Rome must fall.

Chapter 419 Preparation for War (Part )
"What are the specific methods of increase and decrease?" Maximus asked in a calm tone.

"Four hundred heavy crossbowmen and one hundred light crossbowmen."

"That means we need to add another 1,500 heavy crossbowmen." Maximus frowned slightly and looked at the Minister of Armaments, Carminus: "Are there so many heavy crossbows in the arsenal?"

Calminus shook his head. "During the spring training, the heavy crossbows in the arsenal were just enough to equip the heavy crossbowmen of each legion. In the past few months, the arsenal has only added 40 heavy crossbows. It is still far from the number you mentioned, Your Majesty!"

"The reason why the Roman army is so powerful is mainly due to their heavy infantry. Since our double crossbows can restrain the Roman heavy infantry and increase our hope of winning the war, we must try our best to manufacture more heavy crossbows before the war comes. Sistos, what do you think?!" Maximus looked at the manager of the weapons workshop.

"Your Majesty, you are right. After the meeting, I will lead the craftsmen in the workshop to work day and night to focus on manufacturing heavy crossbows. I will submit 1500 heavy crossbows to the Armament Department before the war comes!" Sisters responded generously.

"I said 1500, and you only made 1500?" Maximus looked at Sistos's embarrassed expression and said seriously, "I know that it is very difficult to manufacture heavy crossbows, especially the mechanical pulley assist device of the crossbow arm, which is very time-consuming to make. But heavy crossbows are also easy to break during use, and the war we are going to fight with Rome is more than one or two battles, so the more heavy crossbows we need, the better. Of course, the more heavy crossbows your weapons workshop manufactures, the greater the reward the kingdom will give you!"

Encouraged, Sistos gritted his teeth and said, "Don't worry, my king! Our weapons workshop will provide the Armament Department with enough heavy crossbows to satisfy you!"

"Well, I feel relieved when you say that!" Maximus patted the arm of the chair to express his appreciation for Sistos, and then asked: "Pecot, do you have any other questions?"

"There is another question." Pecte was well prepared for this meeting. He answered without hesitation: "My king, the new type of armored soldiers you proposed to train do have a great inhibitory effect on heavy infantry in attack, but the full body armor they wear is too heavy, weighing as much as 50 to 60 kilograms. Most armored soldiers are too tired to walk after fighting for more than ten minutes, and they are unable to swing their axes or hammers. Only those who are particularly tall and strong can continue to fight."

Maximus asked with interest, "How many of these tall and strong armored soldiers are there?"

"Only about 150 people." Pequot said with some regret. "Although most people in the kingdom now live a good life, not only can they have enough rice and cheese for three meals a day, but they can also eat meat every two or three days on average, but neither the Illyrian nor the Celtic descent belongs to a particularly tall and strong race, so there are not many men suitable to be armored soldiers."

"Ironclad soldiers are a rare type of soldier. They are very effective in battle, so you don't need too many of them. But one hundred and fifty is indeed too few..."

Maximus pinched his chin, pondered for a moment, and came up with an idea in his mind. But before he could speak, Minister of Commerce Minas said first: "Your Majesty, didn't you ask me to contact the Germans in the north a few days ago? The Germans are generally tall and strong, and have good endurance. I think they can wear the full body armor weighing fifty or sixty kilograms and continue to fight for a long time-"

"Your Majesty, I object to Lord Menas's suggestion!" Frontinus retorted: "One of the main reasons why we were able to defeat the Germans was that we had excellent weapons and armor. Now we are going to give the best weapons and equipment we have developed to the Germans who are a threat to us. I don't think this is a good idea!"

"Lord Frontinus." Menas first politely saluted Frontinus, then retorted: "Although the Germans had a war with us, our relations with the two major Germanic tribes to the north, the Quadi and the Oxi, have greatly improved!

We set up markets on the border and sold them goods at cheaper prices. Our goods were very popular with them, especially the brewed ale, which was snatched up by their leaders and nobles almost as soon as it was delivered to the market.

The people of the kingdom often hire Germans to work during the busy farming season and pay them good wages. With our help, the lives of the Quadi and Oxi people are much better than before, and their relationship with us is getting better and better. Last year, several leaders of the two tribes were invited by the king to come here to participate in the summer festival.

In a few days, I will follow the king's order to go to these two tribes to sign an alliance. At the beginning of the year after next, the king will invite them to send troops to attack Rome with us. By then, it will be easy to extract some of their warriors to serve as our armored soldiers!"

