Etoilean War Drummers

The morning presented a strange sight outside Alistair's bedroom window. There was a large power-wagon on the corner, its armor signifying an army vehicle, though Alistair had never seen anything quite like it. The armor was thick, with heavy burls and spikes to dissuade casual contact, but the most obvious feature from the second story was the massive drum built into the rear of the wagon, currently being manned by a soldier in full dress uniform.
His landlord greeted him as he came down the stairs. "New to the Capital, aren't you? This would be your first parade." The older man gave a slight cackle. "It'll be a real treat. You've got a great spot to listen to our War Drum here."
Listen to it? "Sorry, could you explain that? We didn't have these parades back in Low Timbers." Alistair stifled a yawn.
"You'll see. Should start soon." The landlord beckoned, and Alistair followed him out to the street. The sidewalks were packed with onlookers, and were noticeably clear of ordinary power-wagon traffic. Instead, the large power-wagon Alistair saw loomed, parked under the power distribution pole, and much taller and wider than he expected; next to it was a comparatively smaller cavalry power-wagon, with spears affixed to the front.
A deep *thoom* echoed in the distance, and Alistair saw the drummer on the wagon stiffen. A deeper, louder *thooom*, a response coming from the War Drum in front of him. They seemed to be synchronizing the beat, and after a few hesitant strikes, the drummers began.
*boom* *boom* *boom*
All across the city, the sound of the drums echoed, between the reciprocating power rods, through the wide central boulevards, across the Grand Canal, in and around the flying bags of Air Post on their morning deliveries. The crowds were silent, transfixed by the rhythm.
*boom* *boom* *boom*
Even though Alistair had never heard a drumming of this scale and volume, he knew it could only be the famous Principality call to war. He found his hands instinctively clenched, and loosened them. Wouldn't do for a new wizard of the Academy to be caught up in the flow by simple drumwork.

Composition

Manpower

Roughly twelve hundred soldiers compose the War Drummers, supporting a little less than two hundred War Drum armored wagons in the infantry vanguard. Three crew man each War Drum wagon, a driver, engineer, and drummer, with another three reserve crewmen required for maintenance and support of each wagon.

Weaponry

Unlike cavalry wagons, War Drums move far too slowly for their velocity to be a viable weapon, and they are not manned by spears or crossbows. The War Drum wagon carries no explicit weapons at all. Instead, its armor serves as a bastion for infantry on the field, able to deflect projectiles and defeat simple weaponry. The namesake drum is the 'weapon' of the unit, able to coordinate and orient infantry across a field of battle and dishearten the enemy with its inexorable advance.

Vehicles

The War Drum wagon is a specialised, distinct version of the standard Power-Wagons of the Principality of Etoile. Unlike the cavalry units, which are high-speed shock troops meant to shatter enemy infantry and horse cavalry in the open field, War Drums are deployed in support of the infantry. Thus, they are even more heavily armored than the ordinary cavalry power-wagon, with half inch thick wrought iron armor on three sides of the vehicle, a moving bulwark and source of cover for infantrymen. More relevant to the name, however, is the massive drum fitted to the back of the vehicle. The deep, echoing drumming from these wagons are an instant auditory reminder of where the infantry battle line is, where the fight can be joined, and where the formation must be held. On the flip side, these wagons are nearly impervious to all ordinary weapons from the front.

Tactics

The Principality Ground Forces are separated into three rough 'branches' - the cavalry, the infantry, and the launchers. Each branch features its own power-wagon design, all meant to work in concert - the launchers fling flywheels into enemy formations to thin the ranks, the cavalry crashes into them to break and scatter enemy spears, and the war drummers lead the infantry to battle, the advancing formation unstoppable under the shield of the wagon's armor. Each company of infantry is led by two War Drum wagons, with the infantry in double file directly behind each wagon and protected from frontal assault. The advancing front of the infantry line is also protected by war drums on the periphery, to prevent enemy flanking attacks. All wagons maintain a constant, synchronized drum beat, in order to keep the infantry moving at a constant speed and to amplify the intimidating sound over the field of battle.
Upon close with the enemy in the field, the War Drums simply run over the opposed formation, breaking enemy unit cohesion and allowing them to be cut apart by the escort infantry. Against emplacements in siege warfare, the War Drums serve as mobile cover, carefully advancing while keeping the infantry shielded from projectile attack.
The drums themselves are vastly important as communication tools - the steady beat indicating ordinary status, a staccato indicating enemy presence, a frenzy indicating the joining of infantry combat around the drummer. A trained field officer can quickly identify the flow of battle and adjust the battle tactic by listening to the information from the drums.

Training

The extreme weight of the wagon's armor puts significant strain on the mechanical gearing, requiring specialized power engineers to maintain and repair War Drum wagons. The drummers hammering out the drumbeat undergo a one-season training regimen in order to memorize drum communication patterns and maintain drum rhythm across an entire battlefield of drummers.

Logistics

Auxilia

War Drums are integral to but not organic with the main infantry battalions of the Principality Ground Forces. Early experiments in having the infantry themselves man the War Drum wagons were tested and rejected; the specialized requirements of the War Drums necessitated a distinct unit.

Upkeep

War Drum wagons are not subject to the typical catastrophic damage that is inflicted upon cavalry wagons. Instead, the principal logistic burden is on spare parts repair. These wagons break down frequently and require constant service of the flywheel transmission gearing and the relatively fragile drivetrain. Between battles, the reserve crew of each War Drum are responsible for repairs and parts fabrication. War Drums are significantly more costly to maintain and upkeep than either launcher wagons or cavalry rams, the latter only because many rams are written off as lost causes post-battle.

Recruitment

The ranks of the War Drummers are all volunteers - these are soldiers without weapons at the vanguard of the fight, their sole purpose to escort and protect the vulnerable foot infantry. The lack of supposed 'glory' in the role has actually contributed to its relative prestige, and open training slots in the War Drummers are filled quickly from the ranks of veteran infantry.

History

Prior to the founding of Etoile, the King of Nasse conducted several wargames as to how to incorporate his new Power-Wagons into the military of Nasse. He settled on the tactic that earned him the title of First Princeps at the outset of The War of Unification, with his War Drums being key to victory. In some of the most pitched battles of the era, Nasse was outnumbered by well over ten to one - the cavalry and launchers simply could not whittle the enemy formations down enough before they ran out of flywheel power. It was in this situation that the war drums shined; these impervious mobile bastions could not be stopped by field fortifications or horse cavalry attacks, and their ability to simply overrun and divide enemy formations was crucial to many early victories.
In modern times, as the Ground Forces have not deployed in over a generation, the War Drummers are more well known for their annual performance in the Etoile Capital City when on parade, with War Drums on each street corner beating out a deep and ominous drumming over the entirety of the city and bringing all other activity to a halt.

Type

Armour

Assumed Veterancy

Veteran

Used by

• Principality of Etoile