FourtyTwo

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

Hmm, Blue- regarding our collab, there's bits I want to change, I'm actually not too happy about some of it looking over it, it doesn't feel right for either the context, character or general situation. It isn't right- there's mostly minor changes, but a few that need to be done. I can work on that tomorrow evening.

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

@kingkonrad WOAH! OK! OK! OK!

I am... well, sorry if I sounded like I was calling it but as you said, I misinterpreted you dude! I apologise! You called it a Stlingrad and that threw me off! I'm not saying anyhting bad about you or what is happening! I'm sorry if it seemed that way! I apologise if what I said came out incorrectly!

@agentmanatee

It's cool. Sorry man- the red mist decended :P But let it play out, trust me, you'll have way more fun, I'll have way more fun, everyone in King's Landing is going to be introducing motherfuckers to the pointy end and having fun/dying, so yep, that's why I say that :)

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

Okay, I want to put across my case, and it's one that will thoroughly assess the situation. I've played it fair, so I'll summarize my problems with that.

@kingkonradI would hardly call this a stalingrad, mostly cause such a battle is all but impossible in the middle ages. Without rifles, smgs, machineguns and VASTLY out numbering the Germans stalingrad wouldn't have happend... if the Crakehall's have already taken a few gates and are assaulting the walls odds are the will win, street to street is much harder when everyone is fighting in melee.

@agentmanatee

Sure, I may have exaggerated there, BUT, do you think the Crakehalls will just march in, kill everyone? It's not an open field- if it were, you'd have won easily. It's a highly-built up city, with alleys, tracks, a hill, and Reachmen who are waiting for the inevitable, who know the odds, and who are sitting there for Westermen to run to them, because they have to cut through. The Crakehalls have likely taken two gates, the wall is going to crumble, but would you think that a commander like Willas, Owain or Garland would have let the Reachmen all huddle in once place? They're distracted, sure, but it would take a matter of time for a line to reforge higher in the city, and bam. It's tight knit war, and swords might not be guns, sure. But they're fighting close in, on tight streets, and the concentration of that is what is similar, not the death toll, or outnumbering. The Russians won Stalingrad because they flanked it, and cut the Germans off, and sending tens of thousands to die. Think that Medieval war is different, in a city of similar proportion, with only a few ways through? You can cut through it....but the bulk of what helps is number, with skill, courage and equipment something I would deem negligible due to the differing and similar reasons that both Reach and Westerman forces have.

@kingkonrad It's hard to cause massive casualties and take none of your own or at least very few, to do so you have to get into close combat... I'm sorry but medieval history shows that once the numerically superior force is on the walls and in the streets... the fight is basically decided. Kevans 100 men are irrelevant because the reachmen will simply be unable to inflict the casualties needed to drive the Crakehall's back without losing to many of their own... it's simply the way medieval warfare is, melee combat in general.

@agentmanatee

Kevan's 100 might be 100 Reachmen, and if they are, they're not worth 300 Reachmen. They'll fight smart, not stupid, they'll be fast, not immobile, they'll know where to go to make the greatest impact. Also, concentric defenses, paths of approach, the fact that it's a fucking hill, and any siege-attack requires a minimum of 2:1 outnumbering to even have a chance means that it's difficult, challenging....a forced move, and one that makes sense out of desperation, not out of pure knowledge of victory. Defending a point is easier than attacking, and this is universal, be this Roman, Greek, Medieval, Napoleonic, or Modern combat, because you'll know what you're holding better than your enemy knows what they're attacking, and that they need to take paths, routes, and directions inside, tiring themselves to the target while the defenders sit and wait for the men to come to them. There's countless examples I can show you of a small force holding larger forces easily at bay throughout history, and it isn't the obvious ones from your Greek knowledge- this is not one of those situations anyway, I'll give you that. But it is one where there's some degree of shit being held, and trust me- it'll offer a far greater set of RPing opportunities for me, you, Blue, shit, for ANY character that is in King's Landing to keep it going.

