Slayn
Tal'darim Bladeworld
Slayn was the capital world of the Tal'darim, a dark and storm-wracked planet rich in the sacred gas terrazine. Once a jungle world, it became a barren bladeworld where the Tal'darim communed with Amon and waged the rite of Rak'Shir along the Chain of Ascension.
Slayn was the capital world, or bladeworld, of the Tal'darim, the fanatical protoss followers of the Xel'Naga Amon. It possessed a dry, hot climate and deadly storms, and it was rich with terrazine, a gas sacred to the Tal'darim that allowed them to commune with Amon in the Void. At night the planet released a terrazine fog in cycles, a fog that had killed off its jungles. For centuries the Tal'darim were centered on Slayn, and there they invoked the rite of Rak'Shir to ascend the Chain of Ascension. (Ascension; StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void)
A jungle world transformed#
Slayn was once a jungle world, before it was settled by the Tal'darim. After their arrival, eruptions of terrazine gas from the planet's crust killed off the jungles, but the same gas allowed the Tal'darim to pierce the veil between dimensions and commune with their god Amon. For centuries the Tal'darim were centered on this world, and there they invoked the rite of Rak'Shir, the ritual combat by which a challenger could ascend the Chain of Ascension that ordered Tal'darim society. (Ascension)
Terrazine exposure had left the once-verdant world barren and brutal, dry and hot, with deadly storms that roared across its surface, and at night the planet released its terrazine fog in cycles. Co-op Missions describe the climate as being as merciless as the Tal'darim themselves, with titanic storms that commonly include pockets of intense cold and large twisters. (Ascension; StarCraft II: Co-op Missions)
Alarak and the Chain of Ascension#
Alarak was part of the Tal'darim on Slayn, holding the rank of Fourth Ascendant, when First Ascendant Nuroka ordered him to help overthrow Highlord Ma'lash. Nuroka had come to see that Amon cared little for the Tal'darim. Alarak entered the Rak'Shir between Nuroka and Ma'lash, but at the last moment sided with the Highlord, killing Nuroka and becoming First Ascendant himself. (Ascension)
The End War#
During the End War, Alarak set in motion his plan to take revenge on Amon, allying with Hierarch Artanis and the Daelaam and leading them to Slayn. Alarak deceived Artanis into slaying Ma'lash's guardians, then challenged Ma'lash to Rak'Shir. Though unhappy at having been deceived, Artanis committed his forces to aid Alarak, fighting through Ma'lash's forces and hybrid allies to give the challenger the upper hand. Alarak eventually bested Ma'lash and cast him into the Pits of Ascension. He ascended as Highlord of the Tal'darim and committed them to the fight against Amon in revenge for the god's betrayal. (StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void)
In Co-op Missions, a splinter group of Tal'darim still loyal to Amon challenges First Ascendant Ji'nara to Rak'Shir after Alarak's ascension, and with the help of allied commanders she keeps her position on the Chain of Ascension. Following Amon's destruction, Alarak abandoned Slayn and left to find a new homeworld for the Tal'darim. (StarCraft II: Co-op Missions; StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void)
Frequently asked questions
- What is Slayn in StarCraft?
- Slayn was the capital world, or bladeworld, of the Tal'darim, the fanatical protoss followers of the Xel'Naga Amon. It was a world with a dry, hot climate and deadly storms, rich with the sacred gas terrazine.
- Why was Slayn a barren world?
- Slayn was once a jungle world before the Tal'darim settled it. After their arrival, eruptions of terrazine gas from the planet's crust killed off the jungles, though the same gas let the Tal'darim pierce the veil between dimensions and commune with Amon.
- Why is terrazine important to the Tal'darim on Slayn?
- Terrazine was a gas sacred to the Tal'darim that allowed them to commune with Amon in the Void. At night the planet released a terrazine fog in cycles.
- How did Alarak become Highlord on Slayn?
- During the End War, Alarak led Hierarch Artanis and the Daelaam to Slayn and deceived Artanis into slaying Ma'lash's guardians. Alarak then challenged Highlord Ma'lash to the rite of Rak'Shir, cast him into the Pits of Ascension, and ascended as Highlord himself.
- What happened to Slayn after Amon's destruction?
- Following Amon's destruction, Alarak abandoned Slayn and left to find a new homeworld for the Tal'darim.
