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Post by slykirby on May 31, 2014 8:59:52 GMT -6
A1. We will have a much better chance with a full force. Plus there is no way Sherry would make out of plan D in one piece.
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Post by Deleted on May 31, 2014 12:33:40 GMT -6
Are we in danger of triggering a flag with one of these choices also vote 2
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Post by SummerCrow on Jun 1, 2014 22:25:37 GMT -6
You don't have the forces to attack the castle head on, much less to attack the castle and deal with the Risen. "Keep directing teams to deal with the Risen and evacuate civilians. Prioritize containment; if our troops get themselves killed, it hurts us AND helps them. Let me know if the group guarding the castle makes a move," you tell Thrace. You turn to the group you've assembled. "We're taking down the main gate!" You turn to the main road and start moving at a quick march, trusting the others to fall in line behind you. You can hear them scramble into a loose formation. Sherry stays right on your heels, Zephyr continually disappears and reappears ahead of you, sweeping side streets for threats.
You don't get far before finding main road is clogged with a throng of civilians, fleeing south, towards the gate. "It's the same on the other side," Zephyr tells you. "Bunch of guys trying to shove their ways this way, running from the gate."
"We need them out of the way," you mutter. "It wouldn't be hard to find a way around, but we'll want the way clear when our main force gets here. We shouldtry to get them inside, tell them to barricade the doors and-"
"No problem!" Zephyr yells, slamming his fists into the ground. A wall of earth shoots out of the ground, encasing him. When it falls away, he's replaced by a massive rabbit, jet black and half as tall as you, despite standing on all fours. "Get inside!" he yells, his voice different. Sinister, intimidating, completely in contrast to his normal, cheerful sound. He starts nimbly weaving through the crowd, repeating the order. The crowd starts to split from the inside-out, with people fleeing in terror. Your troops manage to direct a fair number into buildings, but some just keep running. When the crowd clears, you find Zephyr standing in the now empty streets, reverted to his normal form. He scratches the back of his head. "That didn't work quite as planned."
No time to deal with that, now. Your pegasus knights will help direct the ones that didn't take shelter. You continue on to the main gate.
As you get closer to the gate, you see a force consisting mostly of archers on the top of the wall. A team of warriors stand idly by on ground level. You don't see your troops, not at first. Instead of forming a throng at the base of the wall, you can see them off in the distance, outside of the archer's effective range. Aside from the troops you brought, They've cut down one of the larger trees, and have started working on reshaping it. All eyes seem to be on them as they start to heft the creation over their heads. You remember when you had to deal with Carcinan troops employing something similar against you, back in Antea, and wonder how they'll deal with this.
A cavalier steps into view from around a house, quickly yanking his horse back before he can wander in front of the gate. A soldier situated partway up the wall glares down, angrily gesturing at the cavalier. He stands by on the gate's winch alongside a general. You do a quick head count of the enemy. Around 20 warriors, at least 1 cavalier - probably many more - on the ground. You ask Zephyr, and he estimates 30 cavaliers. Up the staircase, on the winch control's landing, a soldier and a general. On top of the wall, several archers. At least 30, maybe a few more out of sight, and some mages - 5 or 6. You assume the enemy plans to open the gate and send the cavalry out to attack while your troops are stuck holding their makeshift shield. Your troops have swelled to 60 in total - mostly soldiers, but a handful of archers and a pair of healers, as well. You could call in some pegasus knights, but you hesitate given the sheer number of enemy archers.
(A) Attack the ground troops, fight your way up the stairs
(B) Call in pegasus knights to drop half of your troops on the top of the wall (choose whether June goes up or stays on the ground)
(C) Wait until the enemy opens the gate to release the cavalry, then attack and try to prevent them from lowering it again
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sid
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Post by sid on Jun 1, 2014 22:35:26 GMT -6
I vote C, but if it's possible with the addition of sending a messenger to the men on the other side of the wall to warn them.
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Post by yellowclover on Jun 1, 2014 23:15:21 GMT -6
I vote A. But if possible would like to wait until just after they start to open the gate but before they can send the cavalry through, that way you catch them during their vulnerable transition faze.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2014 8:07:13 GMT -6
B
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Post by Neo on Jun 2, 2014 10:26:26 GMT -6
I vote A. But if possible would like to wait until just after they start to open the gate but before they can send the cavalry through, that way you catch them during their vulnerable transition faze. I'll back this. Once the gate is partially open, smash their heads and prevent the Calvary from riding out. Also, have Zephyr in bunny form blitzkrieg some enemies, using hit and run tactics, to sow confusion like he inadvertently did with those civilians. If the enemy reacts the same way, which they should, then they'll lose any semblance of formation, and be easy pickings. |
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Post by SummerCrow on Jun 3, 2014 1:44:44 GMT -6
The enemy either doesn't notice you, or decides you aren't worth their time. You pull your group off the main road, using side streets to close on your target. Taking a page from Horatio's book, you find a building that exits right next to the front gate. Zephyr indicates that the building's empty, and you discreetly smash the back door down. Much louder than you'd hoped, but again, no response from the enemy.
