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Post by cerdigon on Nov 10, 2017 0:43:32 GMT
Battle of the Ryn River Crossing
The Vinayan Army with its complement of Almur mercenaries had moved quickly to cover ground towards the Ryn river and capture the Great Bridge that covered its span. However, as correctly predicted, the Elonese had been too swift. The Bridge had been raised and the Vinayan had adopted its contingency plan, military engineers had swiftly set about putting together pre fabricated bridges and assembling them in pieces on the banks of the Ryn. By nightfall, the skeletal structure of a bridge snaked its way across the Ryn. By dawn, the vanguard of the Vinayan Army, spearheaded by the Freekorp Grenadiers, had begun to move across to establish a bridgehead. They were greeted by the boom of cannon fire and snarl of muskets. Elonese rangers mounted on swift riding cavalry had advanced to counteract the crossing, backed by horse artillery. Stranger still, a banner set against a blue background with a rising sun dominated the Elonese line. It could almost be mistaken for an Ikegami banner except that the flag was augmented with the Sacred Tree of Oleo. Vinayan intelligence would later confirm that the Rangers were under the personal command of Lord Marshal Harys otherwise known as Tatsuoka, grandson of Daimyo Sayoko and the famed Sir Bronn. The presence of the energetic and wily field commander was bound to boost the morale of the Rangers and add yet another political dimension to the conflict as Elon sought Ikegami intervention to stop the Vinayan invasion. For the moment, it seemed that the First Army was dealing with nothing but an advance force, albeit a highly trained and well commanded one. Yet reinforcements from the capital could only be expected, at what point was a mystery. |
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Post by cerdigon on Nov 13, 2017 23:58:25 GMT
With the roar of cannon, the Vinayan reply to the Elonese opposition came in the form of heavy cannon fire from across the river bank. The field guns far outranged the enemy weapons and hammered the embankment upon which the Elonese were entrenched. At the extent of their range however, much of the Vinayan cannonfire was inaccurate, falling short or sailing over the heads of the rangers. Yet it was enough to suppress the Elonese guns who could not return fire and feared being knocked out.
Under the weight of superior (if inaccurate) firepower, the Vinayan force gathered its full strength. Yet crossing thousands of troops across a narrow bridgehead took an incredible amount of time and coordination. By the time the Vinayan's had formed up to storm the hill, they found little more than a skeleton force of rangers that had been left to fend them off and wounded who were too injured to be moved.
With the chaos, smoke, and noise from the bombardment, the Elonese had withdrawn under Lord Harys. Later interrogation by prisoners would reveal that the Protector of Elon, High Lord Oswin, had marched from the capital with a large force and was only a days march away. It appeared that Lord Harys had been ordered to hold the river crossing until the full might of the Elonese army could be deployed along its banks.
Yet Vinayan strength of arms and the well planned coordination of its engineers had meant that the rangers could only hold them for six long hours. No doubt Lord Harys would report the success of the Vinayan crossing to Oswin who would seek a quick victory over the smaller Vinayan army.
Tomorrow the real battle would follow.
SUMMARY:
-- Vinayan Army successfully fords the river but learns that Lord Oswin is a short distance away. A decisive battle can be expected shortly.
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