Gendry, The Red Viper, Jorah, Anguy, and others overlooked the Dothraki below.
The Dothraki hooves could trample the earth, but they could not overcome the sturdy fortifications; the trenches and earthen ramparts were enough to deplete the Dothraki's morale.
Gendry wore his black scale plate armor, with a quartered coat of arms on his cloak. Ser Jorah wore silver armor, but his cloak bore the great green of House Mormont. The Red Viper's armor, however, was much lighter, the light armor most suitable for Dornishmen.
"This earthen fortress, I call it Myr Fortress," Gendry said to The Red Viper.
"Myr Fortress, or perhaps it will soon be Horse Slaughter Fortress," The Red Viper also surveyed the sturdy earthen fortress beneath his feet. Although called a fortress, it was more like a large circle of loess city walls surrounding Myr, a very three-dimensional offensive structure. Myr Fortress was equipped with catapults, scorpion crossbows, and Longbowmen ready on top. The moat was a deep trench, and there were heavy city gates between the earthen ramparts, all of which were now closed.
The earthen ramparts were roughly as high as the Myr city walls. Although the construction was cumbersome, it was just right for dealing with the Dothraki who were determined to take Myr, because the Dothraki did not dare to cross water and could only attack by land.
"Khal Drogo has brought all his possessions," Gendry raised his telescope. The Dothraki Screamers were like a black cloud, covering the earth.
The Screaming Warriors were all bare-chested, wearing painted leather vests, with horsehair leg bindings, and bronze-decorated belts around their waists. Behind the warriors, grass-built palaces could be seen, accommodating the old, weak, women, and children of the Khalasar.
Those Dothraki Screamers were all tall, with bronze skin, light brown eyes, and black hair. By common sense, the nutritional intake of nomadic peoples in this era should not be too high, indicating that the resources of the Dothraki Sea were too abundant; after all, at its peak, the Ghiscari people alone numbered over a million.
"Khal Drogo wants to become Khal of Khals, so he will naturally avenge Khal Jhezkahn," Ser Jorah said.
This concerned Khal's livelihood; if he lost his deterrent power, how would he collect gifts from the Free Cities in the future?
"These steeds are truly drool-worthy," Anguy commented. The dothraki's horses were unrivaled in the world; it was said that Khal Drogo had a thousand fine horses, each extraordinary.
"Good lad, still can't forget good horses."
"Archers like three things: good horses, good bows, and women," Anguy commented. "Besides, my lord, you've blocked my path to wealth. If I were in King's Landing, I could have won an archery competition and lived lavishly for a month or two."
"Are you that confident?" Jorah was also amused by this foolish lad.
"If it were anyone else, I wouldn't dare boast. But Ser Barristan is also from The Marches, and I once secretly observed his archery; although excellent, I am better than him," Anguy replied confidently. "Of course, if our Commander-in-Chief doesn't go, then the Commander-in-Chief is the best."
The Red Viper glanced at the freckled guard several times. Gendry was not only a top warrior himself, but he also had hidden talents around him. It was said that Arrow Maker was also under his command, and his strength should not be underestimated.
"Alright, if you can shoot Drogo, I'll give you his warhorse," Gendry said to Anguy.
"Khal Drogo is a bit difficult, but if I shoot other dothraki raiders, I'll keep their horses," Anguy clenched his fist.
"Then I'll watch your divine archery."
"You can rest assured," Anguy raised the Longbow in his hand, "but most Westerosi bows are for foot archers, so I need to find a good opportunity first."
"I'm very sorry, this time I only brought three hundred cavalry and two hundred spearmen who were willing to follow me," The Red Viper said apologetically, looking at the black cloud formed by the Dothraki below. Five hundred men was not Dorne's limit, but a cautious number he chose.
"Dornish warriors are as numerous as sand, but only one is supreme in the world. The Prince is a renowned general throughout the Seven Kingdoms; one general is hard to come by, worth more than a thousand troops." Gendry looked at The Red Viper. Oberyn's gesture of providing help in times of need was enough, especially since this was the most brutal decisive battle.
"You flatter me. For a decisive battle of over forty thousand people, one general alone is not enough," The Red Viper shook his head, then greedily watched the Dothraki's deployment.
The Dornish had not fought many wealthy wars. Apart from the ten thousand Dornish warriors who were dispatched to support the Trident River battle, Dorne was severely weakened as a result.
"The Dothraki's tactics still haven't changed much," Gendry said.
