he lead his soldiers on a mad quest to the frozen north, destroying his own ships and only means of returning home once he finds out Uther convinced his father to recall his expedition. Finally, in his last attempt to stop the Scourge, he claims the cursed sword Frostmourne, believing it to be the only means of killing Mal'Ganis — only for the sword to consume his soul and turn him into agent of the Lich King, undoing all the work and sacrifices he made, culminating in him personally destroying the kingdom he loved and almost completely eradicating the remaining population of Lordaeron.
• All-Loving Hero: Deconstructed. The fact that Arthas loved his people is what made it so easy for Ner'zhul to corrupt him into becoming the villain he was later known as. His love for his people drove him to try and save them when the Plague hit, but the fact that he couldn't save them drove him to becoming more desperate, even going so far as to kill his own people to spare them of the undead curse befallen them. In his desperation, he took up Frostmourne to defeat Mal'ganis, but this was the plan all along, and he lost his soul and became a Death Knight obsessed with power above all else, turning against his home and people.
• Alternate Company Equivalent: An out-of-medium example; Arthas bears a number of resemblances to the three biggest villains of Warhammer, namely Archaon, Nagash, and Malekith. Specifically, Arthas shares a royalty-themed background with the latter two, was a celebrated hero-turned-Evil Overlord like Archaon and Malekith, and his end goal of destroying everything is shared by the former two. Like Malekith, Arthas was also seduced into becoming evil by a series of deceit and manipulation and is a tragic figure due to the circumstances of his villainy. This trope is quite apparent when one realizes that Warcraft could have been a Warhammer video game had Blizzard and Games Workshop not gotten into a fallout due to the latter not viewing video games in a favorable light during that time.
• Ambiguous Situation: Where the Arbiter would have sent him. The fact Uther and Devos defied the Arbiter to place him within the Maw, raises the very real question if Arthas was actually destined for the Maw or if he had a chance for redemption in Revendreth, as villains that had committed seriously grievous sins would even be giving the chance.
  • His soul was used by the Jailor to turn Shalamayne into Kingsmourne.
• And I Must Scream: Consider how many ruined lives and captured souls he is responsible for through the entire timeline, and yet when Sylvanas sees him in the afterlife, he's broken down in tears from the unspeakable torture that's going on there. Suppose Uther's hope for there to be a special place in Hell for him came true. This hell turned out to be the Maw and Arthas would be reduced to barely a flicker before vanishing forever. It's the same place where his Shadowy Tormentor Shades torture the souls of Death Knights when they aren't killing anything despite them still being alive. It would seem that his former Undead minions are still torturing any spirit that enters the Lich King's territory. Shadowlands reveals that Forsworn Uther personally threw him into the Maw.
• Anti-Hero: A textbook showcase of a slow evolution throughout all the different types of anti-heroes in the course of human campaign in Warcraft III. To elaborate:
  • He starts out as a classic, straight up hero in the beginning, but already in the first few missions, his characterization in dialogue is established as having elements of the Classical Antihero / the Byronic Hero, namely pride and, more importantly, both hidden self-doubt (it is clear that Arthas is not entirely convinced that he can keep his people safe and suffers because of this) and a lust for vengeance (such as vocally advocating slaughtering the demon-aligned orcs to the last after they murder villagers).
  • Both his self-doubts and his vengeful nature are shown in slowly increasing detail for about the first half of the campaign, as he evolves into the Pragmatic Hero - still unquestionably devoted to the greater good of his people, with noble objectives, yet growing increasingly harsher, more abrasive, and willing to Shoot the Dog and to do what is necessary as he is confronted with the ravages of the Scourge.
  • Then, the Wham Episode of the human campaign occurs, the Culling of Stratholme, which kicks Arthas right down into firm Unscrupulous Hero territory, with him having ordered the purge of an entire city full of civilians. The city was infected with the plague already, he had reason to assume (and was proven right) that the townsfolk would turn into zombies, who then would join the army of his arch-enemy, so that his actions were still, in a way, justifiable as a necessity, but ultimately, he — being a paladin — ordered the destruction of the second-biggest city of his own kingdom and personally slew unarmed civilians. This is also the point in the story where Arthas falls out with his former mentor figure and his former lover, who are appalled at the lengths he is willing to go to, and also the moment which breaks him for good, channeling nearly all of his drive away from protecting his people and towards vengeance upon Mal'Ganis.
  • To claim said vengeance, he departs for Northrend and, there, grows even more obsessed with revenge, becoming more and more cold and abrasive and increasingly disregarding the safety of his men when he used to be a father to them before. When he receives an order from his father to return to Lordaeron, he has his boats burned so that the men cannot leave, blaming it on a band of mercenaries he himself hired and commanded in secret, and having them executed. At this point, Arthas has slipped into Nominal Hero mode, forsaking any care for his country or people or friends and any chivalric principles a paladin ought to have, driven by vengeance solely. And then he claims Frostmourne, which ends any and all remotely heroic phases of his life.
• An Ice Person: As a Death Knight.
