Augustus Road

"Once again we muster up the courage to save the palace, support the defenders, and be strengthened by the conquered." - "Aeneas", chapter before the fall of Troy

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And in the face of this kind of charge, why did the thousand-man brigade of the Twelve Legions waver? This is because the Thousand-man Brigade under Lebida is not worthy of its name at all. Those who can enter the Thousand-Man Brigade in regular legions are all veterans who have served for more than six years. They have the physical strength of young people and the experience of war. Their rich experience is a magic weapon for defeating the enemy, so commanders usually use them as a decisive force, either directly launching the first round of attacks to defeat the enemy in the shortest time, or letting them serve as reserves to reap the final victory. But where did the Twelve Legions get such veterans? Even for this thousand-man team, most of them followed Lepidus in Lusitania and made a circuit along the Spanish mountains. They had two or three battles and experience. When they saw the terrifying barbarian Long Live Charge, their calves could not help but feel weak. Muscle rotation is not normal.

"Young people, you may be shorter in stature, but the fighting swords and shields in your hands are the crystallization of the Republic's tactics. You don't have to be afraid of these barbarians who don't understand military tactics and can only howl. What you have to do next is to put your knees on Half-kneeling down, he held the huge shield diagonally on his body, crouching down and holding the fighting sword in his hand, close to the comrades beside him, and close to the comrades beside him. When their belly dangles in front of you, don’t hesitate to stretch out your fighting sword and let all their intestines flow out! You know, you are full of blood and bravery, no less than any nation in the world.” Gus walked along the front line of the centurion and encouraged loudly without fear. Then he ran to the banner of the Iron Hand Brigade, and together with the chief centurion Milu, he made a standard low-down resistance posture. The soldiers looked at After the two centurions did this, they calmed down a little. All those in the first row followed their example and knelt down half-kneeling. Those in the back row also calmed down and grasped the javelins behind their shields.

The first wave of javelins poured down the slope with a thunderous sound, and the front line of the barbarian army suddenly fell. Then came the second wave, the third wave, the fourth wave and the fifth wave, just like the early autumn. The torrent of rain continued, and even the barbarian nobles who were leading the attack felt confused. Seeing the death and injury all around them, they could only hold up their hexagonal shields, and the hedgehogs gathered together and slowed down their progress. This Roman army is so strange. In the past, their legions usually just threw one or two javelins and then started to draw their swords and fight hand-to-hand. Why did this never end?

On the top of the mountain, the soldiers of the Twelve Legions lined up in the second line, with military slaves shuttled behind them, constantly pulling out ammunition from the javelin bundles hung on both sides of the mules and horses, and relaying it into the hands of the soldiers in groups, and then these strong young people Throwing it out, Lepidus had also considered it in advance. Based on his observation: Roman strong men usually ran out of energy after throwing five or six javelins. When he was chatting with Adiana in Eubotia, Adiana Anna also told him that Eastern compound archers usually reach the critical point of physical strength after shooting twenty arrows, so those who think that ancient long-range warriors can fire "unlimited" firepower are naive. In this classical era, what should be considered is not how to change the physical limit of soldiers, but what should be considered is to use reasonable and scientific tactics to enhance the output of firepower.

Therefore, a group of mules and horses were placed behind the combat team, with sufficient javelin ammunition placed on them, and military slaves were responsible for transporting them. All second-line soldiers were also divided into three or four teams, using a relay method, and took turns throwing javelins like rain. , this is a relatively insignificant tactic, "We are an auxiliary army. When fighting the enemy, we should not cherish our reputation like those regular citizens. The ultimate goal is to destroy the enemy." Li Bida talked about this very calmly, and he must be good at breaking through the pots and jars.

In this way, the barbarians of Gunilin endured the weight of the light hunting spears stuck on their shields like bushes, and despite the huge casualties, they still maintained their formation and climbed the slope towards the first line of Roman infantry. Approaching, and finally within fighting distance, all the barbarians let out an earth-shattering roar, threw their shields to the ground, and sprinted quickly, with their golden braids fluttering in conjunction with the light of Sparta's sword. , crashed into the first line of the Thousand-man Brigade of the Twelfth Legion like a fierce wind. In an instant, the entire hillside "rummed" with the crisp sound of flesh and blood, swords, axes and shields hitting each other, accompanied by the rapid sounds of horns and whistles. A grand symphony of death was played.

"Saab, Saab, hurry up and signal to the position down the mountain!" Lepidus, who was standing on the eagle flag on the top of the mountain, pushed the handle of the Saab next to him and shouted.

After receiving the signal, the positions at the foot of the mountain gave up their silence and suddenly launched an attack. The three cavalry artillery groups took turns firing heavy javelins and stone bullets. With the wind blowing, they smashed into the "horse guarding post" position at the foot of Gunilin Mountain. There was a cloud of blood and gray smoke. After all, the horses of the barbarians were made of flesh and blood. They also had the instinct of animals to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Under this unexpected blow, they began to flee in all directions.

On the hillside, the barbarians who were fighting with the Romans were still fiercely slashing at the shields or helmets of the Roman soldiers who were crouching under them. Sometimes the Roman soldiers were even ripped off their heads and shoulders, and sometimes their own lower ribs and abdomens full of flaws were pierced by the sharp swords of the Roman soldiers. In the fierce battle, both sides suffered heavy casualties in just ten minutes. The two infantry battalions on the slope ran up the top of the mountain with the sound of whistles, and then responded to the rhythm of the bugle, passing through the gaps in the formation, and continued to fight the barbarians. Soon, the barbarians in the team began to see that their horses were nowhere to be found, wailing or falling down in the rain of bullets fired by the enemy, or abandoning their masters and running back. They began to panic in their hearts - after all, we are cavalry, and even if we get off the saddle and fight on foot, we still need those treasures to get back. Now the despicable Romans are shooting at the horses at the foot of the mountain. Do they still have any sense of warrior ethics?

Seeing that the entire attack formation of the Gunilin people had loosened, Milu immediately moved, asked the half-kneeling flag officer beside him to stand up, raised the iron hand flag three times, and all the soldiers of the 12th Legion dragged the wounded and the dead back, and the rest of the fresh troops also stood up to form a solid shield wall, shouting and pushing the barbarians down the mountain. On the other side, the cavalry artillery firepower of Hortensius the Younger became more fierce. This time it was not just about hitting the horses, but skillfully forming three artillery groups into crossfire, and began to "plow the ground" attack on the barbarian groups that were lingering between the foot of the mountain and the hillside.

When the sunset glowed a little light on the tip of the wings of the golden statue of the mountain falcon, the Gunilin people abandoned their mounts, and many of them turned their backs to the swords and spears of the 12th Legion and ran all over the wilderness in disarray.

On the slope of Mount Veia, corpses and blood formed a messy belt. The casualties of these brave barbarians in hand-to-hand combat were no more than 30%, and the rest were all caused by the "Lepidus Cavalry Cannon Modification".

"Sabo, I'm suddenly very interested in the second suggestion of the cavalry cannon pursuit you mentioned. Can you tell me more about it?" Lepidus looked at the mess at the foot of the mountain and suddenly said to Sabokaimus. (To be continued.)