[Draelmar Hold] Tasad reports for duty (Veleraen please)

[Tasad R'rowl]

Tasad's first view of his new post did not exactly fill him with joy, but he decided to withhold judgement until he was closer and could actually inspect the place.
Upon reaching the gate Tasad was challenged by the guard on the wall and he growled," Captain Tasad R'rowl, here to report for duty."

As he waited for the gate to be opened he was further disheartened to see that the gate had to be opened manually as it's mechanisim was not working, causing it to take more time then was really good for a fortified hold. Growling in his mind about the state of the Hold Tasad entered in and watched the laborous task of shutting the gate.

Without a word the katta turned away when the gate was shut and headed for the main buildings of the keep, where he guessed the command quarters were. Tasad entered the door and looked at the guard on duty behind a desk with an impassive face when he asked what he wanted.

With a deep throated growl Tasad said," Sgt., is that the way you talk to an officer? If you don't get your sorry carcass up and greet people properly then I'll stand you up and the experience will not be plesant, understood?"

Apparently he made his point, the Sgt. getting to his feet quickly and after apologizing gave Tasad directions to the regiment's commander.

[Veleraen]

No longer participating.

[Tasad R'rowl]

OOC: Edited my above post. I was going on Gauls's description. Was wondering too, what is my pay and how often do I get paid so I can keep my CIR updated.

IC: Tasad eased his stance and relaxed, marginally. The being before him was massive!!!! And apparently a veteran of many wars.

In response to the inquiry Tasad growled out," Sir, Captain Tasad R'rowl reporting as ordered. Cencoris Redbeard instructed me to give you this letter upon my arrival, sir."

Secrets : Serale my friend. I send you this now Captain Tasad R'owl to lead a Company of one hundred Heavy Infantrymen. He is a former member of the Olympian Defenders and seems experient enough to help you, take him under your wing. Hopefully we will meet again soon enough to drink some ale and talk about how lovely Sheria is at this time of the Era. Signed, Eyvind.

Handing the letter to the giant Tasad figured that he was probally overdoing it with the military ettiquitte as the being before him didn't appear to stand on ceremony much, but until he got a feel for his new commander it was by the book.

[Veleraen]

No longer participating.

[Tasad R'rowl]

Secrets : Will do about pming Eyvind. I do have one question though. IRL a company usually consists of about 250 men, give or take. And the heavy infantry numbers are 250. So that would require two captains and a half or three since you have the additional 50 men. Now, I'm pulling from RL military experience as well but wouldn't it be easier to coordinate the heavy infantry with one Captain instead of two or three? That way the right hand knows what the left hand is doing and it would ease confusion when the whole 250 have to act in concert. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with 100 men IC but persoanlly I think it would be more feasible to have all the heavy infantry under one particular Captain who reports to you. Just something to think about. Make it easier on the green recruits as well. And btw I'm not sure how to timestamp. Even when I played before I could never figure it out and most explinations had me scratching my head. Can we say the begining of the new season though?

IC: Tasad waited calmly as the giant took the letter and read it and took the time to actually look at his new commander, instead of just his size. He had half of his little finger and ring finger on his left hand missing, and many more battle scars to go with that. All in all he looked like he knew what he was doing, and had an air of assurance about him that came with having command for some time. All in all Tasad thought that he would be rather pleased serving with this giant.

After he finished reading the letter he looked at Tasad sizing him up, obviously just curious about the katta before him. Tasad looked back at his commander, obviously not intimidated by the observation.

After telling Tasad what was required of him and giving him the training schedule, which he looked over quickly and efficently Tasad thought of some points that he wanted to bring to the Commander's attention and growled out," Yes, sir, there are a few things that I wish to mention and a couple of ideas that might be useful as well."

Tasad thought for a moment about where to start and growled out," With your permission I would like to equip my company with gladius short swords as opposed to the longswords that are in current use. During my previous heavy infantry experience we found that the longswords require more space in which to use them effectively and made maintaining the line extremely difficult. Also, to get a really good stab in your arm has to come back farther, usually striking your comrades behind you, and by drawing back so far to thrust the shield on the left arm dropped, creating openings for the enemy to exploit. The gladius is much more effective in close quarters combat and allows the line to be held much easier, and doesn't require the user to draw back nearly as far. I can provide an demonstration for you if you would like."