Gallery
Images via StarCraft Wiki
Sources
- GameStarCraft II: Legacy of the Void, Blizzard Entertainment, 2015
- GameStarCraft II: Co-op Missions, Blizzard Entertainment, 2015 onward
- WebAscension, Robert Brooks, Blizzard Entertainment short story, 2015
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
Alarak: the highlord who turned on Amon
Alarak won the Rak'Shir against Highlord Ma'lash and took the Tal'darim for himself. When Amon cast his people aside, he turned the death fleet on him.
Artanis
Artanis was the Hierarch of the Daelaam, a renowned warrior who rose from executor during the zerg invasion of Aiur to lead the reunited protoss. He forged the Khalai and Nerazim into one people, reclaimed Aiur, and led the alliance that banished Amon from the Khala.
Daelaam
The Daelaam was the unified protoss government that bound the Khalai, Nerazim, Purifiers, and some Tal'darim together after the fall of Aiur, led by Hierarch Artanis through the End War against Amon and the reclamation of their homeworld.
End War: Amon's crusade on the galaxy
The resurrected xel'naga Amon corrupted the Khala and cost the protoss both Aiur and Shakuras. Kerrigan, remade as a xel'naga, killed him in the Void.
Tal'darim
The Tal'darim were a warlike sect of protoss taken from Aiur by Amon before the Aeon of Strife. Calling themselves the Forged and the Chosen, they spent ages worshipping the fallen xel'naga as their god until Highlord Alarak turned them against him.
Tal'darim: the fanatical protoss sect of Amon
The Tal'darim, known as the Forged or the Chosen, were a fanatical and warlike sect of protoss taken from Aiur by Amon before the Aeon of Strife, who served the fallen xel'naga for ages before Highlord Alarak turned them against him.
Mentioned in14 entries
Alarak: the highlord who turned on Amon
Alarak won the Rak'Shir against Highlord Ma'lash and took the Tal'darim for himself. When Amon cast his people aside, he turned the death fleet on him.
Artanis
Artanis was the Hierarch of the Daelaam, a renowned warrior who rose from executor during the zerg invasion of Aiur to lead the reunited protoss. He forged the Khalai and Nerazim into one people, reclaimed Aiur, and led the alliance that banished Amon from the Khala.
Ascendant: blood-ranked lords of the Tal'darim
Ascendants were the high-ranking psionic warriors of the Tal'darim, standing second only to the highlord on the Chain of Ascension. They won their titles by destroying their superiors in Rak'Shir duels, and drew terrible power from years of absorbing terrazine and draining the life force of their supplicants.
Hybrid Reaver
The hybrid reaver was an extremely powerful zerg-based hybrid, capable of basic speech and able to exert mind control over zerg and terrans alike. It served as a staple of Amon's hybrid armies throughout the End War.
Karax: the phase-smith who armed the Spear
A Khalai worker who rose to keep the arkship Spear of Adun flying and armed. Karax prepared the Keystone that finally drove Amon out of the Khala.
Keystone: the artifact that banished Amon
The Keystone was a xel'naga relic split into five pieces. It partly de-infested Kerrigan at Char, fed Amon's resurrection, then banished him from the Khala.
Ma'lash: the Blade of Amon
Ma'lash was the highlord of the Tal'darim, a warrior so brutal in the pits of Rak'Shir that his own people believed Amon had blessed him personally. He climbed the Chain of Ascension by torturing rivals to death, held the highlord's throne on Slayn through the treachery of Alarak, and lost it to the same hand.
Observer
The observer was a small, stealthy robotic protoss reconnaissance drone, built to survey space, record events for the protoss archives, and reveal what was hidden. Cloaked and fragile, it was prized as much for what it could see as for what it could not be seen doing.
Shadows of the Void: Amon's Void-born legions
The Shadows of the Void were beings formed from Void energies that imitated the organisms and technology of the material universe. Amon deployed these shades throughout the later stages of the End War, from the Temple of Erris on Atrias to the final battle over his host body within the Void itself.
Spear of Adun: the ark buried under Aiur
Built in the Golden Age to outlast a calamity, the arkship waited beneath Aiur for centuries. Artanis raised it when Amon seized the Golden Armada.
Tal'darim
The Tal'darim were a warlike sect of protoss taken from Aiur by Amon before the Aeon of Strife. Calling themselves the Forged and the Chosen, they spent ages worshipping the fallen xel'naga as their god until Highlord Alarak turned them against him.
Tal'darim: the fanatical protoss sect of Amon
The Tal'darim, known as the Forged or the Chosen, were a fanatical and warlike sect of protoss taken from Aiur by Amon before the Aeon of Strife, who served the fallen xel'naga for ages before Highlord Alarak turned them against him.
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