[X] Wipe out all the rebels methodically and carefully. Show no mercy.
Jaded.

[X] Wipe out all the rebels methodically and carefully. Show no mercy.

Actually, on second thought, best to just make an example of these rebel scum.

X] Wipe out all the rebels methodically and carefully. Show no mercy.
Might as well.

[x] Wipe out all the rebels methodically and carefully. Show no mercy.

Mercy died painfully in the Scarlet's basement. Kill everyone. The lucky one will die first. The unlucky will be made prisoners, and we'll make an example from them.
Beheading them will be perfect.

[x] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

[x] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.
There's our troops, and then there are the enemy. Capture is better here, though. Executions can be done later.

[X] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

Hmmm... While quick subdue would indeed be nice, would charging Utsuho really works here? Maximus by meta-knowledge should know about the power boost Utsuho now has. Wiping out rebels in a methodical manner should also strike down their spirits. Risk I see here is this not causing this effect. Utsuho is not making any sense so far and may surprise everyone, like a show of power that will drive the rebels to believe they can win and make this harder for us.

On the other hand, Satori notice nothing unusual on Utsuho, so maybe she won't just nuke the whole center of the wedge. Utsuho is the leader of the rebellion and I very much doubt Yamame and Kisume will be able to stop troops from breaking ranks once Utsuho is down. Taking her down before she can use her power too is a good reason. Capturing Yamame and Kisume would also be nice, since knowing how and why they joined Utsuho should be interesting. What is troublesome in this is that Yuugi may be the only one with a chance against Utsuho in a one-on-one fight.

Or maybe both tactics will work and will simply change how we hold loyalty from others point of view.

[x] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

Because wiping them ALL out also means Utsuho. And we very much need to know what the hell went wrong in her head.

Yukari's list also worry me: Interaction with the Moriya clan seems imminent, but we can't let this go to war before repairing any damage the rebellion did and making sure the Scarlets will win (because being attacked by Rumia while fighting the Moriya would get ugly fast).

>>18985

Basically that. As someone said before, we need more commanders and we need to know why Utusho went mad. Besides the obvious reason (Kanako).

>>18986
Derp. Forgot to vote and delete isn't working.

[ ] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

[x] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

Bah! Softies, the lot of you.

It's obvious she would survive either way, even if it is only long enough to give a cryptic warning.

Besides guys, horses are expensive.

>>18989
Let me put this in another way: Do you want to give enough time to Utsuho to unleash whatever makes her so confident in this battle? She's not a strategist, but even she should see that her odds aren't good: our army's size is double her own and we got the favorable ground.

Even if she suddenly breaks out the nuclear arm, the wedge formation will make our cavalry spread enough to not all be oblitared in a few shots.

>>18992

...But...The wedge formation concentrates all our cavalry in a single, tight formation that can be wiped out or devastated in one hit.

If we go slowly and methodically, our cavalry will probably be spread out to run down enemy archers and fleeing enemies.

Plus, it probably isn't smart to charge all of our most valuable units straight into where the closest thing to an enemy supwerweapon is located.

>Even if she suddenly breaks out the nuclear arm, the wedge formation will make our cavalry spread enough to not all be oblitared in a few shots.

You don't seem to be aware of what a Wedge formation is.
It goes like this >. With the entire center of that arrow packed in with Cavalry. As opposed to a standard line of battle which would spread them out over the length of their numbers by a few ranks ]]].

If the shot penetrates the front to impact the rear as you'd think such a thing would, a Wedge would have the entire force compacted right around the impact zone.

Ah, I see. I imagined it was only our cavalry charging as a wedge, not the whole army. But I still don't like how the second option is worded.

>>18999

I think the second option is more; Make an example out of them, take no chances, etc.

...3 votes on the same side with the same tone in comment in about one minute? That also change current lead?

I've cooled my head from last thread, but this is way too strange a coincidence.

>>19009

Shhhh.

If it amounts to anything, then you can complain.

>>19010
Considering I'm >>18985, it does amount to something to me.

Besides, I also wondering why cats and crows betrayed us as well in so many numbers. Surely not the entirety of Rin's troops are that disloyal. There's definitely foul play and the picture is starting to take shape in my mind.

In terms of charisma, Kanako is definitely higher than Satori on this, being a war goddess. Thus, I suspect she somehow influenced Utsuho on this and also used her godly charisma to spread promises of much better benefits if they overthrow us and join her. I suspect a declaration of war from Kanako coming soon after we're exhausted dealing with this. Motivation: we're a new clan on the big scene (read: newbie and weak to her eyes) and conquering us means she doesn't have to share the nuclear furnace, something only she has. Because of the strategic defensive position, frontal assault is dangerous, so she use a conspiracy to weaken us first.

Thus, I would rather want them to surrender and use them to fight back.

Considering the recent events, making an example seems very coherent for the protagonist, both to shake off the remnants of the shame and prove to others that he can still do his job as they've expressed direct worries about it.

But it's also a very important fact that it's our own troops and every soldier killed in this battle, regardless of side, is still one that could have benefited the Komeiji clan and casualties should be left at a minimum. Plus soldiers too should have reluctance to fight their former comrades and it might show in their actions during he battle. Personally I think the Komeiji clan simply can't afford to let machinations bleed out their own troops and leave them vulnerable as pointed above. It would honestly be better to find a way to root out whatever is going on and avoid combat altogether if at all possible, though time is running short for accomplishing that.

>>19014
Exactly. I'm not against making an exemple, but not against our own troops.

>>19013

You want to use captured traitors against the one who turned them against us in the first place?

Why, I'm sure nothing can go wrong!

I mean, the Ottomans pulled it off, but those were children kidnapped at a young age and thoroughly brainwashed to be filled with nothing but hate and scorn for their former countrymen.

>>19014

On the other hand, these are people who betrayed us suddenly while our kingdom was doing fairly well. Frankly, they're pretty weak links in our nation, and should probably be removed.

Plus, letting them off easy sets a bad precedent.

I'm also pretty sure that charging in there will cause our troops to take heavier casualties, so by your own logic we should safeguard the lives of those who have proven their loyalty over traitors.

I would also like to settle this cleanly, but we should protect the lives of our own troops rather than the rebels. Systematically and carefully taking apart their army leaves less casualties for us.

Tldr; First option: less dead rebels.

Second option: less dead loyalists.

I think the choice is obvious.

>>19016
We still know nothing about why they're doing this in the first place! If I'm right, they'll feel used, they'll want to prove themselves to us and then we'll have determined troops ready to face off against Moriya.

And even if I'm not right, having to kill your fellows will drop the morale of our guys no matter what. Getting them to surrender seems to be the quickest way to avoid too many losses if we pull it off.

And Yamame and Kisume didn't came out of nowhere either and wouldn't just join someone who decided to rebel all of a sudden. That they happened to be in the area of Utsuho too is suspiscious. Someone made them join and now I'm sure Kanako or someone on he side is pulling strings here.

[X] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

This isn't the time to cut off one of your arms.

>>19020

I know, it's just exactly what you said; We don't know. Thus, assuming that they were tricked is just as wrong as assuming they were willing backers.

I'm just going for what I feel is the calculating and careful option, over what looks like a rather naive, "Oh, they were tricked! Now we can all be friends again!" route.

Either way, preserving our main force as much as possible is desirable over sparing those whose loyalty is suspect, to say the least.

Also, charging straight to the living sun seems like a good way to get "KABOOM! Our men are running from the battlefield! Shameful display!" instant decisive defeat.

>>19023
If Utsuho became that much hax, then we have no real chance to begin with.

>>19022
May I remind you that our infantry is mainly made of crows and cats? You say to preserve our main force, but I suspect youkais will soon replace our own conquistadores too as we take more and more losses.

And reread the end of the snippet: Kisume and Yamame are leading our rebelled reserves. If we massacre them, this will hurt us for a long time.

>>19024

Youkai don't grow on trees. Even if we can replace our losses, we should not risk the lives of our troops.

Also, both of them are enemy generals, who after their leader was defeated fled and hid. Until this rebellion gave them another chance to fight us.

So, both of them have gone out of their way to fight us. I honestly don't think people who go out of their way to kill you make good allies. Plus, we can always just promote some promising officers to fill out the ranks.

>>19024

And regarding our crow friend, yeah that was an exaggeration, but that doesn't change the fact that charging in leaves un vulnerable to traps, tricks, and other sinister ruses. Best to take this slow.

>>19026
I do not mind taking it slow, really. But I can't agree with the massacre that option imply will happen.

Beside, Satori will surely have her troops send a volley or two before the charge.

>>19027

Ah, alright then. I think it's just merciless in the battle, then rounding up the few survivors. You never know, though.

Also, the whole charge into the middle of the enemy line just seems to be a perfect set up to them pulling out pikes they had hidden in the grass.

Probably the best option would be to just form up defensively, then have our archers and muskets cut them down while the rest of the army defends them. Seriously, we have cavalry dominance, and probably ranged dominance. Also, after seeing gunpowder weapons, they'll probably try to surrender.

>>19032
It still leave the problem of reserve forces being destroyed by our own hand, which will make our life more difficult for a great deal of time. That means Rin unable to field her unit at the very least (which will probably means morale loss too). Also Utsuho if we can get her working for us again. Maybe us too depending on what kind of youkai replenish our human losses. In any case, we'll be forced to remain at Hell's Gates for a while.

While we'll take losses charging and subduing Utsuho, I doubt they'll be as great as destroying the reserve forces. While I know the loyalty is in question, I believe the odds of a puppeptmaster are greater than no puppetmaster. Even then, it wouldn't take that much to have them work for us again.

And after last time. I'll believe that if SB say no mercy, it will mean no mercy.

>>19038

Well, charging in with a wedge presumably has our best troops in front, thus causing our most elite soldiers to suffer the most casualties. While the reserve is valuable, the simple fact is that it would be more prudent to spare loyal troops than to try and preserve those who have shown themselves to be disloyal.

Also, morale loss is probably going to happen either way, and probably is already happening, considering our clan is in a civil war.

>>19039
We're at the front because any other unit would take more casualties than us.

Beside, remember: Our army is twice their size and and sides are simply fairies. Arrows will rain before charge will reach the youkais and Yuugi's onis will also be there right after.

>>19038

Forgot to add that the reserves appear to be mainly made up of levies, which are in all likelihood extremely easy to replace. Any elite troops among the enemy can probably be replaced, considering they were able to quickly raise an army in so little time, which means that we probably aren't mobilizing the majority of our manpower.

Seriously, if some crazy rebel can raise an army half the size of our main army from a single fief, we probably have a large amount of available troops laying around.

>>19040

Damn memory error ate my post.

Anyway, if we're concerned about casualties, we should just cut off their retreat, then shoot them with arrows and bullets until they surrender.

>>19041
>You see that the enemy has a large central core of youkai with fairies on the flanks.

Nope.

Anyway, we probably exhausted all the arguments we could find. No need to fill out more of the thread on this.

>>19043

FFFFFF-

Ah well, my whole; "If an army half the size of our grand army can be raised from a single fief, we probably have a great deal of manpower laying around." argument still stands.

But you're right, we should stop debating.

>>19041
>Seriously, if some crazy rebel can raise an army half the size of our main army from a single fief, we probably have a large amount of available troops laying around.
There is one other possibility: she conscripted everyone who could fight, draining the fief of its population. Necropolis, you know what I'm talking about.

>>19045

Nope. If everyone was conscripted, then the majority of her army would be fairies. However, the main block of troops is youkai, so she didn't draft everyone.

So, we have excellent manpower reserves, which is pretty awesome.

>>19046
I said I wouldn't post again but... This may be a misconception. Fairies, as beings of nature, have no reason to live so far down in the Underground where there's probably almost no plants. Most likely, most of them live near the entrance to the Underground, so Utsuho couldn't draft them. So it's rather possible that the number of youkais living down there outnumber fairies.

[X] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

>>19048

We probably should stop, buuuuuut....

If Youkai are more common in the underworld, then fairy levies wouldn't be used as the bulk of an army. But they are, so presumably fairies are peasants, or fulfill the role of them.

Basically, Fairies = Peasants/Ashigaru/Militia/Cannon Fodder

While Youkai = Samurai/Nobles/Mercenaries/Professional Soldiers

The way this is set up makes me think of Youkai as land owners and merchants, while fairies are serfs.

>>19048

Plus, farms have plants, so maybe fairies are concentrated on farms owned by Youkai. Also, if there are very little plants in the underworld and thus very little food, then how would civilization grow there in the first place, much less a "Great" clan?

>>19045
>>Seriously, if some crazy rebel can raise an army half the size of our main army from a single fief, we probably have a large amount of available troops laying around.
Some clarification:
Loyal provinces: Palace of Earth Spirits, Oni City, Mizuhashi City, Hell's Gate
Rebel provinces: Furnace, Remains of Hell (partially)
Loyal professional troops: Satori's Bow Youkai, Rin's Cat Youkai, Yuugi's Oni, Parsee's Trolls, Max's Conquistadores
Loyal professional reserves: Bow, Oni, (too few trolls for reserves), (Conquistador reserves just started building up)
Rebel professional troops: Utsuho's Crow Youkai
Rebel professional reserves: Crow Youkai, Cat Youkai

>>19056

Ah. So one and a half of a province, then.

Still, this shows we got some large manpower reserves.

>>19057
Still, massacre means the end of Utsuho's unit, no matter what happens with her. Recruiting so many crows and training from scratch all of them will take a great deal of time and I'm sure we'll get conflicts before then.

>>19059

I think you might be overestimating the Crow Youkai's importance in our army. While they're useful, their role on the battlefield can be filled by other units, and in terms of numbers they're only a couple of units.

I think we'll be fine without them, especially because we now have firearms.

>>19060
Right, we've seen how wonderful matchlocks are under melee too...

Sorry to say, but I say you're underestimating their role and we do need at least one melee defensive unit. Parsee's trolls are awesome and all, but they don't make kills. They serve more as mobile roadblock than anything else. And how well do you think they do against fliers?

>>19062

Eh. All we really need are some good ranged units (firearms) good cavalry (conquistadores) and some meatshields (fairies). Ranged hits the enemy hard, retreats behind meatshields, cavalry goes around the flanks while the enemy is busy hacking through the fairies.

It's an excellent strategy, especially when we have ranged dominance (firearms).

Plus, we always have our Oni auxiliaries, and Parsee and her trolls.

We don't need particularly high quality melee infantry, just some units that can hold the enemy in place long enough for arrows and bullets to thin their ranks, followed by a cavalry charge round the flanks.

>>19062

Not to mention the Oni have those grappling hooks. Those could probably do some serious damage to fliers.

>>19063
That's... kind of the problem here. You want to rain arrow and bullets on our own troops too? Because by using katana infantry for that, that's what will happen: the two units will mix up in one giant group. Another enemy group charge them and what will this happen and casualties will be horrible. And as for keeping an enemy in place, naginatas wielders will be far more effective than katana wielders. Let's review units a bit, shall we?

>Katana infantry are good at attacking the enemy head-on, but vulnerable to arrows and counterattacks.

>Naginata infantry are good at holding ground.

The problem is that Parsee's untis are simply not numerous enough to hold back another unit for long. And you're insane if you think fodder will be enough for the job. I would use them to boost offense, but I wouldn't trust them to hold defense.

Also, you think our troops will always be conveniently be together? Foolish. Siege will waste us if we do so. And what about cavalry? They only need to keep matchlocks busy and bam! They're free to demolish all our infantries.

Simply put, we need units that can effectively hold foes and fight back no matter what. Else, as soon as something comes up that can fight better than our katana infantries, they get wasted and we're fucked.

[X] Wipe out all the rebels methodically and carefully. Show no mercy.

While I'm not entirely sure about the whole "no mercy" bit I'd not risk a charge into the concentration of her force when we don't know what to expect.
By all means take prisoners, we don't need to behead everyone even if they yield, but go for the safe option and pick them apart piece by piece.

>>19066

Errrr...Ah, I see the problem here.

I'm thinking of Shogun 2 Total War, while you're actually thinking about this story specifically. My mistake.

In Shogun, your basic unit can usually form a spearwall which does wonders for their otherwise crappy stats. I'm assuming fairies can into spearwall, while it seems they can't. Sorry

Also, for sieges, just build earthworks and starve them out. Happened all the time in history.

But yeah, you male a good point. However, I'm sure our other fiefs can tide us over in terms of troops. Not to mention, if fairies actually can form a spearwall, then that strategy will work.

>>19070
Fairies armed with polearms? You do remember they're roughly half the height of normal guys, do you? No way they can use them effectively. They simply don't have enough arm strength for that.

After checking, they're trained with standard (read: melee with shorts weapons) and bows. Also, as snippets stated, they're being trained for matchlocks too. How good they'll be is another question however.

Also, why not simply delete posts and rewrite them if you want to add stuff? That's 3 of them you just did.

>>19073
Sorry, deleted my post to correct a mistake.

>>19074

Ha, deletion schenanigans.

Anyway, sorry, as I said earlier, I was thinking more along the lines of Shogun 2.

Anywho, if the fairies don't have polearms disregard my strategy.

[X] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

Good, no complaining about how the story is turning out.

And, by my calculations, should >>19002 >>19003 and >>19004 be counted as seperate votes, this is now a tie. However, those really seem like votespam. Might want to check those.

>>19076
Actually, if they're counted separate, your vote put that side ahead by one. But yeah, those three are too suspicious.

SB, any comment on the mad debating over this? There has been good arguments for both sides.

Closing votes

[X] Charge in wedge formation to break through to Utsuho and subdue her quickly. Then get the rest of the rebels to surrender.

