Continental Warriors Yoo Ma

But why spend money and trouble building such a thing when you have a huge stone cannon sponsored by the duke of Burgundy?

Wouldn't it be nice to use the precious copper resources saved to build a few more cavalry cannons to further strengthen the combat effectiveness of the field artillery?

But one day, Ma Youfu changed his mind.

It was a day in May, and "The Bastard" Dunoy invited Ma Youfu to his camp to observe the test firing of the new artillery.

When Ma Youfu came to the test range, he almost laughed out loud when he saw the artillerymen who had just been formed by Dinoy appear carrying the gun carriage like a sedan chair, humming and humming.

The "new type of artillery" that Dunoy spoke of was actually a 32-pound mortar.Moreover, this kind of mortar with original design has round and soft curves, thick front and narrow rear, just like a large vase, which is quite different from Ma Youfu's impression.

Does this thing really work?

Chapter 220 Welsh Fun

The facts tell Youfu Ma that it is really useful.

The gunners stuffed a stone bullet with dark red lines on the surface into the barrel.

Accompanied by a loud rumbling noise, this special stone bomb was launched. After flying slowly in the sky for a certain distance, it began to change color and turned into a red lava ball. When it touched the ground, it exploded to pieces.

Dinoir proudly told Ma Youfu that this special stone was mined from the Fire Elemental Realm. As long as it is in contact with the air for a certain period of time, after absorbing the free magic power, it will be transformed into scalding lava, which can be used to kill soldiers or ignite Architecture, couldn't be more useful.

Of course, because of this characteristic, processing and storage must be done with great care, relying heavily on the anti-magic barrier.In addition, the place of origin is only part of the southern foot of Mount Vesuvius, which has become the Fire Elemental Realm due to the phenomenon of the convergence of the celestial spheres, so the price is very expensive.

Both Ma Youfu and Dunoy knew that this kind of lava rock bomb was not very practical and could not be popularized to artillery units, but they still kept some in reserve as surprise soldiers.

Inspired by this, Ma Youfu allocated a sum of money to Jean Bro to let him start researching flower bombs.

With the technical level of this era, it is certain that the modern grenade invented after the Great Revolution cannot be researched, but it is still possible to manufacture the flowering ammunition that was used in actual combat in the "invincible" Ming Dynasty.

And this is still a world where magic exists, maybe there is some "unscientific but magical" method that can break through the technical limitations.

It's just that the development of new weapons is not something that can be done overnight.Until the beginning of the Battle of Paris, no stable and reliable flowering ammunition was developed.

Although the principle is very simple, it is to create a grenade that can be fired from a cannon, but there are too many difficulties that need to be overcome.

On the other hand, the eight new 24-pound mortars ordered by Ma Youfu soon entered service in the artillery unit and were organized into two separate companies.

These new mortars adopt a new casting process, equipped with a four-wheeled gun carriage and a semi-circular gun mount that can precisely adjust the angle, both in terms of range and accuracy, which have been greatly improved.

Because the chamber pressure is low and the casting process is simpler than that of long-barreled cannons, the cost of a mortar can be acceptable even if the amount of copper used is relatively large.

The only shortcoming of these mortars is the shells.

Even if the production cost is not considered, due to the limited production of raw materials, before the war, there were only less than a hundred ex-lava bombs in storage.

In order to prevent these mortars from being useless during the long siege, Ma Youfu called the stonemasons' guild to consult and found a stone with the right hardness, which could be used as a stone that could explode when the shell hit the ground and hurt people with pieces.

Of course, this kind of stone bomb cannot deal with solid city walls, and can only cause damage to unarmored soft targets, which is better than nothing.

So this time Joan of Arc attacked Pontoise, carrying all lava bombs.

In the first round of shelling, several thatched-roof buildings in Pontoise were ignited by lava, and alarm bells sounded, causing residents to run in panic.

Just as the defenders were busy fighting the fire, the second round of shelling came again.

At this time, Mayouf's hot air balloon unit had already approached five kilometers away from Pontoise under the cover of night, and could clearly observe the situation in the city.

Because of the dark night, the original Lingqi communication system was no longer available, but Ma Youfu, who was rich and powerful, had already equipped the mage who was an observer on the hot air balloon with ten scrolls each of "Dark Vision" and "Message".

With the assistance of the hot air balloon observation post, the artillery quickly corrected the angle, and the second round of shells accurately landed on the city wall.

For the first time, British soldiers felt the scorching power from the Fire Elemental Realm.When the dark red lava fragments touched his body, the iron armor on his body could be heated to red in an instant, making people scream.

