Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 204 Post-War Summary: The First Round of Military Reforms and Bloody Innovation
For most countries on this continent, whether human kingdoms or orc tribes, the conclusion of the annual or biennial orc autumn hunt war marks the end of a phase of military confrontation.

Thanks to the Green Pine Kingdom, the resistance this year was very resolute. The orcs paid a heavy price and did not achieve the desired results. Perhaps they will be able to recuperate for a while, and maybe next year, the human race will be able to have a period of peace.

This makes it convenient for turquoise to launch its next war against jade.

A wound that has been split open is always difficult to heal; perhaps becoming a corpse can prevent bleeding.

The order of the Starry Continent returns to its busy or mundane daily routine, awaiting the next cycle.

However, for Chen Mo, or for the regions under his leadership such as Han Hai, Tian Shuang, Hai Luo, and Xuan Shui, the end of the orcs' southern expedition marks the beginning of a new round of reforms.

After watching his opponent leave, Chen Mo sent another batch of information on novel and unique monsters collected from various parts of the Starry Continent, along with a detailed battle report, to Blue Star East Xia.

For the elders and comrades back home, they can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

In accordance with the rules of Dongxia, the military department, the government department, the think tank, and the leader carefully reviewed the various tasks of the previous stage of Hanhai Territory and formed a detailed report, which, along with the latest batch of equipment, was sent to Chen Mo.

That night, the lights in the lord's office stayed on all night.

The next day, the military conference of the Han Hai Territory was held as scheduled. This document was placed in the study class of the territory's core management team, and the lord personally led his military and political officials to study and read it carefully.

As usual, let's look at the questions first. The first part of the article is still a summary of the battle.

Dongxia's post-war summary had a unique characteristic: the part about the victory was only studied internally, and only briefly mentioned in external propaganda. If it exceeded ten words, it was considered to give face to the major victory.

Take the Battle of Tianshuang City during the last spring hunt as an example. The post-battle summary document described this glorious victory as follows: 12,000 enemy soldiers were killed, 7,000 were captured, Tianshuang was defended, and the Hanhai region remained safe.

It contains twenty characters, including punctuation.

However, the problems exposed during the operation were described in great detail and without any mercy.

For example, the lack of a qualified local team to carefully analyze and organize intelligence gathered before the battle led to insufficient prediction of enemy actions and repeatedly put us in a passive and reactive situation.

The reason for emphasizing the local team is that although Dongxia's staff has been involved in military intelligence analysis, there is always a time lag in the transmission of information from the altar; secondly, there are significant differences in the two worlds' modes of thinking. To put it bluntly, Dongxia cannot fully guess the opponent's thoughts and ideas.

This is actually quite normal. Even on Earth, Dongxia, despite its exceptional intelligence gathering and analysis capabilities, couldn't predict how the leader of the White-headed Eagle School of Thought would win next.

Not to mention the orcs who have limited knowledge and understanding.

For example, the last summary report highlighted the issue of command over Skyfrost City.

Due to a lack of sufficient prior communication and clarification, there is considerable uncertainty during the war.

The report points out that if General Xia Er of Skyfrost City had not made the correct suggestion to Princess Liushuang and it had not been adopted, the possibility that Skyfrost City's walls might have fallen cannot be ruled out.

After all, it was an objective fact that the enemy had repeatedly attacked the city walls. In the long process of Tian Shuang requesting assistance in defense, Liu Shuang personally relaying the request, requesting Lord Chen Mo's approval, and the field army landing and executing the plan, any delay in any link could have an immeasurable impact on the battle situation.

For example, during the enemy's retreat, the military operations of the Han Hai Territory were characterized by a "wait and see" approach, addressing problems as they arose.

Only after the enemy began abandoning the wounded were medical personnel urgently transferred from the Vast Ocean to the front lines; regarding crucial orc language phrases like "lay down your weapons and surrender without being killed," only the widely used standard version from the White Deer Plains was used for training, without considering the accent differences among the various orc tribes in the wasteland; discipline was not strictly enforced during the initial prisoner transport process, and some soldiers looted orc property...

As for the losses of the reconnaissance team due to misoperation, or the enemy's counterattack triggered by reckless pursuit in a local area, these can only be considered minor mistakes.

To be honest, just looking at this document, the officers of the Han Hai Territory all had the illusion that their side had suffered a defeat, and a crushing one at that.

