Battle of Maragha

The Battle of Khliat was a major engagement in the Empire of Videssos waged between the Videssians and their Yezda foes under the command of Avshar. Fought some 1200 years after the empire's founding, the battle marked a major turning point in Videssian history.

Background
Avshar had invaded the western region of the Videssos empire, ravaging the area touching Vaspurakan and leaving the survivors to starve in the inevitable famine. In Videssos the city, avtokrator Mavrikios Gavras and his brother led the imperial army across the Cattle Crossing to the west, taking several weeks to get there and stopping at various locations on the journey. Among the soldiers of the imperial army were a contingent of mercenaries known as the Ronams, led by Marcus Scaurus.

Ultimately, the two opposing armies met near the town of Khliat, which gave its name to the battle.

The Videssian left
The left wing of Gavras' army was led in de jure by Ortaias Sphrantzes, nephew of Gavras' political foe and rival for the throne. Several of Gavras' subordinates questioned their commander's choice for the wing, but political considerations had to be met as well as military matters, and Sphrantzes' placement was a cost of such considerations. Sphrantzes had no practical military experience (he was still a teenager) and had only read a military manual to guide him in his command.

As a sop to his subordinates as well as to his own common sense, Gavras had Nephon Khoumnos take actual de facto charge of the left; this was not disclosed to Sphrantzes.

The job of the left (as well as the right) were to funnel the Yezda attack into the center of the Videssian line, where the strongest component of the army was located. This job was supposed to be helped by the light cavalry attached to both wings. Then the left was supposed to swing to the right and hit the Yezda on the flank, possibly even surround them.

The Videssian center
The center was commanded by the avtokrator himself, and this was where his imperial bodyguard as well as the bulk of the army was placed. The mercenaries, such as the Namdelen and the Ronams, were placed in the center as well.

The Videssian right
The right wing was commanded by Thorisin Gavras.

The job of the right (as well as the left) were to funnel the Yezda attack into the center of the Videssian line, where the strongest component of the army was located. This job was supposed to be helped by the light cavalry attached to both wings. Then the right was supposed to swing to the left and hit the Yezda on the flank, possibly even surround them.

The Yezda line
The Yezda matched up the Videssian line with a similar line; only they didn't have the political considerations to take into account. The bulk of the army was concentrated in the center, and was meant to break the Videssian center which Avshar assumed was weak.

The Battle
The battle opened with both sides softening each other with skirmishers. Avshar dispatched a large portion of his army to destroy the center. When the Videssian wings struck his attack force on the flanks as they had planned, Avshar sent battle magic to strike dead Khoumnos; the inexperienced Sphrantzes was all of a sudden in command of the Videssian left. Avshar sent a spell to him, too; Sphrantzes turned coward and bolted from his command, causing his force to panic and run after him. The Videssian left had opened, leaving the center wide open.

The Yezda attack met the Videssian center and stayed there to the end of the battle. As Sphrantzes and his division fled from the field, the Yezda right swung down to envelop the Videssian center. Outnumbered but still fighting hard, Gavras and his Haloga bodyguards fought to the end; the rest of the center fought their way out of the Yezda crush and withdrew from the field.

Thorisin Gavras had repelled the Yezda attack on the right; he had taken his force and attempted to break through the Yezda hold on the center, but was flung back. As the center fell apart, Gavras' men covered them before falling back themselves.

Aftermath
The remnant of the Videssian army fell back to their campsite in disarray. Much of their army was destroyed; their emperor was dead, and Avshar's army was still intact. There was a grisly footnote to the carnage of the day - Avshar personally threw the severed head of Mavrikios Gavras into the Videssian camp.