You’re untested at pre-battle speeches, and the troops have always seemed eager enough without needing them, but this time they seem tense at the prospect of fighting their own. Perhaps some words of inspiration are in order. You draw your sword and hold it high above your head for dramatic effect. “Ladies and… ladies!” You start awkwardly. Except for your questionable status, there is not a single man in the army, or indeed, in all of Gensokyo that you have seen so far. “Today we prove ourselves to be true Komeiji! It is easy to cut down our foes, as we have done. But it is much more honourable to redeem our misguided sisters and set them back on the correct pa-“

“Watch out!” Your flagbearer jumps from her horse onto yours as she shouts, knocking the two of you onto the ground in an undignified mess. A beam of light lances overhead through the space you were occupying a moment ago. It skewers through a few unfortunate conquistadors behind you who failed to get out of the way in time, leaving charred holes in their bodies and filling the air with the sickening stench of burnt flesh.

“What was that?” You stagger to your feet, grabbing onto your whinnying horse’s reins. By a stroke of luck the beam had crossed above its back, leaving it unharmed. There is only one possibility: Utsuho. “Conquistadores, loose formation and charge! Form wedge at the last moment!” You swing back into saddle with skill born of practice. “Rin!” you call her, holding your hand out. She runs forward to you and you pull her up into the saddle behind you. “Let’s get Okuu back, okay?” You say encouragingly as you spur your horse to a gallop and follow the rest of your riders forward.

“Yes. Okuu wouldn’t do this. It’s all just a misunderstanding and I just need to talk to her.” Rin’s tries to sound determined, but her words are as much meant to bolster her own resolve as they are meant for other ears.

“All troops! Follow me!” You look back to see your army surging forward like a living wave. Your conquistadores spearhead the charge, forming a broad, hollow arrowhead. Another focused beam of light shoots forth from the rebel lines, but your conquistadores are spread out now and only one is caught in its deadly path. Still another beam follows after that, and yet a third, but the charge goes on, inevitable and unfaltering.

No more attacks come after that. “Hit them in the centre before they reload!” You shout, caught up in the moment. Your conquistadores display enviable skill tightening ranks and forming a solid wedge while at full gallop as they approach the enemy line. It’s difficult to see past the mass of horses and riders surrounding you protectively, but you know that Utsuho’s crows will be bracing with their long naginatas for the charge. The impact will be ugly, but not as ugly as the massacre if you do not end this quickly.

The impact comes, with crow youkai being skewered on your conquistadores’ lances or tossed in the air by the force of the collision, a moment before you are part of it, pushing and shoving against your neighbours, passing your momentum to the horses on the outer edge to let them break deeper into the enemy lines. Out of the corner of your eye you see a beam of light lancing high into the air and striking the underside of the surface world, knocking rocks loose in a cloud of dust. Its shooter had been knocked off aim by the charge; any slower and you would have received a deadly volley face-on at point-blank range that would have in all likelihood resulted in an instant rout. Your charge carries you pass a crow who somehow avoided being cut down like all the others. Instead of carrying a naginata, her right arm is encased within a large octagonal orange rod. She is quite obviously not Utsuho, however, and you smack her hard with the flat of your sword as you ride by, sending her sprawling into the ground.

One of your conquistadores ahead is lobbed off her horse and into the air, almost comically, by something. With a suspicion that that something may be Utsuho, you press forward in that direction. Rin leaps off your horse and you know you have broken through to Utsuho at last. Her white cape covers most of her body like a cloak below her neck, save for the large rod encasing her right arm, with which she has just batted a rider off her horse with a single swing. The other conquistadores are understandably wary about approaching within her reach and circle around her, waiting for an opening and forming a makeshift ring.

“Okuu! Stop this!” Rin shouts at her best friend with anguish in her voice as she rushes forward into the circle. Her katana is drawn, but it trembles in her hands.

“Okuu?” Utusho’s lips move, but the voice, low and evil, is not hers. She tosses her cape back off her body, leaving it draping over her wings, which subsequently reveals her chest under the cape. Her shirt is split down the middle, and protruding is a giant slit-pupiled red eye. It is glowing and it is alive; it turns its gaze upon Rin. “Okuu is not here. I am Yatagarasu, god of the sun. Bow before your master, or burn!”

“Give. Okuu. Back. To. ME!” Rin snarls and charges with her sword raised, wrath replacing hesitation. She slashes at the giant eye on Utsuho’s chest, but Utsuho – or is it Yatagarasu now? – blocks it easily with her rod and flings Rin back with a wide swing. You spur your horse forward now while Utusho is occupied, but she notices your approach and stomps her foot on the ground hard enough to make a crack in the dusty soil. The shockwave reaches your horse’s hooves and makes it rear up in the air, while you struggle not to fall off. She slams the rod against the ground, creating another tremor, and your horse bucks again making you lose your balance and slide off and down onto the ground.

Rin leaps at Yatagarasu from behind, only to be entangled in the cape as it is cast outwards with a flick of the black wings. Yatagarasu steps on her sword hand after she crashes to the ground, pinning her in place. “Look on the – bright – side,” Yatagarasu gloats as she raises her rod high and prepares to deliver a crushing blow to Rin’s head. “Your death will come at the hands of the one you love. Oh, how sweet her voice is, begging me to spare you. How about – no.”

Someone is helping you up, and you catch a glimpse of your aide Santiago’s face, but you are much more concerned about rushing over to aid Rin. Time seems to slow down as you run forward as fast as you can with your sword poised to strike, but for all your effort you won’t be able to get there in time as the rod descends on Rin-

The rod jerks to a stop in mid-air; a chain is wrapped around it. “Who!” Yatagarasu roars with fury, spinning around. All eyes turn to Yuugi, who is holding the chain. She pulls on the chain, as does Yatagarasu, and Yuugi goes flying through the air towards Yatagarasu, who balls her free hand into a fist and delivers a painful-looking punch right in the gut. Yuugi doubles over, groaning. You reach Yatagarasu, and with her back turned, she should be open to your blow from behind, but she spins around again and swings the rod with the chain still wrapped around it right in your face. Yuugi fortunately notices your plight and attempts to dismiss the chain at the last moment, but still the its tip lashes across your mouth, smarting painfully. You taste blood on your lips.

Rin has rolled away in the meantime. The three of you form a triangle around Yatagarasu, each bloodied, but with plenty of fight left. You exchange looks and attack at the same time with katana, sword and fists, but she manages to send Rin reeling back with a heavy counterstroke from her rod, kick your legs out from under you and trip you, and throw Yuugi over her shoulder in quick succession. Meanwhile, the battle rages on outside the protective ring of conquistadores. Yatagarasu goes on the offensive. She tries to crush you with her rod, but you manage to roll away just in time, and before she can press her attack she has to turn around and fend off Rin and Yuugi again.

Even three-on-one, the duel is going nowhere. You remember Utsuho’s words: ‘I am the best warrior in Komeiji, and perhaps even in the underworld.’ Even when possessed by Yatagarasu, this still seems to be the case. You need something to even the odds against her years of training, something that would be considered unfair. “Matchlock! Get me a matchlock!” Out of the corner of your eye you see Santiago hurrying into the battle with a couple of conquistadores. You just need to stall Yatagarasu for long enough.

Thankfully, she doesn’t seem to comprehend what a matchlock would mean. Rin and Yuugi seem too caught up in the fight to understand the consequences, either, and continue to give their all into attacking Yatagarasu, no matter how many times she foils them. You fight more cautiously, making use of your sword as a threat that prevents Yatagarasu from going all-out on the other two. You start seeing that Rin is the fastest and Yuugi has the most strength, but somehow Yatagarasu – or Utsuho’s body – bests both of them.

“Milady General!” Never have those words sounded as welcome as now. “Catch! It’s loaded!” Santiago has returned, matchlock in hand, and tosses the primitive gun to you. You need a clear shot, not at Utsuho, but at the giant eye on her chest, which you hope is exactly as it looks and is the thing possessing her.

The plan comes together in the blink of an eye. “Hold her still!” You shout to Rin and Yuugi. Rin feints, distracting Yatagarasu while Yuugi grabs her in a bear hug from behind. Yatagarasu is almost open, but her rod-encased arm is still blocking your shot. A flash of inspiration comes upon you and you throw your sword at her, immediately shouldering the matchlock after. She swings the rod and easily deflects your blade’s flight, but in doing so the eye comes into view, right into your sight.

Luck is kind to you when you squeeze the trigger and the matchlock fires perfectly, sending a bullet straight towards the centre of Yatagarasu’s chest, right into the third eye. Yatagarasu’s livid but ultimately impotent roar fills everyone’s ears, bringing fighting all round to a sudden stop. She shakes off Rin and Yuugi, totters, and drops to her knees amidst the silence. “Dishonourable coward – what a shameful display,” she spits hoarsely at you. The glow in the broken red eye on her chest condenses into the shape of a crow and shines white so brightly that it hurts to look directly at it, just like the sun. It leaves Utsuho’s body and starts flying upward, leaving the shattered, dull remains of the eye in her. The rod around her right arm cracks and falls away.

You aim at Yatagarasu’s escaping form and squeeze the trigger again, but nothing happens. “Damn it!” The curse leaves your lips as you recall the long reload times of early guns like matchlocks. “Don’t let it get away!” The shining crow is ascending and by the time you reload it will be out of range.

A gunshot, and Satori is holding a smoking gun. The shining crow drops back down to the ground, no longer emiting light, just dull black now. “For what you did to my Utsuho, there is no forgiveness,” Satori says coldly to the unmoving bird. You notice that it seems to have three legs, strangely enough.

“Okuu!” Rin rushes over to Utusho and drops her knees, crying as she hugs her tightly. “Come back!”

“Orin… I’m sorry,” Utsuho is herself at last, now that the possessing influence has been purged from her body. She returns Rin’s embrace and pats her back comfortingly. “I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to resist.”

“Utsuho… welcome back.” Satori is blinking tears out of her eyes as she steps towards Utsuho with open arms. “Orin!” Koishi appears out of apparently nowhere, as is customary for her, and clings onto Utsuho. Having known them for such a short time in comparison to the untold years they must have shared, you feel a little like an outsider, but watching them, you feel almost ready to cry yourself, too.

Rin and Koishi let go of Utsuho and move back a little as Satori stands in front of the still kneeling raven. Utsuho closes her eyes as Satori cups her face gently. Mistress and pet reunited; time stands still. “I’m sorry…” Utsuho whispers at last. “I know there can be no forgiveness for what I have done. I am prepared.” She pulls away from a surprised Satori and grabs Rin’s forgotten katana, to the horror of all watching. You rush towards Utusho to stop her, realizing what she must be about to do. After all you’ve done to get Utsuho back, you’re not going to lose her to this, of all things!”

The sharp blade is pressing against Utsuho’s abdomen and already drawing blood when you catch her wrist and stop her. Now it is Utsuho’s turn to be surprised as you wring the katana out of her grasp and toss it aside. You probably should treat the weapon better, but there are more important things to care about right now. “No! You’re wrong!” You tell the foolish girl outright. “There is always forgiveness no matter what. If you’re truly sorry, you won’t die and leave the rest of us to mourn you! If you’re truly sorry, you’ll live and make amends and prove it!”

“I… I…” Utsuho is lost for words, choking on her tears.

You stand straight. What you’re about to say already seems clichéd and corny to you, but you need to say it nonetheless. “All of you!” You have the undivided attention of loyalist and rebel alike. “I don’t know what you’ve been taught, but death solves nothing. To live and set things right, that is true honour. We’ve fought friends and family long enough. Now instead of dealing more death, it is time to forgive and be one once more. If you want to come back, just put down your weapons. And we will welcome you back with open arms.”

At first, everyone stands still. But then Yamame, one of the rebel commanders, is the first to lower her sword and place it down respectfully at her feet. Soon, more and more of the former rebels follow, and even the loyalists are quickly following suit as well. Mortal foes just a few minutes ago now remember the camaraderie they share once more.

The joyful moment is not to go uninterrupted, however. An oni messenger arrives, out of breath, which is unusual for an oni. “Satori-sama, my ladies!” she blurts between gasps.

“Calm down. There’s no hurry,” you say, taking charge. Utsuho and the others are sharing an intimate reunion, and you would not rather disturb them over a minor matter.

“Furnace – the local fort was taken by Moriya! They opened a tunnel straight to Furnace from above ground and now occupy the province. That’s not all; another Moriya army with tengu soldiers and kappa engineers has been spotted approaching the borders of Hell’s Gate!”

It all becomes clear to you now. Provoke a revolt and use the pretext of re-establishing order as an excuse to snatch a province. While the army is distracted by the revolt, attack an under-defended region. If what the messenger said is true – and that is just an expression of speech, as you have no reason to doubt otherwise – then it appears that the reunion will have to be interrupted after all.



Commanders:
Maximus
Kisume
Yamame
Parsee (away with Remilia)
Yuugi
Satori
Rin
Utsuho

Agents:
Koishi (ninja)

Non-levy, non-garrison troops:
Conquistadores
Trolls (away with Remilia)
Katana Oni
Bow Youkai
Katana Cat Youkai (at Hell’s Gate Castle)
Naginata Crow Youkai
Siege Crow Youkai (they shoot beams of light)
Matchlock Fairies (half troop)



[ ] Write-in.

[x] I need to see map of the underground! (another vote once we've seen the map).
-[x] See if you can find out just what Kanako did exactly. If Utsuho is in a state to talk that's good but have Satori find out if necessary. We need to be sure she can't do it again on the battlefield.
--[x] Keep a hold of the yata-garasu's corpse, just in case.
---[x] Does anyone know of Moriya clan's relations with other clans, and if any are hostile how far away they are.

The first option is so anon can get an idea of what maxine knows about the area. In particular where the captured fort is to see if it would be a major threat if left alone or if we can afford to deal with hells gate first.

The last line is to see if we can strike an emergency alliance. The main target is Hijiri clan, with any luck the religion divide will have soured relations. While most people will have no idea maybe Koishi saw something

2 and 3 are to see if Utsuho can safely eat the corpse and gain the power with out the mind control. If she can then things just got fun.

None of these actions take much time so we should be able to get another vote to plan our defence.

Is it really possible to both love and hate being right? Love being right that taking down leader was right choice, hate being also right about Moriya conspiracy. And SB, are we just deciding who go where or do we have to make a complete strategy without any solid information?

Anyway...

[x]“Okuu, you’re in charge of taking back the Furnace. Moriya tried to use you to weaken, maybe even annihilating us before taking over our lands. Make them pay for this insult.”

Yamame and Kisume with her. Yuugi too with her infantry. Naginatas and Siege crows with Utsuho; we’ll use the weapon they gave us to retake the province. No need to go out of our way for this, but have her try to capture their commander too if it’s possible without risk to the recapture.

Koishi with them too. If the stronghold is taken, see if she can open the gates for Utsuho's forces. Afterward, she need to scout the tunnel. If it leads to nothing or more troops about to go in, have the siege crows collapse it safely. Else, maybe we could use it for a counterattack.

I bet Kanako's plans didn't have the crows suddenly on our side again and going back to kick them out. Too bad we won't get to see reaction of whoever's in charge.

Us with Rin and Satori will go and defend Hell’s Gates. Rin’s troops are there anyway. And we need the archers to deal with the tengu soldiers should they try to bypass the walls. I'll say matchlocks with them too unless someone else think Utsuho need them.

I have no idea how much they send out for Hell's Gates or how many in the tunnel (not that much if they didn't expect Yatagarasu to be defeated), but I'm going to think Morale for everyone is at A+ for this fight, everyone eager to kick those bastards out. It's time to show Moriya why the most feared youkais of Gensokyo have been sent to the Underground!

And have somebody put the God's corpse in a cage and take it with us. There may be a use for it later.

>>19103
Dude, I doubt Gods come in duplicate. And we can think this later! Every single second is needed to go and prepare Hell's Gates defenses! Enemy troops are coming right the hell now!

>>19115

The original reason was to say that to get Satori to do it and mean "so we know if we can
send Utsuho into super mode safely to serve Moriya a slice of poetic justice". but then I remembered it was Satori...
Pic related.

>>19116
Ah ah! Then again, we'll have to have a private talk with Satori after the fight is done. I have no doubt she's aware of our meta-knowledge (still curious as to why she didn't ask anything about it yet) and what can be done with the corpse (from us, if she didn't already know). It may even be necessary so that we have a champion who can match for sure a War Goddess one-on-one. There's a chance of Utsuho going nuts again, but with her friends watching and her being aware of the power, unlike what happened in SA, it should be alright.

That is, if Utsuho accept. No way this will be forced on her after what she experienced.

Also, someone commented earlier about this clan being rather nice. After looking at the list from start again, I'll have to agree. I would put her after Hijiri on the nice scale for leaders, even if her temper seems easy to set off. It's not like she had personnal feuds with anyone from Above (at least at the start. Now, I think everyone Underground will hate Kanako). I shudder to think what would have happened were the choice was to be with Kaguya and forced to ignore Eirin's morally wrong experiments.

Then again, we haven't actually seen Yuyuko or Hijiri, so my opinion may change. And speaking of Hijiri, I think her clan is still not established. Flying ship just went out from earthquake, if you remember. They need to get her out first.

Hopefully, she won't try to settle on Remilia's lands or ours...

[x]“Okuu, you’re in charge of taking back the Furnace. Moriya tried to use you to weaken, maybe even annihilating us before taking over our lands. Make them pay for this insult.”

This write-in is good, so I'm voting for it.

Treachery! The shameful schemers must pay in blood for this transagression!

