War of the Roads

[House of Judah]

War of the Roads

The Silk Road. The great trade lane which brings exotic curios from the realm of the Song to their terminus at the banks of the Mediterranean. Many have grown rich from the wealth that travels along the route. Many more have grown covetous of its promise.

Long has the Assyrian King Nebuchadnezzar IV Rahal watched jealously as the riches of the Silk Road bypassed his realm. He has witnessed the great wealth that should have been his birthright pass into the coffers of lesser men. In his palace in Uruk, Nebuchadnezzar has bided his time and rallied other like minded lords of Mesopotamia to his cause. Finally believing the time is right, he has moved his army to seize control of a portion of the route and finally gain the benefits of the Silk Road passing through his realm.

Judea has grown fabulously wealthy as a major nexus of the Silk Road. Ships laden with the treasures of the Orient daily depart the ports of Ashkelon, Acre and Tripoli. Now the trade that has made Judea rich has been threatened by the greed of the Assyrian king, a situation that is intolerable. In response to King Nebuchadnezzar’s grab, King Yitzchak ben Benyamin ben Yehudah has sent his son, Prince Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah, with an army to drive the Assyrians back into their bottle and restore stable trade to the east.

[House of Judah]

Judean Order of Battle

Code:

 5000 Footmen
 4000 Archers
 1300 Mounted Archers
 4000 Light Cavalry
 2500 Heavy Cavalry  
---------------------
16800 Total

Commanders

• Prince Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah
  Oft regarded as the single greatest Judean military minds of his generation, Prince Ari is his father’s favorite choice to lead a campaign. Although quite successful during campaigns to suppress raiders of Christian pilgrims and the war of succession in Cyprus, he is best known for the Siege of Aleppo. Alan survivors of the final battle of the siege describe Prince Ari as a fearsome warrior gifted with magic powers, including the ability to transform into the very lion he was named for.
  
• Rav Immanuel ben Elior
  The captain turned rabbi was a key player in the wars between Benyamin II and the Abbasid Caliph. He has lead men across the very deserts that Yitzchak and Nebuchadnezzar now contest control of. After the wars, he spent two decades travelling extensively, particularly along the Silk Road. He returned to Judea a Rabbi and became an adviser to Yitzchak I. Still, many discuss a queerness to the man who, despite being advanced in years, moves as man who has seen half as many seasons. At Prince Ari’s request, the old warrior has joined the campaign.
  
• Other Commanders:
  TBD
  

---

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Assyrian Order of Battle

Code:

2000 Immortals
2000 Baaj
 400 Ramaadi
  50 Abadan Elephants
 300 Sori
---------------------
4650 Total

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah

Ari smiled pleasantly at the city governor of Der Azor, a city along the Silk Road where it crossed the Perat River (Euphrates to the Europeans). He could tell the man had mixed feelings about the Judean army now occupying his city. On the one hand, the city depended on trade from the Silk Road and the restoration of normal travel along the route could only serve to restore his wealth. On the other hand, their presence was a certain provocation to the Assyrians. Still, he could rest easy that if the Assyrians decided to attack his city, the Judeans defenders would easily outnumber whatever the Assyrians could muster.

"I assure you, your honor, as soon as we have rested a little and restocked our supplies, we will continue on from Der Azor and end the Assyrian interruption of trade through your city."

"Of course, your highness. Thank you." The man bowed several times as he backed out of the door of the room. Ari breathed in and slowly exhaled. The man was a sycophant, assuredly. Ari went into the next room to meet with his other commanders, particularly Rav Immanuel who had traveled extensively on the Silk Road years earlier. "What news of the Mosul region?"

"Our spies report some four or five thousand Assyrians have been sent to secure the land between Mosul and the Perat," replied one of his commanders. "Our own soldiers will number three or four fold of theirs. Victory should be assured."

"Do not be so certain," another interjected. "Our spies also say that some of their number ride monstrous mounts. Great, hulking, grey behemoths with massive tusks. They will crush our men under foot. We will lose twenty or more for each that we fall."

"What nonsense!" said another. "These are like the tales of the ten sinning scouts that contradicted Yehoshua and Kalev. If we believe such lies may we be stuck in the desert for forty years.¹"

"You are both of your correct and mistaken," said Rav Immanuel. "The monstrous mounts are elephants, rare creatures but not completely unknown to our people. It is true that some in the east use them as war mounts, and that will make them more dangerous. But not insurmountable."

