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#454 - Chapter 188: Throat Sea Battle (IV)

It is worth mentioning that the Ironborn, this formidable force, not only possesses elite equipment surpassing ordinary pirates, but also demonstrates astonishing combat prowess whether facing naval or land battles. Looking back, it was with such outstanding strength that they were able to sweep across the entire Westeros continent like a hot knife through butter.

Now, as the Queen's army warships approach, their soldiers quickly take up their individual crossbows and launch a fierce attack on the enemy without hesitation. In an instant, arrows crisscross in the air like a rain of locusts, with both sides' warriors doing their utmost to deliver a fatal blow to their opponents. The dense arrows flew through the air like locusts, colliding and tangling together, emitting crisp and sharp sounds. Some arrows pierced fiercely into the enemy's fragile bodies; however, most of the arrows fell onto the sails, between the masts, on the hard deck surface, or were ruthlessly deflected by solid armor and heavy shields.

In fact, the real deadly threat to the enemy is not these ordinary arrows, but those extremely sharp javelins, or weapons known as throwing spears. These items are the most common and basic combat tools on seagoing vessels.

After all, sea vessels are on the sea all year round. If the crossbow strings and bowstrings are not properly kept, they are easily damaged in a humid environment, which will seriously weaken their combat effectiveness. In contrast, javelins do not have this concern. Whether it is windy or rainy, they can be thrown as long as they are not broken.

Moreover, the entry barrier for practicing with javelins is low. Even novices can quickly form combat effectiveness. Once they strike, the damage caused to the target is not small. Not only that, in close combat, short spears also exhibit extraordinary lethality. Even if the two sides are close at hand, they can be thrown at the enemy's face.

Just before the fierce boarding battle was about to begin, the sky seemed to be covered by countless javelins, suddenly descending like raindrops. At the same time, for similar reasons, the short-handled axe also came into being. It not only has excellent close combat capabilities, capable of delivering heavy blows to enemies at close range, but also possesses amazing throwing skills, making it an effective means of long-range attack. More importantly, this short-handled axe has considerable armor-piercing effects, and it was once an essential iconic weapon for those Ironborn warriors known for their bravery and combat prowess.

Sailors usually do not wear heavy armor for two main reasons: first, such heavy armor is not only difficult to maintain, but also requires a lot of energy; second, once in combat, this armor will greatly limit the soldiers' mobility, especially when they unfortunately fall into the water, the whole person will sink straight to the bottom like a weight. Based on these factors, the sailors' defensive means basically rely on the shields they hold tightly in their hands. At this moment, the sailors on both sides of the ship are holding up huge round shields, desperately resisting the various weapons thrown by the enemy. The crossbowmen are safely under their tight protection, seizing the time to draw their bows and launch fierce attacks on the enemy.

It is worth mentioning that the armor worn by the Ironborn is a unique studded leather armor. The raw materials used are carefully treated sealskin or whale skin. By cleverly embedding iron pieces into the lining, the overall protective performance can be significantly improved. More importantly, even if this leather armor is soaked in water, it will not increase in weight as significantly as ordinary cowhide. Because of this, this armor has considerable resistance to arrows. People can often witness such scenes - brave and fearless Ironborn warriors are densely covered with more than a dozen arrows, but they still do not flinch and bravely plunge into the fierce battle.

Suddenly, a deafening "bang, bang, bang!" resounded through the sky, and it turned out that the two sides' warships had collided violently. This series of thrilling impacts caused the sailors who were originally standing firmly to lose their balance instantly and stagger. It should be known that the impact between ships is not as calm as imagined. If one side's ship structure is not strong enough, it is very likely to be severely damaged or even completely destroyed in the first encounter. Then, one after another, spears and lances five or six meters long were racked up like a forest, slamming and colliding against each other, emitting bursts of crisp and ear-piercing metallic chirps.

In fact, everyone is misled by the sea battle scenes presented in film and television dramas. The length of the spears used in real sea battles is beyond imagination. Like in "Pirates of the Caribbean", it is rare to use swaying cables to launch boarding operations; and all members engaging in close combat with scimitars is tantamount to seeking their own death.

The reason for such filming is nothing more than artistic considerations and processing, aimed at making the picture more exciting and beautiful, and more passionate. Those spears are basically disposable items, and most of them cannot be recovered after the battle. Because of this, not every force can afford the huge expenses required to build a navy.

For naval warfare, large warships have obvious advantages. Their towering bulwarks allow crew members to occupy a favorable position and shoot from top to bottom. For the narrow Ironborn longships, if they want to successfully board enemy ships and launch an attack, they must brave the enemy's fierce fire, using grappling hooks and ropes to climb up desperately. There are even some brave and fearless people who simply hold two small axes and hammer them into the hull, and then climb up along the ship wall with difficulty.

As time passed, this fierce battle gradually entered a white-hot stage, and the ships engaged in battle were also moving slowly. However, the Iron Fleet did not choose to fight blindly to the end, but rather strategically and intentionally guided the battle gradually towards the east and west from the beginning of the war. On the long front, they carefully searched for every possible opportunity, slowly sailing into that more vast sea area. This vast water area will give their small boats greater maneuverability, allowing them to shuttle freely like agile fish. If the time is ripe, the longships driven by those brave and fearless Ironborn can change their formation with lightning speed, trying to break through the airtight encirclement in front of them, and summon more warships to form an encirclement against the enemy ships.

Deafening cannon fire rose and fell, overwhelming arrows blotted out the sky, and deafening shouts resounded across the sea. The entire battlefield seemed to fall into a chaos, with smoke billowing and a bloody smell permeating everywhere.