There were even unlucky knights who were fully armed. Although they were not directly affected by the shell fragments, because they were in an environment where the temperature rose suddenly, the full-body plate armor that was originally used to protect their lives now became a death cage instead.The excellent thermal conductivity of steel allowed the interior of the armor to quickly rise to over [-] degrees, and the wearer quickly died of heatstroke and dehydration.

"This is simply a gift from the devil, a weapon from hell!" Bernhard scolded angrily.

The powerful artillery, a new type of weapon that can make loud noises, has brought great psychological shock to the people of this era.Out of fear, there are indeed some foolish people who think it is a weapon of the devil.

It has happened before that a certain gunner was asked to confess because he fired seven shells in one day and was considered to have polluted his soul.

The two giant stone-shooting cannons that Philip III lent to Ma Youfu included not only the gunner and the pack team, but also two priests.Before each firing, the priest must perform a ceremony and purify the "evil and terrible black powder" of gunpowder.

As a Teutonic knight who said "I killed and set fire to enslave peasants, but I am a good believer", it is not incomprehensible for Bernhard to link the terrible power displayed by the French artillery to the devil.

In contrast, Talbot was very calm.

The history of the use of artillery by the British army is no later than that of the French.It's just that because they believed in the power of longbowmen, they didn't pay enough attention to this new type of weapon, and they were temporarily behind.

The devil talk is pure nonsense.

When the Pope was fighting with the Italian city-states, he often used various gunpowder weapons.Could it be that the leader of the Seven Sages is also a friend of the devil?

His only concern now was whether the Pontoise defenders could withstand the French artillery.

After venting, Bernhard also turned his attention to the battle situation and asked, "My lord, can the city be held?"

"When the French artillery shells flew in the sky, they clearly shone with magic aura. Since it is a weapon that has something to do with magic, it must be expensive, and it is impossible for them to have sufficient ammunition reserves. As long as the defenders survive the initial chaos and fear, No problem. In terms of effective lethality, the kind of shell that can explode is not much stronger than a crossbow."

Although some underestimated the power of lava shells, Talbot's judgment was basically correct.

It is simply impossible to capture a castle by projecting firepower without destroying the city wall or climbing the city.

"How do you know that the enemy's ammunition reserves are insufficient? Even though magic cannonballs are expensive, that Serisian is very rich."

"My German friend, didn't you observe the situation in the French camp before? Do you think there are a lot of shells in the luggage that the other party transported to the city of Pontoise?"

"Those big boxes covered with black cloth, don't they contain this expensive new type of shells?"

"Looking at the manpower required to carry such a large box, the weight should not exceed 150 pounds. It will definitely not be a stone shell, it is too light!"

"Then what's in these boxes? Could it be the secret weapon of the French?"

At this moment, a group of French soldiers tore off the black cloth from the big boxes and revealed the answer.

It was originally not a box, but a cage.There are goats locked inside.

"Haha, do these Frenchmen also understand the fun of the Welsh?" An English knight who witnessed the details of the French army's position suddenly laughed.

Chapter 220 The Source of Joan's Confidence

The English longbow originated in Wales and was originally a weapon used by the Welsh for hunting.Naturally, there were also many Welsh in the English Longbow.

In the Welsh area where the sheep herding industry is developed, the scandal between the poor and lonely Welsh man and the ewe quickly spread among the army.

Well, I have to admit that the sheep is not only fluffy and round, very cute, but also has a pair of round buttocks that make countless gym ladies envious, which is quite attractive to those hungry soldiers with excess male hormones.

Who is not a Fu Ruikong?

Talbot and Bernhard are naturally well aware of the tradition of ramming sheep in the army.Of course, even if the two nobles feel lonely when they are marching and fighting, they can still spend money to find prostitutes accompanying the army, instead of relying on goofy ways to relieve their boredom.

"Shut up! Do you think the French are as stupid as you?" Talbot glared at the laughing English knight, his expression becoming more and more serious, "That's not an ordinary sheep, but a goat! Produced in Ironback goats of the Swiss mountains!"

At this time, the French army's position was brightly lit, and a mage cast a lighting spell from time to time, so Talbot could see it clearly.He was very experienced, and even at such a distance, he immediately noticed that the sheep released from the cage by the French were of a very wrong size, only a little smaller than a pony, and they could be used for riding.

The most important thing is that these goats have strong muscles, strong limbs, and forked hooves. They are good at climbing.

When Talbot was young, he traveled across the Alps to Italy and saw how goats walked on cliffs and cliffs. At this time, he saw that the French tried their best to smuggle a hundred iron-backed goats to Pontoise. Under the city, he immediately realized the other party's intentions.

When the dwarven mercenaries who were supposed to be used as vanguard heavy infantry began to put armor on the ironback goats, even Bernhard guessed the French's plan.