You find yourself in a bakery. A wall and a small door separate the front and rear of the store. A small staircase leads up to what you imagine to be the owner's living area. Peeking through the door, you can see the storefront contains two large windows for displaying fresh-baked wares and a small door. You can't risk waiting out there, so you count on Zephyr to time your strike.
You notice Sherry eyeing some kind of sweet roll, and swat her hand away when she reaches for it. She looks at you angrily, then her expression softens to disappointment. "Might be my last meal," she mutters. You sigh, look at the smashed door and consider all the damage you're about to do. You slip the red gem out of your pocket and place it on the counter, then give Sherry a nod. She squeaks in excitement before dashing off with her glazed prize. The waiting isn't hard on you, but most of the Carcinan with you seem to lack your trained discipline. Most are shifting nervously, craning their necks to try to look through the door, or whispering worriedly.
You don't need Zephyr's signal when the time comes. The gate squeals in protest as the enemy starts to crank the winch. You slam the door to the front of the store off its hinges, yelling for everyone to charge. You ignore the door, instead jumping through one of the bay windows, aiming to land on a passing cavalier. You knock him off his seat, and spur the horse forward as you dismount. Several horses spook at the shattering glass, door slamming open, and men in dark armor pouring out of the bakery. A few horses break for the gate, managing to slip out but catching the riders on the still-rising steel bars.
The general, focused on the winch, is slow to respond to the confusion. Cutting through the enemy, your troops following close behind, you're already halfway to him by the time he even notices the confusion. He raises a lance in your direction as you charge up the stairs, commanding the soldier next to him to lower the gate again. A fireball from one of your mages strikes the soldier, stopping him. The general swears at you, deciding between attacking you or lowering the gate himself. He chooses to try to cut through the winch cable instead, dropping the lance in favor of a sword. He swings once, but the cable holds. You counter by throwing your hatchet, striking him in the arm. He pulls it back in pain and you take advantage of his lack of balance. Charging up the last few steps, you slam into him. He stumbles back struggling to stay on the winch landing. His arm flailing would have been comical, if he hadn't proceeded to fall to his death.
From your vantage point, you re-evaluate your situation. The battle on the ground is more or less even. You see Zephyr making a point of keeping cavaliers away from the gate. You can't Several guardsmen are following you up the stairs, but struggling to keep up with you. To her credit, Sherry managing to stay near the front of the line. You crane your eyes up. One of the archers peers over the edge, shouting something down at you that was probably meant for his recently-deceased general. The archer turns white as a sheet, pulling his head back from the ledge. "Move!" you call to your advancing force.
Archers start peering over the ledge to fire down at you as you advance. The enemy pays extra attention to their aim, trying to avoid firing blindly into the melee below. An arrow bounces off your armor, you swat another out of the air. A sniper shouts something you can't hear, leveling his bow at you. The arrow slips through your armor to catch you in the collarbone. Your leather underarmor keeps it from striking anything vital, and you rip the arrow out. Another archer fires at Sherry. She yelps in fear, jumping to the side and pressing against the wall. The arrow sails past, striking one the enemy's troops on the field below.
Thrace comes flying out of nowhere. With the archers distracted, the pegasus knights take the opportunity to plow through the archers, darting to safety before the enemy can retaliate. It buys your group enough time to close the distance to the top of the wall. You lost a few troops on the way up, but your numbers are still more than enough to slaughter the remaining archers. The enemy is slow, careful to avoid shooting into each other, and it costs them. Sherry follows your lead, separating archers from the main group, closing in to point-blank range, and delivering the killing blow. Her lance play is sloppy, unpracticed, and slow, but the enemy archers she challenges don't have a way to counterattack as she wears them down.
You glance over the wall. Your reinforcements have caught on, tossed down the turtle, and started running to join the fray. You allow yourself to descend the stairs almost casually, carefully, stopping to raise the main gate further. This will leave an escape route for the civilians. With the reinforcements arriving, the enemies that don't scatter into the town are routed. Pegasus knights leave to track down the few who manage to make it more than a few feet.
You can see Mary, Haley, Ferris, Alyssa, Jessup, John, Charon, Rosalin, and Cecil mixed in amongst the reinforcements, but you don't get a chance to greet them. A reaver in Valerian colors waits patiently at the bottom of the stairs, leaning against the wall. As you descend, he looks you up and down, then extends a massive hand. "June?" he guesses. You nod in response. "Name's Adam. Anything you need to tell me before we get started?"
