Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War.

Chapter 47 Stalemate
The earthen embankments built by the Romans were not structurally made of earth.

They built a platform with logs or wooden strips, then spread a layer of soil on the platform, and then built a layer of wood on the soil, repeating this process until the embankment reached the appropriate height.

Apparently the Parvi people had used something very flammable in the tunnel. Just as the Roman soldiers were shocked by the sudden loud noise and collapse, thick smoke billowed out of the tunnel and the fire quickly spread to the wood, reaching an uncontrollable level in just a few minutes.

Seeing the earthen embankment that had been built with countless blood and sweat and even the lives of many comrades over the past three weeks collapse, the soldiers' morale reached its lowest point.

This was a well-planned operation. While the Roman soldiers were still standing there in a daze, a large number of soldiers poured out of the city gate, shouting and rushing towards the broken Roman positions.

Most of the centurions reacted quickly and called on their men to form a defense, but many soldiers were frightened and fled in panic.

The surrounding terrain was leveled by the Romans themselves and was quite open, suitable for a large number of troops to deploy. The centurions also knew that they could not stay in this position for long, but the rebels' target was not their soldiers at all, but the battering rams beside the earth embankment. They held torches high in their hands and wanted to ignite these extremely threatening machines.

The Romans could not allow them to do so, so they could only stand still and fight the enemy around the battering ram.

The besieging army has been attacking in rotation recently. The reserve and guard teams have been organized to rescue the battering ram. The scorpion crossbows installed on the second city wall have also started firing, but it is a drop in the bucket. More troops have to be assembled and transferred from the camp.

After a while, the troops on the position became difficult to maintain, and several captains had no choice but to order a withdrawal. They fought and retreated in front of the enemy, preparing to retreat to the city wall to guard the second wall.

The Parfiti army, which was already in a frenzy, didn't care about anything else. After completely igniting the battering ram, they began to attack the Roman army again.

Seeing that the army was in danger of collapse, Tia personally led the army to the side of the battlefield.

"The cavalry follow their captains, charge in formation and attack the flanks, quick!!"

Tiya's joining made the battle situation more balanced, but the defenders in the city still showed surprising courage. They did not collapse because of the arrival of the cavalry. Instead, they became more courageous and fought the enemy on two fronts at close range.

They know that their chances are dwindling and this may be their last chance.

After the initial chaos, the soldiers soon discovered that their legion commanders were fighting on the front lines, which greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers. Even the scattered soldiers spontaneously returned to the battlefield, picked up shields and daggers, joined the seemingly shaky formation, and fought side by side with their comrades.

Tia likes to charge into the battle herself, which has many disadvantages, but it is very effective in boosting morale.

The two sides remained in a stalemate for a long time, until the main forces of other legions gradually rushed to the battlefield, and the balance of war tilted again.

Cold weapon combat depends heavily on morale. After two rounds of increases and decreases in the strength of both sides, the Palfi people are gradually losing their advantage in numbers. After the main force of the opponent arrives, the Palfi people have to start retreating.
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The atmosphere in the tent was heavy and everyone felt depressed.

Tia threw the blunt sword to the ground, and the clanging sound was like a hammer hitting everyone's heart.

“Who will analyze our losses?”

Antonis, the oldest governor of Egypt, spoke up: "Two battering rams were burned, and the earthen embankment on one side was completely burned and needs to be rebuilt. It is roughly estimated that it will take more than ten days. In addition, the number of casualties of soldiers is..." He talked about all kinds of things for a while, and Tia's face became more and more gloomy.

After Antonius finished his report, Tia asked everyone: "We are the only professional army in the Mediterranean, and we have always been proud of being the best soldiers. Now you have been defeated by a group of bandits. If I hadn't arrived on the battlefield in time, the front line might have collapsed. If I hadn't arrived in time, how many times would this happen? As a soldier, you actually turned around and ran away on the battlefield. Your men are either the elites of various provinces or the border troops who have been through many battles. Why does this happen again and again?

You may be far superior to your opponents in training, but your courage is not even comparable to those people in the city. They dare to go out of the city without food and weapons to face the intensive shooting of scorpion crossbows and catapults! Is our nation not as good as theirs? Is our training not as hard as theirs? They are determined to face death. I don't ask everyone to have this determination. I only ask that everyone under your command can obey orders.

When you return, find all the deserters and punish them by military law."

Tia gave orders to her subordinates in a tired manner. Under normal circumstances, she would have been furious, but today she really didn't have the energy to get angry.

After the others responded a few times, they quickly left the tent, fearing to offend the commander-in-chief. Orville pulled a chair and sat three or four meters away from her.

"What do you want to do next?"

Tia rolled her eyes, picked up the kettle and started drinking water. She had been fighting with injuries for most of the day and hadn't had a sip of water yet. Her mouth was dry and her voice was hoarse from speaking just now.

After she finished drinking, she wiped her mouth and replied to Orville: "What else can we do? Rebuild the embankment, rebuild the battering ram, and start all over again."

"That will delay it another three weeks."

"We can't help it. It was beyond our expectations. I never thought they would build a tunnel."

"This may not be done by them. Guess what I found in the tunnel they dug?"

"Don't keep me in suspense. Just say what you want to say." Tia said impatiently.

"Well," Orville shrugged, "I found asphalt and resin. These things may not be stockpiled by the locals in advance. Especially recently, I found that there seem to be more and more Persian weapons seized on the battlefield."

Tia was not stupid either, and she understood immediately: "Are the Parthians involved as well?"

"We don't usually need to buy weapons. Even if we do, we buy weapons produced in Egypt and Syria. Parthian weapons are very rare. It's acceptable to buy them occasionally, but this number is too much, it's abnormal."

"I see. Do you think they'll attack? Now's a good time. We're tired."

"No," Orville said firmly, "When the border defense was the most empty, the Parthians did not dare to take advantage of it, and it is even more impossible now. The Syrian Governor Mucinus helps us keep an eye on the border. Although he only has three legions, the Parthians may not be able to win even if they send out 50,000 or more troops. Father Wei can stabilize the situation. They dare not risk a full-scale war to help the Parvi people fight."

(End of this chapter)