Battle of the Percussion Outlands

The Battle of the Percussion Outlands was a battle that took place on the border of the Percussion Kingdom during the Second Tuba Crusade.

## Battle of the Percussion Outlands

### Location

Southern Percussion Kingdom, near the Percussion-Keyboard border

### Territorial Changes

Crusader capture of the outlands, beginning of pushes northward

## Belligerents

### Attackers

Brass Kingdom
Woodwind Kingdom

## Timeline

### Next

Siege of Bingo Bongo (2S 10)

The Battle of the Percussion Outlands began when the crusader alliance, consisting of the Brass and Woodwind Kingdoms, attacked the Percussion Kingdom. As they approached enemy territory, they discovered a small encampment of about 10,000 militiamen on the border, who had dug into defensive positions to try and halt or even push back the crusaders. Thus began the Battle of the Percussion Outlands.

## Battle

Even though the crusaders outnumbered the local militia almost eight to one, they found that it was a surprisingly difficult battle. There were trench lines running along the entire Percussion-Keyboard border, which the Percussionist militia had reinforced. General Saxophone, leader of the crusader army, decided to lay siege while they searched for alternatives.

### Flanking Attempts

Their first idea was to simply go around the defenses. They tried to pull a flanking maneuver to get around the trenches by going through String Kingdom territory. However, the Strings were neutral in the war, and they would not permit the crusaders to go through their territory. General Saxophone knew it wasn't a good idea to provoke the powerful String Kingdom, so the operation was called off.

### Attrition Tactics

Then they decided to use war of attrition tactics. They would lay siege to the Percussion militia until they starved to death. This siege went on for about a month, with little to no effect. The Percussionist militiamen were well-supplied from the nearby Percussion farms on the grasslands. Meanwhile, the crusader alliance was struggling to supply their much larger army.

### General Saxophone's Dilemma

The longer they waited, the more of a chance the Percussionists had, as more militia troops were arriving every day. The hungry crusaders were growing weaker every day, and the well-supplied Percussionist militias were growing stronger every day. General Saxophone was facing a dilemma. He knew something had to be done, so they did the obvious: a full-scale frontal assault on the Percussionist lines.

### General Saxophone's Charge

General Saxophone's Charge is famous. The objective was simple: charge in with as many troops as possible, overtake the trench lines, and engage in glorious melee combat until the Percussion Kingdom's militia was destroyed. But when the charge was ordered, it was a massacre. The crusaders were ripped apart by the volley firing of arrows from the Percussionist militia. The crusaders sent wave after wave of infantry, and eventually, after about an hour, the trench line was overrun. But before they could begin taking their revenge on the Percussionists, they retreated, not allowing the crusaders to destroy them.

## Aftermath

The crusader alliance had won the battle, but it was extremely costly. They lost around 22,000 troops, while the Percussionists had lost less than 3,000. General Saxophone's Charge would be controversial, as it was seen as a waste of troops.

After the battle, the army would burn down the nearby farms and infrastructure, and they would continue on with their northward push into the Percussion Kingdom's territory.