Cicero Niche
Joined 18th Jan, 2012 ·
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This took me a while to write up. Depending on the response, I'll post up the next chapter in a week or so, life permitting.
ZOMG 14K WORDS LONG!!!!!! X_X *dies*
This is actually a pretty good read, though the size might have put off some readers.
But it´s actually a pretty good story.
i can´t wait to see what will happen. (ww3 maybe?)
That took me a full 15mins to read
it was good though.
... First, I'm afraid I have to say - Oh, the inconsistancy! The fact that they talk about crusades and aspire to wear plate armour forces me to conclude that the humans appear from sometime between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. However, their rank structure is more akin to a modern military unit - and artillery? Really? I suppose it's possible they may have stolen some cannon from the turks... As for the archers - you say that the arrows would be useless against the armoured knights. Yet an English warbow is quite easily capable of punching through plate armour at a substantial distance - and these are marginally English troops, are they not?
Technical issues aside, however,I thoroughly enjoyed this fic, and look forward to seeing more of it.
ooh! interesting... I likes this
huh...okay I am very interested now. From crusade era to what looks like WW2 era tech? All developed indepenently from the rest of humanity? Insta-tracked.
201568
The troops are composed from all over Christendom. They are mercenaries with ethics, which means less money and worse equipment. While a good portion may have formerly been English regulars, they are dispersed and among the other nationalities. The cannon was indeed stolen from the Turks. I used the time frame of 1453 A.D. to put the armies out of the dark ages, but not quite to the Renaissance period, so the cannon was available in the Turk army, see Siege of Constantinople. As far as the rank structure goes, I need to take credit for that. I have no idea how the ranks worked back then, and felt to lazy to find out, so I just winged it. My bad.
Tracked. And 500 years worth of advancement in 1000 years? Not bad for a group of mercenaries from before the renaissance.
This story is coming along very nicely
DAMN YOU! YOU GAVE US A CLIFFHANGER! 5 stars.
Man really hope that this continues(its been awhile sense the last update)
Very well written, Really liken' how it's going too, just a few spelling errors(all minor)
this is looking good cant wait for the next chapter!
woot I was so sure this story had died.
...
Well, this doesn't elicit a _total_ rage from me, so you're doing better than average.
You see, I am _sick_ of seeing Equestria get completely dominated by human military forces.Sure, it's easy enough to see that we _would_ win, but the history of imperialism is littered with tales of outgunned natives who, nevertheless, gave the invaders a right proper kick in the teeth before they lost. And that's when we were fighting other humans who had the same natural abilities we did. How do you think those tales would have gone if large numbers of the natives could fly, or use magic?
However, they were ambushed by a technologically superior force. Whilst I doubt the invasion could have progressed as far as it had without alerting the Princesses, I will admit that the casualties inflicted by the Guard would be minimal. I also recognise that, with the knowledge they had, the Princesses would likely have only brought a platoon of Guards. I would expect a dedicated invasion force to be at least division strength, which would mean the forward elements would probably be at regimental strength, possible brigade strength. A single platoon, even a well trained and equipped one, attempting to hold a position against that, would stand no chance. That the tide changed so dramatically with the mere addition of two pilots is somewhat irritating, however.
That said, the Frankish commander seems to think he has decimated several times over, Equestria's entire military. Either I've read that wrong, or he is just as bad a soldier as he claims his troops to be. Why would a nation's army just happen to be in the place you launch your surprise attack? If it's because it wasn't a surprise, you have a problem. If they were there for any reason other than you, you have a whole different problem (namely, whatever it was that _did_ bring them there). And why would a nation of considerable size only field an army of fifty or so soldiers? Put simply - they wouldn't. There is no possible way that that was the entirety of the Equestrian army. Sure, the fact that you slaughtered them with relative ease says good things for the rest of the campaign... assuming those were standard or better troops. For all he knows, they could have been fresh recruits. Or, hell, maybe they were a re-enactment troupe - after all, his information _is_ over thousand years old.
