Red War: Difference between revisions

{{Battle infobox

|prev=[[SIVA Crisis]]

|next=[[Hunt for the Scorn]]

|image=[[File:TheLastCity.jpg|350px]]

|date=  

**[[The Almighty]]

*[[The Reef]]

|result=

*First true defeat of the Red Legion

*Traveler reawakens

**Pulse of Light causes the gate to the Infinite Forest to reopen on Mercury

**Pulse of Light melts the ice of [[Hellas Basin]] on Mars, releasing [[Xol]] and the [[Grasp of Nokris]]

*Emperor Calus's Leviathan arrives in Sol and begins consuming Nessus

|side1='''Humanity'''

*[[The Last City]]

*The [[Reef]]

*[[The Sunbreakers]]

*[[Red Legion]]

|side3='''Other'''

*[[Loyalists]]

*[[Hive]]

*[[Fallen]]

*[[Vex]]

*[[Nine]]

|side4=

|commanders2=

*[[Dominus Ghaul]]

*[[Val Ca'uor]]

|commanders3=

'''Loyalists:'''

*[[Emperor Calus]]

-----

*[[Savathûn]]

**[[Savathûn's Song]]

----

*[[Brandaks Prime]]

*[[Serkuleks, the Fount]]

**[[Raksil, Archon Priest]]

----

*[[Protheon, Modular Mind]]

*[[Brakion, Genesis Mind]]

|commanders4=

|forces1=

'''Last City:'''

*[[City Militia]]

*Underground resistance

|forces2=

*[[Red Legion]] and fleet

**[[The Immortal]]

|forces3=

'''Loyalists:'''

**[[The Leviathan]]

----

----

|forces4=

|casual1=

|casual2=

|casual3=

|casual4=

}}

After years of fighting against the proxy forces of the [[Darkness]] and emerging victorious, the Guardians found themselves outmatched when the Red Legion launched a surprise attack on the Last City, destroying the [[Tower]] and sealing away the [[Traveler]]'s [[Light]]. With their powers and arsenals lost and their home conquered, the Guardians [[Adieu|retreated]] to the outskirts of the [[European Dead Zone]] to a place known as [[The Farm]]. There, the Guardians recovered and planned a counterattack in order to save their home and legacy.

==Events==

===Surprise Attack===

{{Quote|no=two|Ikora|q1=No, I mean they're not there. There are '''no''' satellites!|Cayde-6|q2= And, that's… not good?|[[Homecoming]]}}

On the anniversary of the [[Battle of Six Fronts]], the [[Vanguard]] discovered that all of their outer defenses, satellites, and outposts went dark in the cover of a storm. In a sudden bombardment, the Red Legion severely devastated the Tower, but the Vanguard survived in Zavala's [[Ward of Dawn]], and mobilized against the invasion. As the Legion's fleet assaulted the City, a massive aircraft latched onto the Traveler. During the chaos, the [[Speaker]] was swiftly captured by the Red Legion, leaving the City and its Guardians questioning his whereabouts. Civilians were successfully evacuated, but the Vanguard was quickly overwhelmed.

===Red Legion Occupation===

{{Quote|I am Ghaul, and your Light… is mine.|Dominus Ghaul, [[Homecoming]]}}

With the city secured, Ghaul sent his forces across the system to secure even more planets.

===Vanguard Resistance===

{{Quote|If we wait, we die. But if we attack together, we can take back our home, our Light… our hope. Or we die trying.|Commander Zavala, [[Utopia]]}}

The Guardian at the Farm, following visions, journeyed to the Traveler Shard deep in a dangerously corrupted forest. After fighting through soldiers of a new [[Fallen]] House, the [[House of Dusk]], the Guardian was able to reach the shard and tap into its Light to regain their abilities. With their powers restored, the Guardian traveled to Titan to aid Commander Zavala and Deputy Commander [[Sloane]] in establishing a new base to prepare a resistance against Ghaul. In gaining the equipment needed to decrypt vital Cabal transmissions, they learn about the ''Almighty'' and its purpose. Despite Zavala's guilt in failing to protect the City and the danger of the ''Almighty's'' threat, his resolve and determination is restored thanks to the Guardian's efforts. To ensure their resistance is successful, Zavala needs his old fireteam: [[Cayde-6]] and [[Ikora Rey]].   

Traveling to Io, the Guardian was quickly able to find Ikora, but she is unsure if a resistance is possible due to the loss of her Light. During this, the Cabal Red Legion have succeeded in mining for the Traveler's energies within the moon. Investigating the Cabal base, they find it eerily quiet and are soon ambushed by the Taken which surprises Ikora and the Guardian at their return. Despite this, the Guardian was successful in preventing the Taken in corrupting the Light's energy and forming a bridge to their dimension. Ikora is quick to hypothesize that the Taken are following the direction of new hidden entity.  

