Chapter 1241 Strong Defense Line
Tan Juren saw Roger's serious expression and knew that a critical moment had come, so he stood up and left immediately. Roger sent him out of the door, and when saying goodbye, he specifically warned: "In case...I mean in case something goes wrong here, you will take over the command first, and the specific command will be done by my people. Then notify Lao Mu to come quickly and take charge of the situation.”
Tan Juren waved his hand and said: "Don't say these unlucky words. Be careful yourself. I don't want to be on the front line of the battle! I will keep an eye on the logistics 24 hours a day. You can just deal with the Johor people with peace of mind."
Although Roger was very confident in this battle, the battlefield situation was changing rapidly, and he could not guarantee that there would be no mistakes. Moreover, he took the initiative to place the headquarters on the line of fire. This measure entailed risks. He was relatively big to begin with, and Tan Juren would not have dared to work so hard. Roger first explained how to respond to emergencies, and he was also responsible for the entire team. Tan Juren naturally understood his intentions, but at this juncture, he still had to cheer Roger up, and he could not be too showy about this emergency arrangement. Overzealous.
After seeing off Tan Juren, Roger did not return to the office, but went directly to the line of fire. It would still be some time before the enemy troops arrived here, and Roger wanted to make full use of this time to inspect the positions he had set up, and to cheer up the soldiers. Especially for those soldiers who have never experienced combat since joining the army, this may be a big test in their careers. Roger must ensure that they can at least perform at least half of their usual training level, so that the direction of the war can be beneficial to Haihan. one party.
To Roger's satisfaction, the morale of the soldiers was quite good. Although many soldiers had not really experienced war, they may not fully understand why their superiors arranged their positions in the immigrant villages instead of taking the initiative to leave more troops. They used strategic depth to carry out the intersecting operations they had learned, but their trust in Roger was indeed unreserved, and they were convinced that this combat plan would be able to destroy the invading enemy. The local reserves of supplies, weapons and ammunition are sufficient, and reinforcements are already on their way to Star Island, so the soldiers don't have too many worries.
At three o'clock in the afternoon, the scouts reported that the enemy was less than five miles away from the Haihan position, and that the enemy should have known the location of the Haihan base and was stopping to rest. It was estimated that they would launch an offensive soon. Haihan's two companies deployed in the field also adjusted their ambush positions, waiting for the enemy's main force to launch an attack, and then outflanking its retreat from the outside.
Hogg was actually more anxious than Roger at this time. The spies who came out reported that no one came in or out of Haihan's immigrant village, and the surrounding farmland was completely deserted. It was very likely that he had noticed something and had all the people come back. Safe area. Hogg knew that the more time Haihan was left to prepare, the more difficult it would be to attack the stronghold later. Moreover, if Haihan transferred all the people and abandoned the immigration village, then what he envisioned was to attack the immigration village and then coerce the people to attack Haihan. The battle plan for the stronghold will not work. If it turns into a protracted confrontation, the coalition forces in the field will have no advantage against the Haihan Army guarding the stronghold. On the contrary, it will be difficult to continue long-term operations due to logistical supply problems.
However, the coalition forces were dispatched early this morning. After crossing the strait, they landed and marched for dozens of miles. The physical exertion was also huge. If they were to launch an offensive immediately in this state, the combat effectiveness that the soldiers could exert would undoubtedly be huge. Discounted, and this was a situation he never wanted to see. Although he was reluctant, in order to ensure that the soldiers could go into battle in perfect condition, he could only order to stop and rest for a while, and then launch the offensive after the soldiers recovered their physical strength. Although he was riding a horse all the way, he was also very tired after walking bumpyly for dozens of miles. When he dismounted, the orderlies held his arms to prevent his legs from getting weak and falling.
The vanguard force led by Hogg consisted of about 800 people, including almost all mercenaries and hundreds of Johor New Army soldiers. It can be regarded as the most elite force among the coalition forces that invaded Star Island this time. Hogg hoped to concentrate his main force to break through the opponent's defense in one fell swoop. It would be best to defeat the opponent before the follow-up troops led by Ba Peng caught up, so that these ignorant natives could see the power of British combat.