"I'm confused as to why the Valerian army's mounting an assault against their commander."
Adam shrugs. "Doran sent a letter. Signed by the archbishop and everything, telling us to play nice with the Carcinans. You're the commander now. I thought there was something off with that twerp, Horatio. Glad to be smashing his skull in, though I'm guessing I'll probably have to settle for some of his guards."
Thrace lands next to you. "We're managing to keep casualties to a minimum. The Risen numbers seem to be decreasing, but there's still a few dozen out and about. Our troops are spread pretty thin, but with these reinforcements we should be able to confine them."
"What, and let Horatio escape? Or try something else?" Adam asks with a snort.
"Civilians get priority, Adam," Thrace responds as she dismounts her pegasus. You can sense a faint animosity between the pair.
"If Horatio escapes, what's to stop him from attacking somewhere else? He's dangerous, and we need to make sure we take him out here," Adam counters, leaning over Thrace.
"If we stand by and let civilians get slaughtered, what's the point? Does that make us any better than him?" Thrace responds, holding her ground.
"I'm not talking about letting them get slaughtered, I'm talking about cutting off the problem at its source!"
"Killing Horatio won't stop the Risen that are already rampaging, you stubborn oaf!" Thrace yells, exasperated. She gives Adam a shove.
"Stubborn oaf? That's something, coming from an airhead like you!" Adam pushes back. You get the impression this has happened before. You decide to stop this before it comes to blows, but Sherry beats you to it.
"Hey! That's enough, both of you idiots!" The pair, two of Valeria's top-ranking officers, whirl around on this rookie footsoldier. She stops, taking a step back and sliding so she's partially behind you. "I mean... June's in charge, isn't she?"
The pair turn their attention towards you. Thrace crosses her arms and frowns. Adam shoulders his axe and grins.
(A) Focus on the Risen first, then the castle
(B) Storm the castle first, then deal with the Risen
(C) Split your forces evenly (all named characters will attack the castle)
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sid
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Post by sid on Jun 3, 2014 7:45:48 GMT -6
That's a hard choice. Dealing with the risen is the "right" thing to do, but it provides no real advantage in beating horatio. Alternatively horatio's own strategy seems to revolve around causing as much chaos as possible, so taking out the risen would help immediately stem said chaos.
Splitting the group, just like in scooby doo, is never a good idea.
I'll vote for A, slaughtering the risen first. Even if I like Adam more.
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Post by yellowclover on Jun 3, 2014 9:13:34 GMT -6
I vote C, we have the numbers to afford dividing are forces. But if possible I would like to rally the troops as soon as the risen are dealt with and put the new reaver on risen hunting duty.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2014 10:34:31 GMT -6
I am torn between choices A or C. Do we split up our troops and pray Anna is merciful? Do we wait to attack with our full force and give Horatio a chance to escape in the middle of the chaos? Not sure which one to go with
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Post by slykirby on Jun 3, 2014 11:06:10 GMT -6
I vote A. If Horatio is connected to our friendly neighborhood demon lord, we will probably have another chance to take him down in Meridia.
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Post by Neo on Jun 3, 2014 11:37:04 GMT -6
Hmm... C. These Risen aren't high tier or powerful. These aren't Abominations or Behemoths, but rather Revenants, Entombed, and fallen warriors. And there aren't many left, either. And we do have the numbers to safely divide our forces now. If we let Horatio escape again, then it will make things infinitely more difficult later, and make the battle with the Demon Lord twice as hard. If we strike at Horatio now, he will be too busy dealing with our most powerful characters to summon more Risen reinforcements. So we can finally finish off Horatio, while still eliminating most if not allof the Risen, while keeping casualties to a minimum, as the remaining Risen are few in number, spread out, and weak, and the civilians now have a clear escape route. And without direction from Horatio-remember he'll be quite busy- the Risen don't pose nearly as much a threat. Sending all our forces after the remaining Risen would be pointless overkill, and it would allow Horatio to escape and kill again in the very near future. From a purely tactical standpoint, this is the best option. As a Commander myself, if I were in June's boots, this is the order I would give.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2014 20:19:09 GMT -6
IF we aren't leaving our hands in a goddess with mood swings? Then I vote C
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Post by SummerCrow on Jun 3, 2014 23:46:16 GMT -6
"Thrace, how many more ground troops do you think you need to protect the civilians?" you ask.
"The more the better, but I suppose... with the patrols we've still got out, I'd want at least 8 more teams of 10," Thrace says.
"And how many of your knights could you spare, and still be able to communicate effectively?"
"I'd want at least two knights per team, just in case. So, about half my girls. 25, 30 knights."
"Alright. Adam, give her the ground troops she'll need. And don't skimp on the healers, my team should be able to shore us up in that regard."
