The morning dew still clung to the mushroom caps as Kurzadh, treading on damp grass, arrived at Blackrock Spire's mushroom field.
Three Tier 2 mushroom fields were neatly arranged in the valley. The light green combat mushrooms grew taller than a man, glowing faintly under their caps. hobgoblin laborers, carrying baskets, carefully harvested the ripe mushrooms—these mushrooms were not only raw materials for brewing, but also the foundation of the tribe's development.
Kurzadh's gaze fell on the system's virtual panel in the center of the mushroom field, which clearly displayed an upgrade prompt:
"[Detected three Tier 2 mushroom fields meeting merger conditions. Can consume 500 WAAAGH! points to upgrade to a Tier 3 'Mushroom Plantation'. After upgrade, mushroom yield increases by 150%, squig and goblin reproduction speed doubles, 'Orc Boyz Cultivation' function unlocked, and hobgoblin laborers can advance to hobgoblin Sappers.]
He couldn't help but grin.
This was not just a simple increase in yield, but a qualitative leap! Doubled mushroom yield meant the tribe could brew twice as much mushroom wine, and the gold earned from selling to humans and dwarves would also double. Faster squig and greenskin reproduction meant the tribe's military strength and labor force would become increasingly abundant.
What excited him most were "Orc Boyz Cultivation" and "Hobgoblin Sappers Advancement"—previously, Orc Boyz were acquired solely through raiding and capture, but now they could be cultivated in the mushroom field. And the practicality of hobgoblin Sappers would definitely not be inferior to ordinary hobgoblin cannon fodder.
"Tens of thousands of hobgoblin Sappers..." Kurzadh mused inwardly, "If there were a hundred thousand, they could log, quarry, make bricks, mine, and even build roads and walls. How terrifying would the tribe's productivity be then? No need for Orc Boyz to do these chores; they only need to focus on fighting!"
He quickly glanced at the busy goblin and turned to leave—Skarsnik was keeping an eye on them anyway.
This hobgoblin mushroom expert was more familiar with the mushroom fields than with his own spiders. From planting to harvesting, from pest control to humidity regulation, he was proficient in everything. Kurzadh was a hundred percent at ease entrusting the mushroom fields to him.
Leaving the mushroom field, Kurzadh whistled.
In an open space not far away, Furball immediately ran over, wagging his 'tail'—this giant squig could now freely change size through WAAAGH! magic. When small, he could shrink to the size of a cat and nap in Kurzadh's arms; when large, he could grow up to two meters tall, like a small lion, serving as both a mount and a charging giant beast.
Currently, he maintained a medium size, his head reaching just to Kurzadh's waist.
A few hobgoblins saddled Furball's back.
"Let's go, let's check out the city wall." Kurzadh swung onto Furball's back. The squig whimpered once and started running towards the mountain pass on his four stubby legs.
Last time, he had only roughly shown off the results to his people; this time, he needed to check the details.
The wind blew past his ears, carrying the fresh scent of the forest. Furball ran steadily and quickly, more agile than a spider. Before long, the green city wall appeared before them.
Below the city wall, many greenskins had already gathered—there were newly upgraded orc nob, hobgoblins with bows, and hobgoblin Sappers with new tools, all craning their necks, curiously examining this giant structure they had helped build.
Seeing Kurzadh approach, the greenskins quickly made way, their eyes filled with reverence—in their eyes, a leader who could build such a tall city wall was practically a god sent by the Gork and Mork, two warboss gods in warhammer fantasy.
"Everyone, follow me up, look around freely!" Kurzadh dismounted Furball, shouted to the greenskins , and led the way towards the granite steps of the city wall.
The greenskins roared in agreement, following him, chattering excitedly, their steps much lighter.
The moment he stepped onto the top of the city wall, Kurzadh's gaze swept across the wall surface, and the data he had long memorized automatically appeared in his mind: the base of the city wall was a strip-Kurzadh foundation, five meters deep, firmly rooted underground; above, it was built of green bricks, spanning between two cliffs, with a total width of 278 meters, a thickness of 6.7 meters, and a height of 25 meters!
Twenty-five meters! Standing on the edge of the city wall and looking down, the greenskins below looked like tiny ants, and even Furball seemed much smaller.
Kurzadh couldn't help but think that if the Orc Boyz of other greenskin tribes saw this city wall, their jaws would surely drop—who could believe that these goblin, only fifty centimeters tall, could build such a tall structure? It was simply a miracle of the greenskin world!
But he knew in his heart that this height was not for show.
Which race in the Warhammer world didn't have giant units? The Minotaurs he encountered before were over three meters tall, and Chaos beasts were even five meters tall. If the city wall was built too short, any giant beast could easily smash through it, making it useless.
Fortunately, this was a brick city wall, built layer by layer with cement. As long as the foundation was strong, let alone a three-meter-tall Minotaur, even a five-meter Chaos beast wouldn't be able to easily break through it.
"Boss, why aren't the city gates the same size?" a hobgoblin archer pointed at the gate opening in the middle of the city wall, asking curiously.
Kurzadh looked in the direction he pointed. There were five gate openings in the city wall—the largest one in the center was four meters wide and five meters high, its frame carved from a single piece of granite, adorned with simple Gork and Mork runes; there were two smaller gates on each side, three meters wide and four meters high, a section shorter than the main city gate.
