Rise of Rurik

Rurik said solemnly: "It would be best if you shoot as many arrows as you can to kill the enemy in battle, but the key to the battle is still the warrior's melee combat."

"Ah? You want to make steel swords and steel axes?!" Cravason couldn't help it, lying on the ground begging bitterly: "We are blacksmiths, not Thor! Do we still need to make thousands of steel swords? How is that possible?! Gather all the blacksmiths and make five hundred a year!"

"How could I not know? Your production capacity is indeed limited, but..." Rurik patted his chest: "In battle, the enemy in front of you can also be rammed to death with a wooden stick. In order to avoid being rammed to death by the enemy, you need to First!"

"Chainmail? Oh, no, no, no..." Clavason still refused. "Unless you want to make a pair of chainmail for you, you want me to make a lot of it in a short time. I don't have the ability."

Rurik also shook his head: "Why chain mail? Haven't you seen fish scales?"

"you……"

"Let the soldiers wear special armor, which is covered with fish scales made of iron. You know what? Chain armor is meaningless to the spearheads of the enemy. The heavy losses of our allies' troops are all because of This. This time it is our Rus' turn to wage war, and we are bound to face these situations.

Hearing every warrior is vital to our clan, I can't stand the mass death of warriors. I... really need your efforts! "

Rurik had made his words very clear, and Kravasen sat up straight: "Are you satisfied with just hanging the iron pieces on the chainmail?"

"right."

"How much do you want?"

"About a hundred sets. Note that the armor I want must cover the entire torso of the soldier, only the shoulders and arms can be omitted."

Clavasson nodded. From Rurik's few words, he could conclude that the production of the so-called fish scale armor would cost him too much. If only the "fish scales" were hung on the front and back of the soldier, the workload would be reduced. .

But the number of one hundred sets, this is a task that Kravason can't complete alone. He didn't want to back down, so he frowned and asked, "One hundred sets? Which elite fighters are you going to equip? Berserkers? Those should be shirtless madmen, they don't bother to wear armor at all."

"No. Those are people who go mad after eating red mushrooms and a big glass of ale. They are not real berserkers. My berserkers must have the best armor so that they won't get hurt against ten times as many enemies. , I can do my best to kill."

"It's like a lump of iron ingots?" Cravason couldn't help but wonder: "Such a warrior is too big to be attached to, I'm afraid that he will be out of breath after walking a hundred steps.

Can they do it? "

"So I will select a group of strong men to wear such fish scale armor. When the battle becomes chaotic, I will send this hundred people into the enemy line to fight."

The so-called berserker is probably the same tactic, and Rurik understands this. In this case, in order to create more serious and lasting chaos, the Berserker must of course have an indestructible body.

At this point, Kravason has understood everything, and he is not surprised that Rurik would have such a strange idea. If he were to judge by himself, although wearing the strongest armor lost some vitality, it was still in battle. , the side with the higher armor rate will basically lock the victory.

The battle of this era seems to follow an iron law, that is, those with a large number of people and good equipment should win the victory.

Personal brute force has a very strong application, then a warrior should eat as strong as a bear, and wear armor as hard as a stone.

In this matter, even if Kravassen intentionally shied away, Rurik would force him to do it. Since it was supported on the surface, he explained the details very smoothly.

The so-called fish scale armor, in Rurik's plan, it is more like an "iron shirt". There shall be twenty iron pieces arranged in a matrix on the chest, and so shall the back, and four on each of the ribs.

Really expecting Kravason and even uniting all the blacksmith families to order them to come up with 100 sets of upgraded armors in three weeks, which is reluctant to think about.

Why bother with the number "one hundred"? All because of Rurik's tactics.

There will be one hundred strong warriors as berserkers, who will go to the most dangerous fronts in battle. They will try their best to show their bravery. Since there is no support from their comrades in battle, they must rely on their own iron armor. It is precisely these strong men who can wear heavy armor to fight fiercely.

They are heavy infantry in the true sense, and Rurik deliberately made such a trump card.

The blast furnace next to the blacksmith shop, the smoke has not dissipated.

Clavasson closed his eyes and thought about Rurik's plan. He suddenly opened his eyes and tugged at his son Kawi.

"Dad, what do you mean... can we really?"

"If we use that big stove, we should be fine. But I want you to take the kids and make more small stoves, and I..." Klawson stood up and patted his legs vigorously: "Looks like I'm going to do it right now. It's time to act and call those guys for a meeting." After that, he gave Rurik another wink: "My dear, this war is about the rise and fall of our tribe. I'll call you all those old guys, Even if it is difficult, we will work together to complete the task that you have been commanded to do.”

For a moment, Rurik felt his nose suddenly sore, and tears almost flowed, feeling that this old fellow was Ross's great loyal minister.

Cravatson does have self-knowledge, his wealth comes from Rurik's favor, and sometimes he does feel powerless, but the rise and fall of the principality is in this battle, he dare not humiliate his ancestors, let alone humiliate his benefactors, and not. Dare to humiliate one's own glory.