• Arch-Enemy: To many, many people. Particularly Illidan, Kael'Thas, Sylvanas, Darion Morgraine and his Death Knights, and later Tirion Fordring in Wrath of the Lich King. Notably most of these are one-sided, except for Tirion.
• Ax-Crazy: Even before obtaining Frostmourne and being corrupted by it, Arthas had shown signs of going off the deep end by countlessly slaughtering innocent people who he thought as potential armies that could be used for the Scourge. However once obtaining Frostmourne and becoming the next vessel for the Lich King he had completely lost any humanity he had left and while he was a calmer then most, Arthas displayed a sadistic and murderous personality to where he enjoyed killing anyone that stood against him.
• Badass Cape: Extra points for being black and tattered.
• Barbarian Long Hair: He's always had some pretty thick locks, though they grow slightly thinner after he becomes a Death Knight.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: Arthas pledged to Frostmourne (and unknowingly the Lich King) that he would pay any price to save his people. By being corrupted by Frostmourne and having all of his people turned into undying zombies, one could morbidly interpret this as getting what he asked for.
• Being Tortured Makes You Evil: The Lich King believes that he can make Bolvar Fordragon become his servant if he breaks him long enough. Ironically, he ultimately ends up becoming the new Lich King...without actually turning evil.
• Berserk Button: Don't hurt his horse, Invincible. It's about the only thing that can make him somewhat human again, so that he can access his reserves of sheer fury.
• Big Bad: Of Wrath of the Lich King. (he is the eponymous character, after all).
• Big Bad Slippage: Becomes so desperate to save Lordaeron from the Scourge that he becomes a Death Knight in their service and eventually their leader.
• Black Knight: After obtaining Frostmorne, Arthas falls from grace as a paladin and becomes a Death Knight.
• Bling of War: Minus the color scheme, his armor fits this to a T.
• Brainwashed and Crazy: It's easy to forget that despite his status as Ner'zhul's champion and enforcer, Frostmourne claimed Arthas' soul and Ner'zhul's whispers drove him mad like any of his other victims. He had more freedom then most of the other agents of the Lich King, but he still was lead to his fate against his will.
• Casting a Shadow: One of his MANY abilities involves using the Death Coil power, which damages the living and heals the undead with unholy magic.
• Cessation of Existence: His final fate. Most of his soul is burnt away by the Jailer until a final remnant is freed, which soon dissipates and is gone forever.
• The Chains of Commanding: This is what drove him to seek out power when he was still good. The sheer horror of the Plague and The Scourge took its toll on the young prince's mind. Despite the loyalty of his soldiers up until he betrayed them, Arthas was struggling in how to handle the people not only of his army, but also the people he one day would lead. Eventually he realized the dead mindlessly obey, so that eliminated that problem.
• Characterization Marches On: His depiction in WCIII make him greatly at odds with what people know him as.
  • As a Paladin, he was brash, rude, and quick to use violence, and he came across as a spoiled prince who got angry at the Scourge more for threatening his future kingdom. His novel and later depictions make him a more reasonable person and an All-Loving Hero whose inability to save his people drove him into madness, and he has closer ties to people like Uther and Jaina. Essentially, in III, he bordered on being a Hate Sink as a Paladin, while later depictions make him a Fallen Hero.
  • As a Death Knight he was callous and detached (with a sense of humor going by his chuckling at Uther's reaction to hearing he came for Terenas' ashes), without any signs of disloyalty towards Ner'zhul or regret from/resentment at his position in the Scourge, outside of the possible exception of The Frozen Throne's final cinematic. In his novel, he's repeatedly shown as regretting or doubting his actions as a Death Knight (with the suggestion that his aforementioned attitude is really a facade) and resents having to follow Ner'zhul's orders or be a puppet for Kel'thuzad's manipulations.
• The Chosen One: A dark and villainous example. Arthas was more or less picked from the moment he was old enough to be Ner'zhul's Champion, and his body later. This suggests that Arthas never had a chance at being the good man he once was.
  Arthas: The Lich King knew that I would kill you?
  Kel'Thuzad: Of course. He chose you to be his champion long before the Scourge even began.
• Climax Boss: Of Wrath of the Lich King. He's not the final boss of his expansion, that's Halion which leads to Catacylsm.
• Complexity Addiction: His convoluted gambit to repeatedly let his plans be thwarted and minions killed to make the player stronger is totally unnecessary. The Halls of Reflection instance reveals that if Arthas were killed the Scourge would wipe out Azeroth in a Zerg Rush, even without Arthas' immense personal power or a guiding intelligence controlling them. It turns out that nearly every action Arthas takes in Wrath of the Lich King is a massive Batman Gambit to draw Azeroth's greatest heroes to his doorstep, let them think they have the upper hand, and kill them all to raise them as the greatest generals for his army. Had Tirion not succeeded with his Desperation Attack, the gambit would have been pulled off without a hitch.
• Cool Helmet: The Helm of Domination is the source of all his God-like power. Rather intimidating as well.
