Reunification of Stromgarde

The **Reunification of Stromgarde** was a server-wide campaign that took place from May 20 through the 29th. It is based upon the upcoming Warfront from *Battle for Azeroth*, and featured a range of activities, from PvP to D20, in the western part of the Arathi Highlands.

## The Story

The war against the Legion ended months ago, and as the Lightforged draenei and ren’dorei make their homes within the Grand Alliance, likewise with the shal'dorei and Highmountain tauren in the Horde, tensions have reached a breaking point. The leaders of the Alliance and Horde, anticipating all out war, look to old, forgotten lands in the Eastern Kingdoms.

Stromgarde, sometimes called the cradle of humanity and the birthplace of Arathor, the once great human empire, has fallen into disrepair over the last few decades. The League of Arathor has fought desperately to retain control over the once great human kingdom. The wars that had brought Alliance and Horde together had driven the conflict to a standstill, but Galen Trollbane’s defection from the Forsaken has shifted the balance. Stromgarde City now stood guarded only by undead loyal to neither faction, and all eyes turned to its walls.

## The Campaign

### **Call to Arms: Stromgarde! (May 20-21)**

Alliance forces mustered in Refuge Pointe while Horde forces rallied in Hammerfall. The Order of Ashfall arrived on the 21st, just in time for a general briefing by the coalition's commander, Johnathan Beredric of the Knights of Solidarity--in which it was announced that Auromere would be commanding a secondary force to conduct vital but less overt operations.

Afterward, the Order made camp between Refuge Pointe and the Dabyrie Farmstead, and prepared for battle.

### **Operation: Unfortunate Son (May 22-26)**

#### ***May 22***

   **Siege of Northfold:** The Alliance moved to secure Northfold, but the Horde's arrival was too swift and too aggressive. Northfold is lost, and now serves as a base of operations for the Horde.

**Freeing the Prisoners:** A second unit rode to lend assistance to refugees on the road. However, they discovered a village already fallen, with a Forsaken laboratory in operation and the people imprisoned. A decisive strike by the party freed the captives, and destroyed the laboratory spectacularly.

#### ***May 23***

**Backwoods Brawl:** The Horde intercepted an Alliance scouting party south of Galen's Fall. After a fierce battle, the Horde were pushed back to their base to lick their wounds; Lord Beredric used this as leverage to secure the return of the prisoners taken the previous night.

**Breach of Promise:** Meanwhile, a secondary Alliance force moved to capture or destroy a supply convoy en route through Thoradin's Wall to Northfold. They encountered heavier resistance than expected when a mobile cannon passed through the gap in the wall and fired upon them, but ultimately succeeded in their mission and fled to safety.

#### ***May 24***

**Calm Before the Storm:** Both sides took stock of their present situations, and rest was the order of the day--for on the next, it would be brutal.

#### ***May 25***

    **Expulsion:** With Northfold fortified heavily, the Alliance's best target for attack was Galen's Fall. The main force struck swiftly and decisively against the Horde there, and finally succeeded in driving them back to Thoradin's Wall--for the first time since the Cataclysm.

**No Shirts, No Shots, No Service:** Meantime, Auromere led a second force to cut off the inevitable reinforcements to Galen's Fall from Northfold. He and the force laid an ambush, and struck swiftly against the elite Horde warriors. None of the Horde survived...but the battle drew the attention of the fire elementals at the Circle of West Binding. The Alliance heroes valiantly fought off the new combatants, and retreated to safety in Refuge Pointe, having prevented Galen's Fall from receiving reinforcements.

#### ***May 26***

**Faldir's Cove:** Desperate to keep a presence, the Horde moved to seize and control Faldir's Cove. A troop of Horde soldiers came ahead by flying mounts, and attempted to secure the dock; once finished, a fleet of Horde ships would put in, and unload a fresh force to attack the Alliance around Stromgarde. However, a swift and decisive response by the Alliance prevented this, and made sure the Alliance's advantage.

**Siege Engines, Ho!:** Meantime, a second party, again led by Auromere, struck out to escort siege tanks to the Circle of Inner Binding, where the Alliance's main force was preparing to lay siege to the city. Along the path, they encountered water elementals--which they believed to be raised by Horde shaman as a trap--and ogres eager to exact some payback for all the noise and violation of territory. These were not enough to daunt the heroes, however, and they arrived at the field in time to unleash a little hell of their own on the Horde there!

### **Operation: Downpour (May 27-29)**

#### ***May 27***

**Fracture:** The walls of Stromgarde crumbled, to admit the Alliance! But they arrived to find that the Horde got there first, and a ferocious battle for the Chapel District ensued. The bridge leading into the district served as a bottleneck, preventing the Horde from bringing the full force of its soldiers all at once, and they were pushed back to other parts of the city. The Alliance now had a familiar foothold in Stromgarde.

**The Unfriendly Skies:** A second group mounted up on gryphons--on loan from the Wildhammer dwarves to the north--and unleashed a bombing run on Horde forces mounted on the walls. This timely action saved the lives of the Alliance on the ground, slaying snipers and destroying guns.

#### ***May 28***

**Fire in the West:** With a secure position in the city, the Alliance now began to push out into the once-lost districts. Despite a powerful showing by the Horde, the Alliance forces managed to secure almost all of Stromgarde, and turned their eyes toward the Keep.

**Clearing the Air:** Meanwhile, lingering remnants of Galen Trollbane's treacherous undead remained in the city, in the southeast district. Due to the layout of the city, the Alliance would be left open to attack by this third force, so Auromere was asked to lead a strike into the area and prevent flanking. The battle was fierce, with many injuries, but initial resistance was pushed back and retreated into a building, wherein a stockpile of explosives was kept. Three valiant fighters--Sir Peryn Crowson, Lord Owaeran Umbardacil, and Recruit Edvir Seaborn of the First Regiment--went into the building while the rest of the group gave them covering fire, and detonated the explosives, destroying the building and a substantial portion of the undead force. Battered but victorious, the party returned to the Alliance base for healing and rest.

#### ***May 29***

**Journey's End:** The hour had come at last. The Horde pushed out the remaining undead from the Keep and took up residence. However, the Alliance pushed into the building, cornering them in the commander's room. With a concerted, mighty effort, the Horde broke out and made for the roof of the Keep, where a zeppelin awaited them. But escape was not nearly enough for the vengeful Horde, and they unleashed a devastating bomb barrage--not on the Alliance forces, but the city itself, damaging the buildings and making it unsafe to occupy Stromgarde in many places.

## Outcome

The City of Stromgarde now belonged, as it always should have done, to the Alliance. The Horde, driven out of Galen's Fall and pushed hard, now reinforced Northfold to create Ar'gorak. The balance of power had shifted, and now the Alliance had the upper hand, with the Horde scrambling for survival.

## Allies

* The Crescent Glaive
* The First Regiment
* Knights of Solidarity
* Phantom Legion
* Remnant of Lordaeron