Before long, the traditional family of five blacksmiths in the tribe, and their heads gathered around the blast furnace of the Clavasen family.

The serious situation made the blood of a lot of old guys boil, and even felt the unbearable heat with their backs against the blast furnace.

They immediately expressed their great interest in the production of weapons and armor, and the reason is really clear-the production of these can make a lot of money.

Rurik wouldn't take away the value of their labor in vain. Since both sides have urgent needs, it's really appropriate to make an appointment here.

Five families of blacksmiths want to work together to transform a hundred pairs of chain mail into fish scale armor, and the most important thing is the armor. Forty-eight pieces of armor are required for each pair of armor, and each armor is designed to be a rectangle the size of an adult man's palm. The nail plate should be as thick as a man's pinky finger (relatively saving iron), and should be made of malleable carbon steel.

Rurik's technical requirements are actually relatively high, with a total of 4,800 pieces of carbon steel armor, each piece of armor can be transformed into a very good hand axe or shovel, and it is actually a luxury piece of armor!

It's really extravagant and unimaginably crazy in a bygone era.

Just when some blacksmiths had doubts, Rurik smiled and pointed to the towering blast furnace: "Why do you think I am gathering you here? This is our largest furnace, it produces molten iron, and we only make armor pieces. The fastest way. When the cast iron pieces are finished, you put them back in the furnace, burn off the excess carbon, and get the armor pieces you need!"

"Wonderful!" A blacksmith immediately slapped his thigh, "I thought I had to start by burning iron ingots."

"That's completely superfluous," Rurik vowed. "We will make it this way, and you are fully capable of making more. The battle is imminent, and your orders for steel swords are put on hold for the time being. Follow our orders and go Produce armor pieces, and then produce spearheads. Each family must make twenty pairs of fish scale armors, and they must be taken out on July 20. If you try to produce carbon steel spearheads, I will buy them at the price of three silver coins each."

Rurik was born noble, and the blacksmith present dared to question or object to the purchase price he proposed?

The price does seem low, but Rurik prides himself on being very merciful.

Because the method of smelting iron of the Rus tribe has taken the lead in the whole European world, the blacksmith family here swears that they will not betray the Rus tribe, nor the "Blacksmith League" (leaving the tribe without permission is equivalent to betrayal), and they also have more or less betrayal. Know the secret of blast furnace and smelting pig iron. Although the blast furnace iron smelting method is all about casting pig iron, all blacksmiths have been able to turn pig iron into carbon steel quite scientifically.

Blacksmith families, in theory, they don't need to use their own small furnaces to burn sponge iron and then work hard to make wrought iron ingots.

They were already doing the reverse on a small scale, burning pig iron with the strongest possible flames until it became forgeable. It was indeed Kawei who accidentally realized the method of frying steel. He did not need Rurik to teach it himself, and the technique had already been popularized in the "Blacksmith Alliance" within the tribe.

Rurik has always been their biggest buyer and is in control of the important contract, that is, he himself has the right to take how much of the blacksmith's profit, which is a fusion of "excise tax" and "value added tax". In addition, Rurik has begun to collect commercial taxes against the blacksmiths, and they have no right to refuse.

A piece of armor can be transformed into the value of a spearhead, and if you count the labor, then each pair of fish scale armor must have a total price of at least one hundred and fifty silver coins. In this way, the price of a hundred pairs of armor is already a terrifying one hundred and fifty pounds of silver! That's enough money for Rurik to build another Avrora.

And this is only to meet the basic needs of Rurik to build an "iron army".

He believed that this astonishing expenditure was worth it, but for the time being, there was not a lot of money in the big money box of the Rus.

A considerable number of silver coins were sold by the Rus this year, and they were stranded at Fort Gould in Lake Mälaren on a large scale.

It was impossible for Rurik to spend the money immediately to buy the blacksmith's goods, but the blacksmiths were in no hurry, because they had great confidence in the credibility of their leader. Rurik didn't want to owe a favor. With a big wave of his hand, the money for these goods was simply handed over to the blacksmiths for half the tax.

The leader of Ross has become a duke, and this means of collecting money is also more advanced. In the past, the means of collecting money were almost entirely dependent on military looting, but now the duke gets the money from his own clan in the form of taxation.

This model can be described as the basis for the operation of a principality. Rurik cannot expect his descendants to remain humble, pragmatic, and benevolent. At least for him, under his substantial rule, taxes are collected.

Worrying about opponents, he himself would rather take coercive measures. Rurik did not bear to kill people in his clan simply for influence, but he fully supported the expulsion of those who did not pay taxes.

"His plan is very good, so we still make a lot of money." Cravason laughed, he looked at the guys present and watched their attitudes.

Blacksmiths are also businessmen in essence. They do some mental calculations and know that they are absolutely not at a loss, but there is no reason to slack off.

