A fleet of ships came from the north, and saw the ships drifting in the blue sea. The white sails that were raised were all marked with diagonally staggered blue stripes.
Arik, who was reorganizing the team, was taken aback and then went ecstatic.
He told his men to retreat, and he couldn't help but mutter: "You can't wait until the agreed date? My brother."
Standing directly on the head of the wooden fortress, Arik recognized the most familiar pattern with a fixed look.
"No, how come there are so many people? Huh? Are there only thirty or forty ships? Where is that big ship?"
He hurriedly got off the wooden wall, hurriedly summoned the Ross soldiers under his command, and rushed to the north side of the island to rendezvous with the clansmen far away.
Soon, the soldiers stationed on the island saw a large group of people dressed in white.
It's so strange, who are they? Is it a tribe? Their clothes are so strange, but the sail patterns are not fake.
On the other hand, Harrodsson has seen his brothers on the shore from a distance.
He was wearing a striking white cloth gown, his belt was firmly fastened, and the blue stripes on his chest were clearly visible.
He quickly recognized Arik on the shore. This kid seemed to have a longer beard and was dressed as always, so the current Harrodsson put on neat new clothes, and he was a little bored with the previous image of his brothers.
Look at the people on the shore, their clothes are too casual, they are also disheveled, and the image is really a bit stretched.
The two natural small bays between Tombstone Island are already full of boats, and new ships have to find a beach as a landing site.
In the sight of Arik and his brothers, the long boats washed up on the beach and deliberately ran aground on the shallows.
They gathered the oars skillfully, and watching the movements, it was undoubtedly the Ross people.
A warrior with a shield and a white robe jumped off the boat with their leather and metal helmets, and one after another stretched out his hands to greet his people.
Look at them, actually show the symbol of Rose very uniformly on the body? Whose idea is this? Arik's eyes widened, he was already dazzled. It's good that they are from their own people, and this glimpse is really familiar and unfamiliar.
A familiar old guy walked enthusiastically holding his iron helmet, and behind him, there was a soldier carrying a banner in a high-profile manner.
Correct! It is a flag, except for the symbolic pattern of the Ross people, it is also marked with "Warrior II" in Luen text.
It's Harrodsson who came here? ! What a novelty.
Arik hurried over: "Uncle, you actually came. What's going on? These are our soldiers."
"What do you think?" Harrodsson smiled and opened his arms and asked deliberately: "This is my army. Are they strong?"
"They...look. They are really majestic."
Arik missed something rare. He didn't know what to say. Now the two armies of the Rus people are gathered together. One side is dressed in dark colors and various styles, and the other is beautifully and uniformly dressed. In contrast, they are clearly beautifully dressed. Noble.
Even if the newcomers obviously have a group of immature faces, they are by no means the most elite.
"Your clothes are really beautiful, what's the matter? What about my brother? There are still three thousand soldiers?" Arik asked hurriedly.
"There is indeed an army of three thousand people, and they are still behind." Harrodsson still wanted to continue to publicize, "Let's look at my people, and my banner."
Taking advantage of the opportunity of all the elites of Ross to be present, Haro Zuosen took the opportunity to introduce the major events that happened in his hometown, the unified dress, the flag team system, a large amount of material reserves, and the preview of this battle that Ross will win. The mind of the garrison of Tombstone Island.
With so many news stuffed in an instant, Arik's mind was a little confused: "Oh, we are the first flag team, so we also have flags? Can we wear the same clothes as you?"
"Of course." Haro Zuosen immediately ordered to the left and right. After a while, a new banner was carried by the soldiers and trot all the way.
"Hold it, this is your banner. Arik, your brother Rurik is the commander of this war, and you are the most important flag captain. You and me, our commander of the most elite fighters, must be this one. The backbone of the decisive battle. Are you ready?"
Looking at his banner, Arik didn't really feel much. It was a very novel thing after all. If he insisted on saying it, he felt that the flag with a ferocious animal depicting the symbol of Rose on the flagpole was really beautiful.
The neatly-dressed warriors of the Second Banner of the Warriors took off their long shirts, just like the brothers on the island. There is no clear distinction between sloppy and dirty, because if given the opportunity, people will put on new clothes as soon as possible, and the old will be discarded on the spot.
Everyone scrambled to try on these beautiful robes, but it was disturbing to think that the enemy's blood would splash on the robes.
