War Towers of Agoioven
Describe a military unit in your world that is famous for its unique ranged weapon.
The title of most prestigious bowmen on Sharitarn is disputed between the Half-Paraus of Mandallu and he Fast-bows of Dradinu.
Paraus are one of the non-human races that enjoy citizenship (with minor restrictions) at the human city of Mandallu, in the Ice Bridge between Main Continent and North Pole. They have four legs and four arms, are considerably stronger than humans, nimbler than humans, and never get tired, but suffer from an unfortunate difficulty to swim: their bodies "like to sink" is often said. For a matter of humanist pride Mandallu don't allow paraus to enter Warrior Caste. They half-breed on the other hand are welcome in Red Caste and many of them are excellent combatants. Those who inherit the two arms from paraus side are directed to melee combat, while the ones with four legs are encouraged to enter City Guard's most famous battalion: the Great Arrows, a force composed entirely by half-paraus with four legs. The citizens of Dradinu are just mere humans, but they are among the most fearless and disciplined people on the planet. Descendants from a population of iis arrived from a Parallel Planet where most animals are true hermaphrodites the Dradini Warriors are as much female as they are males, and those who choose the way of the bow endure a painful ritual ceremony where they cut of one breast and burn. The self-mutilation supposedly helps with their aim, but perhaps that's just a ritual of passage kept for psychological sake. Those cities are far too distant to real conflicts provide opportunities for test their legendary skills one against the other. So one must compare them from eventual conflicts between mercenary groups trained by each side, which is far from provide a definitive answer for wish is the most effective force of combat. Half-parau Great-Bows use huge powerful bows and heavy arrows that almost could be called spears as they primary weapon. They stand in two legs, hold the bow with the other two, and use all the strength of their bodied (that is fairly superior to human standards) to draw the bow. That process makes them slow, but the rage of their weapon is considerable and the Great-Bows are frighteningly precise in their aim. They are also fast and tireless runners when they are not aiming, not as good as most mounted troupes but superior to what humans can achieve without magic. Fast-Bows of Dradinu, know by the color and size of their primary weapons, are as the name suggests, very fast. There is some variation in style of fight between the battalions, with the Yellow-Greens using a short-bow with poison arrows, and caring blowpipes for some specific circumstances, and the Withes caring the largest stronger bows humans are know to be able to draw with their hands. However, the most iconic Fast-Bows are the Back-Reds with their composed bows: fast and powerful weapons used with deadly precision in different circumstances. Certainly more versatile than any other battalion of Dradinu, and far more so than the Great-Bows of Mandallu.
No one disputes the fact that magic is the superior arsenal on Sharitarn, at any range. The Mage's Brotherhood has destroyed entire nations in the past, even exterminated species, without move one single agent. When the will of all mages of Sharitarn moves in the same direction, with common goal, there is very little beyond its power. Difficulty lays in obtain that level of agreement, one single mage who happens to be connected to their magical internet at the moment and decided to stop the action is enough to prevent the Brotherhood from act as an institution.
Urshawa is know as The Mage City, and is the only place where the degree of archmage can be achieved, but it is not the center of Mage's Brotherhood. The Brotherhood does not have a capital, it is everywhere where a mage is, and in stronger sense in everyone of its Mage Towers around the globe. Only the Xar-Scars are beyond Mage Brotherhood's reach, and even the people inside those pockets of polluted Xar can be killed in indirect and creative ways if the Brotherhood judges that destruction to be absolutely necessary.
Magic users are impressive foes as individuals or in small groups, but form unities of them is difficult and dangerous. Magic interacts with its surroundings, and with the emotions of those using it. Groups of magic users are far more powerful than the some of their parts, if they have perfect internal harmony and unity of purpose, but they can turn their power against themselves fast by very little reasons of subconscious nature. The larger and more powerful a magic battalion is, more likely catastrophe became.
Ergo, magic users (in this sense, sigraxes and mages) usually fight as individuals even when they are part of an army. They help mundane troops more often than each other.
Magical weapons don't offer the same risk. So you do have battalions using magic bows, mostly composed by alchemist archers usually. Those weapons are often more powerful than Earthling rifles, and sometimes the closest comparison plausible with our technology would be with things that must be installed on large ships or fixed on solid ground. However, magic weapons are not available for most nations. They are rare, and only work in the hands of those that have magic potential awaken.