Back on Earth at the Farm, the reunited Vanguard discuss a strategy to disable the Almighty and liberate the City. Despite the impossibility of the task, they know it is worth it. Hawthorne provides directions to secret passages in the city walls, and advises the Guardian to go to [[Legion's Anchor]] to steal Thumos, the Unbroken's personal ship in order to travel to the ''Almighty'' and disable it. On that cue, the Vanguard's forces will launch their attack and after getting close enough to the Traveler Suppressor Device, the Guardian would use the Vex teleporter to quickly travel to the device and free the Traveler.

===Liberation of the Last City===

{{Quote|Fitting your Traveler would send you to face me once more.|Dominus Ghaul}}

After succeeding in taking down Thumos and stealing his personal ship, the Guardian successfully infiltrates the ''Almighty''. Despite fighting past elite defenders and dealing with the intense solar rays, the Guardian succeeds in disabling the ''Almighty's'' coolants, causing it to malfunction into an inoperable state. The Vanguard then initiates their attack to liberate their home. Despite being Lightless, the Vanguards forces manage to break through the Red Legions defenses and set up the Vex device. The Guardian teleports into Ghaul's command ship, the ''Immortal'', which is at the center of the Light-restraining device. Bypassing the ships forces, the Guardian reaches the top of the ship and encounter Ghaul once more. This time, however, Ghaul had forcibly taken a portion of the Traveler's Light to battle with the Guardian with abilities similar to theirs.

===Guardian Adventures===

With victory in reclaiming the Last City, there was still much work to do in dealing with what was left of the Red Legion while also handling other threats and mysteries present in the system.

On Nessus, the Red Legion had been drilling into [[The Inverted Spire]], hoping to study and utilize [[Protheon, Modular Mind]] as weapon, but the Vex responded violently, causing a warzone to break out near the drilling sites. The Vanguard learned of the legions efforts and sent in the Guardians to destroy Protheon before the Red Legion could capture the Vex Mind. After battling past Vex and Cabal forces, the Guardians descend into the Inverted Spire and face off against the Vex entity. Despite its firepower and altering the battlefield, the Guardians succeeded in destroying Protheon, depriving the Vex of an Axis Mind and the Cabal of a potential new weapon.

On Io, the Vanguard pin-point the Vex's machine conversion of the moon at [[The Pyramidion]], centered by [[Brakion, Genesis Mind]]. Not only do the Vanguard want to put a stop to the Vex's plans to turn Io into another [[machine world]] but also prevent any lingering Taken from corrupting the Genesis Mind into a powerful Taken entity. Storming the Pyramidion, the Guardians, guided by Asher Mir, evade Vex traps, Vex defenders and Taken enemies before entering a pit that housed the Genesis Mind. Despite the Genesis Mind's power, the Guardians succeed in destroying Brakion, hindering the Vex's efforts to convert Io and granting Asher Mir a sense of vengeance, as it was Brakion who nearly converted him into a Vex machine.  

On Titan, the Guardians worked with Sloane in stabilizing the New Pacific Arcology's foundation to prevent it from sinking into the sea while also aiding in missions to power the ancient facilities and drive off Fallen and Hive. During said missions, the Guardians discover multiple Hive rituals with the purpose of sinking the Arcology but were stopped by the Guardians at every turn. Sloane discovered a center point for these rituals deep beneath the Arcology and sent in fireteams to investigate; all went dark and none returned. Worried, Sloane sends in the Guardians to look for the lost teams and find out what the Hive are up to. Breaching Hive defenses, the Guardians discovered strange crystal emanating Void Light which they find strange as only Guardians can generate Void Light. Traveling further, the Guardians make radio contact with a Guardian named [[Taeko-3]], the last surviving member of the previous fireteams, and learn that the Hive are forcibly extracting Void Light from Guardians to create the crystals to power a large [[Shrieker]], [[Savathun's Song]]. Taeko-3 sacrifices her life to create a crystal the Guardians can use to access the Shrieker. They were successful in destroying Savathun's Song, avenging the fallen Guardians and preventing another Hive attempt to sink the Arcology.

Despite the demoralizing loss of their Dominus and the Consul, the Red Legion continued to be a threat to the Last City, but the Guardians maintained their vigilance against them, primarily in the EDZ. Guardians succeeded in numerous efforts against the Red Legion, from sabotaging their defenses, supplies and vehicles, destroying any Mining Landers and Infiltrator bases encountered and taking out field commanders and high-profile leaders when found. In desperation, the Red Legion made contact with [[Bracus Zahn]] and his disgraced group to supply them with dangerous weapons needed to combat the Guardians. Hawthorne and Cayde intercepted their meeting with the Bracus and sent in the Guardians to take down Zahn. Breaching [[Firebase Hades]], the Guardians hunted Zahn and his company throughout the Cabal Cruiser before cornering him at the airfields. Against Zahn's arsenal, the Guardians succeeded in taking down the Bracus, depriving the Red Legion of the much needed weapons.