"It's almost time to rest, let's assemble the whole team!" Facing the sketch showing the general distribution of the buildings in Haihan's stronghold, Hogg pondered silently for a long time. It wasn't until the adjutant came to ask for instructions that he stood up and issued the combat order.
This sketch was the result of a great deal of effort by the East India Company and the State of Johor, and a lot of means were used to find out the information. It took several months to sort it out. It is also the most detailed map currently in the hands of the coalition forces. According to the map, the immigrant village that the coalition forces are about to attack is divided into two parts: east and west. In the middle are some resident civil affairs agencies. There is a small river behind it. To the south of the small river are military strongholds and ports. As long as the immigrant village is captured, it can at least be used to establish a position to continue fighting with the Haihan army. With a little luck, they can push across the river and drive the Haihan people directly into the sea.
However, if the immigrant village cannot be captured, the coalition forces will have to build positions in the wild to deal with their opponents, which is not an easy task, and Hogg is not optimistic about the field combat capabilities of the Johor New Army. If the situation really develops like this, it can be considered quite passive. Of course, Hogg doesn't think that the coalition forces can't even defeat an immigrant village. Even if the Haihan people realize something is wrong now and start to mobilize their troops, they will not be able to turn a village into a military fortress in a short time. However, the coalition forces are ahead of schedule. He had conducted many targeted drills for a long time. If he couldn't defeat even an immigrant village, then he and Ba Peng wouldn't have to go back to do business.
After the coalition forces stepped out of the jungle, a large area of farmland appeared in front of them. It was visually estimated that it was at least a thousand acres, most of which was planted with rice, and the remaining farmland was planted with various fruits and vegetables. However, the rice at this season is still young, and it is impossible to rely on the farmland here to obtain food supplies. There are still some free-range ducks and geese, still wandering in the fields at this time. As expected, not even half a person could be seen as far as the eye could see. There was silence in the wilderness, and there was not even a trace of smoke in the villages in the distance. There was something unsettling and weird about the tranquility.
But Hogg would not be intimidated by this scene. After confirming the location of the village in the distance, he immediately ordered an offensive. The drummers in the queue beat the war drums, and the soldiers maintained their fighting formation and began to slowly advance toward the distant target.
Although there were no traces of enemy troops as far as the eye could see, the journey was not smooth either. The rice fields everywhere turned into roadblocks in an instant, standing between the coalition forces and the target. In order to ensure that the battle formation would not be scattered, the soldiers could only keep their formation and step through the rice fields. At that moment, mud and water splashed everywhere, and the shoes on many people's feet were directly stuck in the mud, and a small chaos suddenly occurred.
Of course Hogg also sees this in his eyes, but at the moment he has no better way to solve this problem. It's obviously not feasible to let the soldiers break up and march from the field. Haihan's village is a mile away. Should we let the soldiers rush in as skirmishers? Even if Hogg had confidence in his men, he would not dare to be so confident. The Haihan people are not indigenous people who only use cold weapons. I heard that their musketeers are also quite powerful. If there is an ambush hidden in the village, then skirmishers can If you rush in, you will undoubtedly commit suicide. The safest way is to form a neat attack formation, push forward, and use volleys of muskets to destroy the enemy's defense line. It has to be said that there are no obvious mistakes in Hogg's combat thinking. The mainstream tactics of the musketeers in this era are still the gunmen completing the volley under the cover of the spearmen, while the pure musketeers form a line formation and line up to shoot. Tactics, only a very small number of elite troops can use them freely. The coalition forces formed by the East India Company and Johor are obviously not within the category of "elite", so the attack methods that can be used on the battlefield are traditional tactics. This is already considered the best tactic in the era of combining hot and cold weapons, not to mention Huo. Ge also thoughtfully added a large shield bunker at the front for the infantry. Hogg believed that the coalition forces under his command would not suffer at all even if they ran into the Portuguese or Dutch armed forces with comparable strength.
Hogg lacked understanding of Haihan's fighting methods. Apart from knowing that Haihan's army was equipped with a large number of muskets, the other information was almost blank. This also led him to think that Haihan's tactics should be similar to his own when formulating tactics. He never expected that the advantages of weapon performance would make Haihan's combat methods far ahead of this era, and would not happen as he imagined. A battle scene in which both sides line up for a head-on confrontation. In the silent village, the Haihan Army was patiently waiting for the coalition forces to enter the shooting range, and then they would start a massacre.
