Combat for 937This year sees Arstotzka develop a new weapon known as the "Restless", a primitive crystal 'train' that uses two steam engines can be used to move troops around and transport heavy equipment and supplies, like ammunition for the HA1 artillery. This allows their artillery to fire essentially non-stop, assuming they have a target to fire at. Their laborers go through great effort laying down sections of steel tracks from the capitol to the front lines; currently the terrain is only smooth enough for tracks to be laid down in the plains, although effort is being made to path the few sections of jungle available. The mountains are rather inhospitable to trains, as the steep inclines are too much for the humble little train and the labor involved in tunneling through bedrock is far too much. They also go ahead and revise their crystals to repair themselves to a minor degree; repeated stress fractures are no longer a thing, and apprentices are no longer required to repair microfractures. This makes their Crystalclads and crystal weaponry more reliable in the long-term.
Moskurg doubles down on their ability to fly: the Alsamma Safina is their latest creation. Essentially a Sirocco sailing ship chopped down to the bare minimum, the cargohold is packed with War Pegasi to give it the needed lift to fly. It was initially a National Effort, but Moskurg spent their revision improving the manufacturing process for their War Pegasi and lowered the cost of the carpet and the ship to Expensive and Very Expensive, respectively. This also has an added bonus of improving the enchantment time on the carpets by a small amount, though they are still by no means permanent. The Alsamma Safina is crewed by the bare minimum, consisting entirely wizards and apprentices. Any excess lift is taken up by the ballista and firestorm ammo, so they won't be deploying troops from the ship any time soon.
The jungle sees a renewed intensity.
Arstotzkan artillery fires non-stop now, seeming to rely more on shelling away any cover the trees provide rather than focusing on troop positions. Apprentices with flares are almost redundant at this point, as artillery crews have enough ammo now that they can fire blindly. That's not to say that flare spotting isn't important; when Moskurg positions are found, a green flare spells certain doom for anyone in the immediate area as every gun in range turns and begins firing. Moskurg ballistas have been mostly relegated to apprentice-hunting, forgoing their firestorm ammo to send ballista bolts whistling towards their targets with pin-point accuracy. Most of Moskurgs mages have taken to the air on War Pegasi and Alsamma Safina's anyways, so they couldn't field all their ballistas even if they had a reason too.
War Pegasi tend to do most of the heavy lifting, now. Once again merely Expensive, they run sorties as often as possible. Anti-mage falconiers attack whenever the carpet bombers are spotted over the horizon, but there's so many that as soon as a falcon takes flight half a dozen bolts of lightning arc down - at least one is guaranteed to hit, though it's wasteful and inefficient. Once overhead the carpet-riders go through their saddle-bags of firestorm grenades as quickly as they can before returning back home to re-enchant, re-supply, and attack once more. The Queen of the Sky is the Alsamma Safina, though. With the ballista being mounted so high, the range is extended to be equivalent with the HA1 artillery. Lucky Strike is less effective with the long flight-time of the ammo, so it's not quite as effective at pin-point strikes. Arstotzkan artillery has an elevation of 45°, and there's a "sweet spot" when the airship approaches where it's just in the artillery's envelope of fire. The large-caliber HA1 shells are powerful enough to punch through the airships Adamantium armor and shred the carpets within, crippling or destroying the ship. Though it's not always a sure thing that they
will hit, enough airships have been shot down while trying to get over Arstotzkan positions that the standard practice is to stand back and lob firestorm ballista shells into artillery nests indiscriminately. The large ship is too big for a falcon to take down, and having a deck to stand on means the defenders stand a better chance at cutting down the birds as they approach.
Arstotzka's train is pretty useful here; troops are quickly moved into position for raids, and artillery is never without shells or water. The increased troop movement isn't significant enough to make a huge difference, as each car can only carry twenty men at a time, but the ammo and water supplies are instrumental. Better crystal weaponry also has a small effect - troops no longer need to carry back-up longswords in case their crystal axe snaps from poor maintenance. The trains are particularly vulnerable to raids, however; al-Mutriqa personally destroys one by ramming it off the tracks with a single swing of his golden mace (stories of his victory may have been exaggerated).
