Chapter Summaries

Perenolde secretly arranged for the Horde to cross Alterac while pretending to the Alliance that he would resist them. Nathanos and Alleria realized the Horde was likely targeting Lordaeron, and Turalyon’s forces prepared to withdraw and reinforce it.

• Perenolde ordered Hass to leave the Horde’s southern routes undefended and misdirect Alterac’s soldiers toward northern mountain paths.
• Perenolde refused to meet the Alliance messenger and sent word to Anduin Lothar that Alterac would resist the Horde.
• Nathanos treated the wounded ChristaSA, then told Alleria that the Horde had likely abandoned its advance on Quel'Thalas to target Lordaeron.
• Alleria warned Turalyon and Khadgar that the Horde could strike Lordaeron through Alterac and use it to conquer the continent.
• Turalyon decided to regroup and leave the burning forest, while Khadgar urged the exhausted troops to march back to Lordaeron without trusting Alterac.

Doomhammer led the Horde through Alterac and launched a charge toward Lordaeron, whose king prepared for an imminent siege. In Quel'Thalas, Nathanos saw ChristaSA off and comforted Alleria after she confessed her family’s losses; meanwhile, Sorath Thoradin suspected Perenolde had betrayed the Alliance and marched for Alterac.

• Doomhammer led the Horde across the mountains, sighted Lordaeron, and ordered his warriors to charge the city.
• ChristaSA thanked Nathanos for believing her and teleported away to search for a way to save the Red Dragon Queen.
• Alleria admitted she believed Nathanos but asked him to keep ChristaSA’s identity from Sylvanas, then revealed that the Red Dragons had killed her parents and her younger brother was missing.
• Terenas saw the Horde advancing along the lake and ordered the alarm raised and messages sent to Alterac and the Alliance leaders.
• Sorath Thoradin concluded that Perenolde had secretly let the Horde pass and ordered his army to march on Alterac.

Nathanos left Quel'Thalas after Sylvanas gave him a bow and urged him to find his family, while Lothar learned that the Horde had attacked Lordaeron but continued clearing the Hinterlands. Nathanos returned to Marius Farm and fed his imprisoned Orc captive, Grot, because he needed his help.

• Sylvanas gave Nathanos the Lo'gresh bow and told him not to repeat her mistake of losing touch with family.
• Nathanos answered Sylvanas that Alleria was not alone and left to find his family in Lordaeron.
• Lothar received word that the Horde had begun attacking Lordaeron and ordered his soldiers to finish clearing the Horde forces in the Hinterlands before marching to the capital.
• After seven days without Nathanos, Grot feared he would starve until Nathanos returned with a leg of lamb.
• Nathanos found Grot alive and hinted that he needed the Orc's help with what lay ahead.

King Terenas defended the Capital City as the Horde began its assault, while Thoras Trollbane ambushed Orc forces crossing Alterac and persuaded General Hasse to turn against Perenolde’s bargain. The Horde nevertheless reached Lordaeron and surrounded the city, while Nathanos prepared to take Grot there for the final battle.

• King Terenas ordered boiling oil poured onto Orcs climbing the Capital City walls, then prepared for a prolonged siege.
• Thoras Trollbane and his warriors ambushed Orcs in the mountain passes, blocked several routes, and discovered that Alterac’s southern roads had been left open.
• Trollbane confronted General Hasse, who admitted that Perenolde had traded the Horde free passage for peace.
• Hasse ordered his soldiers to join Trollbane in defending the southern passes, while Trollbane refused to attack Perenolde’s castle and left his fate to the Alliance.
• Turalyon saw that the Horde had already filled the valley and surrounded the Capital City, ruining his plan to reach it first.
• At Marius Farm, Nathanos kicked Grot into the Sodori River and told him they would go to Lordaeron to witness the final battle.

Nathanos brought Grot to Lordaeron and revealed that Turalyon’s Alliance army was hidden in the northern mountains, while Khadgar reached Terenas to coordinate the coming attack. Nathanos released Grot to carry the warning to Orgrim, hoping to disrupt the assault and force the Horde to withdraw.

• Nathanos led the gagged Grot to the edge of Tirisfal forest and assessed Lordaeron’s desperate defense.
• Turalyon, Khadgar, and Kurdran discussed how to inform Terenas of their hidden forces without alerting the Horde.
• Khadgar flew into Lordaeron in raven form and told Terenas that Turalyon’s army and Elf reinforcements were preparing to attack the Horde from behind.
• Nathanos told Grot that the Alliance army was concealed in the northern mountains and that the Horde risked being surrounded.
• Nathanos untied Grot and returned his battle-axe, and Grot ran toward Orgrim’s camp as Nathanos hoped he would disrupt the attack.

