WARFARE UPON THE PLAINS of TURIA

WARFARE UPON THE PLAINS of TURIA

Part I

It is a sad and curious fact of history that often the strangest things will bring men to war. There are, of course, the classic causes, such as greed for power, land and wealth. Then there are those reasons which tug at the pride of valiant men, causing their blades to thirst for blood, such as revenge, and the seeking of glory. Of course, many a conflict has been fought wherein its true cause has been obscured by time and legend. It is just such a conflict that we will discuss in this segment of Studies in Scarlet.

THE SETTING

It happened on the Plains of Turia, also known as the Southern Plains. The area is well watered and temperate, carpeted with vast stretches of green grass. To the west loom the peaks of the Ta-Thassa, beyond which lay the Thassa. Far, far to the east and north lay the meandering length of the river Cartius, whose life springs from the mighty Voltai. It is upon this soil that the Tuchuks make their home, along with the other three tribes of Wagon Peoples, the Kattai, Paravacci and Kassar. They are nomads, roaming the land in large, sturdy wagons while tending countless herds of bosk. As it happens, upon the land which they claim as theirs sits the city of Turia, large and resplendent, decadent and powerful.

                                       Powers upon the plains

Turia

While Ar was busy building an empire by steel, to the south, another city was building one by gold. A city of the middle latitudes of Gor’s southern hemisphere, Turia has, in fact, been called the Ar of the South. Indeed, while somewhat smaller in size, she is comparable to Ar in opulence and riches. Her status as the gateway between North and South made her the center of a sprawling economic empire, with caravans and trading keeps found in nearly every part of Gor.

She had never fallen, and had not been under siege in at least a century. Turia’s military was patterned after the cities of the north, with the exception of a large tarn cavalry, which she did not have. Her infantry were easily recognized by their large oval shields and at least a percentage of them were experienced in man to man combat with the Wagon Peoples from the games of Love War, held once a year upon the Plains of a Thousand Stakes. The crown jewel of Turia’s military force, however, was her large and impressively trained tharlarian cavalry.

Naturally, the two peoples regarded each other with disdain. The Turians considered the Tuchuks rather barbaric and uncivilized, while the latter considered the Turians cowardly vermin who had to hide behind walls. Nonetheless, a status-quo existed between them, with each silently recognizing the other’s place and necessity upon the Plains. That’s not to say that there weren’t conflicts from time to time. Tuchuk raiders were all too happy to relieve caravans bound to and from Turia of their valued cargoes, and raiders from the city were happy to reciprocate the gesture by attacking stray wagons. Though skirmishes were common, it never seriously occurred to either side to seek the absolute destruction of the other. That would change in a single, devastating moment.

There happened to be a very rich merchant in Turia who was obsessed with obtaining a certain item possessed by Tuchuks. Here is where truth becomes somewhat obscured. While we know that the merchant coveted the item, we do not know for sure what it was, why he coveted it or whatever became of it. Legends and rumors abound, however. Some say it was a sphere of pure gold, some say it was an egg of sorts, and some have even said it was a possession of Priest Kings which he sought to procure for his own enrichment. None of these can be confirmed. We do not know that Saphrar, the merchant in question, was willing to spend a great deal of gold to obtain it. He was also willing to bring his city to war over it. At any rate, his greed set into motion a chain of events that would tip the balance of power on the Plains of Turia.

Tuchuks

Nearly every facet of their culture fosters a spirit of competition, resulting in a people who exude physical and mental toughness. The life of a nomad is not an easy one, and the Tuchuks’ predatory disposition reflects their way of living.

They do not have a caste of Warriors, as is known in the cities. Instead, each male Tuchuk learns to wield the weapons of his people: the horn bow, the bola and the saddle knife known as the quiva. He is expected to know how to fight and fight well. In fact, he is not accepted fully into his culture until he has distinguished himself in some act of bravery, earning a "courage scar."

While none of the Wagon Peoples operate a standing army, they are surprisingly well organized when the call to action arises. Each man knows where he stands in the military organizational structure, and is quick to take his place there.

THE MEN

Kamchak: This leader of the Tuchuks has come to represent the stuff legends are made of. He served some years as a mercenary guardsman in Ar, where he learned to use a short sword. No doubt this also acquainted him with the tactics commonly used by the northern cities, as well as even Turia herself. As with most of his people, he had a fondness for gambling, which would have a telling affect on his strategies in his war with Turia.

Ha-Keel: Once of Ar, this solemn tarnsman was forced to flee after committing murder over a woman he loved. Winding up in Port Kar, he became a mercenary captain, commanding over a thousand tarns in the campaign against the Tuchuks. He is said to be a valiant man with one of the surest blades on the face of all Gor. There is confirmation of his fighting in only one other campaign as a mercenary, that being one in or around Tor. It is assume that there were many more that have not been recorded.

Sarprhar: Once a perfumer from Tyros, he was banished from that city for thievery. He too ended up in Port Kar, and that is presumably where he met Ha-Keel for the first time. It is unknown where he got the funds to become established in Turia, but his penchant for stealing may have had something to do with it.