Ultimately, the wooden splinters from exploding trees and (what's left) of the tree cover pushes the favor of the battle towards Arstotzka. The entire theatre is still freezing thanks to their many Lesser Towers of Frost, and Moskurgs air force can't do it all alone. Arstotzka manages to push Moskurg back another section of jungle, but it's not by a large margin.
Arstotzka gains a section of jungle.In the open desert, where the temperature isn't freezing during the day, Moskurg sees more success.
Air troops harry the encroaching army as they trek across the desert sands, bombing water wagons before they can supply artillery positions. With Moskurgs greater flight-time they can actually push further back to hit these delicate supply lines, and it really helps. Arstotzka must leap-frog from oasis to oasis for water, and without a supply train running through the mountains they can't maintain the same high rate of fire as they had in the jungle. The desert continues blowing sand in their faces thanks to Divine Desert Winds, and on the open sands there's nowhere to hide from the enemy overhead. Infantry combat is rare and quick. The brutal melees are fairly even, with Moskurgs Adamantium weapons on-par with Arstotzka's Crystal. Arstotzka's armor provides more complete coverage, but Moskurgs Adamantium armor allows greater flexibilty and is lighter - though attacks can often cut through the leather straps holding it together. Arstotzka's troops are better trained, but the open terrain favors Moskurg. Ultimately, though, the War Pegasi can provide Close Air Support, and Arstotzka's artillery must wait until their troops are disengaged before they can shell the enemy troops. But again, these battles are rare - Moskurg can rarely get close before an Arstotzkan flare goes up.
The mountains are different, though - Arstotzka has literally lined the mountains with HA1 emplacements. Well-stocked and well-dug in, they are incredibly difficult to push out. Moskurgs airship can't gain a height advantage here, sadly. Already at max altitude, they can't get a range or height advantage on the emplacements and are forced to hold back lest the artillery men take pot-shots at the large, slow-moving boat. War Pegasi are much more effective here, though - the stationary HA1 emplacements are welcoming to firestorm grenades, and it becomes common practice to bail out of the emplacement once War Pegasi are spotted on the horizon. The falcons are once again stymied by the thunderbolts wielded by each rider, and Anti-Magic bomb arrows actually prove to be more effective. With a lower relative altitude, they're once again in range of archers on the high peaks. Even mass volleys of mundane arrows can be effective, if they catch the ride unaware. Infantry assaults are suicidal, as the freezing cold, vertical inclines, and raining arrows makes it almost impossible for the foot soldiers to reach the peaks. Myark does his part, flinging fireballs down the cliffs as easily as breathing. One report even says he managed to blast a fireball straight up, piercing the hull of an airship with a single ball of fire. All reports are second-hand, and though everyone agrees it happens no one can point to someone who witnessed the event. His Staff of True Light does a good job of turning back infantry as they trudge uphill all on it's own, though the carpet riders and airships are a bit more resolute.
At the end of the day, Moskurg has the advantage in the open terrain - without trenches or tree lines to shoot at, Arstotzka's artillery has a harder time hitting the fleeting, mobile troops. Arstotzka has the advantage in the mountains, able to shoot down War Pegasi and airships as they approach. Moskurg manages to bomb Arstotzka back to the mountains, where they sit with their lethal HA1 emplacements.
Ultimately
(Coinflip: Moskurg) Moskurg manages to gain the upper hand, pushing Arstotzka back and forcing them to cede a foothold in the mountains to the desert-dwellers.
