Recaps

The allied forces confronted the Qiraji emerging from the great rift in Tanaris and launched an attack to destroy them quickly before they could threaten the army’s supply lines. The Qiraji kept pouring in from underground, and the chapter ended with Patrick and the other commanders ordering their mages to attack the tentacles feeding the reinforcements.

• Patrick ordered the Blood Elf fleet to sail to Feralas and prepare to attack the Qiraji from the sea west of Silithus.
• High Overlord Saurfang, Patrick, and Taelan Fordring argued that the allied forces had to eliminate the Qiraji in Tanaris to protect their retreat and supplies.
• Anachronos agreed that the Qiraji had to be destroyed quickly, and Rhonin proposed attacking from higher ground while melee troops protected the ranged forces.
• High Overlord Saurfang ordered the allied forces to bombard the great rift with siege weapons and flaming arrows.
• The Qiraji surged toward the allied forces and emerged from new tentacles, prompting High Overlord Saurfang, Duke Leoric, Patrick, Rhonin, and Arcanist Snobbin to order their mages to attack the tentacles.

Patrick used his Arcane Mass Point to draw the Qiraji, tentacles, and sand into the sky, then turned the mass into molten fire to destroy the Great Divide’s underground infestation. The allied forces witnessed the devastation as the Qiraji’s hidden forces were consumed.

• After the allied forces wiped out the Qiraji on the surface, new tentacles and Hazzari Silithid emerged from the burning ground.
• Patrick ordered the troops to stop attacking and had the dragons return to their positions while he prepared his spell.
• Patrick created an Arcane Mass Point and sent it over the Great Divide, where its gravity pulled up the Qiraji, tentacles, and sand.
• Patrick changed the Arcane Mass Point’s effect to fire, burning the Silithid and organic matter caught within it.
• Patrick guided the molten mass down into the Great Divide’s tunnels, drowning the remaining underground Qiraji and tentacles in fire.

Patrick’s devastating spell wiped out the Qiraji and Old God tentacles in the Great Divide, giving the allied army an opening to advance into Silithus. The forces regrouped and marched toward Ahn’Qiraj, while Patrick’s display changed how the other races viewed Quel’Thalas.

• Patrick told the others that the Old God’s corruption would die without its power and ordered the army to continue into the Silithus Great Desert.
• Rhonin reflected on Patrick’s immense power and the danger it could pose, while Patrick kept the limitations of his spell to himself.
• Danje, Rokhan, Mati’gosa, and the other onlookers reacted with astonishment, and Patrick explained that the cooled lava would hinder the Qiraji underground.
• High Overlord Saurfang ordered the allied forces to regroup and advance toward the Ahn’Qiraj Empire.
• Anachronos and the Cenarion Circle gained hope for the War of the Shifting Sands, while other races reconsidered the strength of the Blood Elves.

The Continental Allied Forces marched into Silithus and gathered at Cenarion Hold to plan their campaign against the Qiraji. Patrick questioned why the desert showed no signs of the infestation they had encountered elsewhere, leaving the leaders to consider what might be hidden.

• After resting, the allied army marched through Shrub Valley and Un'Goro Crater, then followed a narrow path through Valor's Rest into Silithus.
• The army reached Cenarion Hold, where Mar'alith transferred command of the garrison to High Overlord Saurfang.
• Mar'alith reported that the Scarab Wall's seal had been breached and that Silithid had appeared in the desert as Qiraji vanguards.
• High Overlord Saurfang declared that the allies had come to destroy the Qiraji, while some leaders debated whether to attack the Scarab Wall immediately.
• Patrick pointed out that, unlike Tanaris, Silithus showed no jointed feelers or insect burrows and asked the gathered leaders why the desert seemed so empty.

Patrick questioned why Silithus showed no Qiraji activity and warned that C'Thun might not be waiting inside Ahn'Qiraj. High Overlord Saurfang chose to begin the War of the Shifting Sands, and the allied armies gathered at the Scarab Wall, ready to attack.

