Battlefield: Equestria Unit References (Outdated)

[Warning: Story Heavy Introduction]

It's possible to play this strategy only, but it's much better if you play this like an RPG/dynamic battle; yes, that means you can write a short story. It's considerably story-heavy anyways. Going to be packed with scenario-specific info. Also, let's try something funky...

Quick notes:

New units! Refer here for assistance.

Alicorn Twilight Sparkle

Princess Cadance

Mercenary unit (see below)

Scenario-specific unit (see below)

Crystal Palace

Crystal Empire

2200 Hours (10:00 PM)

There was a moderate amount of activity in the Crystal Palace. Justified, in that they had a certain... situation to deal with. Most notable were two ponies sitting in a special room with a large fancy crystal table in the middle. Already stressed out by an earlier incident, they were on edge. Right now they were waiting for-

Two alicorns (and chests full of baggage) suddenly teleported into the room.

"Twily!" The white unicorn ran up to meet his sister. "And Princess Luna, of course."

Twilight gave her brother a curious look. "You don't address me by my title?" she jokingly asked.

"To me, you'll always be my little sister," Shining smiled. Of course, Twilight and Cadance also greeted each other (with their dance that the narrator will not bother with).

"So, why did you come, Twilight?" Cadance asked. "I thought only Luna was coming."

"Well," answered the purple alicorn, "Princess Celestia said that I should start learning how to deal with the situations that arise with being in such a high position. This is one of my first major assignments," she smiled.

"And as such," Luna added, "I am here to watch over her and advise her. I will attempt to lessen my role tonight."

"Three alicorns in the room. I feel so useless. Anyways," Shining said a little cautiously, "We should get down to business."

"So what's the full situation, Shining?" Twilight asked.

"Well, it's very concerning. Around two weeks ago, one of our scouts went missing. He reported seeing humans-"

"Humans? We know they exist, but far south. Where were they spotted?"

"It was a small group of around twenty, as he reported. He first spotted them when they were passing on the borders of Equestria and the Griffon Empire, heading north. He followed them, then had a last personal check-in with me, nearly two and a half weeks ago. Then he went back out to search for the wandering humans. The scout was supposed to come back in a couple of days, but since they can always get into a bind, I gave him the benefit of the doubt and waited a week."

"This scout," Princess Sparkle asked, "How skilled was he?"

"1st RSD; some of the best," Luna answered.

"That's correct, Princess Luna," Shining answered.

"How did you know?" Twilight asked. "And what does '1st RSD' mean?"

Shining lightly chuckled. "You still have a lot to learn, Twilight."

"He was stationed in Canterlot," replied Luna, "as he was not on out-of-country deployment at the time. They sometimes like to do border patrols even when not currently active. He reported back with this information to Celestia and me. We then allowed him to pursue this further, will full faith that he wouldn't fail."

Twilight gave a questioning look. "Why wasn't I informed of this?"

"Like your brother said, you still have much to learn. We will teach you everything slowly. That was a situation for which you were not ready to handle."

Twilight turned to Cadance. "Did you know about this?"

"It doesn't matter, but yes," the pink alicorn answered. "I am the ruler of the Crystal Empire. Border incursions are important to know about. Also, I obviously have more experience than you."

Twilight sighed. "Okay. Continue."

Shining did. "After a week had passed, I sent out soldiers north to look for him. It was a joint force of Equestrians and Crystal Ponies that volunteered. Unfortunately, it's been a week, and they haven't returned either."

"Luna, can't you look for them using the moonlight?" Twilight asked.

"I'm afraid not. The weather in the north has been cloudy for the past weeks. I can view no further north than the Crystal Empire."

"I also sent out another team of pegasi to search for them in the air yesterday," said Shining. "Hopefully, we'll find out what happened soon. Also, I forgot to mention- the humans were reportedly armed. For what purpose, we don't know."

"Hunters maybe? Could they have killed the ponies?" Twilight said with concern.

"Possibly, but something tells me that even if they were able to kill a highly trained scout, they wouldn't be able to fend off a force of more than 120 soldiers."

"Luna, remind me again why you brought me here?"

"To learn the stresses that we must deal with. Right now, the problem is to determine what comes next. What we will do," Luna advised. "Celestia knew you could handle it. Don't worry."

"Well," Shining started, "Get ready for the long haul. We're going to be here for a while..."

2348 Hours (11:48 PM)

"... So why haven't you used the early detection crystal towers?" Twilight asked.

"Well they don't exactly fare well when unpowered for long periods of time. The ones out there that didn't join the Empire when it disappeared hibernated while the Empire was in time stasis and we're not sure if they're in full operating condition, as well as the fact that we don't know where the manuals to the things are."

Twilight sighed in frustration. She couldn't even be too physically tired about it. Apparently being an alicorn grants added resistance to fatigue. However, just then a pegasus covered in medical wrappings slammed open the door.

