Zanik is a cave goblin who is called upon to explore the surface during the Death to the Dorgeshuun quest and is Sigmund's arch-nemesis. The object of the quest is to help her defend the Dorgeshuun city from a H.A.M. plot. After the player finishes the quest she can be found in the underground goblin city, Dorgesh-Kaan. The mark on her forehead is the symbol of Bandos, and it appears on General Graardor's armour. It is also the same symbol shown on the top of the Strange box in which she was trapped, before The Chosen Commander, the last quest of the Dorgeshuun quest series, came out.
Zanik's house is located in northeast Dorgesh-Kaan on the second level. On the top floor are two chests, which can be picked with a lockpick if a player has Thieving level 52. The chests can be opened once every two to three minutes.
Chasm of Lights
In Jagex's official RuneScape tale Chasm of Lights, Zanik is seen exploring an unexplored chasm with her friend and lover, Dorgan. She and Dorgan suddenly triggered an underground earthquake causing Zanik to be buried and trapped by debris. While Dorgan left to call for help, Zanik meets Juna, who threatens Zanik. Zanik became curious of the cave behind Juna and attempted to jump over Juna into the cavern but was easily blocked by Juna, who continued to threaten Zanik. Even though Zanik was unafraid, she obeyed Juna's command to leave and was later retrieved by Dorgeshuun guards.
Zanik, now curious, wanted to learn more about Juna and the cave behind her. Zanik spoke to the city scribe, who gave a brief explanation of Juna, the cave, and the the living creatures of light that glide aimlessly around the cavern. Zanik returned to Juna. Wanting to enter the cave, she entertained Juna by riding a Light creature around the cavern and collecting a strange rock sample from a cliff. Juna, impressed by the act, allowed Zanik to access the Tears of Guthix Cave and explained that she would require all future comers to perform the act, hinting to the Tears of Guthix and gave instructions on what to do when collecting tears. The tears were collected and drunk by Zanik, which made her more steady and assured of herself. She also gained an intuitive understanding of where she was.
On her way back to Dorgesh-Kaan, Zanik confronted Ur-lesh, the ancient headwoman of the Council, and Oldak, the city's Council-sponsored wizard. Filled with anger, she demanded to know why they had lied to the Dorgeshuun and why they did not want to go return to the surface. Ur-lesh and Oldak told Zanik that there was a great war happening on the surface and wanted to protect their people by remaining underground.
Later, Zanik and Juna became friends and exchanged stories and knowledge with each other. Juna's stories of the surface, about the end of the God Wars, and about Guthix inspired Zanik to one day explore the surface and see the vast incredible landscape different from her own.
Death to the Dorgeshuun
During Death to the Dorgeshuun, Zanik is chosen to be a visitor to the surface. However, she and the player get caught whilst attempting to discover the newest H.A.M. plot, resulting in Zanik's death. Her life is restored by Juna, the snake in the Tears of Guthix. It is then that the player and her stop Sigmund's attempt at the destruction of Dorgesh-Kaan. It is also shown during the battle with Sigmund that Zanik's combat level is 41.
If you attempt to cast Low Level Alchemy on Zanik's body, then you will get the message: Doing that would be disrespectful to Zanik.
Another Slice of H.A.M.
During Another Slice of H.A.M., Zanik is captured by Sigmund and tied to a railway track of the new Dorgesh-Kaan - Keldagrim Train System. If she is to be run over, it would cause a dispute between the two races. She is nearly run over, but the player saves her in time.
