Assault on Pykon

The Assault on Pykon was a battle of the First Great War, between the Esroniet and the Mermidon Republic for control of the river ford guarded by Pykon. Initially, the Momer of the Mermidon Republic managed to largely beat back the small Esroniet taskforce, who then returned with reinforcements and forced the Momer into the swamps surrounding the river, being unable to defend the fortress successfully. Eventually, the difficulty of the terrain forced the armies of the Momer to retreat. After the battle, the great fortress of Pykon was burned to the ground by the armies of Esroniet.

Battle

Preliminary Action

The Esronietans arrived near the river fortress late in the day. They took their time, scouting the area, before they set up their camp. The Momer and Esronietans first encountered each other when a small Esronietan task force began to create a new camp. They discovered a Momer scouting party, and after being alerted to the presence of the Momer, the Esronietans destroyed the scouting party. Three days later, when word had not been heard from the missing scout party, the Momer commander, Dayel Eventine, sent out other scouting parties to search for them. The scouting parties soon brought back word that the armies of Esroniet were approaching. The Momer wasted no time; they quickly gathered a large force. Lacking the strength of numbers to withstand the Momer assault, the Esronietans were defenseless when the Momer assaulted their camp. The camp quickly fell, all but the southern area, where the Esronietans had dug in. Several hours passed, and the siege tactics of the Momer eventually carried the day. Many of the Esronietans were killed, and the rest were forced to retreat.

However, the Momer made the critical mistake of believing that the task force was the entire Esronietan Army, and complacent after their victory, they retreated to Pykon, where they relaxed and celebrated their victory. Unbeknownst to them, the task force was not the entire Esronietan army; it was in fact not even one percent of their total forces. The survivors of the camp retreated to the main camp and informed the Esronietan High Command. The main Esronietan army preceded and found an area of flat plain land. Their cavalry was deployed, they quickly consolidated the area, and fortified the area, and set up their camp. Determined to catch the Momer off guard, the Esronietans sent their cavalry to attack Pykon, where the Momer forces were concentrated. Although the cavalry were not effective, the Esronietan infantry captured Pykon and drove the Momer into the surrounding swamps. Caught off guard, the Momer suffered heavy casualties, but was now aware of the threat, and began to dig in the surrounding swamps.

Storming the Swamps

The Momer, after being forced to retreat into the swamps, employed the Moon Assassins. The Moon Assassins successfully used guerilla tactics in hit and run attacks against the Esroniet forces, and successfully damaged their supplies. Eventually, the Moon Assassins infiltrated the main Esronietan camp, and killed many Esronietan soldiers using their bows and arrows. The garrison, by now in complete disarray, was quickly attacked by the main Momer forces, and was captured.

However, the Momer, were unsure of what to do after this stunning success. More main bases of the Esroniet forces, and the main body of Momer troops were stuck in the marshes to the west. Unfortunately, their indecision lasted to long, resulting in the subsequent attack and capture of the base by Esroniet forces. Many Momer were killed. The Esronietans quickly fortified the camp, and subsequently drove off two Momer attempts to recapture the critical strategic base.

The Momer commander, Dayel Eventide, finally realized that the only chance for the Momer to gain a victory was to retreat further into the marshes and use guerilla tactics against the largers Esronietan forces. Unfortunately, the main Momer force was discovered and destroyed by the Esronietans, and the remaining members of the Momer forces, including Dayel Eventide, retreated to the major Momer city of Drey.

Aftermath

The surviving Momer, led by Dayel Eventide, abandoned the rest of their swamp camps, and used their few remaining riverboats to escape down the Rill River to the major Momer city of Drey. The Esronietans occupied Pykon, and began moving the bulk of their army and equipment across the narrow Pykon Ford. The Esronietans quickly expanded both Pykon's and the Pykon Ford's defenses.

The Momer High Command eventually decided that their lack of a victory at Pykon was the fault of Dayel Eventide, the nephew of the King, and his command. Both Dayel Eventide and his entire command were executed on the orders of the king. The King and Momer people were determined not to let another military disaster like this to occur.

Assault on Pykon
Part of First Great War
Date Location Pykon Result Esonietan Victory
Combatants
Esroniet	Mermidon Republic
Commanders
Balinor Lirian Palance Lirian	Dayel Eventide
Strength
2,000,000 infantry 2,000,000 cavalry 2,000,000 archers	Pykon Garrison
Casualties
Many	Many