Saber
Sabers are a massive species of cat that primarily reside in Kalimdor, but can be found all over Azeroth. They are notable by their size and giant fangs. High ranking Sentinels, Priestesses of the Moon and some other night elves use these beasts as mounts. Other close relatives of the nightsaber, such as the Zulian tiger and the snow leopard have a close relationship with the zandalari.
Biology and Behavior
Sabers are felines recognized by their large size and their massive front canine teeth. Without these traits, a saber is not a saber.
Like all cats, sabers are carnivorous.
Sabers are sapient, but they are highly intelligent as beasts and can be trained to understand complex tasks. There are several subspecies of saber that vary in their behavior, but all can interbreed with viable offspring.
Sabers can live for several hundred years, and tend to have significantly higher lifespans when in the care of kaldorei then in the wild. The largest known natural lifespan of a saber was around a thousand years, though this is an unusual occurrence.
Nightsabers (Shalsaber)
The more common variety, often simply called sabers. When comparing them with wintersabers, the term summersaber is used.
These sabers were practically domesticated in kaldorei antiquity and formed a symbiotic relationship with them. There are still wild sabers that roam the lands of Kalimdor, but most of them generally have a good temperament around elves and do not see them as prey so long as they are healthy.
Sabers are both nocturnal and are pack hunters. This is what made them ideal partners for the kaldorei. In the wilds they will form large prides like lions of mostly related females and some males. Females take care of the hunting, while males occasionally aid them but primarily maintain the territory while the rest are hunting.
Sabers are only bonded to experienced Sentinels called huntresses. When raised alongside kaldorei, they will view female kaldorei as one of their sisters and pride. The bond between a nightsaber and their bonded huntress is inseparable.
Blacks, dark greys and browns are the most common color of sabers, vastly outnumbering all other colors. It is said that Elune granted them their dark fur to better hunt at night.
Stripes indicate the presence of one or more winter sabers in their linage, as they are closely enough related species that they can breed with viable offspring. While this was a more common practice during the imperial age, crossbreeding between these two types of sabers has become non-existant save for the rare cases the sabers themselves form a bond with each other on their own terms.
For night elves, the majority of sabers are identified by color.
Saber by Coat Color
| Prefix | Darnassian | Colors |
|---|---|---|
| Night | Shal | Dark coats, can have stripes or spots lighter or darker then their fur. |
| Moon | Lune | Pure White or silvery coat, a rare and revered variety usually reserved for priestesses of the moon. |
| Mist | Nai | Bluish grey coat |
| Storm | Anir | Spotted Coat, usually grey to dusty blue in color. |
| Dawn | Orindel | Warm colored sabers, often seen as bad luck when born in the wild. Theorized to share a lineage with Zulian tigers. |
| Frost | Al | Light coat with stripes or spots, clear Wintersaber lineage |
Named Nightsabers
| Name | Variety | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ashamane | Nightsaber | Nightsaber wild god |
| Luna | Moonsaber | Delas Moonfang's saber companion |
| Bard | Mistsaber | Jarod Shadowsong's saber companion |
| Onyx† | Nightsaber | Nhemai Moonfang's saber companion, deceased |
Wintersabers (Alnirsaber)
Wintersabers are much larger then summersabers, and they are solitary animals. A wintersaber will only interact with another to breed. For this reason they only rarely bond with a kaldorei, and only after the culture became more Druidic in nature.
They are often stark white and have stripes of black or grey. Rarely their fur will be grey, and have white stripes.
They tend to prefer harsher, mountainous, colder climates, primarily living in the Winterspring and Hyjal regions of Kalimdor. They were captured and crossbred nearly to extinction prior to the sundering, but this practice has been firmly outlawed by the modern kaldorei.
Only with the Wild God Shy-Rotom’s permission can a kaldorei even be given the chance to bond with a Wintersaber. Tyrande Whisperwind is believed to be the first kaldorei in history to do so.
Named Wintersabers
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Shy-Rotom | Wintersaber wild god |
| Ash'alah | Spirit beast companion to Tyrande Whisperwind, daughter of Shy-Rotom |
Other Saber Varieties
Zulian Tiger
Called Falosaber or flamesaber in Darnassian. Native to tropical Zandalar and Stranglethorn Vale. Like wintersabers, zulian tigers are solitary hunters. However, due to the zandalari and gurubashi relationship with the loa, these have been tamed in small number to fight alongside them.
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Shirvallah | Loa of Tigers |
Snow Leopard
Called Ansabers or snowsaber in Darnassian. Smallest of the sabers with less defined prolonged fangs, and their most distant cousins. Snow leopards live in Zul'Drak in Northrend, and have a small population in the mountains of Dun Morogh.
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Har'koa | Loa of Snow Leopards |
Manasaber (Arcansaber)
Infused with arcane energy due to long term exposure to the Nightwell. Mainly native to Suramar. They have blue, purple, or pink fur with bright stripes and glowing eyes, and their saber fangs are much smaller then their cousins.
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| D'Bynn | Syrenne's manasaber companion |
Felsaber
Fel-corrupted sabers that were then rescued and magically stabilized by the Illidari. Felsabers no longer have fur and grow bony protrusions all over their body.
Dreamsaber (Oneirosaber)
Infused with life magic, often originating from the Emerald Dream.
