Chapter 3:Back to the Original Plan
267- 263 BC
Exercising victor's judgement in Ratae, Barae named his brother Sentata as chief of the Coritanes
Leaving a small force of levy spearmen in Ratae he took the remainder of his army south to strengthen it for his next move, which was to be execute his original plan of attack on the Dumnones settlement of Ictis. He sent envoys to the main continent to the south of Britannia in order to recruit any men willing to risk their lives for plunder and the thrill of battle.
Meanwhile in Camulosadae, Margorix set about improving the agriculture of the region, striving to make it the principle region of the island.
Margorix wanted to leave a legacy of great civic and agricultural improvements
In the spring of 265 BC, Barae's envoy returned to him at the head of a column of spearmen of the Belgae tribe, known as Batacorii. Barae was disappointed in the lack of men that came to him, however his envoy had witnessed a battle whilst in gaul. During this battle he was impressed by men that rode on horseback, so he suggested to Barae that he could maybe raise a unit of such men and test them against the Dumnones.
Barae saw the usefulness in a unit of warriors on horseback
In the Autumn of 265, Barae marched his refitted and replenished army west to attack the men of the Dumnones tribe under their chief Drustan. The army was able to cover much ground in a short space of time due to a lack of opposition from the natives, in fact there were many people in the region that counted themselves among the Casse.
Towards the end of Autumn, the Casse army laid siege to Ictis, hoping to add it to the lands they control.
The chief of the Dumnones tribe was trapped inside his capital
Barae offered surrender to the warriors inside, stating that he would let them live if they recognised him as their leader. He gave them 24 hours to surrender or he would commence building siege engines. The next day, the settlement of Ictis sat as though deserted.
Throughout the winter the Casse army camped outside the gates of Ictis, not letting a single grain of food enter. However, everything was not as simple as it would appear, food was also hard to come by for the besiegers. Barae made the decision to take the town by force, hoping that he could feed his army on any supplies inside.
Hoping to capture the supplies in the town, Barae gave the order to advance
Seeing no reason to change the tactics that captured Ratae, Barae once again had two rams constructed, one to attack the main gate and another to create a breach in the wall to the south of the gate. A deathly hush fell over the battlefield as the rams reached their targets.
The Casse army looks on as the rams start battering a way into the town
The enemy inside the town offered little in the way of resistance to the rams as only a few men were hit by missiles from behind the wall. Eventually the gates crashed open and warriors began to storm the breach. The heavy swordsmen who manned the ram were tasked with holding the breach until reinforcements arrived.
For a few dreadful minutes the Botroas were isolated inside Ictis
The second breach was very lightly defended, with only one unit of skirmishers trying to hold back the tide of warriors pouring into Ictis. After mere moments of fighting these men retreated further into the settlement, however the enemy chief Drustan charged the Casse at the breach with his chariots.
Drustan attempted to halt the Casse advance
After the initial shock of the chariot charged wore off, the Casse started cutting the men in the chariots down, one by one. Eventually Drustan was swarmed and killed by many warriors. He died fighting with a ferocity born of desperation as he valliantly tried to defend his homeland.
The Dumnone chief was surrounded and slain
After the battle Barae honoured Drustan with a feast
With the death of their war leader the Dumnone army was like a boat without a rudder and the battle for Ictis degenerated into many small fights. With victory almost in his grasp, Barae sent his horseback warriors into the breach to pursue any fleeing enemies. They immediately began cutting down the fleeing skirmishers who originally defended the secondary breach.
Barae was impressed by the effectiveness of cavlary in pursuing fleeing foes
At the gate, the Botroas held the breach effectively and with reinforcements started to push the defenders into the town.
The Botroas manning the first ram came up against some Uirodusios, but not even naked foes could hold them back
Whilst the warriors at the gate had to fight for every inch they moved forward, the men attacking the second breach were able to reach the town centre practically unopposed. Seeing an enemy behind them, the remaining Dumnone warriors retreated to make one final stand at the town centre.
The Casse attacking the breach in the wall were able to cover the ground between the wall and the town centre fairly quickly
With the defenders surrounded in the town square, Barae offered another chance to surrender. The proud warriors would not accept defeat however and so once again the Casse army advanced on their enemies.
The Dumnone slingers were able to cause relatively large casualties to the advancing Casse
Surrounded and outnumber all resistance was swiftly eliminated and the attacking army was victorious.
Barae was once again victorious
Barae was so impressed by the courage of the men of Ictis that he allowed them a greater deal of independence, setting them up as an allied tribe, as opposed to integrating them into the Casse.
Barae admired the courage of the Dumnone people
However, Barae was not stupid. He fixed it so that a man loyal to him was selected as the next chief. The chosen man, Cadyrn moc Vellocatos, was originally from the lands of the Coritanes, but after a dispute with another family in which his father and brothers were killed his mother took him to Ictis when he was 5. Growing up amongst the Dumnones he proved himself as a capable warrior on many occasions. However years earlier he had met Barae whilst on a errand to Camulosadae and quickly found himself admiring the young king of the Casse.
Barae selected a Coritane man as chief of the Dumnones, supposedly to symbolise the union between the three tribes
In the spring of 264, Barae's eldest son, Mowg, became a man. Joining his father outside Ictis he brought news of trouble in the area of Ratae. The former chief of the Coritanes, Maudamoros', son had returned from the lands of the brigantes at the head of a small but skilled army. Fearing that the son of his enemy would be able to drum up support amongst the local people, Barae sent Mowg northwards at the head of a small army. Whilst Mowg went north, Barae set his men to creating a proper road network between Ictis and Camulosadae.
In the Autumn of 264 BC Mowg completely crushed the army of Ryddon (Maudamoros' son). However, he suffered a wound which became infected and he spent the rest of the year confined to bed in Ratae.
The known world at the end of 264 BC
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