Chapter 633: Battle of the Three Armies Part l

In the Holy Land, a total of the three armies were gathered in the fields outside the city of Acre. The First and most powerful of these armies belonged to the mighty Byzantine Empire. Despite its technological advantage, it was a small force of roughly five thousand men in total. The Byzantines had not bothered to send the bulk of their forces to this battle and instead chose a small elite Brigade of Infantry who was equipped with Rifled Flintlocks, bayonets, and mirror pattern armor.

Supporting this Infantry Brigade was a single Artillery battalion which made use of the 1417 12 pdr Field Guns which the German Army had long since replaced, refurbished and sold to their allies. Unlike the German Army, these weapons were not issued explosive shells, rather solid projectiles and cannister shot.

The second largest Army present was the Timurid Army, which consisted of roughly ten thousand men. They were equipped with medieval weapons and armor. However, their forces varied in the use of infantry, archers, cavalry, and skirmishers. The Timurid Empire had yet to witness, or adapt to, the new era of warfare that had arisen in Europe as a result of Berengar's interference in the timeline.

Finally, there was the Crusader Army, which comprised an English Detachment, a French force, and the Knights Hospitaller. These men were equipped with medieval pattern armor, but their weapons were more advanced than their Muslim counterparts. Matchlock firearms were common among the Crusader forces, employed as both arkebuses and primitive muskets. They were also supported by their own artillery, which came in the form of falconets and sakers. Though they were fewer than the cannons brought by the Byzantines. Int total the Crusaders had roughly fifteen thousand men, making them numerically on par with their enemies.

One could say the fact that the English and French crowns who were at war with each other for decades were now fighting side by side was a miracle. One that resulted from the threat that the German Empire posed to the Catholic world at large. Despite the enmity between the two realms, they were not brothers in arms in the war against the heretics, and because of that, they had put their differences aside for the sake of this campaign.

Aubry had a smirk on his face as he gazed upon the hostile armies that had gathered in the distance. He was fairly certain that their army would be victorious. Though the numbers were the same between the two armies, they had more firearms than their enemies. Aubry had witnessed how effective these weapons were in the field, and because of that, he believed the Crusaders would be victorious. Thus, he decided to make a friendly wager with his English rival.

"Tell me, Lawrence, how much are you willing to bet that my Knights outperform your poorly trained and equipped forces?"

When Lawrence heard this, he scoffed, wanting to ignore the little boy king, but Aubry did not know when to quit, instead he tried to seduce his rival across the pond.

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