The Battle at Crestfall (WC2 Human)

The Battle at Crestfall is the twelfth mission of the Alliance campaign in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.

Mission briefing
''With the destruction of Alterac, the Orcish armies in the north have staged a massive retreat. Admiral Proudmoore sends word that Gnomish Submarines have located the Horde's main naval base near Crestfall. Proudmoore believes that the Orcs plan to launch the remainder of their armada and retreat to the mainland of Azeroth. Lord Lothar has ordered that you destroy the base at Crestfall before the fleet can escape.''

Objectives

 * Destroy Orc Transports
 * Destroy all Oil Derricks
 * Destroy all Shipyards

Background

 * Note: this account comes from the Official Strategy Guide, which features a first-person description of each mission from the game.

The Alliance's first problem was feeding the large number of troops stationed inside the base, so the construction of two more farms was urgently necessary. These they placed at the northern opening to impede enemy landing parties. Then their workers went to work in the gold mine; the resulting flow of income went for training of even more peasants. During this time, they gathered all of their forces safely inside the base and brought their ships close to shore with a flying machine overhead to watch for enemy giant turtles. With this new threat in mind, they raised a gnomish inventor laboratory for the construction of more fliers, and eventually their own submersible craft. Preparations for defense were completed with several towers along the northern perimeter of town.

The next task was to collect oil for a naval force. Fliers reported a barren island far to the north with a dark patch on its side, so they loaded up a transport with two ballistae and a peasant in preparation for building on it. By that time they had another flier in the air, which escorted the transport and two oil tankers to the island, approaching it from the west side to avoid detection. After they had landed, a tower was quickly raised on a small patch of flat ground that would allow giant turtles to be spotted and sunk by the ballistae. On the north end of the island, an oil refinery was built at the same time as the tankers constructed a platform over the oil. When the task had been completed, a second shipyard went up on the west side of the island and they began constructing submarines at both.

While waiting for the submarines, their ships sailed out to the northeast, escorted by a flier, to remove an enemy oil platform and stop their flow of oil. This would help ensure that the sea remained clear after their subs had their fun sinking ships and turtles. More fliers were constructed as spotters for the subs, and once their naval power had been reduced to flotsam, a foundry was built for the construction of battleships. These vessels were then fitted with the best cannons and armor they could make, and a flotilla of six sailed out to pound the enemy coastline. They were very careful to draw the Horde's catapults to shore, where they were much easier to destroy. Next went the towers guarding their shoreline structures, and finally the structures themselves.

Forces

 * Alliance of Lordaeron
 * Footmen
 * Archers
 * Rangers
 * Knights
 * Paladins
 * Ballistae
 * Mages
 * Demolition Squads
 * Flying machines
 * Warships


 * Orcish Horde
 * Grunts
 * Axethrowers
 * Berserkers
 * Ogres
 * Ogre magi
 * Catapults
 * Death knights
 * Sappers
 * Zeppelins
 * Warships