Chapter 117
Chapter 117
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: Battle of Crécy Plains (2)
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At those words, General Patton looked at me with a beaming smile and asked for my opinion.
"So, what does Brigadier General Jaeger think? I'm sure you've come up with a brilliant plan to lead our Imperial forces to victory."
"This is the strategy I believe offers the highest chance of success and the most efficiency on this battlefield right now."
With that, I placed wooden pieces representing the Franco Republic and Reich Empire armies in their appropriate positions on the map of the Crécy Plains.
I positioned the archers, crossbowmen, and mages at the very front of the formation, infantry right behind them, and knights at the rearmost.
This kind of troop deployment was a defensive formation focused on holding ground—a classic setup for a smaller force facing a larger enemy, which might seem passive at first glance.
"My proposed arrangement puts ranged attackers at the forefront, like these wooden pieces here, with infantry and knights held in reserve at the rear. Since we won't strike first, the enemy will have no choice but to come to us."
Why? Because their morale was already crawling in the dirt after the excommunication scandal. If we waited for them to guarantee a tactical victory...
Even without our scouts spreading rumors, their own troops would whisper that the high-ranking officers of the Franco Republic were too scared to attack.
Add the excommunication's effects on top of that? Rumors like this were bound to spread.
'In the Hattin Forest, Deus granted a miracle to Brigadier General Jaeger's brigade, slaughtering the Franco Republic's 10,000-strong army. Now, Duke Philippe de Valois has been excommunicated and fears falling to hell if he loses, so he can't even attack.'
Hearing that, Duke Valois would curse me and want to tear his hair out, but what could he do?
That was their reality. If it pissed them off that much, they should charge in and win fair and square.
"On top of that, the Franco Republic infantry's morale is already in the gutter, so their leadership knows pushing them forward would make fighting impossible. That leaves their knights—the one force they can confidently lead with—as their first choice."
The reason—no, the one unavoidable cause forcing the Republic's knights to the front—was simple.
To restore the infantry's rock-bottom morale, the Franco Republic command's best option was...
'Show the infantry their knights in action, planting the conviction that victory is possible.'
That's why, despite knowing Major General Pompadour got crushed in Hattin Forest, they'd likely make the same choice.
And the other generals all nodded in agreement.
General Patton especially gazed at me with a grin I couldn't quite read, his voice bright like a kid who'd just unwrapped a new toy.
"So, the infantry acts as the anvil, and we send our knights to hammer their flanks? Like how you smashed the side of those Ludwig-led light cavalry."
If we could time it perfectly and drive our Reich Empire knights into their flank in wedge formation during their charge...
I'd stake my right arm that no matter how many knights they had, they'd be wiped out in one blow.
The problem? We're not waiting on their flank ahead of time. We'd launch from the rear at just the right moment—a feat most commanders wouldn't even dream of attempting.
Because any enemy commander worth his salt knew a charging knight's flank was weakest—unless they were as dim as that Dark Independence Army's Mudaguchi.
Spotting our intent, they'd alter their charge path.
To truly hit their flank as General Patton suggested, we'd need the moment they fully formed their wedge and couldn't pivot anymore.
In other words, when they were 10 to 300 meters from our infantry—mere seconds, about three minutes—we'd swing wide from the rear, feigning an infantry strike, then attack.
A parlor trick impossible for all but the elite.
But our general here? In Romance of the Three Kingdoms terms, he matched Lü Bu or Guan Yu in martial prowess and cavalry command.
If we held two or three times, we'd crush their knights for sure.
Still, in this scenario, the expeditionary commander personally leading knights would seem wildly unorthodox.
Yet in medieval and early modern battles...
Commanders usually oversaw from the rear, but leading key cavalry charges was fairly common too.
If he could nail the flank, it'd be a killer plan.
But if asked why bother with such risks...
"General Patton could easily lead the knights to strike their flank. But to show these fools—who still haven't learned after the Holy See's excommunication—the miracle of Deus, I think staging our infantry holding off their knights would be better. Since infantry alone can't stop a knightly charge, dismount about 1,000 knights and place them at the vanguard."
The real answer? No need for such gambles.
These romantic-brained Franco fools would charge straight at us.
Our infantry, spears planted in tight formation, could blunt most charges.
Plus, we'd add stakes or earthen ramparts to make it even tougher.
When their knights targeted our infantry, military doctrine's best counter was our knights smashing their infantry.
"Ahem, then the remaining 6,000 knights can hit their infantry straight on."
But General Patton was this army's commander, so flattering him a bit while boosting our morale with some theatrics seemed wise.
"In other battles, ambushes work, but this is an open plain. Right before combat, the Franco forces will provoke arguments to convince their troops and nobles we're heretics. That's when you, sir, should mount up and deliver a fierce, manly speech to shatter their morale."
The other generals' faces twisted slightly.
It wasn't hard to see why. General Patton treated everyone—from starred generals to grunts—with the same rough, macho vibe.
His every word was crude, so condemning the Republic would likely unleash curses beyond imagination.
But with excommunication as our ace, crude, easy-to-grasp insults would pierce their soldiers' ears, crushing morale.
Mix in anxiety over dismissal, frustration, and rage toward us, and even after a failed first charge, their commanders would...
Keep slamming into us head-on, knowing the losses but cowed by furious knights—like gamblers chasing losses, convinced the next bet wins.
Explaining knight handling would be ideal, but our general rose through cavalry mastery alone.
Meddling in details would just earn nagging, so I shut my mouth and ended my presentation.
My pitch dominated the room, and we finalized the plan: During initial taunts, General Patton unleashes fiery personal barbs.
Then, crossbowmen and ranged troops blunt the knights' momentum, infantry holds, and our Reich Empire knights trample the Franco infantry.