===Fallen Insurgency===

Though the Guardians and the Vanguard became aware of the newly emerged [[House of Dusk]] since the Red Legions arrival, they know very little about them, such as their goals, motives or even their leaders. Regardless, the Guardians battled the Fallen whenever and wherever they could, preventing them from stealing supplies for the Farm and City, taking out high-profile targets when encountered and thwarting Glimmer extraction crews.

===Taken Resurgence===

{{Quote|We believed only Oryx, the Taken King, had the power to take his enemies and transform them. I fear we may have been wrong.|Ikora Rey.}}

In addition to Io, a remnant faction of [[Taken]] continued to operate within the [[European Dead Zone]], primarily near the Dark Forest, battling whatever Fallen, Cabal or Guardian force that gets near. A contingent of the Red Legion began to use Psions to siphon Taken energy to empower themselves which causes the notice of the Vanguard. Fighting the Cabal through the Dark Forest in the Deadzone, the Guardians corner the Colossus in command of their activities, [[Prusk, the Unequaled Maul]], and destroy him. A larger Taken force gathered in the Deadzone under the command of a Taken Phalanx, [[Grask, the Consumed]]. The Taken, under clear directions, were tasked to corrupt the natural landscape and water supply within the Deadzone using Taken energy. Should they succeed, then the entire Deadzone would be rendered inhospitable, threatening the Farm. After destroying each of the Taken's stronger forces and removing the Blight's causing the infestations, the Guardians were successful in defeating Grask, weakening the Taken in the Deadzone but the Vanguard continue to question who is creating new Taken and directing them in Oryx' absence. This lead the Vanguard to develop investigations into Oryx, specifically [[Xivu Arath|his]] [[Savathûn|sisters]] mentioned in the [[Books of Sorrow]].

===Return of the Emperor===

{{Quote|If you desire true power, power beyond your Traveler's feeble Light, seek me out. I will show you how to grow fat from strength.|Emperor Calus.}}

After the Guardians succeeded in killing the head of the Cabal, Dominus Ghaul's predecessor, [[Emperor Calus]], returned to reclaim control of his empire. Traveling to the Solar System aboard his massive ship, [[The Leviathan|The ''Leviathan'']], Calus immediately set to work on reclaiming the Cabal empire and gave elements of the now leaderless Red Legion the chance to "join the loyalist regime", sending them on missions to collect geological data on Nessus. These transmissions are intercepted in the [[Adventure]] ''[[Invitation from the Emperor]].'' Calus intended to convert the soil of the planet into "Royal Wine".

==Aftermath==

After the plot with the Vex had been thwarted, another threat arose in the frozen tundra of [[Hellas Basin]] on [[Mars]]: the mysterious Hive faction, the [[Grasp of Nokris]]. Led by the Worm God, [[Xol]], and his herald [[Nokris]], the Hive sought to destroy the core of the [[Warmind]] [[Rasputin]], leading the Guardians to team up with renegade Hunter, [[Ana Bray]] and eventually forge a shaky alliance with Rasputin.

===War's End===

{{Quote|Light-borne, your return to my Leviathan is most timely. I have guests who are… misbehaving.|Emperor Calus.}}

Following the events of the Red War, [[Val Ca'uor]] established himself as the new leader of the [[Red Legion]], where he ordered a massive assault upon the Leviathan. The acting leader aimed to assume control over the massive space craft for the Red Legion's purposes, likely to rebuild their power and strength following the loss of Ghaul and so many other crippling losses at the hands of the Guardians. Thus, Val Ca'uor led a large Red Legion fleet to pry the Leviathan from the former Cabal Emperor.  

Following Val Ca'uor's invasion, Emperor Calus ordered a Guardian response team to repel the Red Legion, offering further riches and rewards upon their success. The Guardians heeded the exiled emperor's call and ascended the Leviathan's spire, just as the acting commander destroyed one of Calus's robotic proxies. Upon confronting Ca'uor, the Guardians engaged the Red Legion's elite forces to prevent them from taking control of the Leviathan. Using the Leviathan's own formidable weapons, the Guardians managed to decimate the Red Legion fleet blockading the Spire and killed the acting commander in a climatic battle. In the wake of losing the majority of their fleet, their ground forces and leader, the Red Legion was forced to withdrawal in disgrace. Ca'uor's death would officially mark the effective end of the Red War.

==List of appearances==

**''[[Curse of Osiris]]''

**''[[Warmind (expansion)|Warmind]]''

**''[[Shadowkeep]]'' {{Mo}}

==References==

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