Once the war order was issued, Neverwinter City ran efficiently.
Bags of wheat scavenged from Zuolongling quickly filled the vacant granary, and some of them will be shelled and ground into dry food, which will be distributed to the soldiers participating in the war.
In addition, there are firearms and ammunition recruits who have been recruited during the evil month have also completed basic training. Those who perform well will be mixed into the official formation of the First Army and receive brand-new weapons and uniforms. Ordinary ones will be temporarily used as reserve troops and assigned to cities occupied by Roland to replace the veterans stationed there.
As a result, Neverwinter's available troops quickly expanded to 5,000 people, which was theoretically similar to the Church's Judgment Army. However, due to the limitation of transportation capacity, the farther away from the West, the lower the number of people who could be put into the battlefield.
Considering that the task of the tooth extraction operation was not very intensive, Roland finally set the expedition force to 1,500 people, led by Iron Axe. Moreover, in this operation, the staff was moved into the system of the First Army, and the main members were composed of nobles, knights and ordinary people in the Changsong District, such as the father of Dawn Morning Light, Sir Sylt, and the captain of the bodyguard of the Honeysuckle family. Traf and others, they have either experienced the baptism of artillery fire or served in the Second Army.
Although none of these people came from a professional background, Roland still made them act with the army with the idea of forming, studying at the same time, and having a few more people make suggestions. It's just that they don't have actual command power, and it is up to the iron axe to decide whether the deductions and plans they make are finally adopted.
In addition, during the tooth extraction operation, there may be encounters with the Church's purists, so "Magic Eye" Sylvie and "Prison Cage" Effie will also attack with the team. The former can detect magic power and warn the enemy of the location, while the latter can Catch the Pure if allowed. In addition, Sylvie will also wear a listening talisman so that he can get in touch with Neverwinter at any time. As a result, an army with modern army structure, firepower and communication capabilities has gradually emerged.
The tooth extraction operation was mainly aimed at Chishui City, Yinguang City, and Fortress of Desolation, the three closest towns to the western border. It took about four days from preparation to departure. Roland had to choose reliable personal guards to go to the old holy city, and the rest of the time was in Various details of the battle against the Church were constantly discussed with the army commanders and the staff.
For example, the location of the attack that has been difficult to decide.
On this issue, everyone has their own opinions, and it is difficult for anyone to convince the other.
Blaine, the battalion commander of the Musket Battalion, is a staunch Western Frontier, and his reasons are very good. "If the battle starts in the Western Frontier, the First Army can fully exert its firepower advantage. With a large number of paddle steamers as logistical support, the ammunition and personnel are all available. If we can get supplements within a day, no matter how long we fight, we are sure to win. At the same time, this distance is extremely unfavorable for the church. As long as they don’t break through the defense line within a month, they probably won’t even be able to eat.”
Edith is the advocate of the overseas war faction, "I can't even eat? Do you know how many believers there are in Greycastle? Even if the church is completely burnt down, as long as the Pope gives an order, these people will hold all kinds of prayers. All kinds of food are delivered to the door. And mid-July is the season for wheat to ripen. As long as the Judgment Army occupies one or two cities, it will be continuously supplied with energy. This is not the most terrible thing. The church does not have the ability to make ordinary people change. A maddening pill that has become a monster? What if they force the people of Greycastle to take this pill to drain the strength of the First Army once the battle goes unfavorable?"
"You don't know anything about gunpowder weapons," Vanna also stood by Brian's side. "It's a lot of work to transport artillery and ammunition. They are not like swords, they can be used all the time when they are worn, and the supplies consumed after a battle are needed. Several ships have come to supply supplies, what if you take the initiative to attack the enemy before they enter Greycastle and run out of ammunition?"
"I really don't know the gunpowder weapons you are talking about, and I don't know how you fight, but the most important thing in any war is that if the purpose is not achieved, even if you win, it will be a failure." Edith refused to give an inch. "Your Majesty needs every citizen of Greycastle, but you allow the Church to enter the kingdom and consume the population wantonly?"
"If you can't win, nothing matters."
"Solving the seemingly unsolvable problems is what we should be doing."
Only Roland and Iron Axe could make a final decision at the scene, but as long as the prince was present, Iron Axe would never say a word. No matter what orders he issued, the sand people would unconditionally execute them. And these two views did have their own advantages and disadvantages, and it was difficult for Roland to make a decision for a while.
The most effective way of fighting with gunpowder weapons is to establish a cross-fire network, and then wait for the enemy to slam into it. The western border is undoubtedly the best place to deploy defenses in advance. But if the church really drove the people of Greycastle as the vanguard of the army, then his losses would be huge. Even if the bullets could easily defeat the madman, the lost population would be difficult to make up in a short period of time.
Until the eve of the army's imminent attack, Sir Sylt's proposal broke the deadlock.
"Why don't we concentrate troops and supplies on border cities in advance?" he said, rubbing his chin, "This way, the transportation distance can be greatly shortened."
Brian shook his head without thinking, "Unless we know in advance where the church will attack."
"Mr. Sir, there are not enough rivers in the north. If we concentrate our troops in the wrong place, we may not be able to keep up with the enemy's marching speed." Carter added, "The border between Graycastle and Dawn is so long. Not on every channel."
"We really don't know where the enemy will attack from, but we can persuade the enemy to attack from a certain point."
This made everyone stunned for a moment, and after a while Brian frowned, "I'm afraid only the Pope can do this kind of thing."
Edith had a thoughtful look on her face.
Sir Sylt did not pay attention to the other party's slightly sarcastic response, but said frankly, "In fact, I got the inspiration from Miss Edith. If we can judge the time of the church invasion by the transportation of food, then they It should also be possible to detect the approach of war from the changes in the surrounding cities.”
"Cold Wind Ridge!" Edith suddenly said.
"That's right," the sergeant smiled. "If we hoard a lot of supplies in Cold Wind Ridge, and then station the First Army in the town of Yougu, which is closest to it, wouldn't we have a good chance of helping the opponent guide the route of the attack? ?"
"Why?" Brian asked in confusion.
"Because Cold Wind Ridge is too close to the Holy City," Edith explained, "instead of waiting for the church to attack, it is better to take the initiative to take an offensive posture and force them to shrink their strength here."
"So that's the case," Roland quickly figured out the problem. Yougu Town is the only town connected to the central water network. Despite the long distance, the paddle steamer fleet can still deliver a large number of ships to the town in the next month or two. Materials, and then transported by land can be shortened to three days, not to mention completely sufficient, at least barely enough to maintain the needs of large-scale operations... Of course, a better method is to lay a defense line directly under Cold Wind Ridge and wait for the enemy to attack the bunker, Barbed wire and trenches.
"What if they insist on not going this route?" Vanner asked.
"Then the Holy City of Hermes will be razed to the ground," Roland replied. Ermu said originally wanted to title the chapter: Any Tactical Switcher