Anyway, whilst I'm glad you have avoided inciting my wrath for writing about a certain nation whose propaganda is nearly ubiquitous, I do hope you avoid falling into the trap of just because we rarely see Equestria's military, assuming that it is completely worthless, at least in regards to ours.
1670497 I'm guessing the reason why the battle tipped so much in Equestria's favour with the addition of 2 pilots is that the pilots were ready to fight back against the invaders, unlike the guard, plus had knowledge of modern tactics, and were basically commanding the ponies.
1672791
Okay, so we have two pilots, and fifty or so ponies. Of this group, only the pilots have any awareness of modern tactics, and only them, and presumably the Princesses are willing to take a life. The pilots are also the only ones engaging the enemy - the unicorns have been put to work manufacturing booby-traps, and the others have no tactically significant abilities relevant to the situation. So, effectively, we can treat this scenario as though the two airmen are holding the hospital with naught but the weapons they liberate from their enemies, and an ample supply of IED's.
Now, as I said, the enemy are assaulting the town with at least regiment strength forces. Assuming NATO standard model definitions apply, that means between one and three thousand troops. Now, due to incredibly poor leadership, it would appear forces have been sent against the hospital piecemeal. We know several squads were sent there, which means several units of 8-13 troops. It is entirely possible that two men, with traps set, could kill an entire squad . The presence of multiple officers, however, indicates a much larger formation.Platoon strength at least, possibly even company strength. That is to say, between either 26-55, or 80-225 troops. That would pose a very significant problem even for modern day special forces. Don't get me wrong, it's not impossible - Pavlov's House in Stalingrad was notable for a depleted platoon holding off the entire German army. But the reason it's the stuff of legends is that it is so very improbable.
As I say, the situation rankles because not only did the guards stationed there get slaughtered without inflicting any notable casualties, and barely even being able to inform the Princesses that they were under attack before they all died, but then two airmen managed to kill the squad that had taken the hospital, and then fortify and hold it against several more squads at the least, and possibly more. It treads dangerously close to being downright unbelievable, in fact.
Dat end. I came Awesomeness.
203818
They probably didn't have enough of a population for the industrial revolution like we did.
And these could be some 24th century warplanes, who said planes don't exist in 2453?
1679505 The thing is, the planes' descriptions imply WWII era tech more than whatever tech we might have in the 24th century.
I'm sorry, you had me up until this chapter. Why? One word: MAGIC.
You not only explicitly stated that human civilization makes no use of magic, but implied that Celestia could unleash flaming solar death on the unsuspecting Franks, to say nothing of Luna employing magically assisted psychological warfare and the shield spells from the freaking show.
That's not even getting into the sheer improbability of the situation. Really? Humans not only manage to perfectly recapitulate the technological progress rate of Earth (requiring countless assumptions about available resources,) but after the only noble brought to Equestria was petrified, the aristocracy managed to survive long enough to be significant in an age of relatively modern warfare? Really!?
Furthermore, dangerous as it is, the Everfree is not a perfect barrier, as the Franks have demonstrated. Given humanity's exploratory tendencies, you really expect me to believe that absolutely no one managed to get through (or around) for a millennium? They wouldn't have to get back, just be observed by a pony long enough to make into the annals of history. Unless, of course, Celestia is keeping a much firmer stranglehold on information than her characterization would suggest.
On that note, she really hasn't even spared a glance at the lands of humanity? Ever? Not the slightest bit of curiosity or temptation to meddle? Not once?
Look, I'm normally not this hostilely critical or italics-happy, but this was a fairly good story until this chapter. I'm less mad than I am disappointed. I'm sorry, but no. Just... just no.
1881380
I do hear you, and realized this a while ago, hence why I haven't updated for several months. I have a rocky foundation based on assumptions I never really fleshed out. I'm thinking about a re-write, but at the moment I'm shelving this work until I figure the whole situation out.