Ranged magic weapons are particularly hard to enchant, and need some sort of recharge. When they are not created with the intention to became useless after a definite number of shots.
Sigraxes are better than alchemists, because they can use magic weapons and also make spells. And they can use their internal Xar to recharge the magic in their weapons when it can be recharged. Naturally, sigraxes are more expensive than alchemists as well.
In any case, sigraxes are available as mercenaries. Whit luck you can even attract lawless sigraxes to fight for your small village without have to pay them in money, if you can promise them citizenship. Lawless people are notoriously strange to the notion of honor, so that isn't a deal free of risk for you. Still, is a idea to have in mind for the worse circumstances.
In any case, would probably be better not to count the magic unities of combat as "unities" in the relevant sense. Their competence relies too much in who are the member present at the moment, and in their relations with each other.
So let's not consider magic combat in the category of range combat for the scope of those meditations.(even if it can frequently be, strictly speaking, a category of ranged combat)
The Exclusion Law should not apply to the technologies that distinguish Agoioven and Mibavan from all other nations on Sharitarn. That's not a opinion caused by any sort of bias in favor of those two historical enemies. Is the only possible opinion that can be derived from sane hermeneutic.
"No technology arrived from the Vortex after the end of the Age of Spiders can be tolerated"
States the Exclusion Law. Both Agoioven and Mibavan have their dates of foundation in the last centuries of the Age of Spider. As hard as verification of facts is when the Age of Spiders is concerned, no one disputes that.
One must admit also that by the time when the newly founded Mage's Brotherhood formulated the Exclusion Law they had to know Agoioven cyborgs and Mibavan genetic engineering of bio-weapons. Those first mages choose to write their Law in a way that excluded the oldest human cities on the planet. They must have had reasons for that. Sure they did, and goes without saying that this is not the place to debate those reasons.
There was Ages in the past where Agoioven and/or Mibavan expanded their influence, sharing their technology in some degrees. And there was times when consensus was almost obtained in the Mage's Brotherhood in favor of erase both Agoioven and Mibavan from existence, and all their tech with them.
Presently Mibavan keeps their symbionts under strict control of a small number of aristocratic families. Not true nobility, those lines of succession are far older than what Sharitarnes understand by Noble Castes. The symbiont populations are severely limited and you are under small risk of find that technology if you don't travel close to Symbiont City.
Poisonous spikes, toxins that can be spit a dozen meters away with deadly precision, and deadly sub-sonic cries are among the weapons often used by Mibavane Warriors. The highest families of this city have symbionts with wings attached to their backs and fly over the battlefield attacking their foes from above with arrows, cross-boll darts, or even spells. They are difficult enemies, with unique advantages.
Agoioven continues sharing technology. It accepts students from all nations (almost) in their Physician University. And it implants permors in those who buy them.
However, the variety of technologies that Agoioven is allowed to keep in use is restrict. The perms Ring City can place on the market, and sell for outsiders, is even more restrict. There is no technology available to Agoioven that can grant people the amazing power of fly, for instance. They must fight the warriors of Mibavan from the ground.
That's not lack of knowledge about how to build aircrafts and flying drones, is an acute conscience that any step in this direction would result in all Agoioven being destroyed by magical flames.
There is a tacit understanding between the two state cities and the Mage's Brotherhood than unwritten restrictions are to be self imposed by the cities. And they are not supposed to cripple any of the nations. What Agoioven is allowed to have and place in the battle field must be proportional to what Mibavan has.
Disarm the nations and force peace is unthinkable for Sharitarnes: better die than live defenseless. We may not see things that way, but for them there is no possibility of true freedom for those who don't carry effective weapons and/or are not capable to use them to kill their foes. On the other hand, the native humans of Sharitarn place a huge importance in their history, and in their humanity. The last thing they would like is for any of the two nations destroy the other.
Accordingly, since they allow Mibavan their flying troops they must allow Agoioven something capable to compensate this advantage.
That is rage artillery.
NECESSARY CONTEXT
NON MAGICAL RANGED WAR
The title of most prestigious bowmen on Sharitarn is disputed between the Half-Paraus of Mandallu and he Fast-bows of Dradinu.
