Topic
First War
The First War was the devastating five-year conflict in which the Orcish Horde emerged through the Dark Portal and completely destroyed the human Kingdom of Stormwind. Orchestrated behind the scenes by the demon-possessed Guardian Medivh and the warlock Gul'dan, it concluded with the assassination of King Llane Wrynn I and the flight of human survivors north to Lordaeron.
Opening of the Portal
Before the war, the Kingdom of Stormwind enjoyed long years of peace following the Gnoll War, guarded by its Knights and the Clerics of Northshire Abbey. That stability shattered when the Guardian Medivh, secretly possessed by the demon lord Sargeras, contacted the orc warlock Gul'dan on Draenor. Together, they forged the Dark Portal in the swampy Black Morass. Driven by demon blood and the slow death of their homeworld, the Orcish Horde crossed into Azeroth in force. Early rumors dismissed the invaders as vengeful spirits or strange offshoots of trolls, but Sir Anduin Lothar's scouting patrols quickly confirmed the arrival of a disciplined, bloodthirsty army.
The War for Stormwind
Led openly by Warchief Blackhand and manipulated from the shadows by Gul'dan's Shadow Council, the Horde overran the southern reaches of the kingdom. While an attempt by the orcs to push into Stranglethorn Vale against the Gurubashi trolls failed, their campaign across human territory proved catastrophic. The Horde conquered outward until only Elwynn Forest remained under human control. Blackhand launched a first direct assault on Stormwind City, but Sir Anduin Lothar repelled the invasion with a brilliant, surprise flanking counterattack by sea, temporarily saving the capital from annihilation.
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- Wiki Adapted from the Warcraft Wiki article First War (CC BY-SA 4.0)