Panoply of Marukan
by Tepet Arada
Panoply of Marukan is a text detailing the renowned horsemen of the Marukani plains and their methods of war, including the percieved advantages of their methods and how the Imperial Legions might defeat them on the field.
Panoply describes the difficulty of gathering intelligence on Marukani methods, due to lack of open channels between the Horselords and the Realm, but speaks of an honest and no-nonsense folk that will share stories over a stiff drink or eight even with a passing stranger.
The skill of Marukan riders is outlined, the claim made that there are no better horsemen in all Creation. Though they are highly skilled riders, taking to the saddle before they have even learned to walk, this alone is insufficient to explain their peerless reputation: Arada instead states that it is their relationship with their horses that is key. The Marukani treat their horses not as beasts to be used but as friends and companions, having only a single horse at a time with whom they form close bonds. This focus has also led to extensive breeding programs which have created horse breeds superior to all others, even the renowned firemanes of the Realm. Arada states that the Marukani likely engage in heretical practices with horse divinities to further bolster their steeds.
The Marukani style of warfare is described as somewhat disjointed. At the core of their culture is a tradition of individual riders scouting and herding across the vast plains, which demands both mastery of horsemanship, the club, and the lasso, more direct combats decided by dismounting for brawling with bare knuckles. This is, according to Arada, an awful culture for waging war, easily swept aside for minimal expense and effort... and this was done with ease by Shogunate-era armies and the Realm during its early wars with the Scavenger Lands. Their settlements are shaped to use longhouses around the exterior as a form of wall, with only a single gate to enter within, a defensive measure diminished by the fact living quarters are placed to absorb attack directly and because the longhouses are made entirely of wood.
The Marukani cannot be dismissed, however, and for this Arada places all responsibility sqarely in the lap of Lookshy, whose advisors and military officers have shaped and assisted the Marukani military and who provide much of its equipment in the form of arms designed for their own purposes.
The Lookshyan-assisted Marukan military consists of two branches: the Guards and the Cavalry. The Guards are infantry, equipped with Lookshyan steel weapons and lamellar, serving as defensive garrison troops or in frontal charges during sieges.
The Cavalry are divided into three groups. In times of need, civilian horsemen are conscripted to serve as either Lancers (light horse troops armed with short spears and fast steeds, used for flanking and pursuing broken enemies) or Arrows (light horse archers using Lookshyan composite bows, used for scouting and skirmishing in front of the main lines ). Hammers, the elite of Marukan's forces, are clad in lamellar and wield heavy maces, and are employed for frontal charges against enemy formations.
Near to many Marukani settlements are located fortified stone barracks-towers, housing Hammers and Guards as well as armouries to equip conscripts.