Mix that with westerlands forged heavy armor and weapons and the fact they are basically a standing army and... I'm sorry if I sound like vhagar but... kings landing is lost if the Crakehall forces have started forcing their way in

@agentmanatee

Bullshit. I call horseshit on that one- they're a standing army, well so are the Reachman retinues in that sense? You CAN'T have a standing army, you have levies, and retinues- the latter are semi-professional anyway, and ANYWHERE in Westeros, this is the case, Dorne to the Reach, to the North's ranger patrols, because the fact is, you don't have constantly 45,000 men- these people are peasants who have been armed and or trained, and then brought to the fight from bannermen, of varying quality. Men who like fighting, who are probably either landholders anyway or under that land who want a little coin for fighting/garrisoning. That and the fact that "armour" is something the Reach does anyway...it's all the fucking same. It's like saying "But we've got better soldiers than you in every way", which I cite a post earlier on regarding the Retinues and the forces of the Reach and you should really have defined yourself, means you're likely to be making that bit up. Remember what I said ages, and ages ago, intricately detailing what the Retinue is made up of? It's not just peasants, it's a mixture from heavy Reach Knights to some in mail, to everything between- and armour doesn't dictate skill, anyway....from their weapons to where they come from, in what way, and what they're there to do- you know, hold a siege, hold a defense, not to attack...they're entrenched. Remember, these men are likely waiting to hold the line...they know where to fall back to, and if you've ever heard of the concentric form of defense, it is more than likely that from Aegon's time, the numerous walls of King's Landing go all the way back up to the Red Keep. It's a long, drawn out, hard fight, to go past each wall, killing people, cleaning up, regrouping, carrying on. It doesn't happen in a day. It happens in anything from days to a week, slowly, surely, breaking, breaking, cutting, cleaving, straight in.

In conclusion, what's going to happen is a drawn-out fight, and sure, I'm not saying my Reachmen will kick your ass or we'll throw you out, harhah, no, it's going to be a fight that is going to cause thousands upon thousands of deaths, both sides are going to suffer, and most of all, I would think through the strategy and see that in any war, attacking requires numerical advantage AND the ability to drag a fight out longer than your enemy can, ie. the Reachmen who still are supported navally (this has been mentioned in the past, and if you say to me the Crakehall fleet can entirely defeat the Pyke Fleet, AND be in King's Landing blockading against a Targaryen fleet already, is bullshit....I say only Redwynes, which again, I've said), is difficult. Gerald has thought it through, but he's acted on impulse, on a desire to stop any consolidation, which is happening as we fucking speak in King's Landing- it's a move that threatens the Reach before it can do anything, and it's dangerous, that much is certain. It's an action, not lingering and waiting. And that is why it matters- because it's significant in that way. Who knows who wins and who loses- but I would say, just slow the hell down, and realize that it isn't going to just happen in a snap.

Attacking a sieged city is difficult, it's risky, it's bold and ambitious. Medieval warfare RELIES on siege combat to starve, weaken and completely cripple a city, before entering. King's Landing has been under siege for barely two weeks, and they could last another four if they had to...but we know that the Tyrells are trying to reinforce, and shit, if Drogon was seen, they'd want to get the fuck out of an open field. It makes sense, I cannot argue against that. So yes, while the Reachmen have the odds stacked against them, they can hold a line going slowly backward toward the Red Keep and the east of the city, for how long, is anyone's guess.... I'm going to say that as my conclusion- don't be cocky about it, I've played quite fairly up to now, playing the advantages and disadvantages of the Reach quite well, and I get that you want to be involved in scoring a victory, that it's something that seems attractive, and that yes, you outnumber me two to one, that you flaunt all this stuff and I'm meant to just suck it and see. I know what the Crakehalls have, and what the Reach thinks they do, two very different things- the best thing to do is not to rush things, assuming it's coming on a plate- the reality is different, and as you'll see, the fight will take time, regardless of whatever Kevan does- it might be easier, but it won't just give you everything at once. You'll also know that Medieval warfare is very long, with drawn-out affairs. This isn't Stannis Baratheon's D-Day in the Blackwater, this is running through the city streets, block by block, with Reachmen knowing that it's happening.