"The middle one is the main city gate, usually not opened, only during major battles or when large merchant caravans pass through; the smaller gates on the sides are for daily access. You guys use the smaller gates for patrols and hunting." he paused, touching the elm door panels of the main city gate—these panels were made from century-old elm trees cut from the forest, so hard they could withstand ordinary iron axes, "Conditions are limited now, so we can only use wood for the city gates. When the tribe's iron smelting technology improves, I'll have Guzhana wrap the door panels with a layer of iron. Then, even Musketeers won't be able to penetrate them!"
The greenskins let out exclamations of awe, reaching out to touch the door panels, feeling the hardness of the wood.
Kurzadh continued walking, arriving at the watchtower directly above the main city gate—this watchtower was about two meters high, built with a stone-wood mixed structure, capable of accommodating ten orcs on duty simultaneously. Two giant crossbows, forged by Guzhana, were mounted on the watchtower, their shafts thicker than an 's arm, and their arrowheads crafted from fine iron, glinting with a cold light.
"Standing here, you can see all movement in the mountain pass," Kurzadh said, climbing the watchtower and pointing towards the Khyprian road in the distance. "If enemies come, we'll spot them immediately and prepare in advance."
The greenskins followed him up the watchtower, standing on tiptoes to look into the distance. Indeed, they could clearly see movement on the trail, even a few passing wild rabbits were visible.
"Amazing! We won't be afraid of beastmen sneaking up on us anymore!" an orc nob shouted excitedly.
Kurzadh smiled and nodded, then led the greenskins to the corner towers on both sides of the city wall.
These two corner towers were taller than the main watchtower, reaching a height of thirteen to fourteen meters from the ground, like two giants standing at the ends of the city wall. They were also of a stone-wood mixed structure, but narrower and longer, with spiral staircases leading directly to the observation deck at the top.
The moment they ascended the corner tower, the view became even more expansive—not only could they see the situation at the mountain pass, but also the distant forest and swamp, and even the tribe's mushroom field and Blacksmith Shop were faintly visible.
"These corner towers are our eyes!" Kurzadh patted the railing of the observation deck. "From now on, the most agile hobgoblin archers will be stationed here. Whether it's a human caravan or a Chaos unit, once they enter our sight, they won't escape!"
The greenskins nodded in agreement, their eyes full of recognition.
Just then, a hobgoblin wandering on the city wall suddenly pointed at the outer wall and shouted, "Boss! Look at all these protruding stone platforms on the wall!"
Kurzadh looked in the direction he pointed, only to see that on the outer wall, which should have been flat, there was a protruding bastion every ten meters—these bastions were semicircular, about three meters in diameter, protruding over a meter from the wall, and also had crenellations, capable of accommodating two archers.
"This is a design Guzhana and I discussed for several days before settling on, called 'Bastion Platform,'" Kurzadh explained, with a hint of pride in his voice. "Don't underestimate these platforms. If enemies try to climb the city wall, the archers on the platforms can shoot at them from the side, creating a crossfire and putting the enemies between a rock and a hard place!"
The greenskins listened, half understanding. Guzhana, who had just climbed onto the city wall, heard Kurzadh's words and couldn't help but add, "There's an even cleverer aspect to this design. Look at the bastions in front of the main city gate; they form a semicircle. If enemies painstakingly break through the first city gate outside—oh, the first city gate hasn't been built yet, but it will be—and excitedly rush into this semicircle, they will find an even stronger main city gate ahead, blocking their path. Their retreat will be blocked by continuously pouring in troops, leaving them trapped, like rats in a jar!"
She paused, pointing at the crenellations on the bastions: "At that time, the archers on the watchtower, the archers on the corner towers, and the archers on these bastions will be able to shoot arrows from all directions, treating the enemies as live targets. No matter how much they shoot, the enemies won't escape!"
The greenskins then understood, letting out "wows" of amazement. "That's brilliant! This way, no matter how many enemies there are, they won't be able to get in!" an orc nob excitedly waved his fists, as if he could already see the enemies being covered by a rain of arrows.
Kurzadh looked at the excited greenskins before him, then at Guzhana beside him, his heart filled with emotion.
This city wall was not only built with green bricks and cement, but also forged with wisdom and sweat—with the goblin's daily brick-carrying and wall-building, with the orcs and hobgoblins' day and night vigilance, with Guzhana's ingenious design, and with the architectural knowledge he brought from Earth.
The wind blew from the outside of the city wall, carrying the moisture from the distant swamp, fluttering the greenskin battle banners on the watchtower.
Kurzadh leaned against the crenellation, looking at the busy greenskins below—some were wiping crossbow bolts, some were checking the brick seams of the city wall, some were simulating shooting from the bastions. Everyone was working hard to protect this city wall, to protect their home.
He touched the "Gork and Mork, two warboss gods in warhammer fantasy's Will" orb in his arms, feeling the violent energy within.
With this city wall, with the upgraded mushroom field, and with these loyal greenskin brothers, the Blackrock Clan would surely establish itself in this world full of war and chaos, and even become stronger.
"Come on, let's go check out the moat design at the base of the wall," Kurzadh stood up straight and shouted to the greenskins , leading the way towards the steps. "Once the moat is dug and filled with water, our city wall will be even safer!"
The greenskins roared in agreement, following him, their footsteps echoing on the top of the city wall.