Honestly, what the hell did we ever do to them? Nothing! And yet they attack us! And they do not even fight us like men! They are like rats, gnawing at the foundations of our great nation! And like any pest, they must be thoroughly exterminated, destroyed so that the safety of our realm is upheld! In fact, to destroy such ambitious scum is a service to the rest of the land as well! There must be no mercy shown! Every soldier of theirs, every officer, is an accomplice in this crime! The generals even more so! They shall pay with their lives!

Sorry about that. It's just this update reminded me when a faction declared war on me out of the blue and bribed my best general to turn on my clan. He had the largest army under his command, too.

>>19119
Calm down. We don't want to sink down to their level (something we'll gleefully have Kanako hear if we have the chance).

Second thing about that is that we really should think a bit long term when everyone else (hopefully not Scarlet Clan) start going after our heads. That means capturing and convincing officers of enemy clans to work for us. They'll also know their respective lands best to help administration after conquest.

Also, I would rather have willing... 'helpers' for the curse rather than rape (which would also destroy effort to convince others to work for us. No way Suwako would fight for us if we capture and rape Sanae for exemple.)

Also, I hope your support also include the disposition of troops?

>>19118

The only clan I can see Hijiri being is the Ikko-Ikki. You know it's awesome.

Also, am I the only one who's wondering how the MC got raped by multiple plague-infected fairies and yet remained un-infected?

>>19122
Mmm... I wonder myself if she'll be a bit like Kenshin, fighting for the opresseds.

...Aaaw crap, if she see the civil war, she may side wih Rumia.

As for disease, maybe it doesn't affect humans? Or futas? Or maybe because we actually know what sex is, unlike the big majority of fairies (dunno about youkais, but I think we've only seen fairies down there).

>>19103
>[x] I need to see map of the underground! (another vote once we've seen the map).
As was mentioned in the first thread, if you want a map you'll have to make one yourself.
>-[x] See if you can find out just what Kanako did exactly. If Utsuho is in a state to talk that's good but have Satori find out if necessary. We need to be sure she can't do it again on the battlefield.
Kanako tricked Utsuho into "eating" the yatagarasu.
>---[x] Does anyone know of Moriya clan's relations with other clans, and if any are hostile how far away they are.
That's the sort of intelligence gathering ninjas are for.

>>19124
Hijiri=Uesugi.
Scarlet=Takeda
Komeiji=Hojo
Moriya=?

>>19125

That question mark fills me with dread. The kind of dread that only be inspired by the feeling that your army is about to be slaughtered in some sort of dramatic reveal of your new enemy's special tactics and units.

I have a bad feeling about this....Oh well, onwards! To glory!

>>19126
I think we're about to reverse the surprise on them. After all, would Kanako expect a God to be defeated? Still, we can't afford to lose either location and the general plan I outlined is all I can think of with the very limited info we have. Unless we have to plan the battle for Hell's Gates next, this is all we can do.

>>19128

Good point.

You know, I'm starting to think that they're actually the Ikko-Ikki stand-ins.

>>19122
>am I the only one who's wondering how the MC got raped by multiple plague-infected fairies and yet remained un-infected?
Max already had a cock. Not that complicated. I imagine a new one might have been gained if Max had been full female.

>>19139

No multi-headed dicks?

What I actually meant was how come he didn't turn into a sex-crazed maniac? Wasn't that one of the symptons?

>>19140
Check last line on >>19124. They're my theories on it.

>> Kanako tricked Utsuho into "eating" the yatagarasu.

Huh, Oral Sex.
Wait, are you saying that we fought an avatar and not the real deal? FUCK!

The first thing we need to do is calm down. we can't just go charging off without a cause against such a powerful foe.

Second thing is to break this pincer movement. the force sent down into furnace was unlikely to be particularly large and was almost certainly lead by Suwako, however it is still led by a goddess so superior force is needed to ensure victory. We are still close to furnace so it will not take long to get there.

Hells gate is a strong fortress with it's own supply hole, they won't be able to starve it out easily, but with the kappa and tengu they won't have to. The kappa will likely have explosives or cannons to break the walls and tengu can simply fly over them. Our best choke-point in this scenario is the blowhole itself, little room to manoeuvre in all 3 dimensions so flyers won't outmanoeuvre us and we can use our superior elite troops (Oni) to their fullest.

If they are doing this they must have a supply line set up for food and ammo, even a goddess cannot assure a takeover of this size in a few days. If we can weaken it their troops will suffer for it and their cannon will be unable to fire.

[x] We must take back furnace before they can gain an inroad into our land. Attack with full force and eliminate them quickly.
-[x] Koishi should sneak back up top and attempt to scout the above ground army, if they have any weapons capable of destroying stone walls/anything big and metal, sabotage them. Otherwise cut off supply lines and have hell's gate on full defence.
--[x] Tank to Satori about hell raven's racial traits in detail, notably the part where they gan the power of the corpses they eat...

>>19148
Your assumptions are dangerous. Not only we don't know how many troops are at the furnace, but I think you also you overestimate the defenses of Hell's Gates. With kappa enginneers taking out the walls and tengu soldiers flying over them to distract the cats from taking out the kappa, it won't take that long for it fall. If the battle for the furnace takes too long, the castle above will fall. And we can't lose that fortress. Every second count, so the division of forces tfor both lcoations is needed.

Assuming they expected no real resistance, the supply line will probably be established after the takeover. There will be food at the castle anyway. And don't you think the tunnel is more important to investigate first anyway?

And that last line is certainly not how you make a suggestion to your lord, especially since she'll know far more about hell ravens than us.

>blowhole
Main entrance to Underworld at Hell's Gate != Geyser

[x] We must take back furnace before they can gain an inroad into our land. Attack with full force and eliminate them quickly.
-[x] Koishi should sneak back up top and attempt to scout the above ground army, if they have any weapons capable of destroying stone walls/anything big and metal, sabotage them. Otherwise cut off supply lines and have hell's gate on full defence.
--[x] Tank to Satori about hell raven's racial traits in detail, notably the part where they gan the power of the corpses they eat...
Seconding this.

>>19150
There is a typo in the last line (it's meant to be "Talk to Satori about...") the idea of the vote is to simply get more details about how the trait works I.E. whether or not mental transfer from the corpse to Utsuho is possible.

As for the other issue we are dealing with alot of guesswork here. we don't know the size of the forces, what the forces are capable of (in-particular kapa tech) or their composition. We only have 1 Koishi and by the time she scouted around and returned it may be too late.

If we go to hell's gate first then the tunnelling force could cause all sorts of havoc, if we ignore hell's gate it is likely lost, but splitting the forces is itself a risky move.

If we split and lose either side we would take losses, and not just troops but commanders, for little gain, additionally with no way of knowing how they split thier forces for sure either side could be fighting a losing battle from the start, especially when there is 2 high rank goddesses running around.

The 4th option is something unconventional. diplomacy is likely out, they seem to intend to end it here as they have shown no mercy and they seem to have gone though alot of trouble so far to eliminate us. Unconventional tactics are also an option, maybe have the bulk of the army defend the gate while a harassment force uses guerilla warfare to stall for time at furnace and stop them from causing too much trouble.

I'll cancel my vote >>19148 for now and await further discussion. except for talking to satori and this.

[x] Ask the messenger if she knows anything else about the invading forces (distance, commanders, troop numbers anything relevant)

>>19148
Even if (and it is IF) it's Suwako down there, I doubt she'll be able to stand long against both Utsuho and Yuugi. What would numbers change?

[x] >>19115
Supporting this plan.

>--[x] Tank to Satori about hell raven's racial traits in detail, notably the part where they gan the power of the corpses they eat...
Where did this idea come from? What evidence is there to support this in non-Yatagarasu cases?

>>19177
There's no evidence. The Hell Raven species itself is fictionnal and is probably only called that because of where the crows live (former Hell).

>>19165
If there was more intelligence you would already have been told.

>>19185
Hell Ravens eat dead corpses akin to how Oni's love to drink beer and Kappa love to prank/rape people. It's just basic knowledge of japanese folklore/legends/whatever word you want to use.

>>19189
Basic knowledge? Interesting then that my searches show nothing about hell ravens or anything about that. Only things that I found were about normal ravens and the Yatagarasu. Heck, even the Touhou wiki only have a link on common ravens. A link to your source would sure be appreciated.

>>19115
Forgot to add here since I just assumed it would be assumed automatically, but I'll say it to be sure. Cavalry should carry archers if it doesn't tire the horses on arrival (Maximus with Rin or Satori and Santiago carrying the other leader). I believe of course that there's probably more archers than horses, but it should help them reach Hell's Gates faster if it can be done.

Calling it for >>19115

I know I should really wait until next update to post, but... why was there no levies available for the battle plans? The 4 bow levies we had for the battle at the SDM were pretty much untouched by Rumia's forces. Even if they were not here right now, a messenger could have sent them to help both front for the upcoming two battles.

>>19223

Militia, especially levied ones, are usually unreliable for long campaigns. They probably returned to the fields after the battle.

>>19224
They're like rabbits in that sense.

< * * * Battle of Furnace, Late Spring * * * >

“Okuu, you’re in charge of taking back the Furnace. Moriya tried to use you to weaken, maybe even annihilating us before taking over our lands. Make them pay for this insult.” I remember the words that Maximus-sama spoke to me before she departed for the defense of Hell’s Gate. Yes, I, Reiuji Utsuho, shall make the Moriya pay for what they did. I may be foolish, easily tricked, and blinded by honour at times, but I can fight and I will fight until my lady’s enemies are driven back to whence they came.

The Moriya flag flies over the Reiuji Castle. It is a small thing, much smaller than the Palace of Earth Spirits or even Hell’s Gate Castle, just a fort really, but it is mine, given to me by none other than Satori-sama herself. The soil is barren and choked with ashes and solidified magma left over from the time when the Furnace was used as part of Hell, but year after year the land has given up a frugal harvest under my supervision. No one else can have it.

One chance to surrender is all that the Moriya shall have. I walk towards my former walls, alone. Some may call this foolish, but Yatagarasu’s power, technique, knowledge and skills still reside within me even after its mind has been cast out, just as its eye remains embedded in my flesh. A new control rod encases my right arm snugly. It is not the comforting familiarity of my naginata, but it is much more powerful.

“Yasaka!” I demand. “Come out!”

She appears at the parapets – flanked by fairy archers, of course. After her treachery I wasn’t really expecting otherwise, of course. “Utsuho-chan! How nice of you to visit! What can we do for you?” Her tone is honeyed, patronizing, and full of lies.

I point at her with my left hand to emphasize my point. “Yasaka! I am giving you one chance only. Leave, and never let me see your face again.”

“I’m afraid I can’t leave,” she laughs, “but never seeing my face again? That is easy for a goddess to arrange.” She gestures the archers to loose.

Arrows rain down upon me. The old me might have been able to block a single arrow on a good day. The new me swats them away as though they are no more a nuisance than flies. “Goddesses don’t impress me. I was here before they raped this land and turned it into a hell. I saw them leave when they complained that this place was too small to hold all their detractors. I will see you soon, Yasaka, and instead of standing on a wall above me you will be on your knees.”

She is gone from the parapets. I turn around, my cape billowing behind me, more arrows are stopped in the cloth. The arrows are starting to annoy me. I lift the rod, point it up in the air, and release my power. The fireball arcs high in the air and lands on the wall with an explosion that scatters the fairy archers. I don’t need to turn around and see to know the effect. The arrows stop falling.

I return to my army – no, the army that Maximus-sama has placed in my trust. My fellow commanders Kurodani, Kisume and Hoshiguma are waiting for instructions. “Yuugi, take your oni and half the fairies around to the front gate. The rest of you are with me. Once I knock down the wall, Koishi will open the gate from within, and we charge in at the same time from both sides. Any questions?” There are none. We know what to do.

Yuugi takes her half of the army and sets off. It still amazes me that Maximus-sama has seen fit to put me in charge of this mission. It would have been so easy and prudent to demote me or throw me into prison. Thank you, Maximus-sama. Your trust will not be disappointed. With these thoughts going through my mind, I prepare to channel my power through my control rod.

While Yatagarasu possessed me, it used this power against Satori-sama and Maximus-sama. Now, I shall use it against our foes. I aim the rod straight at the walls of Reiuji Castle. It pains me to do this to my own home, but this sacrifice must be performed for a greater goal. “Siege ravens! Prepare to fire!” The rest of the unit, consisting of the ravens with the most magical potential hand-picked by me, or technically Yatagarasu, form circles and begin their incantations. The amount of power required for siege magic is too much for a single youkai to summon, except for rare circumstances like mine. Several ravens are needed to donate enough energy to the channeler who forms it into a shot or beam and releases it from her control rod.

“Fire!” I release my spell, as do the other three ravens with control rods. Four beams of light blaze towards the fort wall and knock it down, just like that. Fairy archers scatter in all directions as the wall crumples around and under them. It is time. “Charge!” I spearhead the charge into the courtyard, batting aside errant arrows as I go. The fairy archers are the first foe I meet; even the old me would have had no problem with them. Smashing through their disorganized ranks I am the first to step foot into my castle.

The first proper enemy I meet are crows, not to be confused with us ravens. Even Maximus does that sometimes, thinking of my troops and me as crows instead of ravens. These crows are admirably disciplined and present an unwavering wall of yari points, to no avail. I break polearm and arm alike with heavy blows from my rod as I tear through their ranks and fight my way to their commander. The cowardly bitch turns tail and runs before I can even cross weapons with her, yelling something along the lines of “Where’s the google tool to beat a crazy raven when you need it?” I make a mental note to include mention of this ‘gugotul’ to Maximus in my report.

“Reiuji!” I see Hoshiguma knocking a few crows out with her bare fists as she calls out and makes her way to me, not even needing to resort to a katana like the rest of the oni. “You should have seen their faces when the gate opened right as we reached it. The little Komeiji sister really is something, eh?”

“That’s right. Now into the keep!” The surviving enemy is retreating into the central keep. Hoshiguma and I lead the assault and give chase hot on their heels. Fairy and youkai alike fall before our unstoppable fury. We fight through the entire army, all the way to the roof of the keep, in search of the enemy commanders. There we finally find them at last. Yasaka stands before me, blocking our path. Behind her is the cowardly crow from earlier and someone else dressed like a miko and even carrying a gohei. The Hakurei Miko will probably have something to say about that.

The crow carries the miko and flies away. Hoshiguma tries to stop them by throwing a chain, but the miko deflects it with her gohei. “You’ll have to get past me first,” Yasaka declares. She has her shimenawa and four pillars out. The crow and the miko are getting away, and Yasaka is stopping me from giving chase. I’ll just have to capture her instead. I raise my control rod and take up a stance. “Do you really think you can defeat a true goddess?” Yasaka scoffs. “Yatagarasu was just child’s play.”

Instead of a clever retort I simply step forward and give the answer I know best. She blocks my blow with her pillars, but I can feel her weakness underneath her haughty exterior. Only a weakling relies on multiple weapons to make up for her lack of skill with one. I press forward with my attacks, steadily driving her back with each stroke. She’s too focused on me to notice Hoshiguma’s chain wrapping around her legs, and just like that she trips and falls. I hook her shimenawa with my rod and flick it away to disarm her. What an amateur. Even Hardwood-sama puts up a better fight than she did.

I hold Yasaka down with my foot on her neck and the business end of my rod pressed up against her face. Unfortunately, she’s smart enough to not try anything funny and deny me satisfaction as Hoshiguma finishes tying her up with the chain around her arms as well. “Raise the victory call!” I order. The reclamation of Reiuji Castle and the capture of Yasaka makes up somewhat for the frustration I feel at the escape of the other two Moriya commanders.

Hoshiguma and I drag Yasaka down into the dungeons for interrogation. The oni licks her lips; I was not present to witness firsthand her conversion of Mizuhashi but I have heard many no doubt exaggerated tales of her deed. I blink in surprise as Hoshiguma starts stripping already. “What’re you doing?” I ask. “I haven’t even asked her a question yet.”

“No need to bother,” she shrugs. “Little miss pouty here isn’t going to talk, so we might as well save our breath and go straight to the fun part.” I don’t protest as her point is not without reason, as Yasaka has kept her boastful mouth uncharacteristically shut after losing to me. Soon, Hoshiguma’s body is in all its nude glory. Her breasts are larger than mine, as is the cock that shortly forms from her engorged clitoris. I feel a twinge of envy, but the fear that I see beginning to gather in Yasaka’s eyes goes a long way towards soothing my pride.

Yasaka is tied by the chain, still fully clothed, which wraps around both her legs and holds her arms down at her sides. She can do no more to resist than futile attempts to hop or shaking her head. Hoshiguma doesn’t even bother to bend her over a table or anything, instead simply tearing a hole in the back of Yasaka’s long skirt while she is forced to stand in the middle of the cell. The oni cock goes in there, and instead of penetration Hoshiguma must be simply fucking her thighs, as I can see the outline of the tip of her cock bulging against the front of the skirt whenever she thrusts forward. I see Hoshiguma’s fingers sinking slightly into Yasaka’s full breasts as she holds her in place from behind this way. Still, Yasaka is getting off easy. My thirst for vengeance demands more for what she did to me, and what she did to Orin, Satori-sama, and Hardwood-sama through me.

“Not a bad fuck,” Hoshiguma comments offhandedly as though she is appraising a cut of meat. “Can’t compare to Parsee, though. Hey, you should try her out too.” She shifts her hand to Yasaka’s shoulder and bends her over at the waist in front of me. Yasaka looks up defiantly at me, her lips closed and holding back any sound, her body bobbing back and forth every time Hoshiguma’s hips slam against her rear.

