Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 288 Rock Armor
When Su Mu received the Knight Commander's order, he was already close to catching up with the vanguard.

The most perilous battlefield was naturally the siege of Sunset Fortress. Even with Conrad's fighting prowess, attempting to charge Isildur's forces might not have resulted in a one-way trip.

Su Mu's force of over 4000 men is a force to be reckoned with anywhere, but in a national war, they really don't have much room to maneuver.

Even the strongest swordsman, no matter how skilled, would be wiped out instantly if attacked by tens of thousands of elemental attackers. A dozen or so heroes could also overwhelm Kuraki's entire force with magical attacks.

In large-scale battles, there are countless ways to counter such tactics. After all, there are many heroes in the world, and Su Mu is far from being invincible.

To be frank, their military strength is still a bit lacking. They can dominate within a region, but they're far from being able to fight in a national war. Su Mu is already quite satisfied with the current troops and economy that Kuraki has. Development takes time, and it can't be rushed.

The Knight Commander assigned him to defend against a surprise attack on Cloudmist City and hold the rear, which was a perfect fit for his troops.

For this great battle, Ivan, Orin, Maggie, and Wayne—Kuraki's strongest generals—have all come to deal with various different situations.

Even if some heroes cannot perform at their strongest, it doesn't matter at all. This is Elton's battle for the nation's destiny, and we need to go all out.

After Ivan arrived, he was still made to wear the cursed armor and serve as the vanguard, commanding the swordsman legion, the shieldbearer legion, and the wild griffons; Orling commanded the Earthbow and the Arcane Prayer, as well as all the Crystal Ballistae; Maggie served as a support hero, controlling a portion of the Gale Griffons; and Wayne led the thieves to scout the surrounding area.

Heroes who go to the battlefield usually bring a certain number of troops with them to avoid being directly beheaded. After all, they don't know the enemy heroes' skills and troop characteristics, and mage heroes are generally not strong in close combat.

However, with Ivan around, they were relatively safe. The undispellable slowing spell slowed everyone's movements, making it difficult to kill even a general.

"Will there really be a large army in Cloud Mist City? I don't think Leven will necessarily leave any troops behind. Isaiah is a general known for his defensive capabilities. Leven's arrangement is a bit overconfident."

Maggie knew a great deal about the heroes in the kingdom. She had heard of Isaiah since she was a child. With such a hero guarding Sunset Fortress, it would be difficult for Leven to break through without several times the number of troops.

In fact, Su Mu wasn't entirely sure either. The situation on the battlefield was constantly changing, and no one could predict it accurately.

If it succeeds, it will avert a disaster. If it fails, it will at least provide a way out.

Su Mu scouted the terrain and placed Ouling high on the cliff face, guarded by numerous griffins. The ground was defended by the strongest swordsmen, ensuring that no one was allowed to enter.

Wayne then sent out scouts to investigate the enemy's movements.

"We've done what we can. The rest depends on the defense of Sunset Fortress. Hopefully, there will be some good news."

……

At Sunset Fortress, the battle reached its peak from the very beginning.

With the Cyclops King present, a second siege was immediately launched, destroying all the surrounding satellite arrow towers. Giant rocks traversed the sky, and hurricanes and flames were everywhere.

Isaiah ordered the archers and priests to launch a full-scale counterattack. Although they could not hit the Cyclops, they were able to inflict massive damage on the flying units approaching the city.

Isabel casts an atmospheric shield over the flying units, allowing them to safely dismantle the arrow towers.

Ground forces are also engaged in orderly combat. Frost Treants and Unicorns approach the city and block the city gates, preventing human troops from moving out.

But the fortress's protective magic activated, and the entire city wall burst into purple flames, mercilessly scorching any approaching enemies.

【City Wall Blaze: Deals continuous fire damage to enemies beneath the city walls and weakens their defense, up to -10 points.】

This is a terrifying reduction; if a unit stands in the flames for more than ten minutes, its defense will be reduced by 10 points. Of course, most units wouldn't last that long and would be burned to death; only Frost Treants and Unicorns have such high health.

