Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 434 Valley Showdown
Marshal Kenway, the Witcher, stood in the river town of Goathorn, gazing into the distance.

Although this is just a small town, three main rivers flow through the valley, winding and turning like ram's horns, pointing to both sides.

The enemy that previously defended the hills and the Far Plains all set up defenses here, taking advantage of the well-developed water system to prevent them from landing.

Before the introduction of the Divine Golden Dragon, the Bastion Legion only had the Silver Pegasus as its flying unit, so it had to use ships to transport the rest of its troops, which gave Elton the opportunity to fight river warfare.

The river is wide and swift, and close-quarters combat between warships often takes time, providing an opportunity for archers and priests to demonstrate their abilities. Although the fortress also has great elves, its overall ranged damage output is still somewhat lacking.

It must be said that the castle faction's troop types are incredibly well-balanced. Whether it's ranged or melee units, or ultimate units, they are all top-tier and powerful. Even when outnumbered, they can utilize geographical advantages to maneuver and fight against the enemy.

Kenway used his upgraded Witcher Priesthood to defend the key lighthouse in Goat's Horn and, in conjunction with powerful ranged attacks, to block Isildur's attack.

This method was effective. The enemy ships were not made of steel; the fortress preferred to use wooden boats, which, combined with natural magical energy, allowed them to achieve greater speeds. However, many of the soldiers inside the ships were unable to withstand the powerful long-range artillery, and without the magical protection of their troops, they were destined for destruction.

[Natural Wooden Boat (Tier 2 Warship): Speed ​​at sea/on rivers +30%, but takes +50% fire/air damage.]

Generally speaking, natural wooden boats are well-suited for forested waterways, allowing for successful surprise attacks or rapid strikes. While they lack increased capacity and special resistances, these are still features of the fortress.

However, in river valleys, small boats were less effective. If it weren't for the strong air force escorting the fortress, Isildur would likely have suffered several disastrous defeats.

Even with the addition of divine golden dragons to the battlefield, their wooden ships were battered and bruised, which is why Isildur has been unable to break through the valley for so long.

In some ways, this is a natural weakness of fortresses; compared to castle powers with their own shipyards, fortresses lack this advantage. When waging naval or river battles, they rely on building ships in open-air docks, resulting in generally lower quality vessels.

The human lords have been operating in the valley for so many years, and they have all kinds of docks and shipbuilding technologies, so they are definitely not on the same level.

Moreover, the Witcher Marshal has been in the valley for quite some time now and has indeed built a formidable army. While they may not be able to fight the most powerful golden dragons, they have at least done their utmost to defend the valley by leveraging the terrain's advantages.

Kenway Haytham (The Witcher): Attack 6, Defense 4, Spell Power 7, Knowledge 8.

Advanced Demon Hunter Diplomacy: Wilderness armies weaker than you have a 100% chance of joining your army. Surrender costs are reduced by 80%. Once your four main attributes reach 6, you can access the Sage's Library and obtain the special magic Demon Hunter's Manual.

Advanced Demon Hunter Commander: When commanding Demon Hunter units (special troop type), each attack on an enemy will cause a magic weakening effect, reducing the monster's defense by 2 points and magic resistance by 2% (this can be reduced to a negative value, i.e., increased damage). The weakening effect caused by Demon Hunter Crusaders will be doubled.
Intermediate Naval Tactics: Increases hero's naval mobility by 60%, and increases troop attack and defense by 3 points, as well as ship destruction capability by 30%.

Advanced Water Elemental Mastery, Intermediate Earth Elemental Mastery, Advanced Archery, Intermediate Resistance.

Perhaps no one expected that the Witcher from Highgarden, besides being skilled at training special soldiers, was also adept at naval warfare. This is why, upon receiving his appointment, he immediately chose the valley as his primary battlefield.

Previously, the Kingdom's army had been repeatedly defeated, unable to defeat the enemy even in hilly and mountainous terrain. Now, in the river battle, they were finally able to capitalize on their strengths and avoid their weaknesses.

Of course, all of this was based on the premise that Kuraki could withstand the main battle. If Isildur had broken through from the Hillin Plain, then everything would have been over. Fortunately, Kuraki performed admirably, single-handedly holding off Isildur and creating an impregnable wall.

Therefore, when Kuraki was threatened, Kenway was willing to lend a helping hand, setting aside the grudges of the Congress, since everyone was serving the Kingdom and would share both glory and loss.

Kenway was able to raise a powerful force in the valley thanks to his special magic demon-hunting manual.

【Demon Hunter's Manual: Create a Demon Hunter's Manual to allow troops to acquire demon hunting knowledge and undergo related training. This can make them special demon hunter sequences (at least one elemental baptism is required). It requires gold and resources. The success rate is affected by the troop type and knowledge (the lower the troop level/the higher the knowledge attribute, the higher the success rate). The total number of training sessions is affected by spell power.