But some smart guy pointed out: "We don't have to worry about the enemy's blood staining our robes. Can we just wash it off with soap?"
On the 27th of July in the Julian calendar, a larger fleet appeared on the northern waters of the island.
At the same time, the small Tombstone Island was already overcrowded, and it was not only more than a thousand Ruth fighters and 500 Slav fighters, that it carried.
The messenger sent to the east delivered news of the war, and received a enthusiastic response from the Shilla Fort and part of the response from the Novgorod region
Three hundred more Slavic men arrived on Tombstone Island and received several days of training. There are also a hundred immigrants from Ross who settled in Shilla Fort to respond to the call, but these people are generally too young and immature.
Everyone is eager to attack the Gotland people and solve the problem once and for all.
The Ross people are not monolithic on the issue of Gotland. Of course, there are a large group of people eager for revenge, and a large group of people who are loyal to fighting for the honor of fighters. Of course, whether it is for revenge or for honor, they cannot hide everyone's respect for the rich. Gotland's desire to plunder wealth.
Now, the army of three thousand people has finally been assembled!
The Aphrodite and all the cargo ships were fortunately anchored near the sea. The cargo on the ship did not move, and all the personnel boarded ashore in small boats.
The long voyage against the wind came to an end, and it was really hard to live in the boat, especially the female fighters, who had to endure some additional difficulties.
At noon that day, the fleet basically completed the landing, and the small Tombstone Island became a huge military camp with more than 3,000 people.
Not only the people, but also twenty robust reindeer, who landed on the island together with the owner of the deer breeder. There are actually some pullable two-wheeled trolleys supporting these people. They are used to transport those "silver scale breastplates". One trolley carries five sets of armor. This is how Rurik planned.
Tombstone Island was filled with people everywhere on the flat land. They began to build tents and wooden sheds on a large scale. Fortunately, there are many trees on the island, which can withstand people's destruction.
A large number of new clothes were shipped to the shore in packages, and on this day, the new clothes were distributed according to the schedule.
Almost instantly, the Ross army changed clothes and colors.
The Warriors first and second flag teams enjoyed nearly 1,200 robes.
Although the shooting flag team only got one hundred pieces (mostly they were worn by the Corvin Archers in the end), the children in the team had already unified their outfits, and their outfits are now all sewn with blue cloth strips.
The rest of the clothes were basically handed over to the Slavic flag team.
Rurik also had to accept a new piece of good news, that is, the strength of the Slavic flag team, which has now swelled to 800 men. He didn't know whether to be ecstasy or worry. The Slavs would not help. The first five hundred people had undergone two months of Viking-style training. They also followed the daily life, physical fitness and physical fitness of a Rose man. The technical and tactical level, as well as the key organization degree, have surpassed the tribesmen in their hometown.
Now there are three hundred "Recruit Eggs". The Slavic flag team has a large number of people. It's fighting power...
Rurik had trouble saying anything in front of Medvedt. When he learned of the three hundred men who had come recently, they were basically cut off from the manor where they were, and they came to sacrifice to the Ross people, which is equivalent to saying that these guys are threatening. Rurik: We fight for the Ross people, and we must settle down after victory.
They are neither slaves nor serfs. They currently have nothing, and it is impossible to be free farmers. Rurik knew what these guys wanted to do, that is, after the battle, for example, they went to Fort Shilla, took farm tools and seeds distributed by the Ross people, opened up new farmland, and became tax collectors sheltered by the Ross people for generations.
Only at this point, Rurik laughed at himself with a wry smile: I thought I was giving benefits? It can only be said that you had a terrible life in your hometown.
After all, the strength of the Ross people has surpassed Rurik's estimation.
The huge army was dressed in uniform on a large scale. As Duke of Ross, Otto, seeing the huge army of his tribe, and the densely packed ships docking near Tombstone Island, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep at all, patronizing and chewing. He drank the fish and the treasured spirits, and laughed at the bright prospect of victory in the battle.
Although there is no runoff on the surface of Tombstone Island, it is connected to the continental shelf by itself with hundreds of small islands around it.
After all, the Slavs are more advanced than the Russians in agriculture. Medvedt who landed on the island really didn't want to take a boat to the east coast of the stream to flow into the sea to transport fresh water, so he led people to dig a hole on the spot, and the result was about eight meters, stunned. Shallow fresh water was dug. In fact, it still has a bit of salty taste, and this salty taste has faded to the point that it is hard to notice if it is not good.
