Kingdom Come
Page 41
Elite units
Knights of the Red Star (150): The personal army of the Volod, the Knights of the Red Star are highly visible with their night-black hookwings, their red lamellar armor, and the holy draconic scripture tattooed down their cheeks. They are equipped with the best weapons Vlachia can make: Mastercrafted sabers for hand to hand combat, and bolt-action repeating rifles with 8-round magazines. Powerful and versatile, they are trained in both ranged combat and cavalry charges. The presence of Knights on the Red Star on the battlefield can cause Fear in enemies and make them more likely to break.
Royal Elementalists (100): Trained in the Royal College of Maegi in Taltos, these combat-ready spellcasters cast a variety of offensive and support magic. When used defensively, they are capable of erecting magical shields strong enough to soak artillery fire.
Nightstalkers Assassins (50): Hardened in fighting pits and alleyways of Taltos, these lightly armored, high-damage rogues are best deployed against single high-status units. They are also excellent siege breakers, able to infiltrate defenses and attack them from the inside.
Battle Brothers of Khors (50): The best artillerymen in Vlachia, the temple-trained Battle Engineers see their craft as a form of prayer. They can man magical weapons and mobile Artifacts, as well as operate mortars, cannons, and other artillery weapons with twice the normal fire rate. They require a Monastery of the Forger to train.
Yanik Rangers (55): Lightly armored, medium-damage recon units whose main advantage is their ability to fight in difficult terrain without penalty. They are also immune to fear effects and have an attack bonus against gates and structures.
Ravensblood Dragoons (300): Descended from the Dakhari mercenaries who helped the House of Corvinus conquer Vlachia, Dragoons are Quazi-mounted aerial knights who fight with special hooked polearms – the khara - and pistols. They are brutally effective against armored and unarmored flying creatures, able to pull their khara through wings and gun down armored opponents. Their majestic presence on the battlefield is inspiring to ground troops, improving morale by 5% per 50 units and making lines of infantry less likely to shatter.
Ravensblood Maegi (150): Mages who fly on quazi to support their melee brethren. Their presence on the battlefield inspires infantry and increases the attack and defense of foot-soldiers by 5% per 50 units.
Orphan Company Triceratops Cavalry (65): What the triceratops lacks in speed, it makes up for with bulletproof stopping power. Equipped with heavy armor, powerful armor-piercing crossbows and a crew of three riflemen, a line charge of these large dinosaurs is highly effective against Infantry.
Baru: These supernaturally mobile, close-quarters units are ideally suited to fighting monstrous enemies. At their best against the undead, they can strike and damage Incorporeal units and gain a +150% damage buff against Undead and Incorporeal creatures. The blows of their attuned iron gauntlets are also able to shatter armor and stone to great effect, making them effective against Large constructs. Baru have a chance to completely avoid damage via teleportation. A unit of 10 Baru is enough to convey a health regen bonus of 10% on surrounding infantry. Baru may also be used for Recon, with a +50% bonus on Diplomacy or Trade alliance checks with Churvi, Tuun, or Northern Lys people. (5)
Infantry & Cavalry Units
Vlachian Militia Pikemen (2086)
Vlachian Archers (2070)
Vlachian Riflemen (885)
Vlachian Hookwing Pistoleers (3103)
Corrun-Mounted Heavy Cavalry (1586)
Orphans Company Hookwing Archers (3000)
Orphans Company Hookwing Pistoleers (2300)
Artillery units
Mortar (200)
12-Pound Mobile Cannon (250)
Heavy Cannon (150)
Orphan Company Brontosaurus Mobile Artillery Platform (3)
Specialist Units
Myszno Defense Medical Corps (100)
Available Heroes
Suri Ba'hadir
Istvan Arshak
Vash Dorha
Count Lorenzo Soma
Zlaslo ul'Tiranozavir
Ur Robert Gehlan
Admiral Constantin Ghelan
Lazar Skaliz
Taethawn the Bleak
Viktor of Provern
Lord Franz Zediwitz
Szonja the Living Flame
Recruited: 10
Total Available: 12
Supply Trains
Boros > Krivan Pass > Prezyemi Line (Open)
Litvy > Gondar Valley > Western Endlar > Prezyemi Line (Open)
Slutlava > Prezyemi Line (Open)
“Fuck.” I slid out into the steaming water with a sigh, gazing up at the battery of open HUD displays hanging above. "We just don't have enough personnel to hold a thirty-mile defensive line, Tidbit. Plain and simple. And we've got... what? Five days? Maybe."