"How would you counter them?" Ari inquired.

"Archers, your highness. The elephants will be trained war mounts, not like to panic in battle, but without a rider they will have no direction and will be without control. The elephant will then do more damage to their own ranks than ours." Ari nodded thoughtfully as he viewed the map and considered the advice of his captains.

"We will press on and put paid to the Assyrians' ambitions," he declared definitively. "We will make the roads safe to travel once more. And we shall start in Mosul."

---

¹This is a reference to the story of the Twelve Scouts sent to Canaan.

[Assyr]

Alone in the Dark - Sori Camp
“Remember, if you are spotted I will not hesitate to remove you. Is that understood?” A muscular man wearing full white clothing and leather armor stands inside a simply furnished tent. The muscular man wears a golden mask signifying his high rank.

A soldier by the name of Yavar Sukhaabi, garbed in his full armor kneeled low to the ground in front of his superior. His mission was simple, alert the rest of the army when the Jews are in sight. All he had to do was hide behind a sand dune and keep watch of the horizon in front of him. Yavar spoke, “Yes Master.”

“There is another thing.” Commander Taheri Sinor paused. “You are forbidden from lighting a fire.”

Yavar looked up at the mad man, his voice couldn’t stop trembling, “But the darkness will seize me. It would consume me!”

Taheri produced a sparkling orange stone. The torches inside the tent gave the stone glimmers of light. “This stone is blessed by Ra. It will protect you and give you warmth from the evil of the night.” Taheri let the young soldier admire the stone for a minute before continuing, “If you lose this stone the wrath of the night will surely eat you like it does with the sun of Ra. But the night will not spit you out.” Taheri let that sink into the mind of Yavar.

With trembling hands Yavar took the jewel and kissed it. He nodded slowly in agreement, “I am honored to be in the presence of Ra, even if just a little bit. Master I will not fail you.” Yavar rose quickly and left the Commander’s tent. He went to where his horse Shadeh was kept. After he made sure he got everything and that the jewel was stored somewhere safe on his person he departed the makeshift camp.

By the time twilight started setting Yavar already gripped the stone tightly in his left hand, and the reins of Shadeh in his right. They already traveled many miles away from the rest of the Sori. The Sori camp was long gone over the horizon. Soon Yavar spotted the Silk Road in the distance, a dry path snaking its way through the sands. Yavar rode up on top of a particularly large sand dune, he surveyed the road from a distance, perhaps a good half a mile away. Tugging on the reins he led Shadeh opposite to the Road and down to the base of the dune. He moved his left leg over the horse’s back and then dropped down to the ground. Yavar opened the pack on the horse and gave it something to eat and drink, he himself had a quick meal. Yavar ordered his horse to stay, he didn’t worry much about it neighing or making noise, Sori horses were generally very obedient.

At late dusk to early night Yavar lay just over the spine of the dune. He took off his metal mask as not to accidentally make it glimmer in the dark. Yavar made sure that only his head poked out, and this he covered with sand. Still gripping tightly onto the orange jewel the young man prayed to Ra and Serket to help him through this. As he surveyed the Road ahead of him Yavar couldn’t keep his fear away. Every time the wind blows he nearly jumps, every time a shadow sways he nearly runs. He didn’t need to worry about falling asleep, his eyes wouldn’t close to the darkness. This young man was more terrified of the Unspoken, Unknown, the Soul Eater. Apep. The very name made Yuvar tremble, he continued on praying.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Preparation - East Bank of the Tigris

“We need to build a fortification.” Commander Roham Bamerdi stood over a table with a map. The map showed the land around their current location. A figure stood bent over the map. Light from torches in the tent made the figure’s silk clothing shimmer.

“You forget Roham that this is not a very fertile part of the land.” The voice sounds very feminine. Numerous gold stars speckle the silver silk. The fabulous cloth covers the entire figure from head to toe. Two eyes are barely visible through the semi transparent fabric around the head. Such clothing suggested that this was a Priest of Serket, the god of war.

“Iyda Saazat, I am sure we could scour the desert for some wood.”