Paraus are one of the non-human races that enjoy citizenship (with minor restrictions) at the human city of Mandallu, in the Ice Bridge between Main Continent and North Pole. They have four legs and four arms, are considerably stronger than humans, nimbler than humans, and never get tired, but suffer from an unfortunate difficulty to swim: their bodies "like to sink" is often said. For a matter of humanist pride Mandallu don't allow paraus to enter Warrior Caste. They half-breed on the other hand are welcome in Red Caste and many of them are excellent combatants. Those who inherit the two arms from paraus side are directed to melee combat, while the ones with four legs are encouraged to enter City Guard's most famous battalion: the Great Arrows, a force composed entirely by half-paraus with four legs. The citizens of Dradinu are just mere humans, but they are among the most fearless and disciplined people on the planet. Descendants from a population of iis arrived from a Parallel Planet where most animals are true hermaphrodites the Dradini Warriors are as much female as they are males, and those who choose the way of the bow endure a painful ritual ceremony where they cut of one breast and burn. The self-mutilation supposedly helps with their aim, but perhaps that's just a ritual of passage kept for psychological sake. Those cities are far too distant to real conflicts provide opportunities for test their legendary skills one against the other. So one must compare them from eventual conflicts between mercenary groups trained by each side, which is far from provide a definitive answer for wish is the most effective force of combat. Half-parau Great-Bows use huge powerful bows and heavy arrows that almost could be called spears as they primary weapon. They stand in two legs, hold the bow with the other two, and use all the strength of their bodied (that is fairly superior to human standards) to draw the bow. That process makes them slow, but the rage of their weapon is considerable and the Great-Bows are frighteningly precise in their aim. They are also fast and tireless runners when they are not aiming, not as good as most mounted troupes but superior to what humans can achieve without magic. Fast-Bows of Dradinu, know by the color and size of their primary weapons, are as the name suggests, very fast. There is some variation in style of fight between the battalions, with the Yellow-Greens using a short-bow with poison arrows, and caring blowpipes for some specific circumstances, and the Withes caring the largest stronger bows humans are know to be able to draw with their hands. However, the most iconic Fast-Bows are the Back-Reds with their composed bows: fast and powerful weapons used with deadly precision in different circumstances. Certainly more versatile than any other battalion of Dradinu, and far more so than the Great-Bows of Mandallu.
MAGIC
No one disputes the fact that magic is the superior arsenal on Sharitarn, at any range. The Mage's Brotherhood has destroyed entire nations in the past, even exterminated species, without move one single agent. When the will of all mages of Sharitarn moves in the same direction, with common goal, there is very little beyond its power. Difficulty lays in obtain that level of agreement, one single mage who happens to be connected to their magical internet at the moment and decided to stop the action is enough to prevent the Brotherhood from act as an institution.
Urshawa is know as The Mage City, and is the only place where the degree of archmage can be achieved, but it is not the center of Mage's Brotherhood. The Brotherhood does not have a capital, it is everywhere where a mage is, and in stronger sense in everyone of its Mage Towers around the globe. Only the Xar-Scars are beyond Mage Brotherhood's reach, and even the people inside those pockets of polluted Xar can be killed in indirect and creative ways if the Brotherhood judges that destruction to be absolutely necessary.
Magic users are impressive foes as individuals or in small groups, but form unities of them is difficult and dangerous. Magic interacts with its surroundings, and with the emotions of those using it. Groups of magic users are far more powerful than the some of their parts, if they have perfect internal harmony and unity of purpose, but they can turn their power against themselves fast by very little reasons of subconscious nature. The larger and more powerful a magic battalion is, more likely catastrophe became.
Ergo, magic users (in this sense, sigraxes and mages) usually fight as individuals even when they are part of an army. They help mundane troops more often than each other.
Magical weapons don't offer the same risk. So you do have battalions using magic bows, mostly composed by alchemist archers usually. Those weapons are often more powerful than Earthling rifles, and sometimes the closest comparison plausible with our technology would be with things that must be installed on large ships or fixed on solid ground. However, magic weapons are not available for most nations. They are rare, and only work in the hands of those that have magic potential awaken.
Ranged magic weapons are particularly hard to enchant, and need some sort of recharge. When they are not created with the intention to became useless after a definite number of shots.
Sigraxes are better than alchemists, because they can use magic weapons and also make spells. And they can use their internal Xar to recharge the magic in their weapons when it can be recharged. Naturally, sigraxes are more expensive than alchemists as well.