Adam shrugs, raising his free hand in the air and whistling. He starts calling out a list of names, and they split off from the rest, moving to stand behind Thrace. Thrace matches him, signalling a few of her knights. You end up with two similarly-sized groups. You do a quick count; each group consists of around 100 ground troops and 30 fliers, accounting for the units Thrace already has deployed. You nod in satisfaction. "Thrace! Once you're sure the Risen are mopped up, come give us a hand." She gives you a sincere salute as she takes off; she seems to have cooled down a bit since the... incident earlier. Her troops hustle to try to follow her, winding down sideroads and alleys.
"Well, less troops makes for a more interesting fight, at least," Adam says. "Gonna go mingle with my troops, adjust formations. Gimme a heads-up when we're getting close." He starts to wade into the swiftly-assembling marching column. "Ma'am!" he calls over his shoulder, almost as an after-thought.
You team presses to the front of the throng as you get your army moving. "Man, June, I was starting to think you'd forgotten about us," Ferris comments.
"Yeah! Not very nice, ditching us outside while you have all the fun," Haley adds.
"Did either of you consider that maybe I'd been wounded and couldn't get back to you?"
"No," they reply simultaneously, grinning at you. You let yourself smile back.
"We really don't know what we were going to do," Mary adds. "Adam came up with the... giant wooden shield thing, but we still had no way to break down that gate. I think his plan was to stand there and taunt the enemy until they opened up, or something."
"He's lucky they didn't," you tell them. "They were going to send cavalry to hit you while you were stuck holding that thing over your heads."
"Who's the shadow?" Alyssa asks, nodding to Sherry.
"Hm? Oh, yeah, I meant to ask that, too," Zephyr chimes in. He leaps over to Sherry, uncomfortably close, his nose twitching. Sherry flicks him, and he bounces back, hand on his nose. "Ow! That hurt!"
"Well, don't do things like that!" Sherry tells him. "You really need to work on your people skills..." Zephyr looks like he's about to argue that he's not people, but you decide to end this.
"She's one of Tartan's newer guards," you explain. "I told her to stay where I could keep an eye on her."
"Babysitting duty," you hear Ferris whisper, a bit too loudly. Cecil cuffs him on the back of the head.
With the majority of civilians either holed up in buildings or being guided by Thrace's teams, the march back to the castle is much quicker. The enemy is maintaining the same formation. Generals in front, supported by warriors, snipers, and sages. One of your pegasi gains a bit of altitude before sinking back down, confirming the two siege engines are still there. She thinks they're anti-ground weapons, either catapults of stone throwers, not ballistae. The pair are placed in the castle courtyard, a bit back and to the side of the enemy's main force, and just out of easy view from the plaza. A brief count suggests they're about equal to your force, in terms of size, though they have the advantage of being dug in on a short staircase.
"Well?" a familiar voice asks. "How're we getting through?" You turn to see Paen jumping off Claudia's wyvern. Dan, Wendy, and Bud land amongst your troops, as well.
(A) Full frontal assault
(B) Drop an assault force in the castle's corners, have them make their way to the catapults (choose 20 units, including generics (generals, warriors, and war clerics))
(C) Constantly ferry teams over the wall, one after the other
(D) Tactician: Leave the brunt of your force here to block the enemy's escape, attempt a landing on the castle balconies (choose 20)
(E) Do nothing besides block retreat, wait for Thrace's force
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Post by yellowclover on Jun 4, 2014 0:28:05 GMT -6
I vote D, with June, Paine, Sherry, Zepher, Bud, Wendy, and whoever else. Also if possible send small forces after the catapults generics led by a pair of named characters apiece.
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sid
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Post by sid on Jun 4, 2014 10:02:47 GMT -6
Can we get a tally of what we have available to us right now?
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Post by SummerCrow on Jun 4, 2014 10:48:58 GMT -6
Can we get a tally of what we have available to us right now? Paen, Mary, Claudia, Bud, Haley, Wendy, Ferris, Alyssa, Jessup, Dan, John, Charon, Rosalin, Cecil, Zephyr, Cecil 10 sages, 30 generals, 60 warriors (Thrace has your lighter, faster units) Adam will stay on the ground/in the front as the commander if June leaves. |
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sid
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Post by sid on Jun 5, 2014 10:27:38 GMT -6
I'm going to choose B, drop 5 generals, 10 warriors, and 5 sages to take the catapults. Leave the names units on the ground to deal with any surprises that might occur while the npcs are taking care of the easy stuff.
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Post by SummerCrow on Jun 6, 2014 8:21:23 GMT -6
Split between D (June, Paen, Sherry, Zepher, Bud, Wendy, and whoever else) and B (5 generals, 10 warriors, and 5 sages)
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