Land of the Goblins
Grubfoot's dream about Yu'biusk
In the Land of the Goblins quest, Grubfoot speaks of "Goblin legend. Hopespear, long ago goblin, he have dream. He say some day Chosen Commander come, lead all goblins to new age. Most goblins, they think Chosen Commander lead goblins to war and fight other races. But I think maybe not. I have dreams that Zanik is Chosen Commander. Before you visit Goblin Village I dream about Zanik. And now, last night I have new dream. I have dream of far-off land. It like no land I ever see, but somehow I know it. It cool and wet. Ground is soft, big plants everywhere, red water bubbling. I see goblins, many goblins. Goblins of all tribes, but they not fight. They have no weapons. They live in peace. Then I see Chosen Commander. She stand at entrance to new land. She show way in. She lead all goblins on long journey to new land. I never see land before. I see it only in dream. But somehow I know what it is. It Yu'biusk, Land of the Goblins." She travels to Yu'biusk, the abandoned home plane of the goblins, through a fairy ring. However, she is absorbed by a strange box while exploring, and is stuck there due to the portal's closure. If the player uses the Fairy Ring system to return to Yu'biusk, the box is shut and cannot be opened.
The Chosen Commander
Zanik escapes from Bandos' throne room in Yu'biusk where she was taken by the strange box, with the help of Bandos' pendant, and arrives back in Dorgesh-Kaan just in time to help the player take down a H.A.M. spy who has been poisoning the goblin children. Zanik storms out of a council meeting when they decide not to execute the spy. She shoots the spy with her crossbow, killing him, as the spy is being escorted back to the surface, and runs away into the caves. After a little heart-to-heart with the player she is convinced to go back to Dorgesh-Kaan, and is sentenced to exile.
In exile, now under full control of the Pendant, she goes to the Goblin Temple under the Plain of Mud. Many of the goblins, including their High Priest, gather around her, seeing that she is the Chosen Commander of Bandos. They march on a base the militant wing of H.A.M. have set up in the basement of a windmill north of Ardougne. There she meets the player breaking Grubfoot out of the base. She chops off Sigmund's hand so his Ring of Life can't save him and kills him mercilessly with what looks like a poisoned Bone dagger. She then attacks the player, having stated that all humans must die, and is defeated repeatedly. Every time she reaches zero life points the power of the pendant regenerates her to full life. Eventually the player convinces her to remove the pendant. The High Priest, the sole survivor from the H.A.M. vs Goblin battle below, picks up the pendant. Bandos takes over him and he flees, shattering the teleblock glyphs placed in the base.
Zanik and the player then teleport together using a Dorgesh-kaan sphere, but it malfunctions and they find themselves in an odd cave. Escaping from the cave, they find themselves in Juna's presence. Juna tells Zanik to fulfil her destiny and not to defy the gods. After deciding she controls her own destiny and hearing about the great danger Dorgesh-Kaan is in, the pair head back to the city.
Upon their arrival, Zanik and the player learn that Bandos Avatar stormed through the city and left a large obelisk in the middle of the market. The markings on the obelisk are translated by the Goblin scribe. It warns them that Bandos is enraged with the cave goblins and intends to wipe them out unless they become his followers.
After the player runs a few errands for a few goblins in need Oldak modifies Zanik's Crossbow to have a Special Attack that can disrupt magic from the gods. Zanik and the player step into the portal to Bandos' throne room.
After weakening the avatar the first time Zanik tries to shoot it with her crossbow special attack, but it is knocked out of her hands, Oldak's modifications breaking off. The player has to leave her to fight the avatar on her own to retrieve the crossbow. Zanik is knocked unconscious by the avatar, but the player eventually defeats it, using the crossbow to stop it regenerating.
Zanik wakes up and it is then revealed that the mark of Bandos on her forehead has vanished. She smashes the pendant on the floor and they return through the portal to Dorgesh-Kaan. Zanik is now free to forge her own destiny, and the Dorgesh-Kaan council build a statue to honour the player and Zanik for their bravery.
After the Goblin quests
After The Chosen Commander, Zanik can be found in various locations around RuneScape, including:
In Postbag from the Hedge issue 40, Zanik wrote about her adventures at sea, pirates and seeing a strange "sea monster". A few days later, the quest Hunt for Red Raktuber was released, and it is assumed that the "sea monster" that Zanik saw was in fact the periscope of the penguin's Submarine, the Red Raktuber.
Gallery
Zanik with her crossbow
Zanik's chathead after she drinks from the Tears of Guthix.
