Horace Warfield

Horace Warfield was a Terran Dominion military officer and was commander-in-chief of the Dominion Armed Forces during the Second Great War.

Biography
Horace Warfield was born in Kithrup, Tarsonis. The youngest child of Shae and Henry Warfield, he may have been abused by his parents. His elder brother and sister followed their parents' footsteps into medical professions, while he enlisted in the Confederate Marine Corps. Some theorize that his choice of career may have been influenced by his exposure to life and death as per a hospital environment.

Confederate Marine
Warfield rose through the ranks of the Confederate military with surprising speed, earning commendations from his superiors for valor, tactical brilliance, and decisive leadership in his squad.

He first saw combat on Sonyan early in the Guild Wars. There he met Captain Arcturus Mengsk, commander of a 33rd Ground Assault Division company; both recognized the other's superlative qualities. Warfield distinguished himself during a closely-fought battle in the South Kreen Mines; he led a charge into an enemy bunker and took three bullets in the shoulder as he cleared a vital position. Warfield was quickly made first lieutenant under Mengsk, and the two became friends.

Warfield was eventually promoted to lieutenant colonel as the war drew to a close, having done two tours of service. Mengsk left the Confederate military, but both men stayed in contact.

Rebellion
After the war, Warfield became disenchanted as he carried out Confederate "peacekeeping" duties. He was commanding the battlecruiser Iron Justice when the occurred; Warfield immediately deserted and took the ship and its loyal handpicked crew with him. He evaded Confederate justice, pursued through the Sara system and beyond. Within months of Korhal's destruction, Warfield established contact with the newly formed Sons of Korhal, led by his old comrade, Mengsk. Warfield's intimate knowledge of the Confederacy's military strength, position, and movements was invaluable to the success of the rebellion. However, Warfield was never officially a member of the SoK.

During the Great War, it is rumored that Warfield's assistance may have led to rebel recovery of the psi-emitter on Mar Sara, and their use on Tarsonis. Warfield's family went missing and were presumed killed during the Fall of Tarsonis.

Dominion General
As the newly formed Terran Dominion took hold over the Koprulu Sector, Warfield, now a general in the Dominion Armed Forces, was seen as one of the more trusted advisors to the new emperor. Mengsk trusted Warfield with his most crucial tasks, strategies, and missions. At some point he fought in an action for which he was later hailed as the "Hero of Torus".

During the Brood War, shortly before his death, General Edmund Duke referred to Warfield as "the emperor's other brat," insinuating that Warfield was not in Augustgrad when the zerg betrayed the Dominion after the city's reclamation from the UED.

Warfield was put in charge of Project Shadowblade, a program to create a new generation of Dominion ghost operatives. However, after it was revealed that the terrazine gas used made subjects unstable, Warfield pushed for the immediate shutdown of the program. Emperor Mengsk obliged, and Warfield was one of the few terrans connected to the program that wasn't imprisoned or executed. Warfield retired in 2501, having established himself in military history through his role in historic engagements.

Recall to Arms
"My finest military minds are being brought to bear, and it's my pleasure to announce that they'll soon be led by the Hero of Torus himself&mdash;General Horace Warfield. With General Warfield at the helm, and our finely honed Dominion military under his command, I have every confidence that this new zerg threat will be contained very soon."

- Arcturus Mengsk reactivates Warfield

The zerg invasion of the Dominion in 2504 prompted Mengsk to reactivate Warfield. The general was placed in command of the Dominion Armed Forces and immediately sent to execute Operation Burnout to clear the Sara system.

When the main zerg push into Dominion space slowed, Warfield was credited with a successful zerg strategy.

Before the Odin was unveiled in Korhal City, Warfield was interviewed by Donny Vermillion. He admitted to Kate Lockwell that the Odin was delayed in shipping and that they had briefly lost communication with the production facility.

