Battle Of Zernitz

The battle of Zernitz was a battle fought in the Great Eastern War. Al-Danbarr forces fought against the formidable invading force of Cyroth's new and reformed Imperial army. Outnumbered and outgunned, the battle of Zernitz marks one of the only occasions in the Great Eastern War in which Al-Danbarr forces scored a decisive victory against the Kymurian military. The battle is famed for the so called "march of the Lukers" (now an adapted tune, popular in northern Panguilla) in which a contingent of Lukers, veterans of the Frenntolic Rebellion, strode forth, donned in all of their old and tattered uniforms successfully repelled a Kymurian attack on their entrenched position. It was (tactically speaking) a questionable decision to leave their dugouts on the Zernitz heights, however the 'regiment' nonetheless flew their old ensigns and crushed a Kymurian attack by entering into a melee, which lasted a mere six minutes.

## Prelude

Having successfully captured much of the west coast of El-Azer with little resistance, Kymurian forces had begun to prepare a campaign eastwards. The experienced 2nd Army, who had (with stunning success) extinguished SKL, were tied up with the siege of Rum. This left the relatively inexperienced but well drilled and equipped reinforcements to spearhead the advance eastwards. The commander, Vincent Pompert, of the force of recruits was assured in his ability to press ahead without support from the 2nd army, due in no part to his rapid capture of Sebeul Bay (thanks to the incompetence of Al-Danbarr General Al-Beuff), however, Pompert was unaware of a recently mobilised force under command of General Senishkov, saviour of Grolsi Moor.

## The Battle

Pompert's intelligence reported that a force of no more than 2,500 men had entrenched themselves upon the top of a ridge called the Zernitz Heights just south of the Luker town of Koldsmid.

Pompert's army of 20,000 men moved to engage the outnumbered enemy. Pompert's intelligence was however completely wrong, in actual fact Senishkov had gathered to him a force numbering close to 12,000, all of which were stationed in well defended and recently constructed redoubts and shallow trenches. Senishkov's force was a ragtag army mainly consisting of Lukers (most of whom were recent immigrants from northern Panguilla due to the recent rebellion) along with significant numbers of Anjuins and Xhosis.

The battle started with a bombardment of Al-Danbarr positions, Pompert's new precision cannons inflicted heavy casualties upon Senishkov's men in their entrenched positions, significant holes were also opened in numerous redoubts. Rather than press his advantage Pompert cautiously chose to dispatch a company of 120 cavalrymen to ride to the right flank, create a diversion and skirmish with the enemy if necessary. The cavalrymen were however viciously ambushed by Xhosi irregulars hiding in the shrubs. The cavalry, despite being pushed back, held their own.

This delay allowed Senishkov's men to reorganise and assess their foes now assembling at the foot of the ridge. After receiving news that a scouting party of enemy cavalry had been repelled, Senishkov prepared for the inevitable attack.

Still believing the initial reports of Senishkov's strength, Pompert ordered a frontal attack to overwhelm the enemy. The Kymurian lines were given the order to advance. The dusty and thorny nature of the terrain made the Kymurian advance up the slope a slow and arduous process, Frenntolic veterans and Xhosi irregulars (taking full advantage of the plodding force) unleashed withering fire into the Kymurian lines who could barely see, due to the fact the sun was shining bright behind their enemy ahead.

The Kymurian force, though well trained, buckled and fell back to their previous positions under both fire and jeering from their enemy. Some Kymurian units remained on the slope however, and while Pompert attempted to quickly reorganise his force, a firefight raged on in front of his army between the sparsely spread Kymurians taking cover behind boulders and the Al-Danbarr army comfortably firing from their defensive positions.

A second wave of exhausted, but determined, Kymurians once more ascended the slope and though suffering heavy casualties, the Imperial force managed to capture several small redoubts. The defence became more and more desperate as Kymurian soldiers managed to force their way into the often undermanned Al-Danbarr positions. Progress did however begin to slow, Al-Danbarr counter-attacks forced Imperial forces to take more and more desperate measures to secure bridgeheads in the enemy's entrenchments. One such tactic was the taking of the artillery's sparkpowder provisions and throwing fuse lit barrels into the redoubts. This had limited success however (mainly due to the fact zealous Anjuins would, with barrel in hand, jump back over the fortifications).The battle raged on, and it seemed that the result of all the bloodshed would be inconclusive.

The Kymurian hope of victory was however completely crushed when General Pompert's body was pulled from beneath a palisade, shot, most likely accidentally, by a fellow soldier. Senishkov, with victory in sight, deployed the last 1,000 soldiers left in reserve. The reserve force consisted mainly of Frenntolic veterans deemed unfit to serve. The veterans chose to, rather than reinforce the existing frontline, march out of formation in a column.

The Kymurians, who were already beginning to hastily withdraw from the field, were somewhat astonished to see a column of Frenntolic soldiers singing "The Olst" (an old anthem of the Frenntolic state) slowly marching toward them. The column itself only engaged in a limited firefight with already fleeing groups of Imperial soldiers, though it is possible that they inspired similar counter-attacks across the battlefield.

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