[X] [Main] Build Iron Mine
[X] [Secondary] Study Health
[X] [Secondary] War Mission - Northern Nomads
[X] Change Policy - Offense
Provinces: [Main] War x3
Stallion Tribes: [Main] War, [Main] Build Chariots
The dead lay strewn about the open fields, the sea of yellow and green grass trampled by hoof and wheel and foot and stained with blood. Hundreds of chariots and thousands of warriors on both sides had brawled it out in a series of running battles and skirmishes. The People had decided that they were not going to accept the attacks against them just lying down, and had mobilized their forces to wipe out the tribes attacking them. The damage was catastrophic on both sides, but even as the People were taking losses they were also progressively grinding away at the nomadic tribes. The People might take two loses for every nomad slain, but they could easily take three or four losses and be able to bounce back, where the nomads would be crippled for generations to come. Also, with the Carrion Eaters scouring the battlefield, many of those who were injured might live to fight another day, or at least be able to return to their families and pass on wisdom and experience.
It also meant that the Blackbirds could ask the enemy wounded questions much more frequently.
As War Chief Hathachyn sat upon his chariot and drank from a waterskin in the heat of late afternoon in the summer, he listened in as the scouts and talliers of the dead gave their reports.
"We can confirm that we felled neither their king nor their heir," the head scout, Ymeshyn stated, causing Hathachyn to grunt in displeasure. They had killed enough to relieve the pressure for several years, but that left the possibility that the heir would round up more tribes and have another go next generation. Carefully he listened to the reports and compiled together events in his mind. The destruction was intense, but they had eliminated the vast majority of the warriors they had engaged, and overall the scouts estimated that this totaled about two thirds of the entire nomad warrior force.
It took a few moments for Hathachyn to process this, and he immediately held up a hand and asked, "Wait, I thought we got more than that with this last battle?"
The scouts went back over things, and then there was a sudden realization that several people had pieces of a greater picture that they had not realized up until this moment were connected.
No, they had taken out more than two-thirds of the force they had fought over the past season in brutal combat, but had not engaged that final third.
Hathachyn felt a sinking feeling in his gut and immediately ordered the camps to pack up and begin a march back into the People's territory. He could only pray to spirits and ancestors that his assessment was wrong, that...
The Stallion Tribes were still mostly intact, but word had reached them from the territories to the south: a large section of the nomads had bypassed them a snuck into the lightly defended south while the majority of the People's warriors were in the north dealing with the majority of the nomads. The nomads had been clever and had avoided contact with the larger settlements, but they had pillaged, raped, and murdered their way through Northshore before exiting out through the northern edge of Stonepen and eastern edge of the Stallion Tribes, heading north and east, no doubt to link up with the remainder of their forces and then escape with their ill-gotten gains.
The destruction of farms and granaries and the theft of animals soon enough was revealed to have had a major knock-on effect as there were thousands of displaced people and nowhere enough food locally to ensure that they would all be fed. For the first time in... ever... the People were facing a major famine in part of their territory. They were opening up what resources they had, but the king had pushed the granaries to their limits in order to move the large amounts of skilled labour needed for the new mine being opened, something that the People were already unhappy about. Riots erupted in Valleyhome and Redshore as the news got out, and the king was shaken by the raw need for blood the People wanted. While a few called for pulling their warriors back, far more were baying that the warriors should pursue the nomads and reclaim the people carried off by the nomads, and for many any arguments towards futility or that it would cripple the People if they continued to fight were merely signs of defeatism.
Somewhat fortunately the mine had started producing iron quickly and early and thus the first results were almost ready to go into distribution. There would be new tools and weapons, but the king had given an initial order for the majority to be...
Choose the primary focus of your first batch of iron goods
[] Tools (+8 Econ, +2 Martial, ???)
[] Weapons (+2 Econ, +8 Martial, ???)
Also somewhat fortunately the work of Hygurtyn had been propagated out to other shamans and now every shrine - which was basically in every settlement in order to distribute the sacred wardings - had someone who understood his concepts, and many of the major settlements would now have places of healing to deal with the critically wounded or spiritually disturbed in a much more practical manner than before, which would mitigate the losses somewhat - at the very least the next generation of warriors would not be as deprived of the experiences of their elders as they might have been. That was unfortunately cold comfort for the current generation, other than sometimes reducing the number of families furious at the king when warriors were sent in to break up riots. As it was, the king was having a hard time trying to maintain order and more significant deployments of force might be needed...
Attempt to restore order?
[] Restore order (Main usage)
[] Leave things be
Warrior distribution
[] Defensive (-1 Stability)
[] Offensive (+1 Stability)
And then, then there were the calls that the king should be replaced with someone more militarily competent right now. While someone like that might actually be able to run down the nomads and recover the people, it would likely set a terrible precedent for the future and damage the institution of the king. Unfortunately, unless they did something drastic the People would likely lose faith in the system and then... and then there would likely be insurrection and war.
New king?
[] Yes (+1 Stability, -1 Legitimacy, Martial focused character becomes king)
[] No (-1 Stability, +1 Legitimacy)
AN: The nomads with their two heroes got two crits on their campaigning. As such, the rest of the staff has already been notified and I am tagging @ManusDomine who has been keeping tabs on this thread for administrative purposes. I expect molten salt at this point, but keep it to merely focused solar power rather than a thorium reactor at the very least, okay? As always, be excellent to each other, and remember that this won't be the end of the game
EDIT: Also, remember that Restore Order starts with a decrease of stability by 1, so be careful with your choices.