"Are they planning to use these goat cavalry to 'climb' directly to the city wall?" The Teutonic knight exclaimed, "Arrogance! Stupid! Whimsical!"

However, it depends on the results to know whether it is "crazy! stupid! whimsical!" or "intelligent! smart! unexpected!".

Although he denounced the French plan, Bernhard still felt nervous for no reason.He suggested: "Count, now the enemy is concentrating on attacking the city, should we not charge a wave and relieve the pressure on Pontoise?"

Talbot's eyes lit up.But after seeing the artillery position of the French army facing towards him, he shook his head again.

In fact, he had already seen clearly that the longbowmen in the enemy camp had only been in the army for a few months.In addition to the obvious reasons of lack of training and lack of experience, the combat effectiveness is low, and the opponent's equipment is also very problematic.

Without the support of Sherwood Forest, the French could not obtain large quantities of elven wood. The wooden stakes they set up would have a reduced restraint effect on cavalry, and most of their longbows could not penetrate the knight's plate armor.

This is not Agincourt, without the muddy land after the rain, how can those half-baked longbowmen defeat the well-equipped heavy cavalry?

It's a pity that after Talbot lost to Joan of Arc once, he became too cautious and gave up the opportunity to break out. Otherwise, even if he couldn't win, he could cause a lot of damage to the French army and make the French army's subsequent siege battles change. It's hard.

But now, the soil work of the French army has been completed, forming artillery positions with cross-firing power, and densely arranged trenches, earth barriers, and fences, just like Leviathan's bloody mouth, which can swallow this English cavalry unit in one gulp. go down.

"Now we can only count on Sir Adams to stop this surprise attack from the French army." Talbot said in a deep voice.

In Talbot's place at Pontoise was his adjutant, Sir Adams.He is a giant with a height of more than two meters, an elite knight, and was awarded the Order of the Garter by the king very early on. He is a formidable strongman.

If you look at England, there is no one who can rival La Haile of France, it is undoubtedly the warrior who once went deep into the Scottish wasteland to kill an evil mage and the three-headed chimera he raised.

At this time, Sir Adams, who was particularly conspicuous in size, was supervising the battle at the head of Pontoise.Ignoring the rain of arrows pouring down from the city, he loudly encouraged morale and deployed manpower, and soon stabilized the line of defense that was chaotic due to the French artillery bombardment.

Talbot felt a little relieved.

Then, the well-prepared French army also began to act.

Joan raised the battle flag in her hand, drew a circle in mid-air, pointed at the city wall, and ordered: "Attack!"

The dwarf riders shouted in unison, formed two columns, and drove the goats towards the city wall.

The reason why Joan of Arc dared to boast in front of the Duke of Orleans that he captured Pontoise in two days and was willing to bet with the other party was because of the various new equipment and new tactics provided by Ma Youfu.

Lava shells, which are extremely lethal and deterrent to soft targets such as humans, coupled with hot air balloons that greatly improve the efficiency of shelling, can allow the French army to easily create chaos on the city walls.

Without any siege equipment, the dwarven sheep cavalry who can climb the city wall can launch a surprise attack after the shelling, occupy the top of the wall in one fell swoop, and establish the victory.

puff!

Looking at those slightly funny sheep cavalry, Joan of Arc could not help but reveal her girlish nature and laughed out loud.

The laughter immediately caught the attention of the soldiers lined up around them.

She could only cough dryly to cover up her embarrassment, and put on the appearance of a saint again.

The French army suddenly wanted to use sheep cavalry to attack the city, and we have to start from the time when the city of Meaux was captured.

As a traverser, Ma Youfu naturally knew that with the rise of artillery, the old castle defense system would be eliminated, and the new bastion would become popular.

But he is not very clear about how to build the bastion and what details need to be paid attention to.So Ma Youfu decided to check what the British did for reference.

When he was standing under the sloping city wall, for some reason, he suddenly remembered the battle he had with the woolen soldiers in the monastery.

It was his first battle after coming to this world, so he was very impressed.

Especially the appearance of the shield dwarf Volga riding the Iron Ridge Goat in the mountains like walking on the ground is still fresh in his memory.

Since Iron Ridge goats can run as usual on nearly vertical cliffs, can these walls that are specially built with a certain slope to defend against shells also be able to climb?

To be honest, fortification engineers in this world have too many things to consider.In addition to basic issues such as how to maximize the firepower advantage of the defenders and how to make it more difficult for the enemy to climb, it is also necessary to consider what to do in the face of strong men with extraordinary strength and monsters attacking the city.What if the enemy attacks from the sky, blah blah blah.

Now the defensive artillery has to be listed as the first element.