The Basic Guide to Fortifications and Defenses

The following is a basic Guide to each potential defense type and their intended usage.

(Full Credit goes to the First Regiment and their Fandom for being the inspiration and basis for this page!)

## Temporary Fortification

Temporary Fortifications are often the most common types of fortifications for front line positions, small villages, and temporary outposts. They can be hastily put up in case of minor raids or as a slowing action against invasions.

Temporary Fortifications

* Barricade
* Caltrops
* Abatis
* Barbed Wire
* Trench

### Barricade

A barricade is often made to block a narrow path or provide cover with whatever materials one can find. They can have elements of boxes, sandbags, wagons, or barrels. Or anything of that matter. They are great at holding down some locations, and protects from arrows, bolts, and small arms from the waist- to the head-level. They can be countered by medium to heavy artillery.

### Caltrops

A common, yet ignored, urban defense obstacle, caltrops act in a way to reduce or divert movements of the enemy by 'attacking' the feet of enemy troops. They have spikes in multiple direction, and are laid down in choke points to reduce the amount of caltrops needed for defense.

### Abatis

A raised earthwork with wooden, sharpened stakes, Abatis are best defense against Cavalry for even the most under-equipped infantry. One can use only fallen trees pointed in one direction, or a dedicated defensive work on the outer edges of a strategic point. Due to the flammable nature of the stakes, fire is a good counter against the Abatis.

### Barbed Wire

Wound into long rails, with small hooked barbs, and made of steel typically, Barbed Wire is an excellent counter to most infantry and cavalry. The main advantage of barbed wire is its flexibility and ability to be placed upon other fortifications. Heavily Armored Infantry or Equipment can be used as a counter, especially equipment that can cut through barbed wire.

### Trench

Dug into the ground itself for troops to take cover in, trenches have timber to shore up the earth to prevent collapse. However, they are extremely vulnerable to flooding and chemical weapons. The main advantage of the Trench is resiliency to bombardment by Artillery. In some cases, trenches even become permanent, as bunkers and barracks are added as part of a trench network, especially in cases of stalemates and sieges.

## Permanent Fortifications

Fortifications of Military Bases, major towns, strategic locations, and even entire islands, permanent fortifications are made to stay. Even when destroyed, most fortifications can still serve their purposes.

Permanent Fortifications

* Bunker
* Towers
* Curtain Walls
* Moat
* Embedded Tower
* Gatehouse
* Keep

### Bunker

Built partially into the ground as a defense against the artillery, Bunkers often are the strong points in either a trench network or as an independent position for shore defense. While no real counter is present, artillery is often a choice if you want to render bunkers a nonfactor. Or if you don't have a choice, avoid bunkers altogether.

### Tower

A lone tower made of stone can keep watch and deny control of an area effectively. While not heavily armed with artillery, and not really much of a physical threat to a competent enemy, it provides a home, defense location, and line of sight for a garrison, and even a defensive location against inferior enemies.

### Curtain Walls

A freestanding wall that surrounds an area, and often the main part of an established defense, Curtain Walls can be the ultimate defense against most, non-siege armies. The only ways to defeat the walls is prolonged bombardments, scaling of the walls, or undermining and sapping the walls. They can vary widely in size and materials, from wood to stone. On stone walls, there are often battlements, which allow defenders to fire down upon the attackers with relative safety from small arms fire.

### Moat

A permanent trench dug in front of walls or gates, and flooded with water most of the time, moats slow down attackers from approaching the walls or gates to breach the enemy. Enemies will have to fill the moat for an effective assault upon the walls.

### Embedded Tower

Added to Curtained Walls to maximize fields of fire in the Art of Defense, Embedded Towers offer the best protection with roofs for maximum protection from small arms fire. These towers can also be reinforced to add defensive armaments, such as cannons, to amplify the defensive nature by allowing the targeting of enemy siege equipment.

### Gatehouse

The weakest part of a walled defense, gatehouses tend to have poor defenses, mainly to allow the opening and closing of the gate itself. However, one must not be fooled, for gates houses themselves can be considered strong points, with internal rooms that cane be used to provide fields of fire.

### Keep

The central point of a Fortress, keeps house a barracks, supply stores, the Command Office of the Fortress, and even the Treasury of a nation or city. Keeps often have secret exits to escape of VIPS, MVPS, and even some of the garrisoning troops. Keeps also tend to be disconnected from the Outside Defenses of a Fortress, which allows for only the various limited points of entry to be defended directly. Due to this isolation, however, the outer defenses can be used as siege works(if still intact) against the Keep.

## Types of Fortress

While the Keep is considered a mini-fortress within a fortress, one must know the difference of types of fortresses and their main purpose.

Types of Fortress

* Island Fortress
* Naval Forts
* Outpost
* Minor Fort
* Major Fort
* Capital Fortress

### Island Fortress

An Island Fortress is one of the most difficult fortresses to assault, for one would need to land and establish a beachhead while under fire, establish a naval blockade and naval support, and breach walls, while not having a safe location to gather. As such, Island fortresses are often recommended to be starved and shelled by a fleet before sending troops into the fortress to flush out the defenders.

### Naval Forts

Naval Forts often have a naval element, such as a small squadron of vessels, a full fledged port, and even naval batteries. However, naval ports often have a civilian element either within or just outside the walls, along for a safe landing or approach by land at a fair distance before a setup for siege or assault. A naval blockade is paramount, for the defenders can and will use the port to bring in supplies and reinforcements.

### Outpost

Outposts are merely there for a minor military presence within a region. They are relatively easy to assault and take, often with temporary fortifications and even a tower that can be easily destroyed by artillery. While one would want to keep the outpost in tact for a base camp or a defensive location for the rest of a campaign, an assault can destroy them if not kept in mind.

### Minor Fort

Typically the HQ of a small region and their outposts, Minor Forts boast some defenses that can cause problems for any campaign. They can have their own artillery, a sizable garrison equivalent to a whole brigade, and a command staff. One can possibly ignore it initially if they don't have the resources to take the fort, but they have to be taken eventually, for it is a major strong point regardless.

### Major Fort

A defense that is extremely difficult to overcome, and a fort that cannot be ignored, an entire Regiment can be garrisoned within , with multiple areas of advance heavily defended by overlapping fields of fire. If an entire regiment is garrisoned, that means a major commander, cavalry, scouting assets, and even their own separate artillery to add to the defense. One shouldn't directly assault the fort, especially if their are no siege engines present, but one cannot ignore the fort under any circumstances.

### Capital Fortress

The Defense of a City, especially a Capital, is always the end goal of a conquering army. Multiple layers of walls, artillery batteries, and even several keeps within is just the basis of a siege on a Capital Fortress. An entire army group can be within, not counting the standard guard that is equivalent to at least a regiment's worth. Not to mention the populace itself, which can either resist independently, or form into organized militia units and be an active part of a defense. These issues can be compounded by a port, which can be a Naval Fortress itself, which only allows for a city to hold out almost indefinably in a siege. A combination of bombardments, sapping, direct assaults, and scaling of walls will be needed to take even part of a Capital Fortress.