Second Battle of Wendwater Bridge

[The Mad Skylord]

Wendwater Bridge. The site of the disastrous battle which ended the Third Blackfyre Rebellion. Aegon V massacred the rebel forces here, and now it fell to Aerys II Targaryen to repeat the feat. The long lines of the Royal Army began to spread out, camping along the edge of the River and the Bridge. Aerys's personal tent had been put up, and already lords were meeting there to discuss the tactics for the battle. Aerys stood quietly on the bridge. He knew that he had to defeat Maelys here or he would be put in a truly terrible situation. The battle would begin when the Usurper arrived.

Host of King Aerys II

3'180 Polearms 1550 Heavy Infantry 1450 Light Cavalry 1744 Heavy Cavalry 500 Elite Cavalry 10'000 Light Infantry 6'576 Archers 25'000 Men

[Pontifex Maximus]

Ser Botlon had mounted his massive war steed and rod close to the king, his spearpoint glinting in the pale sunlight. "It is a fine day for a fight, your Grace. Shall I stay close to you, or offer inspiration to other flanks across the field?" He looked almost giddy to be riding once more into battle. Of course, the political consequences of defeat would be disastrous. "I do not deny, I greatly desire to dispatch the usurper myself."

[Lucius Malfoy]

Ser Aenarys Velaryon stayed close to the King's side as any Kingsguard member would. He glances over at Ser Bolton who makes the remark of dispatching the usurper personally.

We must not underestimate this foe, Ser Bolton. He wields the sword of the Conqueror, Blackfyre, and is monstrous in size and appearance. We must be careful when dealing with this adversary.

The Velaryon felt only a slight bit of intimidation; never before had a Blackfyre garnered this much of a veteran force, let alone land on Westeros in such great numbers. The choice of the battlefield, Wendwater, could be both a good or bad omen for House Targaryen. True, this was where the Third Blackfyre Rebellion ended, but Maelys was much more a warrior than those claimants who came before him and after Daemon himself.

[The Mad Skylord]

Aerys listened to both his Kingsguard, he was staring at the river. He grunted to Ser Bolton softly. "Some rain would have been nice. It would have swollen the river enough to prevent his horse and heavy foot passing anywhere but the bridge."

He turned around and smiled. He liked these men. "Worry not, Ser Velaryon, Ser Bolton is a skilled swordsman, but even if he loses you will at least have the opportunity to say "I told you so".

Aerys turned around to continue looking upon the river. He had to beat him here, even if the defeat wasn't total, he had to turn the Usurper back, to win the support of Westeros.

[Pontifex Maximus]

Bolton raised his spear high and gave a hearty laugh "Worry not, brother! I might even double back to protect you once I am assured of the King's safety!" Although he was not nearly as confident as he outwardly expressed, it would not do to be gloomy. An army that thought it could win, might win. Whereas an army that thought it might lose, would probably lose. "I will take Maely's head and his sword, and present both to the true king, Aerys II."

[Poach]

Can I please have the battle plans by tonight? I will be busy friday through sunday afternoon, so if I can't roll the battle tonight you might face delays as I'm not sure if HB or LM know how to work the new battle calculator.

[Pericles of Athens]

OOC: What forces are here?

[Poach]

[OOC: I'd assumed it was whatever army Aerys had with him versus whatever army Maelys sent north?]

[Oznerol]

ooc: I'm not marching to meet this army, yet. My army is stationed at Bronzegate and of course I'm not being forced into battle. This thread is void and I think Poach agrees with me.

[Pontifex Maximus]

A missive arrives from Queen Shaera in the capital:

To my son Aerys,

The Vale forced under Lord Arryn march south, but it is not to help us. They have not paid their taxes and my personal correspondence with the Vale Lords indicate that they have proclaimed support for the usurper, Maelys. I ready for the defense of the city.

Signed,

Queen Shaera Targaryen"

[Poach]

Rolling for Maelys' plan

There will be two rolls, the second contingent on the first. The first roll will see whether Maelys succeeds in marching his army around the flank of Aerys' army, bypassing the bridge and approaching his foe across the open ground to his rear. If successful, the second roll will determine whether Aerys' army is caught off guard by this or is able to form a battle line to oppose the advancing Blackfyre troops.

I'll give a 50/50 on the bypass roll, as Aerys is not actively watching other river crossings but Maelys' army is nonetheless large. It is not easy to sneak an army through anywhere, anything from dust clouds to sympathetic locals may betray the plan.