• Cool Horse: His beloved horse Invincible, which he later raised into undeath and rode into battle. He later gave him wings, but is never seen riding him as the Lich King, though he has a low chance to drop it on heroic difficulty^note Originally before Cataclysm's release, Invincible was a 100% drop-rate on 25-man Heroic, but was lowered to 1% after Cataclysm's release, due to the decreased difficulty higher-level players have in the fight.
• Cool Sword: Frostmourne, which is the most iconic weapon of the franchise, with the Doomhammer close in second. It's so awesome that it's the current page image for this trope. Frostmourne is a soul-stealing sword (including of the person who wields it), and it's taken on the champions of the Night Elves and of the Alliance with ease. Arthas even killed Uther with it.
• Corrupted Character Copy: Of King Arthur. Not only is his name similar to the Once and Future King, but his arc is a dark reflection of Arthur's legend. Like Arther, Arthas claims a magical sword and goes on to be crowned the ruler of a great kingdom with the aide of a wizard, only the blade is the cursed Frostmourne, the kingdom is the Undead Scourge, and the wizard is the Necromancer—turned undead lich—Kel'Thuzad.
• Creepy Souvenir: Arthas kept a chest of keepsakes among him while he was the Lich King. Many of them are bittersweet (a locket from Jaina and his Silver Hand badge). However there's also a vial of Sylvanas' blood among them, making it more along the lines of war trophies.
• Dark Is Evil: As the Lich King, he controls the entire Scourge, also known as the Dark Lord, and has dark colored armor to go with it.
• Deadpan Snarker: Possibly the single wittiest character in the franchise, really. Emphasis on Dead.
  • Upon meeting with half-demon Illidan:
    Illidan: [angrily] Hello, Arthas.
    Arthas: [mockingly] You look... different, Illidan. I suppose the Skull of Gul'dan didn't agree with you.
  • Even before his Start of Darkness, he's already deadpan. For example when confronting an Abomination for the first time:
    Jaina Proudmoore: That creature looks like it was sewn together from different corpses.
    Arthas: Let's study it after we kill it, okay?
  • After he did the Face–Heel Turn and confronting Uther for last time:
    Uther the Lightbringer: "Your father ruled this land for seventy years, and you've ground it to dust in a matter of days.
    Arthas: Very... dramatic, Uther. Give me the urn, and I'll make sure you die quickly.
  • He avoided Snark-to-Snark Combat with Antonidas, though:
    Antonidas: Greetings, Prince Arthas. How fares your noble father?
    Arthas: [sheepishly] Lord Antonidas. There's no need to be snide.
  • The pure gold is when he confronts Sapphiron the enormous Blue Dragon, who later became a boss in Naxxramas:
    Sapphiron: You dare enter my lair? I am Sapphiron, ancient servant of Malygos the Spell-Weaver! Explain yourselves!
    King Arthas: Sorry we don't have time to chat, great wyrm. We've come to murder you and steal whatever artifacts you've been hoarding over the centuries.
    Sapphiron: Honesty. How... refreshing! None may challenge Sapphiron and live!
  • Not to mention one of his annoyed quotes as a Death Knight:
    Arthas: Who is this "Darkness" anyway?.
• Deader than Dead: His soul is used as fuel for the Jailer's plans, until Kingsmourne is broken. All that remains is a last spark that soon fades forever.
• Decoy Protagonist: He's the main focus of the human and Scourge campaigns but after that, he disappears from the base game except for one important but brief scene where he convinces Illidan to steal the skull of Gul'dan. His story only picks up again in The Frozen Throne expansion pack.
• Detrimental Determination: His determination to defeat Mal'Ganis and stop the Scourge only make things worse for him, as he gradually falls into villainy in desperation. By the time he does defeat him, he's suffered a Motive Decay and become obsessed with only power above all else. Rise of the Lich King takes this even further, as his determination during the Culling of Strathholme is also contrasted by his guilt for having to purge the city, causing the Light to stop empowering him as a result of losing his convinction.
• Discard and Draw: When he claimed Frostmourne, he also discarded his paladin warhammer Light's Vengeance. This would soon be followed by giving up his Light-based powers entirely in favor of the Scourge's necromancy.
• Dragged Off to Hell: Shadowlands reveals this is how he got to the Maw, Forsworn Uther and Devos personally grabbed him when he died and cast him into the Maw, bypassing any judgment from the Arbiter, to ensure he ended up there.
• The Dragon: Was previously one to Ner'Zhul.
• Dragon with an Agenda: Serves both as Ner'Zhul's agent in this towards the Burning Legion, and then later is this towards Ner'Zhul himself.
• Dragon Ascendant: Arthas destroyed Ner'zhul's spirit at the end of Rise of the Lich King, leaving him the only one in control of the Lich King body.
• Dragon-in-Chief: Due to Ner'zhul being stuck in his armor, Arthas was the one who led the Scourge in destroying Lordaeron.
• The Dreaded:
  • He attained this reputation sometime after his face heel turn. Hell, in Frozen Throne, three top-ranking DREADLORDS would rather run away than face him in battle.
  • In the Wrath of the Lich King expansion, his appearance during a quest will cause every character in sight to shit themselves.
