Battle of Goaham Point

The **Battle of Goaham Point** was one of the last major battles between Otto Gyldenglove and the Earldom of Flynn in 1289 and was the decisive battle that determined the victor of the Flynn Raids crisis. The Battle of Goaham point sprung the decline in power that the Raiders of Otto Gyldenglove as the battle was mainly fought between these veteran bands of pirates and raiders against an army of sellswords and mercenary knights hired by the Earl of Flynn. This battle led to the major decline and eventual defeat of Otto Gyldenglove, ending the Flynn Raids in 1290.

## Background

After the humiliating defeat at the Battle of Kinshaw a few years back and subsequent lack of ability to raise a sufficient host to fight Gyldenglove's growing army of raiders and outlaws forced the Earl of Flynn, Roger III to raise an army of sellswords in Yorik to fight this conflict that is brewing into crisis in the west. After a lengthy recruitment drive, over 200 sellswords from two separate companies, as well as a full compliment of knights from the Order of the Hen, join the royal army. After gathering a force of levy militia from the city of Yorik and the surrounding towns, the Earl Roger marches his men west to route this group of raiders from his Earldom.

After receiving word of almost complete sacking of the Ceolhare Barony after years of constant attacks and raids on the local populace, Gyldenglove marches his army to the border-town of Goaham to march directly onto the Kingsland and Yorik itself. After marching his army back from the Ceolhare Barony to the Nordlands in Southern Flynn, managing to keep Gyldenglove's band of raiders pinned to the coast of Sting River, the battle of Goaham Point begun to dawn on both armies.

Gyldenglove, upon hearing of the army's approach, split his large force into smaller portions in order to pillage more villages in the countryside, Gyldenglove's force divided amongst themselves which led the original 1500 strong force to divide into smaller 500 man raider armies in order to cause more distractions in the countryside before his main force was pinned down by the Earl's army. This was a terrible decision on Otto's part as the division of his force caused most of the raiders not under direct control of Gyldenglove to seep back into the Jarldom to deposit their valuables before the Earl tracks them down and kills them.

## Pre-Battle

The terrain around Goaham Point was flat and hilly with little to no forests or difficult terrain, making it a perfect filed for an equal fight for both sides. After days of perilous marching, Otto's army were worn out and disgruntled from years of raiding, with many of his companions from the Jarldom wishing to return home to see their families again. Otto's denial of quitting his conquest, with clouds of grandeur and wishes to conquer the whole of Flynn, only made the resolve of his raider army more and more unsteady.

### Earldom of Flynn

After extensive recruitment from both levies and extensive mercenaries, Earl Roger III and his commanders including the young Garret Roote lead up to 1100 soldiers with almost half of them from Sellsword origin while the other half consist of levies and veterans from the Ceolhare Barony. The quality of the army was very high as sellswords that came to the Earldom, whether they be independent or company-led were heavily armed. It's been said that even the levy counterparts of the Earl's army were well-equipped too as almost every member of the Yorik city militia were required to come into battle armed with a billhook and a helmet or skull-cap. A portion of the army was also made up by a large body of knights, these knights were mostly of sellsword origin as many of the nobles who fought at the battle of Kinshaw were hard to replace. These knights, many of whom equipped with the very modern plate armour from the Holy Empire, were from the Order of the Hen, an order that is in direct service to the Earl and are well established all across the Earldom.

### Otto Gyldenglove

After years of extensive raiding and pillaging of the Earldom, Otto's small but experienced army consisted of seasoned pirates and raiders armed with stolen equipment and arms from their past battles in the Ceolhare Barony. Despite their experience, a majority of the raiders who were with Otto for the past few years requested them to return to the Jarldom to return to their families. After being declined, a majority of the seasoned warriors of the army were uneasy and disgruntled with their conflicting ideals for this campaign. In total, Otto Gyldenglove brings under 580 men into battle, with a large majority of whom being peasant insurgents and outlaws that joined willingly to overthrow the Earldom. Being heavily outnumbered in this battle, Otto was fully aware of his disadvantages on the field and wanted to seek the high ground in this battle.

## Battle

### Skirmishes

Early on into the forming of the battle lines, Otto dispatched a large group of skirmishers which numbered around the 50s, to harass and disrupt the Earl's force as his army maneuvered onto a nearby hill to wage their battle on. This small group of skirmishers, most of whom were insurgents armed with slings and short bows, shattered as their attempts to get in range were denied by a large group of sellsword crossbowmen who dispatched most of the peasants before they had a chance to cause any real damage. As the peasants retreated into the hills, they were destroyed and run-down by sergeants and squires from the Order of the Hen's knights. Fortunately for the raiders, the distraction created gave the main force enough time to form on a hill.

### The Battle

After forming on a nearby hill, Earl Roger III ordered his right flank to engage the raiders, who formed shield wall. This battle was lead by Garret Roote who led a force of Ceolhare veterans mixed with some eastern militias. Once the force clashed with the defending foes, it became apparent that a small band of levies won't defeat the army as expected. Soon after a few minutes have passed after initial conflict, the Earl ordered the knight's of the hen to flank around the shield wall to attack their rear while the Bastard's Sons face them in the front, keeping a majority of the militia and independent sellswords in reserve.

While Otto's raider begun to strain under the mass of the Earl's army, they still held their ground as years of experience gave them the ability to keep formation despite the odds and mass of their enemies. After over an hour of a stalemate, and several charges from the knights, the shield wall finally collapsed, creating mass confusion as flanks became confusing and twisted amongst the Earl's army. This chaotic turn of events broke the raiders as many of them gathered into groups to flee back to their camps to gather as many belongings as possible while others were caught in the midst of the enemy army, forced to fight to the death. Before the entire army collapsed into a full scale route and final stand, over half of Otto's force was killed or captured, many of whom were apart of Otto's original party.

### The Route

Soon after the collapse of the raider force, most of Otto's men were stuff between the hammer and anvil from the sellsword and knightly order forces, those who were able to find gaps in the melee and escape soon found themselves looting the raiders camp for booty before fleeing back to the Jarldom. The disintegration of Otto's force forced him to leave the field with his personal guard after losing heart in the battle. This route of men marked the abrupt end to the Flynn Raids, ending the decades long threat to the integrity of the Earldom of Flynn.

Many stubborn fighters of Otto's raiders stayed behind as the route was underway to allow their friends to retreat. Most of these men were veterans of Otto's original party, middle-aged and laden with armor and trinkets. Despite their age, many went on to fight for almost half an hour before tiring or being overwhelmed by the Earl's forces. Without these sacrifices, many of the raiders who managed to flee early on into the route were able to effectively disperse.

## The Aftermath

By the end of the battle, which lasted over three hours, saw a decisive Flynnish victory. With Otto's army in full flight, almost 500 of his men were either killed in the battle or route, or were captured as prisoners by the Order of the Hen. After fighting a tough battle, the Earl's army lost around the same number as the raiders as 400 men, including many sellswords from the Bastard's sons were slain on the field. After the battle was fought and won, many of Gyldenglove's raiders who were in other raiding groups quickly turned tail and fled across the border as fast as possible or were caught by border guards and killed.