“Yes but not enough.” Iyda, the Priest, paused for just a moment. “Perhaps spears placed in the waters of the Tigris would make a better defence than a construction of a fortification.” She pointed to a point of the river.

Roham was pleased that his king allowed him to take a Priest of Serket. Such individuals provided great knowledge in the art of war. “But what of Commander Oshnar’s men? Surely some of them will be impaled during the crossing?”

“I doubt very many. The bulk of the impaled will be the Jews of Judah. Such sacrifices would have to be made, after all, we do not even know the size of their army.”

Commander Roham thought hard about this. “We will do it. Further discussion will continue tomorrow morning.” Roham bowed to Iyda. The Priest bowed as well.

Roham left the tent and headed for the center of camp. With a loud whistle he gathered up much of the men. Clearing his voice he addressed his soldiers. “Attention! Attention! Priest Saazat has shared her wisdom with me. She believes it is in our best interest to search the lands around for wood.” Many of the soldiers standing nearby had confused looks. “The obtained wood will be carved into stakes and set into the waters of the Tigris.” Roham started to give orders and divide the men up into groups. For the next couple of days the searching, carving, and setting was being done to prepare against the Jews.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Nervous Waiting- Camp of Oshnar

“Hadi steady now. Steady.” A loud trumpeting was followed by a deep rumble of the earth. A young man with dark olive skin held out his hands in front of a panicked beast. “It was just a wildcat Hadi. It won’t hurt you.”

A man with a thick black beard laughed loudly, “Manjit you will never get Hadi to stop being such a coward. This giant sack of fat isn’t fit to be called an elephant.”

Manjit, the dark olive skinned man, gave the Persian a cold stare. “Kurosh this sack of fat is what you will be riding out to war on. Show some respect, you know as much as I do that Hadi just gets a bit spooked.” By this time Hadi the elephant has calmed down some. It’s wrinkled trunk gently searched Manjit for food.

Kurosh, the Persian, sat near, he was sharpening a pile of javelins when he spoke up, “Both man and beast need nerves of steel to make it out on the battlefield. Hadi is a potential disaster waiting to happen.”

“I raised Hadi from birth, I know when she will start acting oddly.” Manjit grabbed a wad of grasses from his pack and gave it to the elephant, who now stood quietly in front of the two.

“Commander Oshnar Mirai will personally hold you responsible if your beast starts going rampant. You better hope with all your heart that Hadi acts well.” Kurosh tested the sharpness of the blade by trying to cut the hair on his arm.

Manjit just replied with a grunt. He began brushing the dust off of his mount. “We’re all just nervous, both animal and man. When battle comes we will all get better.” Everyone knew it  was going to be a long wait.

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah

Ari sat in contemplation upon his horse as the column moved further towards their next goal, the crossing at Faysh Khabur. His army stretched before and behind him: a great serpent of swords and spears horses. Since leaving Der Azor, the army had marched at night to protect the men from the heat of the sun, setting camp and resting during the day beneath the protection of the tents. They moved from spring to spring, keeping their water satchels full and their animals well hydrated.

“Something troubles your mind, my Prince?” asked Rav Immanuel. Ari looked to the rabbi and nodded.

“Faysh Khabur is where the northern Silk Road crosses the Hiddekel and will take us to where the Assyrians are blocking the road.”

“Assuredly.”

“The Assyrians must be expecting us to cross there. They’ll be waiting.”

“So go a different road.”

“I fall into the same problem. They must have scouts. If I change the direction of the column, then they will replan their defense to counter me.”

“You should have more than sufficient soldiers to defeat the Assyrians.”

“Plenty. But a river crossing is the most dangerous part of the journey, and under fire… it will cost me many men and I still need to make sure the Assyrians are never a threat again.”

“So what will you do?”

“Not sure yet. I’ll keep you appraised of mind when I do have a plan.”

[Assyr]

Tired Eyes - Taheri Sinor

    Many nights have passed after Taheri sent the young lad to go scouting for the Jews of Judah. Anxiety kept the commander up some nights, questions of all sorts popped up in his brain often. Yuvar Sukhaabi, the scouting soldier, had an immense responsibility placed on his shoulders, in fact, the entire army of Assyr is depending on this surprise attack. For this task Yuvar would be rewarded with a promotion and perhaps even a small estate.

