Iron Powder and Spellcaster

The form of war organization in the early stages of human civilization was for property owners to provide their own weapons, armor, and horses to join the army. Such property owners with political rights were called citizens in the Gumro Empire and compatriots in the Guselika Empire.

From this period onwards, the commander's ability to boost morale became very important.

In a small-scale fight within two digits, the leader's brilliant tongue is not as useful as leading by example.

But if a thousand people fight against a thousand people, then how to make the soldiers willingly follow you to hell becomes a technical job that can determine success or failure.

The simplest and crudest method is "when the money is in place, the people are in place."

But money is not the problem, the problem is lack of money.

War is a waste of money, and military strategists of all ages have repeatedly emphasized this important point.

In a war, it is rare for money to arrive on time, and it is normal for money not to arrive.

Since ancient times, countless generals and kings have been defeated and died because of arrears of military pay.

Don’t talk about the far ones, just talk about the near ones. The landmark event that led to the full-scale outbreak of the Sovereignty War was that 38 years ago, the "Butcher" Duke of Arléans led his troops across the Shade Mountains to attack the rebels in the Piedmont Duchy.

In later generations, Alliance historians will find thousands of metaphysical reasons such as "justice must prevail and evil must defeat" to explain why the Duke of Orleans was able to beat the rebels to pieces in the early stage, and finally But he will be trapped in an isolated city, defeated and killed himself.

But in this day and age, in this day and age, history is a living memory, not words in a book. All Alliance soldiers who have experienced the Sovereignty War know in their hearts why they can win: because the Duke of Orleans has no money.

If Richard IV could pay the Duke of Arléans on time, the United Provinces Republic should still be the Piedmont Dukedom of the Empire.

The Duke of Arlean, the most capable army commander in the empire in the past century, died not from his own sword, but from bankruptcy.

Although money can't buy a real dead soldier. But in the feudal era, as long as you can ensure that your soldiers are well fed, clothed, and paid on time, you are enough to be called a famous general. It will definitely reserve a place in the textbooks of future generations.

For most of history, the biggest problem faced by officers has never been how to persuade soldiers to go to the battlefield, but how to persuade a group of soldiers who are not fed, clothed, and underpaid to go to the battlefield. This is true for both sides of the enemy. .

At this time, an inspiring pre-war speech is the simplest and most effective method.

A capable officer can make the soldiers rush up with red eyes and howls with just a few words.

The brigadier general who is speaking in front of the podium obviously does not have this kind of eloquence. He wrote a manuscript very seriously, but when he spoke, he always had the same tone, without any ups and downs, as if there was only one thread left in his body. String xylophone.

When the brigadier opened his mouth, Winters felt his head feel dizzy, his eyelids were fighting involuntarily, and he blinked more and more frequently.

The sun was setting in the west, and warrant officers were sitting in groups of twos and threes in the sweltering small auditorium of the army headquarters, having a meeting.

This was an introductory meeting, originally a time to introduce the trainee officers to the trainee positions in various departments under the army.

But the words of the people on the stage were so hypnotic that Winters managed to concentrate, but all he heard was some nonsense. If Bud hadn't been poking him secretly from the side, he would have fallen asleep long ago.

People on the stage came up one after another, explaining the departments they were responsible for one after another. Although several senior officers were speaking, their level was similar to that of the brigadier general at the beginning.

There was a dull atmosphere in the entire small auditorium. Not only Winters, but all the warrant officers were drowsy and swaying.

Winters really couldn't bear it anymore. His head gradually dropped and his eyes were closed. This time Bud didn't wake him up, because even Bud couldn't hold on anymore. As for Andre, he has already let himself go, and if you listen carefully you can hear his slight snoring.

Just when Winters was about to fall asleep completely, a thunderous drum sound suddenly came from the podium.

Legend has it that after the wise king in ancient times killed the evil dragon, he made a war drum using the dragon skin as the drum head and the keel bone as the drumsticks. When the drum was beaten, it could be heard for hundreds of miles.

