Game of Thrones: From a deserter to a high-ranking official

Chapter 53 Tiberius's "Invention"

"By the way, Tiberius, when do you plan to start formally training them?" Vito leaned against the door frame, a freshly plucked blade of grass dangling from his mouth, looking at the soldiers on the parade ground outside who were already adept at changing formations, his tone becoming serious.

"You know what I'm talking about. Not some basic drills like marching formations or physical training... I'm talking about real, real training to turn them into soldiers. Listen, spear training includes at least: how to quickly deploy from a marching column into a combat line, how to coordinate with crossbowmen to fight the enemy; how to deal with those ground rats (light infantry with daggers) in the shadow of the spear formation!"

"They also need to know how to form formations to counter those heavy cavalry charges that are like iron cans, with men and horses all wrapped in iron cans. The noise they make is earth-shaking! They also need to learn how to deal with chariots. The Valantis are experts at using chariots! Those things make a loud rumbling sound when they charge and can crush any weak skirmish lines."

"Oh, and war elephants too. The Valantis elephant trainers are a tough bunch. They can train elephants to be impervious to noise and spear formations. The elephants also have armor, usually chainmail and leather armor, and there are archers and spear throwers on the towers on their backs... They're practically mobile fortresses! Of course." He saw Tiberius's pale face and chuckled softly to ease the atmosphere.

"That kind of thing isn't something your small force should be thinking about how to confront head-on. Even those old Tom's men, the kind who sleep in piles of corpses, use enemy skulls as wine glasses, and push forward by stepping on enemy testicles, would have a slim chance of survival against war elephants with just a spear formation. But you must understand how to evade them and how to fight them. Otherwise, if you really encounter them, even more of your soldiers will die!"

He continued, "Furthermore, you're more likely to encounter those 'ground rats' in the Valantis formation—light infantry who specialize in crawling forward during long spear standoffs, slashing at our spearmen's ankles. You need to be prepared for this insidious tactic, making it an instinctive reaction in your soldiers. Finally, and most importantly—make sure they get used to bloodshed as early as possible! This is crucial. You need to get them used to seeing blood, to smell blood! You can't let them cower at the sight of intestines spilling out or the sound of bones breaking! You need a group of tough guys who can advance even over the entrails and corpses of their comrades!"

"And crossbowmen." Vito got excited when he mentioned this, after all, he was the captain of the crossbowmen, it was his specialty.

"How should the number of loaders and regular crossbowmen be allocated? How should other soldiers cover the crossbowmen's advance and retreat? When should the crossbowmen fire their arrows? Crossbowmen and archers can't just fire randomly at the sight of the enemy. They must wait until the enemy is within effective range and fire in unison on a unified command to maximize damage and disrupt the enemy's formation. A proper rain of arrows should sweep away an area of ​​soldiers like a brush—that's what makes a qualified ranged archer! All of this requires practice, relentless practice!"

"Wait for old Tom to return," Tiberius said, looking up. "Uncle Jules said old Tom has withdrawn from the front lines, and after a few contacts with us, the Valantis' light cavalry and vanguard have ceased operations."

"I suspect they underestimated the strength and determination of the Three Daughters Kingdom. After this bloodshed, they probably realized that small-scale harassment won't work if they want to break through our defenses and seize our land; they can only defeat us through a fair and square battle."

"Besides, I'm not really sure how to train spearmen and crossbowmen. I lack experience! You want me to train their discipline and ranks? I can manage that, but as for specific tactics and drills..." Tiberius shook his head.

"I can't do it myself; we need to let a professional do it."

"Alright, looks like we can only wait for news from Old Tom now." "Hey! When the time comes, we'll show these rookies what real hell is like!" Vito spat out the grass in his mouth, his eyes gleaming with a belligerent light. "But hopefully, that old gambler won't lose all his pay on the way."

"However, I do have some ideas about crossbowmen..." Tippi said slowly. He then took out a piece of parchment.

"Vito, take a look at this... a greatsword crossbowman, what do you think?"

