All part of this story have been gathered together at: http://www.picotech.net/~jeff_wilson63/fiction/Exq_Lildra.html * * * Lildra's Strategic Situation At the beginning of 1454 there were three forces facing the ice demons in the east. Combined forces from the Isle of Celamyr and the city of Videss were at the mouth of the Imbros. To their north and east were the forces of the nation of Tana. Strung out over a broad line from the mouth of the Imbros southward were the forces of Junder and the city of Celoa. The Ice Demons themselves were concentrated in the higher reaches of the Imbros, but had significant forces spread out southward providing lines of supply and communication. Towards the end of winter the ice demons launched a major thrust northward from their enclaves on the Imbros. This attack caught the Tana forces by surprise, and they essentially fell apart. In the aftermath the ice demons controlled the land between the Imbros and the Alra rivers and even some land north of the Alra. Launching an attack so early had its disadvantages however, and the main ice demon force needed to pause to regroup after the major assault. After the early assault, decisions about allied strategy were in the hands of the Mir-Videss force, specifically the Mirrish Warlord Riacrada. The two choices in front of her were to pursue the ice demons into Tana or cut her losses and let the demons move through Tana, possibly to meet them later in Rhudyn or on the straight. To Lars Venekson, Preceptor of the rohain, however, surrendering Tana was not an option. With the effective loss of the Tana military, and the resulting disorganization of the Tana government, any hope of performing a successful evacuation from in front of the advancing demons was lost and too many of his co-religionists would die for him to consider simply abandoning them. The strategy for Lildra is fairly simple to explain. The exquaestio forces would provide a target too tempting for the ice demons to pass by, but also a target too large to strike with a small force. By forcing a large portion of the ice demon horde to a known location, the remaining allied forces would be able to attain local superiority against the different parts of the horde and push the ice demons back. What made this process so difficult was that the allies were leaking information to the demons, not just in drops but in a flood, and should the ice demons figure out the plan they could easily turn it against the allied forces. Thus Preceptor Lars of the rohain met with Warlord Riacrada privately, and the details of the plan were kept behind wards proof against any magical espionage. The Warlord would begin moving troops, ostensibly to organize their movement north by sea, but in actuality to support Lars's forces. Lars would pretend to differ with the Warlord and gather the troops under his personal command to strike off on their own into Tana. When the ice demon forces had gathered to destroy the quaestae force Riacrada would gather her forces to strike and cut off the ice demons. Had the operation gone as originally planned Lars would have held a major portion of the demon army for a week to 10 days, allowing the other forces to move into position to destroy a greater portion of the invasion. Unfortunately, the demons decided to use more magic against the quaestae than they'd demonstrated in previous years and the force they sent was smaller, more mobile, and more capable than expected. Nevertheless, the quaestae held out for nearly six days. In this time forces under the Warlord's command managed to cut the attacking ice demon force from the rest of their troops and position themselves on the lines of travel. In the end the Warlord's forces managed to destroy the force sent against Lildra and divide the ice demon vanguard, then rushing north as fast as possible, from the rest of their forces. -- Jefferson http://www.picotech.net/~jeff_wilson63/rpg/Exq_Main.html ---------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send mail to celandra-off@phoenyx.net.