In any case, sigraxes are available as mercenaries. Whit luck you can even attract lawless sigraxes to fight for your small village without have to pay them in money, if you can promise them citizenship. Lawless people are notoriously strange to the notion of honor, so that isn't a deal free of risk for you. Still, is a idea to have in mind for the worse circumstances.
In any case, would probably be better not to count the magic unities of combat as "unities" in the relevant sense. Their competence relies too much in who are the member present at the moment, and in their relations with each other.
So let's not consider magic combat in the category of range combat for the scope of those meditations.(even if it can frequently be, strictly speaking, a category of ranged combat)
GIANT 'ROBOTS' OF AGOIOVEN
The Exclusion Law should not apply to the technologies that distinguish Agoioven and Mibavan from all other nations on Sharitarn. That's not a opinion caused by any sort of bias in favor of those two historical enemies. Is the only possible opinion that can be derived from sane hermeneutic.
"No technology arrived from the Vortex after the end of the Age of Spiders can be tolerated"
States the Exclusion Law. Both Agoioven and Mibavan have their dates of foundation in the last centuries of the Age of Spider. As hard as verification of facts is when the Age of Spiders is concerned, no one disputes that.
One must admit also that by the time when the newly founded Mage's Brotherhood formulated the Exclusion Law they had to know Agoioven cyborgs and Mibavan genetic engineering of bio-weapons. Those first mages choose to write their Law in a way that excluded the oldest human cities on the planet. They must have had reasons for that. Sure they did, and goes without saying that this is not the place to debate those reasons.
There was Ages in the past where Agoioven and/or Mibavan expanded their influence, sharing their technology in some degrees. And there was times when consensus was almost obtained in the Mage's Brotherhood in favor of erase both Agoioven and Mibavan from existence, and all their tech with them.
Presently Mibavan keeps their symbionts under strict control of a small number of aristocratic families. Not true nobility, those lines of succession are far older than what Sharitarnes understand by Noble Castes. The symbiont populations are severely limited and you are under small risk of find that technology if you don't travel close to Symbiont City.
Poisonous spikes, toxins that can be spit a dozen meters away with deadly precision, and deadly sub-sonic cries are among the weapons often used by Mibavane Warriors. The highest families of this city have symbionts with wings attached to their backs and fly over the battlefield attacking their foes from above with arrows, cross-boll darts, or even spells. They are difficult enemies, with unique advantages.
Agoioven continues sharing technology. It accepts students from all nations (almost) in their Physician University. And it implants permors in those who buy them.
However, the variety of technologies that Agoioven is allowed to keep in use is restrict. The perms Ring City can place on the market, and sell for outsiders, is even more restrict. There is no technology available to Agoioven that can grant people the amazing power of fly, for instance. They must fight the warriors of Mibavan from the ground.
That's not lack of knowledge about how to build aircrafts and flying drones, is an acute conscience that any step in this direction would result in all Agoioven being destroyed by magical flames.
There is a tacit understanding between the two state cities and the Mage's Brotherhood than unwritten restrictions are to be self imposed by the cities. And they are not supposed to cripple any of the nations. What Agoioven is allowed to have and place in the battle field must be proportional to what Mibavan has.
Disarm the nations and force peace is unthinkable for Sharitarnes: better die than live defenseless. We may not see things that way, but for them there is no possibility of true freedom for those who don't carry effective weapons and/or are not capable to use them to kill their foes. On the other hand, the native humans of Sharitarn place a huge importance in their history, and in their humanity. The last thing they would like is for any of the two nations destroy the other.
Accordingly, since they allow Mibavan their flying troops they must allow Agoioven something capable to compensate this advantage.
That is rage artillery.
