THROUGH STRIFE AND FAMINE AND WAR AND PEACE,

[agogemod]

WHO? Everybody!
WHAT? Fight in the historic Battle of Valmy.
WHEN? September 20th, 1792. Valmy.
ANYTHING ELSE? Violence, as always. Please warn in subject lines for anything beyond physical violence, and move to a personal journal if things go beyond PG-13.

it'll be fine;

between sainte-menehould and valmy,
1792: revolutionary france.

read the valmy setting infopage

MISSION OBJECTIVE

Win the day!

Historically, Valmy was an unexpected victory for France that really kicked off the French Revolution. Make sure this holds true! Don't let the Prussians break through French lines, take either Dumouriez or Kellerman, and survive.

WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO GOETHE

The life of Goethe was saved by those who volunteered to keep him from the clutches of Regency assassination, though it was a near thing; they were not able to leave completely stealthily, and had to run back to French lines as dawn broke.

Most important after saving the life of Goethe, they were able to apprehend and capture the Regency spy. She is in holding, restrained in a tent hidden far behind enemy lines. You can speak with her, if you wish.



SHARPSHOOTING

Famously, Kellerman had his troups climb up a windmill and the nearby farmhouse to shoot down at the valley below and the Prussians attempting to run through it from the cover of the forest. Take out as many Prussians as you can. Alternatively, if you're not much for shooting but you're quick fingered and organized, you can help reload the shooter's muskets, hand them supplies, more musket balls and powder, fresh muskets when one of theirs becomes jammed, or simply keep the rain out of their eyes.

Battery

You hear that? It's canonfire! Cannons take at least two people to load, aim and fire, making it a steady process requiring teamwork and balance. You want to go as fast as possible so the attacking army doesn't get right up to your nose, after all. Be careful! Don't drop a cannonball on your foot.

COMBAT

Get into the thick of it! There's less armor in this era, more quick jabs with sabers and bayonets, and your pistol can only hold a single bullet at a time. Unless you've got time to reload, you're better off just throwing the thing aside after firing a shot-- you'll see this tactic is popular among troops on either side, not wanting to be weighed down by a now-useless hunk of metal. Horses are not uncommon either, though they're largely reserved for officers who are more than happy to reach down and stab you while they ride by… if they don't just run you over in the first place. And did I mention the cannonfire occasionally making the ground explode into huge chunks? Try to avoid those.

MEDICAL

As always, wounded soldiers require assistance. The medical tent has a steady supply of the wounded, many with injuries from cannonfire, where limbs have been blown off almost in their entirety, and blood gushes readily from damaged major arteries. Act quick, and don't be afraid to, uh, amputate. Nobody else is.

STEALTH

There is reason to believe some Regency spies are undercover as French officers, and intend to kill either Kellerman or Dumouriez. Stay near the generals and protect them... without letting on. Capturing the spies alive would be a serious boon for COST, so if you could manage not to kill the spy, please? ...Please?

INFORMATION is worth its weight in gold

The way these battles work is reliant on the generals sending information down to their troops from the hills they're using to overlook the fighting. Fast riders or runners are essential for this task, and it affords you an opportunity to be near either general should you need to protect them against spying. Or maybe the runners are the spies? Who knows. Regardless, try to preserve the flow of information, and fix any tangles that may appear. If a runner with vital orders gets attacked, back them up; if they get killed, replace them; if they disappear… figure out what happened?

cannon killer squad

For the fast, stealthy, and / or magically gifted, Takatora has set up a 'Cannon-killer' plan, intending to weaken Prussian artillery through magic, speed, and the application of giant hammers. It's risky-- you'll have to get pretty close to the Prussian lines-- but it's worthwhile if you can weaken them even a little.

I'm going down I'm yelling timber

At some point late in the day, just when the worst of the rain has finally stopped, Prussian artillery finally gets aim good enough to send a volley of cannonballs straight at the windmill and farmhouse on the hill. There's a reason this strategy was considered a bold move; stationary targets are never safe in wartime. The windmill comes down in an explosive crash, and the farmhouse begins to collapse. Were you caught in the crossfire? Are you coming to pull bodies out of the rubble? Do what you can to recoup from this loss.

