Of Mail and Men(by gamegeek2)
Chapter I: A Whole New World
Sleep in the saddle. Eat nothing but what may fall to your arrow. Drink naught but man's sweat, sheep's milk, and horse blood. Such is the life of a nomad at war, as he rides over the earth, the steady beat of hoof meeting earth sending shockwaves up your spine. Such is the life of a nomad at war. Or so my father says...
I suppose I should introduce myself. Aysaninu - "Horse Lord" or something like that. Not a very feminine name, but I don't care - I was raised as a son anyways. I was my father's only child before his accident in war (I think you can guess what happened). He raised me as a son, cutting off much time for teaching me more "female" tasks. I hated weaving, etc. when I tried it anyways. So I got full upbringing as a male, with few exceptions. And, as all steppe children learn, I could ride as soon as I could walk, a geldling when I could converse, and a fine warhorse (my family is noble) when I could shoot.
Though we are nobles, we live a very similar life, the only difference being tradition-based status and the subsequent benefits, which are relatively minor. In battle, we perform archery like the "commoners" (except the elite cataphracts, which we can't even yet afford to muster) and we bear the brunt of the shock combat (but not pursuit). We tread carefully, trying not to be haughty and abusive; animals (and gods) can make fools of us all.
However, one day, the Hina-Bayai rode into camp, saying that the apples of the "Baktrian" tree were ripe for plucking. He told stories of his visit to their kingdom, adorned with gold mines and beautiful pastures for gold and horses. Drooling, I packed the tent and our belongings in a whirlwind and had the horses saddled up and packed when Father came back from the hunt (a wolf-hunt; I'm good enough with the spear yet).
As we left, the flame of my nomad spirit became a bonfire. The world was mine now, flying over the land (albeit landing with hooves) on Hetairos (my horse, also named in Yavana). My long auburn hair whipped out behind me, and we made hundreds of li* before the heavy winds began to blow. News arrived that the advance guard had captured Chach; but this news was old, the messenger said (he got caught up in the mountains by some angry natives).
Winter - Camped in northern "Sogdiane", a Yavana-controlled land. Haven't met any Yavanas yet, though. Maybe I'll see a few in battle. All the locals say (in their weird tongue, which is strangely similar) is that the Yavanas used to have a Hina-Bayai called "Iskander" who conquered the land from the Yavana homeland (apparently over 5000 li away! I didn't know the world was that big!) to here. Now that he was dead, they said, the Yavanas split up into rival kingdoms and fought each other for power. They also told of the great "Seleukioi" (great, more Yavanas), who took the largest portion of the empire, along with the "Pahlava", "Indioi", "Ptolemaioi", "Hayasadan", and "Pontikoi". I kner that the Pahlava fought us in the past for lands around the Dahyu of the Alanna and Massakata, but we are no longer so big. That was before I came into the world, anyways. I had never heard of the others before. Also, I wonder if "Iskander" is "Alexandros" in Yavana? They sound quite similar, y'know.
Spring brings the siege of Marakanda. News arrived that we had captured Alexandreia-Eschate, another Baktrian settlement. Soon, however, before our engineers arrived, the Baktrians brought a large army and attacked. Too bad I couldn't fight (stupid melee training and 150-pound bows) but I could watch, as long as I didn't get myself killed (or too close to it).
The Yavana troops were a mix of natives and Yavanas. They looked funny...
...especially their heavy horse...
... but no horse archers! They're either really good or on some of that Chinese "opium" that I've heard about.
The latter proved to be correct: my dad + friends (he's the guy in the center above) absolutely demolished their general. They didn't seem to know how to fight us; we just poked them until they were bruised all over and gave them the 1-2. Sure, they did a number on some nobles, but there were alot of the bastards, and we don't have infinite arrows. So we figured, "Why sacrifice the "commoners" for no gain?" Damn large Baktrian army. Here are some sketches, colored in with Chinese pastels and watercolors:
With the local Sahiya dead in the battle (along with most of his troops), Marakanda was severely weakened. The engineers finally finished the ram (it was really overdone) and we captured the city without a real fight; we shot down their archers and walked in, and they all just ran back to their homes. Sogdiana was ours.
* Han distance measurement. 3 li ~ 1 mile
(DISCLAIMER: Apologies for anything that might offend you. I am not a female myself, just that all the other AARs are from male perspectives; I wanted to do something different.)
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