"That's long enough to rally the other satraps, isn’t it?" Karalti had settled down under the water, the tip of her nose resting on the bank like a snorkel as she basked in the heat. "They'll take the situation a lot more seriously now we have all that Renown."
"Yeah.” Increasingly aggravated, I continued to study. Looking over it a second time didn’t make things any better. There was no way to get around the fact that we didn’t have enough troops, and the soldiers we had weren’t the right kind. Two-thirds of our basic units were cavalry of some kind or another, which was basically worthless behind the Wall. That was a shame: Cavalry was great against cheap infantry units like zombies and plague rats, especially with Istvan on the field. The benefits of cavalry were basically canceled out by the terrain.
I dumped all my available skill points into Leadership, then bobbed around in the spring like a cork, browsing the wiki for anything that might help us turn this fiasco-thon around. I studied the Ability details, Rank and other information of each of the different units, getting a sense of what they were good for and what they weren't. But nothing I read changed my instinctive conclusion: we were at the wrong place with the wrong army. We needed open terrain where we could maximize the impact of cavalry, artillery, and airships. We also needed long, heavy pikes, lots of them. Pikemen could keep the horde at bay while riflemen supported them from behind. Istvan and Soma were both correct: we needed more infantry, at least 10,000 pikemen and 5000 rifles, preferably more. We needed magitech shields, airships, explosives.
Shaking my head, I dismissed the menu and swam to the bank. I was dripping wet until I equipped my armor - and then poof, I was magically dry again. Why the devs had enabled an insta-drying hack but left the Pee Meter intact, I would never know. "Okay, Tidbit. Time to go."
"Okay!" Karalti rolled over onto her back with a deep groan, luxuriating for a couple more seconds, then flopped back onto her belly and began to weave through the water like a snake. “Do you want to train with me? It’s been a while since we trained strength or dexterity or anything.”
I hesitated. “I… don’t really feel like training today.”
My dragon regarded me with an expression of flat disbelief. “Okay – where is Hector, and what did you do with him?”
“Really.”
Karalti’s eyes narrowed. She dropped her neck and head as she approached, sniffing deeply. “Why? What’s wrong?”
“Lucien,” I admitted. “I… I dunno, Karalti. It took a while to really sink in, but I think what happened back in Taltos is finally getting to me. What’s the point in training that hard if my rivals can just cheat their way up? Max stats and everything.”
Karalti rumbled, her crests flattening. “The point is… we train. Everything we have, we earned. Together.”
I closed my eyes and drew a deep breath. Then, I smiled.
“Alright. Let’s take a couple hours.” I drew a deep breath and looked up at her. “After that, we have to go back to Korona and deliver some bad news, and hope to RNGesus that we don't lose all the Renown we just gained."
Chapter 41
Four hours later, all three Starborn, one dragon, and
every major Hero of the Defense Force were seated in the Korona War Room. Before they had arrived, I’d ordered the room cleaned, cups and bottles removed, and the reeds on the floor changed. The Officer's Mess had been closed - the officers would eat with their troops from now on. The fancy candelabras had been moved in here to give more light to the windowless room. I ordered that the officers’ reserved snacks – the cheese, fruits and candies - be distributed. The candies and fruit were sent to the Engineer Corps while the cheese was sent to the Orphans. I had Istvan draft letters to go with the gifts: an invitation for Master Artificer Viktor of Provern and Taethawn the Bleak to attend the War Council.