This myth was originally told by Kesha to Winters as a child as a bedtime story, but Winters now thinks that the drum might be on the podium.

The sound of the drum woke him up from his drowsiness, causing him to break out in a cold sweat, and he lost all sleep in an instant. All the trainee officers in the auditorium suddenly cheered up.

Winters looked at the podium and saw no legendary dragon drum. He only saw a man in a school officer uniform scanning the small auditorium with a smile.

This man looked to be in his early thirties, with round eyebrows, a rhinoplasty, and thin lips. Among the tall officers, he could only be considered to be of average height, but his temperament made him look taller than everyone else.

Winters stared at the school official in front of the podium. At this time, another drum sound came from the podium, and this time Winters saw it clearly.

There was no drum at all, just the school officer snapping his fingers. It is impossible for an ordinary finger snap to have such a strong sound. The answer is immediately obvious: this is a spell caster who used amplification to amplify the sound of the finger snap.

However, Winters is a little strange. In his impression, amplification can only be used to amplify the sound produced by the caster's own vocal cords. He has never seen a spellcaster who can amplify external sounds.

Seeing that his method had caught the attention of all the trainee officers, the colonel officer smiled proudly and nodded.

"Are you all awake? In fact, I was about to fall asleep just now." The school officer's voice was calm and clear, but it was far louder than ordinary people speaking. Everyone in the auditorium could hear it clearly. Apparently, he It's the effect of amplification.

Winters thought to himself that it was not difficult to amplify the sound, but the difficulty was to maintain it so smoothly. Because for spellcasters, using spells is not as simple as pressing a button to get a certain effect.

The process of a spellcaster using a spell is closer to the exertion of muscle power. A burst of sound like Major Moritz's is to release as much magic power as possible in an instant, just like throwing a punch with all his strength, pursuing explosive power.

The school officer, on the other hand, used amplification to control the volume extremely smoothly, and used spells while speaking, just like walking a tightrope while reciting poetry. Ordinary officers may not think it's anything, but to spellcasters, this is simply a naked display of skill.

Winters became interested in this senior spell caster.

The school official continued to say coldly: "I don't want to waste everyone's time, so I didn't prepare a manuscript, and I have very little to say."

The spellcaster swept all the trainee officers in the small auditorium with one hand: "You graduated from the first military academy on this continent. Those in front of you praised you as the most promising and brightest future in the army. young people?"

"The young man with the most promising and brightest future?" the colonel snorted coldly and raised his voice: "Where is it? Why didn't I see it? All the active-duty officers in this auditorium are your senior alumni. You are the best. It’s just about being us!

What is the most promising future to be an army bureaucrat who makes you sleep like dead pigs with just one mouthful? Each of us has come all the way from where you are now, so I will give you two suggestions as a senior. "

This sudden disparagement made all the warrant officers in the audience feel refreshed. Many times, complimentary words are indeed not as good as sharp criticism in attracting attention.

The colonel raised a finger: "First point, everyone here is exaggerating about the work of their department. Let me tell you, it has nothing to do with you. You are just trainee officers. In the next year, you will only Do some odd jobs! Copy reports, change ink, that's all."

Winters and Bud looked at each other with a wry smile, and the lieutenant colonel slapped all the warrant officers in the face.

Then he raised a second finger: "Second point, although you are only responsible for doing chores, you are doing chores in the most powerful violent organization in this continent!

Listen! You will be able to observe up close how the power center of the Veneta Army operates and makes decisions. This is an opportunity that officers from a mixed class cannot get even with their lives! If being so close to power doesn't excite you, then you don't deserve to be an officer, so take off your uniform and get out!

Let's go! Disband! Go run errands for the officers and generals! But if the general’s wife sends someone to ask about the general’s evening schedule, just say that he has a meeting, do you understand? I'm done! That's it, the meeting is over! "

The warrant officers roared with laughter, and the small auditorium erupted in long-lasting warm applause.