I feel my own erection rising. Unlike Hoshiguma, my penis does not disappear at will. When it first appeared on my body I was surprised and frightened, afraid that I would turn into a man. Orin was the one who first and still takes care of its urges. I have always wondered why I was cursed with this malady, but now I begin to understand. Perhaps it is not a trial to be overcome, but a tool to be employed in the service of my lady.

With these thoughts I free my member from the confines of my clothing and let Yasaka take a good, long look at it so that she knows what is coming to her. I pinch her nose and wait for her mouth to open involuntarily for air. It takes a little while, but eventually the breathing reflex of the human form she has assumed kicks in and her lips part. I grip her hair and pull her down onto my cock while thrusting my hips forward at the same time, forcing my cock into her mouth and down her throat.

Hoshiguma is right. Yasaka’s throat is, by any objective measure, warm, wet and tight, but still she doesn’t feel nearly as good as Orin. Then again, this is for vengeance and interrogation, and the pleasure enveloping my cock is just a very nice bonus. Behind Yasaka, Hoshiguma has pulled out and is realigning herself for proper penetration. We fuck Yasaka at the same time, skewering her relentlessly between the two of us. She’s making some noises in the back of her throat, but it’s too muffled to make out and anyways I am too busy trying to reach that place to care about what she has to say now.

I look down at Yasaka’s face as I slam my crotch against her nose and see tears leaking out the corners of her eyes and trickling down her cheeks. The defiance is gone from those eyes looking up at me, replaced with submission and lust. The thrill of power surges through my chest and complements the base pleasures of her throat, mixed with a little disgust. Is this all it takes to break a once-proud goddess into a mindless slut? Or is Hoshiguma simply that good? There is a wet pool at Yasaka’s feet, the liquid too clear to originate from Hoshiguma’s cock.

It is not long before I reach climax and blow my load down Yasaka’s throat. I hold her head down and push my cock as deep into her throat as I can to fill up her belly with my cum. Her throat feels too nice for me to hold back my moans. I pull away from her mouth, my shaft still hard and erupting, and mark her face with the scent of my white seed. Yasaka is definitely moaning like a cheap whore and even has her tongue stuck out trying to lick my cock. There is no reason to deny her this now. The final spurts stain her lips and nose as she licks me clean.

Behind her Hoshiguma grabs hold of Yasaka’s waist and gives her a final thrust deep inside. I imagine that it is the oni’s turn to empty herself inside our prisoner now. Yasaka cries out like she is actually enjoying this. I take a step back and enjoy the sight of her humiliation while my satisfied member softens. Hoshiguma pulls out of Yasaka, a thick white string of cum stretching between her cock and Yasaka’s violated sex. Yasaka continues to grind her ass against Hoshiguma’s cock while her moans take on a disappointed tone. “Does she still want more?” I ask incredulously.

“I don’t think she came yet,” Hoshiguma laughs, slapping her cock over Yasaka’s rump. She rubs Yasaka’s pussy lips roughly and gets another long moan for her efforts.

I put my hand under Yasaka’s chin and tilt her head upwards. For the first time in a while, I smile, a wicked smile, but a smile nonetheless. “Is that true?” I mock her. “Will you, a goddess, beg for release?”

“Yes, more – give me more!” Judging by the desperation behind those words, Yasaka seems to have lost it.

“Mission accomplished,” Hoshiguma gives Yasaka’s rump a spank, making her jump. “Let’s grill her for information and then send her to Maximus. She’ll need some R&R in Hell’s Gate.”

“Not yet,” I shake my head and turn my attention back to Yasaka and push her down onto her knees. Bound with her legs together and her arms to her sides, all she can do is press her thighs together in an attempt to stimulate herself. I rip her red shirt open to expose her tits. Pinching a nipple in each hand I tug them upward, smiling as I see her wince. “If you want release you’ll have to work for it,” I tease her, stepping forward until my cock nudges against her moist lips. “Please me and suck it.”

Yasaka takes me into her mouth and sucks obediently. I feel myself hardening again and guide her head back and forth with a firm grip on her hair. Hoshiguma shrugs and gathers her clothing under her arm. “Call me when you’re done. Have fun, now.”

She leaves, leaving Yasaka and I alone. I force Yasaka’s head down all the way on my cock, relishing the way her throat quivers while she chokes and gags, and hold her there uncomfortably long before letting her pull away gasping for air. Vengeance is sweet, and I am just getting started.


< * * * Hell’s Gate Castle, Late Spring * * * >


Hell’s Gate Castle bustles with activity as it prepares for its first siege. The Moriya army to the north has marched south and crossed the border into Komeiji territory, an overt act of war. Scouts have belatedly ascertained the composition of the attacking force but not in enough detail to fully determine its capabilities, their performance reflecting poorly on the state of the Komeiji intelligence network. Made up of youkai, kappa, tenu and levied fairies, the Moriya expedition has the advantage of both pure numbers and fighting skill over your army. On the other hand, you have the castle defenses and local knowledge of the land.

Hell’s Gate Castle is located by necessity instead of choice. The central keep is built directly above the beginning of the tunnel that leads on to Mizuhashi Bridge and then deeper into the heartlands of the Underworld. Where a throne room would be, here instead there is a large staircase descending underground. The keep itself is a bastion of last resort. Its north-facing double doors will not hold before an enemy who has already broken through the main gate, and its defensive strength must come from the strong arms and stout heart of the defenders within. The courtyard outside the keep is larger than in most castles, to provide enough room for your horsewomen to practice and also for assembling armies as they emerge from the Underworld. Right now, the assembled army defending Hell’s Gate doesn’t need all that space.

The outer walls of Hell’s Gate Castle are well built with sturdy stone and arranged in a square, with the main gate on the northern wall and a smaller gate on the southern wall. Outside the walls of the castle are farmland and a few gently rolling hills, unremarkable terrain. The last of the cherry blossoms are falling, to be replaced by the green shoots of summer. The sun shines down unaware on a battlefield soon to run with blood. Most of the civilians have been evacuated from the castle and sent to the Underworld, except for an essential few to keep the place running. You’ve mustered as many levies as possible to supplement your forces, even going so far as to leave the fields fallow until the immediate threat has been dealt with, but for the enemy to be driven back and victory to be grasped you now need a strategy.

< * * * Komeiji Army * * * >

Maximus – Conquistadores
Offence: B | Defence: B | Morale: B | Mounted | Charge bonus

Satori Komeiji – Bow Youkai
Offence: C | Defence: C | Morale: C | Ranged

Rin Kaenbyou – Katana Cat Youkai
Offence: B | Defence: C | Morale: C | Ability: wall scaling

Matchlock Fairy (1 full troop)
Offence: B | Defence: D | Morale: D | Firearms

Bow Fairy Levy (4 troops)
Offence: C | Defence: D | Morale: D | Ranged

Fairy Levy (4 troops)
Offence: D | Defence: D | Morale: D

< * * * Moriya Army * * * >

Shizuha Aki – Yari Youkai
Minoriko Aki – Naginata Youkai
Hina Kagiyama – Nagashi-bina Troop
Nitori Kawashiro – Engineer Kappa
Momiji Inubashiri – Sword and Shield Wolf Tengu
Aya Shameimaru – War Fan Crow Tengu
Matchlock Kappa Levy (2 troops)
Bow Fairy Levy (2 troops)
Tengu Levy (4 troops)
Fairy Levy (4 troops)



[ ] Write-in. Good luck.

>>19292
Are they planning on assaulting the castle? Or are they waiting us out? Food supplies?

How far away are they engaging (as in, would we be able to engage them within firing distance of the keep?)

I'm worried if we take too many troops off the walls to engage they'll bypass us and take the castle directly - that's what I'd attempt, certainly. However, they've got engineer teams there too...

If they're going to settle in for the siege, it might be a good idea to let them, and call in reinforcements in the form of Remilia's cavalry, especially if Moriya's side don't have any siege equipment with them.

Holy crap that won't be easy. And we sure as hell need to upgrade the network after this because the information sure would have been nice.

Anyway, I'm going to try a few assumptions here: Hina's troops should not be faced with melee, else they'll be crippled with curses as the dolls fall. Engineers will either have bazookas or some form of long range siege weapons or a close-range siege weapon like drills or explosives. Sword and Shield Wolf Tengu may be too heavy to fly, but we should plan assuming they can. War Fan Crow Tengu WILL fly and WILL fuck the arrows sent with wind. Range is unknown, but they could make us lose a lot of firepower, which will be critical for this.

Need to think. Should cavalry go out by the smaller gate to strike the flank or rear?

The advantage we have here I think is that they have few ranged units: two bow levies, 2 matchlocks kappas levies, War Fan and probably Enginners. We destroy those and the battle will shift in our favor.

Since the courtyard is so large our cavalry will be able to strike effectively at any units moving through breaches. The best thing would be if we could entice them to break through the gate and send in a force, hopefully of good troops, to secure a foothold inside thenuse matchlock fairies and cavalry to hit them hard and hopefully cripple an important unit or two.
It probably won't work twice but if they at any point move through a breach at ground level we should be able to make them pay for it. My concern is holding the walls, the oni would have been incredibly useful especially against the tengu.

The kappa matchlocks should be fairly useless as long as we have a wall between us and them. Unless they have invented machined rifling etc muskets are not accurate enough to reliably snipe people shooting back from behind bulletproof cover.

I would assume Aya's unit is the only one that can fly and frankly I think they'll be our biggest problem. If they attack our archers on the walls as other units move in to scale the walls I don't think we have the firepower to both take out the crow tengu and stop the assault.
The walls are our weak point as they have overall stronger infantry and if they can get them onto the walls they'll clear them of our archers and replace them with their own at which point we'll be slaughtered unless we withdraw.

Sending our cavalry outside the protection of the walls is probably a bad idea. If I was in their position I'd keep the matchlocks back to protect against that very thing and a salvo from those units would likely decimate our only cavalry unit. They'd only have time for one salvo but they only need to hit the horses and they are pretty big targets.

Do we have any way to send messages to Remilia?
If we can hold them off and make them consider starving us out/waiting for more troops/regroup to make a new plan and then hit them from two sides that would turn the odds in our favour.

>>19293
They will likely assault, if they have any Intel at all they will know that we can use the tunnel to get food from the underground, we will win by attrition if they try to starve us.

The main threats to us are kappa siege weapons and flying troops. Initially we should position ourselves and the melee levies outside the gate. The levies are to stop any close range siege while we run onto a flank and look for an oppertunity to eliminate any vulnerable siege units or archers with our manoeuvrability and charge power while avoiding contact with melee troops at all costs. If no targets present themselves then back up the wall forces.

Rin should start behind the wall while satori and the archers watch for flyers, when they attack satori will give a signal for the archers to make way for a surprise attack from the cats. Once the flyers are decimated or fleeing climb over the wall to back up the outside force.

Archers should first attack targets with this priority, Flyers -> Siege kappa -> Hina's troops -> others. Should the attack have little effect on the target then go to the next one.

Once all threats to the castle itself are eliminated regroup in the fort and wait for reinforcements, unless they look like their about to flee. Matchlocks should line up on the inside of the gate to cover any retreating forces.

Also the lack of Suwako on either team is worrying, prepare for anything.

[x]This post

>>19299
Utsuho needed at least one other unit to ensure success. Since Rin's infantry was still at castle, it only made sense to have Yuugi assist down. I have no regret on that decision. We can send a runner asking for help since numbers are far above ours, but that will take time.

Still, don't count out the cats: they can go outside the castle from anywhere they want, engage whatever is going near the walls and retreat back inside fast after spilling enough blood.

And if War Fans try to stay above us to deflect all arrows, let see them try to deflect bullets with wind...

Almost done thinking of a strategy here. It won't be perfect, but what plan is when you're on the receiving end of a siege?

>>19303
We can't really do anything about the oni now and I would not have been able to predict this precise situation even if I'd been voting then so I can't really say it was a bad call, merely one that led to unexpected negative consequences.
If we'd had them though I'd have been ready to pay for the victory feast already.
I still say keep everyone inside the walls. Even if the cats can climb up the walls quickly they would be terribly exposed to ranged troops every second they're outside, especially while they're on the side of the wall.

Okay, here's a strategy.

[x]Siege defense plan

Have a good number of archers on the walls, some hidden like >>19304 stated to see how they act first. I want one or two levies down however, firing outside with the help of a spotter if needed. If a breach appears, it will be a bottleneck. Remember what we did against Rumia? Same here: the bottleneck will ruin the formation of any unit going inside: Have a group of either matchlocks or bows ready to kill them as they come in.

If it's the shield troop however, have the cavalry ready to intercept them since ranged won't be as effective.

The priority >>19302 stated is good. If the war Fan unit is deflecting the arrows however, target someone else. And have the matchlocks come up and shoot the Fans. Have fun trying to deflect that one, suckers.

Our cavalry and Rin's unit should be ready to intercept anyone landing inside. War Fans and tengu levies will no doubt be able to do so. Rin's unit however should scale and drop on any unsuspecting target near the wall, doing damage and going back inside before someone send a counter-attack. Matchlocks levies and engineers should they need to come close are good targets. Of course, disregard this if a unit land and the cavalry is busy. Rin's unit should also help if wall assault is too much for the fairy levies to repel.

On that note, have the fairy levies help hold the gate and protect the archers on the walls.

Also, special orders for Rin if it's a commanded unit and the opportunity is good: quickly strike them and overpower the commander in the surprise assault, then capture her and drag her back inside kicking and screaming and have her thrown into a jail. The effect on morale will be great and it's also what we need here. Disregard if it's Hina.

Should the gates fall or a breach wide enough is made: Have a looker see who will lead the charge inside and have either cavalry or Rin intercept depending on unit. If horsekillers get in, send Rin. Else, disrupt the formation with bows or a fairy levy first if Maximus is forced to intercept. Yaris and Naginatas may do bad things to our charge, but only if the polearms point our way.

Hina's troops are a complete unknown. If they are seen doing something, disrupt them with arrows. Else, consider it like some sort of special melee.

Another thing: have a watch on that south gate. We really don't want to be attacked from the rear here. Send appropriate unit to deal with any group trying to do this.

Lastly, have someone run and see if the battle for the Furnace is done and if any unit can come up and help. Not everyone of course since order must still be put back down there, but just one would be nice help.

Makes no mistake : the battle will be hard and a rout is simply not possible here. What we need is to force them to retreat, by both killing morale and taking numbers. Eventually, they'll be forced to retreat before the losses are too much.

And in the retreat, see if you can snag another commander if they can't get away as fast as others, if cavalry and infantry are still in good shape. Surround and offer them to surrender.

>>19302
Someone does have to stay at the Castle to hold it just in case.

Anyway, feel free to poke at the holes and fill them if the strategy is good.

[x]

Any plan that involves us staying inside is a decent one - IF they don't have longer ranged artillery pieces or other sorts of mangonels, trebuchets and the like (hopefully they haven't managed to field anything like that so fast).

I am significantly worried at what we put on the walls - and in particular, the tengu levies possibly being able to fly and VERY MUCH Aya's unit. Forget blowing arrows off course, I'm worried she might blow entire UNITS off the walls. In a normal battle a buffet of wind might perhaps shake up a formation but in a city fight it could send a whole bunch of fairies flying in disarray.

Since we're apparently sticking to hunkering down and waiting for attack: Most of the plans so far are good, but, I'd like the following changes:

Matchlock levy, 2 bow levy, two fairy spear levies on the walls. Matchlocks work on line of sight: putting them up there is much more likely to allow them to hit, especially since they're more likely to be able to hit through wind deflection. Bow levy for normal reasons.
The spear fairy levies should be equipped with extra spears (shouldn't be too hard) and ordered to help rain down death on people attacking (though obviously keep some weapons on hand to fight off any targets). We need to put up some rigging or something if we can to help stop them from being blown off.

As per >>19304 and >>19302 Rin staying nearby Satori to guard the gate and also to be aware of the enemy's plans: as said before, we've got some good info on the enemy: if the tengu start making for the walls, set the cat amongst the birds.

With that amount of tempting targets on the wall hopefully they'll take the bait.

Do we have a trench earthworks or something like that in front of our walls (kind of like world war 2 trenches: Stops enemy fire, if the enemy can get in, we can shoot people in them like fish in a barrel from the walls)? If so, that'd be a good primary defensive lines for a few more levies, including the extra bow and spear levies.

Otherwise: the levies should corridor either side of any breach, hold them in place and keep them unformed while we charge them, then back off from the resulting melee, then charge them again. Satori can shoot from the main castle with the other two bow levies either over the walls to support the rate of fire or into the courtyard if necessary.

I don't know if we can guard against the tengu flying over the wall AND the courtyard to take the castle. That'd really screw us. If that happens, Rin has to try and keep the castle secure and hope all the arrows they took while flying weakens them enough.

Eh, can't weaken the walls too much.


Frickin' "Lord Propaganda Minister Aya".

>>19312
We don't have spear levies. Only melee with crude, short weapons. But you're on to something about the wind users.

Also, how big do you think the breaches will be? If the walls are good, it certainly won't be big enough to use your plan at first. So long as it stay a natural bottleneck, you can just let them walk into a grind.

>>19311 here.
Plan modification: Still have archers and defenders on wall, but have less on them than down in courtyard. If they think what was on the walls were all we had, the tengus flying in are in for a rude awakening.

>>19311
Sounds good overall. I forgot about the south gate but having spotters on the wall there and one unit of levies with orders to signal if there is an attack on that gate should be enough. Our cavalry should be able to respond to any penetration in our rear as it were.

My only addition would be to hold the main gate lightly. If the enemy wants to break through, let them and then hit them hard with a counter attack. That should give us the most effect for as few casualties as possible.

Basically: Main priority is to keep the enemy off the walls.
At ground level, allow enemies to enter breaches and hit them hard with ranged troops and the cavalry as a mobile strike unit.