    A man stumbled into the Commander’s tent, he was covered from head to toe in sand, and his eyes bore alarmingly red veins running through; dark bags hung under them. It was very evident that this man was severely sleep deprived, from the way he carried himself to the never ending nodding of his head.

    “Azah(1) Sinor...” He falters, taking a deep breath in the process, “The enemy…”

    “Thank the Sun!” Commander Sinor exclaimed, he took the soldier by the arms and made him sit on the pillow that was lying on the ground. He quickly gave him his water jug to drink. “Yuvar, drink. Then please speak, you will then be sent to rest.” Taheri brought a pillow from the edge of the tent and sat on the ground next to the tired soldier.

    After drinking nearly the whole container Yuvar Sukhaabi finally managed to produce a full sentence. “The Jews of Judah will make it to the Faysh Khabur by the time our troops meet them.” He took another long drink before continuing, “I have seen them travel during the night, often portions of the army without the fire of Ra. No doubt they are surely followers of Apep. As for the day they sleep in tents like this one.” Yavar moved his hands around to show the tent. He took another drink and then rubbed his eyes.

    “Is that all you noticed?” Taheri was in deep thought, it was noticeable since he was tugging on his large black beard. Taheri also held out his hand, he expected the orange jewel to be given back to him, if he even had it.

    Yuvar just nodded in response, he rummaged in his pocket before setting the jewel into the Commander’s palm. The young man’s eyes were beginning to close, but Taheri made him get up and leave the tent to his group’s tent.

    Commander Taheri Sinor followed him out and eventually made his way to the center of the camp. He cleared his voice before bellowing out, “Tomorrow we leave just as Ra is spit out! Prepare your mounts and your equipment. I want you all to be fed and hydrated. Sharpen your weapons and practice your archery! That will be all.” Many cheers rang about the camp as the word spread, it was finally time to fight for Assyr.

    Yuvar, being so sleep deprived, failed to mention that the Jew’s army was enormous. This might come back to bite them.

(1) - Azah means Commander.
______________________________________________________________________________

Other Camps

    For many days the army of Commander Roham Bamerdi were at work. Some collected wood, others carved the wood into stakes, and some were sent swimming in the Tigris to set up the stakes. Roham and Iyda Saazat are left to devise in their tents to better their chances of victory.

    Every living creature in Oshnar’s camp were beginning to get restless, in response Commander Oshnar set up an event to clear the minds of his men. Horse racing is a popular sport in Assyr, so races have been created for the soldiers. Besides this not much else is going on at Oshnar’s. Hopefully Oshnar is not punished by the King later.

With 3 minutes to spare.

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah

The prince surveilled the activities around him. Light cavalry were running scouting missions around the camp site. Foot soldiers and camp followers were erecting palisades around the camp. From his hill he could see the Hiddekel, called the Tigris by Europeans, and the crossing at Faysh Khabur. Somewhere beyond lay the Assyrians who had so disrupted roads to the East. One of the scouts returned and rode to the prince's tent.

"Your highness, we have reports from the scouts you sent across the river."

"And?"

"There are no fortifications."

"None?"

"No, my lord." The prince turned to review the map that gave the lay of the land.

"Show me where the camp lies." The scout indicated on the map. "And they built no fortifications?"

"None that could be seen."

"How many were counted?"

"Some four thousand."

"It makes no sense." Ari rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"The fools must assume the river will protect them," said one of the commanders.

"They face a force that outnumbers them more than four-fold and you think they are so arrogant as to believe a river will protect them?"

"It is said one should never interrupt one's enemy when he is making a mistake."

"It is also said that one should never imagine his enemy is only as imaginative as he is." Ari looked at the map again and considered. A river crossing was hazardous, assuredly, but not so greatly as to assume that a force less than a quarter of its enemy could hold it. There was something there. Something he was missing. Why was there no fortification? "Was there any sign of wood? things to be gathered in the area?"

"Some on the west bank. The east seems to have been picked clean."

"All the wood on the east bank? How much was there to start by your estimation? Only enough for fires for four thousand men?"

"And then some."

"Enough to build a fortification?"

"Not like. Perhaps a small one for their captain and his body guard."

