Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1320 - 1313: Line Infantry

Chapter 1320: Chapter 1313: Line Infantry

In the span of a month, Dwarven officers had been assisting in training the Demon Clan’s army, mainly in aspects such as forming up, musket drills, and formation changes. Through their tireless efforts, they finally made the Demon Clan’s army look somewhat presentable.

It should be noted, though, that the Dwarven officers had not directly advanced them from the era of cold weapons to the firearm era. Instead, the Demon Clan soldiers were already from the firearm era, so the Dwarven officers were able to train them up in just a month.

If it were an army from a purely cold weapons era like that of the Dongsheng Empire, conservative estimates would suggest that it would take at least about a year to train them into line infantry, not including the time needed for equipping and outfitting with new gear.

Because the Demon Clan’s army already had a foundation, with the support of Dwarven officers who also came from the line infantry era, the training naturally bore fruit effortlessly.

With the help of the Dwarven officers, the Demon Clan’s army started to use snare drums and bugles as tools of command. Because in ancient and even modern wars, command was always a headache, even in the present day where armies without sufficient communication equipment still found command and coordination a big trouble.

Do not underestimate the role of these musical instruments, for once the battle started, soldiers would focus intently on their actions, their gaze fixed only on what was ahead, while ignoring the happenings around them.

Therefore, in such situations, command became vitally important. The sound of instruments was distinct from other noises on the battlefield, so they could be more easily heard by the soldiers, who would then carry out the corresponding actions.

On the battlefield, the simpler the command messages, the better, so these drums and bugles only needed to produce a few specific frequencies of tones. As long as the message could be conveyed immediately to the focused soldiers, it would qualify as effective command.

Atop the walls of Lingyuan City, Luo’er was fortunate to witness the Demon Clan’s army’s first line infantry drill. A total of two thousand soldiers participated in the exercise, among whom fifteen hundred were musketeers, divided into three groups, with the fourth group being Pikemen.

The Demon Clan’s army had a total of almost three thousand musketeers, as well as an equal number of reserve forces. Of course, not everyone could be deployed for the exercise, as space was limited.

These three thousand musketeers had virtually become the cream of the crop within the entire Demon Clan army, because in the reform, musketeers had leaped from a status similar to crossbowmen to become the absolute main force of the Demon Clan’s army.

For these three thousand people, Abisien had poured in all available resources, for the purpose of manufacturing and providing them with new flintlock guns. All other military branches were almost entirely coordinated around these three thousand musketeers for cooperative warfare.

This was a live ammunition drill, the purpose of which was to test the Demon Clan musketeers’ coordinated advance and the firing rate of their guns. Generally speaking, after stringent training, a flintlock gunner could complete a reloading in about ten to fifteen seconds.

However, the Dwarven officers took the maximum value, demanding they finish loading ammunition within twenty seconds. Consequently, the three groups of musketeers had to rotate firing almost every ten seconds to ensure sustained firepower.

Amid the rhythms of bugles and drumbeats, the line infantry began to advance in cadence. Standing on the left side of the formation was the battlefield commander of this troop, primarily responsible for leading the advance, firing, and formation changes.

Introducing bugles and snare drums into warfare was a scene the Demon Clan had never seen before, so many curious civilians came to watch, eager to see what this slightly artistic form of tactics was like.

Near the riverbank, they erected over five hundred straw man targets to simulate the enemy. Accompanied by the melodious bugle and drumbeat, the Demon Clan’s army marched uniformly, eventually halting about twenty meters from the "enemy"—the perfect distance for flintlock guns to unleash their full potential.

Their bugle sounds and drumbeats were not random, but carried a certain rhythm; listening closely, it somewhat resembled the prelude to the classic nursery rhyme "If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands."

As the bugle changed tune, the drumbeats abruptly stopped, and the formation neatly halted over twenty meters away from the straw men.

"Prepare!" With the command of the battlefield commander, the commander raised the baton in his hand. Upon hearing the order, the first rank of soldiers immediately aimed their flintlock guns, which rested on their shoulders, at the straw targets not far away.

"Fire!" The commander issued the order again, simultaneously lowering the baton in his hand.

Upon his command, the first rank of soldiers immediately pulled their triggers, and after a brief delay, the battlefield echoed with uniform gunshots. White gunsmoke billowed from the muzzles, the bullets piercing through the straw targets and splashing into the river, causing numerous spouts of water to rise.

Due to the still traditional use of black powder, the musket fire created a large amount of smoke. The smoke from five hundred guns firing was enough to create a blinding haze, at which point the shooter’s visibility was greatly compromised, relying instead on hearing. This is why military bugles and drums were set up.

The sight of five hundred guns firing simultaneously shocked everyone present, including Luo’er. This tactic was filled with a brutal aesthetic, compelling even someone who had experienced modern warfare to let out sighs of admiration.

"Switch!" The commander continued to give orders, drawing back the baton to rest on his shoulder before immediately raising it again.

This was actually two motions. In the initial training, the commander’s orders were threefold: prepare, fire, switch, then continue with prepare, fire, switch.

However, during training, the Dwarf officers felt the "prepare" command was superfluous and simply eliminated it. When the commander shouted "switch," the first rank would turn left to the third rank to reload, while the second rank would step forward to become the first rank and immediately aim their guns at the target, without waiting for the "prepare" command from the commander.

After this change, "prepare" only needed to be called once. In subsequent firings, the commander would only need to repeatedly shout "fire" and "switch."

On his next command, the second batch of musketeers stepped forward, aimed their guns at the target, and waited for the commander’s order, while the first rank turned to the third to reload.

"Fire!" After about ten seconds, the commander once again lowered the baton, initiating another round of volleys.

The reason for the ten-second wait was to ensure everyone’s rhythm, guaranteeing the first rank had ample time to prepare for a volley and ensuring the third rank soldiers had sufficient time to load the ammunition.

The effect of the second firing was clearly much better than the first, and the gunshots were even more synchronized. As the dense smoke filled the air, quite a few straw targets were knocked down in the distance, and dense spouts of water erupted on the river surface.

In just one minute, the musketeers carried out about five volleys, with stunning effectiveness that left the chiefs of the Demon Clan slack-jawed in awe. Even Tuya, who was dissatisfied with the reforms, had to admit the power and presence of such a firing method.

This was only five hundred men firing in unison; on the battlefield, each rank would have a thousand men, making the sight even more awe-inspiring.

After about three minutes of continuous firing, suddenly, the military bugle and drumbeats struck up again, this time at a very urgent pace, instantly tensing up the spectators. This was the signal indicating an enemy cavalry attack, preparing to change the formation.

Since this was the first demonstration, the two thousand troops showed clear panic, but they soon stabilized.

The first rank immediately ceased firing and then knelt halfway to the ground, pointing their gun muzzles forward. The second rank also quickly lowered their guns to point forward, and the third rank extended their guns through the gaps of the second rank after loading their ammunition.

Finally, the Pikemen at the rear had their turn to play a part; they held their pikes high through the gaps between the second and third ranks, pointing forward.

The reason the pikes were held so high was that the Dongsheng Cavalry steeds were very tall, so only by lifting high could they potentially stab the cavalrymen. Hitting the horses was of no use since most Dongsheng Cavalry consisted of heavy cavalry, which commonly wore horse armor as a defense measure.