The demon commander Raimon emerged from the tunnel, followed by the fifth Mana Engine. Behind him, the powerful demon army roared as they charged towards the native coalition forces. He was very optimistic about the battle situation. The Mana Engines truly lived up to expectations. Except for the first one, which suffered too much artillery fire and had its optical sensors destroyed, leading to concentrated fire and damage, the remaining four successfully established a firm foothold.
These four were also the only ones among the twenty that were equipped with Mana Cannons, the "Mark II" models. They immediately used their Mana Cannons to counterattack after emerging from the tunnel, providing fire cover for the subsequent troops.
"Kill them all! Crush them!" Raimon roared, raising his great axe. His desire for destruction was surging, and the demons of the Burning Legion were rushing past him towards the native coalition forces. As they charged, even the earth trembled slightly.
Those natives must be so scared that they can't even stand straight, Raimon thought contemptuously. He raised his great axe and charged along with them. Just then, the sound of helicopter rotors suddenly echoed in the sky.
"Attention, air raid!" Raimon had personally witnessed the Battle of the Thandol Span and knew that these natives' air force was still very strong. Although this time his legion also had a certain number of flying demons, such as Doomguards and Nathrezim, the enemy's anti-air firepower was very strong, and these flying demons couldn't keep up with the enemy's speed, making it difficult to gain aerial superiority. Their ground forces naturally had to guard against attacks from the local air force.
In the sky were the Screaming Serpents' air force. The other units were engaging the flying demons, buying them time.
"Enter designated positions!"
"Begin bombing!"
"Pay attention to tactical evasion."
"Watch out for Mana Cannon fire!"
Corki heard the pilots' voices in his headset. Their planes were loaded with special bombs, specifically designed to target Mana Engines!
The Mana Engines detected the incoming air raid, and two Mark II models immediately aimed their Mana Cannons at the sky. Corki pulled the control stick, skillfully dodging the Mana Cannon shells from the ground.
"Now it's my turn to strike back!"
He pressed the bomb release button. A string of bombs detached from the hardpoint, whistling as they fell into the demon ranks. The other team members also began to drop their bombs. The bombs scattered across a large area near the tunnel entrance.
Raimon saw a bomb falling right towards his head, and he immediately raised a Mana Shield. The bomb landed with a "thud" beside him, then made a muffled sound. It wasn't the violent explosion of an ordinary bomb, nor did it release a strong shockwave, high-temperature blast, or deadly fragments, but… a cloud of choking white smoke.
Raimon was shocked. This wasn't a bomb, but a smoke bomb!
The pilots of the Screaming Serpents squadron dropped smoke bombs one after another. In an instant, the demon side was engulfed in thick, irritating white smoke, making it impossible to see one's hand in front of one's face.
The demons of the Burning Legion don't need to breathe in the Twisting Nether, and they don't need eyes to observe things, but rather use perception. But this is the material world, and even demons must follow the laws of nature. They breathe and rely on their eyes to distinguish things.
Worse still were the Mana Engines—these behemoths relied entirely on optical sensors to identify friend or foe and launch attacks. Enveloped in thick smoke, they became completely blind and deaf, just like the first Mana Engine.
The helicopters were still circling overhead. In addition to the attack helicopters, a large number of ordinary magical-tech helicopters, and even the Wildhammer gryphon riders, had arrived on the battlefield.
In the aerial battlefield, the Alliance had gained an overwhelming advantage. The airships, plus the dense anti-air firepower on Syndra's fortress, were making the flying demons miserable. The Doomguards were resisting desperately, unable to mount an effective counterattack, let alone support their allies. These demons in the sky were struck by all sorts of attacks, and their corpses fell like rain. The demons' resistance was nearing collapse.
Although the smoke bombs also deprived the Alliance air force of their sight of the enemy, the infrared and laser targeting equipment on the attack helicopters were still functioning normally. Several helicopters fired red laser lines, illuminating the heads of the Mana Engines in the mist.
"Charge, charge!" King Falstad shouted to the dwarven knights behind him, riding his gryphon, "Throw your Stormhammers at the places those red lines are pointing! Put your backs into it! Aim well!"
The missiles on the helicopters were also locked onto these behemoths. The Mana Engines charged around wildly, trampling countless demons around them, and the random Mana Cannon fire had no accuracy whatsoever.
Seeing that this method was indeed effective, Archmage Modera on the Alliance lines was also inspired. She saw that the smoke in the demon legion's ranks was dissipating, and some demons had already charged out. Although these guys were taken down by the ranged fire from the lines before they could get very far.
"Mages, let us unite and create a great fog for the demons!" Modera shouted to the members of the mage order.
