NationStates Jolt Archive

One Half Mile off the Shores of the Danish City of Skagen, Skagerrak Sea, 4:50 AM

"Not much further now lads! Keep on rowin!", shouted Sven, Rachejk's former Commanding General, as he pulled back on the large wooden oar in his hands, propelling the long boat further, and further. Sven's body was a horrid sight, over half burnt by oil in the siege of Oslo, he looked like somthing of the walking dead. The majority of the work was done by the crew on this day, as the winds were all but silent, leaving an eire fog over the shores. The morning was young, the fleet eager for battle. Some eleven ships in all, 350Viking Raiders prepared themselves for the pillage they were promised.

"Land ho!" In the distance, through the thick fog sat the peaceful city of Skagen, oblivious to the fate which would strike them. Moving at over 13 knots, the longships toar through the frigid water with amazing speed, propelled by an eager raiding party, they continued forward. By the time the camoflauged ships could be seen through the morning fog, the ships had all but landed on the beaches. "Forward!", was the cry, but no yell was yet made. The party remained discreet as they pulled their vessels further up shore and withdrew their weapons. Swords, axes, torches, shields and even bows. The Veteran Soldiers turned raiders gritted their teeth, and let out a vicious yell as they charged forward into the waking city.

The sun cracked over the horizon, shedding light on the town as the vikings moved into the town... Sven expected disorganized resistance, and that was assuming the city militia carried their arms with them. The immidiet opposition could hardly be expected to hold off the Viking raid, however, when the reinforcements arrived, trouble would be had. Reinforcements from the South would take hours to arrive, a half day at least. By that time, Sven expected to be halfway to Norway...

(I think it would be best if you picked up as my ships are hitting the beaches, and remember, this is a raid, not an invasion. It would take quite some time for a messenger to gather a sizable force, then march all the way back north. By that time, Vikings have pillaged, burned and left.)

A scout was marching around the town when he heard the sound of waves crashing everywhere, and spotted a ship in the fog, but before anything could happen, an arrow landed square in his eye and he collapsed. The town had no possible way of being warned....

Skagen

"CHARGEEEE!!!", was the yell as three hundred and fifty Viking Raiders sprinted up the sandy beaches into the quiet city. The first torch hit a hey roof, quickly igniting it as the same man rushed into the house, knocking the man of the house over the head with the butt of his sword. Withdrawing a sack, two candle sticks were tossed in. A dresser was opened, a small sack of coin taken, along with a bottle of whiskey. The raider was smashed over the top of the head by some sort of bottle, protected by his iron helmet as he punched the teen with his mail fist as he shook off the concusion. The raider moved into another portion of the house as the fire on the roof became visible from the inside. Grabbing a stack of tin plates, several cheap metal cups and a dagger handing from the wall, he rushed out of the burning house, leaving the woman of the house to drag out her unconcious family.

Across the city, men charged and pillaged, burning houses as they were sacked. Any man seen carrying a weapon that did not bear the mark of their Lieutenant, a large red X on their helmet, was immidietly mobbed and cut down. His weapon taken, his body left in the street. Scouts were sent to the permiter of the city, searching for any signs of reinforcements.

It was not ten minutes before the armory was found, enemy militia already surrounding it. A Viking fog horn was sounded, an additional forty men swarmed the sight as the largest pocket of resistance thus far was hit. First by a light hail of arrow fire, then by fifty crazed raiders. Tavern's were hit with complete lust of the men, wine and alchol bottles bagged, as the tavern keeper was forced to show the location of the establishments money.

The raid was hardly ten minutes in yet the havoc which had begun could last for a year.

Though they arrived too late, a normal force of Huscarles, led by the Kings Champion, Hardeknud Ystaffson, and some archers arrived on the scene, and a horrible scene it was, bodies everywhere, flames reaching the skies. "Kill the invaders men, NOW!" shouted Hardeknud and drew his sword as arrows filled the air, the moon blacked out by arrows.

(By the time a messenger would reach a military force, assuming he was upon horseback and knew where he was going, then had a military force organized, then ran all the way back north, the Raid would be finished... that was the reason people feared Viking Raids. There was literally no chance at reinforcements being gathered unless the Viking's were dumb enough to attack a military camp. Look at the sequence of events.)

-Messenger leaves. By the time he decides where to go, how to get there, and finally rides all the way to the base camp, at least one hour has passed. By now, the raid is well underway.
-King's Champion takes note of the message, and prepares an army to move north to fight off the invaders. By the time a army is assembled, weapons are gathered and troops organized, another hour has passed. This is assuming the army is extremely organized.
-The army begins back to the raided city. A huscarle, if I am not mistaken is an infantryman. Now assuming it took one hour of riding for the messenger to reach the base on horseback, its gonna take three hours, at the least for an army to make its way back.
-Five Hours. Viking Raid, at most takes three hours to complete. By the time your reinforcements arrive, the Vikings are on their way home, loaded up with loot. Now lets say by some miracle it only took three hours for a response (which is immpossible unless their is a military garrison outside the city, which there historically was not), three hour response. Your troops are spotted by sentrys before they close 1 mile on the raided city. The Sentry's blow their Horns, and alert the raiding party of the enemy. They, realizing fun time is over, grab what they can, and in the ten minute time gap it would take the enemy to close the one mile, the Vikings have grabbed what they could, and sailed away. So really, all you have to fight the raid with is Militia. Sort of an unfair fight, but thats the point.

Bumpo

Point taken

IC:

As Militia fell in droves, one man managed to escape and brought a message to Olaf (as described in the Welsh Campaign Thread), and while he was doing so, men tried to defend but fell, some were crushed by collapsing buildings as they fled. Women were r.ap.ed, and children were given no mercy. The man in charge of the city realised his failure, and ended his life by forcing a sword down his throat.

Skagen - Third Hour of Raid

Sven kicked in the door of the keep, looking around the room, a sword in one hand, a bottle of wine in the other. Quickly taking a swig of the wine, he smashed the glass bottle over a soldiers head, kicked him in the gut, and impailed him upon the blade. Seconds later, he took note of what seemed to be the head of the militia taking his own life. The Viking broke out laughing, withdrawing the sword from the commanders hands and attaching it to his own belt, he kicked open a trunk in the corner of the room, filled with silk clothing and sewing equiptment. Grabbing the entire thing after tossing the rest of his loot in it, he slung the chest over his shoulder and left the keep, leaving it for lesser ranked raiders to pillage.

Within three hours, the city was in ruins. The armory had been completely raided, most raiders now carrying three swords, two axes and a rack of knives. Cases of booze, fine clothing, precious metals, and other random items had been stuffed into the bows of the long boats as sacks of gold, silver and bronze coins were stuffed under the benches of the boat. Near the end of the raid however, came the looting of the most valuable item. People. Young children, young men, teenagers and attractive women were all smacked over the top of the head with blunt objects, gagged and bound, and thrown on the ships. Weapons of all sorts lined the floors of the large yet quick long boats as the Horns sounded, signaling for the men to return to the ships. Over fifty men had fallen by first count, leaving more room for loot and prisoners.

By the end of the third hour, the ships were completely loaded with loot, and pushed off to the see, bearing some 180 prisoners. The women would be raped for over a week, then either forced into marriage, or sold into permanant slave prostitution. The children would be sold to Eastern Slave traders, where they would live until old enough to work in the slave industries. The teens and younger men were immidietly forced into the mines and the forests where they would cut wood, catch fish and harvest metals needed by the forge cities of the South.

The raid had ended, the city burned, the vikings rowed home, their vessels packed to the brim with valuables of varrying proportions.