They really won't lose money, or in other words, in order to ensure the production progress, Rurik will personally handle a series of the most critical rough processing processes such as mining, smelting, mold burning, and charcoal making.

Blacksmiths are virtually unprecedented in Ross's steel industry chain, engaged in complete finishing work.

Who will do the hardest work? Of course, the large numbers of cheap laborers.

It was the elders of the tribe, the women, and a large number of children.

Among men over fifty years old, only a very few of them have Otto's still strong physique, and quite a few of them have hunched their backs, making it difficult to walk. They could do some simple labor, such as processing clay to make mud embryos, and firing them into molds for pig iron casting.

There are more than 2,000 adult women in the Ross tribe, who themselves can do a lot of things that men can do. During this war, women who are desperately lacking in monetary income, Rurik is of course unceremonious to buy it at a low price. their labor. For example, to arrange work for them, the reward is just a silver coin. Even so, they must be rushing to do the work, because a silver coin is equal to ten pounds of wheat, enough to eat, enough for a woman to survive for up to forty days.

Rurik deliberately planned for women to participate in mining, ore moving, logging, etc., which seemed to be men's jobs.

Those children who have undergone more than two years of military training, now, it is time to show the future strength of the Ross tribe!

A large part of the children had to participate in this war, and Rurik stubbornly needed them to join in to make up the 3,000-strong army, which was also their training. Because many children are twelve years old at most, according to tradition, that is an adult. Any adult Ross man has the obligation to respond to the leader's war order, so bringing him to the battlefield in advance, no one said it was inappropriate.

Rurik patted his leg and said proudly: "I will desperately mobilize the clansmen to mine, and I will mobilize every Russ, and even all servants and slaves. You don't have to worry at all, you just need to keep processing those The very brittle pig iron that has been smelted will make a lot of money. Moreover, my promise is also for you, fifty pounds of wheat, and your family, whether it is men, women, or children, will have wheat to take! You will surely stand If you do great work, I will give you more rewards as appropriate."

Everyone stretched out their necks, sighing to themselves that there are such good things.

However, Rurik still had one last request that could be called a bizarre thing for fish scale armor.

"When you make nails, I want each nail piece to be dipped in silver water, so that the nail piece will be the color of silver!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone's outstretched necks immediately shrank back.

Kravason had no idea that Rurik still had such "delusions", and as a real silversmith, he was forced to doubt: "Rurik, are you serious? Why. Do you want the enemy to think that we Luxurious enough to use silver for armor?"

"Isn't that bad? It will definitely scare the enemy, and it will also make the armored warrior proud. Besides, iron will rust if it is not well oiled and maintained, but if it is covered with a layer of silver, it is immortal."

Perhaps Rurik only thought about immortality, and Kravason slapped his head again: "Oh, how much silver does this cost, Rurik, is it really worth it?"

"It's worth it! We won the battle, and we let the losers get the reparations for all the expenses. Besides, we must win. Silver plating all the scales, I can afford this start."

It takes a lot of hard work by craftsmen to create bright white carbon steel.

Rurik knew very well what the nail plate he got would be, that is, the exterior was already carbon steel with a large amount of carbon loss, and the interior was still a piece of cast iron. After quenching, the nail plate would become very hard and have a certain toughness. It's definitely black in color. A horde of black warriors? That is too lack of shock, and it is also a match with the elite troops of the Melalen people.

Of course, the Maillarens inked their chainmail, and the sackcloth lining it was deliberately blackened with ink.

It’s not that Rurik didn’t think about the operation of gold plating, but thinking about it carefully, gold plating is the real operation, it is not impossible to perform, but the cost is too amazing.

Overall, silver plating is the most cost-effective.

Just imagine, a group of warriors wearing silver-scale breastplates and holding two axes in the air rushed into the enemy camp frantically. They would definitely attract the enemy's attention, as if they were dressed in silver. Attract the enemy as much as possible, and then be killed by Ross's heavy armored berserker, taking this opportunity to kill the enemy's morale, this is also what Rurik urgently needs, even as important as the bow and arrow!

Will this happen?

Afterwards, after making appointments with the blacksmiths, Rurik couldn't help but think about it. Subjectively, blacksmiths never dare to neglect, they will make all the armor, spears and arrows they need for honor and money.

In this way, the Rus people have the most powerful long-range weapons and the strongest armor in the Baltic Sea world, shoot fish scale armor with steel arm crossbow, who is the strongest?

I'm afraid this is not a contradiction, because other groups only have broken bows that are only suitable for hunting rabbits, and chain mail made of pure iron rings. Rurik saw clearly in actual combat that in the current war, these two types of armament have been out of touch with the times.

Only the Rus people, who control the blast furnace technology and the only chromite ore in Europe in the north, can make the most extreme weapons in this time and space.

Excitingly, the blacksmiths hummed the tune of their hometown and went back to their respective homes. They adjusted their work as soon as possible. Just one day before the big sacrifice, they led the entire tribe to start armament production.

Give them time for delivery, and there are still twenty-three days left.