Moskurg has gained foothold in the mountains.Arstotzkan supply trains keep their HA1 artillery well-supplied, and artillery assaults occur non-stop. With static trenches and clear lines of sight, they're devastatingly effective despite using non-explosive ammunition. Moskurg carpet-bombers fly sorties like clockwork, but their firestorm grenades are only effective at stalling HA1 artillery pieces, not destroying them. The metal components are often fine, especially with the nickel circuitry, but the fire burns down the wooden carriages and requires new ones to be made before they can be fired again. Occasionally carpet bombers will cause a barrel to crack or manage to kill the artillery crew, but with so many apprentices at their disposal thanks to their Academy Initiative, Arstotzka can afford to replace the crews lost. More devestating is the Wands of Thunderbolts, which cause the cannons to weld shut and require more lengthy repairs, but the wands are single-use only, inaccurate, and often used just to fend off attacking falcons. A better target is Arstotzka's crystal train with its two steam engines - which are connected to ground through the gearing and wheels. The explosions are quite pretty, and do a good job at stalling artillery assaults. Infantry combat is limited to raids, as commanders have decided that day-time charges across no-mans land is suicidal, though Moskurg is fielding fewer ballistas now. It's still enough to deter infantry assaults, though.
With static trenches to shoot at, Arstotzka has a slight lead. The Alsamma Safina can rarely get overhead to cause massive prolonged destruction, and Arstotzka's artillery does a slightly better job of securing advances than Moskurgs carpet bombers. It's a close thing, but Arstotzka pushes Moskurg back a section.
Arstotzka has secured a section of the plains.The seas are no contest.
The Alsamma Safina is Very Expensive, and supplements Moskurg's Sirocco's which have already been reduced to glorified carpet-carriers. Arstotzka's HC1-E's don't have enough elevation or reach to shoot upwards, so once overhead the airship wins easily. Wands of Thunderbolts from both the airship and carpet riders cause critical boiler explosions that shatter Arstotzkan Crystalclads. On rare occasion the regenerative effect of the crystal is enough to keep the ship together without sinking, but without propulsion the ship is dead in the water and a non-threat. The longer staying ability of the War Pegasi is a huge boon, and the riders load up exclusively on Thunderbolt wands. They're able to perform seek-and-destroy missions against Arstotzkan ships, and after a year of one-sided combat Moskurg manages to secure a section of coastline on both the Eastern and Western shores.
Moskurg gains ground in the Eastern and Western Seas. Research Credit!!!Both sides see their new emblems emblazoned on their shields, flags, and heraldry.
Soldiers often have to paint the designs by hand, and with varying degrees of success. For Moskurg soldiers, there's a wide variety of simple half-blue half-yellow emblems with tornados, moons, stars, diamonds, and words - all with varying degrees of legibility. The blue-on-blue and yellow-on-yellow colorschemes often blend together or don't show up at all. Most tornados are drawn as squiggels, or just plain triangles. The emblems are often simplified to a half-blue half-yellow field with the words "For in God We Trust" written by a fellow soldier who can actually read and write.
For Arstotzkan soldiers, the plain red field with black and yellow is much easier to paint. Often simplified to a yellow star on a red background, the design is very difficult to mess up and very striking. The more talented soldiers flank their stars with black cannons or falcons, but only the company flags depict the fireball and name "ARSTOTZKA".
Ultimately, Arstotzkan soldiers come out with a more profound sense of pride, largely because their emblem actually uses their nations color. Arstotzka gains the Research Credit.
It is 938, the Design Phase.Northern Taiga: 4/4 Arstotzka, 0/4 Moskurg
Central Mountains: 3/4 Arstotzka, 1/4 Moskurg
Western Jungle: 2/4 Arstotzka, 2/4 Moskurg
Eastern Plains: 3/4 Arstotzka, 1/4 Moskurg
Southern Desert: 0/4 Arstotzka, 4/4 Moskurg
Northern Sea: 4/4 Arstotzka, 0/4 Moskurg
Western Sea: 1/4 Arstotzka, 3/4 Moskurg
Eastern Sea: 1/4 Arstotzka, 3/4 Moskurg
Southern Sea: 0/4 Arstotzka, 4/4 Moskurg
Sabre: Officer weapon. A single-edged Adamantium blade that favours cavalry combat over infantry combat. Requires training to wield, one-handed. Expensive.