• Patrick pointed out that Silithus lacked the Qiraji hives and activity he expected, and questioned whether C'Thun would simply wait for the allied forces.
• Rhonin argued that the armies could not afford to wait without evidence, while Fandral Staghelm and Anachronos could offer no plan.
• Shiroma gave High Overlord Saurfang the Scepter of the Shifting Sands, and Saurfang called for the allied armies to prepare for war.
• The allied forces rested in Silithus, then marched toward the Scarab Wall with siege engines and troops from many races.
• High Overlord Saurfang rallied the assembled soldiers at the Scarab Dais, and the races answered with oaths of loyalty and determination.
• Observer Krush and the Gor'dok Ogres broke the solemn mood by chanting that it was time to eat.

High Overlord Saurfang struck the Scarab Gong, opening Ahn'Qiraj City and starting the battle between the allied forces and the Qiraji. Patrick and the alliance faced the arrival of Kurinnaxx and General Rajaxx as dragons and soldiers joined the all-out fight.

• High Overlord Saurfang struck the Scarab Gong, dispelling Ahn'Qiraj's wards and opening the city gates.
• The Anubisath and swarms of Qiraji poured through the gates as the allied ranged troops and siege engines attacked.
• Allied fighters clashed with the Qiraji, and Alleria killed an Anubisath with an explosive arrow.
• Kurinnaxx burst from the shifting sands, and Patrick recognized the giant desert worm as a sign that the Qiraji main force had arrived.
• General Rajaxx rallied the Qiraji and ordered them to attack the allied forces and dragons.
• Patrick ordered an all-out assault as the allied troops and dragonflights charged into battle.

The allied commanders debated whether to use the Forsaken’s new insecticide against the Qiraji, while Prophet Skeram’s arrival made the battlefield more dangerous. After Memphis-Shadow demonstrated the potion and Patrick ruled out a large-scale spell, the commanders reluctantly agreed to use the insecticide.

• Patrick identified Prophet Skeram as a powerful Qiraji spellcaster and warned the army to be on guard.
• Quinnard and Memphis-Shadow proposed using a new Undercity potion to kill Kurinnaxx when he burrowed underground.
• Memphis-Shadow explained that the insecticide affected bugs but not other creatures, while Dalaran’s representatives objected to using what they considered plague.
• Patrick refused to cast Arcane Mass Point because it would kill allies and could be disrupted by a Qiraji spellcaster.
• Memphis-Shadow opened a bottle of blue potion, causing the commanders to recoil from its fumes, and they reluctantly agreed to use the insecticide.

The allied forces used Memphis-Shadow’s insecticide to drive back the Qiraji, though it also made their own soldiers cough and turn blue. After Christian-Ael killed Kurinnaxx and the Qiraji leaders withdrew into Ahn'Qiraj, the allied forces won the first battle outside the gates.

• The allied forces launched Memphis-Shadow’s insecticide into the Qiraji ranks, where it killed or drove off many low-ranking Qiraji while causing allied soldiers to cough and turn blue.
• Memphis-Shadow explained that the insecticide would not seriously harm the soldiers, and its effects helped the allied forces push back the Qiraji.
• Kurinnaxx burrowed underground to ambush the allied forces, but Christian-Ael seized him, doused him with insecticide, and helped kill him with dragon breath and spells.
• General Rajaxx taunted Fandral Staghelm about his son, but Mar'alith stopped Fandral from charging into battle.
• Prophet Skeram and General Rajaxx retreated into Ahn'Qiraj, and the allied forces pressed their attack as the remaining Qiraji withdrew.

Patrick warned that the Qiraji had hidden forces and urged the allied leaders to protect their supply lines and communications. The next morning, the Qiraji revealed an organized army led by powerful figures, and Patrick recognized their leaders and identified Sartura’s forces as the fighting began.

• Mar'alith rebuked Marshal Bruewall for underestimating the Qiraji and recalled the danger they had posed during the War of the Shifting Sands.
• Patrick warned that the Qiraji had not yet deployed their elites, air forces, or other hives, and Fandral Staghelm called for communications with Cenarion Hold to be protected.
• High Overlord Saurfang arranged for messengers to travel regularly between the allied army and Cenarion Hold, and the forces planned to attack the next morning.
• The allied army marched to Ahn'Qiraj City, where the Qiraji assembled a large organized force led by Princess Huhuran, War Guard Sartura, and Ayamiss the Hunter.
• War Guard Sartura declared the invaders would be punished and ordered an attack, while Patrick identified her command of the Vekniss and warned the allied forces to watch for her.

