In the mist that filled the air in the early morning, the Russian soldiers climbed out of their tents. Many of them did not take off their armor. They directly picked up their weapons and shields and walked onto the battlefield under the orders of their own soldiers.
Although a lot of preparations and emphasis were made in advance, troubles inevitably occurred when tens of thousands of people started to move, such as queue conflicts, soldiers unable to find generals, and chaotic orders, and the Grand Duke himself had already
Anticipating such a situation, his soldiers were running back and forth in front of the front, mediating various conflicts.
Rostislav is lucky. He only needs to manage the two thousand people under his command, and these two thousand people have a good sense of discipline and require less energy.
As soon as day broke, Prince Ross and the captain of the soldiers mounted their horses, led the army out, and arrived at the designated position.
The chosen battlefield was a flat slope, which was just right for the army to fight. Of course, such a flat slope was also suitable for the cavalry to gallop, but the many carriages carried by the Ross army were not just for the cavalry attack.
At this moment, the slope was shrouded in morning mist, and neither side could see the movement on the opposite side. From time to time, the sound of fighting could be heard in the mist. This was the battle between the scouts and skirmishers of both sides.
Screams rang out from time to time. Fighting under such mist, they often found the opponent at a very close distance, and at this distance they could only engage in fierce and cruel hand-to-hand combat.
The brutal melee continued, and the reconnaissance tentacles of both sides were restricted in the fog. This was a good result for both sides. Although they could not see the opponent's layout in advance, their own layout was not seen by the opponent.
.
According to yesterday's arrangement, Rostislav was placed at the end of the left wing, and part of the Black Hat Army was strengthened into his hands. Rostislav's task was very simple, guarding the left wing to prevent the Polovtsians from making a possible detour.
It seems that the performance of Rostislav these days has been noticed by the Grand Duke. A wise man lets those who are good at what they do do what they should do. After all, there is no better way to prevent the cavalry from detouring than to dispatch the cavalry.
Rostislav was standing under the flag of St. George at the moment, surrounded by busy soldiers who were busy pulling carriages to the front of the formation. This was a common tactic used by infantry armies against cavalry. Watching these carriages being dragged to the formation
, Rostislav couldn't help but feel relieved, he believed that this could effectively resist the invasion of the nomadic army.
The escorts, who were fanatical believers, were shouting fanatical slogans of faith in the formation. Most of the people in Prince Rus's army were Christians, which caused them to cheer and their morale also increased.
The prince looked towards the center of the battle formation, where there were densely populated soldiers holding swords, guns, swords and halberds. Some of them wore fur hats with cuffs, and some wore pointed helmets. In front of them were spearmen standing on vehicles.
and archer carriage.
Moreover, there were many resisting horses in front of the carriage. The Grand Duke asked the soldiers to relocate the resisting horses in the camp in front of the formation to strengthen the defense. The Grand Duke was really impeccable in his work and strived for perfection.
The archers calmly adjusted their bowstrings. Most of them were wearing armor. Rostislav saw many of them holding long bows and heavy arrows. They seemed to be North warriors. Long bows and heavy arrows are also part of the northern martial arts tradition.
First, their arrows are much stronger than those weak short bows. They are really made for killing people.
There are constant messengers on horseback running in the formation, and the soldiers adjust according to their orders. There are also personal soldiers scattered among the soldiers to standardize the formation and posture. At the same time, they are also the cornerstone and backbone of inspiring the soldiers after the battle begins.
Grandfather's flag is located at the highest point of the Russian front, where Rurik's trident is flying. Here, grandfather can have an overview of the entire battle situation in order to make timely military adjustments.
Due to the fog, Rostislav could only vaguely see Rurik's banner, but could not see his grandfather and his reserve team at all.
As for the right wing, it is completely invisible. It is said that my grandfather arranged the two uncles there, with two princes and soldiers. It seems that just like last time, my grandfather planned to use this side as an iron fist for counterattack.
From time to time, soldiers leave the battle formation and enter the fog. These people are basically mercenaries from outside Russia, Poles, Germans, Chuds... all the ethnic groups the prince knows can be seen here, and their armor and equipment
It's also extremely messy.
They are the troops who join the strangulation in the fog. This kind of battle is most suitable for them. On such a battlefield with limited vision, these mercenaries can only fight as hard as they can in order to survive.
The fighting in the fog began the moment the sun just rose, and both sides invested a large number of troops in it.
"Yang, are you still nervous this time?"
The prince suddenly asked about his flag officer, but Yang just shrugged easily.
"It's much better than last time. Although I'm nervous, it's not as bad as the first battle."
Yang's words were filled with the confidence of a veteran. During this period of time, he had participated in dozens of fights, large and small, and his spirit had been polished to an extremely strong level. His former attitude as a new recruit was completely a thing of the past.
"That's good, come with me and let me see my soldiers."
Rostislav rode his horse through the military formation, and the soldiers cheered when they saw the St. George flag ringing. They knew that this meant Rostislav's personal arrival, and in their eyes Rostislav was the man who would bring victory.
The prince did not forget to wave to the soldiers, which deserved a stronger reaction from the soldiers. After all, Rostislav had completely convinced them with his military exploits. In their view, Saint George favored the prince, and he was so easily excited before the battle.
Under the environment, the natural reaction is also excited.
The cheers even attracted the attention of the friendly troops, but then they concentrated on their own affairs. The war had just begun, so it was better to prepare well than to see something strange.
Rostislav and his crossbowmen passed by, and these thirty crossbowmen cheered the loudest. After all, Rostislav had turned them from the lowest infantrymen into crossbowmen, and he gave them such a generous reward (relatively speaking).
say) reward.
"This is the last batch."
Rostislav asked while waving to them. The prince valued these crossbowmen very much. In the previous battle with Tugel, they were the ones who effectively attacked the Polovtsian heavy armored cavalry, which made this cavalry unable to perform.
They should have the fighting power. After returning to Kiev, he bought crossbows all over Kiev, and collected more than ten more to form the current team.
Rostislav hoped that these people could continue their efforts and give the nomadic army a head-on blow, and their weapons would be convenient to open up the situation when he needed it.
"yes."
Yang replied.
"Ah, the fog is starting to lift."
Suddenly, Rostislav raised his head, and the fog was gradually dissipating.
"Come back to the formation, the battle is about to begin."