The day after the Negru Republic's army launched the War of Glory, an unexpected skirmish broke out in the Thorn Hills. On the Negru side, after throwing in the new weapon of steam cannons, they broke through the enemy's first line of iron shield breastwork and are attacking the second line of the same line. On the Anken Rein side, the broken through defenders, aware of the power of this new weapon and the shortcomings of its difficulty in moving, suddenly launched a massive counterattack with the intention of snatching at least one steam cannon. Their intentions were discovered by the Neglo Republic, and more troops were immediately put in, and this weapon must not be allowed to be snatched by the enemy.

Thus, the battle began. Since the area where the war broke out was located between the iron shield lines of the two sides, neither side of the war had adequate defenses. The soldiers of the Neglo Republic who rushed to the front line had a part of the armored spearmen, who had the advantage in defense. However, the soldiers of the Ankenrein Empire won in numbers in a small area because of their proximity. Repeated battles broke out between the two sides over the five steam cannons. At one point, the Ankenrein Empire's army controlled two steam cannons, but in the end, due to the difficulty of moving this weapon, the Negru side took away the long planks to assist the movement of the steam cannons, and finally lost them. The battle between the two sides lasted from morning to afternoon, and finally ended invariably, leaving mountains of corpses between their respective iron shield lines.

In the end, the Ankenrein Empire did not get the steam cannon, but they captured an enemy staff member in charge of steam cannon maintenance, assistant researcher Koman Sweet. The basic design ideas and principles of the steam cannon thus entered the field of vision of the Anken Rein military.

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"Your Highness, Anken Rein threw in a weapon called the Steam Cannon in the battle of the Thorn Hills, and it was so powerful that it directly penetrated the iron shield of the Iron Shield Breastwork Line. Paul Chung's men fought hard for a long time to take control of one of the enemy's designers. His Majesty the Emperor has just written to Paul Chung asking him to send the captured designer back to Roswell for study by the Weapons Research Institute. ”

Billy Barnard, the Prince's attendant of the Six Princes, stood in the tent of the Three Guards, reporting the latest information to Eliot. Around him, the staff officers were busy, preparing for the upcoming offensive.

"Steam cannons? Sounds like an enlarged version of my steam hand cannon? Elliot looked at the sand table, replied absentmindedly, and asked, "You say, how about I put the first regiment here and rush in after the breakthrough?" ”

Finding that His Royal Highness didn't seem to have much interest in steam cannons, Barnard took the opportunity to change the subject, "It should be fine." Our drills have proven that this Valorant rifle is simply the nemesis of platoon gun tactics. As long as the attacking armoured spearmen in the front row can tear a hole in the iron shield defense line of Roninger, the boys of the first regiment can completely tear through the entire iron shield defense line from this opening. The tactic of lining up to shoot will not stop our attack. ”

The 1st Regiment, originally the 1st Regiment of the 1st Division of the 3rd Guards Army, was the ace combat unit in the 1st Division, Eliot's ace unit. Recently, Gastens, at Eliot's urging, finally provided 1,200 Valiant rifles and completed the refitting of the entire First Regiment. Thanks to this, Elliot decided to launch a big offensive to open the stalemate. He listened to Barnard, nodded, and said what he thought.

"I also think so, the 1st Regiment, armed with the Brave rifles, with that type of prone aiming and shooting, can easily break the enemy's resistance. Tell the brothers below that you're ready to do big things! ”

Barnard nodded, confirmed with His Royal Highness the Prince, and confirmed some specific issues of the offensive campaign, and then went out to convey His Royal Highness's orders. Leaving Elliot alone, he picked up the intelligence he had placed on the table.

"Steam cannons? ……”

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"It's a fight," said Eddie Geely, commander of the 2nd Company of the 1st Regiment of the 1st Division of the 3rd Guards Army, holding his beloved Valiant rifle and watching the battle situation ahead. Although it was not yet time for them to play, after such a long stalemate outside Auriderick, Eddie Geely's heart was full of fighting spirit.

What's more, he still has such a perverted weapon.

"When they tear through the defenses, we can go up."