I think the main thing we should concentrat on is our ranged units. To that effect, our archers should go on the walls, but one the enemy starts scaling them, fall back onto the walls of the keep.

Matchlocks should be kept away from the first walls, and instead be placed on the walls of the keep.

For our melee troops, they should stick in the shadow of the keep, where our ranged units can support them. They should stop any enemy units from reaching the gates of the keep.

Also, one or two units, probably fairy levies, should stay hidden near the first line of walls. They should let the enemy pass them, but when the enemy brings up their siege weapons to break through the keep, the levies will swarm them.

Also, Maximus should be kept in reserve inside the keep. We can use him to smash enemy lines later on, or have them dismount to fight, either on the walls or in the courtyard, depending on the situation.

Also, map because I suck at visualizing things on my own.

>>19314

Original description of them had:
>>17139
>Fairy Levy (6 troops)
>Offence: D | Defence: D | Morale: D
>Fodder on the battlefield, equipped with swords or short spears that confer no particular advantage.

Short spears double as javelins in a pinch, IF we have a decent number on hand. Hell, sharpened sticks would do if we're throwing them downwards, even if untrained they'll be able to hit any mass building up to attack, or perhaps blow through a wind smash.

But yeah, it's only a small advantage I'm hoping for. Best not to rely on it.

Question; I'm confused as to what style of castle this is. Is it Western or Japanese?

Because mine assumes it is Japanese.

Matchlocks are just not accurate enough to be much use on the walls, at least not compared with bows.
I don't really have a satisfying way to deal with the tengu, especially if the generic tengu levies can fly, but I still think the matchlocks will be most use on the ground where they can fire volleys to make full use of the shock effect.
I just hope the war fan tengu can't blast big swathes of our people off the wall. If they can then we're pretty much screwed.

Guys, remember the keep itself won't hold as well as outer walls. We can have the archers retreat there if too many enter the courtyard, but we realy should hold the courtyard for as long as possible.

>>19318
Remilia would be western, but I'm pretty sure it's japanese here.

>>19319

Yeah, that's a big flaw. I'm kinda've counting on them firing through windows and murderholes in the keep, or massing at the gate.

Massing them behind the gate, if the gate can open easily, would be pretty cool. Just open it to let them fire, then close so they can reload, open to fire again, etc.

>>19316
Strongly disagree with this one: while falling back to the keep is a decent backup plan, fairies have no real skill at hiding and securing the courtyard is something any half-competent commander will do after securing the breach - that and at that point the tengu will have the walls and be able to see the fairies from the top, meaning they'll be spotted and ground to bits along the walls.

It's a nice plan, though. If we had a second cat unit we could hide them on the walls and drop them down to attack, unfortunately not the right time for it.
>>19315
has it right: Walls: shoot tengu, shoot artillery or other siege, shoot anything else.

Ground: Don't allow any breach to get too comfortable: engage lightly with fairy levies while everyone shoots them, then charge them while they're still out of formation and half-engaged and half-entering (even the spear goddesses would have difficulty in doing that well against that). If it gets too tough, fall back to the keep (apart from Rin's group who needs to stay on the walls to keep them from losing all morale).

>>19319
You can volley fire quite decently from walls, I would have thought. And shooting from above means you're more likely to hit people in the head when firing on a crowd. But then this is supposition on my part.

Also, dammit Aya (can't beat ayayaya)

>>19322
Leading to Rin being overwhelmed and captured? No way. If courtyard is falling, there's no reason to have them stay on the walls.

>>19316
If we have to fight at the keep then we've already lost I think. At that point we can't use our cavalry which along with the fortifications are our only real advantage.

The inner keep is not a strong fortification and in a meatgrinder type situation we are completely outclassed. The more expansive outer wall provides more space for our archers to fire down on the enemy and the wide open courtyard gives our cavalry the space they need.
Hell, even if we lose the courtyard and the forces on the wall are bypassed they can keep fighting from on top of the wall, firing down and defending the stairs.
Taking the walls could actually be more expensive for them than taking the keep would be even with our mobile assets out of the way.

>>19323
If you're willing to have them there instead of archers, yeah they could pretty much fire volleys from the wall. However, while you are more likely to hit someone in the head if you do hit it's actually harder to hit someone in the first place from above since firstly they present a smaller profile (head and shoulders) than if you're firing level and secondly when firing levelly they'll be moving toward you rather than perpendicular to your line of fire and your shot would be passing through every rank giving you additional chances of hitting someone.
Then, of course, there's the shock value of guns going off in your face as opposed to above you.
On the wall a musket is just a less accurate, slower firing bow. On the ground they're a terror weapon.

Alright, it seems like no one is sure whether it's Japanese or European. Either way, updating my battle plan. This assumes it's Japanese. As in, if the castle is European, which a great many people seem to be assuming, disregard my battle plan. My plan relies on it being a Japanese castle, okay? Many of the flaws in my plan are from trying to use my battle plan with a European castle.

I think the main thing we should concentrate on is our ranged units. To that effect, our archers should go on the walls, but once the enemy starts scaling them, fall back onto the walls of the keep.

Matchlocks should be kept away from the first walls, and instead be placed near the gates of the keep. That way, they can support our troops, but if pressed, can retreat into the keep.

For our melee troops, they should stick in the shadow of the keep, where our ranged units can support them. They should stop any enemy units from reaching the gates of the keep.

Also, Maximus should be kept in reserve inside the keep. We can use him to smash enemy lines later on, or have them dismount to fight, either on the walls or in the courtyard, depending on the situation.

Also, updated map.

>>19325

Oh, I know walls can be nightmare to capture. Hell, in Medieval I've actually won sieges where I was horribly outclassed and outnumbered by having my archers shoot enemy units which were already on the walls at point blank range.

It's brutally effective. Crossbows also work too.

>>19327
Dude, have you been reading the comments? We DON'T want the fight to get to the keep. The defensive power is far weaker than the outer walls.

>>19330

Okay, let me say again: I am assuming that this is your typical two-layer Japanese castle, okay? My battle plan is based on this, as giving up the walls in a European style castle is beyond retarded. In a Japanese castle however, the enemy needs only to scale the walls to get in.

I'm assuming the keep, despite being weak, is on a higher level than the rest of the castle. Thus, enemy will scale the walls, charge our formed up melee troops while being pelted with arrows and bullets, then our Cavalry will charge through a weak area into their rear, where we can start butchering command staff, artillery, and ranged units.

Also: Special order to Rin:

If everything really seems like it's going all the way to hell, Rin's to read a note we give her: Take Satori out over the wall and get the hell out. If Satori goes down, it's pretty much all over without any apparent heir. Falling her back as a last ditch issue is something that may need to be done. But Satori doesn't need to know about that unless it comes to that, of course. (Hopefully she'll be too busy reading the enemy to find out what we've got contingent)

>>19332
Sure. Nevermind yaris, naginatas, matchlocks and a unknown unit (Hina's) out there. This is just the perfect plan to have our cavalry destroyed and Maximus captured.

>>19333
If all go to hell, we need to get the breeding mares and get the hell back underground. Morally, it will be a disaster. On a strategic level, we'll be returning on another day with Yuugi and Utsuho.

But we really should do all we can to win here.

>>19333

Indeed. Getting our leader out of there is neccessary.

The thing that sucks about this is even if we stay behind to fight a brutal last stand, the enemy will probably take Maximus alive for rape. That sucks because not only does it fuck up our MC even more, but we can never let ourselves get captured alive. The problem with this is that nobody is going to want to kill our MC when there is a slim hope we can eventually regain our freedom, so there's a good chance we'll get stuck with a shitload of mindbreak and rape upon suffering a defeat.

I might be overreacting though. Just a little bit.

Right, I only played a couple hours of shogun 2 when it came out so I didn't consider the attributes of a japanese, as opposed to a western, castle.

Frankly, it is worse. It is less of a defense in itself.
All this does is increase the importance of holding the walls since if they get through the walls all we have is the keep which is not to be relied upon.

In my opinion the plan remains to hold the walls with archers and most fairy melee levies with Rin's cats as a mobile reserve to smash any developing footholds.
Hold the gate lightly with some fairy levies, matchlocks ready to fire a volley at the breaching troops as the melee fairies pull back immediately followed by the mailed fist of our cavalry to crush the enemies that got inside.
If we are forced to retreat into the keep we have lost and, unlike if it had been a western castle, if the enemy manages to solidify a foothold inside the walls we will be forced to retreat.

Our infantry will break horribly if forced to stand toe to toe with the enemy army and the cavalry can easily be singled out and neutered if we get adventurous.

>>19336

Okay, this is valid criticism. The plan relies upon the enemy sending their melee units to take the walls and secure the courtyard. However, our melee units will engage them whiel our ranged units give support. The enemy will probably scale the walls in small groups, so their forces will be scattered. Our concentrated troops will be unstoppable as long as we act quickly while the enemy is scattered. The enemy will probably hodl their ranged units back until the courtyard is secure, and as long as there is a massive melee going on, the coutryard is not secure.

Maximus should only charge if there is a gap in the enemy line, or if an enemy unit looks about to break. Once through, he should immediately barrel into the enemy's weakest units, such as siege troops or ranged fighters. He is only to charge while the enemy's melee troops are engaged with our own.

>>19338

I suppose. I would argue that the simplest and easiest to execute plan would be to have our archers in the keep while the enemy scales the walls, and combine our melee troops into a massive fist which we should use to smash enemy units gaining a foothold in the courtyard.

>>19340
>>19339
I don't know how you imagine the battlefield, but I do not see how this is supposed to play out. Or work. At all.

Once again: we need to keep units off our lawn. That means courtyard too. We have great outer walls: Use them before giving it up.

>>19337
If we retreat, we go with her. We can simply use levies to cover our escape if it comes down to it. No point in getting one of the best unit of Komeiji slaughtered to cover a retreat. They'll want to secure the castle first anyway.

>>19341

Okay.

1. The enemy advances to the walls and gate while our archers fire at them.

2. The enemy begins to scale the walls and break through the gates.

3. Archers fall back into the keep.

4. The enemy units begin forming up in the courtyard.

5. Our already concentrated units smash into the enemy whiel they're forming up.

6. Since the climb should leave them disorganize, immediately swarming them should be devastating.

7. Repeat with any enemy units in the courtyard.

8. When the courtyard is clear of enemies, pull our melee troops back to the keep, presumably out of range of any enemy ranged units or artillery,

9. When more enemy units attack, repeat step 7.

10. If the enemy does not scale the walls and instead attacks the gate, swarm them there.

It's an increibly simple plan, but that should allow it to be implemented easily on the battlefield.

>>19343
Rejected. The outer walls won't fall that fast unless everything go to hell.

>>19344

This is assuming the castle is Japanese. As in, the walls are increibly easy to scale. If it is not a Japanese castle, disregard my plan.

>>19343
If we remove our archers from the wall that quickly I see them scaling the wall on a wide front, forcing our counterattack to spread thinly putting a larger responsibility on the fairy levies and if they do manage to withstand the counterattack we aretoo close to them for out archers to engage effectively, not to mention that the courtyard is likely more than a bowshot across both of which mean that half our force is effectively out of the fight.
(I'm assuming the courtyard is that large based on it being larger than average to acommodate cavalry training etc)

Charging through our own people will also blunt the impact of our cavalry so their effectiveness will be diminished.

While keeping our archers on the wall will lead to them suffering more casualties it will also keep up the pressure on the enemy, hopefully containing penetrations to individual footholds that Rin's cats can pounce upon, keeping the main responsibility for the more intense fighting on them.
This means that unless the enemy goes for the gate the cavalry is left sitting on their hands except possibly rearguard actions if we are forced to withdraw to the keep anyway but other than that I think this plan represents the most effective utilization of our available forces.

>>19346

Alright, you have a point. Guess I change my vote to your plan, whatever it is.

>>19311 here.
Plan modification to deal with War Fans: Have two bow levies on wall and two others with Satori on courtyard. If fans simply send arrows away or approach to blow units off, start firing at will at them: I doubt they can just keep the wind up indefinitely.

If they blow away units from far, let them approach, then send two volleys, one right after the other. Then fire at will. Rin can pounce on remains if she can do so without risking a counterattack.

Either way, once War Fans troops are out, we can send the archers down on the walls.

Another point: Once fliers and siege are down, the siege will turn difficult for them. Remember to give them priority when making plans.

>>19351
Do send something to watch southern gate at least.

[X]Archers on the wall interspersed with one or two units of the melee Fairy levies to help deal with any melee skirmishing from fliers.
[X]Have about half the archers, including Satori's youkai crouched down and hidden initially until we see what the enemy are up to. If the fliers scout ahead of an advance or they advance on a broad front then give the signal for the rest of the archers to join in and hit the enemies hard.
[X]If the enemy make probing attacks or head for the gate, the hidden archers remain so until the enemy starts moving up reinforcements.
[X]Have the matchlocks conceal themselves at effective firing distance inside the gate ready to get up and fire at a signal if an enemy unit gets through the gate.
[X]Place one unit of melee Fairy levies nearby to intercept fast enemies who get close to the matchlocks.
[X]Conquistadores stay inside the courtyard ready to hit any enemies coming through the gate from the side after the initial salvo from our matchlocks.
[X]Keep Rin's cat youkai in a mobile reserve to deal with any enemies who manage to gain a foothold on the wall or if the penetrating unit at the gate is equipped with spears they will attack in place of our Conquistadores.
[X]Place one unit of fairy levies to keep watch at the other gate and immediately warn us if enemies show up there, cavalry can respond if that happens.
[X]If they get a foothold on the wall and we cannot quickly drive them back then withdraw all troops back into the castle, making quick cavalry charges at any pursuers, and into the underground, at that point the battle will most likely be lost.

>>19355
Alright, not a bad plan summed up like this. My own special orders for Rin should be forgotten anyway, it's far too risky to capture in the middle of a fight.

Two others things. We should still send a messenger down, as forces are far more numerous than what was initially told, if only to help secure next defense point should Hell's gates fall. Can't we try to fight a little if we retreat to the keep? Sure, cavalry can't fight inside, but the Moriya army has far more melee troops than ranged, making the entry point a bottleneck should holding the gate be impossible. Even if it's just to take down more of them.

>>19357
Sounds good. I was considering contacting Remilia also if possible, and still am, but since this is likely to be over quickly one way or the other it might not me much use. Contacting our forces underground should be done.
My idea for the cavalry is to charge the enemy's infantry repeatedly as ours withdraws until they start getting too many ranged troops into the courtyard. Spearmen can be avoided or outflanked if they pursue our infantry but once their matchlocks etc get here it's time to get into cover.

Should be able to cause some havoc before then though.
I just hope it doesn't come to that.

>>19375
All depends on how hard SB is on the difficulty, since only he know how the Moriya army will act as the battle goes. Did we do enough for him to write our victory or did we not think of something and he'll write us a horrible defeat? After Utsuho's victory, it would be sad to lose here (even if retaking will not be as bad with Utsuho now boosted. Seems like there was no reason to care about the corpse), while a victory would definitely boost morale and deal a solid blow to Moriya's army.

Siege defense sucks no matter what plan we have and there's no doubt some things won't go as expected. If we can recover from those surprises is what will determine victory or defeat.

As for Remilia, she'll never make it in time. Even a messenger took at least half a day to get here (timing from earthquake time to when messenger arrived). This and time for any group to get here means battle will be over since long. And if it's cavalry, should she actually send a force that reach in time... Well, do remember what's out there.

A tactic we should really develop is training horses to get used to gunfire. It is possible and it's a pesky weakness we should be getting rid off.

Well, now back on nervously waiting to see if we did good enough...

>>19380
One of the major problems with this style of quest layout is we can't respond in real-time to things that happen. This is especially glaring with Satori, where we should be able to predict at least in part what the enemy plans are as they happen, if not earlier, and counter appropriately. However, in a defense there's no real way round it except for listing out every possibility since we're soley on the reactive side.

>>19380
Yes, if there'd been question of a possible siege, or just them stopping to build any siege equipment (even just ladders) it might have been a possibility but since it's a japanese castle that's not really necessary.
As for the horses, that would be useful. We should look into training our cavalry to use diamond formation too; The greatest strengths of wedge with the greatest weakness mitigated.

>>19380
Yes I was going to post about this myself, with matchlocks being more and more used it will be entirely necessary.

I was also thinking about instating a cuirassier unit, maybe using the conquistadores for it in a pinch, but we don't have the time to train the horses or hurry shorter matchlocks just yet before the attack. I still think this is something that needs to be done after the siege though; matchlocks are still a recent thing and cavalry isn't used to it yet so if we could prepare shorter-barreled firearms for our cavalry the impact both on morale and efficacy would be exponential and entirely terrifying for opponents. Not to mention the removal of their weakness in charging against polearms.

...Come to think of it, will the cavalry's waiting spot be far enough of the matchlocks if gates get pushed open?

>>19388

Indeed. Forming a heavy cavalry unit with trained horses and that fires matchlocks before charging would be devastating.

>>19395
That and their ability to engage and disengage at will, reloading away from their enemies and virtually harassing massive groups of infantry with no adequate support in total and utter impunity. As opposed to cuirassier's dual pistols, our unit could bear a shortened matchlock while keeping melee weaponry which would result in the one most versatile and horrifyingly efficient unit to thoroughly dominate the battlefields. I'm getting a bit carried away though, we need to win this siege first.

>>19399

Ah yes, that would be glorious. Or we could just develop the bayonet and ruthlessly drill our troops.

Ah well, either way, we still got to win the siege.

Gun-cavalry units have an additional difficulty: the horses must be given additional training to not spook at the sound of gunfire.