• Dying as Yourself: Like all the others, Arthas's soul was released when Frostmourne was shattered. Sometime between that and his death scene, it returned to his body, and suddenly he was the young prince again once his Glowing Eyes of Doom faded away. Doesn't seem to have gotten him into a good afterlife, though... However he ended up in the Maw because of Uther without being judged by the Arbiter, making it unknown if he would have instead ended up in Revendreth etc to atone for his sins in life.
  • This is, in the end, Subverted in a sense. While he died remorseful of his actions, his final role is as fuel for The Jailer's machinations, his soul being reduced to a small, mindless ember of anima that becomes incapable of sustaining itself and fades out of existence. The only reason it can be identified as Arthas is due to the prior knowledge he was trapped within Kingsmourne at all.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones:
  • An odd example but when Arthas was young, his horse Invincible was severely injured. Unable to heal him, Arthas killed him to end his pain. This event left a major impact on Arthas and inspired him to become a paladin. After losing his soul and killing his father, the first thing Arthas did was run to Invincible's grave and brought the horse back to life. When the Scourge attacked the Sunwell and Arthas did battle with Anasterian Sunstrider, Anasterian cut off Invincible's forelegs to dismount Arthas. Arthas was horrified at the sight of Invincible desperately trying to rise to his feet as it brought back memories of the wound that took Invincible from him the first time. This made Arthas go completely berserk. Even Sylvanas couldn't help but notice that it looked like that Arthas was human again for a brief moment. Even after becoming the Lich King, he kept Invincible by his side. Make zero mistake about it, even after killing his own flesh and blood, Arthas loved that horse.
  • A straighter example in that he kept Tragic Keepsakes such as his old Training Sword from Muradin, Silver Hand Badge from Uther, and Jaina's locket. As all three of some of the most important people to Arthas, even as the Lich King it shows he still, on some level, had love for them.
• Evil Feels Good: He agreed. However it wasn't so much that evil felt good, but more that evil felt good to a prince.
• Evil Is Deathly Cold: He employs a lot of frost magic and lives on the Azeroth equivalent of the North Pole. Also the page image.
• Evil Overlord: Of the second most powerful villainous faction in the game besides the Burning Legion.
• Evil Plan: He allowed you and your fellow heroes to come all the way to his throne room so he could personally slaughter and resurrect you to have the greatest warriors of the world on his side.
• Evil Prince: Evil, prince, slew his father and took the throne for himself, then went on to destroy the kingdom.
• Evil Sounds Deep: The Lich King has a completely different voice actor from Arthas, and his voice becomes monstrously deep after he dons the Helm of Domination.
• Evil Sounds Raspy: Michael McConnohie gives him a rather manly rasp as the Lich King.
• Evil Weapon: Frostmourne is a soul stealing rune sword that was sealed away within Northrend with guardians meant to protect anyone from touching the cursed steel.
• Exact Words: When he was still human, told his men that the troll rabble destroyed their ships and stranded them in Northrend. He just didn't mention the part where he hired the mercenaries to do it in order to keep his men from returning home.
• Expy:
  • He's clearly based on Elric and Sauron, with most of his iconic art referencing one or both. He's also one for the Witch-King of Angmar (from which the name Lich King was first derived), a former human king corrupted by evil and raises an undead army in the frozen wastes.
  • With his revamped lore in Chronicles, his role as the loophole that would allow his master to escape servitude and free his people clearly invoked Kerrigan of Starcraft whose role was basically the same.
  • A rising star in an order of knights who is both stubborn and reckless, who becomes disgruntled with the limitations of his creed and ultimately betrays it to take up the sword for an evil he originally fought against, returning to destroy the kingdom he once swore to protect and decimate the knighthood to which he once belonged, killing his old mentor in the process. Are we talking about Arthas, or Anakin Skywalker?
• The Extremist Was Right: While the Culling of Stratholme is treated as an In-Universe Moral Event Horizon by many and is unquestionably extreme, Arthas' actions temporarily suppressed the Scourge and prevented one of the largest cities in Lordaeron from falling 100% to the undead. In doing so, Arthas' brought valuable time for the other factions to at least rally their troops for better defenses, even if later he would be the one to undo them. Wrath of the Lich King would also later show that once someone is infected with the plague of undeath, there is no way to remove it and that someone infected will die regardless of who attempts to heal the person. While Arthas' actions were cruel, ultimately he was right that is was the only option left to them, even if said action was the beginning of his spiral into villainy. Even years later, Jaina remains conflicted on if leaving him behind that day was right or not because of how terrible the situation was.

F-N

• Face–Heel Turn: The page image. He used to be a paladin and fight for the light, but his hot-headedness, temper, and lust for power eventually led to him becoming the Lich King. And along the way, he got numerous people killed, got his allies turned against him, and took increasingly desperate measures. Throughout his quest, Arthas continued to justify everything to himself by saying that it was all in the name of the greater good, but these were just self-serving lies.
• Fallen Hero: One of gaming's most famous examples. Arthas was once a noble prince, who became the Lich King of the Scourge.