As Doomhammer’s Horde battered Lordaeron, Turalyon’s forces and their allies threatened the Horde’s rear, while Nathanos’s plan to delay the assault was complicated by the missing Dragonmaw Clan. The chapter left Doomhammer learning that Gul’dan had betrayed the Horde and that the mountain road was blocked.

• Terenas watched Lordaeron’s gates buckle under the Orcs’ battering and ordered the defenders to hold the line.
• Grot Deathstrike warned Doomhammer that Alliance forces from Quel’Thalas were behind the Horde, so Doomhammer sent Blood Maw and Grommash to meet them.
• Nathanos saw the Horde divide its cavalry and wondered why the Dragonmaw Clan and its red dragons had not appeared.
• Doomhammer learned from Togus that Gul’dan and Cho’gall had escaped by ship, killed a Dragon Knight, and abandoned the Dragonmaw Clan’s duties.
• Togus reported that Zuluhed had withdrawn to Grim Batol amid a serious problem, and Salbeck arrived to announce that the mountain road had been blocked.

Orgrim Doomhammer learned that Gul'dan had deserted the Horde and ordered a pursuit while preparing to withdraw south. As the Alliance planned to pursue the retreating Orcs, Alleria ordered Sylvanas to return home and search for Lirath, leaving Alleria to face the danger alone.

• Orgrim Doomhammer learned that the mountain pass was blocked and that Gul'dan had taken two clans and sailed away, so he ordered Rend and Maim to pursue the traitors while he covered their route south.
• Orgrim Doomhammer sent Togus to investigate the Dragonmaw Clan and ordered Blood Maw to protect the Horde as it withdrew.
• Lothar joined Turalyon's camp, reported that the Hinterlands had been cleared, and planned to pursue the retreating Horde and contact the Bronzebeard Dwarves.
• Alleria told Sylvanas to return to Quel'Thalas, care for Vareesa, and find Lirath while Alleria went after the Orcs alone.
• Sylvanas begged Alleria to come back alive, and Alleria ordered her to leave the next morning.

Gul'dan raised an ancient island from the sea to reach a powerful temple, while Rend Blackhand and Maim pursued him with their forces. After the Blackfang Clan defeated the defenders on the shore, Gul'dan entered the temple and ordered his warlocks to find the Eye Chamber before its guardians awakened.

• Gul'dan and his warlocks used their magic to raise an island archipelago from the seabed, exhausting themselves in the process.
• Maim spotted Gul'dan's forces, and Rend Blackhand ordered his warriors to pursue them and avoid the warlocks' magic.
• Gul'dan learned that Orgrim's army had arrived and left Cho'gall to hold them off while he headed inland toward the temple.
• Rend and Maim led the Blackfang Clan into battle against Cho'gall's forces and defeated them after a bloody fight.
• Gul'dan entered the ancient temple and ordered his warlocks to find the Eye Chamber before the tomb guardians awakened.

Nathanos investigated the Horde’s abandoned landing site and found evidence of a hurried departure, while Rend and Maim escaped the collapsing temple after Gul’dan’s betrayal brought forth deadly creatures. Daelin Proudmoore ambushed the returning Orc fleet at sea, and the battle began to turn in Kul Tiras’s favor.

• Nathanos searched the abandoned Horde supplies at Southshore, wondered why the Orcs had left in such haste, and found blood from an injured red dragon.
• Rend and Maim saw creatures from the temple tear into the Orcs as the island shook and split apart.
• Rend concluded Gul’dan had disturbed something terrible, then led Maim toward the waiting ships to rejoin Doomhammer.
• Daelin Proudmoore prepared Kul Tiras’s fleet and waited in ambush for the Orc fleet to approach.
• Proudmoore ordered his ships to fire, destroying several Orc vessels and setting another ablaze.
• Proudmoore’s fleets attacked from multiple directions, beginning to encircle the Orc fleet.

Daelin Proudmoore rescued Alterac soldiers who revealed that Perenolde had aided the Orcs, while Alleria Windrunner arrived at the Marius family candy shop to find Nathanos. Orgrim Doomhammer continued retreating south, convinced the Horde’s missing forces were lost, and planned to regroup at Ironforge.