Lord Chen Mo's words woke them up.

"The lesson we learned is that we need to maintain what we did right and well, while the enemy may change, and the situation we face next time may not be the same, and we may not be able to use the same methods."

"Always focusing on your own strengths and comparing them to others' weaknesses is utterly useless except for making you complacent!"

"Identifying one's own problems, analyzing them in depth, and summarizing them carefully are the core elements that can truly help everyone grow, continuously improve themselves, avoid making more and bigger mistakes, and thus complete preparations for the next war."

The young officers of the Han Hai Territory were quick to learn and took the lord's words to heart. So, after the last post-war debriefing meeting, they immediately launched a large-scale debriefing, reflection, and training campaign covering the entire army.

Significant results were achieved. Most of the more than thirty problems summarized after the last war were thoroughly corrected in this autumn hunting war, a small number were greatly improved, and for the few that could not be solved immediately due to objective conditions, alternative solutions were found to avoid them.

While old problems were avoided, some new ones emerged. This summary report on the autumn hunting campaign, though still incisive, has narrowed the list of issues to just over a dozen. Progress has been made, and the results are tangible.

After leading commanders at all levels to carefully study the post-war summary report, the meeting moved on to a more core and inspiring agenda—the comprehensive military reform that had been brewing in Hanhai Territory for a long time but had been delayed due to continuous warfare.

This momentous event will profoundly impact the future of the territory.

If you look closely, it has been two years since the establishment of the Vast Ocean Territory. The military framework of the entire territory was initially built by elders such as Heran and Lynn, and it had a strong mercenary and private army character.

Subsequently, the source of soldiers gradually became more complex, with centaur warriors, sand warriors, liberated slave soldiers, militia backbone trained by Dongxia, military academy graduates, and so on constantly integrating, eventually forming a peculiar hybrid.

It has some of the characteristics of an Eastern army, some remnants of feudal monarchy, some of the rough and tumble nature of mercenaries, and some of the style of a general's private army.

Following the advice of my hometown, the reforms should have been implemented long ago.

The main reason for the delay is that there was no one available in the early stages and no time available in the later stages.

In the early days of the Vast Ocean Territory, there were only a dozen or so mercenaries who had been purchased. Later, the number was gradually increased to a scale of a hundred or so, a considerable portion of whom were skeletons...

These small units only needed to follow the lord's command; military structure wasn't that important. In particular, military reform required a capable team of officers, which was completely lacking at the time.

As the cadets of the military academy gradually graduated, the militiamen of the territory completed their training in batches, and the young officers of the Hanhai Torch Youth Corps gradually completed their studies in cultural knowledge and tactical skills, the time was gradually ripe, and as a result, the war broke out.

The fighting goes on and on.

The battle between the Green Pine Kingdom and the Cloud Mist Territory requires close monitoring and high vigilance from the Vast Ocean.

In the battle of revenge against Zircon, Frostfall must provide active support and be ready to respond at any time.

Next came assisting in the construction of Skyfrost City, resisting the orcs' spring hunt, advancing into the White Deer Plain, and fighting against the orcs' autumn hunt... It was almost non-stop from beginning to end.

In turbulent times, the stability of the army is paramount. As a result, the adjustment plan was delayed again and again until now. The orc army returned north, and the Han Hai and surrounding areas finally ushered in a precious period of peaceful development. Chen Mo made a decisive decision to immediately launch a comprehensive system reform.

"This adjustment will first involve a complete restructuring of the organizational structure of all units in the Hanhai region. The previous system of distinguishing between city defense forces and field armies will be completely broken up, and the original headquarters of each army, as well as the forward command posts set up in previous wars, will all be canceled."

"From now on, there will only be one core military institution in all areas under our control: the Han Hai Supreme Military Command."

The commander-in-chief of this supreme military command must, and can only be, Lord Chen Mo.

In the past, under the system of the Starry Continent, the lord was implicitly the leader of all troops in the territory. Now, the Vast Ocean Territory has made a distinction: the lord is the political leader, while the commander-in-chief is the military leader.

Why make this distinction?
"I have already communicated with Lord Liushuang of Tianshuang City. Tianshuang City will also be merged into this military reform. The lord of the new Yunwu Territory will still be Liushuang, but the military management will be incorporated into the highest military command of Hanhai Territory."

Understood.

