Challe’s Home for Little Tykes

The sign out front says “Challe’s Home for Little Tykes”, but the true goings on within the fenced in property that’s tucked securely away in the mountains that divide Nagrand from Zangarmarsh are truly an unsolved mystery. At first glance the home appears to be a hidden orphanage kept high above the dangers of Outland, a haven for newborns of both factions. Or is it? Rumours that the self-proclaimed troll matron Challe is a cannibal that eats small children like the witch in Hansel and Gretel cloud the innocence of this haven. I went on location to take a look at the secret orphanage in attempt to try and find fact or fiction on these outrageous rumours.

Much mystery surrounds the circumstances of Challe and her hidden orphanage. First of all, it is only accessible by level 70+ players or druids that are at least 68+ with flight form, as the orphanage is nestled in a small clearing up in the mountains unreachable by normal ground modes of transportation. With three large and public orphanages in the major cities of Shattrath, Orgrimmar and Stormwind, some are wondering why there is even a need for keeping such a small separate orphanage secret in between the wilds of Zangarmarsh and Nagrand, which are no places for newborn babies. But perhaps that secrecy is the exact reason why such a dangerous site was chosen; who would think to look for defenseless babies in such a place? It surely would not be the first place that the enemies of the Horde and Alliance would think to look.

To try and unravel the mystery and to see Challe’s Home for Little Tykes for myself, I set off for Nagrand. Be sure to check out my video for where and how to get there, and to see what things await you once you get there for a sneak preview to accompany this article. I highly recommend using the video to get there for yourself, though. This is one strange easter egg that must be seen with your own eyes! Members of the Horde should fly into Garadar, Nagrand. From there, head out the west entrance of town and take a sharp turn north towards the mountains by the Laughing Skull Ruins. From there, mount up on your flying mount and go above the mountains in attempts to cross over into Zangarmarsh. You can’t miss the large clearing that reveals itself once you’re flying high in the sky. The orphanage is located around where the final ‘g’ of “Laughing Skull Ruins” is on your map. Or for those with coordinates, Challe’s exact location is 50, 14 in Nagrand.

At first inspection the home looks fairly serene and with good intent; there is a fence that defines Challe’s property and a cozy hut that houses several newborn babies carefully snuggled into tiny beds. Visitors to Challe’s place will find two tauren babies, two troll babies, one orc baby, and one night elf baby inside the hut and another troll and tauren baby outside the hut next to Challe. Inside there are assorted rattles and dolls, and playful childlike drawings decorate the inner walls. The dirt floor is covered with soft bear skins, and furs line the tiny beds and envelop the babies in warmth and comfort. They all seem content; not once did any of the children cry while I was there. Outside, a sandbox and a makeshift merry-go-round grace the front yard. Two older children, Sa’rah and Chaddo, gleefully chase each other around the yard in a neverending game of tag. I ran and played tag with them for a bit, but quickly grew dizzy from running circles with them. That or I was dizzy from how high up we were. I admit seeing the children run so close to the edge of the cliff overlooking Zangarmarsh made me a little nervous. Sa’rah and Chaddo were too busy and breathless from their games to speak to me, but I will report that they seemed happy and carefree here.

I next spoke to Challe, who greeted me warmly and welcomed me into her home. She gave me a tour of the hut and her land, explaining her home’s purpose. She told me that her orphanage is hidden away for security purposes to protect the children. When I asked her why there was need for her orphanage when the major cities already had large and fully staffed orphanages, she seemed a little wounded, but explained that the first 12 months for a newborn were the most delicate in a child’s life. Challe’s Home for Little Tykes is the first stop for all orphans and rescued children in Outland. She claims that once the children are old enough, say around Sa’rah and Chaddo’s age, as well as healthy enough, they are sent to Shattrath where they are hopefully placed with loving and caring foster parents via the Shattrath Orphanage. This seemed reasonable enough. The wilds of Outland are full of hungry creatures that would love to snack on bite sized tauren or night elves if given the chance, so it’s comforting to know that someone has their best interests at heart and a place to keep them safe from such harm. As long as those chilling rumours aren’t true…

