AAR: The Seven Year War of Ascencion, AAR from Celebrities from Ermor's POV

[Numahr]

Mid Summer (28): Pangean wall of frenzied flesh, spear, hoofs and blades at Birman Highs

Orders of battle

Mors Erit Tua Sponsa (“Death will be your bride” *) is the first Ermorian Grand Thaumaturge commanding in a battle. He possesses exceptional magic powers.

(*) name inspired from the song "Death will be my Bride" by Brandan Perry, very “MA Ermorian” singer



He commands over a large army to storm the fortress, although smaller than the army winner of the Werk Enum battle five months earlier. It has 2 regiments of undead cavalry instead of four. Sappers and Lion Tribe Archers of the Werk Enum battle are here to provide ranged support. Ermorian heavy infantry and Shadow Vestals are deployed at the forefront to secure the breached gate. A wave of skeleton infantry re-animated during the siege is expected to absorb the first shock of contact. Eight Thaumaturges provide additional magic support to Mors Erit Tua Sponsa.


Ermorian deployment

Pangea, on the other hand, fields a new army, composed of soldiers not yet deployed in large engagements: Revelers.



Revelers look life the Satyr light infantry who played the role of cheap cannon fodder during the last battle, and were underestimated by Ermorian strategists. They present two unique and decisive characteristics. First, the ability to realize hoof attacks at the same time than a spear attack is overwhelming for their opponents, and creates a very strong impact on a limited space. Second, they share the same berserker ability than Minotaurs. These two martial characteristics are reinforced by their unnatural vitality and the enchantments they receive from Pans commanding them. Among Pans, one of them has been equipped with powerful war gear and leads the defense of the gate as a warrior rather than mage.



Finally, the superior arcane power of Pangea has unlocked two new powerful offensive spells for Pangean mages: Blade Winds, repeatedly thrown at the Ermorian infantry bottlenecked in the breach, and Strength of Giants, giving a new strength to each reveler’s spear or hoof blow. Ermor’s research, in comparison, has not made significant progress in terms of battlefield magic.


Battle

The result is an unbreakable wall of frenzied flesh, spear, hoofs and blades against which the Ermorian army lacks shock power.


Ermorian infantry stopped by the Pangean wall of frenzied flesh, spear, hoofs and blades.

The Lion Tribe archers rout from the battlefield, hit by rocks thrown from the walls, even before the first contact of Ermorian infantry with the revelers. Shadow Vestals and the crossbow-equipped Sappers, fighting with determination, inflict some casualties on the Pangean Revelers, but too few. The Ermorian undead cavalry and the re-animated soulless warrior horde are bottlenecked by the limited space of the gate and cannot bring any decisive contribution; they get slaughtered at the gate by Blade Winds, banishments and ranged attacks from the walls before reaching contact with the enemy.

The Pangean revelers finally push back the Ermorian infantry, while Pan mages now throw their Blade Winds from afar on the Ermorian back line of mages, killing several of them. At this point, the brave mercenary sappers prove their worth by lunching a suicidal charge on the counter-attacking revelers.


Out of arrows, while Shadow Vestals are either killed or are routing, the mercenary sappers charge the victorious revelers with their pick axes. The few surviving sappers finally routing are the last from all Ermorian soldiers leaving the battlefield.


Aftermath and the new strategic situation

The Birman Highs battle is a disaster for Ermor, burying the grand ambitions of conquering Pangea for a long time.



Ermorian strategists understand that siege battles cannot be won with the same weapons which dominate open battlefields. Ermor’s Grand Thaumaturges decide the development of new weapons strengthening the shock potential of Ermor’s legion, in view of future siege battles: Banes, Wights and Behemoths.

This defeat is somehow alleviated by a minor victory obtained the same month in the Sea of Boat Eater.


Underwater engagement won by Ermor in the Sea of Boat Eater.

But more importantly, a new Bandari offensive has been lunched in the South with guerilla forces.


Bandari troops lunching a new (desparate?) attack on Fort Batimor while Ermor is defeated by Pangea in the Northern front

In this challenging context, the Ermorian headquarter revises down its ambitions and orders a general retreat from Pangea. The new objective on the Pangean front is simply to hold the “natural” border line, while recovering the two Bandari provinces.

The new conflict in the South is not considered as a high-level strategic threat. Ermorian strategists are rather surprised by the monkey’s warmongering, as Bandar Log is considered too weak to sustain a new war with Ermor. Bandar Log’s war capacity seems exhausted as the monkeys are already fighting against both Abysia and Pythium. A relatively large Abysian army is seen conquering back Abysia’s natural border with Bandar Log.


Overview of the chaotic Southern Front in mid summer.


Abysian army securing their sphere of influence against Bandar Log.

Ermor has kept strategic assets in the area: the reserve army which just conquered the Sea of Boat Eater, assassins and volunteer militia. Ermor decides to keep a strong army at the Pangean border as a deterrent for new Pangean invasions, and to send all new resources to the Bandari front.