A new threat?

Baron Wilhelm paced his office impatiently.

Flunky "General Wurst, Sire"

"Excellent, show him in"

General Wurst commander of the reserve army enters.

Ah General, some mulled Apfelwein to dispel the chills of this unseasonably cold weather?.

Thank you Baron, that would be most welcome.

A wave of the hand and a Flunky obliges another wave and he exits.

Well general was my request clear?

Yes baron, very much so, I had been considering the exact same issue.

So please let me know your thoughts and any possible actions.

The General opens a large folder on the desk and spreads his papers, before selecting one.

This covers our current status within the Freistadt, it is limited as we have provided extensive support to the Empire both on the Rhine and Italian fronts.

Hmm, this document is very comprehensive in terms of numbers, but what about morale and training?

Exactly my concern, especially with regard to the militia, so I have taken the liberty of assigning a special task to the senior students of the Kriegsakademie to check on their preparedness.

An excellent idea and neatly fits into the curriculum that they should gain some field experience.

But what of our enemy? or spies are currently reporting activity, but their intentions are not yet clear.

Baron, as a military man I would guess that the most likely direction for the French to take is to cross the river where they think we least expect it. My best guess is that they will cross into the Duchy of Pommaine and then move North into the Freistadt. This would also correspond to their logistics capability, which seems limited at this time.


=========================================

General Bercollin paces his room waving his latest communication from Paris in disbelief

Ah there you are Twyth!, have my orders been issued to my subordinates?

Yes, Citizen General, and they have all expressed their revolutionary zeal to engage with the monarchists reactionaries again.

Excellent, but what are they really feeling?

Captain Twyth hesitates

Well, spit it out.

They like the idea of conquering new lands, but they don't think the troops are that enthusiastic. In fact they might mutiny unless they get their pay soon.

Given that Paris is so slow in providing support we need to motivate them in other ways. Twyth. I want you to draft a proclaimation to the troops promising them access to the riches that lie on the other side of the river.

But...

Twyth, even a simple Breton will understand the need for action, when you see the contents of the latest letter from Paris. Citoyen Laine has been appointed as Representative on Mission to the Army of the Lower Main.

Aaa. but that's us? and Citoyen Laine has an unfortunate reputation

Yes Twyth, we are not producing enough results to keep Paris happy, and Laine has a reputation of producing results, so get to work.