I like this RP a lot, and I've invested a lot of my time into explaining that- it's the best explanation I can give, and everything that I state that the Reach has, I've put OOC or IC, as an acknowledged point. Don't force superiority down my throat- I know these things already about what you have, on paper, in practice, and in that IC, and I know that yes, the Reach will lose, it's a fucking battle of this kind, and eventually, they'll get screwed over, if you know, nothing changes. If, nothing changes. I've got sympathy on that front- but I mean, don't start saying that the battle is already won, don't be cocky about that- if the Crakehalls are, so be it, but I don't like it one bit when I hear assertions. What I've said are maybes, even so- you have to see how it plays out, and in what direction it ends up going.

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

@Abefroeman I will collab- I kinda have to, and have been looking forward to it. PM me, I'll be ready in 25 mins.

Also, even if 100 men are in the right place, trust me, they're up against 13,000 very, very prepared Reachmen, who might be outnumbered but are ready for it, and have their defenses set. The Crakehalls were said to have opened one or two gates, by some chance- but the resistance from there is going to be very strong, and it's going to be a long, drawn out fight, street by street, Stalingrad-style. Even if the Reach forces are a little distracted, that little incident ends in the Great Hall, with a classic cut-to. It's a long fight, and tbh, I would leave that bit to Blue, with Gerald.

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

I'll post tomorrow if nothing goes up, all the collabs I've made so far, with some general fighting going on across all of King's Landing. Lovely.

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

Go right ahead. I think my end is done :)

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

People think the War of the Five Kings was bad, the casualties of that? The Riverlands were destroyed...so when you hear Sandor making his cynical comments, casually killing farmers, it's not because he's bloody. It's because fuck me, if you don't get killed by the Hound, you'll either die of starvation, if you didn't already die of a plague because you're weakened and starving. Healthy people aren't hungry people. No doubt whatever number died in fighting, I would say maybe double that, if not triple that, for whoever died from non-combat causes, of plague, disease and lack of food.

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

Okay, being someone who has briefly studied Medieval medicine....and vaguely seen what they can do:

The Maesters do have a lot of drugs, an awful lot, and can deal with a wide range of afflictions. As you saw earlier, Jullon had his wound sealed with a cauterized sword (fucking hell, that was one of the most epic cauterizations ever) and that works, albeit being extremely painful and usually putting people into shock, though it is the only way to actually prevent infection. They can deal with poisons, if low-key and immediate, and they can also cure some diseases and wounds, applying a mixture of drugs, though transfusions and the like are not going to happen- there's prayer involved at times, because they just wouldn't know the anatomy well enough (also being why broken bones don't heal anywhere near as quick, though casts are used). Garland was lucky- if he were as old as Willas, he'd have certainly died from that wound, it's only relative youth that saved him there, because otherwise he'd be more susceptible. Other diseases we take for granted today that we can cure, the Maesters cannot, and infection, plagues, it's a horror story basically. When a plague hits, the costs and casualties of war are minuscule, I mean, shit like two-thirds of whole populaces dying out, wars breed disease and squalor so it multiplies it. Most soldiers die not fighting, but from the shits. Terrifying stuff.

@josephb

Cool- that's ideal. :)

Blood Runs Over Westeros: A Game of Thrones RP

My collab is done with Blue, but I think me and Abe still have to do something, and I've been ill as of late.

Task Force Echo (A Special Forces RP)

Merlin looked across at Olivia, watching her clip the targets, with a reliable operator's accurate accuracy, the ACR's rounds plinking against the targets down range, as he chuckled, a positive look on his face. A good Merlin was a happy Merlin, watching the SAS operator that he had saved two nights prior get down to her work.
"Nicely done. I'll activate the rest of the targets on the range, I need to get some food, so I'll leave you to it. You're still good for action, Olivia, so I wouldn't panic." He said to her, walking out of the booth as he put his SCAR back on the table, flipping the mag out, de-chambering a round before then leaving it by the other rifles on a rack, knowing it was at the very least, provisionally put away for now. He adjusted his sunglasses over his eyes, flicking his gloves off his hand, stowing them in a pocket in his trousers, as he wiped the sweat from his brow. It was a hot day, and the air felt thin, the summer in full play.