Zanik wearing the Pendant of Bandos
Examines
She has a mark on her head.
A goblin adventurer.
An eager cave goblin on her first trip to the surface.
Hopefully she'll pass as a short, hunched HAM member.
Alas, poor Zanik.
She's kicking HAM butt!
A goblin fighting for her city.
A heroic cave goblin joining you for another adventure!
The Chosen Commander?
Putting up a fight!
Zanik is tied up on the train tracks.
Hero of the cave goblins.
Her footing looks unstable.
Back from the dead... again?
A cave-goblin sniper!
She looks badly hurt.
The Chosen Commander.
No longer the chosen commander.
A cave-goblin adventurer.
The famous cave-goblin adventurer.
Dialogue
This article on an NPC has an associated dialogue page. Click here for a transcript of possible conversations with this NPC.
Trivia
Zanik has the highest amount of examine phrases of any other item/NPC in the game, with a total of at least 19.
In the Postbag From The Hedge 9, The Chaos Elemental States: "she is reborn, the chosen one!", referring to when Zanik is revived in the quest The Chosen Commander.
During The Chosen Commander quest, Zanik wields a Poisoned Bone Dagger, but is unable to poison the player during the fight.
If Zanik is spoken to while she is following another player doing a Dorgeshuun quest, she says "Sorry,I can't talk right now."
When exploring RuneScape after Chosen Commander, she is invisible to all who have not completed the quest, but players who have not done it can still see her shadow.
Players may contact Zanik by using the NPC Contact spell from the Lunar Magic spellbook.
Zanik has been seen recently at the Stealing Creation activity waiting area. If you talk to her she tells you that she wants to visit the primordial realm however the mystics will not allow her because she has angered the Gods.
If you examined Zanik while fighting Sigmund and his guards, the text was "She's kicking HAM ass!". This was odd considering 'ass' was filtered out at the time. Now, ass is not filtered, but the examine text has been changed to "A goblin fighting for her city."
In some cases, Zanik can be talked to after she teleports away.
If you translate the word Zanik to Dutch (Belgium styled Dutch) it would mean nag (nagging), though the whole verb is 'zaniken'.
In Polish, the word 'zanik' means 'atrophy' or 'disappearance'. What's more, the noun is grammatically masculine, which makes some Polish players confuse Zanik's gender.
Zanik can be seen after the quest discussing adventures with the Wise Old Man.
Mod John A told in the Q&A of 23 July 2010 what the inspiration behind Zanik was:
"One was the character Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica (the new version, where Starbuck is a girl)."
"Another is the song 'Us' by Regina Spektor--that's always how I've imagined Zanik's voice to sound, even though obviously you never hear it in-game."
"There are lots and lots of other things that inspired the character, though, and a lot of the creative process is subconscious so I don't even know myself."
There is a glitch where, while Zanik is following you, you can sometimes hear the "familiar running out of time" sound.
There was a glitch where players were able to turn into Zanik outside of the cutscene environment, the glitch was fixed on 15 August 2010.
After the "The Chosen Commander" quest, You can see Zanik in the Champions Guild and learn that she has become a member after doing a Diplomatic quest for them.
After you speak to Ozan in front of Varrock Palace, You can talk to him again and learn that he and Zanik went on a raid of the H.A.M. members. Stealing money without being noticed. They returned the money afterwards... Except for some that was put to good use for a Holiday in Oo'glog.File:Zanik deformation.pngA player walking as "Zanik".
Zanik was first mentioned, although not by name, in Postbag 4, where Ur-tag says "There are only a few cave goblins who have ever interested her, and only one who is living now, but she has expressed interest in visiting the surface so perhaps someday you will meet her."
Zanik's body is 30kg when carried in Death to the Dorgeshuun.
There was a glitch which allowed players to pick Zanik up during the "Death to the Dorgeshuun" Quest. As this version of Zanik was not supposed to be obtained by players the examine information simply reads "Follower Obj".
Zanik's TzHaar name is "JaYlt-Xil-Zanik", which means that she's hunter or fighter.
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