"Who is this person? Which department boss?" Winters asked Bud while applauding vigorously.

Bud turned the notebook forward a page: "Lieutenant Colonel Field Drums."

————I am the dividing line among the handymen————

Later that day, at dinner. Aunt Kesa and cousin Elizabeth were busy in the kitchen, while Antonio and Winters were setting the table.

The generals smelled the smell and screamed at the kitchen door, refusing to leave. They couldn't get in, so they could only lie down at the door and lick their fur to enjoy themselves.

"How was the meeting this afternoon? Who do you want to be an intern at?" Antonio asked Winters while dividing the tableware.

Warrant officers who return to Veneta every year will hold such a meeting. The purpose is to let the trainee officers who have just left school understand the most basic structure of the Veneta Army, and then the warrant officers can choose which department to go to for internship.

Although it is theoretically a voluntary choice, if there are too many applicants for a certain department, the department will select a few trainee officers, and other applicants will be diverted to departments where no one applies, maintaining a roughly even distribution of trainee officers. To all branches of the Army.

"I want to go to Lieutenant Colonel Field." Winters answered honestly while placing the plate. He was indeed attracted by the Lieutenant Colonel's personality.

"Field Drums?" Antonio was slightly surprised.

Winters nodded: "Yes."

Antonio laughed at the name, and he said happily: "That's a famous thorn. Zio clamored every day to throw him to the war history department. If he wasn't a spellcaster, he would have been sent overseas. .”

"Maybe." Listening to his uncle teasing the Lieutenant Colonel who might become his superior, Winters thought it would be better to listen honestly. He scratched his head and said, "I just think Lieutenant Colonel Field speaks more sincerely. "

"You dare to say anything, but what is sincerity?" There was no derogatory meaning in Antonio's tone, he just thought it was interesting.

After setting the tableware, the two of them sat back and waited for the dishes to be served.

Antonio opened a bottle of wine, but since Winters saw Major Moritz's situation, he was afraid of alcohol, so he just drank water.

Winters carefully recalled the performance of Lieutenant Colonel Field at today's meeting and said, "Actually, I may not be able to go. Lieutenant Colonel Field is very popular today. I think there must be many people applying to go to his place."

"Then do you want to go?" Antonio asked his nephew calmly, taking a sip of wine.

Winters nodded repeatedly: "Of course I do."

"Then go ahead and exercise." Antonio said in a relaxed tone.

Winters's eyes lit up. He understood what his uncle meant, so he thought a little further: "I also have a friend who is from the cavalry department and has also applied to go to Lieutenant Colonel Field. Lieutenant Colonel, can you..."

Antonio didn't feel dissatisfied at all and said with a smile: "Then let's go together. What's the name of your friend?"

"Bud, Gerald's Bud."

Aunt Kesha came out with a basket of sliced ​​bread and saw two men at home drinking and chatting. She got very angry and slapped her uncle on the back: "You guys have some time to do, just set the tableware and start drinking." , come and help with the work."

Antonio and Winters were driven towards the kitchen by Kesha. Antonio seemed to remember something, tilted his head and asked his nephew: "By the way, you don't know which department this kid Field is in charge of, right?"

"It seemed like it was M or something. I didn't hear it clearly, and Lieutenant Colonel Field didn't say it himself." Winters was too embarrassed to tell his uncle that he was almost asleep at the time.

"Haha." Antonio patted his nephew on the shoulder: "It's MP, Military Police."

"What? Military police?" Of course Winters is no stranger to military police. Isn't it a military school picket? Not a popular character.

"Dad, take this, brother, take this." Elizabeth assigned tasks to the two men, and then went about doing other things.

Antonio and Winters each picked up a deep iron pot with meat and soup stewed in it respectively. The stew smelled delicious, but Winters' mind was not on this at all: "Lieutenant Colonel Field is in charge of the military police?"