Roll One

1-10 he successfully crosses the river elsewhere and can approach the Targaryen army across open ground, 11-20 his army is spotted in ample time and they find their crossing opposed.

Rolled a 19, Maelys is able to successfully move his army over the river.

Roll Two

This roll will be much harder, as field armies are exceptionally difficult to actually ambush. Even without spreading a screen across the river, army camps do have sentries. Furthermore this is not a siege, where the encamped army is spread out all around a castle: the army is camped as a single formation and, as such, can react far more cohesively.

As such I give it a 5/20 chance. 1-5 the Targaryen Army is caught unawares, their sentries having failed to sight the unexpected enemy fast enough, 6-20 the sentries are able to warn King Aerys that Blackfyre troops have been spotted on his side of the river in large numbers, allowing the Targaryen Army to form up to meet them.

Rolled a 15. The Targaryen Army is able to prepare.

- - - - - - - - - -

Aerys had just sat down to lunch when a man burst into his tent, looking flustered and scared. He offered a very hasty and very shallow bow.

"Your Grace..." he panted, "Blackfyre's troops... they're across the river! ... Downstream from here... they're a few miles away and coming this way!"

Impossible! The lights from Blackfyre's camp were visible on the horizon last night, within the Kingswood but the glow in the night sky betrayed their presence. It was clear: it had been a ruse. Fires lit and maintained all night by a tiny number of men in the hopes the Targaryen army would spend their whole time looking south while Blackfyre crept upon them from the west!

"Your orders, your Grace?" asked one of the men attending the lunch with him. Blackfyre was a few miles away, the army had ample time to react.

- - - - - - - - - -

As I said in earlier posts I'm busy much of the weekend, so PM your orders to HB and LM as well as myself and, I hope, one of them can roll it if it needs rolled before monday.

[The Mad Skylord]

Just as Aerys was about to reply, another soldier shouted. Men were emerging from the trees, lining up a distance away from the bridge. Suddenly Aerys understood what his plan had to be. "I want everything that burns at the bridge! Bring the pitch, the lamp oil, chairs, tables, clothes, blankets, tents! If it's flammable then bring it!" The infantry begins to rush to grab material, sprinting as fast as they possibly could. Aerys himself grabbed an axe from a footman and hacked apart anything made from timber in his own tent, before soldiers grabbed it and ran out. Time was of the essence, so he used his books and maps as well.

The barrels of lamp oil and pitch were quickly brought up to the pile of wreckage on the bridge. Hundreds of soldiers fought to break the pitch barrels over the obstacle and to cover the blockade in lamp oil. Moving through the throng, Aerys himself threw the first torch upon the massive pile of timber, cloth, paper, oil and pitch. A hundred more torches soon flew upon the pile, hoping it would light faster.

Aerys quickly dressed in his armor and prepared for battle, Blackfyre was still a ways away, meaning he still had a chance of victory.

[Oznerol]

ooc: Can I retreat?

[Honors Bastion]

Based on what Poach wrote, "a few miles away" the following two scenarios are what can happen based on the following assumptions.

• A few miles is set as 3 miles
• 1 mile takes Maelys army 1 hour to cover
• It takes 30 min to 1 hour to alert the men to start getting the materials together
• It takes an hour to collect enough supplies to successfully block the bridge
• It takes 30 minutes for the materials to burn enough to be impassable
• It takes 2-3 hours at least to properly form the King's Army into proper battle lines to fight Maelys

That means that Maelys is only 3 miles away meaning 3 hours. In total Aerys does not have enough time to block the bridge and fully form up his soldiers so he has an option.


Scenario 1:

With the advanced notice from their scouts, Aerys' men are able to successfully block the bridge and prevent Maelys troops from the other flank from crossing over to reinforce him. However, in their frantic push to block the bridge, they waste valuable time that could have been used in forming their soldiers into a proper battle line, giving Maelys men the edge in the battle, represented by a +3 to +5 battle roll

Scenario 2:

King Aerys is persuaded by his advisers the task of blocking the main bridge over the King's rose would take too long, King Aerys prepares his army for battle, sending a task force to block Maelys other army while he takes the rest of his men to fight the main one.

There's a caveat here, if the King does not send a sufficient amount of soldiers to counter the other force, there will be a break through roll that results in Aerys beign attacked in the rear by surprise.

This scenario will be rolled as a 1 flank battle for the bridge and a regular 3 flank battle for main event with a chance of being attacked in the rear if the situation merits.

