After giving the reasons, which as far as I'm concerned were 100% accurate, Joerg goes on to say:
>The Heortlander shield wall is not formed by soldiers who obey a command, it
>is formed by a fyrd backing up their champions. The shield formation is
>static and cannot be moved much when in contact with the enemy, its real use
>is to stop cavalry (even heavy cavalry), and then dissolve to slaughter the
>disordered charge.
This is precisely the reason why Uvairinus comments on their inability to maintain formation. A correctly trained phalanx does not "dissolve" after first contact but serves as an anvil for the foe to hammer themselves against while the rest of the army manouvers to flank their foe. This is combined arms and essential in any good army (as far as the Dara Happans are concerned). So even with their much vaunted new "Shield-wall" skills, the barbarians are still as Shargash left them - unable to walk in a straight line or stay in one place for long.
>This stance also is the logical formation to keep while the tribal or clan
>champions fight their preliminary duels between the lines of battle.
What more need be said of their indiscipline and foolishness! Duels? On the battlefield? Battle is a sacred rite of destruction, giving lives to Shargash, not some bizarre test of manhood and strange barbaric senses of "Onorr". All warriors of Shargash know that duelling is a recreational and ritual activity and reserved for quiet periods between battles. I refer you to Eusibus' Third Text on the Way of Shargash, Chapter 6 "Our Place in Battle":
".....We have all felt the drums of Our Lord of Ash within us as we wait for the duel to commence. Our sacred duty to destroy so that all can be remade is a part of us and brings great joy as we end one cycle of life to begin another. Such is the potency of this communion with the World Destroyer that many have lost themselves within the Death Dance, giving their minds to the beat and clangour, their souls to the fires of life and their bodies to the rhythm of destruction.
But this is not Justice.
Warriors who follow this path no longer see the light of Yelm guiding them to perfection. They see not the whole but merely their part in it, a part they increase to giantish proportions within their own minds.
Imagine the imperfect warrior. He lusts after his own fame, he challenges and fights not for Shargash and Yelm but for his own pride and place within the thoughts of other men. He cares not for obeying or the Justice of his actions, instead he thinks of himself and the opinion of others. He has become a barbarian.
Then cast your glance to the perfect warrior. He knows his place in battle, he obeys the perfection of Yelm, as our Lord of Death has always obeyed, and he knows that following purity, irregardless of the personal cost will bring its own rewards. But even if his actions caused him nothing but suffering and loss, he would perform them regardless for that is the Way of Shargash, the Way of a True Warrior....."
Appendices 18-36 Comment on Eusibus and his devotion to the Way of Shargash. A man who gave up his Emperor status for one who burned pure with the light of Yelm. We praise his name and his Great Justice.
Martin Laurie
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