When the Odin attacked Dominion troops, Warfield ordered who he thought was a rogue pilot to stand down or face immediate termination. Detecting a security breach at the UNN Studios, Warfield sent strike teams Alpha, Bravo and Charlie after Raynor's Raiders in an unsuccessful attempt to stop them.

Battle of Char
Crown Prince Valerian Mengsk requisitioned Warfield and half the Dominion Fleet for a strike on Char. Valerian was assembling a xel'naga device that he hoped would make Sarah Kerrigan human again. The fleet rendezvoused with Raynor's Raiders and struck an alliance with the rebels, who had been unwittingly collecting artifact pieces for the prince. By this stage Warfield had led five separate invasions against the zerg and was less than impressed with the Raiders and what he considered their self-serving motives. The general disregarded Commander Jim Raynor's advice and launched a frontal assault. The terrans suffered heavy casualties and were nearly repulsed. The general transferred to the battlecruiser Helios, which was badly damaged in the subsequent fighting and crash landed on the surface. Raynor's Raiders were fighting nearby to establish a foothold and after hearing Warfield's claim that his ship had taken terrible terrible damage, the Raiders rushed to relieve the embattled crew. The rebels arrived just as the zerg began overrunning Warfield's position. The general was trapped in a trench and, after witnessing several of his troops get massacred, was attacked by two hydralisks. Although his right arm was impaled by spines, he managed to punch out one attacker with his other arm, but was left in a disadvantageous grapple with the other. Raynor and Tychus Findlay personally aided Warfield while a flight of Banshees destroyed the next wave of zerglings. Warfield was grateful and promised not to forget that Raynor had saved him and his troops.

Warfield's armor was repaired but his arm remained poisoned from the spines. The general was in no condition to resume command and gladly appointed Raynor to replace him. He advised Raynor to cripple zerg air forces prior to attacking the primary hive. The general developed a warm rapport with the rebel, and recognized Raynor's operational and tactical acumen. Warfield's right arm was amputated and replaced with a cybernetic arm. The arm converted between a hand and a cannon. The general then delivered the assembled artifact to Raynor and marveled at what Raynor managed to achieve on Char.

Final Campaign
When Prince Valerian Mengsk and Jim Raynor fled Char with Kerrigan to prevent her capture by Emperor Arcturus Mengsk, Warfield remained behind to purge Char of the remaining zerg. The zerg, led by Broodmother Zagara, were soundly defeated when she led her brood through the Bone Trench. Warfield brought in his Gorgon battlecruisers, and Zagara's brood was badly mauled.

Warfield's position unravelled when Kerrigan returned to retake Char for the Swarm, and the zerg stormed the terrans' fortifications. The general was severely wounded when metal beams penetrated his armor and lodged in his torso. With the situation hopeless, he ordered the evacuation of wounded on three shuttles, but waved off rescue for himself. The shuttles were surrounded and it was unlikely they could escape. Kerrigan found the general alone in the tactical operations center, attempting to pull out the beams.

Warfield demanded Kerrigan let the shuttles leave. He accused her of betraying humanity and causing uncounted deaths for petty revenge. As he aimed his cybernetic arm cannon at her, Warfield implied Raynor would be disgusted with her if he was present. Evoking Raynor's name angered Kerrigan, and she killed him by driving the beams deeper. Nonetheless, she let the shuttles escape.

StarCraft II
In Wings of Liberty, Warfield makes no appearance as a hero unit per se, though the  makes an in-mission appearance.

In Heart of the Swarm, Warfield appears as a hero unit in the mission Old Soldiers, attacking from the roof of his tactical command before retreating inside when it takes too much damage. He is marked as invincible and cannot be selected.

Heroes of the Storm
Warfield appeared in the development stages of Heroes of the Storm, commanding a siege tank. His siege tank had low-damage area of effect attacks and mines for killing minions. He was removed from the game however, as upon reflection, Warfield had never actually been seen driving a siege tank in the StarCraft games. His role was taken by Sergeant Hammer.