Both Viktor and Taethawn were seated at the table tonight. The Master Artificer of House Soma was so old that his neck looked like a turkey's wattle, wobbling beneath the edge of a weak chin. His eyes were piercing though, dark and intelligent. He was visibly anxious: perched on his seat and rubbing his knees, shoulders taut. By contrast, Taethawn the Bleak was sprawled in his chair like… well… a cat. He had one leg hooked over the arm, one foot resting on the ground, his arms flung over the back and side. His tail danced through the gap between the seat and the cushion. He was easily the tallest Meewfolk I’d ever met – taller than Soma at a full stretch, which made him close to seven and a half feet. He had a scrappy, piratical appearance: His eyes were mismatched – one bright blue, one amber - and his chipped ears were heavy with rings and jewels. His pure white fur was tinged brown with grime, shaved in places to reveal jagged tribal tattoos. According to Rin, they marked him as a criminal and an outcast from Meewhome – something he was apparently proud of.
Suri and Karalti sat knee to knee, more comfortable around one another than I’d ever seen them. Rin was seated across from Viktor and looked almost as anxious. Istvan, Ur Gehlan and Admiral Gehlan – who were indeed younger and elder brothers – sat side by side. Lazar and Lord Zediwitz took up the other seats: the medic was dignified and crane-like, while Zediwitz fidgeted and sweated in his fine armor. Last of all were Vash and Zlaslo. They were both on their feet, Vash with his hands folded in front of him like a bouncer beside the door, and Zlaslo leaning indolently against the opposite wall.
I arranged the final markers on the battle map and then took my place at the head of the table. “Alright, everyone. Thanks for coming. Viktor, Taethawn.” I nodded to each of them. “We’re definitely glad to have the Orphans on our side.”
“Such is the effect of my gallant Company on the massesss, My Lord,” Under the hiss, Taethawn had a strong, musical accent straight out of South-East Asia. “We figured Prezyemi to be a hopeless messs, but with that woman on your side and Lord Pigsty out of the way, I finally have hope for the future of thiss province.”
“How did these two convince you to come back?” Istvan motioned to me and Suri.
“How d’ya think, mate? I kicked his fuckin’ arse, is what I did.” Suri had her arms crossed, knees spread, her heels planted on the floor. “He loved every minute of it, too.”
“She put me in a masterful headlock. I have never been ssso scared and yet so aroused at the sssame time.” Taethawn’s tail lashed slowly from side to side.
“You deserted us when I needed you most, Taethawn,” Istvan said sourly. “Can we trust you now?”
“Of course. As long as the pay isss good.” Taethawn squinted his eyes like a smug cat. “But you can come down from your tall hookwing, Arshak. Sssoma makes deserters of us all, doesn’t he?”
Istvan bristled.
“Whatever anyone did in the past is being put aside,” I said, before the Captain could retort. “Including Soma. The undead are marching north, and if they reach Vastil Pass, Vlachia is fucked. The Sathbar Plains-” I nodded to Taethawn “-will be their first target. We know what the Demon wants now, and he won’t stop until he’s found it.”
Vash grunted. “You know, do you? Then tell us: why is this walking corpse swizzling his dick in our province?”
“Eww.” Rin grimaced.
I leaned forward on my hands. “The swizzler’s name is Ashur of the Ten Thousand Swords. He’s a Napathu general, a servant of the Breathless. He’s here to dig Matir out of his Dragon Gate and kill him.”
A murmur of disbelief rippled around the room.
“That is absurd,” Admiral Gehlan rumbled.
“I have multiple sources. The first clue was when one of the undead officers said something to me on the battlefield. He told me that the Napathu were here to ‘take back what we stole’. Just recently I learned that Matir is entombed here, in Myszno. His Dragon Gate used up all the mana from Napath. It had to be done to create the Caul of Souls, but Napath doesn’t see it that way.” I tapped the mountains in the south. “Matir is somewhere down here. Ashur is using a magical artifact to remotely draw energy from the Dragon Gate, and that’s how he’s raising and maintaining his army.”
“But he already has the south,” Rin said. “So why is he advancing north?”
I traced a line up from the approximate location of the gate, all the way to where Karalti had picked me up. “Because when the Gates were built, his consort, Lahati, had her tomb constructed as a mirror to Matir’s and then had her descendants spread and maintain the rumor that her resting place was the real Dragon Gate. It’s not, but Ashur doesn’t know that.”
“That sounds like something the Black God would do.” Lazar nodded.
“This all sounds like fairy tales to me.” Admiral Gehlan shook his head. “Matir? Dragon Gates? How do you know all this?”