But while it seems that everything is innocent, one can’t help but notice the more curious inconsistencies that shroud Challe’s home. These things weren’t pointed out on her tour, but I couldn’t ignore the cages I found behind her home. As I browsed the area, I came upon three small cages in the back, one with what appeared to be humanoid remains inside. I was not able to get a good angle on the skeleton, so I am unsure if it is humanoid, but from what I could see, it did appear to be. Who or what was in that cage? Why were they put there? Are the bones the small remains of a child? And if so… why are or were they in a cage? Some speculate that Challe raises the children to later eat, being a troll and all. I would like to point out that many tribes of trolls, including the elusive Shatterspear tribe, are NOT cannibals, so one cannot assume automatically that Challe is cannibalistic. But the rumours were swirling around my head as I kept combing the property. I noticed that two of the babies, a troll and a tauren, are in beds situated outside the hut by Challe, right in front of a large bubbling cauldron. While I know that Challe of course has to eat and most likely cooks her meals here (which may not mean the babies, you pessimists!), it kind of creeped me out a little. Being so secluded with limited accessibility makes me wonder what she does eat? The only evidence of meals that I noticed was a large bowl within the hut that had a few leftover bones in it. The bones were small, but didn’t strike me as humanoid. But I’m no archaeologist.

I went for a walk over to check out the sandbox. It seemed to be any normal child’s sandbox at first glance; several overturned and half buried buckets for playing with and a wagon… but then I noticed a pull toy of fairly realistic looking explosives in one corner of the box. Perhaps it is just a toy and not real, but it doesn’t seem like a very appropriate toy for children. I didn’t light the fuse to find out, either. That’s when I noticed Jara, a small orc boy, hiding in the corner of the sandbox among some large debris overhanging the play area. He was very timid and would not speak to me or come out from his hiding place. Unlike Sa’rah and Chaddo, he did not seem to be happy and carefree. But his refusal to answer me made it tough to find out his story. Perhaps he’s seen some grisly happenings at Challe’s place and is in hiding to avoid being next? I mean, let’s face it — the location leaves little room to run or hide. However, Jara could just simply be sad or feel lonely because he misses his mother and father or siblings. There are lots of things that are possible causes for his seclusion, so it doesn’t necessarily support the idea that something fishy is going on at Challe’s, though it does make you wonder.

I caught up with Sa’rah and Chaddo on the north end of the yard playing again, and while running with them I bumped into an empty doghouse, which turned out to be another mysterious property of Challe’s Home for Little Tykes. The doghouse wasn’t completely empty; inside were half eaten remains of something. What that something is (or was), I have no idea and can only guess. Perhaps it’s the meal of the missing dog or maybe it was the remains of the dog itself? I was unable to avert my eyes from noticing the large baseball bat-like club resting against the side of the doghouse, though. Could the bones in the cage behind the hut have something to do with the missing pet? Or was the missing dog the smell wafting from the bubbling cauldron behind Challe? So many oddities and unanswered questions that didn’t seem to help Challe look innocent in the rumours, though it could just be a simple coincidence. Perhaps Challe’s pet dog died of natural causes or was attacked and killed by some flying wildlife? That could explain the club; Challe might’ve attempted to fend off the attacker from her pet. Whatever happened, it doesn’t look as though the family pet survived. I’d like to think there’s a good and not-so-grisly explanation.

The combination of all of these strange things out at Challe’s Home for Little Tykes set off a red flag in the minds of the people of Outland and has even made its way into Azeroth storytelling. You know how kids like to gather around a campfire and tell ghost stories? The rumours of “Cannibalistic Challe” have been discussed and retold many, many times at many, many campfires with the hopes of scaring those present. Some parents tell their children early on the horror story of “Cannibalistic Challe” and her creepy orphanage to remind them of how lucky or fortunate they are to have parents. Still others use the rumour about Challe as a threat: “Be good and eat your vegetables or you’ll be sent to Challe’s Home for Little Tykes!” *shudder* But are these stories true? One can’t help but notice the oddities at the orphanage, but perhaps they are just coincidences or there is a reasonable explanation for them? All SEEMS well, but isn’t that how it goes in most horror movies? Only Challe knows for sure.

From what I gathered during my trip, I was unable to present evidence to prove or disprove without a doubt the rumours about Challe or her Home for Little Tykes. Plenty of speculation, but no cold hard facts to support either side undoubtedly. Without proof, we can only assume that the intentions of the troll matron are good. Be sure to check the place out for yourself and let me know what you think or find there that might put an end to the speculations about Challe once and for all. The location has had changes along the way and may continue to have updates or changes applied that will give us a clearer picture of the real truth. As of the time of this writing, there are no known quest lines that involve the location or Challe, and tests conducted during Children’s Week 2008 came up with nothing. We can only hope the mystery will be solved in time. Happy exploring!

Watch the video footage of my trip to Challe’s Home for Little Tykes HERE
View all of the photos I took on my adventure in my gallery under World of Warcraft -> Exploration

Articles may not be republished elsewhere in whole or in part without permission. Feel free to link directly to this post. ©2005-2008 by Lesley Karpiuk (Toque of pinktoque.com)