"To be precise, Field is just the director of the Gendarmerie Division of the Veneta Army Headquarters." Antonio explained to his nephew carefully: "Soldiers of the Standing Corps are in charge of the Gendarmerie of the Standing Corps; if Army soldiers commit crimes in Hailan City, they are The gendarmerie division of the garrison headquarters is in charge; the gendarmerie division of Field is an overhead agency specially set up for him, a thorn in the side, with a very narrow scope of jurisdiction and basically does nothing."

After explaining the secrets unknown to outsiders, Antonio asked his nephew: "Do you still want to go to Field now?"

"I want to go." Winters nodded firmly.

"Oh?" Antonio was a little confused.

"Lieutenant Colonel Field is a very powerful spell caster, and I want to learn magic skills from him."

"Then go ahead and learn." Antonio nodded, his attitude still very relaxed: "Although Field has never worked under me, he only rushed to Zio a few times and he was almost angry to death. Still reluctant to throw him overseas, I specially set up a sinecure to keep him at the headquarters. It can be seen that this person must still have some skills."

The food was all served, and four people were seated at the table again. Kesha was obviously very happy and began to pray before the meal. The four people held hands and formed a circle, and Kesha began to mutter something.

All spellcasters in the Alliance are atheists. Spellcasters firmly believe that their abilities come from knowledge and training, rather than the gift of a certain being.

Of course, Winters is not a believer, but he just cooperates with Kesha. He doesn't want to make his aunt sad. But he also has his own insistence, that is, he will never follow the prayers and say nothing every time.

All Winters was thinking about was the traineeship. As soon as the pre-dinner prayer was over, he couldn't wait to ask his uncle: "I don't understand why the traineeships are all in government agencies? Why aren't we allowed to go to the real army?" Where is the internship?"

"Because there aren't that many troops."

"What?"

Antonio explained patiently: "How can there be so many troops for you to train? Otherwise, why would you be thrown into government agencies? Now, most officers usually work in government agencies, and there are not many who actually lead troops. Vinay The tower has three legion numbers, two of which are standing legions. Each standing legion only maintains half of its strength at ordinary times, which is one chief brigade plus four brigade."

Antonio's words surprised Winters. According to his uncle, the entire Veneta Republic's army now theoretically has three legions, but only two legions are standing armies, and the actual strength is only a little more than one legion, more than 5,000 people. .

After the War of Sovereignty ended and Richard IV withdrew his troops, in order to answer the question "What would we do without an emperor?", scholars began to seek answers from ancient books.

Finally, they found the answer they wanted: In ancient times, the Muro people also overthrew their kings and established the Muro Republic without a king, which remained strong for hundreds of years.

"It turns out we are not the first to do this." The scholars breathed a long sigh of relief.

Since someone has done this in history and succeeded, it means that it is nothing without an emperor.

So from then on, the Senas Gulf Alliance began to fanatically imitate the Muro Republic in ancient books in all aspects, from politics to military, and even artistic works, to comprehensively revive the ancient empire.

This period of history is called "borrowing from the past and remaking it" by later generations, because these imitations are simply new wine in old bottles. It just borrowed the name of the old system and implemented the new policy.

For example, politically, the Republic of the Muros and the Republic of the United Provinces are both called republics, but they are completely different things.

The former is a republic of the aristocracy; while the latter has slaughtered all the aristocrats and is a republic of the citizen class, and the vast rural areas are not within the scope of the republic.

Another example is the military. They also imitated the Republic of Muro to form a legion, copying the structure of ten-man squadron-hundred-man squadron-brigade-legion.

But now that matchlocks have become popular, apart from formations, the two are completely different in terms of tactics, training, and the ratio of hot and cold weapons.

"Why are there so few troops?" Winters asked hurriedly.

"Is more than five thousand people still a small number?" Winters' childish question made Antonio speechless.