Tasad paused to let that sink in and then continued," Also, I would like to equip my first ranks with a weapon called a pilum. It is basically a spear with a heavy wooden handle and a long thin metal neck and a vicous barb at the end. When closing with the enemy the pilum is thrown at the enemies shields and, with very few exceptions, penetrates and lodges in the shield. The thin neck bends, making it impossible to remove, and weighs the shield down so that the enemy has to cast their shields away or be severely hindered by not being able to hold the shield up. Without their shields they have little protection when they close with us, and are unable to maintain their own line. Once the pilum are thrown we would then follow immediately with our own attack to seize the advantage"

Again Tasad paused, collecting his thoughts before saying," I do have three suggestions for the training schedule. The first is to set a time standard for the early morning forced march, at least for my heavy infantry company. Say five miles in one hour. Once the company is able to meet that standard, lower it to five miles in forty-five minutes, and continue until it takes only a half hour to go five miles. The biggest handicapp of heavy infantry is that it moves slow and can be outmanuvered. If we can make it so that our heavy infantry can run any cavalry into the ground over the long hauls it would give us a tactical advantage. My second suggestion is that in training, both weapons and drill, that the armor and weapons be weighted with lead. That way the recruits get used to the heavy weight and when it is removed for an actual patrol or battle their normal armor and weapons feel like feathers. And the third suggestion is to have training battles between units, say every tenday or so. The weapons would be blunted of course, but this would allow the green recruits to become familiar with the confusions and chaos of battle in a controlled enviroment and therefore lead to fewer losses when we actually come to fighting this war. You could award some prize to the winner as motivation."

Again Tasad paused again, and then finished saying," I will, of course, offer my own company for use to test what I am saying. Also, with your permission, sir, instead of quarters in the keep I would prefer to bunk with my men and train with them as well. I will not ask them to do anything or endure any conditions that I myself will not do first." Tasad grinned slightly and said," It also shows my men that I am harder than they are and sets an example for them to follow."

Tasad fell silent and awaited the giants reply. He wasn't sure how the giant would take his suggestions and requests, but as they would increase the likelyhood of the fish surviving their first fight he din't think it would be taken badly. Tasad had every intention of making sure his command survived to become veterans.

[Veleraen]

No longer participating.

[Tasad R'rowl]

Secrets : Thanks for being cool about the timestamp. Even when I modded I couldn't understand them, frustrating. FYI, if you have any questions about military matters or large scale command feel free to ask OOC. I've served for six years in the Army both in Iraq and Afghanistan, and I'm actually signing up now to go into the Navy so I have a wealth of info if you need it. The most important thing to remember is to delegate. Don't run yourself, or your PC ragged trying to do everything yourself. Find somebody who is qualified for what needs to be done and let them do it. Check in every once in a while to make sure they are dong it the way you want done and you'll have a lot more time on your hands!!

IC: Tasad listened to Veleraen's responses with intrest. It told him quite a bit about the situation at hand and what to expect. And since it appeared that they were going to be thrown into war soon he figured he should get a dialed in as he could as quickly as he could.

When Veleraen finshed Tasad growled," I'll make due with what is available sir, and see what I can come up with." With a smile he added," Without stealing of course. The different gear and training would be nice but are not essential. As for the lead, well, rocks are overly abundant and packs can be filled."

Tasad looked at his commander and growled," I'll get to training my men right away sir, but I would appreciate it if you could bring me up to speed on our current situation. I don't want to take up much of your time and there are really only two things I need to know right now. The first is how do you intend to deploy the heavy infantry? Will we be the first into battle or be held in reserve? The second is how long do you think we will have before we engage the enemy? If I can get at least a week I can have my company ready for whatever is thrown at them. Not to mention I could get them their mock battle and quite possibly have them equipped with gladius short swords."

Tasad fell silent, awaiting his commanders response. He could tell the giant was busy and didn't want to take up much of his time. Tasad had eras of experience and could take care of his company well enough but information was what he needed now and Veleraen was the only one who had it.

[Veleraen]

No longer here.

[Tasad R'rowl]

Tasad stood, and took the offered hand that his Commander held out to him. In parting Tasad growled," If we get a week then the men will be ready, if we get longer then all the better. The heavy infantry will not let you down sir, that I can promise you. I'll get an updated training schedule for the HI by tonight after I speak with Sgt. Verde and submit it for your approval. Good day sir!"

With the last words Tasad released his grip on the giant's hand and performed a sharp about face, and left the tent to find his men and meet with Sgt. Verde.