Ramon Gilly, the deputy commander of the second company, Eddie Gilly's younger brother, also replied with some nervousness. Although the cylinders of the Valorant rifles were already full, the two of them turned on the steam engine of the steam pack, hoping to be fully prepared.

"Whew-"

There was a cheer from the front, and the enemy's first line of iron shield defense was torn open, and many soldiers began to rush through the opening. This then led to neat rows of gunfire inside.

The reason why the Iron Shield Defense Line is called the Iron Shield Defense Line is that, in addition to the iron shield that can resist rifle lead bullets, it is the platoon rifle infantry placed in the continuous multi-layer iron shield defense line, which can well suppress the enemy who rushes in from one or two small openings. Because it was impossible to spread the formation, the soldiers who rushed into the first iron shield line would be quickly killed, and it would be difficult for the attackers to reach the second iron shield line.

"Breakthrough, rush!"

Seeing that his opportunity had come, Eddie Geely rushed forward with his team. The soldiers, who had already known the battle arrangement, gave way to the way, and the gap opened by the attackers in front of him soon appeared in front of Eddie.

"Kill me!!!!!"

Roaring loudly, Eddie rushed through the gap, and was greeted by red and gray soldiers standing in a row. Add could see their platoon of guns flat, and the flag-bearer standing next to the platoon of gunmen.

"Lie down !!"

As soon as he rushed into the gap, Eddie gave the order according to the previous tactical drill. Immediately afterward, above the lawn, as if the wind had blown it down, more than 100 people who rushed in with him all fell to the ground.

Enemy lead bullets flew over their heads and shot into the unknown distance behind them.

"Aim, shoot!! Free Fire! ”

The soldiers of the 1st Regiment, which had formed a straggler formation, began to shoot on their stomachs on the ground. The Valorant's rifle cylinders snorted regularly, firing those bullets at their respective targets. Unable to aim at the enemy lying on their stomachs, and unable to cover because of the queue, the soldiers of the Ronninger army in charge of the defense were in disarray in front of these strange enemies. They were quickly knocked down by the enemy's rapid and fierce fire, and they did not even know how to launch a counterattack.

"Steady, steady! Keep the fire going! ”

Eddie Geely shouted as he swapped out one of the magazines on his rifle. At first, during the exercise, he didn't like this strange posture of shooting on his stomach, although the steam backpack behind him was much lighter than the Erqi style, but when he was lying on his stomach, he could still feel its weight. And, for the traditional Anken Rein battle honor, lying on his stomach is a very undignified way.

However, as the exercises deepened and his understanding of the Valiant rifle deepened, Eddie Geely gradually got used to this method. Lying on your stomach reduces the likelihood of the enemy hitting you, and it also makes it easier to aim, and if you use a Valorant rifle, you have a much higher hit rate than if you were standing with a platoon of guns.

The gunfire continued, and Eddie's first regiment had basically rushed in at this time. They fanned out, kneeling or lying on their stomachs, and had basically swept away the enemy who were lined up on the opposite side to shoot them. And your own losses are still zero.

The queue tactic is very demanding, and when the enemy's queue between the first and second lines of defense is disrupted by the first regiment, the battle becomes more balanced. The soldiers who rushed in after them fought with the enemy. And, thanks to the presence of the first regiment, the chaos quickly turned into a massacre.

Forty minutes after the start of the battle, the enemy abandoned the first line of iron shield defense.

"Go on the offensive !!!!"

Orders from the rear followed, and Eddie Gilly had emptied eight of his ten magazines by this time, and the steam backpack on his back was making a characteristic running sound, inflating his high-pressure gas cylinder. The other soldiers were in a similar situation, and they gathered at the first gap to take a small rest.

"How?" Ramon Gili looked at his brother, "We're running out of ammunition. ”

"Go back and get it, it will take time for them to tear their holes."

"The first regiment, the first regiment, where is the first regiment? Ammunition is coming!!!! ”

The decision to go back and get the ammunition has just been made, and it has not even been put into action. The soldiers in the rear brought over what they needed most. At this point, the first regiment no longer had any shortcomings, they were quickly equipped with ammunition, and some soldiers even brought themselves fifteen or twenty magazines in one go in order to increase their power. After everyone finished resupplying and rested for a while, they saw their own momentum tearing a hole in the enemy's second iron shield breastwork defense.