"More than enough wood for a fire but not enough for a fortification. Where did the excess go?" His eyes scoured the map. There was nowhere the wood could be more useful than holding the river crossing. So where was it?

[Assyr]

When Arrows Fly - Tehran Sinor
“Where did they go?” Commander Tehran Sinor asked his second in command, “You don’t think they left do you?” Tehran fidgeted in his saddle.

Abbaluk, the second in command, replied, “We’re close behind them, the dust hasn’t set yet where they have traveled.”

Indeed the dust hasn’t, there was a large plume lazily setting down at a very slow pace. Tehran Sinori nodded in reply, “Let's hurry and reach the Jews, or the King will have my head.” He gulped nervously and then snapped his reins, signalling for his horse to move, his men behind him followed.

For the next two hours the Sori raced down the Silk Road. The road slowly declined in elevation, in the distance a large mass camped. Tehran could only guess that the fast flowing Tigris was just beyond them. The commander held up his left hand, signalling his men to a slower pace. “Don your masks and get ready your weapons! We have practiced for this moment nigh a thousand times! My men, you are ready to show the Jews Assyr’s strength!”

The sun shone brightly during the day, rays of sunshine heated up everything not under shade. The three hundred Sori all wielded their bows. They were waiting for their leader to signal the start of the battle. First Commander Tehran held up his right hand, signalling the army to move faster. In less than three minutes the Sori galloped their way close to the Jew camp, Tehran knotted an arrow in his recurve bow and then pulled on the string. In a time frame of half a second he sent his arrow flying through the air in the direct direction of the enemy.

The arrow arced in the air with great speed, it disappeared momentarily in the blinding sunlight. Tehran’s arrow tore through a tent and embedded itself deeply into an empty bedroll. A volley of three hundred poison tipped arrows flew threw the air and landed in the Jewish camp. Quivers produced another arrow for each Sori and Commander Tehran yelled out the order to fire. Another volley flew in the air. Many more would follow.

(OOC: The Sori have recurve bows that fire farther than a normal bow, their arrows are tipped in poison that are very painful when it spreads. Melee Jew soldiers trying to attack the Sori would most likely die trying to reach them. The Sori are professional archers. Each one holds two quivers, and each has forty arrows.)

[House of Judah]

Cavalry Scout

He stood baffled for a moment. Three-hundred mounted skirmishers against a many thousand strong army? Still, he knew his duty. He raised his horn and sounded a blast, followed by three shorter blasts and then a series of quick blasts.

---

Ari ben Yitzchak ben Yehudah

Ari’s head darted up at the first blast of ram’s horn. It had come from the west. A warning of attack from one of his scouts. He paused and listened to the following.

“Three hundred cavalry. Riders, take mount!” He took his own horn and gave two blast followed by three that started with a low tone and ended high. Answering horns sounded throughout the camp as it rushed into activity.

“Your highness!” called one of the prince’s bodyguard. He turned and witnessed a volley lifting from beyond the wall. Ari grabbed up his shield and lowered himself behind it, then gave a single burst followed by two bursts that started high and ended low. Members of the camp took cover where they could. There was no time to determine who had been struck. The battle must come first. The first volley ended and Ari mounted quickly.

“Ravi!” he called to the captain-rabbi. “Take half the light cavalry out the south gate. Gil, you take the other to the north. Converge upon the rear of the enemy.” The two men nodded and each grabbed up one of the light cavalry banners. “Adam, you ride with me. Carry the mounted archers banner. I have the heavy cavalry.”

“Yes, my prince.” They each took up their appointed banners and mounted their horses. They rode to the center of the camp, made quick bursts of the horns to gather attention, then split to their respective gates. The various riders followed their bannermen. Two thousand light cavalry flowed from each the north gate and the south. The west gate birthed thirty-eight hundred horsemen, mostly heavy cavalry but over a thousand mounted archers were in the pack. The mounted cavalry drew string and fired their own volley of vengeance against the offending Assyrians as the heavy cavalry bore down on the skirmishers.

Within the camp, men on foot rushed to take proper cover. Those near the palisade took shelter in its shade. Those further pressed themselves flat to the far side of a hill, hiding beneath their shield. Some took shelter beneath carts, others behind barrels of wine or grain.

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