General Hawthorne

General John Hawthorne is the leader of the Forward Command in the Southern Barrens and an Alliance quest giver.

History
When scouts reported that Taurajo's most dangerous units were out on the hunt he ordered the sacking Camp Taurajo, despite it being a 'soft target' he recognized that the camp had been used to recruit, equip, and train Horde infantry for many years. During the attack he ordered his men to leave a gap open in the line so the citizens of Taurajo may escape, despite this civilian casualties did occur. Following this the Horde refers to Hawthorne as the "The Butcher of Taurajo."

After some initial interactions with the adventurer, he sends them off to Fort Triumph and says he will travel there himself separately. After this, he is killed in the Horde quest The Butcher of Taurajo. His corpse was later retrieved and is found in Fort Triumph, being mourned by his widowed wife, Clarice Hawthorne.

Quests

 * Quest:A Line in the Dirt
 * Quest:Clap 'Em In Irons
 * Quest:Fields of Blood
 * Quest:Meet Me at Triumph

Objective of

 * Quest:The Butcher of Taurajo

Gossip text
What is your name, ? ?

Welcome to the Barrens. You are standing at the vanguard of our most important operations on this continent. I would be honored if you were to lend us your strength.



Ah yes, our assault on the Horde town of Taurajo. I struggled with the implications of the decision.

Taurajo was admittedly what you might call a 'soft target,' primarily a hunters' camp. Still, it had been used to recruit, equip, and train Horde infantry for many years.

When our scouts reported that Taurajo's most dangerous units were out on the hunt, we had to act quickly.





I would prefer not to use the term 'sacked,' but yes, the attack went off flawlessly. We removed Taurajo from the equation, confiscated its arms, and destroyed its smithing facilities. The assault gave our forces considerable breathing room and knocked the enemy off balance.

Nonetheless, during the assault, I instructed my men to leave a gap open in our lines...



Taurajo had a significant civilian population. I wanted to ensure that they could escape the fighting, and many did, finding refuge in the north.

There are some, even in Alliance High Command, who argued that I let an opportunity slip away. That I should've taken hostages. But I don't see the value in those sort of terror-tactics.

Hear me out, : I want this war to end someday. It won't ever stop if we butcher or imprison civilians.

I just pray that there are those on the other side who see things as I do.