Maximus saw the surprised expressions of some people in the hall who had not heard of this, and explained calmly: "In the past few years, the Roman governor Caesar not only fought a war with the Gauls, but also with the Germans. He defeated the Germanic tribes several times and even led the army to march armed in the Germanic territory. The Germanic people are both afraid and resentful of him. I think they are willing to join us in revenge against the Romans!

Of course, Frontinus's worries were also correct. In the long run, the brave and fierce Germanic people in the north will always be a threat to the kingdom. Rather than forcibly conquering them and causing their fierce resistance, it is better to slowly absorb and assimilate them through friendly means such as trade. We have already started to do this, but the time is still short. If we can invite the Germanic people to join the expedition to Rome this time, not only can we eliminate the threat of the Germanic people to the territory after the main force of the kingdom leaves, but we can also absorb the Germanic warriors into the kingdom's citizens more quickly through more intimate ways such as fighting together. What do you think?"

"Your Majesty is wise! Inviting the Germans to declare war on Rome together will not only enhance our strength, but also ensure the safety of our territory. It can also prepare for the kingdom's assimilation of the Germans in the future. It is really a great plan!" Minas took the opportunity to praise loudly.

No one else raised any objections.

"My king, I wonder how many troops you plan to lead to attack Rome?" Capito asked with concern.

"I plan to lead the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth Legions and the Cavalry Corps, plus auxiliary forces such as the Medical Battalion and the Engineering Battalion, about 40,000 combat troops, into Italy." Maximus said without hesitation because he had already made a plan in advance.

"Your Majesty, you only brought 40,000 people to attack the powerful Rome. This is really too few!" Spukara, Mingjunus, Sistos and others exclaimed.

"Forty thousand people is not a small number!" Maximus explained earnestly, "The troops I will lead this time are all legions that have experienced long-term battles and have made countless military achievements. Both the officers and soldiers have rich combat experience and high morale. Even in the face of the worst combat environment, they will burst out with powerful combat effectiveness!
Rome is indeed powerful, but they are facing our sudden attack in the context of a civil war, and it is impossible for them to gather many more soldiers than our army to fight us in a short period of time. On the contrary, in every battle our army encounters after entering Italy, it is very likely that we will have more numbers than the enemy.

Of course, as the war progresses and casualties increase, I will always be ready to mobilize other legions to rush to Italy and supplement the army.

However, I will not send too many people to join the war. After all, the kingdom is our foundation. Whether it is farming or producing various goods, we need enough manpower. Although we have a good relationship with the surrounding tribes, we must have enough troops to stay behind to ensure the safety of the territory... In short, the normal operation of the kingdom cannot be seriously affected by the war."

Minas also continued: "Although we will only have 40,000 troops to go to war, we will invite the Germans to join the war, and then we will also invite the Japodes and the Aldi to join the war--"

Maximus said in a deep voice: “Not only these three tribes, in fact, I have convinced the Gauls and Dacians. Once we attack Rome, they will also declare war on Rome and attack Rome’s provinces and armies!
In short, we are not fighting alone. Once the war begins, some forces that are dissatisfied with Rome will join in. By then, war will ignite everywhere in the areas conquered by Rome!"

Maximus' words lifted everyone's spirits and greatly reduced the anxiety in the hearts of those who had just learned about the matter.

Carina from Gaul asked curiously: "My king, how did you contact the Gauls? And how did you get them to agree to declare war on Rome?"

Maximus smiled slightly and said, "This is a long story. I will tell you in detail after the meeting."

Then, he looked around at everyone and said solemnly: "In addition to what I have said above, don't forget that we have another most powerful weapon against the Romans, that is to liberate slaves in Italy and give land to the poor. They will become our endless source of soldiers and work with us to overthrow the Roman nobles who oppressed and enslaved them!"

"Your Majesty is right!" Phesalus responded loudly: "When we rose up against the Romans, we relied on this trick to build a huge team and defeated the Roman army many times!"

His words immediately made many people look emotional and immersed in memories.

Maximus remained calm and continued, "There is another reason why I only brought 40,000 people - that is logistics! Although we are very close to Italy, the high mountains in the west will not only make our march difficult, but also a big problem for our logistics transportation! But the food and supplies needed by 40,000 people are huge! Carminus, can your armament department complete the task of logistics transportation?"

(End of this chapter)