If the Demon Hunter's Manual is damaged, it will require a long cooldown period to rebuild.

Advanced Demon Hunter Diplomacy Bonus: Allows training up to Demon Hunter Priests and increases the training capacity of units below level 5.

Although the Demon Hunter's Manual is a special kind of magic, it is quite different from ordinary magic. It was created by Kenway's demon hunting experience combined with magical power. It records the weaknesses and characteristics of various monsters and is intended for soldiers with certain combat skills to learn.

To join the Demon Hunter ranks, one must be a soldier skilled in using elemental magic, so it's best to have an elemental baptism.

Even so, there will be failures in learning demon-hunting skills, and after accumulating a certain number of failures, the demon-hunting manual will be damaged. Kenway must rebuild the demon-hunting manual to train the other types of soldiers.

This was definitely a tough job, and it was also very time-consuming, which is why Kenway stayed in the valley for so long.

We have finally assembled a force of 2000 Demon Hunter Crossbowmen, 400 Demon Hunter Crusaders (recently added through diplomacy), and 200 Demon Hunter Priests. This is a powerful legion, with ranged attacks complementing Kenway's advanced archery, and melee combat to defend the city, capable of intercepting enemy ships to the greatest extent possible.

【Demon Hunter Crossbowman (Castle Tier 2, Class 2 Unit, Dark/Fire Elemental Baptism): Attack 10, Defense 7, Ammo 36, Damage 4-6, Health 15, Speed ​​6, Medium Size】

Element: Darkness/Fire. Ranged Units

Demon Hunter Crossbow: Can fire two arrows simultaneously. In dark environments, it increases vision (range) by 30%. After entering a certain distance, it gains 30% immunity to defense.

Demon Hunter Body: Temporarily enhances arm strength, grants +3 attack, +1 damage, and has a 50% chance to fire a third arrow, converting attacks into fire elemental damage.

Magic Resistance: +10% magic resistance; periodically casts a low-level fire resistance spell on yourself.

To be honest, assembling this demon hunter legion was extremely expensive, and even Quentin, who had always supported him, complained about it many times. But it was all worth it; to fight a river-sea battle, you really need enough ranged units. The valley has no shortage of advanced archers, but they're not quite enough to affect the river's defenses. Only Kenway's upgrade of the demon hunter crossbowmen truly made Goathorn a fortress.

In addition, the recent Swordsman's Moon event allowed him to acquire enough Demon Hunter Crusaders, giving him confidence in the town's defense.

Kenway knew that if the enemy's ground forces were allowed to land, the Valley Legion would be no match for them. Even if he brought elite troops from the heartland, they would struggle to contend with the fortified army.

However, Su Mu's suggestion to lure the enemy deep into their territory has given them new room to maneuver.

"How is it? Have the retreating troops reached the hinterland yet?"

"As you instructed, Marshal, we will march as discreetly as possible, without stopping in ordinary cities, and only buying and selling when we need supplies."

However, those trading markets are crowded and noisy, and rumors have already started circulating that we have diverted troops to aid the interior and help quell the rebellion.

Kenway nodded slightly upon hearing this, without saying anything, but the lieutenant was somewhat anxious.

"My lord, Isildur has recently reinforced its troops again, and it seems they have new intentions. If they find out that we have divided our forces and returned to the interior, they may launch a new attack. The Extraordinary Legion is patient enough; perhaps we should avoid going to the market!"

“No, we must project a stealthy retreat, neither too conspicuous nor completely infiltrated. Ideally, we should let Isildur believe he has discovered some secret and report it to the Hill Legion!”

Kenway was a master of deception. An overt withdrawal, while quickly detected by the fortress, would raise suspicions about the Demon Hunter Marshal's motives. After all, everyone knew the Valley was currently short-handed, and even with the crisis in the heartland, they had to think twice.

But if they try to cover it up or act secretly, the Bulwark will definitely think that Kenway was forced to recall the troops due to pressure from Congress.

Besides, Kenway's actions also allowed him to comply with Congress's orders. After all, Quentin had urged him multiple times, and completely ignoring the insurgency in the heartland seemed like a bad idea.

It would be better to make a show of it, return to the heartland to quell the rebellion in the border areas, and immediately report any fighting here to Congress, thus demonstrating the predicament on the border.

The troops he dispatched were by no means the elite forces currently stationed in the valley; they were a portion of the legion mobilized to cooperate with Su Mu's performance.

To maintain secrecy, this matter was kept under wraps within a very small circle. Many deputy generals were unaware of the plan and genuinely believed that the marshal was going to send troops back to quell the rebellion. They even tried to dissuade him for a long time.

