Battle of Pločnik The Battle of Pločnik was fought in 1386 ( or , according to other sources , in 1387 ) , at the village of Pločnik , near Prokuplje in today ' s southeastern Serbia , between the Serbian forces of prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and the invading Ottoman Turks of sultan Murad I . Prelude . Battle of Pločnik was the second clash between the Ottomans and forces commanded by Lazar , the first being the 1381 Battle of Dubravnica , and this battle would precede the ultimate Battle of Kosovo in 1389 . After Battle of Dubravnica , Sultan Murad I campaigned against the Karamanids and defeated its army near Konya . Serbian soldiers ( from some vassal Serbian princes ) accompanied the Ottoman Army . On the other hand some of the soldiers ( including some Serbian soldiers ) were executed because of looting civilian ' s property by disobeying the Sultan ' s order . The execution of these Serbian soldiers , aroused the hatred of the Serbs . Many Serb princes started to support Lazar Hrebeljanović against the Ottomans . At that time , one prince in Shkodër wrote a letter to the Sultan . In the letter this prince wrote that if the Ottomans sent some troops to Bosnia and Albania to protect him , he would recognise the sovereignty of the Ottomans and aid them . Murad I ordered one Akinji commander " ( Kula ) Sahin Bey " ( that commander was not Lala Şahin Paşa ) to prepare his troops . Battle . The Serbian army emerged victorious , although details of the actual battle are vague . Sahin Bey entered Serbia with 20 . 000 akinjis at that time he learned that Serbian princes had prepared an army to attack his troops . He advanced to Pločnik , near Prokuplje but he could not detect the position of that army . He believed that there was no army . At that time , many akinjis ( about 18 . 000 ) lost their temper and began looting civilian properties in the surrounding villages by disobeying orders . Sahin Bey stayed alone with 2000 soldiers . On the other hand the battlefield was observed by Serbian expeditionary forces . Suddenly an allied army with 30 . 000 soldiers appeared , many of them were cavalry . The Serbian army used heavy knight cavalry charge with horse archers on the flanks . The Serbs first attacked the Ottoman center ( 2000 soldiers ) , although they were unprepared and tasted nasty shock to heavy Serbian knights , the outnumbered Ottoman center resisted for some time but later began to withdraw with Sahin Bey who barely escaped with his life . Then the Serbian - Bosnian army turned to the other 18 . 000 akinjis that were busy plundering ; unprepared , ill - disciplined , surprised akinjis couldn ' t do anything without their general . Only 5 . 000 of them returned home alive . More than 60 % of the Ottoman army was destroyed . Miloš Obilić , who later became a hero in Serbian folklore because of his role in the Battle of Kosovo , was wounded by an Ottoman arrow in the battle . Aftermath . This victory gained gave prestige to the Serbs and their rulers . It was this battle that made Murad consider the possibility of abandoning his Balkan campaign . However he decided to make one more powerful thrust aimed at the heart of the now seemingly revitilised Serbian Empire - Kosovo . The Serbian victory temporarily slowed the Ottoman invasion of the Balkans , and set the stage for the Battle of Kosovo between the two armies in 1389 .