The Battle of Humbari
Plot points/Scenes
Scene 1:
Eldanfan enters the wooden building where Major General Shon-Sho Ashawa and his top commanders including General Kai-Shal Khazai and General Han-Sao Bashra are sitting around a mobile table (the kind that is meant to be taken apart and put back together). On the table is a map of the area and some clay objects that represent the different units expected to be seen in the oncoming battle the next day. Shon-Sho Ashawa: "Now that we are all here, lets talk about our plans for tomorrow. We know that Arquado Barbarossa has a total of over 160 myriad troops here in the East Hu-Balai region. We also know that he has about 300,000 troops besieging the capital and that he is coming here himself with a larger army because he wants to secure the Trans-Yagruz bridge not far from here. Even though it has been two years already, the forces of the defence pact aren't here yet and they are nowhere to be seen within the nearest 30 kilometers. We have here a total of around 50,000 troops. Suggestions!" The major general demonstrated what he was saying on the table by moving the clay objects as he spoke. There was eerie silence when he finished. They all understood that it would be a massacre if they met in open battle and that there was no room in the town for all of them to hole up inside and prepare for a siege. Finally, one of the generals broke the silence. Kai-Shal Khazai: "What if we bypass the approaching army and attack the one besieging the capital from the rear?" Eldanfan: "Two problems with your plan, idiot. First, what makes you think that a 50,000 strong slow moving army can outmaneuver a massive force that is known to be able to move incredibly fast that outnumbers it at least 7 to 1 and successfully attack another force that outnumbers it almost 6 to 1 and actually win? "Second, we will be annihilated whether we fight them here or in Bashur." Han-Sao Bashra: "You have a good point. I say that we retreat north and join the coalition and move south with them. This way, once we reconquer the kingdom, we will have a veteran army corps to defend it because we won't be dead." Eldanfan: "That's a stupid plan. I can't come because then my bi***y sister-in-law, your f*****g queen, will cave in my son's skull herself and kill my mens' families. For all you know, my wife could kill me for that. What's more is that you need to leave someone behind to engage the approaching army because you steel-covered slugs are so d**n slow that they will catch up to you with their war elephants and cavalry and kill you all once you get to the bridge." Shon-Sho Ashawa: "Two things. First, I'm very pleased that you are volunteering to distract the army with your outcasts seeing as you are going to die regardless. Second, you know that it is completely disrespectful and not to mention very illegal to talk about the queen in such a manner. Isn't that why you got exiled in the first place? (Eldanfan cowers his head and closes his eyes briefly) Don't you know that when you curse someone your words get carried by the children of the god of fowl who constantly fly in the sky?" Eldanfan shouts back very angrily as he is very observantly anti-religious and doesn't respect others' beliefs: Eldanfan: "The gods don't exist! They never have! It's all a big fr*****g lie! I checked everything and found that they're all a hoard of lies and inanimate statues!" The major general replies very sternly and assertively whilst drawing out his dagger in a flash. Shon-Sho Ashawa: "You're one of a spot few who believes in this outrageous and baseless hypothesis. But whether or not you are right is besides the point. Everybody except for your outcasts hate and despise you because you are a disgusting person who chose to throw his inter-person relationship manners out the window. The reason why you have survived this long is because the Dalkndalk had pity on you and because you found a way to make yourself and your people useful and indispensable. The only reason why anyone besides your gang would care if you suddenly keeled over is because they need you to use your army for them." Eldanfan: "You---" Shon-Sho Ashawa: "Don't even. I'm in charge and you will follow my orders. Tomorrow you and your outcasts will suicidally engage Arquado's army to give us the time we need. Your state-of-the-art equipped fast moving force should hopefully distract them long enough. Now get out of my sight!" Eldanfan leaves the building hurt and disgraced. It was the first time he was treated like that. According to the manners he grew up with this was rather fair and the major general was right about Eldanfan's rotten personality and behavior towards other people, about the fact that he treats almost everything like garbage. Meanwhile, back to our Bashurian commanders. Shon-Sho Ashawa puts away his dagger as Eldanfan leaves and sits down to wind down. The generals briefly whisper amongst each other before the senior officer begins to speak again. Random officer 1: "Wow. I'd pay to see that again." Random officer 2: "You bet." Shon-Sho Ashawa: "Okay, back to business. We need to talk about contingency plans, about how we leave fast and what exactly we do after because I heard that this Arquado Barbarossa is an educated genius. Ideas. Now. I've lost most of my patience on that sorry filthy tongued piece of garbage, so don't try my patience." Show Spoiler
...
???: "Sometimes, life is the death of duty. Here, If we stand our ground as ordered, we'll die, get captured or exiled. However, if we retreat, most of us will live to serve in the future. Major general Shon-Sho Ashawa, if we will leave as soon as possible, we will be free and able to serve the queen in the future and she will surely need us for Bashur will surely fall. Here, life is the life of duty as well as the death of it."
Shon-Sho Ashawa: "Very well then, that is more or less what we'll do. However, we need to make that statement a reality since moving a few myriad soldiers in an orderly fashion requires planning. ideas. Now."
Components
Goals
To win the battle and/or preserve the army. The army needs to be kept alive so that Bashur wouldn't need to declare vassalty for protection and to fight the Berini on more favorable terms to drive them back.
Hooks
A vast, professional and fast army is closing in on the Bashurians and is expected to catch up to them in the next day to capture or wipe them out. The promised reinforcements are nowhere in sin sight and the situation needs to be addressed immediately. The original plan can't come forward so an alternate one needs to be made very fast.
Stakes
If the Bashurians don't act quickly and wisely, they'll die or fall prisoner to the Berini. Along with that, Bashur will never be able to be a strong independant state for a very long time because it is going to fall. The best mercenary force the Bashurians have has no hopes of making it out no matter what they do. Either it will be captured or killed by the Berini army or be executed for treason by the queen, her sister and her men.
Moral Quandaries
Should the officers give a command that directly ignores the queen's orders to live to fight another day and retake the kingdom on better grounds or do as the queen commanded and die or fall prisoner and doom the kingdom.
Cruel Tricks
Something has to be sacrificed, there is no leaving the situation unscathed. The battle isn't successfully prevented and the Bashurians lose 15,000 trained veteran soldiers who die during the evacuation standing their ground. the surviving 300 surrender after the last ship leaves.
Red Herrings
Eldanfan's in-your-face personality and dirty tongue complicate things and make him a nuisance. Eldanfan knows he is doomed so he loses composure completely and makes some people think that he is real problem while the true enemy is coming for them all.
Relations
Protagonists
Shon-Sho Ashawa, Han-Sao Bashra, Kai-Shal Khazai and the other officers.
Allies
The rest of the Bashurian army and the East Hu-Balai Defense Pact(EHBDP) and Eldanfan's outcasts.
Competitors
Adversaries
Backdrops
Locations
Humbari, a large Bashurian town by the Yagruz river.
Threats
The Berini army is made up of soldiers who are fast, skilled, professional who number in the hundreds of thousands and are led by a top notch and top of the class educated military genius. The Bashurians don't have any way to win the battle and if they flee, the Berini army will catch up to them unless they have a diversion that will slow down the Berini juggernaut just enough.
Related Characters
Related Organizations
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