Personally, I'm for replacing lances with long rifles equipped with long bayonets.

>>19432
For using as lances on horseback?
The gun would be useless as a firearm after one charge.

>>19432
Which is something we intend to and should do in the first place regardless if we plan to keep using matchlocks units at all. Also, what >>19434 said, ALSO, try to reload a primitve firearm the size of a spear while mounted on a battlefield.

>>19400
Who said that last part couldn't be mutually inclusive?

>>19436
I'd love to have some more disciplined troops and do what >>19400 suggested. I've been playing too much Empire Total War and listening to marching music the last few days.

>>19436
>>19437

I'm glad to find others share my love of the bayonet. Ruthlessly disciplined troops should be able to pull of fire and movement, which would be devastating for pretty much any formation.

I mean, think about it; An unceasing barrage of bullets followed by a large group of snappily dressed screaming soldiers charging you with gleaming steel blades.

>>19437
Wouldn't it be better to do "rolling fire" where we have the first line of troops fire, then the second, then the third, etc, with each line that has fire going to the back and reloading, thus starting the cycle again?

>>19454
Better for infantry squad than cavalry I think.

Anyway, shouldn't we wait for siege results before we go pitch in development ideas? We win and we'll get time for it, we lose and we'll need to retake Hell's Gate first.

So, Completely off topic here, But please tell me I'm not the only Anon here who only really cares about the sexy bits and not all this war shit?

>>19459
That used to be me too but this last situation roped me into the tactics bit.

It could happen to you!

>>19459
I think you pretty much are at this point.

>>19459

Pretty much.

IMO, the most arousing thing about this story is getting a conquest erection on.

Are there people who like both the tactics and the sex? (If rape is a turn-off you can totally vote for more consensual scenes.)

Also, are any of the people who voted for futa Maximus still around?

Finally,for those eagerly awaiting results, I am contemplating how many waves of bad guys you managed to hold off.

>>19487

Sex is alright. Don't really care much for it on it's own, but it's a nice little bonus I guess. Usually only read a portion before skipping it though, so I'm probably biased in that regard.

Tactics are awesome. Only way it could get better was if we had battle maps and such. It can sometimes get a little difficult to visualize the tactical situation with words alone, especially with larger battles, but that's par for the course.

Regarding the siege, that sounds ominous. Implies we put up a good fight, but lost in the end. Time to fall back on scorched earth, then.

>>19490
May depends. They commited many troops for the siege so the more waves we got, the easier it will be to retake it. And unless we give them time for some major renovation, defense is going to be hell for them considering we'll counterattack from the middle of the whole place.

With Utsuho. They can barricade all they want, it won't hold.

>>19487
>Are there people who like both the tactics and the sex?
For the most part both have been enjoyable enough. Dungeon scene didn't really tickle my fancy but that's been discussed enough already.
>Also, are any of the people who voted for futa Maximus still around?
N/A here.
>Finally,for those eagerly awaiting results, I am contemplating how many waves of bad guys you managed to hold off.
Can't decide if that sounds ominous or not.

>>19491

It'll take time to bring her to the front, though. Time they can use to leave some nasty surprises.

On the other hand, it's time we can use to mobilize more troops.

>>19493
Our cavalry's probably going to have to sit this one out... We may have more horses thanks to Remilia, but we don't have trained soldiers for them and I doubt the unit escaped unscathed.

I REALLY do hope Maximus had the good sense to send breeding mares underground just in case.

>>19487
I like both. I hadn't started reading this story when the gender vote happened but I'd have voted female or futa.
Looking forward to seeing how the battle goes and its aftermath.

>>19487
Let's see... I like both, male voter here and oh darn, it hope we still did better than expected.

>>19492
Voter for female here, have been avidly helping in the tactics department.

Hmm... it'd be interesting to see how we held up. Unfortunately, sieges are always bloody for everyone if they come down to a scrap.

Male voter here, forgot to say earlier.

>>19487
I certainly like both the tactics and sex, and i voted for futa/female Maxine.

>>19487
Pretty sure I voted for Futa, or I didnt take part in the voting. I cant remember.

Male voter here

Futa, all the way.

Now if only we could find a pet tentacle monster...

>>19496
This.

Hey guys, I just realized a way to use the Hojo siege expertise, gunpowder, and our horses!

Horse Artillery! Cannons pulled on carriages by large teams of horses, designed to be mobile. Though they may be lighter than normal cannons, supperior mobility, better training, and the local advantage in numbers that mobility provides will more than be able to compensate for this.

>>19551

Problem. No cannons.

>>19534
Sorry, Nue's taken already.

>>19554

No cannons yet.

But soon, soon my pet...Soon we will unleash you upon an unsuspecting world...

>>19572
All it takes is one person with the right connections.

What if we took a gun and, get this, made it BIGGER?

>>19574

And maybe add some spikes to it. And add two more barrels, and make it so they can rotate!

>>19575

And then do something to the ammunition so that it can propel itself under it's own power, and something to the Big Gun so it can reload easily!

(And then we suddenly have Bolters)

>>19577

And then put armor on it to protect the crew! And put it on an armored wagon!

And now it's a tank! Also, relevant; http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/matthaywood/main/Warwagons.htm

Anyone else think using battlewagons would be fucking awesome?

>>19579

Did someone say Curb-Stomp Battles in our favour? Because I'm pretty sure someone said Curb-Stomp Battles in our favour.

Of course, we'll need a battalion of tanks for that to come true. And that's not counting the magic users or Reimu declaring us 'Public Enemy #1' thus making us the target for every single faction in Gensokyo.

>>19579
Those are cool, and quite effective assuming you are fighting in areas that are reasonably flat and open.

It's too bad they are so easily rock-paper-scissored out of existance by any type of ranged artillery, particularly cannons which are at most a hop and a skip away in this story.

Something like that could give our fairy militia a considerable advantage in open field battles though.

>>19581
>>19582

Indeed. They are also extremely effective against cavalry. Did you know that during the Hussite Rebellion, the guy who came up with and used the Battlewwagons never lost a battle? Even when he went blind?

Also, yeah. Battlewagons are awesome, but will go out of style pretty quickly. Of course, if we have a technology lead, we can implement them to great success, then toss them aside when we get better artillery.

So right when everybody else starts using the wagons, we'll start using technology that made them obsolete, as long as we have the technology lead.

What have I started?

>>19596

Glorious discussion of Dakka and Military tactics. Here, we are all civil intellectuals who merely want to devise the best way to brutally kill any who disagree with us in the most stylish manner possible.

To that end,

Gatling Guns: Possible or not possible?

Why not wait for update and see what we have to work with first? Wood ain't going to be convenient to get if we lose access to the surface.

>>19599

But this chatter makes the waiting go by faster!

>>19600
Agreed.

As for the Gatling guns I think before we can think about any sort of automatic weapon we need to invent cartridge rounds to get around the problem of getting the powder into the barrel fast enough. If we pull it off however we all but win as machine guns will decimate infantry and cavalry alike and in real life reined unopposed until the invention of the tank.

Just eliminate the kappa first incase they have any smart ideas, I would rather avoid trench warfare.

>>19602
>eliminate
You spelt obtain wrongly.

We'll be sure to obtain them. In more than one fashion.

>>19603

Bah, they are loyal to our enemies and have helped to break into our fortresses. I doubt that we will have them on our side any time soon. Far better to cut them down to size first, so they'll be more willing to make peace and co-operate.

>>19605
I can imagine them being good light infantry/riflemen. We'll see if and when we subjugate them whether they can be useful to us.
If anyone can develop machined rifling it'd be them.

>>19606

Indeed. If we want a technology advantage, we would have to keep them on our side and our side only, and have the projects protected by the utmost secrecy.

>>19608
>have the projects protected by the utmost secrecy
Oh, like you can really keep things safe with people like Marisa around.

>>19615

A man can dream, can't he? Besides, she only visits whenever we make significant territorial expansions or completely annihlate someone. Until that happens, we're good.

Speaking of, we really need more ninja. Both so that we can spy on other faction and to counter any attempted infiltration by enemies.

How do ninja level up anyway ?

>>19617
By garisonning them (slowly gives them xp, gives better visibility of the map), or by sabotaging buildings, murdering characters, or poisoning armies.

>>19617

Fool! You don't use Ninja to catch Ninja, you use Metsuke. Metsuke get a good bonus against Ninja attacks, and when making attacks on Ninja. Thus, it is more efficient and cost effective to use Metsuke to defend yourself in espionage, and Ninja to go on the offensive.

I just want to say..god damn anon, (not MC, anon) is a winy bitch.

>>19621
My god; what insight. How could we have been so blind?

>>19621

Please, lord, tell us the error of our ways! Enlighten us of our sins!

>>19621
Insert witty sarcastic remark.

So when's the next update?

>>19626
In the future. Always.

Did the battle go so badly that the Writefag ran off instead of posting it in fear of Anons raeg?

>>19703

I dare hope not.

A few days before the Moriya army reaches the walls of Hell’s Gate Castle, there are already reports of a lone crow tengu flying scouting runs above the castle, carrying something which emits flashes of light. Each time she is chased off by arrows and matchlock fire, but no one, fairy or youkai, seems to be able to ever actually hit her. Rumours that the flashing object is some of superweapon that steals souls begin to spread, despite official attempts to quash them. You keep the truth to yourself and Rin; the fact that it’s a camera being used to record positions and defenses with impunity won’t help morale any.

You send word of the siege to the Underworld requesting reinforcements to relieve the castle. Shipments of supplies from the Underworld continue to arrive, bolstering morale and giving your soldiers hope that they’ll survive the siege. They’ll need every last bit of hope they can get, as the numerically superior Moriya invasion force shows up. They establish a main camp within sight of the castle walls but well out of arrow range, then proceed to start digging a ditch and putting up an earthen berm all around the castle, with the obvious intent of neutering any future sally from the castle.

“Should we attack now?” Rin asks, as you and she watch the levies toiling more like labourers than soldiers in the fields below from the safety of the outer wall.

“No,” you reply. It is true that the diggers don’t have their weapons nearby and there are no visible forces defending them, but in all likelihood this is a pretense to lure you into a trap. A few days pass tense but uneventful, during which the Moriya army completes the ditch and berm, and finishes basic defenses around their camp, it starting to look like a sister fort next to Hell’s Gate Castle.

You take advantage of the calm before the storm to drill your troops, especially to accustom your horses to not be spooked by muskets firing nearby. The evening after the ditch and berm are completed, while waiting for the latest supply caravan to arrive after sunset, you are starting to wonder if the Moriya are aware that trying to starve you out is an exercise in futility, when such thoughts are dispelled by the sound of war horns.

You and Satori rush to the wall to see the Moriya army advancing, illuminated by the torches they are holding. They stop just out of bowshot, encircling three out of four sides of the castle, leaving leaving the southern side empty. Judging by the sheer numbers they present, this must be a large portion, if not all, of the Moriya army. Your own units take up their positions on the walls and finger their weapons nervously. “Rin,” you call for her. “Double check whether they’re trying to sneak in from the south in the dark.”

While she dashes off, you study the army arrayed below you. They remain where they are, and start to bang their spears against the ground or their swords against their shields. The noise is loud and ominous, obviously meant to demoralize the castle’s defenders. You figure that you better do something to keep your troops’ spirits up.

“Look at them!” You point down at the Moriya army and force a laugh. “They’re too scared to actually come up here and fight us!” Your troops give a loud cheer in response. Rin returns. “Well?” you ask expectantly.

“Nothing at the south gate to be seen or smelled,” Rin replies. You look up at the closest flag and note that it is fluttering northwards. “What’s that?”

You look at where she is pointing and see a lone archer stepping in front of the Moriya lines and approaching the walls. Your own archers raise their bows, but Satori gestures for them to stop. “Hold.” Halfway between the castle and the Moriya army, the archer fires a single arrow that arches over the wall and comes to a hard landing in the courtyard with a thud. Satori points to one of her retainers. “Go pick it up.”

You’re about to ask what she thinks it is, but Satori speaks up first. “It’s probably a letter demanding our surrender.” The youkai returns, clutching an arrow with a piece of paper rolled tightly and sealed around the shaft. Satori unrolls it, takes one look, and hands it to you. “See for yourself.”

It is indeed a letter demanding your surrender in formal, polite language. All that’s missing is a “RSVP” tacked on at the end in snooty cursive. There is only one way to properly reply. You call for pen and ink, and convey your defiance with a mere four letters scrawled on the back of the letter for an answer: “NUTS!” Satori raises an eyebrow at you as you tie the letter back to the arrow and give it to one of the youkai archers. “Send this back to them.” She draws the bow and delivers the arrow back to whence it came. You watch as the Moriya archer picks up the letter and withdraws back to the enemy lines.

“What was that about? Nuts?” Rin pipes up, tilting her head curiously.

You give her a somewhat patronizing pat on the head. “You wouldn’t understand.” There is a rumbling of feet as the Moriya army starts to advance at last. “Here they come! All archers, loose at will!”

Arrows whistle through the air, aimed at targets illuminated by flickering torchlight. Here and there you see little flashes of light as fairies are hit. Most of these are at the front of the enemy line, and further behind them you see points of light fall behind as the dark mass presses inexorably forward, their torchbearers hit but without the light show that fairies give off – tengu or youkai, you suspect. A few arrows come your way as the Moriya archers return fire, but there are two few of them to be more than a token effort, and most of their missiles are stopped cold by the castle walls.

The enemy troops reach the base of Hell’s Gate Castle and being scaling the walls. It is too dangerous to remain much longer; the three of you fall back to the courtyard, leaving the bloody business of repelling the attackers to the grunts. From what you’ve seen you’re quite sure that most of the price your archers exacted from the enemy for approaching the walls was paid by fairies or other expendable levy troops. Sure, the cost may be heavy, but levies have few better uses.

“You should stay in the keep,” you tell Satori, but she shakes her head.

“The clan can’t afford to lose me, right?” She smiles with her lips but not her eyes, more a grimace than a smirk. “No. I need to know what the enemy is thinking.”

You try to see how the fight for the walls is progressing, but beyond the backs of your troops you can’t make out much. At the least, the Komeiji standards are still standing. It seems that besides inane banter there is not much else you can do, the same going for the backup troops standing ready in the courtyard, who are doing little more than waiting for orders. On the other hand, there isn’t a messenger interrupting you with news of a sneak attack right now. You half expect such a messenger to show up now, but to your slight and pleasant surprise she fails to materialize.

“How are you so sure they’ll get close enough for you to read their minds?” You start making some of that inane banter, while keeping both eyes on the battle, but you see no new development, nor is there any significant change in the sounds of battle.

“I’m not the one who’s sure. You are,” Satori shoots back.

“Fair enough,” you admit. You liked it better in the early days when Satori acted as though she couldn’t read your mind. Was this supposed to be a sign of familiarity?

“Hardwood-sama!” A runner arrives bearing news. “The first wave of the enemy assault has been repulsed and is retreating. A second wave of tengu is scaling the walls.”

“Acknowledged,” you nod. “Tell the troops to keep fighting and drive them back like they did to the first wave. What about the gate?”

“They do not appear to have any rams or other way to break it, milady,” The messenger informs you respectfully.

“Good. Carry on.” You dismiss the runner.

A roar rises from the east wall. You see fairy levies scatter and flee into the courtyard as they abandon their weapons and banners in favour of running for their lives. Actually, without being weighed down they manage to hover a few feet above the ground as they bolt. Torchlight glints off the shields and scimitars of wolf tengu as they reorganize into an orderly formation, now that they have finally managed to take a wall.

“Rin! You’re up.” You point your sword towards the Moriya invaders. “Take back our wall!”

“Yes ma’am!” Rin draws her katana and holds it above her head in a classic two-handed stance. The sharp metallic ringing of many other drawn swords drowns out the sounds of battle for a moment as the rest of her troop follows suit. With her two tails trailing behind her, Rin leads the charge across the courtyard and into the enemy.

Your conquistadores’ horses are stamping their feet impatiently and neighing. The wind shifts, blowing southwards, and fills the air with the smell of battle. Woman and horse alike are impatient to join the fray. You mount your steed, as does Satori beside you. The Komeiji banners at the walls are waivering, and a few have fallen as their flagbearers are cut down. Your soldiers are beginning to tire and move sluggishly, and you can sense the invisible tension as morale flags and troops are stretched to breaking point against the seemingly endless onslaught of enemies climbing the walls. With the gate evidently ignored, there is little point in standing by to defend it while losing the walls.

“For-“

“Watch out!” Satori cuts you off and points high into the night sky, which is skilled with dark flying shapes. You aren’t completely surprised. Breaking through the defences of the walls would be tough for the Moriya, even with their superior numbers, and bypassing them entirely has always been a tantalizing option.

“Matchlocks! Fire! Fire at will!” You command urgently. The fairies crouch and fire wildly into the sky. One of the fliers drops out of the air, a black silhouette momentarily outlined against the moon before plummeting to the ground outside the castle. The volume of fire fades away as the troop expends its shot and beings the time-consuming process of reloading. At this crucial moment the enemy dives.

