The Second Artillery Brigade of the Lonely Delve

The Second Artillery Brigade is a critical component of the The Lonely Delve's assault and defense forces. Beset on one side by tribes of Orcs, and on the other by the Hobgoblins of the Spearhead Peninsula ever since the The Great Strife, the Dwarves of the Lonely Delve have maintained a professionally trained standing army, and the Second Artillery has been a key component in that army for the past two thousand years.

Composition

Manpower

The Brigade, when fully constituted consists of 3333 Dwarves and Gnomes. (To the Dwarves, 3 is a number of power.) It consists of 125 Ballistae crews of 9, including officers, and 90 Catapult Crews of 11. A Staff Unit of 107 additional enlisted, officers and bomber specialists - plus the Master Captain - rounds out the contingent. Finally, a total of 1000 junior recruits, 100 sergeants and 11 officers are assigned to tend to the 650 draft animals used to haul materiel to the field.

Equipment

The Second Artillery Brigade makes use of two forms of launching devices:

Catapults

These devices consist of a bucket on the end of a long arm. The arm is drawn back and secured, the bucket loaded with bomb charges, and then the arm is released. Twisted rope tension is employed then rapidly swings the arm upward and forward, hurling the ammunition in a high arc for a distance of between 100 and 300 feet. Up to six charges can be loaded into each bucket for launch.These devices are arrayed behind the main Assault lines.

Ballistae

These devices are arrayed at regular intervals within the main Assault Lines; they are used against charging enemies within 100 feet of the lines. Resembling giant crossbows, these fire huge, spear-like projectiles that are tipped with Artillery bomb charges. Up to three charges can be affixed to a single projectile.

Vehicles

The Catapults and Ballistae employed by the Brigade are all carriage-mounted, meaning they can be towed into battle and into final firing positions. Special wheel locking devices devised by the Military Engineering Brigade are applied once the devices are in position.

In addition to the weapons themselves, ammunition carts are also towed into battle; these hold prepared ammunition charges. A single cart is typically compartmentalized to allow easy retrieval of each specific type of ammunition as desired. A single cart can hold up to 1200 charges - 200 of each type - when fully loaded.

The weapons and ammunition carts are towed by draft ponies that have been specially bred by the military forces for service in the armed forces of the Dwarven Lonely Delve.

Structure

Master Captain Sitwila Heavybraid heads the Brigade; she reports to Assaut General Tharhun Greybeard, who in turn reports to Master General of the Delve Brawdrid Hammerfury. She is the supreme commander of the armed forces of the Delve.

Reporting to Master Captain Heavybraid are 9 Catapult Captains-Major each of whom is responsible for 10 Catapult Units, 25 Ballista Captains-Major each responsible for 5 Ballista Units, and 11 Logistics Captains-Major each responsible for 4 Logistics Units. An Administrative and Reserve Officer Staff consisting of 68 Captains, 8 Senior Bombers, 12 Bombers, 32 Sergeants and 128 Recruit Couriers also report to the Master Captain.

Each Catapult Captain-Major has 10 Captain reports; each is responsible for a Weapon Fire Team consisting of 1 Senior Bomber, 4 Bombers, 1 Sergeant, and 4 Artillerists. Each Ballista Captain major has 5 Captain reports; each is responsible for a Weapon Fire Team consisting of 1 Senior Bomber, 2 Bombers, 1 Sergeant and 4 Artillerists. Each Logistics Captain-Major has 4 Captain Reports; each is responsible for 5 Care Teams consisting of 1 Sergeant and 4 Junior Recruits.

Tactics

Artillery tactics are simple and straightforward. As a large enemy forces assembles to ready a charge, the Catapults begin by firing acid, frost, and thunder charges to disrupt enemy formations. This presumes the enemy is within the 100' to 300' range. If the enemy attempts to regroup, tangle charges are fired, followed by fire and more acid.

Once a charge has begun, and as soon as the enemy reaches 100' distant, the ballistae begin to fire. These primarly make use of fire and thunder charges. Typically, the ballistae can fire three shots before an enemy closes if the charge is sustained.

Once hand-to-hand combat begins, the artillery crews all take part; they are generally armed with a short axe and a hammer.

Training

In between active engagements, Artillery Launch crews train constantly with non-explosive charges, perfecting their ability to zero in on targets anywhere within their weapon ranges. Rapid reload and fire exercises are stressed.

The Alchemists responsible for preparing the ammunition train continuously at their art, perfecting the ability to mass-produce ammunition for stockpiling.

Logistics

The Brigade is self-sufficient; no external logistics support is needed. While the brigade is designed to take the fight to the enemy, the Dwarves have no desire to conquer vast areas of territory. As a result, the Brigade is never expected to be operating more than a few days journey from the Delve.

History

The Brigade was first formed at some time during the Great Strife more than 2200 years ago. The Dwarves of the Lonely Delve were hard pressed at that time, and many military records were lost. In the 2200 intervening years, there are numerous instances when the Artillery was acknowledged as being responsible for breaking an enemy's will even before the actual engagement. In other battles, the pounding delivered by the artillery significantly reduced armies that vastly outnumbered the Axe and Hammer Dwarves ready to receive a charge.

The Brigade's service is summed up by simply saying that the Dwarves of the Lonely Delve have never lost an engagement when the Second Artillery Brigade was on the field.

The Catapult

The Ballista

Commanding Officer

Master Captain Sitwila Heavybraid

Type

Artillery

Founding

during the Great Strive; exact date unknown

Dissolution

the Brigade has been continuously active since founding.

Overall training Level

Professional

Assumed Veterancy

Veteran

Ranks & Titles

• Artillerist
• Artillery Captain
• Artillery Master-Captain
• Assault General
• Bomber Specialist
• Launch Sergeant
• Senior Bomber Specialist

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Weaponry

The Alchemists assigned to the various launch crews are responsible for preparation of five different types of armaments that can be launched toward an enemy at great range. These consist of the following:

Fire bombs

These explode on impact with either enemy or ground, spewing fire onto the target and any other enemies or equipment that may be nearby.

Acid bombs

These splatter upon impact with either the enemy or the ground, and while the initial splashes of acid that ensue do only minimal harm to whatever they strike, as the acid permeates armor, clothing, and skin, it continues to burn.

Frost bombs

These shatter on impact and blanket an area with a chilling frost effect. Enemies struck or splashed tend to be slowed, and there is a small possibility that brittle equipment may shatter.

Thunder bombs

When these bombs explode, they send forth a blast wave that does tremendous damage that can devastate a tight enemy formation.

Tangle bombs

While these bombs do not appear to do significant damage upon impact, their effect is to essentially bind the feet and legs of enemies to the ground and to each other. These are particularly useful for breaking an enemy charge.

It is possible to load a catapult with multiple forms of ammunition at the same time. A particular favorite of the Brigade is to combine Fire and Acid charges, or Tangle and Acid charges.

Catapult Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
Ballista Image graciously drawn and provided by ZogMadDog.