• Fatal Flaw: Insecurity. His entire life he constantly worried about being able to live up to the example of the great men around him. It caused him to misinterpret compliments as insults, drove him to break off his relationship with Jaina because he felt he wasn't ready, and his fear of being unable to protect his people drove him to extreme actions that lead to his damnation. His self-doubt in Rise of the Lich King is put on display when during the Culling of Stratholme, the Light abandons him because of his extreme guilt over committing the act.
• A Father to His Men:
  • He valued the men under his command, and would take the time to learn their names and talk to them about their day. It's a trait he kept as a death knight, as he values the Scourge the same way. Part of why he was able to get so far as a paladin was because his men understood he cared for them and kept fighting for him. It was only when he got to Northrend that he truly stopped caring for them.
  • It later gets averted when the Dreadlords and Sylvanas manage to take control of most of his warriors. Arthas then realizes that most of his new subjects would turn on him if given the chance and so starts treating them as pawns.
• Fighting from the Inside: Uther theorized that the reason Arthas held back the Scourge was due to the last traces of his humanity influencing him. When Arthas dies, his final words suggest Uther was right, as he seems almost relieved he can stop being the Lich King.
• Final Boss: Of the Icecrown Citadel raid, as expected. However, he isn't actually the final boss of his own expansion; the title belongs to Halion, the herald of Deathwing.
• Four-Star Badass: You don't annihilate three of the most powerful kingdoms of a continent without being a superb tactician. You just can't. Three dragonflights, the Argent Crusade, The Knights of the Ebon Blade, The Horde and the Alliance as well as several minor factions had to gang up against this man and his endless armies. They won by the skin of their teeth.
• Glowing Eyes of Doom: After putting on the Helm of Domination. Averted after the Helm shatters resulting in Arthas becoming himself again in his final moments.
• Graceful Loser: When Frostmourne is shattered and he's left defenseless, Arthas doesn't scream in a rage or suffer a breakdown. Instead he sounds more like he's lost his resolve and accepts his defeat.
  The Lich King: Now I stand, the lion before the lambs... and they do not fear. [beat] They cannot fear.
• A God Am I: Or damn near close to it. The background fluff calls him the 'god-like Lich King' or a 'demi-god' or even 'a being of incalculable power'. He also sees himself as a god-like being and is worshipped as such by his minions.
• The Good King:
  • From the Scourge's point of view. Arthas comes across as an incredibly inspiring figure in the Frozen Throne undead campaign. Especially evident when he rescues loyalist pockets in the Capital city.
    Crypt Fiend: By Nerub! The rebels nearly had us, King Arthas...
    Arthas: I would not leave my subjects to be slaughtered by this rabble.
    Crypt Fiend: Then we will stand by you till the end!
  • Overall, if you just took the time to remove the fact that everything's undead, he's a sticker for this trope. Acts as A Father to His Men (shown to mourn troops lost against the elves when they were too damaged to continue on), actually loyal followers with whom he shows a friendship towards (Kel'Thuzad and Anub'Arak).
    • Possibly subverted. Anub'Arak is implied to resent him for destroying his kingdom and when you kill Anub, his death rattle is "I never thought I would be free of him." As such, he (or Ner'zul before Arthas becomes the Lich King) may be forcing his subjects to treat him as such so he can play the good, loved leader in a chilling mockery of the life he had in Lorderon. Those that are not forced are either mindless or care more about the power he grants them (such as Kel'thuzad and the other Liches). This is supported by his regular response quotes in Warcraft III - as a mortal human, he talked like a Humble Hero ("There's no need to bow"). After becoming evil, he started sounding like a Bad Boss, snapping at the player for pestering him.
    • Rise of the Lich King has Arthas briefly try to style himself as a ruler like his father and treat his undead troops as his subjects. He gives up on this when he realizes that they're only shambling mockeries of life and so resolves to keep them at a distance.
• Happily Married: In the Twilight of the Aspects novel, in an alternate future, Arthas is this with Jaina. They even have a son, who is ironically named Uther Menethil. In that timeline, although Arthas did not turn evil, Uther was still killed by somebody else. The child was named in Uther's honor, some time after his death.
• Heel–Face Door-Slam: If the theory that he regained his humanity in his final moments is correct.
• Hero Killer: In Warcraft III, where he killed Uther, Sylvanas, Antonidas and many other distinguished personages rather handily. He regains the title in the final battle against him, where he pretty much freezes Tirion solid and kills the entire raid in one blow, before he begins raising them as his minions. It doesn't stick though, as Tirion is broken out by a Deus Ex Machina and breaks Frostmourne, which frees Terenas who resurrects the entire raid.
• Heroes Prefer Swords: Inverted. Picking up a sword is the final step in this transformation from Anti-Hero to Villain Protagonist. As a good guy he wielded a hammer.
• Heroic Sacrifice: What he thought using Frostmourne would entail. He was wrong.
• He Who Fights Monsters: Arthas is the textbook example of this. In his attempt to stop the Scourge, he became what he was trying to stop.
• Holy Burns Evil: He used his Light-based spells when he fought the Scourge as a Paladin. Naturally after he became a Death Knight, he's hurt by the spells, instead. During the Battle for the Light's Hope Chapel, Tirion injured him with Light-imbued Ashbringer.
