Battle of Posonan

The Battle of Posonan was a significant battle in the Asger War, and was the last battle fought between Vibius Calenus and Alkis Vatio.

## Background

In **512PR** the Nirvan Republic declared war on Ilaka over a minor political issue, beginning the Asger War. The Nirvans sent two armies to fight the Ilakans.

In **514PR** the Ilakans, led by Alkis Vatio defeated one of the Nirvan armies commanded by Quintus in the Battle of Kardir, now outnumbering the remaining army led by Vibius Calenus. Before this, Vibius had beaten Alkis twice in the Battle of Sora and the Battle of Coraeus.

Vibius would go on to defeat Vaso, who split his forces from Alkis to fight the Nirvans in the Battle of Hocos in **515PR**.

Alkis was happy to play defensive but mounting political and social pressure from back in Kras forced him to meet Vibius in **516PR**.

## Command

### Ilaka

From the back, Alkis led the entirety of the Ilakan army. On the far wings, with his cavalry, stood his trusted officers Alekos Kallidis and Demos Dimelis.

Realising the mistake from last time, Alkis decided to place two commanders for the infantry, commanding half each so that the Companion cavalry could spend more time fulfilling tactical objectives. On the Ilakan right was Tanan Kallidis, Alekos’s younger brother and the left was commanded by Loukas Tripiadis.

### Nirvan Republic

Vibius chose to lead from the back again during this battle, wishing only to enter when absolutely necessary, trusting his soldiers. In the reserves was Decimus, his right-hand man leading a triarii legion, and Aulus Balbillus, who had proved himself as a capable commander.

On the front, from left to right was Appius Longinus, Manius Carus, Decius Grumio and Gaius Scipio. The Lorenzen cavalry were led by Silas Ludvigsen and Eigil Busk.

## Strategy

### Ilaka

Having less of a number, Alkis decided to increase the length of his line, placing the Atkan soldiers on the sides. Their goal was to flank the enemy and slowly crush them on both sides, while the Companion cavalry had been re-equipped to deal with the Lorenzen Knights. As usual, the Drakos’s goal was to hold the centre.

### Nirvan Republic

Vibius had enough room to play defensive with this battle, he had the more troops and they were more experienced, achieving victory in every battle they fought in this war. To deal with the longer line he put Thurim elite soldiers behind his flanks, hiding them from the enemy until the right moment where they could break out. The Lorenzens goal was to hold off the Companion cavalry until the right moment to breach through and go for Alkis.

After the Battle of Coraeus, Vibius had notified every Legate and legion that by aiming for the leadership in the Drakos, the rest would fall, leaving only the Atkan and the Companions to fight.

## Battle

The battle commenced after both sides finished forming up, the Ilakans the only ones that advanced. When the Ilakans saw that the Nirvans weren’t coming forward, they slowed down their approach. As they got closer, just out of range of the javelins, the Nirvans decided to roar, yelling all types of insults to the Ilakans, mostly racist.

Angered, their officers unable to control them, the Ilakans charged, getting struck by the first set of javelins before the Nirvans charged themselves. The cavalry did relatively the same, lulling the Companions in before hitting them by surprise. On the far sides of the battle, the Atkan moved in for the flank but found themselves fighting the Thurim elite instead.

As the battle raged on, so did the sides. The Nirvan got two outcomes, first, the Lorenzen Knights managed to push the Companions back, gaining good results. But, the infantry were a different story, being pushed back and forcing Decimus’s triarii legion to begin marching around to get into the battle, something they were happy to do.

The left was slightly the opposite, the Nirvans and Thurim soldiers pushing back the Atkan force but only gaining minor ground. The cavalry simply fought evenly, the Lorenzen Knights finally matched for the time being.

A few moments later things began to change for the Nirvans. Now the left was being pushed back on both ends, the cavalry losing ground, and the infantry pushed back to a similar position that they had pushed the Ilakans.

Though, the right was much better. When the legion commanded by Decimus arrived and flanked the enemy, from both the side and behind, the Lorenzen Knights broke through the cavalry, killing Alekos, and giving them an opening on Alkis. Aiding the legion first, Silas and the Knights charged on the Ilakan commanders position, sending half their cavalry to go aid the troops on the left.

With Lorenzen Knights hitting them from behind, the cavalry on the left flank crumbled, allowing the Knights to hit the Ilakan Atkan from the side, shredding through the exhausted soldiers. For Alkis, he had little time to react, getting struck down by Silas’s men before he could draw his weapon. His objective achieved, Silas returned to the Nirvan left and charged again at the Atkan, hitting them from behind.

Seeing that their commander was dead and their wings surrounded, the Drakos could no longer stand to fight and retreated, by this point they likely had lost their officers too, leaving only Tanan and Loukas.

This time the Atkan soldiers had no choice if they retreated or not, being surrounded on all sides. Instead, they called valiantly and charged into the enemy before getting hit by a javelin volley.

## Aftermath

After the battle, Vibius called for his troops to chase the enemy, following them to their camp and capturing anyone they could. To keep them motivated, he stated any Ilakan soldier they captured could be their own personal slave, inspiring his troops enough to give them a second or third wind.

The body of Alkis was discovered later, choosing to burn it with the rest of the bodies instead of sending them back to Ilaka, as revenge for the decapitation of Quintus.

The remaining Legion standards were found in the camp.

## Legacy

This battle became very important later in Nirvan culture, seen as the beginning of the end for the war. For Ilaka, it was an incredibly embarrassing loss, losing a significant chunk of their fighting men and forcing them to raise another army.

The loss here would indirectly cause the death of their Ilakan King, who had to ride out for battle.

When the war was over, Vibius would leave an obelisk in memory of the Quintus and the legionnaires that lost their lives in the war.