“I went to Lahati’s Tomb and spoke with her.” I regarded him flatly.
There was an awkward pause, until Vash giggle-snorted.
“You know that Yanik lore about there being a city under the swamp?” I looked to Istvan and Zlaslo. “It’s true, kind of. Lahati told me this entire province was one draconic city. The city was destroyed at the end of the Drachan War.”
“The entire province?” Lord Zediwitz’s moustache bristled. “That seems impossible.”
“Well, we’re pretty big.” Karalti replied, blinking at him. “And every Queen must have her own territory. Even sisters will battle for land if there is not enough of it. Dragon cities don’t look like human cities.”
“Did this city sink into the mire, as the stories say?” Istvan asked.
I wanted to shake my head, but after a moment’s hesitation, I nodded instead. There were some things they didn’t need to know yet. “Yeah. But now we know why Ashur is here, we know what he wants. And we have to keep up the ruse.”
“Right. Because if he realizes he’s sitting on the Gate already, we’re screwed,” Suri said. “Can he like… open this temple or whatever it is?”
“No. But he has an Artifact he can use to siphon energy.” I reached back and patted the haft of the Spear. “It’s a stone like this ruby. Both the Gate and the Star of Endless Night have some powerful magic worked into them, including the magic of misdirection. Ashur knows the Gate is here, but not where. He’s following the old legends, trying to push north to Lahati’s Tomb.”
“Oooh. Yeah, that makes sense.” Rin nodded.
“That intel will inform our strategy moving forward.” I drew a deep breath. “First thing I want to do is reassign some command positions. Istvan, I’m reinstating you as Commandant of the Defense Force. Lord Zediwitz, you’re Captain of our Heavy Cavalry. I want the two of you to collaborate closely with Taethawn on tactics and training.”
“Yes sir,” Istvan gave me a nod.
Zediwitz struck his chest with his fist, moustache bristling. “As you command, Your Grace!”
The Meewfolk man squinted his eyes.
“Suri, Vash, I want you to work under Istvan as his Lieutenants, with a focus on infantry” I looked to her. “With the two of you buffing the front line, they stand a chance going forward.”
Suri’s golden eyes flashed dangerously. “Do I have a choice in the matter?”
“I wouldn’t nominate you if you didn’t,” I replied.
“In any way the lady could possibly desire.” He bowed from the waist.
“Viktor, I would ask you to remain in your current post as commander of the Engineer Corps, but take Rin as your First Officer,” I said to him. “I’m hopeful we can bring Lord Soma around in the near future, but until then, you’re in charge.”
“As you say, Your Grace.” The older man stopped scrubbing at his thighs and relaxed back on his seat. “Uhh… what would you have us focus our efforts on? Lord Soma had us bent to the task of creating portable magical shield generators.”
“We’ll talk about that later,” I replied. “First, I want to discuss our broadest strategy. We know what our goals are: stop Ashur from moving deeper into the province, minimize casualties, keep the location of Matir’s Dragon Gate secret. I spent most of the afternoon looking over this map, and in my opinion, the only viable strategy is to retreat and regroup.”
“You want to abandon the Wall?” Admiral Gehlan startled up. His brother’s brow was furrowed, lips pursed.
“More like we don’t have a choice,” Suri said. “Think about it. How long is this barrier? About fifty kilometers, thirty miles or so? We’d need about ten thousand mob per kilometer to properly hold it against an assault. We got, what? About ten thousand for the entire bloody wall right now?”
“Sixteen thousand, five hundred and ninety-three now that the Orphans are back on the payroll,” I said. “But yeah. It’s not even just the lack of manpower. As soon as nations gain air power, walls like this one are obsolete. One Hussar would be enough to blow this place to kingdom come, and the only reason that Ashur and his force haven’t done it yet is because they haven’t faced enough resistance to think of finding and fielding one. Regarding our troops, out of that sixteen and a half thousand, about two-thirds are cavalry. Any flat terrain we have is made up of rivers and swamps and ravines. We have no mobility aft or forward of the Prezyemi Line, which means the only thing we can do here is react to an assault. If we want to get the better of the undead, we have to go on the offensive.”