Lord of the Rings: Warriors

Through the system interface, Rynar could clearly see that his military strength had taken yet another leap forward.

Riverguard:

Size: Approximately one square kilometer.

Buildings:

Dilapidated Lord's Castle ×1 Ordinary Wooden Houses ×240 Intermediate Magic-Patterned City Walls Stone Well Blacksmith Shop Barracks Archer's Sanctuary

Commanders:

Caslow (Tier 3) Reynard (Tier 4) Radir (Tier 4) Dylan (Tier 6) Omsk (Tier 6)

Special Personnel:

Lady Aivy (Tier 3) Duke Nyx of Nyx Duchy (Tier 2)

City Officials:

City Defense Officer: Marcus (Tier 4) Administrative Officer: Lance (Tier 2)

Military Forces: 2,762 soldiers

Knights of the Holy Radiance: 100 Zaltarion Knights (Tier 2) Zaltarion City Guards: 100 Warriors (Tier 2) 

Battanian Archers: 700 Archers (Tier 2) Dunwenian Heavy Swordsmen: 100 Swordsmen (Tier 2) Elaris Woods Rangers: 100 Rangers (Tier 2) 

Zaltarion Royal Guard Paladins: 200 Elite Guards Rapid Infantry Legion: 683 Infantrymen Conscripted Light Infantry: 200 

Light Infantrymen Zaltarion Heavy Cavalry: 100 Heavy Cavalrymen Clerics: 8 Tier 2 Clerics Mage: 1 Tier 2 Fire Mage Crusader Spear & Shield Soldiers: 100 

Soldiers Crusader Archers: 300 Archers Crusader Heavy Shield Soldiers: 20 Heavy Infantrymen Knights of the Crossed Purple Jasmine: 20 Knights Duchy Light Cavalry: 30 Light Cavalrymen

Population: 3,024 (Trainable Civilians: 1,647)

City Evaluation:

A lonely king leads his remaining people back to their homeland, establishing a city with towering walls. 

The city now has some residents, adding life and vitality to its streets. Everything is moving in the right direction. 

Its military strength is formidable, and it boasts a considerable number of potential recruits. Even in the face of a large-scale invasion, Riverguard could defend itself effectively.

Notes:

Duke Nyx of Nyx Duchy has fled here. The city lacks a ruling lady and an heir.

Abilities:

As the last remaining territory of the Zaltarion Kingdom in Middle-earth, it will attract the scattered Zaltarion survivors. 

The system will guide a group of wandering Zaltarion civilians here daily—it's up to the Lord to settle them properly. 

Allows the recruitment and training of Rapid Infantry from the local civilian population.

With this new army, Riverguard, which previously could only withstand small-scale skirmishes, could now hold out against large-scale invasions. 

The addition of 300 ordinary archers alone had fundamentally changed the city's defensive capabilities. 

The damage archers could inflict from behind strong city walls was nothing short of terrifying.

Most importantly, the city finally had a reserve force. And having a reserve force was a game-changer. 

With it, Riverguard could sustain a prolonged conflict without collapsing under pressure.

An Army in Tatters

However, when Rynar inspected his troops more closely, his expression stiffened.

It was painfully obvious that these were battle-hardened survivors from the wastelands. Their chainmail was falling apart, missing large chunks of plating. 

The leather armor was even worse—most of it was torn, with some soldiers barely managing to hold their gear together with a few pieces of rope. 

Their clothes? They might as well have been beggars. The only thing that still looked pristine was the army's banner.

And the weapons? Rynar nearly passed out on the spot.

The spear and shield soldiers were particularly tragic. 

While most of their spears were barely usable, the shields were either shattered from battle or discarded along the way to reduce weight. 

At least half of them no longer had shields at all. 

The archers were slightly better—at least they all still had their longbows. But when Rynar checked their quivers... most were empty. 

Many of them had fired off every last arrow while escaping. Still, they were lucky. At least they got to empty their quivers instead of dying before they had the chance. 

The light cavalry had managed to keep most of their weapons, but their lances were in terrible shape. Many lance tips were so damaged they were practically useless.

"Aside from the heavy shield soldiers, it looks like everyone's gear needs a complete overhaul..." Rynar muttered, his heart aching at the cost this would incur.

Sighing, he finally made a decision.

"Caslow, take them to find Dylan. Tell him to figure out how to re-equip these soldiers."

Since Dylan was already in charge of the city's blacksmithing industry, along with the refugee blacksmiths, it should be manageable. At worst, it would just take time.

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Caslow nodded. "Frankly, making them fight in this condition would be outright murder."

A Blacksmith's Nightmare

That evening, Dylan stormed into Rynar's chambers, pulling back the curtain with an exasperated glare.

"Your Majesty, are you trying to kill me?"

"What?" Rynar blinked in confusion.

"I've never seen a lord order a single craftsman to outfit nearly 500 soldiers at once! You might as well just put me in a coffin now and save me the trouble." Dylan flopped down into a chair, looking thoroughly unamused.

Rynar chuckled. "It's just standard equipment. Alchemy should make it faster, right?"

Dylan shot him a deadpan stare.

"I'm only faster at making magical equipment. For normal weapons and armor? I still have to hammer them out piece by piece. Alchemy doesn't just magically poof them into existence."

"...Oh. I thought you could just transmute raw materials straight into gear." Rynar scratched his head sheepishly.

"If only it were that simple." Dylan sighed. "This job needs actual blacksmiths. If you make me do it alone, we'll still be at it when the next Ice Age rolls around."

"But we barely have any blacksmiths..." Rynar groaned. Riverguard had only two skilled blacksmiths. Skilled craftsmen were rare among the refugees.

"In that case, we'll have to buy weapons from the dwarves. But honestly, Your Majesty, we're not at war right now. We can afford to take our time. 

If we let the blacksmiths work at a steady pace, everyone should be re-equipped before our expedition to Moria."

Rynar did some mental calculations.

"...Fine. We'll go with your plan."

After all, ordering custom gear from dwarves was outrageously expensive. Dwarves weren't exactly known for handing out charity.

"A wise decision, my king," Dylan smirked.

Rynar sighed. The city's military was growing stronger, but there was still much to do.

"Maybe it's time to start improving the civilians' quality of life," he mused.

After all, as the saying goes—once basic needs are met, people start thinking about… other things.

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