• Hopeless Boss Fight: In Halls of Reflection and in Icecrown Citadel. The only reason you win the second time is because Tirion gets an infusion of Light and shatters Frostmourne.
• Humanoid Abomination: Upon becoming the Lich King.
• Ignored Epiphany: While walking up to the Frozen Throne, Arthas has a vision of all the people close to him telling him what a mistake he's making. He still does it.
• I Let You Win: Yes, he let you all win throughout the entire expansion for his Evil Plan. He pretty much plays this also on Tirion in regards to their first meeting.
• Karmic Death: Held down by the souls of his victims while the heroes hack him to pieces. And after his death, his Shade minions are fulfilling their task of torturing everyone inside the Lich King's territory within the Troll God of the Afterlife Bwonsambi's Realm of Shadows but the Lich King, Ghouls & the Dark Riders of Acherus and since Arthas is none of those anymore they're now torturing him!
• Kill It with Ice: As the Lich King, he can summon explosions of ice to kill his enemies.
• Killed Off for Real: After a climatic battle atop Icecrown, Arthas meets his end when Frostmourne is shattered by Tirion, and the Heroes of Azeroth are able to land the finishing blows.
• The Kingslayer: Upon his return to Lordaeron after possessing Frostmourne he kills his father using that very blade. He then goes on to kill the king of the High Elves.
• Light Is Not Good: As a paladin, his actions became more and more evil despite still wielding the Light. Of course, when he finally does his Face–Heel Turn, he abandons the Light entirely.
• Lightning Bruiser: In Warcraft III and its expansion — Arthas is incredibly fast and hits extremely hard even before taking into account the various Tomes of Strength and attack-power increasing items you'll find for him. Combined with his Death Coil, which is arguably the most damaging direct damage attack in the game; Arthas is adept at eliminating hero units and powerful infantry. In fact, he's so strong that he'll beat his counterpart — Illidan, roughly 90% of the time.
• Locked into Strangeness: He turned white-haired after becoming sort of undead. (Technically, Arthas never died until Icecrown Citadel of course.)
• Magic Knight: He's always been this. Turned into an evil and frankly, far more powerful one after his face heel turn.
• Master Swordsman: Once he trades his paladin hammer for Frostmorne. See Übermensch below. This guy accomplishes a lot with (unholy evil) cold steel.
• Merger of Souls: At the end of the undead campaign in Frozen Throne, he merges his soul with Ner'zhul and becomes the Lich King.
• More than Mind Control: Zigzagged. Arthas was the victim of his own impulsive and rash decisions through Detrimental Determination, and he was subject to manipulation by outside forces like the voice of Ner'zhul. But whether Arthas was more guided by the former or the latter ends up Depending on the Writer. The human campaign of Warcraft III establishes that Arthas was certainly not blameless in his fall from grace — his own impulsiveness, recklessness, and willingness to do evil actions in pursuit of his goals meant that Arthas and his pursuit of power were always going to doom him, one way or the other. But Arthas was losing his mind by the time he picked up Frostmourne, which stole his soul and allowed Ner'zhul to directly manipulate him, yet the Silver Hand paladins act as though Arthas willingly betrayed his people after was corrupted into a death knight. Rise of the Lich King clearly depicts Arthas in the moment his soul is claimed by Frostmourne, with Ner'zhul's whispers directing his action. Conversely, the same novel suggests that Arthas was capable of independent thought and rationalizing his actions as being his choice. The question of just how mind controlled Arthas was is left ambiguous, likely on purpose, but Ner'zhul seemed to deliberately give Arthas more autonomy to let him think he was in control, as opposed to the situation Sylvanas or other Forsaken were in. Wrath of the Lich King plays mind control more straight; it's theorized by Uther's spirit that what's left of Arthas' humanity kept the Scourge in check in the years between Warcraft III and the aforementioned expansion pack. When the Lich King is finally slain, Arthas visibly reverts to his original self, likely as a rest of Frostmourne shattering and releasing his soul.
• The Necrocracy: He founded one, or rather expanded it.
• Necromancer: The most powerful and notable in the franchise. It's his power that allows for the creation of undead worgen, something that for a few reasons is all but impossible.
• Near-Villain Victory: Arthas really wasn't bluffing when he said he could kill the players at any given point. In the fight against him, he eventually gets tired of toying with your raid and kills everyone but Tirion who is trapped and forced to watch. Of course, Tirion has a Big "NO!" moment and manages to break free thanks to the power of the Light and destroy Frostmourne, which unleashes all the souls stored in it, not only reviving the raid, but also restraining Arthas so the raid can kill him.
• No Sympathy: After becoming a Death Knight^note Keep in mind that he's more or less Brainwashed and Crazy at this point, he retains his Deadpan Snarker side and tends to respond any What the Hell, Hero? speech with evil humor such as sarcastically commenting that Uther's being "dramatic" about Lordaeron's downfall; or unsympathetically telling Baelgun and Muradin's dwarves to get over with Muradin's death.