"Prince Armor!" The voice brought worry to Shining Armor.

"Lieutenant. I hope that you have recovered enough from your blood loss."

"Enough to deliver what I found. I wish I could've gotten to you sooner, but, of course, I fell unconscious. Precious time wasted."

"No matter. Better that you be alive now than dead without telling us what you know. Continue."

"We were scouting up north as instructed. One late night, we found a large group in the forests in the mountains far north. The other four and I were assaulted early this morning. I only got a glimpse of it, but there were ponies and griffons hiding away. It was dark, but I'm sure they were wearing armor."

"Do they have a leader?"

"That is the worst part. The leader of the force itself is a pegasus that we had the unfortunate chance of encountering. In fact, it was only him that attacked us. Whether he serves a higher order, I don't know."

The other four shared a troubled look.

"And now, four more pegasi lost, all by the hoof of a single pony. I know not what happened to them."

"What do you know about this pegasus?" Shining asked. "Cutie mark maybe?"

"Identity-wise, not much. It was too dark to tell any defining features. Couldn't see his cutie mark if he had one. Uh, his eyes had blue irises I think, if that helps? More importantly he is a force to be reckoned with. Highly skilled fighter, despite fighting with hooves and knife only. And, I don't believe it myself, but he has the ability to teleport! I swear he's just a pegasus! He also spoke in this strange, uh, for lack of a better way to put it, evil voice."

"Okay!" Shining threw up his hooves in frustration. "Well that's certainly something. Do you know what they plan to do?"

"With a force like that, I suppose they'll try and attack the Crystal Empire. And by common sense, he's not going to wait longer for more-"

The table interrupted with an audible whir, projecting a holographic view of the Empire. The northern border of the Empire was focused in on, showing a substantial force of... an amalgamation of all sorts of soldiers.

"ALERT. NORTHWESTERN PERIMETER OF THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE HAS BEEN BREACHED. HOSTILE FORCES DETECTED," a voice spoke.

Twilight looked curious. "Anything else? It certainly sounds like the Empire can autonomously hold its own."

Shining Armor shook his head. "No. Unfortunately, that was the only thing we were able to reactivate in the Empire so far. It seems that King Sombra decided to sabotage some of the automated defense systems. We're still repairing them. Of the things that we do have information on, we're still retooling them and modernizing."

Ponies ran up to the unicorn, and he started relaying orders.

Twilight facehoofed. "So all you've got is a close warning system? Can't it do anything else?"

"Not as of now. We haven't gotten anything else running past the detection systems. Although it's possible to manually ask it to analyze something. Now, the sensor crystals that transmitted this were on the outer perimeter-"

"ESTIMATED TIME OF ARRIVAL TO OUTER CITY: TWO MINUTES."

"Two minutes?!" Twilight was frantic. "What do they want?!"

The scout pegasus spoke up. "Unfortunately, that I don't know. We'll have to see if we can figure out what exactly they want while we fight them off. I can say for sure though, it doesn't seem like they're here to burn and pillage."

"Shining Armor," Princess Luna started, "What are the defenses stationed in this city?"

"Contingents of regular armed forces and a number of Royal Guards, plus the soldiers of the Empire. Unfortunately, they're spread around the city. We'll have to reallocate troops while we're fighting at the same time. Actually, Cadance- can you put up a shield to stop them?"

"Just what I was thinking." The pink alicorn's horn glowed, and a blue dome rose around the outer city, trapping the invaders on the grass farther out.

"Caddy, are you going to prepare for battle or stay in the palace?"

"Battle? But why would Cadance fight?" Twilight cluelessly asked.

Cadance grinned. "Twilight, you still have a lot to learn." She turned to Shining Armor. "Depends. Time is of the essence. I can teleport upstairs and get my hoof blades ready, or I can fortify the force field more."

Twilight looked incredulous at Cadance, like she wanted to ask 'who are you'. Shaking it off, Twilight peered at the hologram. "Wait, are those gold Equestrian armor?" Twilight questioned.

They looked at the projection. "Yes, it is," Shining said sternly. "I guess now we know where our soldiers went."

Twilight looked at it even closer. "And aren't Royal Guard pegasi supposed to be white under the armor? They're black..." They all shared looks of distress.

Cadance noted something else. "Gryphons. Soldiers of the Kingdom in fact. And... what? Timberwolves? But how?"

Luna spoke. "I may know what this is. And it is not good; I must tell my sister as soon as possible, but now is also not the time. We must defend the Empire. Shining Armor, prepare for battle."

Just as they were about to move, the hologram focused in closer to the unknown force, now at the field wall. There was a dark-coated pegasus at the forefront, giving out orders.

"TRANSMITTING SOUND."

"Unicorns," the dark pegasus commanded in a dark voice similar to Sombra's, "Cut through the force field! We must get to the palace as quickly as we can!" He stared down the long road that led straight to the Crystal Palace.

