Frankly, it had been a glorious century and and half, as the kids got worked up to snuff and we embarked on an eternal crusade against the trolls. Because on the one hand yes, you needed way more than forty people to take a troll city-state. Not least because they had a great many priests and magical, if somewhat simple and crude, support on their side as well. That, and there were a lot of trolls... and the trolls occupied a tech level were there were fewer civilians than you would think. Of course, the odd thing was that the trolls were not our worst enemy,

No, that would, ironically, be the convocation. Turns out, a mostly independent roving army of war priests (Paladins) was actually mildly alarming for the mages that ruled over the High Elves. Worst of all, as far as they were concerned, was the fact that the Ashen Crusade just... ignored them. Which resulted in more sternly worded letters. Eventually, I think we just stopped answering them and threw them onto the camp fires. Which is about when we had to get really self sufficient. I think, even as we harassed and butchered members of Ogrim's horde, that we were technically considered a bandit group.

Despite you know, never actually preying on any elven or human settlements. Just the trolls. Which is went the smell of rot and fel came on the winds, as I breathed deep, looking south, even as trolls writhed and thrashed on the pyres, screaming as they were cleansed in the flames of retribution. "My children! The burning legion casts its eye on the world once more, and has begun the scourging the human lands. But, they will come for the Sunwell in time, to usher in the damnation of the world. If we do nothing, the greater part of the golden realm will rot and wither."

I paused, and lifted my hammer, pointing dramatically to the south. "We march for the human lands, to stem the tide there."

The flames roared, as did a hundred and sixty three crusaders, as we moved out, throwing the remaining captive trolls into a great pit of coals and flame, but leaving before their deaths were more than smoke in my nose.

Zul'jin

On the one hand, the crazy elves and their crazier fire loa were no longer camped out near his city. On the hand he had to cut off to escape, he remembered the LAST time something distracted them from unending warfare against his people. The only thing that seemed to make them sun warriors more angry than an Amani was a demon caller or void priest. And for them to be calling off the the raids and marching south while baying for blood at speed? He called the warriors and the priests. "Da sun warriors moving south, marching mad inta human lands, as if they scented Gul'dan back from ta dead. Get tha good weapons out, get tha torches an fetishes, ready all da rituals! Sumtin nasty in da world again."

Sure, he hated them and wanted them to die even more than most elves, but he wasn't stupid. That hate was clearly returned and it took something big for them to shift away from the raids and killing. He was not going to be caught off guard. Particularly if they had withdrawn all bands from the area, marching south in force.

The warlord chuckled, as he considered things, and shook his head. While he did not hold out much hope, he hoped that whatever was in the south was able to take a few of his enemies down with them.

Othmar Garithos

Truth be told, he did not like most elves. Most elves were flighty and self righteous pricks that could not be bothered to defend themselves or do an honest days labor. There were some exceptions to this of course, even as he rallied some of his forces along the road. They would not be standing in the way of the main force of the scourge, as frankly, he did not have the forces to do more than die and maybe slow them down by a few minutes. Frankly, there were just too many of them. And he was not going to get his family killed.

And they had barely survived the last war, with reinforcements from some of the few elves he could tolerate having reinforced and saved his life. Weakened, as they had been busy fighting in their homeland for the most part, but at the least those elves did something! And he had looked into them, and it made him want to scoff. An army of orphans that ignored the lords and rulers of the land to wage eternal war against the trolls that left them orphaned, to try and prevent it from happening again. He could respect that.

Which is why he grinned, as he spotted the pillars of flame, of the shining radiance in the distance that sung like the stars. "Well men, seems the elves have come out. Lets get ready to march."

He was under no illusions. It was not an official force, but the elves were members of the Alliance, and he was meant to assist them. Best to see if they needed the help though, even if he would still be focusing on defense, moving out again to rally the survivors... as his men would only do the army of the damned any good dead.

Arthas

You know, he was coming to really HATE elves. If not Sylvanas doing her own hit and run raids, it was the oddly berserk elven paladins. Because seriously, Uther did not know about them or did his best to prevent him from learning any details, because they were channeling the light while literally frothing at the mouth and screaming. And the sheer amounts they were channelling was... absurd, the ground cracking and glowing under their feet, skin splitting to reveal ashes and sunlight. All of it searing away at his troops while healing them...

And they simply charged in, wrecked havoc, manifesting blades and hammers of light in a storm of radiant fury, before racing away on steeds of solar fire. Only to repeat again, and again and again. And in several places as they fought withy no hesitation or pause. And then there were the flame strikes, because yes, some of them had some limited fire magic. When they did not just throw radiant stars of the light as if refraining from unleashing them was extremely offensive. Thorns in his side that slowed him down enough that the Far Striders were able to evacuate all the smaller villages in his path, depriving him of quick reinforcements.

But no, the most annoying thing was when the leader of the elven paladins would throw a blob and it exploded into that elemental that roared "The Light Purges!" and proceeded to unleash a sea of flame and light on its area before the frostwyrms and death knights arrived to drive it off. And in its presence... holy fire covered the weapons and bodies of every elf, corpses quickly burning to ash while healing the living. It was infuriating... and a part of him hated it.

Where was it when he needed it on the frozen roof of the world! Where was this terrible and avenging light when he needed to save his people!