• "Not So Different" Remark: In his many appearances throughout Northrend in Wrath of the Lich King, he points out that the adventurers sent to fight him are no so different than he was. This is especially true in the Shadowmourne quest line.

O-Z

• Oh, Crap!:
  • At the Wrathgate when plague barrels start bombarding the battlefield, and Arthas realizes that Sylvanas had returned to claim vengeance.
    Grand Apothecary Putress: Did you think we had forgotten? Did you think we had forgiven? Behold now, the terrible vengeance of the Forsaken!
    The Lich King: Sylvanas...
  • It does not take Arthas much time to realize he's in serious trouble when Tirion destroys Frostmourne.
    The Lich King: [as he stares at the broken Frostmourne] Impossible...
• Older Hero vs. Younger Villain: Tirion is the older hero while Arthas is the younger villain; he also had this with Uther but Tirion succeeded in taking him down whereas Uther failed.
• One-Man Army:
  • Even before he became the Lich King, when he was just a very powerful death knight. You know why none of his men came back with him? He killed and raised them all himself. Every soul that flies out of the destroyed Frostmourne is one that he is personally responsible for.
  • The Icecrown Citadel encounter, despite his defeat, showcases it quite well. He's the Final Boss in Wrath of the Lich King so he can only be fought by the strongest adventurers in Northrend, and gives them one serious fight despite the fact Arthas was holding back. And when he decides it's enough, he kills the entire party in a single spell. Even with the help of the adventurers, the Argent Crusade and the Knights of the Ebon Blade never stood a chance against the Lich King, and were it not for one unexpected event...
• The Paladin: Initially and as we all know, it did not last.
• Person of Mass Destruction: Uther said it best.
  "Your father ruled this land for seventy years. And you've ground it to dust in a matter of days."
• Physical God: After becoming one with the Lich King, he's one of the most powerful characters in the entire series, rivaling that of minor deities. He is even called a Demigod by canon.
• Pre-Asskicking One-Liner: "Illidan has mocked the Scourge for long enough. It is time we put the fear of death back in him." And what a glorious asskicking he unleashed.
• Protagonist Journey to Villain: His story in Warcraft III.
• Rage Helm: The helm of the Lich King has a permanent glare.
• Reforged into a Minion: Essentially, what happened to Arthas in his ill-fated attempt to destroy the Scourge.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Towards Mal'Ganis after the Culling of Stratholme.
• Rousseau Was Right: Turned to evil because of circumstance, not birth.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something: A royal who fights on the front, kills orc blademasters, tracks down demons to the uncharted north and kills them brutally.
• Sadist: After being corrupted by Frostmourne and turning into an undead, Arthas become more sadistic towards others and enjoyed their suffering. Such as instead of killing Sylvanas which would've been easier to have done, he instead turned her into a banshee to make her suffer as his slave.
• Sequel Hook:
  • It has been confirmed by Blizzard that both Frostmourne and the body of Arthas are now missing. They also heavily implied the possibility that someone might be trying to reforge Frostmourne and bring back Arthas.
  • The hook was swallowed in the upcoming Legion expansion: The one to reforge Frostmourne is the Frost Death Knight Player, as a pair of swords.
• Shoulders of Doom: With a nice big skull on the left one.
• Skeletons in the Coat Closet: He has skulls on his kneecaps. And his shoulders. And his gauntlets. And his chest. And his elbows. And his belt buckle.
• Signature Move: Remorseless Winter, which shrouds him in a localized storm of runic frost. It's a core mechanic in both of his boss fights in Wrath of the Lich King and follows him in some variation or other in all his following incarnations, being his killer app in Heroes of the Storm, a powerful spell as the Death Knight deck representative in Hearthstone and his final Hero Power as a boss in the same.
• Slasher Smile: His default facial expression in the official art, apparently.
• Slouch of Villainy: Arthas loves to sit on his Frozen Throne like this, slouched slightly, and was once in this position for 5 years straight.
• Slowly Slipping Into Evil: Arthas doesn't become a true villain until Frostmourne takes his soul outright, but his actions in battling the Scourge definitely chip away at his sanity and alienate him from his peers. The Culling of Stratholme was because of his (correct) belief that they were all doomed to become zombies soon anyway, but Uther and Jaina can't stomach his decision, leaving him to bear its burden alone. Sinking the ships to entrap his men was classic Art of War strategy borne out of an understandable desperation to vanquish the Scourge and justify the sacrifices he'd already made, but it caused Arthas to sink to levels of ruthlessness and deceit that even he would've considered unthinkable earlier on. Finally, he takes Frostmourne, not because of lust for power, but because of desperation and a willingness to sacrifice himself to the sword in order to stop the scourge, but in the end, this very sacrifice undoes everything he'd been fighting for.
• Spikes of Villainy: Most notably his helmet, but the various pieces of armor he wears also has them.
• The Soulless: As a result of picking up Frostmourne.
  Tichondrius: The runeblade you carry was forged by the Lich King and empowered to steal souls. Yours was the first one it claimed.
  Arthas: Then I'll make do without one.
• The Starscream: First towards the Burning Legion, then, in the novel, Ner'zhul.
