Crane's Wing Formation

The Crane’s Wing Formation is a military tactic in which forces are arranged in a hollow, inverted wedge. The Thousand Correct Actions of the Upright Soldier speaks of it as a key tactic for encirclement, and it sees use in the Imperial Legions, most commonly in one of two ways.

The first is as a deployment of several units, one each extending left and right with a third concentrated where they meet. This formation can target units on the battlefield who can be surrounded, the concentrated central unit striking hard while the two on the wings swing into the flanks, but it is also used to resolve obstacles such as villages, where the two units on the wings prevent escape while the central unit can move through house-to-house, gathering slaves and putting down any resistance.

The second use is advised for when an army has concentrated its Exalted officers to engage a major foe, such as an Anathema or Behemoth, which has chosen to fight at the head of its hordes. The formation, with the army’s most powerful combatant at the center, allows this threat to be surrounded and cut off from its supporting forces so it can be engaged and defeated.