• Daelin Proudmoore rescued a wounded Alterac soldier from the sea and learned that Perenolde had ordered his men to guide and assist the Orc fleet.
• Daelin imprisoned the survivor, ordered his crew to rescue five more Alterac men and several Orcs, then set course for Lordaeron to report the betrayal.
• Bred and Jonathan reunited with their families at the Marius Family candy shop, where Jonathan promised Stephan he would not leave again.
• Alleria Windrunner visited the candy shop looking for Nathanos, introduced herself to Daphne, and waited for his return.
• Orgrim Doomhammer told Salbeck that Rend, Maim, and their forces were not coming back, then resolved to regroup with Kilrogg Deadeye at Ironforge and continue the war.

Orgrim hurried the surviving Horde toward Kaz'Modan after learning that Alliance forces were approaching from the east, while Nathanos agreed to join Alleria's pursuit as a temporary adviser and suspected a Horde rebellion had caused the retreat. The chapter ended with Doomhammer reaching the Blood Ring Clan and warning that Alliance troops were close behind.

• An Orc scout reported Alliance forces to the east, so Doomhammer ordered the Horde to run toward Kaz'Modan without resting.
• Alleria invited Nathanos to pursue the Orcs, and he agreed to serve temporarily as an adviser to the Farstrider forces.
• Nathanos reasoned that the Horde's unusual withdrawal order suggested a rebellion within its ranks.
• Doomhammer reached the Blood Ring Clan's territory and told its scout that most of the Horde was dead and Alliance troops were pursuing them.

Orgrim Doomhammer agreed to leave Kilrogg and the Blood Ring Clan to contain the Dwarves while he led the Horde toward Blackrock Spire. Outside Lordaeron, Nathanos urged the Alliance to secure Bronzebeard Dwarf support before attacking, and Lothar approved a mission to reach Ironforge; Alleria insisted on accompanying Nathanos.

• Kilrogg warned Doomhammer that the Dwarves in Ironforge could attack the Horde from behind, so Doomhammer left him and the Blood Ring Clan to pressure them while the rest marched to Blackrock Spire.
• Two days later, Nathanos met Lor'themar Theron and Verina outside Lordaeron and deduced that the Horde had retreated to Blackrock Mountain.
• Nathanos advised Lothar not to attack Blackrock Mountain without help and proposed contacting the Bronzebeard Dwarves by aiding them against the Orcs besieging Ironforge.
• Lothar approved Nathanos's plan after Nathanos said his former Dwarf mentor could help the Bronzebeards trust him.
• Alleria objected to Nathanos risking the mission, then decided to join him and temporarily leave Lor'themar and Verina in command.

Nathanos, Kurdran, and Alleria reached Ironforge and faced suspicion from its Bronzebeard guards, but Nathanos was reunited with his mentor Gudul, who vouched for the Alliance messenger. As Nathanos and Alleria entered the fortress, Kurdran stayed outside with Skare to scout the Orcs.

• Kurdran complained that he had not been allowed to bring his brothers, while Alleria kept warm by holding Nathanos on Skare's back.
• The group spotted Orcs mining beneath the mountains as they approached Ironforge.
• Ironforge's guards surrounded the visitors, and Kurdran nearly fought with officer Kael'thas over his Wildhammer identity.
• Nathanos introduced himself and asked to see King Magni, but the guards hesitated until Gudul recognized his former apprentice and vouched for him.
• Kael'thas ordered the gates opened and invited Nathanos, Alleria, and Gudul inside, while Kurdran remained outside with Skare to scout the Orcs.

Nathanos met King Magni in Ironforge and secured the Bronzebeard Dwarves’ support for the Alliance’s campaign against the Orcs. As the Dwarves prepared to attack, Doomhammer rallied the weakened Horde at Blackrock Mountain for a final fight.

• Alleria admired Ironforge as Nathanos and Kael'thas met Muradin and Brann, who escorted them to King Magni.
• Nathanos explained the Alliance’s plan to eliminate the remaining Orcs, and Magni agreed to join the Alliance and send troops.
• Kurdran reported that the Orcs were gathering at Blackrock Spire, and Magni ordered Muradin to defeat the Orcs outside Ironforge within two days.
• Gudul gave Nathanos a two-handed sword called Nightblade, while Alleria noticed Nathanos’s longbow and wondered why Sylvanas’s Heart-Splitter Bow was with him.
• At Blackrock Mountain, Doomhammer acknowledged the Horde’s losses and rallied his warriors to fight the humans.

Nathanos avoided answering Alleria's question about his feelings before Kurdran interrupted them. Two days later, Orgrim led the Horde in a surprise charge from Blackrock Mountain, catching the Alliance unprepared.

