The Destruction of Stratholme Briefing . " Stratholme , the chief source of Alliance Oil in the north , is preparing to deliver massive amounts of Oil to the kingdoms in western Lordaeron . " " You must sabotage their Refineries and Platforms to halt this shipment . Once Stratholme ' s ability to gather and process Oil is destroyed , proceed to crush any and all resistance offered by the Alliance . " Background . First the Horde unit ' s sappers had to blow a path inland for its troops ; this provided an impressive display of their talents . Their plan was to take the city by land first , then to build ships to finish the job , so their forces prepared to march further north after slaughtering the Alliance forces to the east . Once of the Horde ' s slaves remained to build a hall to the north of the goldmine nearby ; the rest headed out to set up closer to the enemy city . Again they gutted any enemies they encountered , but avoided the large clearing at the city entrance , not wishing to draw their attention before they could build . They built a second hall as close to the west to impede enemy forces coming from that direction . With supplementary income from the southern mine and more workers from both halls , resources piled up quickly and they could build as fast as possible . They had to erect several structures before building up for the land assault . First was a barracks to start the training of grunts , for they would need all the forces they could muster to defend the settlement . A lumber mill and a blacksmith went up next , then a second barracks to double their troop production . They were careful not to cut lumber near the hall , intsead sending the slaves further north , so that the treeline remained a good natural barrier . Many cannon towers were erected behind the farms to the west ; these pounded enemies as they tried to break through . Catapults were placed near these towers to make sure enemy ballistas did not attack the towers unmolested . While the hall was upgraded into a fortress , an oger mound , an alchemist , and an altar of storms were their final tasks ; the buildup begun in earnest . They assembled a huge group of ogre - magi and catapults for the first wave of the attack , armed with the best possible weapons , armor , and spells , then moved northeast to assault the city from the rear . After they had killed the forces outside the city wall , catapults rolled up and smashed a path through to the inside . Enemy units began pouring through , but the horde ' s magi with bloodlust made quick work of them . After briefly entering the walls to draw out defenders , the Horde began producing sappers back in their settlement , which now had a clear path on which to enter and demolish structures at will with ogre escorts . Slowly they worked their way westward , removing towers and ballistas first and defending their catapults with troops . Within a short time , the city lay in ruins . At their leisure , they built a shipyard to take care of any targets beyond the range of their catapults . The Alliance knew Urok ' s commander ' s name now , and Urok believed they would soon know their Maker as well . Aftermath . " With the destruction of Stratholme , the Alliance supply lines to Quel ' thalas have been severed . Only a handful of Human and Elven defenders remain to safeguard the ancient Elf kingdom from the onslaught of the Horde . "