In analyzing the options, I think this section of the update is important to keep in mind as context:
A moment of silent communication passed, and he dipped his head, his domain weapon rising to interpose itself between them. He was the shield then, and she the spear.
To wit, these are both offensive manuevers. They're both votes to attack. Rather than "offensive" and "defensive" they might more accurately be described as "aggressive" and "controlled".
[] Drive them before you
[Advance toward the main barbarian group at top speed. Force them to scatter before you, be swallowed by your mist, or flee. Be aggressive in your attack, and give them no quarter, focus on offense and breaking their morale as quickly as possible. Neglects defense, and trusts Shen Hu and the other noble, once freed up to handle things on the ground. High Risk of overextension.]
This tries to more or less turn the battle single-handedly by shock and awe. Pressuring the enemy forces into a partial retreat, thus separating them so our back line can mop up appears to be the win condition here, as well as generally causing injury on the main body of their forces. However, if it doesn't force a rout, it leaves Ling Qi quite vulnerable. I'm a little worried that it takes for granted that our Scout corps Green wins his fight- he very well might not, which would mean a free Appraisal barb with up to 6 Yellows at our back. The high risk environment of the main body of the enemy force doesn't seem like the place to let out Hanyi, either.
[] Let them come
[While you are here, they are no longer the masters of the skies. Advance and push them back, slowly and methodically, keeping yourself between the barbarians and any civilians, do not let them maneuver, keep them pinned together by fear of your presence and only when your own forces have gathered and organize will you strike them in force. Prioritizes safety of civilians and soldiers and focuses on defense, only striking out when a clear opportunity strikes. Costly in time and risks giving barbarians time to plan.]
As pointed out at the start of my post, this is still an attack. Ling Qi would be defending civilians and soldiers by focusing down their assailants. Consolidation offense would include killing off the enemies in the Immediate Vicinity outlined at the end of the update. Hitting the Appraisal tied up with our ally seems like a safe bet, whether we'd manage to pin the other one is more up in the air. Hanyi can more reliably be deployed with this tactic. The downside with this choice is while posturing to respond to enemy movements, it leaves the greater half of their forces to act without immediate pressure in their faces.
Ultimately, I am going to vote the way I feel is more likely to conserve our forces for further engagement under the assumption that relief may not be available for days or even over a week, and which is less likely to damage Ling Qi's personal ability to move on to the third village's defense after this engagement. There's risks I'm willing to take in the context of a single battle that aren't an option for a more extended campaign, which I believe we find ourselves in now. Moderate injury is a valid short-term risk to take; it's disqualifying, if possible to avoid or mitigate the chance of, in situations where battle readiness needs to be maintained over the medium-term.
[X] Let them come
