The Battle of the Northern Mountains

This is an account of the battle that took place in the Northern Mountains (giant’s territory) in the rain of King Ruegrad, Lord of Survure, Ruler of Stockthorn, King of the Southern Marshes, Emperor of Long Islands, Conqueror of the Rugged Waste, Subjugator of the Northern Giants, Sovereign of all the Realms of Argrethian, and Knight of the most Holy Order of the Royal Guard.

   It occurred in this way.

   The giants had always been a nuisance to the countries who bordered their territory, and as King Ruegrad began his great conquest, and started attacking more and more countries, one after the other, the giants became more and more active, raiding and attacking the walls and fortresses which the King had built.

So, the King ordered the warrior Grimgore, Lord of Dommus Regis, Supreme Commander of all the Kings Armies, Vanquisher of the Redgrimlic Goblins, Victor of the Battle of Terramod in Dine, and Knight of the most Holy Order of the Royal Guard, to lead a large force to the Northern Lands and overcome the giants once and for all.

   The force that was mustered was this: 50 or more Knights in full armor and weapons, 1,200 Infantry in full armor and weapons, 1,600 Cavalry (for giants dearly fear all horses and large animals) in full armor and weapons, 5,000 Men at Arms in light armor and issued large spears, broadswords, and shields, 1,800 Red Dwarves in full armor and weapons, 2,000 Black Dwarves in full armor and weapons, 1,400 Elven Infantry in light armor and weapons, 1,400 Elven cavalry in full armor and weapons, 1,200 Elven archers, and the Elf King, 200 heavy Ballistas, 100 catapults, and 1,200 pack mules carrying 60 tons of supplies.

   So, they set out.

Now King Ruegrad, at the beginning of his rain, had built a wall to guard the northern part of his Kingdom, and this wall was what the giants had been raiding, so, the warrior Grimgore aspired with the Elven King to attack the giants when they next would raid the wall so that they (the armies of Grimgore) might follow the giant back to there encampment, for they knew not where it was.

The plan was as follows.

That the warrior Grimgore would with his cavalry charge down upon the raiders and that his infantry would circle round and cut at the right flank. Then the archers of the elves would fire their missiles from a distance at the center mass of the giants and the red dwarves and the black dwarves would lead a great charge on foot to shear the army in two.

Grimgore hoped that at this point the raiders would withdraw and retreat back North to their camp as the Elven King, leading his infantry, still fresh, in pursuit as the cavalry of Grimgore would regroup and prepare for another charge upon the main army of the giants.

If, as he believed, the giants would retreat after the initial contact of armies, the Elven Archers were to swing to the right—which is to say to the West—and the cavalry were to lead a straight charge down the center of the army to cut it in two so that the Dwarves could take advantage of the divorce and surround them to force them into a great ring.

Now Grimgore had intelligence that the armies of the giants numbered sixteen hundred or more with full weapons and as far as they knew an infinite number of supplies. This may seem, if one were to consult the odds of the operation, that such a battle would be foolhardy on the giant’s side since they claimed fewer ranks than Grimgore.

However, a man mounted on a large battle horse comes not even to a giant’s knee, and therefore the cavalry was armed with large spears or lances.

They waited a fortnight. The next raid that came was over three hundred giants who with them brought large ladders for scaling the wall. Then Grimgore put into action his plan of battle, and nearly none of his men were lost, such was the perfection of the results.

The same cannot be said for the second stage of his plan, however.

As his army crested the ridge that the retreating giants had scaled moments sooner than they, they saw laid before them eighteen hundred strong giants in full armor and prepared for battle—the raid had been a trap.

They rushed into battle according to the plan I have already described to you. The cavalry executed the plan perfectly, however—it has been said by some that Red Dwarves are not very clever at all. They blundered into battle at precisely the wrong time. The Elven Archers made up the support that would have come from the Red Dwarves. On the left the giants were forced into a great ring by the infantry, both Elven and men, who, with a great rush charged forward through the ring and broke its ranks and many giants fell beneath them.

As the left wing fell, however, the right rushed against the Dwarves in a great charge, swinging their mighty clubs before them, and the Red Dwarves parted beneath their onslaught. The Black Dwarves swooped in from the Southeast and overwhelmed the ranks of that front as the cavalry also rushed forward in a mighty rally.

They crushed beneath them giants that were between these two mighty armies. And now, as many of the giants were dispersed and killed, they met in two great masses with the Red Dwarves to the rear of the giants.

After many hours of fighting, the warrior Grimgore led a charge around the right flank of the giants and many fell before him. But the giants regrouped and like a knife cut forward through the Elven line and took many lives from the Elves’ ranks.

The King of the Elves came down with his cavalry and then attacked the giants on the side, with many losses on both sides.

Grimgore himself met the King of the Giants face to face. Grimgore then drovea sword into the Kings side, and both struggled mightily. But the weight of the Giant King was that of a hundred horses, and fell upon Grimgore. The pummel of his sword was driven into his side, shattering his ribs.

Blinded with pain Grimgore tried to kill himself-- he attempted to slit the King's throat and then his own. But his sword was out of reach. He did not wish to die but could not bear the pain.

With red vision Grimgore went back and forth from that place in his mind wherein he wished for suicide-- he could never decide. The pain was too great.

He rose on hands and knees to join the survivors and view the battlefield and observe the rows of corpses and flowing blood and said aloud, "Shall I not add my own body to this honored row?" Before he could truly make up his mind, his loyal comrade Tretgiavbon took pity on his fallen lord and then Grimgore's misery was no more.

Throughout the battle much bravery was shown on each side, but none displayed more courage than the warrior Grimgore, who at the finale lay peacefully under the dark stars in eternal sleep.