War stories, articles & game guides
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2026
Expeditions,
War Stories &
Culture
War stories, articles & game guides
Gamer
Tribute
2026
Expeditions,
War Stories &
Culture
“You have a lot of questions, Vikstone. You’re the only one who can see me because you touched something that once belonged to him… don’t you remember? You don’t know what it is? Well I can’t just tell you… that would make him really mad. He’s not just a prince anymore… he’s the king!
Meet me at the Court of Bones, north of Icecrown Citadel and you can see for yourself.”
-Matthias Lehner
Speak to Matthias Lehner at the Court of Bones.
You will be able to choose one of these rewards:
You will also receive:
Upon completion of this quest you will gain:
Quest Giver: Matthias Lehner — Sindragosa’s Fall, Icecrown (pickup)/Court of Bones, Icecrown (turn-in)
Objective: Travel to the Court of Bones and speak with Matthias Lehner at [49.2, 73.1].
Quick Facts
Walkthrough
Matthias’s Invitation
Finding Matthias at the Court of Bones
Efficiency Tips
Lore & Secrets
Matthias Explains Everything (Almost)
This quest contains Matthias’s most direct explanation of why only you can see him.
He reveals three key things: (1) You can see him because you touched something that belonged to “him” (the Lich King). (2) He cannot tell you directly what the object is, because the Lich King would punish him. (3) The object’s owner is “not just a prince anymore… he’s the king.”
He still will not name the Lich King directly. Throughout the entire chain, Matthias only ever refers to Arthas as “he” or “the prince,” never by name. This childlike avoidance of naming the monster is part of what makes the character so effective. Matthias speaks like a frightened child who is terrified of being overheard.
The “something that once belonged to him” is, of course, the Pulsing Crystal from A Short Fuse: Arthas’s frozen heart, discarded in Naz’anak. By touching it, you established a mystical connection to whatever remained of Arthas’s humanity, and that connection is what makes Matthias visible to you.
The full revelation of the crystal’s identity comes in the next quest (The Hunter and the Prince).
The Court of Bones
The Court of Bones sits on the path between Corp’rethar to the north and Icecrown Citadel to the south, a vast open area littered with the bones of fallen soldiers and serving as the Scourge’s staging ground for defending the approaches to Icecrown Citadel.
It is fitting that Matthias chose this location for his next revelation: a place built on the bones of the dead, where the consequences of Arthas’s power are visible in every direction.
Explore Icecrown’s hidden easter eggs, lore mysteries, and connections across Warcraft history in Vikstone’s Icecrown Chronicles, along with the complete quest storyline.
Vikstone's War Journal“You have a lot of questions,” Matthias said. “You’re the only one who can see me because you touched something that once belonged to him… don’t you remember?”
I remembered.
“You don’t know what it is? Well I can’t just tell you… that would make him really mad.” The boy’s voice dropped. “He’s not just a prince anymore… he’s the king. Meet me at the Court of Bones, north of Icecrown Citadel and you can see for yourself.”
The walk north took me past fields of the dead. Past bones that had been heroes, past weapons rusting in snow that would never melt.
I thought of Namarie. Of how she would have hated this place. She had loved growing things, warm things, the way light moved through leaves in Ashenvale.
Lunara would have been afraid. She was always braver than she knew, my little one, but this… this would have broken her.
They’re why I’m here. They’re why any of this matters.
The Court of Bones spread before the Citadel’s gates. Matthias waited among the dead.
“There you are.” He smiled. “I started to wonder whether you’d show up.”
Two visions have covered soldiers and dragons, and the last thing left to show Vikstone is what happened when something genuinely dangerous came up that mountain, which is the whole of The Hunter and the Prince.