"Aye sir." The unicorns shot beams of magic at the field.

"Also, I know you are watching us. I don't know who you are. Probably Guard Captain Armor, plus a couple others. I'm sure you know it already, but we're coming. Also, you will fail."

Cadance cringed at the impact of magic against the force field. "They certainly know what they're doing. I'm not sure if the field will last long. Perhaps another minute or so, then the city will be breached as well."

"The palace," said Shining. "They're coming here. At least now we know where to keep them away."

"Twilight, do you know another duty of a princess of Equestria?" Luna asked.

Twilight didn't like where this was going. "What?"

"To lead our subjects in battle. Now, it is your choice whether to go out now and fight, or wait until a later date. As it was, Celestia already had armor and a sword custom made for you." Luna levitated over two of the chests they brought with them, and placed it next to her. "I am prepared to step in. Will you?"

CRYSTAL EMPIRE ANALYZATION SYSTEMS

COMBAT DATA

--

We are currently under attack by an enemy of unknown origins from the northwest. The unit composition varies between ponies and gryphons. Compared to the number of soldiers stationed in the empire, they are few. However, strategically, they have a current advantage.

The Crystal Empire is divided into 6 sectors, roughly N, NWW, SWW, S, SEE, NEE. Our forces are spread an equal amount per each sector, meaning there is roughly equal numbers to combat the invaders at a certain time. We do not know how well they fight, but numbers fighting at a time must be kept high enough to keep them at bay.

The objective of the enemy is apparently the Palace, for what exact reason, unknown. We must prevent them from reaching here.

The battle will be fought on the streets, maybe even just the single main road, of the Crystal Empire. Naturally, buildings line the sides, and there is a straight view to the palace.

(For time reference, the path to the palace is divided in 6 parts. 3 divisions of the Outer City, 3 divisions of the Inner City)

INFORMATION CONSISTENT WITH CURRENT OFFICIAL UNIT REFERENCE GUIDE

UEE/CE

1075 UEE units:

200 Unicorns

100 Royal Guard Unicorns

200 Pegasi

140 Royal Guard Pegasi

300 Earth Ponies

035 Royal Assassins

1750 CE units:

1000 Crystal Knights

250 Crystal Mages

500 Crystal Slingers

Total forces: 2825

Rough count of units per sector:

33 Unicorns

16 RG Unicorns

33 Pegasi

23 RG Pegasi

50 Earth Ponies

166 C Knights

41 C Mages

83 C Slingers

Total per sector: 445

[!] A sectors worth of soldiers will reinforce you every turn/every city division.

[!] Royal Assassins are based in the Palace. They will be usable by the third Outer City part/turn.

Hero units:

Princess Luna

Twilight Sparkle (Alicorn)

Shining Armor

Princess/Master Assassin Cadance

Optional OC insert

[Enemy Unknown]

40 Unicorns

10 Royal Guard Unicorns

40 Pegasi

12 Royal Guard Pegasi

50 Earth Ponies

30 Crystal Knights

25 Crystal Mages

54 Gryphon Heavy Infantry

26 Gryphon Mercenaries

20 (To be announced)

120 Timberwolves

Total enemy forces: 427

Hero units:

Dark-coated pegasus. Identity unknown. Seems to be commander of army. Skilled fighter and flier. Ability to teleport seems to be hindered within the Crystal Empire to a couple meters, but nonetheless, it is still a deadly ability.

Objectives:

Do not let the enemy reach the Crystal Palace.

Secondary objectives:

Cause minimum damage to the Crystal Empire.

Do not lose a hero unit in battle.

Creator Notes/Help:

A. Are you sure you're ready for this commander? Maybe you should refresh a little and read some older scenarios, just in case. We've been off a long time. Especially helpful if you're going to attempt this in story form is Battle #13 "None Shall Pass". (Admittedly, it's kinda where I got the idea to do this.)

B. This is the beginning of a campaign. Depending how this goes, individual results can result in different future scenarios.

C. It is a sort of PvP. Think of me like the opposing AI. And as the 'AI', I may cheat, to keep something interesting, but I most likely won't.

D. Done dynamically, each turn you will present a plan. I will calculate results. Format is your choice. Feel free to add interactions and dialogue.

E. Naturally, hero unit usage is up to you.

F. That opening 'cutscene' sure was full of stuff.

Position your forces for the initial encounter, and I will calculate results. Also, be honest and say if you used a certain hint.

There will be a total of 6-7 possible turns:

Outer city 1 - 3

Inner city 1 - 3+Palace

Depending on the strategy you give, the enemy may be able to advance faster.

More specific strategies may increase your chance of winning.

Asking for reports or questions does not count as a turn.

Although, if you somehow do dialogue and it messes with it somehow, I'll allow more.

I suppose it's still possible to win even backed up to the palace.

[ ! ] Our forces are in battle.