The drawing was a rudimentary sketch: a crossbowman crouching with a shield in front of him that was almost as tall as a person and had a groove in the middle.

"Large square shields plus crossbowmen? What kind of new idea is this?" Vito said, frowning.

"It's very simple." Tiberius pulled out a small soldier and a small shield.

"Vito, what are crossbowmen most afraid of?"

"A cavalry charge," Vito said without hesitation. "Two legs can never outrun four, especially when you lack long-range weapons and only have a slow crossbow."

"And the second?" Tiberius asked.

"Secondly, there's the enemy's arrows..." Vito seemed to understand something as he said this.

"Kid, you mean you're planning to equip crossbowmen with shields and have them shoot from behind them?"

"Absolutely right!" Tiberius snapped his fingers. "Yes, I want my soldiers to be able to shoot arrows safely in the shadow of their shields, lest they be killed by stray arrows from who-knows-where."

"Training crossbowmen is much harder than training spearmen; it would break my heart if too many people died."

"But kid, have you thought about this at all?" Vito said, pointing at the shield with a hint of suspicion.

"You want your crossbowmen to carry shields as big as doors into battle? Don't forget, they also have to bring their own crossbows, arrows, winches, short swords, and other miscellaneous items... You'll exhaust them."

"Besides, a crossbowman has to cock the crossbow while simultaneously moving his shield forward or backward, and also return fire... Kid, do you think we crossbowmen are all mules, and the crossbows on our backs are made of cotton? Carrying a crossbow is tiring too!"

"Don't worry, Vito," Tiberius shrugged. "I was prepared for this."

He then pointed to the detailed information next to the blueprint: on the other side of the shield, there was a soldier wearing armor and holding a shovel.

"I know that a crossbowman can't carry both a shield and a crossbow to the battlefield at the same time, or rather, even if he did, he would be exhausted. So I designed a 'mule' for them."

"What do you mean?" Vito asked, frowning.

"I've designed a support character whose main task is to carry the shield. He'll be equipped with weapons such as spears, short axes, and scimitars, and possibly javelins and darts," Tiberius explained in detail. "He'll be responsible for carrying the shield, while the crossbowmen simply need to fire from behind."

"And Vito," Tiberius chuckled sinisterly. "Didn't you just say that archers are afraid of horsemen? Well, now you've got it. Unless it's someone like Volantis, with three layers of armor and even their horse covered in scale armor—a super-heavy cavalryman; or a Westeros knight in full bespoke plate armor, gleaming and gleaming—ordinary cavalry can't possibly break through the Greatshieldmen's defenses."

"Besides," Tiberius said, taking out several instruments from the box.

"Shovels, pickaxes, hand axes! Equip me with all of these!" Tiberius, a seasoned civil engineer in his previous life and the chosen one of the Greys, was overjoyed to see these things as if he were seeing his best brother.

"Let them dig trenches before the battle, and while they're at it, plant spare lances and sharpened stakes in the ground. With my spearmen protecting the flanks, I'd like to see which cavalry dares to charge my crossbowmen head-on!"

"Hmm, that's a good idea," Vito nodded repeatedly. "I'll talk to my old buddies when I get back. I want to try it out in my ranks and see if it works. Anyway, your shieldbearers aren't exactly a technical unit; they don't need superb archery skills. The key is strength, obedience, and courage. If all else fails, I'll pick a few pikemen and squires from the auxiliary troops, or from old Tom and Calvin's side." Vito grinned as he spoke.

"Moreover, having a large shield in front of them makes them feel much more at ease, preventing the new recruits from becoming terrified by the knights' charge and the rain of arrows. This can indeed greatly reduce the difficulty of training and speed up the process of them becoming combat-ready."

"Alright, Vito." Tiberius nodded. "Remember to test it several times, conduct several simulated battles. I need to see the advantages and disadvantages of this tactic under different circumstances. We need to accumulate practical experience."

"Alright, what other ideas do you have? Bring them out!" Vito grinned.

He really wanted to know how Tiberius's head was structured!