Merlin seemed to hold his presence as good as it was, as he headed outside, or at least out of the covered area. Corporal Owain Hereford was a good man at this sort of thing, the SFSG soldier in his mid-thirties one of the gunsmiths and armorers here, come best barbecue handlers on this home that Echo inhibited. Owain must have stood at around 6"2, and instantly, the most recognizable thing about Owain was his prosthetic leg, almost leaving half his right leg covered in composites and metal, with his left leg cut off from around the mid-shin or so, his left forearm also completely gone, and replaced by a simple prosthetic, nothing complicated. The story was a good one, Merlin reminded himself, it was a story that made his own missing toes look more like a fucking fairytale, that much could be said.

"Please tell me the burgers are done...I could kill a wolf for food round 'ere." Merlin said, as Owain nodded, chuckling. He flipped one off, onto a plate by the side, as he replied.
"First one's yours. I'm not going to fuck with a hungry Merlin."
"When all you can live on is MRE's, I think I could live with myself if I had to kill someone for this...and whatever paperwork's attached!" The bearded Captain chuckled heartily, as he took the burger and slid it into a bun, before biting in deep, then placing it back on the plate as he knew that there would be a few more that Owain was already grilling.
"Lads, the food's ready!" Merlin's voice reached everywhere when he shouted, his regimented boom reaching inside and out, as he took a seat on a white plastic chair across from the BBQ. Looking up, the light noise of the C130 could be heard, and he only grinned, knowing their own display team were coming. Merlin himself looked still imposing, and he wolfed his food down, knowing it was good to have something like this. The team were chilled themselves, from what he could tell. Richard was cleaning his gun, Tyler was making more of his crazy bang rounds, or his Wildcats with whatever amount of powder he was throwing in now, and Jarek was chilling out. It was R&R for a reason, because it wasn't Merlin commanding the team in what was a sandy, explosive shithole as per usual, and a chance to switch off, before switching on once more for more work.

---

The door rushed open, Nikolaj watching Dominique casually put her sunglasses over her eyes, confident in her step. Nikolaj could only guess he was too, well, as best as he could feel throwing himself out of an aircraft at 15,000 feet, as he peered to the needle on his wrist once more, Adjusting his gloves, he breathed out, the full face helmet over his head, as he popped the visor down, following behind the American Parajumper, looking at Aleksandra.
"Got it. I'll follow on you." The Dane simply added, as he patted Aleksandra on the shoulder, watching Oakley go. She knew this shit, and no doubt, as the light turned green, they were running, out of the back of a perfectly well serviced military cargo plane, into the void. And Nikolaj himself couldn't help but grin at the sight of it, Dominique rolling, and Aleksandra backflipping into the sky. His feet charged on the metal ramp, the cold wind gripping, until....

It took hold, the feeling that felt inescapable, the moment of pure ecstasy...Nikolaj had frontflipped out, diving face first to the ground, flipping over wildly for just a moment. It was the strange feeling of watching the plane fly away, into the distance....and look like it was higher and further, though that of course was his relative sighted position to the aircarft. It was the fact that he was now in a place that was turbulent, violent...but free, and a place to enjoy himself, to move about, where he pleased. He stabilized out, looking for Aleksandra, Dima and Dominique, as he arched hard, before moving over towards them. Following close, he came alongside, grabbing a hold of Dominique's right hand, a look of glee clearly on his clean-shaven face, as he knew that Dominique had already flown her fun, probably able to sit-fly if she wished, or whatever crazy stuff she felt like doing, as Nikolaj held onto her, knowing the other two would soon come in...it seemed like he had made it down to her first, and the others would join on.