In the past, the lord of Tianshuang City was also the highest military leader of Tianshuang City, a standard feature of the feudal system in the Starry Continent. Even if Xuanshui City continues to develop and establishes a city lord, or if Conch Harbor establishes a port administration, according to the original military system, the lord would concurrently serve as the military leader of the local garrison.

However, once the military and government are separated, the army will become an independent system under the leadership of the Supreme Commander. Even Liushuang, who is both the Lord of Cloud Mist and the Lord of Skyfrost City, cannot theoretically mobilize a single soldier without the authorization of the Supreme Commander, let alone appoint and replace military generals as arbitrarily as he does now.

Makaga and Lynn, along with other commanders of the Vast Ocean, secretly glanced at Sharl, who was representing Skyfrost City at the meeting. The old general was wearing a Xiawen translator and taking notes carefully, without showing any surprise on his face.

These were all things that had been discussed and agreed upon long ago.

For Xia Er, the longer he spent with Han Hai, the more he understood Han Hai's true strength.

As part of the communication and coordination, Liu Shuang's name will appear in the position of the first deputy commander-in-chief of the highest military command of Han Hai Territory. When the command headquarters is not in Tian Shuang City, Liu Shuang will still be the military leader of Tian Shuang City, which seems to be no different from before.

But old Charles knew all too well that the changes were enormous.

Beyond just command, the integration of the Skyfrost City forces is an even bigger undertaking.

This military reform will involve a large-scale military relocation. Many generals and magic legions from Skyfrost City will be transferred to Vast Ocean to receive relevant training and guidance for the military reform.

As for who will return and whether their mindset will change, that remains to be seen.

After briefly mentioning the changes in the upper-level structure, Chen Mo began to analyze the adjustments to the military system in detail.

"The military names below the Supreme Military Command, such as the Lord's Guard, the Desert Field Army, the Vast Sea City Defense Army, the Frost White Goose Legion, and the Profound Water Garrison Army, are all abolished from this day forward and will be replaced by numbers."

"All troops will be reorganized and integrated into the First Army of the Vast Sea and Clouds!"

"In the future, if there is any further expansion of the military system, it will continue to be organized into the Second Army, the Third Army, and so on."

"Below the army level, there is a brigade. Below the brigade level, there is a battalion. Below the battalion level, there are companies, platoons, and squads."

"Based on the actual combat situation and factors such as the expansion of the troop size, we will consider in stages whether to add division and regiment-level combat units, or expand them upwards to larger organizations such as army groups and front armies."

Next, Lord Chen Mo projected a modified military architecture diagram onto the wall of the conference room.

Han Hai Ling's current equipment has entered the modern era, but it is still quite insufficient in terms of quantity. The only large screen was moved to Xuan Shui Swamp to facilitate engineers and technicians to learn industrial-related knowledge, so Han Hai can only use a mini projector to make do.

On the projected screen, the words "First Army of the Vast Sea and Clouds" were placed neatly in the center, with four lines extending from below.

Currently, the entire Hanhai region only has enough space to form one army, which comprises four brigades, and the number of soldiers in each brigade varies somewhat.

The officers who were able to attend today's meeting already knew more or less about the general content of the military reform. What they were most concerned about was, of course, the appointment of brigade commanders and battalion commanders in various units.

Lord Chen Mo didn't keep them in suspense and began announcing the appointments:
"The First Brigade will be commanded by Makaga!"

The commander of the field army suddenly straightened his back.

"The troops are stationed in the Xuanshui Marshland area of ​​Bailu Plain. Their main responsibility is to protect the safety of Xuanshui City and the oil industrial area, and to expand into the surrounding areas when the opportunity arises."

The First Brigade was formed with the main force of the former Hanhai Field Army as its backbone and incorporated a large number of outstanding militia members, reaching a full strength of 3,800 men. It consisted of seven infantry battalions with a strength of 500 men each, as well as a special operations battalion with a strength of 300 men, integrating information support, communications, air defense, and preliminary air assault capabilities.

The brigade's first and second battalions are elite rapid reaction forces that the entire army is focusing on building. Almost all of them are equipped with advanced firearms from Dongxia, including guns, cannons, and missiles. They have a 100% literacy rate, and all officers are graduates of the Han Naval Academy. They can be said to be the elite of the elite in the entire territory, and are the standard force of the brigade.