The allied forces fought the Qiraji in the renewed War of the Shifting Sands as powerful enemies joined the battle and Alleria killed three Anubisath. The chapter left the army trapped after a messenger reported that Cenarion Hold was under attack and Fandral Staghelm Point had fallen to Twilight Cultists.

• High Overlord Saurfang committed the dragons to battle as the Qiraji air forces and ground troops attacked, and Krokaus distinguished himself among Patrick’s Blood Elf forces.
• Ossirian the Unscarred appeared alongside General Rajaxx and Vek'lor the Unyielding, drawing the allied forces into an all-out battle against three Qiraji armies.
• Alleria killed three charging Anubisath with enchanted arrows, lifting allied morale.
• A bloodied messenger told High Overlord Saurfang that three Silithid Hives surrounded Cenarion Hold and that Twilight Cultists led by Vilar had surrounded Fandral Staghelm Point.
• The allied commanders realized the Qiraji had cut off their only route for reinforcements, leaving their army surrounded in the Silithus Great Desert.

After learning that Qiraji forces had surrounded Cenarion Hold and Twilight Cultists had seized Fandral Staghelm Point, Patrick proposed withdrawing the entire allied army to reinforce the hold. The leaders accepted his plan to reunite their forces, destroy the revealed hives, and then attack Ahn'Qiraj.

• Patrick had Taelan heal the messenger, who reported that three Qiraji hives had emerged around Cenarion Hold and Twilight Cultists had captured the areas around Fandral Staghelm Point.
• Patrick learned that the Qiraji had concealed their presence in Silithus and planned to trap the allied forces while C'Thun recovered.
• Marshal Bruewall urged the army to return to Cenarion Hold, while Sha'ai, Danje, and Warlord Rokhan warned that splitting their forces would leave them vulnerable.
• Patrick questioned Anachronos and Azuregos about the Qiraji's unusually restrained attacks and concluded that the enemy was trying to wear down the allied army rather than fight decisively.
• Patrick proposed that the entire army withdraw together toward Cenarion Hold and fight the Qiraji if they attacked during the march.
• The leaders approved Patrick's plan to reinforce the hold, eliminate the three hives, relieve Fandral Staghelm Point, and then storm Ahn'Qiraj.

High Overlord Saurfang led the allied army’s retreat to Cenarion Hold, where the defenders had survived a Qiraji assault. The commanders planned to clear the Twilight cultists at Fandral Staghelm Point and divide their forces against the three Silithid Hives, with Patrick offering the blood elves to attack Hive'Ashi.

• High Overlord Saurfang ordered the allied army to withdraw toward Cenarion Hold, and the Qiraji attacked as the forces retreated.
• The allies repelled the Qiraji under Sartura, Ayamiss the Hunter, and General Rajaxx, then continued toward the hold.
• Baristolth of the Shifting Sands and Torreg welcomed the returning army and reported that Cenarion Hold had withstood a siege.
• Mar'alith and Wilfred Fizzlebang described the threats at the three Silithid Hives and Fandral Staghelm Point, and Patrick proposed sending a small force against the Twilight cultists.
• Hamul Runetotem sent Dorothy to assist Mar'alith at Fandral Staghelm Point, while Patrick offered the blood elves to clear Hive'Ashi.

Patrick assigned the Alliance and Horde forces to separate Silithid Hives and ordered the Dragonhawk Riders to destroy Hive'Ashi. Meanwhile, Mathis returned from Outland with the Flame Hawk Burning Legion, received orders to reclaim Windrunner Spire, and found peace in a restored Quel'Thalas.