MORALE

When all else fails, keep spirits high. This battle will be impossible without enthusiastic troops committed to the cause. Give rousing speeches! Inspire people! Sing a song! Do whatever you need to.

read the valmy setting infopage

NAV NETWORK LOGS OOC PLURK DISCORD

Comments

[courtintrigue]

This is not the first time Morrigan has been corralled into an adventure she would rather not have. She knows none of the other three who were given the assignment, and the young man she is partnered with for this is... not exactly inspiring her. Trust, she has learned, is a layered thing, and she barely has any to spare for this.

Stiffly, she lets out an audible sigh. "I doubt anyone would call me an optimist, but perhaps you should avoid leading any armies. Filling others with confidence is not your strength."

She must hope fact-gathering and observation are, she supposes. Perhaps he has an eye for detail, as unfortunate as that turn of phrase seems in this case.

"You feel certain of this author's location?"

Au author, of all things. Not a commander, a renowned strategist, a king, another spy. All she can think is that his life better prove valuable to the larger-than-life cause COST attempts to sell.

[trample]

"I used to be much better at this. Trust me." Okay, that last sentence was given with a lick of sarcasm, but there was truth in the first. "At some point, I was a squad leader. Maybe not the best, and the rank was certainly impromptu...and short lived. Ahem."

He was not about to mention how the majority of his squad had been eaten alive just after their first time in combat. Even if the truth of the matter was that there was no chance of their success to begin with, it still would have left an awful impression on someone he was hoping to get along with. And from the look of things, he was doing an awful job at that already.

"Certain enough." His nose was in a map, notes littered on the side detailing the very vague location they were supposed to be making their way to. "It's near the center rear. That's the safest location to be in, so it makes sense to put a civilian back there. Surrounded by a fence, making it easier to pick out...but also paired up with another tent."

He looks up at the woman (did he even know her name?), then sheepishly looks back down at the map.

"So it'll be a coin toss whichever one he's actually in. We can't actually go inside, that'd be a huge screw up on our part. So I suppose we'll both have to sit around all night, watching and waiting for someone suspicious to try and force their way in."

He pauses, then starts walking, initiating the operation without so much as a "mission start." While they made their way to enemy territory, he speaks up if only to take advantage of the short time they'll have to talk. Once they've infiltrated, spoken words will be sparse.

"...with that out of the way, I can't help but wonder. Is that cane...stick, just for show? You seem to have a much better pair of legs than I do."

He does a little kick with his stump to make a point. Maybe she'd laugh? Who knows.

[courtintrigue]

Rank impromptu and short-lived? He does not exactly argue his case well either, in her opinion, but for the moment she bites her tongue on asking just how well he instilled confidence in those he once led. The last thing she wants is to invite his life story; she has had quite enough of being forced to work with others and being forced to get to know them.

"Waiting around until someone seems overly suspicious is a waste of time." Perhaps they should have been given more information about each other when they were first pulled together for this task as well. "Especially when I can actually go inside without tipping our hand."

She pauses, thoughtful.

"Or, at the very least, eavesdrop on the enemy until someone lets relevant information slip. I am a mage, you see." She finds no humor in his illustration of how whole her legs are in comparison, but she is capable of finding little humor in any of this at the moment and she has to wonder why he was chosen for a mission where stealth is a priority. "I am a mage, you see." She taps the staff with her fingers as she more or less falls into step with him. "The staff is not necessary for spells, but it serves as a point of focus. And is handy when enemies get too close, though tonight we would benefit from just that. I can shapeshift into a raven and they will never suspect me."

The Regency spy may be better prepared than the average soldier for abilities like hers, but she has been given little idea of what to expect.