The flag captains gathered in one place, and everyone immediately reached an agreement on the future battle.
Without him, the entire battle plan was made by Leurik.
No one questioned Rurik's plan in this battle, just because the child made a simple sand table directly on a wooden board and made a simple sand table from the soil available everywhere, allowing everyone to see the macro battlefield in shock.
The most shocking one is actually Arik. He had some objections. This old brother actually marked out the places he hadn't been. Is this a miracle? At least it was due to the knowledge that Odin bestowed on his brother.
Rurik more accurately shows the relative position of the Aland Islands (location of Tombstone Island) and Gotland, the exact shape of Gotland, and the location of Saarema Island, Estonia, the Gulf of Riga, and Courland. , The geographical structure of many places is unheard of. I don't want to come here to describe them indiscriminately, they are real.
Still need the army to take a detour like the war three years ago to start offensive from the south of the island?
The Ross people have dealt with the Gotland too much in the past few decades. The two sides basically started fighting when they met, and the chances of getting along with each other in peace were minimal.
Everyone knows that in the northern part of the island, a group of local families have built some low earth and wooden walls one after another. The purpose is not to defend the settlement, but to prevent the army from landing.
Is it inappropriate to land from the north?
If a team of several hundred people landed forcibly, the enemy's resistance would inevitably be very fierce.
However, the Ross people gathered more than 3,000 people this time, and their weapons, equipment, and food were relatively sufficient. What trouble could be encountered when launching a strong offensive. Take it for granted, there really shouldn't be any trouble, but...
Everyone actually prefers to directly hit areas where the enemy's defenses are dense, and it is best to fight a decisive battle early and solve the problem as a package. But is this appropriate?
Fighting directly in the south, Rurik learned from the surrenders and Saxons that Visby, the largest settlement in the so-called Gotland, was located in the middle of the island's west bank.
That is the enemy's biggest settlement. As long as it is defeated, the war against Gotland will be won. Don't the enemy know this? So the decisive battle must revolve around Visby.
Gotland is a long and slender "eggplant" going north-south. It seems that it is enough for the fleet to directly attack Visby by the sea.
But wait a minute! The amphibious landing operations carried out by troops in any era have extremely tested the quality of commanders and soldiers.
Rurik didn't think that the Rus people had good quality in this respect. He held the military power of the entire Rus Principality.
The army must complete the landing safely, even if it is time to grind.
He chose the land of landing on the eastern coast of the island, relying on the relief of the terrain there, and secondly, it was not the main residential area of the Gotland Islanders.
A phased plan for future operations has been drawn up.
Rurik made clear provisions:
The army gathered on the sea, the long ship guarded all the big ships, and the fleet sailed to the south.
There are five ships as the vanguard. They are resident veterans of Tombstone Island. They know the southern waters very well, and they also shoulder the important task of being a leader.
After the fleet set sail, it did not stop at Saarema Island and the European land coast in the southeast. The fleet walked in a large arc, bypassing the possible northern defensive point of the Gotland, and directly established a landing field on the eastern coast of the waist of the island.
After completing the landing of all personnel and materials, the fleet made corrections, and then went straight to Visby by land, seeking a decisive battle with the Gotland.
"Such a plan, we must be able to do it?" Otto needs his son's affirmative answer.
"Of course~www.mtlnovel.com~you...how do you think the Gotlanders will take the initiative to fight us? Maybe they will run away when they see our army." Arik said disdainfully.
"Then let them run away! Flee to the south? I happened to be hit by Olegin and the others. Run north? Are they crazy? The Gotlanders have no choice. They surrender immediately or fight with us."
"Let's fight a decisive battle! The decisive battle is the best!" Otto clenched his fists, and all the people who gathered together clenched their fists, including the newest member of Mellaren, Heliger.
On Tombstone Island, everyone completely unified their thoughts.
The decisive battle in the wilderness is very necessary, although the information provided by the Saxons is that the residents of Visby did not build a wooden fortress, making the siege without obstacles, and the unbridled siege and destruction were not what Rurik wanted.
The best result he expected was to wipe out the enemy's viable power on a large scale on the battlefield, so that the enemy's remnant forces cut off the idea of resistance, and signed the name of the city with the Rus, and then handed over his hoarded wealth consciously. come out. This is much more orderly than the robbery of the army! Besides, when the army robbed it, Rurik didn't think that his men would take out the spoils obediently and distribute them by himself.