• Bruewall and Leoric agreed that the Alliance would take Hive'Zora, while Saurfang told the others to remain at Cenarion Hold.
• Patrick ordered Zagonnas to send the Dragonhawk Riders to destroy Hive'Ashi, provided the Qiraji had no forces able to attack aerial targets.
• Rommath and Lor'themar received Mathis through a teleportation circle, and Rommath challenged Mathis's claim that the Flame Hawk Burning Legion could defeat the Draenei.
• Lor'themar gave Mathis Patrick's orders to reclaim Windrunner Spire, and Mathis accepted the assignment.
• Mathis returned to Quel'Thalas, rested, and saw that Silvermoon City and Eversong Woods had recovered from the Scourge's devastation.

Mathis toured Quel'Thalas with Lor'themar Theron, learned about its new defenses and plans to reclaim the Ghostlands, then led the Flame Hawk Burning Legion toward Windrunner Spire. In Silithus, allied forces devastated the three Silithid Hives with aerial bombardment, explosives, and plague.

• Lor'themar showed Mathis Quel'Thalas's restored lands, lynx-riding rangers, ogre guards, and night elves serving in Eldre'Dani.
• Lor'themar explained that the night elves and ogres had joined Quel'Thalas after Patrick cleared Eldre'Thalas and offered them protection and magical energy.
• Lor'themar sent Mathis toward Tranquillien to organize his troops and advance on Windrunner Spire, while outlining plans to retake the Ghostlands and fortify the Elfgate.
• Lor'themar returned to Silvermoon City after Mathis departed and remarked that Mathis was troublesome but obeyed the Regent.
• Zagonnas's dragonhawk riders bombarded Hive'Ashi, while dwarven and gnomish machines and human paladins attacked Hive'Zora.
• The allied forces overwhelmed Hive'Regal with Forsaken plague and explosives, killing or badly damaging its qiraji.

The Qiraji launched a surprise attack on Cenarion Hold through a swarm pillar, but the defenders killed their leaders and destroyed the pillar. With the three silithid hives defeated and the hold secure, High Overlord Saurfang prepared the allied forces to assault the Ahn'Qiraj Empire.

• Ayamiss the Hunter led the Wasp Burning Legion through a swarm pillar in an attack on Cenarion Hold, where the dragons and neutral forces met them in battle.
• Azuregos and Anachronos froze Ayamiss and shattered him, while Hamul Runetotem's vines restrained Vek'lor and Dalaran's mages and the Red Dragons killed him.
• With both generals dead, the Qiraji fled, and the allied forces slaughtered them before the dragons burned the swarm pillar and destroyed its passages.
• Patrick returned to Cenarion Hold and told High Overlord Saurfang that Hive'Ashi had been rooted out; Kruger Skullcrusher reported that Hive'Zora had also been wiped out.
• High Overlord Saurfang announced an all-out assault on the Ahn'Qiraj Empire, and Fandral Staghelm looked south with hatred.

The allied forces prepared to launch a decisive assault on Ahn'Qiraj City while weighing the remaining Qiraji threats and the risks of a prolonged siege. Patrick rejected a proposal to send Silvermoon's Dragonhawk Riders into the battle, leaving the allied forces to find another answer to Qiraji air power.

• The Horde and Alliance positioned their forces on opposite flanks of Ahn'Qiraj City's gates, and Patrick said the allied forces would eventually win.
• Fandral Staghelm warned that the Obsidian Destroyer Force had yet to appear, while the leaders considered supply needs and the timing of a decisive battle.
• Bruewall and Wilfred Fizzlebang proposed blasting open the city's walls, but Hamul Runetotem cautioned that Qiraji aerial forces could inflict heavy losses.
• Krasus asked whether Regent Cabrolon could send Dragonhawk Riders, but Patrick refused, saying they were not part of Silvermoon's forces allocated to the war.

Patrick refused to send Quel'Thalas's elite troops into a direct aerial battle, instead positioning them to support the allied forces while preserving their strength. The Continental Allied Forces launched their assault on Ahn'Qiraj, and as the battle turned bloody, Patrick awaited the arrival of the Qiraji leaders and main army.