This suggestion brightened everyone's eyes. That's right, smoke bombs can create smoke, and magic can do the same! Even more reliably than smoke bombs!
Dun Morogh has snow all year round, and the mountain range is originally shrouded in mist. Even during the day, visibility is not high. The mages creating a great fog will also receive support from the environment, making the spell effect more lasting!
Under Modera's leadership, the mages chanted spells, and the cold mist around the mountains was drawn by the power of the ice element, gathering here. Soon, it enveloped the entire demon position. Under the mages' control, it was not even affected by nature, only shrouding the demons, and not spreading to other places.
"Well done!" King Thoras Menethil praised loudly.
Garithos also nodded repeatedly. With the help of this great fog, their mission to contain the enemy would be much easier!
Moreover, a messenger had just brought news that the main force had begun a surprise attack on the other side of the South Gate Pass. He believed that when the news reached the ears of the demon commander here, he would be panic-stricken!
The smoke bomb tactic was indeed very effective at the beginning, but the demon army was not without a way to deal with it. After the initial chaos, Commander Raimon immediately ordered the Eredar Warlocks to cast fel magic to dispel the mist. At the same time, he ordered all the demon legions to stop all actions. A captain led the way, and the rest held onto the shoulders or tails of the demons in front, listening to the captain's commands, and calmly walked out of the mist.
Raimon had fought many battles and fought countless enemies, and he had experience in handling emergencies. The demons quickly regained their composure. Although being passively beaten during this period caused them heavy losses, and the shells, bullets, and flying hammers constantly fired from the sky and the opposite side increased the difficulty of leaving the mist, as long as they rushed out, they could quickly recover the situation!
As more demons emerged from the tunnel, their vanguard finally approached the Alliance lines. The mages could no longer allow the mist to expand, otherwise, it would put their own people in a situation where they couldn't see their fingers.
The close combat was about to begin. Marshal Garithos, at the front of the line, shouted loudly: "Warriors of the Alliance, the moment to uphold justice has arrived! Charge! Annihilate these demons!"
The charge sounded, and the soldiers of the Alliance legion shouted and launched a charge under this order.
Magni Bronzebeard raised his iron hammer and shouted: "Charge up and kill these demons, lads of Ironforge, follow me!"
"Kill!" Muradin, also riding on a ram, let out a heroic battle cry, leading the Ironforge guards to launch a charge.
Demons kept rushing out of the mist, and no one knew how many demons were still hiding inside. But there was no doubt that the demons had suffered heavy losses!
The battle in the sky produced results first. The flying demons were quickly defeated by the powerful Alliance air force. They were originally a small branch, and the main force was following Archimonde to attack Blackrock Spire. Facing the large air force of Dun Morogh, they quickly fell into defeat, and the remaining demons fled in all directions.
After winning the air battle, Archmage Antonidas immediately ordered the airships to go to the main battlefield. The previous few battles had consumed a lot of Mana Bombs, and the Battle of the Thandol Span a few days ago had almost exhausted all the stock. Although they had subsequently taken the time to replenish some, the number was still small, only ten.
These ten bombs must all be used to deal with the Mana Engines, so they must completely eliminate the possible attacks from the sky before they can confidently deal with the Mana Engines on the ground.
The war began to heat up. When the close combat began, the demons did have a great advantage. Their main combat units, such as Doomguards, were each four or five meters tall, and ordinary weapons were like scratching an itch when they hit them, while a Doomguard's blade could easily split a cavalryman and his mount in half.
The numerous Felguards were not bad either. They were shorter than the Doomguards, but still half a body taller than humans. They could use two heavy weapons at the same time without any difficulty, and their combat skills were excellent, and they cooperated skillfully, posing an even greater threat to the Alliance forces than the small number of Doomguards.
The other Hellhounds, Imps, and Succubi each had their own strengths. Some were very effective against mages, some were small and cast spells quickly, and some could even control the unstable warriors and make them defect.
Even more terrifying were those Mana Engines that had rushed out of the mist but still retained their combat power—the direction they charged in meant that no one could stop them. Wherever they passed, the battle line almost immediately collapsed.
Demon Commander Raimon charged back and forth in the enemy ranks, laughing hideously, his two great axes covered in blood.
Although the Mana Engines suffered heavy losses, the remaining few were already mixed in with the natives, and the native air force had many concerns and did not dare to use Mana Bombs to bombard them—because after the bombs fell, the number of Alliance soldiers who died would definitely be much more than the Mana Engines.
"Charge, charge, charge! Kill, kill, kill!" Raimon shouted, now his legion had the advantage. He believed that in less than half an hour, after his army had all rushed out, victory would belong to them!