Phanias Turmus: The annals of history have not always been completely fair in portraying the Ubar of Turia. He is often painted as a scared, opportunistic, mouse of a man who was thoroughly at the mercy of the Merchants. To be sure, he did not have the larl-like presence of a Marlenus or Samos, but it must be admitted that his pudgy little body contained a shrewd and calculating mind. He was able to foster a climate of economic prosperity over many, many years. That he was able to weather the fall of his city with his ubarship intact, speaks much of his competence, and of the confidence his own citizens had in his leadership.

A BATTLE SUMMARY

The silence of a rather typical night among the wagons is shattered by the sounding of bosk horns and the thunderous hooves of high tharlarian as elements of Turian cavalry strike at the edge of the Tuchuk bosk herds. Reacting with practiced precision, almost the whole of the Tuchuk forces deploy to the scene, only to find the attackers already in retreat. With a classic feign, the nomadic riders had been lured out of position, leaving their camp vulnerable to the actual attack, which would come in the form of a surgical air strike by the tarnsmen of Ha-Keel. The sole target of the tarn attack was the wagon of Kataituchik, believed to be the Ubar of Tuchuks. The wagon would been hit by thousands of arrows, slaying everyone within, and had would be looted for the prize within, presumably the golden sphere.

Kamchak lays siege to Turia, however, the Tuchuks did not have adequate resources to invest the city. They had no siege towers or catapults and no knowledge of how to dig siege tunnels to undermine the walls. Without tarns they could not strike at the siege wells or other critical targets. On the other hand, they were able to effectively interdict trade to and from the city. Numerous squirmishes between tharlarian and kaiila cavalry erupted on the Plains as the Turians tried, to no avail, to break the blockade of the their home and drive the Tuchuks from around the walls. The innovative tactics used by the Tuchuks to counter both tharlarian and tarn are studied by Warriors to this day.

Nonetheless, understanding his inability to prevent Turia from being supplied by air, and fearful of devastating tarn strikes against the precious bosk herds and wagons themselves, Kamchak gave up on the siege and withdrew his forces from the perimeter of the city. Historians generally agree that this was one of the most subtly ingenious moves in the history of warfare on Gor. The retreat did not physically remove the bosk herds and wagons from out of harms way. They were still within striking distance of tarns. Why then was it such a powerful move? Because of the psychological effect it had on the enemy. In retreating, Kamchak gave the Turians an excuse to be comfortable in what they already believed - that they were totally safe behind the walls of their city. They wasted no time in relaxing their guard, relishing an end of the bothersome conflict. Tired of paying Ha-Keel’s tarnsmen exorbitant prices to supply the city by air, the Turians were all to ready to open the gates and let the caravans move freely once again. It set the stage for one of the most dramatic and masterfully orchestrated strikes in the history of Gor. We will take a closer look at it, and at other warfare upon the Plains of Turia, in our next segment.

TACTICAL OBSERVATIONS

Kaiila Vs Tharlarian: Perhaps the most interesting facet of the battle between Tuchuks and Turians took place upon the plains between the riders of tharlarian and kaiila cavalries. Each side was committed to the use and tactics of its own animal, but the Tuchuks took a decided advantage in reacting to and exploiting the weaknesses of its opponents methodology.

Though ponderous, high tharlarian are surprisingly fast once they have built up a momentum. Their size and strength made them extremely difficult to stand against when in full charge. Their riders generally used thick, heavy lances that could decimate the defenses of infantry and even other riders. Tharlarian charges were known to be so devastating to ground troops that special formations, such as the "harrow" were later developed to break them. Knowing they stood little chance of successfully meeting such a charge head on with their smaller, lighter kailla, the Tuchuks used a different tactic. They met such charges obliquely, retreating at key points to allow their forces to outflank the plodding animals before they could react. Then they used the kaiila’s superior quickness and maneuverability to close to within the range of the small, but rapid firing horn bow. The Turian cavalrymen found themselves faced with an enemy that could literally run circles around him at close range and fire several arrows before he could even bring up his lance.

Why No Tarns In Turia?: A direct strike against the wagons with the intent of firing them would have been devastating to the Tuchuks, who had not way to defend against such an attack. It is no wonder that that Kamchak paid Ha-Keel not to fire the wagons. Of course, Ha-Keel was a mercenary who was interested in obtaining the highest price for his services, or the lack thereof, in this instance. Thus it must be noted that a tarn force indigenous to Turia, and loyal only to its home stone, rather than to gold, wouldn’t have hesitated to attack which could have ended the conflict in short order. This leads to an interesting question: Why didn’t a city the size of Turia have its own tarn cavalry?

Perhaps the most ob

vious reasons that suggests itself is, quite simply, that Turia didn’t need one. Among the larger cities of the North, tarns were standard fare. They represented the ability to strike quickly at stationary ground targets. They also allowed a city to patrol extensive amounts of territory, reacting quickly to attacks in nearly any region of its sovereingty. An attack could come from any direction, and at any time. Indeed, young tarnsmen were encouraged to assail the high bridges of enemy cities as a rite of passage.

In the South, conditions were somewhat different. There were no cities of comparable size anywhere near Turia, and tarn cavarlies were generally unknown to the entire region. The Ar of the South was far too remote from the conflicts of the Northern cities to worry about attack from any of their tarn forces, excluding, of course. Turia’s principle enemy were the Wagon Peoples, who themselves did not use tarns. In general, Turia’s conflict with the Wagon Peoples was not large scale enough to warrant the expense of maintaining a full fledged tarn cavalry, when one could be hired on a temporary basis, when it was needed.