• Patrick rejected sending the Dragonhawk Riders into battle and planned for Quel'Thalas to help fight the Qiraji air force alongside the blue dragons.
• Patrick positioned Quel'Thalas's troops among the allied center, where they could support both the Alliance and the Horde without taking the brunt of a head-on assault.
• At dawn, High Overlord Saurfang rallied the assembled armies, and the dragonflights joined the Continental Allied Forces before they attacked Ahn'Qiraj.
• Qiraji poured from the gates and over the walls as the Kor'kron warriors and Seventh Legion led the charge, followed by tauren and dwarven troops.
• As Qiraji broke through the allied lines, Patrick committed Quel'Thalas's melee troops to the battle, while Alleria recalled how she had defeated three Anubisath with Explosive Arrows.
• Patrick waited for the Qiraji Highlords and Twin Emperors to appear, anticipating that their arrival would signal the main force and the path toward C'Thun.

The allied army fought the Qiraji as their commanders engaged the enemy leaders, while Ouro and other Qiraji ambushed the allied camps from underground. Patrick and Alleria battled Ouro, and Alleria injured him with an Enchanted Arrow as the fight continued.

• General Rajaxx and Prophet Skeram led elite Qiraji forces into the allied vanguard, while Princess Huhuran and War Guard Sartura fought the dragons.
• High Overlord Saurfang and Troll High Warlord Rokhan advanced against General Rajaxx, while Fandral Staghelm and Grand Duke Leoric moved to confront Skeram.
• Ouro burst from beneath the allied base and attacked the troops, while Viscidus emerged from a tunnel and consumed two Scarlet Crusade soldiers.
• Taelan Fordring joined the battle against Viscidus, while Lord Kri, Princess Yauj, and Vem ambushed the Dalaran camp.
• Patrick fought Ouro with quick spells as the Blood Knights battled the underground bugs, but Ouro's shell repelled Patrick's Frostbolts.
• Alleria fired an Enchanted Arrow into Ouro's mouth as he devoured an Elf, making the injured bug howl.

Patrick and the allied forces killed Ouro and Viscidus while fighting the Qiraji in Silithus. High Overlord Saurfang killed General Rajaxx, whose final words urged his warriors and officers to keep fighting.

• Patrick identified the gaps between Ouro's body segments as weak points, and Alleria killed the giant worm with an arrow through its lower jaw.
• Patrick told Taelan that Viscidus was vulnerable to ice magic, then froze the ooze intact so Taelan could shatter it and prevent it from reforming.
• Patrick continued attacking the Qiraji while High Overlord Saurfang and Rokhan fought General Rajaxx.
• High Overlord Saurfang struck Rajaxx with his battle-axe, and the wounded general collapsed after urging his warriors and officers to keep fighting.

Fandral Staghelm and Grand Duke Leoric killed Prophet Skeram, but the Qiraji escalated the battle by deploying Ossirian, Moam, the Obsidian Destroyers, and the Twin Emperors. Blade Emperor Vek'nilash and Magic Emperor Vek'lor entered the fight and began cutting through the Alliance and Horde forces.

• Fandral Staghelm and Grand Duke Leoric destroyed Skeram's illusions and killed the Prophet with their combined attacks.
• Ossirian the Unscarred emerged from Ahn'Qiraj with the Anubisath after they hurled Ancient Crystals into the allied ranks.
• Moam led the Obsidian Destroyers into battle against the dragons in the sky.
• Blade Emperor Vek'nilash and Magic Emperor Vek'lor appeared at Ahn'Qiraj's gates, committing the Twin Emperors to the battle.
• Ellen told Patrick that the Twin Emperors had combat strength comparable to demigods.
• Vek'nilash charged into the Alliance troops, while Vek'lor's immunity to physical damage blunted the Horde warriors' attacks.

The Twin Emperors’ immunity and instant switching devastated the Horde and Alliance forces, forcing Patrick and the other leaders to devise a way to counter them. The chapter ended with both sides agreeing to create a powerful Dimensional Anchor to stop the emperors from teleporting and switching places.

