Siege of Pilkala

The Siege of Pilkala occured during the final stages of the Doric-Aijian War, when the Aijian forces under King-Elect Justus of Aijia had beaten back the Doric forces of Grand Duke Arttu I all the way back across the Pola river to the great fortress of Pilkala. The defense of the great fortress would be led by Marshal Osku of Pilkala, who had spent much of his time since becoming marshal at the fortress, allowing for the retreat of Grand Duke Arttu I who would seek to make any western route to Canyndor untenable for the Aijian army.   The fortress of Pilkala lies on the very end of a small hill ridge which finds its origins further east in the Doric Mountains. A small river whose source lies in these foothills also passes by very close to Pilkala, meaning the fortress overlooks the river crossing there. As such, Pilkala lies in a formidable position, one unlikely to be taken by an assault of the enemy. Originally, Marshal Osku planned to hold the southern side of the river beneath Pilkala, guarding the bridge with a formation of billmen to dissuade any crossing attempt. As the forces of King-Elect Andelwyn arrived near the fortress in the early afternoon, the formation of billmen on the river crossing proved dissuasion enough to convince the Aijian leader to entrench his army out of reach of the fortress, only a few cavalry units probing the river nearby for better crossing and flanking opportunities.   Time would be on Andelwyn's side, both he and Osku knew this, the state of the battlefield remaining in stalemate for several days thereafter. Unbeknown to Osku, Andlewyn had detached a portion of his army that had travelled westward to find an undefended crossing over the small river. They had found one and with the use of a hastily made pontoon bridge, they crossed the river and began the march back east to flank the unsuspecting defenders of Pilkala. When they arrived, the few billmen who had readily held the bridge were incapable of resisting the mass of soldiers now at their rear. The billmen retreated to the fortress, along with the few remaining peasants of the village below, effectively surrendering the low-ground to the enemy.   With this, the fortress of Pilkala would be almost entirely surrounded, only the desperate route across the hilltops would be free from instant death, even so, the Aijian forces would most likely capture those who fled with several miles of the escape. With the fortress encircled, King-Elect Andelwyn entrenched his forces and began the siege, while Pilkala remained in Doric hands, there was always the risk of resurgence from the Grand Duchy's forces. If he could take the great stone beast, his army would have a staging ground from which to fully beat back the Doric aggressors.   After several weeks of the siege, the Aijian forces had finished siege engines with which they could bombard the walls of Pilkala, these large wooden machines having to be designed by the King-Elects Brynic engineer, too large to have been dismantled and moved but instead made fit for the purpose. Being up on the hillside, Pilkala would be a tough target, but these catapults had been made to hurl rocks and such at the great grey walls of the fortress. It was said there had been a well-constructed bailiffs house below the fortress, the aijians would dismantle it and hurls its stone foundations at the fortress, the same would happen to many of the building in the small town below the fortress over the year-long siege.