Perms
A average warrior equipped with a regular permanent armor is far superior to a regular warrior equipped with average symbionts, on the ground in melee combat. The usual advantage of Mibavan when large scale battles happens outside the volcano where Ring City is located comes from higher numbers. Symbionts are easier to replace than perms. An full permanent armor is the best non magical defense, and offense, you can have on Sharitarn. The complication relies in keep proper maintenance, what can only be done at specialized establishments in Agoioven. Perms are a mixture between technology and magic in creative ways, use crystal sources of energy that are created by magic (Fire Magic spells know only by Agoiovian sigraxes). Most models must replace a fair number of bones and many organs to work properly, even if smaller trinkets can be implanted to provide significant advantage in combat (usually that's what outsiders get implanted on them: full permors are mostly for citizens). Full permors can provide supper human strength to pull the bow, or a crossbow installed in the perm gauntlet, and an eyesight that would shame most flying predators. However, the best permor you could buy_even as citizen_ does not came close to the defense systems in service of City Guard. There is a few dozen energy rifles in possession of Agoioven, made of nano-metallic substances, which came from the Vortex before the city was founded. Permor Guardians that are heavier than tanks of war and have little more than their brains and parts of the neuronal system of their current users patrol the most important parts of Agoioven, and are employed against invaders. Those large and powerful cyborgs cannot be replaced if they are destroyed. Therefore the city seldom allows them to leave the city. They are not equipped with anything that could look like a fire weapon, much less stuff more advanced than that, but each Guardian is an war tank caring a bow or a crossbow more powerful than any siege weapon you could take from Medieval Historic times on Earth. You would have little reason to miss cannon balls. There is also a even better resource, never allowed to leave the border of Agoioven Volcano. Tower-Warriors. To apply for the tests to became a Tower-Warrior when one dies at old age is the ultimate self-sacrifice one can make. Even the Guardians still have some personal freedom and are able to enjoy life in some degree, restrict as it certainly is. Tower-Warriors are "dressed" in perms that are as large as towers, see far in the horizon and can scarcely move themselves. They have the last heavy energy weapons on Agoioven, but are forbidden to use them unless the city is immediate in risk to be taken by a force beyond the capacity of its warriors. Instead of energy weapons the Tower-Warriors use larger versions of those range weapons carried by guardians-permors. And spells, since the city does its best to replace each Tower-Warrior with a voluntary sigrax when they reach the end of their natural existences. The most powerful sigrax they can persuade to accept the honor in good will. Thanks to this raged weapons unity few nations even consider the idea of send a strong force to conquer Agoioven. Playing home, in the defensive, Ring City is considerably superior to her historical enemy. So much so that when Mibavan do tries an attack, even a large raid, the first step is send spies to sabotage as many Tower-Warriors as possible.Paraus
There is a debate among Scholar Castes about if paraus should be classified as centauroids or not. It is little more than academic, the matter, but be a centauroid would be a little better for them than the alternative of no standard classification. The ideal for non-humans on Sharitarn is to be humanoid, human nations are more gently with those than with the rest. Still, the best next thing is to be a centauroid, those being the most common intelligent beings on Sharitarn after the humanoids. Paraus have enough legs to be centaurs, but they lack a middle section in their bodies. That body shape makes them slower runners than your average centauroid, and faster in change direction.
Type
Mech
The Carabineros de Roca Blanca
The Carabineros de Roca Blanca (Carabineer of White Rock) deserve a special mention here. They are not elite soldiers as wildly respected on Sharitarn Continent, mainly because they cannot leave the large Xar-Scar in South Continent with their equipment without die in magical Green Flames for violate the Exclusion Law. Dressed in colorful uniforms that remind the Spanish Conquistadors from Earth, with breastplate and helmet, they carry fire rifles and revolvers handmade by Metal Worker Castes at Roca Blanca Castle, a fortress placed near to the center of the Xar-Scar. Main activity in the region is tourism, and the Carabineros do a good job acting as part of the picturesque scene. Most untrained eyes will presume they are likely Artist Castes. Far from that. Those are the finest Warriors in the region, maintained by contributions of all nations in the Xar-Scar. As disciplined and well trained in the arts of war as the Warrior Castes of any civilized nation of conventional sort. They don't guard a city or a village, but all the region, constituting the closest thing to a National Army you will find on Sharitarn in current days. They are very able to fight with sword and dagger. And in fact that is how they patrol the borders of their territory, where from a instant to the next one may unknowingly step out the Xar-Scar and in reach of Mage's Brotherhood direct intervention. However, most the time they carry fire weapons, being trained to take maximum advantage of them. Not a small advantage against outsiders. Magic do not work on Xar-Scars, the Xar inside them is too polluted for spells. Living species that depend on natural capacities similar to magic avoid those areas, some die immediately if they came to close to one. Because of that the Carabineros seldom have chance, or need, to fight sigraxes or alchemists using magical weapons.Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
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