Although the drumbeats directing the troops to move forward were not disrupted at all, the coalition troops staggering forward in the rice fields began to scatter. Some even stopped and squatted in the mud to look for their shoes. Hogg looked at the map in his hand again, but there was no such large rice field marked on it. He suddenly felt a little regretful. Maybe he should not rush to launch an attack, but let the scouts explore the edges of the farmland to see if there was a more suitable route to advance to avoid these damn rice fields.
However, the troops have already pressed forward. If we stop the offensive at this time and let the soldiers turn back, it will inevitably dampen their morale. And after all, Hogg still held a bit of luck in his heart - how would you know if you don't try? Maybe the Haihan people chose to avoid fighting because they were short of time and had no time to organize an army. The coalition forces would probably just attack the village directly.
But the coalition soldiers who were the vanguard were not as optimistic as Hogg. When they finally approached the village, they found that all the entrances to the village were blocked by tree trunks, rocks and earth bags. However, on the walls of the houses facing the outside of the village, there are many holes the size of bowls. The heights are almost the same, which makes people confused - they are said to be used for lighting, but the positions are too short. Some are said to be used for ventilation, but there are clearly windows next to them.
Just when everyone was puzzled, many muzzles suddenly emerged from the holes and obstacles at the intersection. The leading British officer reacted quickly and immediately ordered the shield bearers to cover and the musketeers to enter the fighting position. At the same time as he gave the order, the guns on the opposite side spurted out flames.
"Did the Haihan people attack first?" Hogg, who was watching the battle from behind, was a little surprised by this unexpected situation. He thought that the undefended village actually had the Haihan army ambushing it. However, he did not panic because of this. There was still some distance between the two sides. According to his experience, the hit rate of the musket at this distance basically depends on character. With such scattered firepower output, he also has a shield on his side. Protection, of course, greatly reduces the chance of being hit by a projectile. Although the Haihan people fired first, they might not be able to gain any advantage.
However, the actual situation was somewhat different from Hogg's expectation. All the bullets fired from the village were shot straight at the coalition soldiers standing in the farmland. Although the shield bearers tried their best to form a shield wall as quickly as possible, several soldiers still had blood on their bodies and then fell straight into the mud.
"Shoot!" The officer commanding them loudly issued combat instructions. After a burst of gunfire, smoke from burning gunpowder filled the front of the formation, making it impossible for the soldiers to see the target ahead. However, the bullets shot through the smoke did not stop for a moment, and even the thick shields erected in front could not stop them. Several shield bearers were already holding their own bunkers and fell down in the rice fields.
After Roger confirmed the opponent's shield array during the reconnaissance a few days ago, he was considering a way to crack it. Using artillery is naturally the simplest and crudest method, but Roger did not want to play out all the cards in his hand as soon as he started. Naturally, the killing weapon should be reserved for critical moments. After coming back and discussing with his officers, Roger decided to let snipers take on this critical task.
The range and power of a sniper rifle far exceed that of a standard rifle. The penetration depth at the same distance also has obvious advantages. A sniper rifle can easily penetrate a shield that ordinary rifle bullets may not be able to penetrate. Moreover, the target of the shield is huge, so sniper rifles can Players don't even need a scope at all, they can hit just by relying on the scale that comes with the gun.
The coalition soldiers only knew that their rifles could not penetrate such a large protective shield at a certain distance, but they never imagined that their opponents had powerful armor-piercing weapons. After penetrating the shield, they would still have enough lethality. Almost every shot would hit the coalition front. A gap was opened in the top, revealing the naked soldiers behind. As long as Haihan soldiers' shooting is aimed at this constantly exposed gap, they can guarantee a very high kill rate.
The vanguard force sent by Hogg to test only had more than a hundred people, and the shields in front were only twenty or thirty pieces. Half of them fell down after a short exchange of fire. Naturally, the function of covering the musketeers was greatly reduced, and there were also several musketeers. Killed and fell to the ground. The officer in charge was blocked by the smoke from his own shooting, and could not see the situation on the other side at all. However, he saw that his own formation was already in chaos, and he quickly gave the order to retreat.
(End of chapter)