A wave of wind precedes them and snuffs out torches, blanketing you in sudden darkness before the crows swoop down with their war fans. They are upon you before your eyesight adjusts to the dim twilight. You manage to get your visor down just as a war fan hits your helmet hard, dazing you. Someone slams into you from the side and knocks you off your horse before you can recover. You land on your back. Your assailant flips up your visor, giving you an unfettered view of haughty yet beautiful crow tengu face. She straddles your waist like a weird parody of the cowgirl position, drawing your eyes to the curves of her breasts under her unarmoured clothing, and despite the situation you’re in you feel yourself quickly getting hard – at the very least, you’re spared the ridicule of anyone else noticing, as it pokes painfully against the inside of your armour. You also happen to notice the shape of her war fan, apparently a non-folding kind and shaped and coloured like a large maple leaf, as she holds it in a backhanded grip with both hands and brings it down fast towards your face to smash your head in-

You reach up and grab one of her wrists, stopping her weapon’s descent with inches to spare before it breaks your nose. For a moment you wonder idly why you’re only doing this with your left hand, especially since she has the advantage of using both hands and gravity on her side to simply overpower your defense, before you remember that you are still gripping your sword in your right. You try to stab her in the waist with it; with remarkable agility she springs off the ground and tries to fly away with a flap of her black wings. Your blade, though, is faster, and sinks wetly into her unprotected flesh. The expression of pain on her face reminds you of the contortions of orgasm, and again you are hit with the urge to roll over on top of her, pin her down, and fuck her brains out. You master your urge and soon enough they mostly abate a swiftly as they rose, leaving you with just an unsatisfied Hardwood.

“The commander is injured! Fall back! Fall back!” The other crow tengu snatch their leader out of your arms and fly off before you can stop them, supporting her between them. A hand is offered to you to help you get back to your feet; it is Satori. With her help you stand back up and witness the flight of the tengus from the field of battle. The horns for retreat sound from the Moriya side. You notice Satori clutching your hand as though you have burned her, she haven’t let go of your hand very quickly.

“Are you alright?” you ask her with some concern.

“It’s nothing,” she claims, but the strange way she looks at you tells you differently.

You have no time to ponder the meaning of that though, as you have routers to chase down! “Forward! Run down the routers!” You shout as you swing back into the saddle and spur your horse to a gallop towards the walls. On getting closer, though, you discover that the enemy is making an orderly withdrawal instead of routing. You rein in your horse and slow down before you run headlong into a solid wall of yari points and naginata blades keeping your soldiers at bay while the Moriya levies retreat back down the walls. The youkai wielding them remain in disciplined formation as their rear elements begin to climb down the walls and withdraw too.

“Pull back and reform! Archers forward!” You ride through and reorganize your forces, pulling your exhausted levies out of direct contact with the fresh, albeit defensive, youkai and gathering clumps of scattered archer fairies wherever you see them. Arrows being falling on the Moriya rearguard, but it is too little and too late to deal much damage. When there are only a few of the youkai remaining on your side of the walls, some of the crow tengu return, swooping down and snatching their comrades to rescue them by air. Your archer fairies dash forward to the now-empty walls, but their arrows fall short as the Moriya forces are already almost out of range. “Cease!” you order them. “Don’t bother. They’re already defeated!”

“Victory!” “We won!” “We showed those Moriya cowards!” “Yeah!” Word of the victory over the Moriya army spreads like fire throughout Hell’s Gate Castle. “Did you see Hardwood-sama?” “I heard she defeated the Shameimaru in single combat!” “The legendary Shameimaru? No way!” “Yes way, why else would the Moriya retreat like that?” “Three cheers for Hardwood-sama!” “With Hardwood-sama with us we can’t lose!” The cheers of victory and jubilant arms rise under the pearly gaze of the moon.

“We did it!” You shout, elated, the high of a hard-earned heroic victory coursing through your veins. “We sent them packing, didn’t we?” You ask Satori rhetorically as she catches up with you.

“You did a good job, taking down their commander like that,” Satori smiles, but still looks as though something is troubling her. “That said, I didn’t think Shameimaru would be that reckless, or that slow. No offence, but you’re still just a mediocre swordswoman at best.”

“Well, that was a lucky shot,” you admit. You figure, judging by what everyone is saying, that the crow tengu you stabbed must have been Aya Shameimaru. It’s not like you got the chance to compare her to all the other crows flying around at the time to identify her with one hundred percent certainty..

“No, I don’t think so,” Satori shakes her head. “I need to test something; come inside with me. Rin! Take care of things for now.”

You follow Satori back into the keep. The place is almost completely deserted with most of the servants and guards gone, either evacuated long ago or just finished fighting at the walls. She easily finds an empty room and sits on her knees at a table. You do likewise on the opposite side, facing her. Your erection throbs again as the moon shines in through a window and illuminates the shape of her body. Her light samurai armour follows her gentle curves, and the feeler-like cords extending from her third eye wrap coil loosely around her small frame, emphasizing the subtlety of the swells of her body. You are suddenly filled with the urge to strip off her clothing here and now, to expose her delicate skin to the loving caress of cool air and warm lips, to ravish her and fill her belly with your seed.

“I’m flattered that you want me, but you really should try to control your thoughts,” Satori smiles, genuinely at last. She holds out her hands, dainty fingers bare and pale under the moonlight. “Please take my hands.”

“Huh? Okay…” You don’t know where this is going, but the request seems innocent enough and so you take her hands in your gauntleted ones, holding them gently and rather mundanely. Nothing happens.

Satori frowns. “I can’t read your thoughts when you are touching me. And it doesn’t have to be skin-to-skin contact. Proximity?” As she mutters to herself, she tugs her hands away and you let go of her.

“Now can you read minds again?” you ask.

“Now? Yes. It just feels strange not to be able to read thoughts all of a sudden – like suddenly becoming deaf, I guess. It’s hard to explain – hm?“ She stops, because you are lightly touching her cheek with your bare finger. Your gauntlets lie on the table, taken off your hand. Her eyes widen in surprise tinged with fright. “What are you thinking?” She murmurs in a quivering voice.

It strikes you that she can’t read your thoughts and tell that you are trying your best not to grip her shoulders and push her down on the floor and rape her tight little pussy with your rock-solid cock until she is reduced to a whimpering, orgasming wreck sprawled on the floor with your many thick and copious loads dripping out of every one of her orifices and trickling down each of her cute tiny breasts for good measure. You take a deep breath to calm yourself. “N-nothing,” you lie.

“Onee-chan!” You and Satori turn your heads at the same time towards the voice. Koishi throws the door open and dashes into the room, her clothes disheveled, panting as she catches her breath. “B-bad news! But some good news too… Um, Maxine-onee-chan, what are you doing to Satori-onee-chan?”

“What? Nothing!” You almost pull your hand away from Satori’s cheek, but you delay for a moment because an uninvited image of you grabbing Koishi’s head and fucking her little mouth until tears are rolling down her cheeks and her small hands are beating uselessly against your legs is playing through your head, and it would not do to have Satori be able to read this thought off your mind, at all. You force your mind out of the gutter and only then do you take your hand away.

“Koishi! What happened to you?” Satori stands and embraces Koishi, who squirms a little uncomfortably in her arms.

“Sheesh, I’m fine, onee-chan, see?” Koishi straightens herself.

“Tell us the bad news first,” you say.

“There are kappa in the tunnels!” Koishi exclaims. Upon seeing the confused looks on your and Satori’s face, she explains. “They must have dug out new tunnels to reach the main road between here and Mizuhashi bridge. I was with the supply train when we were ambushed by a troop of kappa with guns! I managed to get away, but none of the supplies made it through.”

“They cut off the road to the Underworld? How many of them are there?” You ask, alarmed.

“I don’t really know. They set fire to most of the wagons and then withdrew using the tunnel they made. I saw many more new tunnels that weren’t there before on the way here, but no more kappa.”

“Ambushes,” Satori says, and you nod in agreement. “Should we pull back to the Palace-“

This time you disagree. “No, they can’t bypass us even if they dug a new road to the Underworld. If they tried to advance they would leave their rear wide open to a counterattack and risk becoming stranded in our territory. What we’re seeing here I think is their backup plan in case a frontal attack failed. They have us surrounded on all sides now and they’re probably planning on starving us out. That’s what why they set up their own defenses before attacking, to prevent us from sallying out now while they are disorganized.”

“Someone thought this through carefully,” Satori muses. “I managed to glimpse into the Shameimaru’s mind when you dueled her, and she’s not the right type to strategize this deeply. There’s somebody else giving her orders.”

“Pardon me for not knowing,” you interrupt, “but who exactly is Shameimaru and why is she called ‘the’ Shameimaru?”

“Ah, yes, you wouldn’t have known about the Shameimaru?” She’s the fastest youkai in all of Gensokyo – but apparently, not fast enough for you,” Satori explains.

“Wow! I heard some fairies talking about it, but is it true? Did you defeat the Shameimaru personally?” Koishi looks at you with admiring eyes.

“Well, yeah, but – how about the good news?” You change the topic, wary of taking too much credit, especially for something you’re not quite sure how you accomplished, yourself.

Koishi sits at the table. “Utsuho retook the Furnace without breaking a sweat and captured Yasaka. She and Yuugi, um, interrogated her and found out that the Moriya army got there by digging a tunnel from what they called the Underground Geyser Center, which leads to Youkai Mountain in the middle of Moriya territory. Utsuho wants your permission to counterattack into the Underground Geyser Center, and after that, break out above ground and keep pushing up Youkai Mountain until she takes their capital.”

“I would usually call that a suicidal, bird-brained plan, but if most of the Moriya army is out here, her blitz just might work. Then again, we need reinforcements here ourselves soon,” you muse. “Anyways, what happened to Yasaka after that?”

“I brought her here for you to question her for yourself,” Koishi tells you proudly. “It was tricky when the kappa ambushed the caravan and almost rescued her, but I got her here nonetheless. I handed her over to the jailers in the dungeon when I arrived.”

“That’s a big risk you took-“ Satori begins, but Koishi interrupts her and rolls her eyes.

“I know how to take care of myself, onee-chan!”

“When you got yourself caught-“

“Now’s not the time,” you remind them. “We can argue all we like later.”

“Right. Back to business.” Satori calms down somewhat. “The Moriya will be trying to bring more clans into the fight to break the stalemate, and we should be doing the same as well. The Scarlets are busy with their own campaign, if I recall correctly? That leaves the Hinanawi. They may be a small clan, but they may be enough to tip the balance in favour of whichever side they join. At the very least, we should make sure that they stay neutral instead of siding against us.”

“Hinanawi?” You search your memory. “They sent a delegation a little more than a month ago when this castle was finished, right? We share a short length of border with them.”

“If anyone’s going to get word out, tonight’s the best chance for lone runners to sneak through the siege,” Satori continues.

“That sounds about right,” you nod. “Give me some time to think through this.”



[ ] Write-in (who to send, who to fuck, etc.)

Huh, we actually won? But sure not because of strategy. Not sure how I should feel.

Still, had I known we had days before they arrived, I sure would have prepared surprises outside the walls. Please be clearer with time next time this happens SB.

And... We got infected by the plague, isn't it? Those images Maximus got are a bit too much but that would fit with the symptoms.... Fairies wouldn't have the mind to resist the urges. That mean we now have to be very careful with sex. We have a prisonner to test things or sate urges at least. Still would wait a bit before doing her or see if a condom stop transmission or something.

Anyway, Koishi could obviously be best to send but she's hurt, isn't she? And we also need Koishi as messenger here... I need to think about this.

I know it's probably a sympton of some horrible plague or curse, but I like this new Maximus. At the very least, despite his urges, he doesn't freak out and rape everything with or without a pulse. Though the fact that our leader can read minds will make these new developments rather awkward.

And we won! Hooray!

>>19733 here.

>>19736
Like I said, we're smarter and have more will than a fairy. I just hope this doesn't get stronger as time go or we may be in trouble.

SB, is it possible to ask the opinion of others commanders on possible choices? Rin is probably only real possibility after Koishi if a commander must be sent, but it would be nice to know if she can pull stealth before commiting her to it.

As for the situation, we may just win if Hinanawi joins in to grab the army out here in a pincer while Utsuho and Yuugi go beat down Suwako.

Could Koishi, and possibly someone a little more capable in a fight, but less adept with diplomacy, split and sneak past enemy lines, then link up at a landmark, and proceed to the Hinanawi as a team?

I can't help but feel that trying to "Beat the system" in votes is asking for trouble, though.

[x] Have Rin be the messenger.
-[x] Discuss with Koishi ways to raise the chances of her moving past the army. Apply if doable without taxing ressources too much.
-[x] See if you can appeal to Hinanawi clan with honor.

[x] Talk with Satori about possibility of infection. Abstain for now.
-[x] If urges get too strong however... Well, you have a prisonner. Better her than someone in the clan.

-[x] Be careful. They can't strike deep in fear of being attacked from the rear by us, but this also apply to us should they strike while the army assault the walls.

Alright, I suppose this will do. Since Moriya won't commit too much, we should be able to work without Rin defending the castle.

Koishi is hurt, so sending her out tonight is a bit unwise. We need her to tell Utsuho when to strike too. Second part is because so far, Moriya never faced us directly. This could also mean their clan could be next to be attacked by cheap ways. If Tenshi's in charge, she could see herself being the hero who allowed us to win the war. In others words, let's give them a reason to join in (and fast before Moriya actually convince another clan to join in against us).

Alright, so this may also lead to Tenshi (if she is leading) making an unreasonable demand as a reward, but this could spark a champion duel that could end with Hinanawi clan being absorbed honorably (unless we lose of course, but I have faith in Utsuho).

And plague issue is real. We do NOT need to have the same problems as Scarlet clan. Abstaining too because we did have Sakuya and Flandre not that long ago. See what can be done to keep plague in check.

>>19739
Isn't that the point of a modern gamer guy being here? If it's doable, then unconventionnal tactics are our strongest point.

[x] Have Rin be the messenger.
-[x] Discuss with Koishi ways to raise the chances of her moving past the army. Apply if doable without taxing ressources too much.
-[x] See if you can appeal to Hinanawi clan with honor.

[x] Talk with Satori about possibility of infection. Abstain for now.
-[x] If urges get too strong however... Well, you have a prisonner. Better her than someone in the clan.

-[x] Be careful. They can't strike deep in fear of being attacked from the rear by us, but this also apply to us should they strike while the army assault the walls.

Alright, this seems prudent.

>>19743
I'm not so sure... A messenger from their capital may prompt them into an all-out assault on our position, or they could return to retake the capital, then mount a rescue (if Suwako is captured and moved Underground). We don't have the numbers to face them directly. And it would be foolish to think that Suwako hasn't considered the possibility of the tunnel being used against her.

We have some time while Aya recover. We can afford to wait a bit to see if Hinanawi can help defeat the army out there.

>>19743

[x]What he said.

Crush, kill, destroy. Also, I want more futadventures from Okuu's viewpoint.

>>19744
Even if all we accomplish is to make them break the siege and march back home we will have bought time to prepare. At this moment we can't stand against them and if they assault again with what they have we're not really worse off than we were yesterday.
Unless they can turn back Utsuho outright, any response they make can be used to our advantage.
If they assault we fight and worst case (unless we really mess up) we have to withdraw back into the underground, something I expected we might have had to do already, and if they return home we will have some breathing space. Hopefully we can make sure Utsuho's small force doesn't get caught by the returning army.

>>19751
That's ths problem here: If Utsuho's assault fail, they'll strike back at her weakened force, crush her and then move to the fortress to annihilate us. Them behind, with army in front. Your idea means taking a huge gamble, the risk being that we know NOTHING of Moriya's capital defenses.

Right now, I'm assuming both sides have the mean to be able hold against the other. Sure, it would be great if Utsuho won. But if we strike now and lose, it's game over.

If Hinanawi joins us however, we can defeat the army, then go back and reinforce Utsuho's assault on the capital that should be happening about the same time as we fight the main force. Even if Utsuho must retreat, we can be there to hold against a counterattack.

So no, I don't think attacking now is wise.

Also, yes, they might attack now. But they won't. Why? Because they cut off out supplies. If they wait a bit, the force inside will be starved and tired and they'll be able to win with minimal casualties. And after the wound we gave her, chances are that Aya will want her revenge herself.

>>19755
As it is, basically, our only hope is that Hinanawi can be convinced to join the war on our side and that in turn relies on first getting Rin past the besieging army which is far from certain.
If we had any indications that either part of that plan had more than an even chance of success I'd probably order Utsuho to stay put and put my hopes on the diplomacy but at this moment I feel that we have to take our chances.

[x] Talk with Satori about possibility of infection. Abstain for now.
-[x] Inform the enemy tonight (via message arrow) of Kanako's capture and threaten to have someone infect her with the plague unless Moyia agrees to enter peace negations.
--[x] have Koishi send a message to Tenshi while Moriya is distracted by the message arrow.
---[x] Have Utsuho's forces guard supply lines to ensure food supplies to Hell's gate.

We have the enemy commander prisoner. we should leverage this while we set up backup plans. if we are infected (which is likely) then we have a way of delivering on the threat.

>>19772
Maindbreak?

>>19770
If it was anyone but Kanako, it could have worked for sure. But the relation between the two gods could be bad.

And it's a dick move anyway. We really don't need to have the plague spread even more.

>>19770
No matter how tempting this could be, it would instantly ruin the Komeiji clan's honorable reputation, don't think the word wouldn't spread. It could also create tensions with Scarlet than to use like this what causes them so much problems. Worst case scenario the new will cause them to immediately attack to free her giving their troops an increased morale and zeal

[x] Have Rin be the messenger.
-[x] Discuss with Koishi ways to raise the chances of her moving past the army. Apply if doable without taxing ressources too much.
-[x] See if you can appeal to Hinanawi clan with honor.

[x] Talk with Satori about possibility of infection. Abstain for now.
-[x] If urges get too strong however... Well, you have a prisonner. Better her than someone in the clan.

-[x] Be careful. They can't strike deep in fear of being attacked from the rear by us, but this also apply to us should they strike while the army assault the walls.