• Nathanos offered Alleria Sylvanas's bow after realizing she did not want him to keep it, then told her she could ask Sylvanas about her earlier question concerning them.
• Alleria asked Nathanos whether he liked Sylvanas, but Kurdran interrupted to ask him for help buying jerky for Skare, and Nathanos left with him.
• Orgrim ordered the Horde to attack the Alliance rather than wait at Blackrock Mountain, leading his elite Ogre guards into the charge.
• Orgrim learned the Dark Portal remained safe for now but received no news from the Dragonmaw Clan.
• The Horde broke through the Alliance lines and surprised Lothar's forces.

Orgrim launched a major assault on the Alliance encirclement, and Uther’s paladins crushed the first Ogre-led attack with the Holy Light. Lothar then met Doomhammer in a fierce duel, which ended with Quel'Zaram breaking beneath the Orc chieftain’s blow.

• Lothar sent Uther and the Silver Hand against the Ogres, while Nathanos, Kurdran, and Muradin advanced to strike the Horde from the rear.
• The paladins defeated the Ogre-led vanguard, but a second Horde assault struck the western front with a large force and six two-headed Ogres.
• Lothar recognized Doomhammer among the attackers, and the two leaders fought their way toward each other.
• Doomhammer killed Lothar’s horse, and the leaders began a close duel as Turalyon fought through the battlefield to reach them.
• Lothar and Doomhammer traded heavy blows until Doomhammer raised his hammer for a powerful strike, and Quel'Zaram broke when Lothar blocked it.

After Lothar died in the battle, Turalyon defeated Doomhammer and led the Alliance to victory, then decided to pursue the surviving Orcs to the Dark Portal. As the Alliance debated the prisoners and who should command, Nathanos questioned Turalyon’s plan to attack the portal and left to speak with him.

• Lothar’s sword shattered, and he fatally wounded Doomhammer before Doomhammer’s hammer struck him down.
• Turalyon’s faith crystallized around the belief that Orcs did not belong in this world; he disarmed Doomhammer, spared him for judgment, and attacked the other Orcs.
• Nathanos and Uther fought beside the Silver Hand as the Alliance routed the Horde, capturing many Orcs while others fled toward the Dark Portal.
• Turalyon ordered the Alliance to pursue the fleeing Orcs and destroy the Dark Portal, and Blackrock Spire fell without a fight.
• Nathanos and Uther discussed the dispute between the Elves and humans over the Orc prisoners and the Alliance command; Nathanos questioned Turalyon’s strategy and went to his tent.

Alleria struggled with her anger over the Horde’s crimes as Nathanos comforted her, while Turalyon led the Alliance toward the Dark Portal. The army reached the devastated Black Morass, where Khadgar recognized the scorched landscape from another world and linked it to the Orcs.

• Alleria argued with Turalyon over the Orc prisoners and threatened to withdraw her soldiers’ obedience if Quel’Thalas did not receive justice.
• Nathanos comforted Alleria and reminded her that the Alliance could not simply execute every Orc, though the Horde would face judgment for its attacks on many kingdoms.
• Turalyon spent a week preparing the Alliance army and led it cautiously after the scattered Horde remnants toward the Swamp of Sorrows.
• The Alliance reached Black Morass and found scorched red earth, a lifeless landscape, and the distant Dark Portal.
• Khadgar told Brann that he had seen land like Black Morass before, but not in this world, and said it had something to do with the Orcs.

The Alliance army attacked the Dark Portal after Nathanos and Khadgar warned that it was corrupting Azeroth by merging it with Draenor. Khadgar destroyed the portal, severing the connection between the worlds, while Rend and Maim Blackhand escaped.

• Nathanos reported that corruption was spreading from the Dark Portal, and Khadgar explained that it was merging Azeroth with the dying world of Draenor.
• Turalyon led the Alliance through the ravine and attacked the scattered Orcs guarding the Dark Portal.
• Turalyon fought Rend and Maim Blackhand, while Nathanos shot two Orcs who joined the attack; the brothers later escaped through the retreating Orcs.
• Khadgar gathered power from the Dark Portal and blasted it apart, severing Azeroth's connection to Draenor.

After the Alliance won at the Dark Portal, Nathanos worried that the Horde’s defeat and the prisoners’ fate would bring further trouble. Three months later, he returned to Marius Farm, where Alleria arrived to visit him.

• Nathanos and Alleria survived the explosion that destroyed the stone gate, and the Alliance celebrated its victory.
• A month later, Nathanos questioned whether the war was truly over as Orc prisoners built a statue of Lothar near Blackrock Spire.
• Nathanos returned to Marius Farm and considered Alterac’s betrayal, the Alliance’s future, and Turalyon’s appointment as commander.
• Stephan told Nathanos they had guests, and Alleria arrived at the farm; Nathanos asked about her sister, and Alleria told him to shut up.