Hi all,
First, I agree with MS, in a typical
esrolian regiment, officers are
Lankhor Mhy worshipers. Since Esrolia
is a matriarchy, I say that they are
women.
Why does the Esrolian military have
such a bad reputation?
I can think of two reasons:
+ all their neighbours have male dominated army
and society, and IMO give a woman led army
a bad reputation.
+ they seem unable to repulse the various
raiders, but a civil war make many opportunities
for them and is bad for an army cohesion.
Why do the raiders (Dithali, Solanthi, Wolf pirates
and Grazers) have such an easy task in Esrolia?
- -The Grazers
Until the reopening of Dragon Pass, they did not
raid to keep their existence secret. After the
reopening, they began to raid. The Esrolian
matriarchy erected fortifications around all
the villages near the frontier and erected watch towers.
AFAIK, it's a common tactic against raiders.
The population could get advance warnig of a raid
and flee to the village (making harder to loot them)
and if the raider went too far in the land, the army
could catch them and maybe crush them. This tactics
only works if the army from land B comes to the
rescue of land A when they are raided. A civil war does
not help.
- -Dithali and Solanthi
Until the end of the Closing, the trade route
between Ralios and Esrolia was a land route and
gave more richess than any raid in Esrolia.
After the Opening of the oceans by Dormal, the
trade route became a sea route (it is an idea
from Joerg). The thanes and chiefs lost revenues
and prestige. It did not take much for the Lunars
to convince them to raid Esrolia. Since the raids
were the firsts in centuries, no village has any
fortifications, the army was crushed in battle,
and since there are no watchtowers, there is no
advance warning for raids. It is easy. And a
civil war does not help either.
- -Wolf pirates
Until 1616 (the pharaohs last death), the sea were
guarded by the first the Closing and then by the
pharaonic navy and its cetoi allies. The navy
is destroyed, the trained rowers, sailors and
marines drowned or were enslaved. There are no
fortifications or watch towers, so the countryside
is ripe for raiding. And there is no navy to pursue
the raiders, and even if they built ships, their
crew would not be up to the task of fighting the
pirates.
Perspectives are bleak, no wonder that one of the
factions asked for the Lunar Empire's help.
- - Husband protectors
In the rule book, two earth cults are described,
the cult of Ernalda and the cult of Dendara.
Orlanth, Storm Bull, Argan Agar, Magasta, and
Yelmalio are husband protectors for Ernalda.
Yelm and others ( I don't have my books where I
type) are associate of Dendara.
- - What do I call a regiment?
In my opinion, to be called a regiment a military
unit should have access to the flag's magic.
The regiment has a sacred symbol, each member has
sworn to follow it in battle.
The soldiers have better morale, there is a line of
command in case the leader is killed, etc.
One common trick, is to have all the members of the
regiment worship the same god. In that case the flag
is the portable regimental shrine.
The Sun Dome Templars are such a regiment.
Granite Phalanx is an other example, but this god
is a phalanx god so he has magic to make a better
phalanx than the Sun Dome's.
The regiment's officers are often from the country
nobility and often worship the ruler god or the
war god.
The lunar trick is to have a wyter-like spirit
in the flag. I think that one of his powers is
to make the soldiers more resistant to offensive
magic. Sandy Petersen proposed it was stolen
from Sheng Seleris.
Granite Phalanx, being a lunar regiment, has both
tricks.
- - Holy Country military
I agree that Esrolian regiment formed the core of
the pharaoh's line of battle.
Cavalry went from Heortland, and missile troops
mainly from Caladraland, but they have certainly
spearmen too.
For more cavalry, the pharaoh could certainly use
troll units. Giant praying mantis riders are bound
to be efficient, the beasts are huge, carnivorous,
scarry and they can fly. Wasp (trollkin) riders
may be useful too.
And many infantry forces can be routed by a Zorak
Zorani war gang.
According to KoS, it was in 1602 that 2 relief armies
from the Holy Country were defeated by the lunars.
Peace
Jean
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