Legendary items
1 min read
The vessel that holds the archlich's soul, taken from Naxxramas after his defeat.
Kel'Thuzad, once an archmage of the Kirin Tor, founded the Cult of the Damned and spread the plague for the Lich King. Slain by Arthas and later carried to the Sunwell to be reborn as a lich, he came to rule the Scourge in Lordaeron from the floating necropolis of Naxxramas.
A lich endures as long as the vessel holding its soul survives. In the original game, raiders who defeated Kel'Thuzad recovered his phylactery and handed it to the Argent Dawn for safekeeping. Later stories revealed that one of its priests, Father Inigo Montoy, betrayed that trust and carried it to Northrend, giving the archlich time to return.
In the guide
Item details
Related lore
Sources
The text above is original; facts were checked against these pages.
Original text written for WoW Forever Path. Facts were checked against the listed sources; warcraft.wiki.gg pages (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Blizzard posts are references, not copied text. World of Warcraft and Blizzard are trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
An unofficial fan tool, not affiliated with Blizzard Entertainment. · Checked 30 Oct 2026