[trample]

Magic! The very idea would have overwhelmed him as a young kid. Now, however, there's an easy, quiet nod of acceptance, only noting the facts and barely questioning their honesty. He certainly agrees that it would be a waste to be idle, any second spent here was one less second to spend in the haystacks, sleeping. Though, after some short reflection, he does find himself with a curious thought. One that he, at the next opportunity to speak, finds himself voicing.

"I don't suppose you can...shapeshift me a fancy new leg, can you?" Perhaps he was asking too much. His tone was certainly more kind and fair than it was before, though that's likely due to his awkwardness no longer burdening him. He had quite the capacity to focus once an operation began.

"I'll leave the use of your magic to you. It's your power, after all. Best to use it how you see fit. Though you make me wonder now how many ravens I've must've seen in the past that weren't ravens at all. Spare few, I imagine."

This is all just smalltalk on the way to the target area, through which they both manage to find themselves behind in a (luckily!) shadier part of the grounds. From what he could tell, the guards nor the soldiers themselves were talking any walks around back, so here they could figure out the next avenue to take -- simply wait around between the two tents, tentatively, or to take a little more initiative and go ahead with her plan. Depending on the extent of her capabilities, Eren himself wouldn't have minded being turned into a bird. Caw caw, motherfucker.

[courtintrigue]

She absolutely expected the next thing out of his mouth to be a question about shapeshifting, but she never could have predicted the one he asks. Somewhat startled by it, she gives him a long look.

"Is that how it works in your experience? I only shift into other living forms, some of them considerably less suited for stealth." She pauses for a moment. "But even if that was not the case we would both find it very unpleasant for you to walk on me."

Her curiosity about his familiarity with shapeshifting is genuine, but so is her distaste-tinged honesty at the thought of shifting into something inanimate to be used in such a way.

"As long as we agree that it would be foolish to wait around for what could be hours on end, I will take wing and listen," she goes on as they slow to a stop. Her eyes are more on their surroundings than they are on him, her voice low. If she knew what Goethe looked like -- a complaint worth bringing up to the Commander later, perhaps -- she could have them off to a much speedier start, but surely one of these soldiers will let a valuable nugget of information slip so they do not waste so much time. "Should I have reason to believe I am in danger I will caw twice in quick succession."

What he will be able to do for her at that point is debatable, but she is not enough of a fool to go in without letting him know how he can expect her to communicate.

[trample]

"Have at it, then." His voice is measured, but his expression and body language hints at an otherwise curious demeanor. He's really intent on seeing this whole magic business through. "I'll be sure to keep an ear out for...birds."

If it were up to him, he would take an owl over a crow, but it wasn't his choice to make here. Regardless, he waved her farewell in way that doesn't quite look like he's entirely into it and quickly takes a seat afterwards on a nearby box, making sure to look as inconspicuous as can be.

From past experience, he knows that the best way to hide is to do so in plain sight, and so confidently that no one bothers questioning your presence at all. He had, in fact, been taken into COST's custody (COSTody?) quite literally in the middle of doing exactly that. The realization that he was going from playing enemy soldier in one world to another was enough to make him sigh -- maybe that's what caught the patrol's eye.

It was a trite conversation, the kind that doesn't last long between the two, nor in their memory. Eren affirmed to the suspicious, burly fellow that he was only here for a late night appointment with the author, and not wanting to make much of a fuss, the patrolman was more than ready to leave almost immediately. Before that, however, Eren interjected, risking being caught, but at the same time taking an opportunity that would otherwise pass him by.

"I was wondering. The reason I'm sat out here to begin with is that I don't actually know which of these two he's in."
"Huh? Ain't it obvious? The left one. I'll be off, then."

Now alone, Eren was positively brimming with energy -- though, that was all in his own head. Outwardly, he was as edgy as ever. There was a certain nagging at the back of his mind as he did this, but he brought both hands to his mouth and did a pitch perfect bird whistle. The kind any real bird would shrug off as phony immediately, but one that any phony bird would recognize as something worth bringing to their attention.