• The Twin Emperors reversed the Qiraji’s failing position by switching whenever threatened, leaving the soldiers unable to harm them effectively.
• Patrick and High Overlord Saurfang divided the leaders between the two emperors, but their attacks struck the wrong targets after the emperors switched places.
• Patrick explained the emperors’ immunities and switching ability, then proposed separating them and blocking their teleportation with a Dimensional Anchor.
• Patrick asked Fandral Staghelm to help create the magic circle, and Fandral sent Rhonin to gather mages to maintain it.

With the coalition’s magic formation sealing the battlefield, the Alliance and Horde overwhelmed the Twin Emperors and killed Blade Emperor Vek'nilash. Magic Emperor Vek'lor then detonated his mana, leaving the coalition caught in a massive explosion.

• Patrick noticed the Dimensional Anchor circles had activated, and Alleria confirmed the space-sealing formation was complete.
• High Overlord Saurfang rallied the coalition leaders, who launched a coordinated assault on the Twin Emperors.
• Rokhan, Hamul Runetotem, and Patrick supported the Horde fighters as High Overlord Saurfang, General Jirikka, and Kruger Skullcrusher struck Blade Emperor Vek'nilash.
• The Alliance’s commanders and spellcasters pinned down Magic Emperor Vek'lor and bombarded him with attacks.
• High Overlord Saurfang, General Jirikka, and Kruger Skullcrusher killed Blade Emperor Vek'nilash, and Vek'lor detonated all the mana in his body.

After defeating the Qiraji Twin Emperors, the Alliance and Horde leaders discussed how to confront C'Thun beneath the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj. The chapter ended with Grand Duke Leoric questioning whether C'Thun could act freely while still sealed.

• Magic Emperor Vek'lor's mana explosion severely wounded Grand Duke Leoric and other Alliance fighters, while the Horde suffered less damage.
• High Overlord Saurfang, General Jirikka, and Kruger Skullcrusher killed Blade Emperor Vek'nilash, and the allied forces routed the remaining Qiraji.
• Ossirian died after losing the Twin Emperors' magic, and the Alliance and Horde made camp to recover and clear the battlefield.
• High Overlord Saurfang gathered the leaders to discuss the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj, where Fandral Staghelm identified C'Thun as the power behind the Qiraji empire.
• Fandral Staghelm proposed a surprise attack on C'Thun, while Patrick doubted the allied forces could kill an Old God.
• Grand Duke Leoric argued that C'Thun's continued use of schemes suggested the sealed Old God had limits on his power.

The allied leaders planned to clear Ahn'Qiraj and then send an elite force to face C'Thun, while soldiers hunted Qiraji for military merit and rewards. Patrick decided to join the assault himself, and after Alleria revealed she had reached the Legendary realm, he agreed to let her accompany him.

• High Overlord Saurfang, Fandral Staghelm, and the other leaders agreed to clear the Qiraji before assembling an elite force to attack C'Thun in the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj.
• Patrick warned the allied leaders that C'Thun could attack their minds with whispers and illusions, and the meeting ended with plans to clear the empire while the wounded recovered.
• The allied forces let soldiers form hunting squads, and the Blood Elves offered Magic Coins for Qiraji meat, spurring the soldiers to hunt for profit and military merit.
• Patrick arranged for the wounded to recover in the cool Blood Elf camp and told Alleria he would personally join the assault on the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj.
• Alleria opposed Patrick's plan, revealed that she had entered the Legendary realm, and convinced him to let her accompany him.

The allied forces entered the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj to assault C'Thun, but the Old God trapped them in illusions and began attacking their souls. Ellen helped Patrick break free and shield the group, leaving them to face C'Thun's Death Ray Wall.

• The recovered commanders and Dragonflight representatives traveled through the underground temple toward C'Thun's chamber.
• Patrick sensed C'Thun's immense power, and High Overlord Saurfang led the group into the chamber.
• C'Thun's eye attacked the allied forces and trapped them in illusions that showed their defeat and enslavement.
• Ellen urged Patrick to resist, then summoned the Discs of Norgannon and told him to use a mana detonation to free everyone.
• Patrick broke free, blocked C'Thun's Death Ray Wall with a disc, and dispelled the illusions so the others could prepare to fight.
• C'Thun's red ray clashed with the Discs of Norgannon's silvery-white light as energy filled the chamber.