RED CLIFF opens with power hungry Prime Minister-turned-General Cao Cao seeking permission from the Han dynasty Emperor to organize a southward-bound mission designed to crush two troublesome warlords that stand in his way, Liu Bei and Sun Quan. Vastly outnumbered by Cao Cao's fast approaching, brutal army, the rebel warlords band together to mount a heroic campaign unrivalled in history that changes the face of China forever.