"Khal Drogo is a proud man, but his ambition will bring great suffering to the Dothraki. Khal Drogo didn't choose to bypass and ravage the Disputed Lands to draw us out, but instead decided to face us in a decisive battle. This decision is too foolish," Jorah said, looking at the dothraki army.
"Perhaps Khal Drogo has forgotten the story of the Ghiscari person," Gendry said with a smile. Back then, the Ghiscari person was lured out by the Dothraki, eventually falling into an ambush and being completely annihilated by the enemy.
"It seems the Commander-in-Chief is very confident," The Red Viper looked at Gendry, a young and dashing warrior. To be so calm and composed before a major battle, no wonder his subordinates were willing to die for him. He found Gendry's depth increasingly unfathomable; from the perspective of sheer bravery, this young man was also irresistible.
The key to war still lies in troop deployment. The Dothraki's tactics are relatively unified, as their main force consists of light cavalry, a simple and straightforward configuration, without any unnecessary frills.
When a dothraki Khalasar moves, scouts always patrol ahead of the main body, responsible for spotting prey and enemy traces, while the vanguard protects the flanks. After battle, "Jacaqars" armed with great axes collect countless heads from the dead and dying, and little girls pull arrows from corpses, placing them in baskets for reuse.
Gendry's troop deployment was as follows: Ser Jorah, leading a part of the Second Sons Legion, served as the defensive force. The Free Legion, led by Gray Wolf, and the Wolf Pack Legion, led by Steel Fist, were the main attacking forces behind Myr Fortress. The cavalry and elite Kingsguard were the reserve forces Gendry held in his hand, and also the decisive factor in the war's outcome. As for Prince Oberyn, he was to lead the Norvoshi Thralls and Dornish light armored warriors as cavalry.
As for the order of the Two Cities, The Handsome Man, the cunning Brown Ben, Maester Qyburn, and Little Silver Tongue were responsible for strictly governing the Two Cities. In short, while the defending side had some tactical advantages, maintaining order in the city required a considerable number of people to manage.
"The hammer and anvil tactic is my favorite. Since Khal Drogo is so confident in his cavalry, I am also very confident," Gendry said, watching the moving Dothraki.
"My hammer and anvil, I will perform even better than in the Redgrass Field battle," Gendry thought. The Hammer and the Anvil was also a song famous throughout Westeros; the Hammer was Maekar, and the Anvil was Baelor.
In the Redgrass Field battle, Prince Maekar reorganized the shattered vanguard, forming a shield wall to withstand Cold Iron's furious assault. Prince Baelor "Breakspear" timely led an army composed of Stormlands and Dorne soldiers into battle, attacking the main force of the rebels from the rear. Trapped between Maekar's shield wall and Baelor's army, the Blackfyre rebels were crushed by their pincer attack.
"The Hammer and the Anvil. Since Myr Fortress and the sturdy Myr city walls behind it are the anvil, then I am willing to be the Commander-in-Chief's hammer," The Red Viper thought for a moment and said.
"That's exactly what I had in mind, Prince. You are responsible for leading the elite cavalry, which includes not only Dornish knights but also Norvos's great axe Holy Guard," Gendry said to The Red Viper. The Red Viper was not only a fierce general but also very experienced, so he naturally couldn't be wasted. Moreover, The Red Viper's sister-in-law was a Norvoshi noble, making these Norvoshi Thralls more willing to serve him.
The hammer and anvil tactic is essentially a strategy of strong defenses to blunt the enemy's edge. Through a man-made fortress, the enemy's momentum is depleted, and then one's own elites are sent in to finish them off. In this Myr campaign, because Gendry had prepared more thoroughly, he decided to use the earthen ramparts as the anvil.
"As you command!" The Red Viper nodded.
"Prince, aren't you considering changing your armor? This set of armor of yours is indeed a bit too light," Gendry said to The Red Viper. The Red Viper was lightly equipped; aside from greaves, armguards, gorget, cuirass, and battle skirt, he only wore soft leather. Over his armor was a layer of shiny copper scales, but all of this combined probably only provided half the protection of heavy armor. The Red Viper also carried his round shield, emblazoned with a sun-piercing Longspear emblem cast from a mixture of red gold, white gold, yellow gold, and brass.
"Don't worry, Commander-in-Chief. Dressed like this, I can better demonstrate our Dornish characteristic of being light as the wind," The Red Viper patted his breastplate. "I want to live this life well; I want to see The Mountain and Tywin die before me."
"Ser Jorah, the defense of Myr Fortress is entrusted to you," Gendry said to Jorah.
"Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will fight until the last moment."
"Sound the horn," Gendry commanded. "I must first go and meet my other envoys."
"Yes."
The military horn wailed mournfully, its sharp sound piercing the silence of the sky, and the catapults began to move. The catapults placed on Myr Fortress were by no means giant catapults, but their continuous barrage of stones still possessed immense power.
"Cowards, hiding behind earthen walls and fences!" Khal Drogo naturally heard the horn. Looking at the tall earthen rampart directly in front, his ink-black long hair crowned above everyone, signifying that he was the strongest among the Dothraki.
Khal Drogo feared no beast, nor any man in the world, only the sea. To the Dothraki, any water that horses could not drink was impure, and the surging gray-green ocean surface filled them with superstitious aversion.
Khal Drogo raised the arakh in his hand, pointing directly at the quartered banner and the green bear banner atop the earthen rampart.
Poor slaves and sheep men walked at the very front. The sheep men had flat faces, were short and stocky, with unusually short-cropped black hair. They herded sheep and planted crops.
The wails of the sheep men filled the air as the catapults atop the earthen rampart began to creak, and head-sized flying stones continuously rained down.
"Go!" dothraki warriors roared, their whips lashing the faces and backs of the slaves. These slaves could only press forward, using their lives to fill the trenches. Some sheep men even carried hay bales, which further hindered their actions.
The impact of the stones caused a commotion. The whistling boulders smashed the poor sheep men to smithereens. A stone hitting a sheep man's head made it burst open like a shattered watermelon, red and white exploding, brain matter flying everywhere. If it hit other places, it would crush people into broken bones, minced meat, and liver paste.
Even if one or two lucky sheep men reached a spot not far from the trench, they were quickly shot down by the archers atop the earthen rampart. A third of the archers on Myr Fortress wielded crossbows, another third used Eastern double-curved horn-and-sinew bows, and the remaining third were even more elite, possessing yew Longbowmen, as well as the finest goldenheart wood bow troops Black Billy had scoured for, numbering a hundred skilled archers. Of all the great bows in the world, only the dragonglass bow surpassed the goldenheart wood Longbow.
Jorah took the telescope, watching everything below. "My God, please forgive me."
Jorah could not hesitate; this was a battlefield, a cold and ruthless battlefield.
"How do you feel, honored envoys?" Gendry walked to another corner with a smile. The envoys from Qohor, Norvos, and Pentos were all watching this bloody war through telescopes.
"Cruel, very cruel. It would be even better if a stone could land directly on Drogo's head," Magister Oldero, the envoy from Pentos, said, stroking his beard. Each of his fingers was adorned with ornate rings, tiger's eye, tourmaline, and so on. Magister Oldero's beard was also forked and oiled, but his teeth were much better than that fat man Illyrio's.
"We wish you a great victory, Your Highness," the Qohor governor also praised.
"That being said, I heard that before Khal Drogo came to Myr, he obtained supplies and gifts in Pentos and Qohor."
"Please forgive us, for we are merely the weak city-state of Pentos," Magister Oldero pleaded. "Even though I trust your strength greatly, please believe that this great city-state cannot be managed by one Magister alone. Many of my colleagues are surrenderists."
The Norvoshi envoy remained silent and reserved. As a monk, he was very qualified, and his temperament was calmer. The war had just begun, and it was uncertain if they would maintain their advantage moving forward.
Gendry also did not want to delve deeper into the Pentoshi and Qohori, after all, these city-states, after sending away the dothraki plague god, were still very sensible in sending him dothraki intelligence and gifts of corresponding scale.
"Jorah said that Dothraki arrows shoot much farther than Westerosi ones. According to my understanding, they should be roughly equivalent to yew Longbows, and cannot be compared to goldenheart wood or dragonglass bows." But Gendry thought this was normal; after all, not every Lord had the financial resources to equip archer teams with weirwood or yew, let alone goldenheart wood or dragonglass bows. dothraki bows were certainly superior to ordinary makeshift ones, but they were by no means unparalleled.
"Khal, if this continues, I'm afraid we won't have enough sheep men. These milk men are truly too despicable," Khal Drogo's Blood Riders said, gnashing their teeth in hatred. While they didn't value the lives of sheep men slaves, it was truly a pity for them to die in vain like this, and the task of filling the trenches was not yet complete.
"Attacking in the dark is even worse," Drogo thought. During their march, they had indeed suffered multiple night raids from the enemy. If they were to attack a fortified city at night, the losses would be even greater.
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