Spear: General infantry weapon. Essentially an Adamantium dagger on a long stick. Very cheap, requires minimal training to use. Can be used double-handed, or single handed with a light shield. Cheap.
Halberd: An axe, a hook, and a spear all rolled into one. Does well against armor and in formation. Cheap
Buckler: General infantry equipment. A small Adamantium shield, held in one hand. Only protects a small area, but can be wielded alongside a shield. Moderate cost, requires training to wield properly. Cheap.
Pavise Shield: A large, thick, high-quality shield to guard against arrows. Can be staked into the ground, or slung across the shoulders. Needs both hands to use while on the move. Very Expensive.
Padded Armour: General infantry armour. Very cheap, just layers of cloth, but doesn't protect against much. Well ventilated in hot conditions, though. Cheap.
Scale Mail: Officer armour. Scales of Adamantium on a leather backing. Expensive, but lighter than chain mail. Expensive. Obsolete.
Elite Lamellar Armor: All-purpose armor. Worn over padded armor. Thin plates of Adamantium sewn together with leather thongs, backed by more leather. High quality, decent protection against arrows and melee attacks. Cheap.
Recurve Bow: General infantry weapon. A light bow composed of laminated wood and horn, curved backwards to provide more force. Inexpensive enough to equip many troops with, with very reasonable medium range and power. Can be wielded by horse archers.
Bodkin Arrows: Arrows with needle points. Can reliably penetrate plate armor at point blank range. Can penetrate less reliably further away. Now with Adamantium tips!
Arabian Horse: A light riding horse, from short-lived Iberian settlers in the past. Very fast and maneuverable, but not too strong. Expensive.
Horse Breeding Program: Mass amounts of horses available. Tend to do poorly in the desert, and aren't quite as high quality as the Arabian Horses. Cheap.
Lances: Essentially a heavily upgraded spear. Has a tendency to splinter after the first use. Cheap.
Sailing Ship: Wind-propelled wooden ship. Fast, requires minimal crew, cannot carry many passengers, but does carry at least one wizard - so long as they don't make puns. Very Expensive. Obsolete.
Sirocco: Ships made from lightweight and hardy junglewood and clad in glowing Adamanitium armor. Much more resilient and faster than Arstotzka's ships as of 935.
Ballista: Large siege weapon. Can fire javelins or stone shot great distances accurately. Reliable enough for consistent use. Can be mounted on ships. Wheeled. High-quality siege engineers.Expensive.
Firestorm ammo: Pots filled with Alnnar Almuqaddasa - "Holy Fire". Bursts into sticky flame on impact. Incredibly lethal, incredibly dangerous. Nearly impossible to extinguish. Normal Cost.
Wand of Heroism: Makes a squad fight beyond human levels. A National Effort.
Alsamma Safina: Sirocco, stripped-down and packed with War Pegasi for lift. Requires multiple dedicated mages to keep the carpets enchanted and in sync. Very Expensive.
Adamantium: Divine metal summoned from the aether. Comes in workable copper-soft and forge-able steel-hard ingots. Cheap.
Teletalk: Short-ranged psychic communication between mystics. Enough beacons can be produced to outfit an army. Expensive.
Wand of Thunderbolts: Glass wand, painted with zinc and copper. Adamantium core. Good for a single modestly-powerful blast of inaccurate lightning, has a tendency to explode into glass shrapnel. Cheap.
Staff of Tubikh Rrahim Albarq: Area-of-affect spell anchored to the caster. Prevents all magic from being cast within a short range. Spell contained within a staff of ivory, field of effect controllable. Produces a glow. Expensive.