"Rush, !!!!"

Eddie stood up, steam pack on his back and began to trot. The Valor's rifle in his hand swung back and forth with his movements, like a dying reaper.

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"We broke through the enemy's iron shield breastwork on the western side of Oridry, with less than 20 percent casualties."

At the brief summary meeting after the war, Prince Eliot was happy, "This casualty rate is basically equal to no casualties!" When the Roninger army to the north broke through my brother's defenses, the damage rate was over 40 percent, and a large number of troops were crippled and killed. What about us now, less than 20% of the people are dead, which is nothing short of a miracle in the previous era of queuing to be shot! And, more importantly, only three of our first regiment died, again because of stray bullets from the opposing side! I believe that this offensive battle has proven the strength of the 1st Regiment and the effectiveness of this skirmish tactic. I propose, start attacking Oridry as soon as possible! ”

The generals of the three armies of the Guards, who attended the meeting, had no objection to Prince Eliot's proposal. After everyone perfected the relevant tactics, it was decided to launch a direct attack on Oridry the next day, and the meeting ended. Prince Eliot returned to his lodgings and met his attendant, Billy Barnard, in the reception room.

"Tell Gastens that his Valiant rifle, I want as much as I want. Moreover, this matter should be kept secret and not leaked to too many people. ”

"This ......," Barnard was a little embarrassed, "and now a lot of people are asking about the provenance of this weapon. Although we won't take the initiative to say it, you know about this kind of thing, Your Highness......"

"Okay", Elliot also knew that his request was a bit difficult, he thought about it and relaxed his request, "In short, try to control the spread of information as much as possible, especially on the other side, and never let them know the origin of this weapon, you know?" ”

"Understood."

"Alright, you go to Elena as soon as possible, and get the next stage of production with Gastens, understand? No matter what the cost, it must be won! ”

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"The results of the last two battles, the Battle of the Thorns and the Battle of the Offensive of Auredry, have proven one thing", Gastens took a moment to analyze the progress of weapons at Elena's daily evening council, "As the age of magic is gone, conventional steam weapons are entering a phase of rapid development. Whether it's the Valiant rifle that we gave to Prince Eliot or the steam cannon that Negru came up with, it means that the content, methods, and tools of war are changing rapidly. Although our Luoshan 1 and Thundering 1 are both in the leading position in terms of design concepts, this leading position is not foolproof. In revolutionary work, you must soberly understand that although weapons are good, it is still people who decide the outcome of a war! ”

The comrades attending the meeting listened very carefully, and many of them were still taking notes. Seeing that no one was asking, Zink raised his hand.

"You say."

"Your Excellency, you said that it was the people who decided the outcome of the war, but in the defensive battle of the Thorny Hills, it was the steam cannons of the Negru Republic that knocked open the defense line of the Western Theater of Operations. And Aurideri's attack, it was also our Valiant rifle that broke the deadlock, judging from this result, it seems that weapons are more important than people? ”

"You have a point", Gastens nodded, admiring the style of what Zink said, "but, have you ever thought about a question? If we don't have these weapons, if we don't have these tools, do we still want a revolution? Do we still want to emancipate the serfs? ”

“…… That...... Absolutely! ”

Zink hesitated, and suddenly understood what Gastens was trying to say. Gastens looked at him and smiled with satisfaction.

"Tools are a good thing, and with good tools, we can avoid a lot of detours. But even without good tools, the course of history is still immutable. The proletariat will inevitably replace the bourgeoisie, and the communist relations of production will inevitably replace the capitalist relations of production. In this historical process, we must be promoters, not counter-currents. We will strive to get more useful tools and favorable conditions, but these things are not necessary conditions for starting a revolution, and we must recognize this! ”

The comrades present listened attentively, and from time to time more people got up to ask questions. Gastens answered one by one, very patiently. He knew that under his leadership, the revolutionaries of this world had a lot of advantages. However, he did not want these advantages to wear down the revolutionary will of his comrades. That's why he will unify everyone's thoughts at the end of the council through this small lesson.

After all, the revolution has just begun.