Battle for Light's Hope Chapel

The Battle for Light's Hope Chapel  plays out in The Light of Dawn (quest), the conclusion of the death knight introductory quest chain.

After wiping out the Scarlet Crusade at New Avalon and Havenshire, as well as the armies from Hearthglen and Tirisfal which came to assist the New Avalon forces, the Lich King orders the destruction of the Argent Dawn, the last remaining resistance of any size in the Plaguelands at Light's Hope Chapel.

Highlord Darion Mograine, wielding the Corrupted Ashbringer, leads Orbaz Bloodbane, Koltira Deathweaver, Thassarian and a force of 10,000 Scourge against 300 Defenders of the Light and the Argent Dawn leadership located at Light's Hope.

The Lich King cared little for the death knights, he was prepared to sacrifice all of them to draw out a single individual, Tirion Fordring. A seasoned paladin and a natural leader, the Lich King hoped to end Tirion before he had a chance to take a prominent role in defending Azeroth from the Scourge's new war.

The Scourge forces pound hard and take out an entire third of the Argent Dawn defense, but Mograine starts having problems attacking further defenders with the arrival of Tirion Fordring. The paladin emerged to defend Light's Hope Chapel, and along with the paladins of the Silver Hand and the Argent Dawn, he unleashed his holy fury against the invading armies of undead. Fordring's Light-given powers overpower and defeat Mograine, as well as immediately kill the Scourge forces in the immediate area, causing Orbaz Bloodbane to flee. The Light overwhelmed the might of the Scourge, and the death knights knew defeat. Darion orders the remaining death knight forces to stand down while Fordring berates him for what he has done.

Suddenly The Ashbringer, Alexandros Mograine, appears. Darion, shocked at his father's arrival, becomes a shade of his past and relives the conversation he had with Alexandros when he decided to join the war against the Lich King. As Alexandros says that one day Darion will wield the Ashbringer, the Lich King appears and banishes Alexandros to the abyss. When Darion comes back to himself, the Lich King revealed that the attack on Light's Hope Chapel was merely a ploy to strike at Tirion. Realizing the depths of his betrayal, Darion was enraged that he had been used as fodder, and he lashed out at his master with his wrath. However, the Lich King easily cast him aside, and incapacitated Darion and the other death knights.

Fordring, also surprised at the turn of events, comes forward in preparation to attack the Lich King. However, Fordring revealing himself is exactly what the Lich King had planned as he incapacitates Tirion and began to drain his soul with Frostmourne. Lord Maxwell Tyrosus calls in the order to attack and the remaining Defenders of the Light all charge in, followed shortly by the Argent Dawn leadership, all of whom are batted away and stunned in the process.

As the Lich King taunts his nigh-inevitable victory, Darion resisted his master's control just enough to give Tirion Fordring the corrupted Ashbringer. The paladin drew upon the power of the Light and cleansed the blade in a blinding flash of energy. With the restored Ashbringer at his command, Tirion charges toward the Lich King to fight him. Aware that even he stands little chance against the Ashbringer near the Chapel, the Lich King retreats, promising that the next time he meets Fordring, it will not be on holy ground.

The battle concluded, Fordring walks over to where Darion is lying and brings him back to consciousness. The paladins of the Argent Dawn and the Order of the Silver Hand had a new champion to rally behind, and while he laments the loss of souls on both sides of the conflict, Tirion calls for a merger of the Argent Dawn and the Order of the Silver Hand into a single faction named the Argent Crusade. The Highlord then vowed to use their combined force to attack and destroy the Lich King.

At the same time, most of the death knights on the field that day had been liberated from the Lich King's control. Darion Mograine rallied these free-willed death knights and bestowed upon them a new name, the Knights of the Ebon Blade.

Forces

 * Scourge
 * 10,000 total
 * ~10 Flesh Behemoths
 * ~1,000 Rampaging Abominations
 * ~8,500 Volatile Ghouls
 * ~500 Warriors of the Frozen Wastes


 * Argent Dawn
 * 300 total
 * ~300 Defenders of the Light