Because of the unicorns' magic resistance, even if melee units block the entrance, they cannot inflict additional damage on them.

Isaiah then ordered his swordsmen to attack, open the city gates, and meet the enemy at the entrance, offering some resistance. The fortress's gates weren't just one layer; in fact, there were several layers of walls. The swordsmen only opened the outermost gate to kill the nearest treant army.

The main force consisted of Burning Crusaders and Flood Blademasters. They were more than capable of dealing with the weakened Treants and clearing out the enemies at the city gate, preventing them from easily destroying the fortifications.

Large complexes like Sunset Fortress also have defensive ballistae and facilities near the city gates and walls, as well as magic circles that drive the city's protective flames.

If destroyed by the tree people, the effect of Blazing Flame will be greatly reduced. Therefore, the best approach is to use Blazing Flame in conjunction with counterattacks against attacking enemies.

"Kill them! Cut down these dead branches and throw them into the fire to burn!"

"The time has come to serve the marshal! Slaughter everyone in the stronghold!"

The swordsmen, in coordination with the army of griffins in the sky, launched a counterattack. The two sides fought back and forth, suffering losses on both sides.

Isaiah is a hero with excellent defense skills, but he is not as overpowered as Dragon Knight and Ivan. He can only withstand 15% of physical damage, but he also has his own special skills.

Isaiah Green (Knight): Attack 7, Defense 10, Spell Power 6, Knowledge 7
No element.

Features: Rock Armor, Tactical Master, Unwavering Will.

Advanced Defense: Reduces the physical attack damage received by troops by 15%.

Advanced Rock Armor: For every 10 points of defense a unit has, it will receive an additional 12% of the damage it takes when counterattacking (up to a maximum of 50% of the unit's maximum health).

Advanced defensive tactics: Establish a defensive battle formation at the start of the battle. This allows units to move rapidly and form ranks over a very large area, granting them the effect of a shield formation.

Advanced Shield Formation: Grants all your soldiers +5 defense and 5% physical and magical resistance, and halves mana cost when commanding Elemental Baptism units.

Advanced Earth Element Mastery, Intermediate Resistance, Intermediate Water Element Mastery, Advanced Learning Ability

Isaiah's ability to defend cities and repel invading enemies on numerous occasions was directly related to his powerful defensive skills.

It could be said that every soldier under his command not only possessed a tortoise shell, but also soft armor like a hedgehog. Even if the opponent had strong offensive capabilities, they had few effective ways to deal with the rock armor.

What's even more terrifying is his ability to fight a protracted war; apart from heroes with exceptional intelligence, few can last as long as him.

The two armies remained locked in a stalemate for a long time outside the city. As the scorching heat gradually subsided, the treant army, after suffering thousands of casualties, finally destroyed the city's protective magic circle.

The swordsmen, relying on their rock armor, fought with a reckless, death-defying style, trading blows for blows.

In the sky, the griffins and silver pegasi clashed, but the silver pegasi prevailed, gradually pushing the griffin army back into the city and gaining air superiority.

The Cyclops bombarded the fortress for a long time. Even with the fortress's strong defenses, it could not withstand the massive bombardment of boulders. Finally, they smashed a hole in a corner, through which the fortress army could continuously enter the city.

So far, humanity's defenses have been relatively successful, except for the most difficult battles outside the city. Ranged units have performed to their full potential, inflicting over ten thousand casualties on the enemy forces; Isildur's corpses litter the battlefield.

Li Wen hasn't used any special methods yet. Could it be that he's really run out of ideas?

Isaiah dared not be careless. The enemy would not be so naive as to think that they could break through Sunset Fortress with just these troops. Since they dared to come, they must have a backup plan.

According to Congress's plan, if they hold out for any longer, Knight Commander Conrad will lead his cavalry legion to attack, and then Levin will be doomed from both sides.

In times like these, it is crucial not to be hasty. Isaiah must wait for Isildur to reveal a weakness first.

(End of this chapter)