In the future, the Starry Sky 59 Modified will be the first to form combat capability in the First Brigade, which will be the Lord's flagship force.

As compensation for absorbing a large number of Cloud Mist Warriors, the Second Brigade's organizational structure was given to Skyfrost.

"The Second Brigade will be commanded by General Charles!"

The old general stood up and nodded slightly to the audience.

The Second Brigade was stationed in Tianshuang City. Its members were mainly the original garrison troops of Tianshuang City, but after screening and reorganization, they were organized into seven battalions with a total of 3,500 people. There was also an information and reconnaissance unit of 200 people, which was responsible for providing battlefield information support through radar, communications and other means.

In addition to guarding Tianshuang City, the Second Brigade is also responsible for handling emergencies in the Dongguan area and for guarding the Green Pine Kingdom.

The original army of Tianshuang City was quite large, and a Second Brigade was definitely not enough to accommodate it. Because the First Brigade went north, there was a certain gap in the military strength of Hanhai Territory. Therefore, a large number of soldiers were transferred from Tianshuang City, together with a part of the original Hanhai Territory city defense army, to form the Third Brigade.

"The Third Brigade will be commanded by Lynn!"

The Third Brigade is relatively small, with only five battalions totaling 2,500 people, plus a 100-person information and reconnaissance unit, for a total of 2,600 people. It will be expanded as needed in the future.

Finally, there was the Fourth Brigade, which consisted of only 1,200 men.

Brigade Commander Liu Zaiyue stationed a company of over 160 men at Hailuokou, while the other thousands of soldiers were selected from across the army—those who were not seasick and had good swimming skills—to jointly form the first naval force in the vast sea.

With the Qiming as their flagship, they commanded three sailing and electric-powered armed transport ships, as well as eleven locally built wooden boats of various sizes and steel-wood hybrid vessels. They carried out transport missions back and forth while diligently conducting drills.

In addition, separate militia mobilization organizations, troop logistics support organizations, and production and construction troop organizations were established as effective supplements to the main force.

In addition to the regular military system mentioned above, the power to maintain order was transferred to the government departments, and the intelligence system was separated from the military's responsibilities.

Of course, there was also a mysterious force that was not announced at the meeting and was known only to a very few people.

It operates independently of the military system, reporting only to the supreme commander, and controls the [Penglai] airship, the [Jinghong] high-altitude drone, the [Guardian] and [Light Thunder] long-range strike systems, as well as an unspecified number of [Burning Stone] superweapons.

Appointments were issued one by one, and battalion commanders were confirmed one after another. Soon, the agenda shifted to the second major item of military reform: the establishment of ideological commanders for the troops, bringing the Han Hai Territory's army into a new phase of dual management.

The significance of this point is self-evident. However, the prerequisite is to have a team of leaders who are cultured, thoughtful, and have strong execution capabilities. Otherwise, it is easy to turn into a political spy team like a military supervisor or a secret police agency.

After careful consideration and thorough communication with his hometown of Dongxia, Chen Mo changed the original three-tiered command structure to a two-tiered structure: those at the brigade level and above would be instructors, and those below the brigade level would be supervisors.

Bao Guo, who was closest to Ma Kaga, was unexpectedly transferred to Tian Shuang City to serve as the training commander of the Second Brigade. Meanwhile, the position of training commander of the First Brigade of the First Army of the elite Han Hai Yun Wu fell to Ma Qianzu.

In short, after a dazzling array of deployments, we move on to the third aspect of military reform.

Standardize military discipline. Existing core disciplines and regulations have been adapted for local conditions and are being vigorously promoted through the new training instructor and supervisor system.

Military flags, military songs, military ranks, military salutes, military uniforms, bugles, and so on... whatever could be copied was copied, and whatever could be modified was modified. The wise Lord Chen Mo, who was also the Commander-in-Chief Chen Mo, quickly and concisely finalized them one by one at this meeting.

"Does anyone have any comments or additions regarding the above arrangements?"

There were absolutely no objections, and the entire audience erupted in applause.

Over the past two years, Lord Chen Mo has accumulated unparalleled prestige in all aspects of domestic and foreign affairs and military construction through one incredible miracle after another. In the hearts of officers and citizens, he has become a guiding banner.

While the lord is still on a winning streak, we will inevitably do whatever the lord says!

(End of this chapter)