• Stepford Snarker: Arthas: Rise of the Lich King reveals in the narration that Arthas' dismissive or snarky attitude in Warcraft III to the horrors he's done in life and how he's been manipulated from the start by the Lich King was to mask his sadness and shock at developments, to keep the Scourge or Legion from sensing weakness from him.
• Tin Tyrant: Oh, how he does nail the aesthetic.
• Took a Level in Badass: First when he claims Frostmourne for himself, then takes a million more when he became the Lich King, ascending to Physical God levels of power.
• A Tragedy of Impulsiveness: While Arthas always had something of a temper, it was when he ordered that a city of innocent people be purged without even looking for another way that his fall from grace truly started.
  Arthas: Dammit Uther, as your future king, I order you to purge this city!
  Uther: You are not my king yet, boy. Nor would I obey that command even if you were!
• Tragic Villain: For all the atrocities he wound up committing, Arthas was once a noble paladin that was corrupted in his foolhardy attempt to destroy the Scourge and save his people. He did what he could to save them, but he was unprepared for how truly horrific the Scourge was as a foe, and so he was pushed into making hard choices he wasn't prepared for. Several people who knew Arthas before he became a Death Knight express sadness for how things went for him, and acknowledge that he was basically made the plaything of several powerful, evil beings, and manipulated into becoming a monster.
• Übermensch: Arthas has accomplished more than any other native Azerothian. He carved a path of destruction across a continent, brought about the decimation of entire civilizations single handed, defeated god-like beings and did in fact ascend to godhood. By his actions, the very face of the world was irreversibly changed and radically so for all eternity even if Tirion did defeat him in the end. He even had a Last Man equivalent in Tirion.
• The Undead: Arthas is a very interesting take on this. There was never a point in his character arc before his final death where he was simply "dead". However, he has sustained injuries that would render a living being dead on the spot (most notably, when he cut out his own heart) and presumably his necromantic magic kept him animate. Basically, Arthas was a very weird place where he managed to become undead, but never actually died in the first place, if that makes any sense.
• Ungrateful Bastard:
  • He enlists mercenaries to help destroy the ships that his men are trying to escape to. How does he thank them? By accusing the mercenaries as the one who burnt down the ships and slaughtering them. Muradin called him out on this.
  • This relationship also applies to soldiers who were not mercenaries, as almost all of them were volunteers who followed Arthas out of loyalty.
• Unwitting Pawn: Turns out he was one to the Jailer, although Arthas wasn't entirely aware of that fact at the time, since the Helm of Domination allows the Lich King to only glimpse into parts of the Shadowlands; he mostly used undead Val'kyr to enforce his own will in that realm. He also supplied the Jailer with his most powerful ally, Sylvanas, whom Arthas initially raised out of spite, only for her to break free later on, then deal heavy losses to his army, and then kick his successor's ass later on and finally destroy the Helm of Domination, while Arthas himself was cast out to the Maw to be tormented by Jailer's servants for all eternity after his demise.
• Villainous Friendship: With Kel'thuzad. He even calls him a loyal friend at one point.
• Villainous Breakdown: A subtle one; before Tirion breaks out and shatters his blade he's laughing maniacally; afterwards he's more subdued first saying "Impossible" then calmly saying that they don't fear him despite how he threatened and to destroy them. It's subtle but there.
  • Because one of Arthas's main tools as the Lich King was fear, once he realized that the player characters and Tirion don't fear him (indeed cannot fear him), even in the face of defeat, he realized he was screwed from the start.
• Villain Protagonist: Gets two whole campaigns centered around him in Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, though the first one actually covers his Protagonist Journey to Villain, and a third in the expansion The Frozen Throne.
• Voice of the Legion: After becoming the Lich King.
• Warrior Prince: Arthas tended to fight on the front lines with his troops far more often than any Prince rationally had the right to...
• Warrior Monk: This used to be his job. Up until he became the deity of his own.
• We Have Reserves: As the Lich King, he's willing to sacrifice a lot of Death Knights of Acherus to draw out Tirion so he can kill the Paladin himself. It almost worked if not for Darion's Heel–Face Turn.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: At first. He wanted to stop the Scourge by any means necessary, but gradually became more unhinged and desperate as time went on, until he threw it all away and became the very thing he fought against.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Uther and Jaina's reaction to his choice at Stratholme.
• White Hair, Black Heart: After becoming a Death Knight, Arthas' golden locks turned pure white, reflecting his dead heart.
• Worthy Opponent: Illidan regards him as one. When they first met, he is surprised to find Arthas is his match as a combatant and actually finds himself struggling to keep up with him; where Arthas has no such trouble. Then again Illidan had been imprisoned and probably hasn't had a chance to practice and maintain his fighting skills for thousands of years.
  Illidan: We could go on fighting like this forever... what is it you truly want?
• You Have Failed Me: Several times, such as to Drakuru.
• Your Soul Is Mine!: Frostmourne eats at the soul of anyone it touches, mostly via killing them, but even wielding the blade is said to leave one with their soul trapped. At times the spirits appear from the blade to speak to the living or pester Arthas.

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