Sorry >>19743, but I don't believe the time to attack is now either. I understand your view, but we only get one shot at this before they recall a part of the army to boost the capital's defenses.

>>19776
Fair enough. I'm far from certain that going with Utsuho's plan is the best thing to do but barring plot armour I just think the other option has too little chance of success, and we do need something drastic to happen or we're fucked.

>>19777

Don't worry, even if we end up having our nation get destroyed, we can just start a new game with a different one. Or the same one.

>>19778
Actually StoryBunny specifically specified there would be no resets, restarts or "go back 1 posts" of any kind. We made the bed we lie in it.

>>19780

I know. I was joking.

>>19786
And now I have to delete my post and make a new one with less stupid.

>>19741 here. I just realized something stupid we all seem to have missed.

We have someone here who should know about the capital's defenses. And the units that aren't outside our doors. And we have both Satori and Koishi here.

Adding this:

[x] Interrogate Kanako with the Komeiji sisters's help.
-[x] If the intel seems good and Utsuho can have a good chance of winning with the troops she has, send intel with permission to attack.

Incidentally, I'm also curious as to why Suwako is leading. Maybe we'll learn it here too?

[x] Have Rin be the messenger.
-[x] Discuss with Koishi ways to raise the chances of her moving past the army. Apply if doable without taxing ressources too much.
-[x] See if you can appeal to Hinanawi clan with honor.

[x] Talk with Satori about possibility of infection. Abstain for now.
-[x] If urges get too strong however... Well, you have a prisonner. Better her than someone in the clan.

-[x] Be careful. They can't strike deep in fear of being attacked from the rear by us, but this also apply to us should they strike while the army assault the walls.

[x] Interrogate Kanako with the Komeiji sisters's help.
-[x] If the intel seems good and Utsuho can have a good chance of winning with the troops she has, send intel with permission to attack.

I am fervently opposed to any plan of action that would involve attacking Suwako while she is on her home turf.

I mean, really. It's Suwako. Suwako "army killer" Moriya ! The same Suwako who, until Kanako defeat her by virtue of having a skill set that countered her perfectly, was infamous for the fact that she regularly slaughtered entire armies that tried to invade her kingdom by her LONESOME.

Attacking her would be goddamn suicide.

I can see two way we could deal with Suwako:

1) Kill her from orbit via the application of a nuclear warhead on the whole mountain. However the civilian increased kill count would be directly proportional to the nosedive of our clan's reputation. That's an idea of last recourse.

2) Break Kanako and get her to serve us so she'll use her skills to counter Suwako's like she did all those centuries ago. Maybe even Sanae's too, since she seem to draw her power from Kanako. That's something we can get to immediately.

>>19798
Well, we'll see how the interrogation go then. But unless Kanako was really that weak, Utsuho just became that good too.

And hey, if she's really that good at destroying armies, then striking with a small force sounds even better now. Better chance to disperse and not be caught in blast area.

>>19802
Well, maybe it's more a question of fighting style.

Just like Kanako's skills trump Suwako with her ability to turn iron to rust and the whole snake beat frog motif, Utsuho's skill as a duelist trump Kanako's.

She IS the best warrior in the Old Underworld after all and Kanako struck me more as a long range/artillery unit kind of fighter, which would explain her lack of skills at fighting directly.

Mind you, considering the massive boost she got, Utsoho IS a Lightning Bruiser now, seeing as she got overwhelming artillery skills added to her already impressive short range combat skill.

Otherwise...

[x] Inquire if Utsuho can consolidate and hold the Reactor by herself while Yuugi go Kappa hunting. If push come to shove, we may have no choice but to forcefully reestablish our supply lines that way.

>>19798
>until Kanako defeat her by virtue of having a skill set that countered her perfectly
We can probably borrow Sakyua, do we have anyone that can make it rain? Uhh.... Using the Sword of Hisou, Sakyua's got cloudy weather, and Remilia's got heavy mist. Does that have enough water content to rust giant iron rings?

>>19775
Let's think about honour for a second.

If we want to be subtle about the whole "demand they withdraw or Kanako gets it", the simple option is to simply demand that they withdraw "and only then will we return Kanako to you".

And put in a ceasefire for two seasons of nonagression, which would be enough to bolster our forces.

This technically obliges them to obey, due to honour at risking their liege lord (Though Suwako might stage a coup, who knows?)


If we are doing it in a VERY underhanded way, well, we can return Kanako to them after "pumping her for information" personally, then demand to turn her directly over to Suwako herself.

"Um.. when we lost Kanako, I'm pretty sure she wasn't pawing all over me. And she didn't have a dick."

".....She was like that when we got her."

"oh no I am filled with uncontrollable lust argh I'm being raped by Kanako's Onbashira (again)"


-But the honour loss from losing their goddess is quite a bit already, we shouldn't necessarily have to do the last bit.

>>19818
If the very first post on the first thread is to be believed, Suwako is actually the leader of the Moriya faction actually. Tough I think it's an administration thing, like how Satori is the one in charge even tough she is far from being the most powerful unit on our side and Kanako suck at the whole administration thing while Suwako is an experienced leader.

Also, on the Iron Rings thing, I doubt even magical water will make them rust in a matter of seconds like Kanako's vines can do and that's the only way to stop those things.
It's not like we can destroy them before hand either, Suwako fight by creating them directly on the spot.

The only other way I can think of would be to get our hands on as many ice fairies as possible along with Cirno and Letty and have them unleash their power on the mountain to create a fake winter. Amphibian are very sensitive to the cold, it make them lethargic and go into hibernation. But that would be putting a lot of trust in Suwako having a common amphibian weakness, So...

>>19819
>If the very first post on the first thread is to be believed, Suwako is actually the leader of the Moriya faction actually.
Huh. Damn, good point. I just naturally assumed Kanako was the actual head, even if she wasn't the best leader or fighter.

>>19820

It's called Moriya instead of Yasaka for a reason.

“Where’s Rin?” you ask rhetorically. “We should call her in and have everyone present for council.”

While the servants fetch her, you take the opportunity to change out of your armour into something more comfortable. Your erection refuses to go down and gives you an unseemly bulge in your skirt, now that there is no longer a large piece of metal for it to hide behind. “I’ve seen what happens when Utsuho and Rin have a spat and Utsuho has too much, let’s call it, frustration, built up,” Satori comments. “It’s not healthy for her, and this probably isn’t healthy for you.”

“I know, but-” you mumble.

“-and you’re repressing a memory. That’s not healthy, either,” she continues.

“…Fine,” you give in. “There’s something I haven’t told you about what happened in the Scarlet Devil Mansion…” your voice trails off as the traumatic memory of transpired events surfaces in your conscious. Satori and Koishi both gasp as their powers allow them to realize the extent of the mental and emotional distress you suffered that night, thankfully without you needing to dredge up more bad memories of your own accord.

“Onee-chan!” Koishi hugs you tightly, her voice anguished. Her warm, lithe body presses against your excited member. “I’m sorry… I should have looked after you better….”

“It’s not your fault,” you console her, returning her hug awkwardly, resisting the urge to pull her down on top of you and jam it between her tight folds while making Satori watch helplessly. You push the thought out of your mind before you get in trouble with Satori. “I just laid back and thought of Komeiji, for the sake of our alliance,” you lie. “But that’s why I can’t do it anymore, because I can’t risk spreading the infection here.”

“I see,” Satori nods, at a loss for more words.

“So!” you pat Koishi’s shoulders and extricate yourself from her embrace. You clap your hands together once, business-like. It helps to focus your attentions on things to be done and not give yourself time to wallow in the past. “I never thought I’d be saying this, but there are more pressing concerns at hand than my dick. Where’s Rin, anyways?”

Right on cue, Rin arrives. “Perfect!” you continue. You jump straight to the heart of the matter. “Rin, can you sneak through the siege tonight and get to the Hinanawi to ask them for help?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Rin snaps to attention and gives you a salute with playful enthusiasm.

“Good. What do you need to break through?” you ask.

“Hmm…” she sits and ponders for a few moments. “A distraction would be nice. While they are looking one way I’ll sneak out the other.”

“I can take care of the distraction,” Koishi pipes in.

“That’s one problem taken care-“ you start to say, but Satori cuts you off.

“So Rin gets to the Hinanawi and asks them for military assistance, and what does she offer in return? Gold? Land? The promise of conquered land? Hostages? How much authority to negotiate terms does she have? What is and what isn’t up for discussion?” she lectures you a little sternly.

“I, um…”

“Don’t tell me you were about to send Rin off into danger without thinking through any of that!”

“Well.” You shrug sheepishly. “I’ll need to get back to you on that. Rin, start getting prepared but don’t head out just yet. Now, about Utsuho. Before we come up with orders for her, I think we should question Yasaka first and see what we can learn about the Moriya defences.”

1.
[ ] Come up with a diplomatic strategy for Rin to use at the Hinanawi. Write-in.

2.
[ ] Put on a (cock-only) chastity belt, to be safe. Interrogate Kanako normally.
[ ] Don’t put on a chastity belt. Interrogate Kanako normally.
[ ] Don’t put on a chastity belt. “Interrogate” Kanako with your cock.

I don't like the sounds of a "Cock Only chastity belt" STDS can be spread through using lady parts too, damnit.

[X] For Hinanawi, they may be known for honor, but they're small size is probably a problem for them. So we shall appeal to both. Play up the disnorable methods used against you, along with they're aggression in attacking you. Make them wary of this ambitious attacker. Offer them an even (negotiable at a later date) split of the lands and plunder. Also, play up their pride in crushing the upstart gods. (Possibly offer them supplies and gold to help fund the war. Possibly. If they seem very prideful, it might offend them, so be careful)

[X] Interrogate Kanako, but take some strong guards who's loyalty to Satori is unquestioned. Staori too, if you can. If you lose control, the guards will be able to keep you restrained, without the need for any unpleasantness. Keep your distance from Kanako during the interrogation, however. Satori should be able to handle this easily.

Here guys, semi-decent plans.

>>19877
Perhaps, but can you imagine someone forcing their lady parts on someone else as easily as a cock?

[X] For Hinanawi, they may be known for honor, but their small size is probably a problem for them. So we shall appeal to both. Play up the dishonorable methods used against you, along with their aggression in attacking you. Make them wary of this ambitious attacker. Offer them an even (negotiable at a later date) split of the lands and plunder. Also, play up their pride in crushing the upstart gods.

Corrected some words and retired the last bit because we can't send anything worthwhile since it's only Rin. And after the main army is crushed, they'll probably only need the spoil of wars since the combined force should be able to topple Moriya, in case Utsuho fails.

[X] Put on a (cock-only) chastity belt, to be safe. Interrogate Kanako normally. See if you can have Satori and/or Koishi's help.

Remember how Koishi manipulated Sakuya into saying something she would have kept secret.

Satori may be the weakest leader in term of fighting strength, but this is where she can beat others. After all, one usually think about what they don't want to talk about to not say it, right? Dunno how good it will be against a Goddess, but there's nothing wrong with trying.

Beside, Maximus will probably feel better doing it that way instead of torture.

[X] For Hinanawi, they may be known for honor, but their small size is probably a problem for them. So we shall appeal to both. Play up the dishonorable methods used against you, along with their aggression in attacking you. Make them wary of this ambitious attacker. Offer them a (up to even but preferrably more to us if possible without jeopardizing their assistance) split of the lands and plunder. Also, play up their pride in crushing the upstart gods.

[X]Put on a (cock-only) chastity belt, to be safe. Interrogate Kanako normally with Satori and/or Koishi present.
If she is completely uncooperative there is always the option to have Satori hand us the key to the chastity belt and remove her-/themselves from the room. The threat of this might help if nothing else does (and you should never make a threat you're not willing to go through with).

I imagine the temptation to go with plan B might be quite big to start with and any attitude from the captive will likely not decrease it.
Of course her breaking under that threat might lead to a massive case of blue balls.

>>19879 here.
I realized I made a mistake. Correcting first vote further.

[X] For Hinanawi, their small size may make them wary of involving themselve in this war. So we shall appeal to honor and greed. Play up the dishonorable methods used against you, along with their aggression in attacking you. Make them wary of this ambitious attacker. Offer them an even (negotiable at a later date) split of the lands and plunder. Also, play up their pride in crushing the upstart gods.

Because we just know they're small. We know nothing about how honorable they are.

I got nothing to say for Hinanawi, else than an offer of future assistance and a cut of the loot(rather than land, the promise of future aide to get their own land), but I was thinking about the Moriya situation. Overall, the major reason we dont want to attack them with Okuu's army is because of the presence of Suwako (who we have decided is probably capable of murdering the shit out of our army). However, Kanako got taken down by a combination of Okuu and Yuugi quite handily, so if we added another close range champion does anyone think we might be able to take Suwako? If we could borrow Meiling from Remilia, the three of them should be able to take down Suwako, unless Suwako is game breaker powerful, in which case attacking their capital is more or less pointless , although our troops could probably burn a bit of it while our commanders distract Suwako. As it is, if I counted the numbers right and they don't have a bunch of commanders from somewhere else, they should only have about 3 commanders not involved in the siege.(Suwako, Sanae, and the unknown crow commander)

We really need to know more about the Moriya's armies and defenses, because if this really is most of her army, then we can make them seriously pay for overextending themselves. As soon as possible we need to get Koishi out in the field, and scouting the enemy territories. If we can put some pressure on them, we could force them to pull away a chunk of their army or maybe retreat altogether. Maybe tell some of their enemies that they are weak?

Also, about the whole plague issue.... Isn't Yamame's area of influence diseases? Especially infectious diseases?(at least if wiki hasn't lied to me) At the very least, she should be able to tell us something about the disease, surpress it, or maybe cure it(probably not).

>>19891
>(who we have decided is probably capable of murdering the shit out of our army)

If you're >>19798, let me say this: YOU decided Suwako was completely hax, not 'we'. The whole point of the interrogation is to see if the attack is winnable or not, so keep your comments about it on ice until then. If everyone was this hax with powers, we wouldn't stand a chance at winning this in the first place (imagine how facing Yuyuko would go, or why whole strategy now isn't 'have Okuu nuke the crap out of armies').

As for Yamame... Worth asking what she can do about it after this mess is behind us.

Friends, friends. Let us not argue about whether or not Suwako is pure hax. We do not even need to the take the capital in the first place. We need only to cut off their supplies, and starve them out, which is time consuming, but relatively painless.

If you guys want, we can even build a series of fortifications around the city to keep them completely cut off.

[x]Play up to Hinanawi' pride. If gods overstep their bounds what else might they do, who might they invade?
If gods step out of line does it not fall to Heaven to chastise them?!
[x] Wear chastity belt for interrogation.
>>19895
What. They have engineers and siege.

We should really do something about Yamame and that bucket girl whose name I can't remember right now. Having two rogue leaders going around in our territories just isn't a good idea.
That's twice that they went against us too. Once at the geyser and one more time when Utsuho went crazy.

How many time will they be allowed to get in our way before we teach them the error of their way - Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if they were helping the Kappa strike at our supply lines.

>>19900
Kisume. The bucket girl is Kisume.
saged because useless post.

>>19900
I thought we already had them surrender to us at >>19097

>>19900
Dude, read slower. They already joined our clan and they're with Utsuho, remember?

>>19900
Your lack of reading comprehension is showing.

Oh goddamn it, I did it again.

Here a relevant question from me for once, what unit types are Kisume and Yamame anyway ?

>>19905
Isnt it shown everytime he posts?

>>19907
Well, yes. But that's neither here nor there.

We must construct additional pyl... wait wrong game.

We should also consider sending word to the hakurei about Unsanctioned Miko imposter

>>19942

And have her immediately send her own armies to interfere, denying us any spoils? No.

We should inform her of the imposter only after this business is over with, and make sure to mention how we could not stand to let such treason abide, and so defeated her. After she attacked us.

Might be good for brownie points with Shrine Maiden. "So this heretic was imitating you and attacked me, but don't worry, we kicked their asses. No traitor is safe here."

[X]Put on a (not cock-only) chastity belt, to be safe. Interrogate Kanako normally with Satori and/or Koishi present.
If she is completely uncooperative there is always the option to have Satori hand us the key to the chastity belt and remove her-/themselves from the room. The threat of this might help if nothing else does (and you should never make a threat you're not willing to go through with).

>>19944

Even better, after we capture Sanae, we can hand her over to Reimu personally. Perhaps we may be able to 'inspect' the new Marisa while we're at it, if you know what I mean.

>>19944

And you didn't even think about the possibility of this so-called 'traitor' or 'impostor' miko being a honest-to-Yukarin miko, sanctioned by Reimu and sent to support Moriya forces, and by attacking them you attack the Hakureinate?

Or something like that...

>>19948

She did not identify herself, as any honest servant of the Shrine Maiden should to any loyal servant. Therefore, we are right in assuming she is assisting enemies who violently attacked us out of nowhere after spreading dissent in our lands. So, I think we're justified in attacking her, especially because all of our actions against them so far have been in self-defense/reclaiming lost territory.

What miko impostor? Have we even met anyone who calls herself a miko?

Reimu/Raymo sanctioning Sanae that's a baral of laughs of laughs... and a disturbing possibility

>>19949

And why she would think we are loyal servants of Hakureinate, if Utsuho's forces were attacking Kanako's garrison in Hell's Furnace, seemingly without a provocation? As far as she could know, Utsuho, or Yatagarasu at that time, willingly gifted the province to Moriya.

>>19979

Because we obviously, when we first met them, told them we were the united nation of the Underground. Hell's Furnace is part of the Underground. The Moriya Shrine isn't part of the underground.

Also, what makes everybody think she just isn't going to look at this situation, and go; "Oh, looks like the clans are killing eachother again. Oh well."