How would YOU write the battle of Stromguarde?

Wyrmrest Accord
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So I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. Over the past few weeks- and accentuated in the past three days with rewatches of historical war movies such as Waterloo, Gettysburg, Cromwell, and some others- I’ve come to realize that realistic battles in fiction are nearly non existent. Organization, operations, drills, tactics, formations, movements- why, who would go to all that effort when you can just have a mob of thousands of monsters slam into a mob of thousands of knights and call it a day?

If you’re feeling particularly creative, add in a horse charge by a previously unknown ally to really up the dramatic turnaround points. That’ll make any battle a compelling climax.

Warcraft, of course, as full of tropes as it is, is no stranger to having many of its battles a strange, ambiguous mess. The Warfronts in particular are almost impossible to parse, being an endless alternating assault on castles that the Alliance and Horde can’t help but rebuild every time they’re smashed. They’re even nice enough to swap out commanders and soldiers every time to make sure no one gets tired- and despite Genn’s statements of being on the “Last of the Soldiers” there appears to be no difficulty keeping the conflict perpetual until BFA ends.

Now- on to the question. Revisionists, armchair historians, amateur writers of WRA- imagine, if you would, that you had to write a lore blurb or chapter about the warfront in say, Chronicles 5 or some other piece of supplementary material. How would you do it? How would you write it, how would you make sense of it?

Keep in mind that Blizzard has stated the Alliance won!

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I’d keep the commanders the same for consistency.

Also make a bg

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First thing’s first, Ar’gorok gets the axe. I know exactly why they didn’t use Hammerfall for this warfront, as that’s an entire zone that’s suddenly a warfront, but… I just don’t understand how the Alliance would let it happen? They’re rebuilding Stromgarde and they just kinda let the Horde build a massive base capable of fending off their assault in their front yard?

The fighting in Arathi was never meant to be a Horde victory, as I doubt anyone could reasonably expect to actually conquer Stromgarde. These people have been itching to retake their home for a very long time, and these people are some of the fiercest fighters in the Alliance. To conquer the entirety of Strom is a fool’s goal. Personally, I always saw it as a diversionary effort on Sylvanas’ behalf. She keeps the Alliance busy in a battle she knows she can’t win so that she can pursue her darker goals without their notice. So what if she gets thousands of Horde soldiers killed for it? It benefits her, nevertheless.

I like to think Eitrigg as the leader of the Horde war effort in the area, and Danath is obviously the Alliance’s leader. Liadrin and Rokhan are able to provide effort, but they are relatively busy with other things in the world, so they can’t be there for long. Same for Turalyon and Muradin.

For the most part, it is orcs vs humans with the occasional Blood Knight or Dwarven mortar team thrown in the mix. The Horde’s assault is a multi-layered one. They manage to garner loyalty from the Witherbark and Boulderfist, as well as frighten off the Syndicate to claim some extra land. Meanwhile, the Alliance only gets some minor Syndicate support as they flee from the Horde war machine.

The goal of the Horde is to slow down and wear down the Alliance. They dig in across their section of Arathi, employing their more vicious allies in hit and run tactics. The Forsaken even quite literally dig in, building foxholes and trenches to make up for how flat much of Arathi is. It’s hard to play the game the Horde needs to when the terrain is mostly flat.

I never liked the whole “complete conquest of the zone” thing that the OG warfronts did. That’s why in this case I see the battle for Stromgarde as a slower paced thing, with Strom slowly advancing against the Horde throughout the entirety of the Fourth War, with the Horde attempting to bleed the Alliance’s forces as they move forward. Inevitably, Sylvanas knew it would be a battle she could not win with her endeavors focused elsewhere, but she was able to bleed both the Horde and Alliance to feed the Maw.

I can see Horde shamans turning the grassland into a muddy pit, making it hard for siege vehicles and cavalry to make it across quickly. I can see Trollbane commit to a mostly defensive charge, making use of shield walls and the likes to make his advance assured. Blight Throwers and Horde siege towers are rendered useless as they’re forced to be abandoned or easily dismantled by the Wildhammer’s aerial superiority. The Alliance make it to Hammerfall by the end of the Fourth, but by then, Eitrigg’s already been called back to Orgrimmar. A grueling long march capped by an easy surrender.

It makes it feel… meaningless. Pointless. And that’s exactly what it was, as the next day Orgrimmar waves a white flag and the war is over. The Alliance wins, but at what cost? And truly, did the Alliance victory matter?

just a few thoughts, nothing super in depth

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All I have is bring back the Syndicate.
Maybe I’ll have more ideas later.

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well, ackshuallly

i lost the motivation to type all that in an instant.

but galen did hold it with his group of forsaken awhile (orges still in the back) until the ebon blade killed everything

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It needs a massive Elekk charge. Danath Trollbane was a commander in Outland for 20ish years, that should be reflected by a close relationship with some Draenei.

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As to the battle at Stromgarde, it should be surprising to no one that the Alliance achieved victory. It was their battle to win or lose, and mercifully they did not blunder into the latter- though they came close.

Strategically insignificant, economically irrelevant, a relic of a bygone age and culturally important only to a select few old men who are better off bickering about more important things- Stromgarde and the Arathi Highlands are still a point of contention. For years the Forsaken and the Banshee Queen have kept the greater Alliance from venturing north, plaguing towns and disrupting military movements by their foes seemingly for the joy of it. It was only when the Undercity was lost, during what should be referred to as an anomalous conflict, that the Horde loosened its grip on the north of the Eastern Kingdoms. The Alliance moved in to restore the sputtering, decrepit, and vermin infested fortress, salvaging the nigh-soulless remains of a once proud and mighty nation. The Forsaken were noted to approve of this brazen disrespect of the dead.

Amused and always looking to employ disruptive measures, the Banshee Queen ordered a contingent of loyal Orcs and Elves to land on those distant shores. “You shalt have no hope of victory, my soldiers,” she was quoted to say, never defying her loyal warriors the harsh truths. “But thy deaths shalt be glorious, and honorable, and your memory will stir the hearts and fighting spirits of generations to come. For this is the way of the Horde. Victory or death!”

Without hope of resupply or reinforcement, so far away from Horde settlements and allied territories, these venerable heroes marched on to Stromgarde and built their own fortress to state their defiance.

Meanwhile, flush with resources of all kinds, His Grace King Anduin ordered his loyal vassals to seize the opportunity and retake the symbol of human warrior culture. Having little to show for his few administrative years, the King was eager to prove that he could accomplish what many only thought of as a pipe dream; reclaim Lordaeron. Eschewing more formidable allies in case they should steal the glory, Anduin ordered Danath Trollbane and Turalyon, two old timers, to inhabit Stromgarde and waylay the Horde with knights and other uninspiring tactics.

The campaigns themselves were riddled with heroism, tragic death, and unexpected interference from denizens of the highlands. Hindrances such as forest trolls, ogres, rabid wildlife, and elementals all contributed to what should have been a relatively short war. Instead, the field battles stretched on for weeks. Confounded Alliance commanders struggled to maintain order as they were beset upon by unexpected obstacles and enemies. The death toll rose before official engagements had even begun.

Some time later, with thousands in the grave and the growing ire of their King weighing down on them, Trollbane and Turalyon at last were able to lay siege to Ar’gorok, the stronghold of the Horde. Their subsequent victory is not remembered as a moment of glory to those who survived, and it is said that the spirits of the fallen haunt the ruins and fields of battle. Forlorn souls who wished for more than the perils of war cry in anguish at the thought of what could have been.

-By Lance Topsail, independent and unbiased historian

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