Dispell Enchantments: Dispells enchantments on items, including standard crystal weapons. Expensive.
Pegasus: Charmingly named, enchanted carpets. Levitate, can be pushed around with Gust of Wind. Limited height, duration, speed. Typically rolled up and equipped with a saddle. Has pretty tassels. Expensive.
War Pegasus:[/b] A faster, higher, tamed version of the Pegasus. Requires each carpet to be broken-in before it can be used in the field, but now has its own form of locomotion. Enchantments now last longer.Very Expensive.
Detect Ambush: Reveals non-magical ambushes prepared by enemy troops or physical traps.
Lucky Strike: Magical guidance makes a squad shoot or strike true far more often than usual. Expensive.
Detect Thoughts: Read the mind of an enemy commander to determine their tactics ahead of time. Expensive.
Zen Inception: By putting enemy soldiers in a zen-like state, we can use their minds as a relay system to read minds further away. The spell is easy to disrupt, but simple to use.
Gust of Wind: Evokes physical force to create a heavy gust of wind, sufficient to disperse fog and most minor concealment, as well as disperse irritating swarms. Expensive.
Cyclone Shield: Protects the beneficent from most arrows and some blows with a sheath of wind. Expensive.
Storm Strike: Summons heavy rain and winds over the course of a day. Expensive.
Clear Weather: Negates inclement weather within the given area. Nests within Storm Strike for protection.
Hammer of Allah: Induce lightning from summoned storms. Strikes indiscriminately, so can't be used in "danger close" situations.
Spear of Allah: Call down an individual bolt of lightning to target enemy commanders. Difficult to control, has a tendency to hit the caster as often as not. Our mages refuse to use it.
Tubikh Rrahim: Area-of-affect spell centered around the caster. Prevents all magic from being cast within a short range. Cheap.
Dispell Enchantments: Dispells enchantments on items, including standard crystal weapons. Expensive.
Divine Desert Winds: Sends warm desert air north. Does not reach the taiga. Warms the area by one "level". Very Expensive.
As inspired by the "Behavior Rule" attached to Sensei's new Arms Race thread, I've decided to adapt them to Wand Race. Most of these are blatantly copied from his thread, and I expect them to be followed. After running this game for a few weeks now and following the last Arms Race, I'm aware that they're prone to attracting bad attitudes. Keeping the game smooth, on schedule, and argument free is probably a greater concern of mine than whatever you are arguing about: I expect you to be mature and adopt the same attitude.
1. Don't be salty! If at any time you find yourself having an urge to mouth off at another player, step away from the keyboard, go outside, and take a breath. Seriously. Players who repeatedly get angry or passive aggressive will be asked to leave. If you have an issue with the way the game is being run, DO NOT expect a tantrum to get you what you want.
2. Keep in mind that I am not a historian, so there will sometimes be mistakes and inaccuracies. Even in the best of circumstances, minor inconsistencies are a common occurrence. If some piece of equipment is imbalanced/unrealistic, I might consider changing it if you bring it up once -AND ONLY ONCE- and politely state your argument. However, I will err on the side of consistency with my own game, I do not like to go back and change things. Sometimes it is more important to simply keep the game running smoothly than other concerns.
3. Do not accuse me of being biased. Do not accuse me of being biased. I put a lot of effort into being objective and fair and being accused otherwise is pretty fucking irritating. On multiple occasions this has nearly derailed the game and made me want to abandon it all together. I have absolutely no more patience for this, and if you do it YOU WILL BE BANNED.
4. Do not spy on the other team's private thread. Trust me, playing fair is more fun for everyone! If you suffer from a lack of self-control and cannot stop yourself from spying, keep it to yourself. Do not use it to metagame. And do not post what you saw in the central thread. This has happened multiple times now, and if you do it you will be banned with no warning.
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Topic: Wands Race - [Moskurg] {COMPLETED} (Read 186659 times)