He helplessly said to Winters: "This is a standing army of five thousand full-time soldiers! Boy, do you know how much it costs to raise a completely full-time professional soldier? If you want people to serve as soldiers wholeheartedly, you have to give them until they are just apprentices. The salary of the craftsmen is equal to the salary of 5,000 craftsmen, and they are also responsible for their food, clothing, housing, transportation, weapons and equipment. To be honest, if it were not for the purpose of maintaining deterrence, I would think that 5,000 people are a bit too much."

"What if there's a war?"

"If you want to go to war, reserve forces are called up temporarily. When the reserve forces are called in, they also have to receive military pay, so they have to be disbanded as soon as the war is over. Thirty years ago, during the war, refugees were everywhere, and people could be recruited to serve as soldiers if they were given food. But it is different now. Fighting is They're burning money. To deal with scattered gangs and a few farmers who don't want to pay taxes, a standing army is enough."

"What?" Winters's views were completely washed away: "Isn't the purpose of establishing a standing army to resist foreign enemies?"

"Haha, how could it be? The biggest role of a standing army is to deter enemies from within the country. To fight foreign enemies, just these few thousand people are not enough."

The old man and the young man were talking animatedly, and Elizabeth was listening intently, but Kesha was very angry.

She worked hard to make dinner, but none of the other three people in the family ate well, and no one praised her craftsmanship. She felt very aggrieved now.

Kesha suppressed her anger and knocked on the cup: "Can you not talk about things other than the dinner table while eating?"

"Oh, this beef stew is so good." Antonio immediately noticed that his wife's mood was not right, and he winked at Winters and praised his wife's superb cooking skills.

Elizabeth, another member of the family with a lower status, also understood and exclaimed loudly that the beef soup was so delicious.

Winters praised a few words without hesitation. All he could think about was the inside story of the army that his uncle had just mentioned, and he really couldn't hold anything else in his mind.

After eating a few mouthfuls of food, he couldn't help but ask his uncle: "Then after I go to the government agency, will I have to do civilian work for the rest of my life?" Originally, he thought he could lead the army, but it turned out that it was different from what he had promised?

"Don't worry. When you become official officers, you will take turns to lead the troops. Now there are too many officers and not enough soldiers, so you have to take turns."

"Uncle, did you want to be like this when you first left the military academy?"

Antonio said proudly: "Your father and I were different at that time. When there was a war, we went directly to the army to lead the troops. Now when there is no war, there are not so many soldiers, but peace is actually a good thing."

Antonio pondered for a moment: "You don't have to worry, maybe we will need to recruit reserves soon..."

Kesha knocked the cup again: "If you want to talk about these things, you can go to the study room to talk after dinner!"

Now, even as slow as Winters, he realized that the volcano of his aunt was on the verge of erupting.

Compliments to the hostess were once again a staple at this table.

————I am the dividing line at the dinner table who can only praise the chef————

Although weapons and tactical concepts have been iterated countless times, the army organizations of the alliance republics are still completely copied from the Muro Legion, which can be said to be possessed by Jingluo.

Each legion consists mainly of infantry, with cavalry and artillery as independent auxiliary units.

The infantry consists of eight men for every ten men;

(Yes, isn’t it common sense that there are only 8 people in a ten-man team?)

Each of 10 decants, for a total of 80 men, serves as a centurion;

480 men per 6 centurions, as a cohort;

9 brigades of 480 men, plus a chief battalion of 750 men, a total of 5,070 men, forming a corps;

The cavalry and artillery are used together as auxiliary corps and are directly under the command of the corps commander.

The number of artillery and cavalry is related to the actual situation and financial policies of each participating country.

For example, the Republic of the United Provinces is backed by the Victory Arsenal, so the number of cannons attached to the regiments of the United Provinces far exceeds that of other franchising countries.

The Highland Republic (Plato Republic) is rich in good horses, so the Highlanders pay more attention to cavalry and are relatively less concerned about the construction of infantry.

————I am the dividing line in Legion————

Thanks to Social Justice Lao Wang, Book Friends 20181013204343295, and Li Gongchang for their recommendation votes.

Thanks to the blood-sucking Arashiri for the reward.

Take a bow and say thank you.