War of the Worlds (2025) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

The Martians returned to Earth in 1914 because their first invasion in 1899 was only temporarily halted by Earth's bacteria. Having reverse-engineered Martian technology and rebuilt their forces, they launched a larger, more aggressive assault with bigger Tripods that could resist bacterial infection. The timing coincided with Earth's Great War, as the Martians likely calculated that humanity would be divided and weakened by internal conflict.

Foreshadowing: General Kushnirov reveals that the Martians' true strategy was to draw A.R.E.S. out of New York City, using the distraction of human warfare to their advantage.

• martian invasion
• second invasion
• 1914
• tripods
• alien attack

After the first Martian invasion in 1899, Professor Nikola Tesla and other scientists reverse-engineered the captured Martian technology. This allowed humanity to build their own steam-powered Tripods, including the Achilles-class Battle Tripod 'The Goliath.' The resulting world blended Victorian-era steam power with alien technology, creating the dieselpunk/steampunk aesthetic seen in 1914.

Foreshadowing: During the training exercise, Eric and his crew are introduced to the new Achilles-class Battle Tripod, demonstrating how far humanity has come from the original invasion.

• steampunk technology
• martian technology
• tesla
• tripods
• reverse engineering

Dimitri Kushnirov, General Kushnirov's son, fell into the water when the Leviathan crashed against buildings during the battle with the Martian spacecraft. While hanging onto the wreckage, he sacrificed himself by letting go to allow his father to regain control of the ship. He called out "I love you, Father" before falling, enabling General Kushnirov to steer the Leviathan into a collision course with the Martian spacecraft, destroying both.

Foreshadowing: General Kushnirov's personal loss mirrors his earlier tragedy in St. Petersburg, where his family was killed during the 1899 Martian attack.

• dimitri
• kushnirov
• sacrifice
• leviathan
• death

In the 1899 invasion, Earth's bacteria proved lethal to the Martians because they had no immunity. However, for the 1914 invasion, the Martians developed Tripods capable of resisting Earth's bacterial defenses. These new 100-foot-tall Tripods were specifically designed to withstand the biological threat that had defeated their predecessors, making them far more dangerous this time around.

Foreshadowing: The Martians attack with large, 100-foot-tall Tripods that resist Earth's bacteria defenses, a clear evolution from the original invasion.

• bacteria
• martian immunity
• tripods
• alien vulnerability

Eric Wells believed the Martian threat was far more dangerous than human warfare. Having witnessed the destruction of Leeds and his parents' deaths in 1899, he understood that the Martians posed an existential risk to all of humanity. While European tensions escalated toward what would become the Great War, Eric advocated for remaining at the A.R.E.S. base to prepare Earth's defenses, correctly predicting that the Martians would return.

Foreshadowing: Eric's traumatic childhood experience with the Martian attack on Leeds directly informs his conviction that alien invasion is the true threat.

• eric wells
• great war
• martian threat
• ares
• captain

The Martian factory was capturing humans and using them to manufacture weapons and additional military equipment for their invasion force. Eric's team discovered this operation while investigating a suspected Martian base. They rescued the prisoners and destroyed the factory before the Martians could fully weaponize their invasion, significantly weakening the alien offensive.

Foreshadowing: Wilson, a militia member, guides them to the factory suspected of being a Martian base, revealing the aliens' resource-gathering strategy.

• martian factory
• human captivity
• weapons manufacturing
• prisoners

After the Agemmon was destroyed and the Leviathan crashed against buildings, General Kushnirov took advantage of his son's sacrifice. With Dimitri gone, the general steered the crippled Leviathan into a direct collision course with the Martian spacecraft. The impact destroyed both vessels, ending the invasion in a suicidal yet decisive attack that leveraged the remaining momentum of the damaged warship.

Foreshadowing: The destruction of the Agemmon and the crash of the Leviathan set the stage for this final, desperate maneuver.

• leviathan
• martian spacecraft
• collision
• destruction
• general kushnirov

The Martians attacked New York City because it was the headquarters of A.R.E.S. (Allied Resistance Earth Squadrons), the primary human organization defending against the invasion. By drawing A.R.E.S. out of the city and attacking their base, the Martians hoped to eliminate Earth's main resistance force. The assault on New York was strategically designed to defeat humanity's leadership and infrastructure in one devastating strike.

Foreshadowing: General Kushnirov warns that the Martians' true intent is to draw A.R.E.S. out of New York City, confirming the strategic nature of the attack.

• new york
• ares headquarters
• martian attack
• strategic target

Theodore Roosevelt appears in the final scene rallying the remaining humans to rebuild Earth and prepare for future conflict against Mars. After the Martian spacecraft was destroyed and the invasion ended, Roosevelt's speech symbolized humanity's resilience and determination to not only recover from the devastation but eventually take the fight directly to Mars, transforming the story's ending from mere survival to potential counter-offensive.

Foreshadowing: Roosevelt's presence during the New York counterattack establishes him as a key human leader throughout the conflict.

• theodore roosevelt
• rebuilding
• mars
• human resistance
• rally

When Eric was 10 years old, he witnessed a Martian Tripod destroy Leeds, England, during the initial invasion in 1899. Both of his parents were killed by the Martian heat ray in this attack. Eric only survived because the Tripod crashed to the ground before it could kill him as well. This traumatic event shaped his entire life, leading him to join A.R.E.S. and become a captain dedicated to fighting the Martian threat.

Foreshadowing: Eric's survivor guilt and determination to fight Martians stem directly from witnessing his parents' deaths.

• eric wells
• parents death
• leeds
• childhood trauma
• witness

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914 triggered the Great War, but the Martians deliberately timed their second invasion to exploit this human conflict. General Kushnirov reveals that the Martians knew about the brewing human war and used it as a strategic distraction. While European nations turned against each other, the Martians launched their assault, believing humanity would be too divided to mount an effective defense.

Foreshadowing: Eric suspects the Martians are using the political chaos as cover, which proves accurate when the invasion begins.

• archduke franz ferdinand
• great war
• timing
• 1914
• distraction