With such realistic acting, it's hard for Bili not to be fooled.

Of course, the main reason was that Isildur intended to invade; the chaos in the heartland and the division of troops at the front were just some of the reasons.

Next, we'll see how Kuraki coordinates the attack on the hills.

As long as he guards the entrance to the river, the enemy will never be able to enter the valley.

"Issue the order that all merchant ships and civilian vessels are prohibited from passing through in the near future, regardless of whose name they are using!"

Anyone who disobeys will be killed!

Ever since the Arcane Empire crossed the line by using the Continental Federation to launch a surprise attack on a city and break through the northern border, armies of various nations have dared not let their guard down at crucial moments. Even cutting off trade routes and causing goods and merchants to stagnate is better than being ambushed.

Kenway gazed at the white sails in the far distance, a cautious expression on his face.

……

"What? Giethoorn has issued a ban, prohibiting merchant ships from passing through?"

Aren't those their own ships from the heartland, passing through the wilderness to deliver goods to the nobles of the capital? Why aren't they allowed in?
"Was it because you weren't discreet enough and the news leaked out?"

Dino was standing in his tent, listening to his men report on the situation at the front.

Upon returning to the hills from the Elders' Council, he relayed the Imperial Elders' orders to Marshal Lloyd. Lloyd, though still somewhat hesitant, knew the situation had reached a point where action was imperative. If they missed the opportunity to quell the unrest in the heartland, finding another chance would likely be far more difficult.

Therefore, he and Dino split up. Lloyd mobilized the main force in the southern hills and began to converge on the gap between the valley and the Xilin Plain. Dino, on the other hand, led the flying units and a portion of the ranged forces to conquer the cities on the front lines of the valley. The remaining dragon knights acted freely, coordinating with the two armies in battle.

Although the hilltop was on guard against Kuraki's movements, this time it was a surprise attack, and the other side was probably unprepared.

If we can seize the valley first, the reinforcements from the Far Forest can break through and launch a major attack from the south and east, encircling the Shilin Plain. With the Dragon Knights leading their divine golden dragons to reinforce the area, we can finally remove Kuraki, this thorn in our side.

After fighting for so long, Kuraki had been defending the hills against the enemy. Black Cliff was heavily guarded, and its fortifications were impregnable, making it difficult to breach. However, the south was basically undefended, and relying solely on troop types to defend such a large area of ​​territory would likely be beyond Kuraki's capabilities.

But unexpectedly, the very first brilliant plan went wrong.

"Reporting to Your Excellency, many merchant ships have been stopped. They are still more than ten miles from the valley, and it is said that passage is completely prohibited in the near future."

"It seems that Kenway has indeed divided his forces and gone back, becoming more cautious!"

Upon closer reflection, Dino, instead of being angry, became excited.

If Kenway still had enough troops, it certainly wouldn't be so cautious. It would have continued with its previous defensive tactics and even lured some of the Bastion Legion into attacking.

After all, while natural wooden boats are fast, they are also more easily damaged. Giethoorn only allows a small number of boats to pass at a time, which is perfectly manageable.

"Let the Wings of the Sky and the Silverwing Legion of Lightning gather together, along with 50 divine golden dragons, and wait at Flowing Horn Mountain."

Load the dwarf army into 30 natural wooden boats and launch them simultaneously into the river to attack Goat's Horn. The unicorn army, in conjunction with the centaur army, will board the Windbreak boats and, riding the strong winds, launch a surprise attack on the lighthouse and land on the riverbank!

The generals were stunned for a moment, and even took a moment to feel the wind direction outside, somewhat puzzled.

"Sir, the wind is blowing from the north now. If we want to attack Yangjiao Town, we need a strong east wind, but I'm afraid there won't be one this season!"

"Who says it doesn't exist? You'll soon find out."

Dino gave a mysterious smile, as if everything was under his control.

To break through Girdletown's defenses, simply reducing Elton's manpower wouldn't suffice; they'd need more advanced ships. Although the stronghold didn't have its own shipyard, the Elders found a way to source high-class vessels from elsewhere to support this river-sea battle.

Moreover, this warship is related to the air element, making it very suitable for surprise attacks.

Yangjiao Town is surrounded by water on three sides and is a major river channel. It can certainly monitor all ships entering the valley, but if the troop strength exceeds the threshold, it will be difficult to deal with.

With the divine golden dragon and silver winged horse in command, they directly controlled the enemy's ranged forces. With the help of the rapidly moving ships, they landed at Goat Horn Town, breached the key valley location, and everything else became simple.

Dino slammed his palm heavily on the map of the duchy's capital in the valley, full of pride.

"This time, the Bucks family will be completely history!"

(End of this chapter)