=================================

Personally, I prefer the second one as it results in a more interesting battle even if means more work for the mods (just slightly as a one flank battle is easy).

[Honors Bastion]

Skylord has chosen the scond option Oz. I'll need your orders for a 4 flank battle basically.

[Lucius Malfoy]

I will be handling the rolls for this battle.

Skylord, HB sent me your orders and Oz said he is almost ready.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Results of the One Flank Battle at the Bridge (Ser Martyn vs. Spotted Tom)

This turned out to be a two rounded battle, followed by a couple of after-battle rolls

Results of Round 1

Blackfyre Army
2890 Light Infantry
2167 Polearms
2000 Archers
500 Heavy Cavalry
800 Light Cavalry

Royal Army
1275 Light Infantry
752 Polearms
1576 Archers

Results of Round 2

Blackfyre Army
2088 Light Infantry
1565 Polearms
2000 Archers
500 Heavy Cavalry
800 Light Cavalry

Royal Army
717 Light Infantry
423 Polearms
1576 Archers

Both sides relatively lost 50% of their total forces. Due to the small number opposing the advance of Spotted Tom, a breakthrough roll is instigated by the Blackfyre troops.

Breakthrough Roll
Range: 10/20
Modifiers: +5 to Blackfyre forces due to the loss of their opponent's troops
Final Range: 15/20

Result: 11, breakthrough successful

Post-Pattle Roll
Result: 12, Ser Martyn is captured by the enemy

The Royal forces, defending the bridge from the oncoming Blackfyre troops, are forced to retreat due to their losses. Spotted Tom charges forward with the cavalry and polearms. In the ensuing chaos, the Blackfyre commander manages to capture Ser Martyn Waters, who is unharmed in light of the difficult battle he commanded.

Next up will be a three flank battle in the second part of this battle. Expect results tonight or tomorrow!

[Pontifex Maximus]

Ser Finn Bolton surveyed the field. Both sides had been badly bloodied in the ensuing conflict. He had broken his lance into the chest of some tanned sellsword, ending his role in this struggle. Now Bolton had a different mission to accomplish. He scoured the enemy line, searching for Maelys the Monstrous, and called out from horseback "Maelys! You demon spawn! Bastard of the east! Come face me and prove your mettle! Come face me!" His golden armor caught the glint of the sun, revealing a blood spattered white cloak. The battle rage was on him now, and it coursed like a dull energy through his body. He felt unstoppable. Either Maelys would face him, or he would prove himself the coward and slink from the field. Bolton had only one choice in this matter, and so did Maelys.

[Oznerol]

Ser Finn Bolton surveyed the field. Both sides had been badly bloodied in the ensuing conflict. He had broken his lance into the chest of some tanned sellsword, ending his role in this struggle. Now Bolton had a different mission to accomplish. He scoured the enemy line, searching for Maelys the Monstrous, and called out from horseback "Maelys! You demon spawn! Bastard of the east! Come face me and prove your mettle! Come face me!" His golden armor caught the glint of the sun, revealing a blood spattered white cloak. The battle rage was on him now, and it coursed like a dull energy through his body. He felt unstoppable. Either Maelys would face him, or he would prove himself the coward and slink from the field. Bolton had only one choice in this matter, and so did Maelys.

Bolton had defied Maelys… Therefore Maelys… issued forth clad in black armor; and he stood on the stirrups like a tower, iron-crowned, and he was handed his vast shield, sable unblazoned. He unsheathed the sword of kings, Blackfyre which gleamed under the pale sun like smoke and darkness woven and turned steel. The bascinet’s mail coif was awkward, oddly-shaped to cover the vestigial twin. The pretender looked like a monster and monstrous was the roar that came from his twisted lips. The greatsword was swung with ease with a single hand, a hand clad in a black gauntlet shaped like a dragon’s claw; the other held the vast black shield. The horse paws the ground, nervous, the immense black stallion breathing heavily. The chestplate, engraved with roaring dragons, black on black, polished steel over polished steel, shone ominously.

“It shall not be said that I do not answer the challenges issued! I cannot be defeated by the likes of you! I will ripe your head clean off and send you to oblivion, bothersome nullity!”

[Pericles of Athens]

Tom speared one of the Crownlanders through the heart. The field was littered with bodies, the river choked with corpses, and its water stained red with human gore and blood. A good day for other men to die. He remarked grimly, a twisted smile upon his crimson stained lips. He held the disarmed Martyn Waters at sword point. Who might you be, lil Valyrian? Tom questioned darkly with a chuckle.