House of Stavia

The Stavian Hussar heraldry

**The House of Stavia** or **Sovereign Principality of Stavia** is a major house that is in possession of most of *Lotania*. For most of its history, it held the estate of Geneverie and resisted Auber invasion throughout its history. Being in the borderlands of Crotalusia and Gantelusia, the Stavians were subjugated by various groups until the Auber were officially driven from Laconia in the Eleventh Era.

Stavia is often identified as being the inventor of hussar troops that dominated the Old World during the War of the Dragons; their use of Andalian horses and adopting light cavalry tactics to combat the Grenadian orcs at their border led to the creation of a hard-hitting, fast, and easily trained unit which eventually dominated most of the Darcedonian standing army.

After a succession dispute placed an unwitting Genio of Stavia as its new Viscount in CE 950, the fledgling lord demonstrated his tactical genius in the Battle of Agabad and earned Stavia new holdings in *Lotania* bequeathed by Phillip III; the House of Stavia was redefined as having a prince sovereign instead of a viscount. Stavia now encompasses nearly all of *Lotania* save for the northern highlands bordering *Cedonia*.

## Name and heraldry

Stavia was so named after *dulcete fecatta*, a "sweet bread" produced by the region thanks to a number of herbs that thrive in the warm, semi-humid highlands. Its original heraldry prior to the House of Marques splitting from Darcedon was a depiction of this sweet bread, and for much of its early history after being recognized by Darcedon as a noble house, it remained as its proprietors and bakers.

The Jade House of Lords patronized Stavia and hired mercenary light cavalry for use in conquests by the Republic of Cyravest; this was part of the reason for Cyravine success in mainland campaigns in Cisteria. Following the War of the Bloody Vigil, Darcedon began incorporating this light cavalry into their forces, which eventually led to their first prominent display of effectiveness in the War of the Dragons. Phillip II of Kasmir recognized their usefulness and bestowed new lands to Stavia in *Lotania* as compensation for their service; the hussar then became the new symbol of Stavia following this development.

## Stavian hussars

A typical outfit of a Stavian hussar includes a cavalry sabre, lance, long, wooden shield and, optionally, a light metal cuirass. Their usual form of attack was a rapid charge in compact formation against enemy infantry or cavalry
 units. If the first attack failed, they would retire to their
supporting troops, who re-equipped them with fresh lances, and then
would charge again. This tactic was devastating to nearly all types of infantry and cavalry, which quickly disintegrated enemy formations and created confusion among their ranks.

Stavian hussars most often carried the sabre and the lance, while heavy Darcedonian hussars were usually equipped with two pistols, a small, rounded shield and a *koncerz*, a long (up to twelve-foot) Cascadian stabbing sword used in charges when the lance was broken; some had horseman's picks and the elite carried fire-arms. Stavian hussars did not bear heavy plate armor, opting only for light cavalry tactics.

Hussars, despite being light cavalry, most often functioned as heavy cavalry for line-breaking charges against enemy infantry. The
 famous low losses are achieved by the unique tactic of *late concentration*. Until the first salvo of missile fire of the enemy infantry, the hussars approached relatively slowly, in a
loose formation. Each rider was at least 5 steps away from his
colleagues and the infantry, could not
aim at any particular cavalryman. Also, if a hussar's horse was wounded,
 the following lines had time to steer clear of him. After the volley of projectiles,
the cavalry rapidly accelerated and tightened the ranks. At the moment
of the clash of the charging cavalry with the defenders, the hussars
were riding knee-to-knee.

During the War of the Dragons and occasionally thereafter, hussar troops also became famous for the huge
wings worn on their backs or attached to the saddles of their horses. Their use was multi-faceted. First, they were designed to foil attacks by Auber lassos; in addition, the sound of vibrating feathers attached
to the wings made a strange sound that frightened enemy horses during
the charge.