Naxxramas slowly descended, vast clouds of icy mist spilling from the bottom of the enormous citadel.
Cold winds swept across the sea, and its temperature plummeted.
Ice formed at a terrifying speed, stretching a kilometer in the blink of an eye.
The entire coastline north of Guard Territory looked as though it had undergone a land reclamation project, with vast expanses of milky-white frozen ground appearing.
The Lich King's power had utterly transformed the Inland Sea's natural environment.
Once the sea froze, Kul Tiras's Combined Fleet immediately began breaking the ice.
The sudden change left every captain stunned.
With the warships frozen in place and stripped of their mobility, their role had changed.
The Iron Warships had gone from agile rulers of the sea to immobile land fortresses.
With only their onboard cannons and no mobility to seek or create openings, the Combined Fleet's overall strength would be drastically reduced.
Rowan immediately headed to the Combined Fleet's forward ships to oversee the battle. The Vanguard Fleet consisted entirely of Second Fleet veterans, who also formed the backbone of the Combined Fleet.
Rowan had originally planned to use the Second Fleet's main force to withstand the Scourge's first two or three waves, then order the ships on both flanks forward to form a semicircle around the undead Scourge's forces.
That would maximize the area covered by their firepower.
Now, however, the entire battle plan had fallen apart.
Rowan had never expected Naxxramas, the Scourge's aerial fortress, to possess the ability to freeze vast stretches of sea.
"The ice is over two meters thick. Damn it, there's practically no way we can break through it anytime soon." Byron worked with the mage Clark to bombard the ice, only to discover that it was as thick as the blocks stored in an icehouse.