By the historian Decurtius,
by the grace of God Count of Occitania.
About 101 days within the third era.
Mundus Postquam Fallenem Imperium *The world after the Fallen Empire
Tome II
Although from the very beginning war seemed inevitable, the first engagements were mainly fought by Hospitallo-Fallen forces. Small contingents fought in a rather unorganized fashion for the control of "crafting rights" over locally administrated villages. The very rural culture and relatively low number of Occitans back then, made them into secondary figures in the early days of the conflict. That being said, even in the very beginning of the war, the Empire forces were considered spread thin, in regard of the immense territory they had to cover.
As the dust of the first battles settled, it became clear that the tribes from the north, ironically held the southern part of the Empire's territories. And its center of gravity moved north.
As the villages started to fall either to the old imperial administration of the Fallen satraps or the newly formed Hospitallo-Occitan Alliance, the southmost part of the steppes became the real battlefield, while the northern part, with the Tulbuk village for center, was starting to be viewed as the "real" Fallen capital, from an Occitan perspective. The armies of the early Third Era were mostly composed of commoners and farmers. Pressed into service, theses poorly equipped troops tried to get an early advantage in a taxing war against a foe used to its land and considered to have a heavier capita count than the Alliance. History left us with some diaries of the first days of the war. This one was found in Dusturil, by a local trader after the successful assault of the imperial troops over the village. A certain Ferguson then wrote: "...they then handed me an old rag, a hood to the colors of my people, a fork and a bag that I later filled with stones. I told them we would not win against the imperial armies with forks and rocks. They told me that if we did not, the imperial armies would massacre the men, women and children of my village. I believed them."
It is also true that theses first encounters were very bloody, even brutish, considering the low experience of most troops, even though screened by veterans. Traditionally, the Fallen Empire relied on large formations of light bowmen, the latter using the highest ground for cover and ultimately falling back when engaged hand-to-hand. While not killing in a single attack, the attack-retreat scheme proved to exhaust most foes before they could even reach the enemy lines. By fighting defensively, the Empire saved both on men and equipment. Your servant's own great grandfather then wrote: "We ran toward their lines, arrows covered the sky dark, men were falling at my side as the officers and I yelled to push further. I received an arrow in the leg, then another killed the man next to me. We reached their line, killed a few, only to realize that most of us had died, when suddenly from my right, a women with blazing hair shot me twice; once in the knee, the other time in the stomach. The soldiers who mended my wounds after finding me on the battlefield later on, told me that we did win, and yet, did not seem happy for it. I praise chadz I survived that day." - Decurtius XIV at the battle of Dusturil.
As a matter of fact, the Hospitallo-Occitan Alliance always more or less relied on heavy infantry. Although it is clear that to some extent, the Hospitallers were, and still are, more flexible in that regard, the Occitan infantry mainly consisted of two-handers, as duels were the traditional way to solve conflicts in our culture, or as a certain lord Shinock XI once said: "A man is judged by the worth of his sword. If he holds it high, it will hold him high in esteem too". That tactical and cultural trait lead to eventual problems when met on the battlefield by a superior archer force. That being said, it came to a breaking point after the first battle of Tulbuk, of wich we shall speak in another tome.
Before that point, the perduring conflict eventually dragged attention from outside, as the Empire, never was challenged on its own territories. Our Alliance then came into contact with some other nations, most of which were of north-eastern calradian culture, and a few others from further west and south, past the "great barrier". With those of up north, we noticed we had much in common, in the ways of culture, as they too had songs and tales from the Second Era, relating places and stories common to both people. One of the most common is a song. Although the names and words vary from a place to another, the tale is common. "La Chanson de Sangredent" in Occitan, which can more or less be traduced by Bloody Thooth' song in northeastern language. It tells the tale of a famous warrior of the Second era, but only fragments remains, as the various versions have different segments: "... as he walked among the shadows, with the strength of a hundred men, hopeless his enemies, helpless his allies, as his black armor brought death and despair..." -Anonymous
Still, even tough they shared a lot in the way of culture, the men of the north claimed some ancient bound with the Empire, and these Free Companies of Calradia declared war on an unsuspecting Hospitallo-Occitan Alliance. Wary and concerned, now that the balance of the war dramatically shifted toward the enemy, the Alliance turned its eyes to the south.
END OF TOME II