Battle of Dobvod

Battle of Dobvod
14th-century illustration of the battle
Date October 16 933 Location Dobvod (now St. Lutoslav), Razaria Result Defeat and suppression of Koshchunists, Mstis and his inner circle flee to the Gozar Mountains
Belligerents
Koshchunists	Tastanic orthodoxists, local lords and chiefs
Commanders and leaders
Mstis Lutoslav  †	Unknown
Strength
~5,800	~12,400
Casualties and losses
800 killed, 900 executed, 2,600 imprisoned	"Hundreds killed"

The Battle of Dobvod was a battle between thousands of Koshchunist insurgents and an army assembled by Tastanic orthodoxists and local feudal lords in late 933 AD, taking place in the city of Dobvod, now St. Lutoslav. It was the first confrontation between contemporary authorities and the newly emerging religion of Mstis and thus holds a degree of significance in Koshchunist history.

Background

After Mstis published the Word of the True God in the spring of 933, his teachings quickly shocked the Tastanic world with its radical ideas, especially its opposition to the Creator himself and its residence of faith in another divinity. He was pronounced a heretic by Tastanic authorities in Grabovica immediately, orders were made for his publications to be confiscated and burnt, those preaching his ideas to be detained and executed, and this heresiarch himself was to be arrested. However Mstis had already attracted supporters to his teachings, one powerful figure who endorsed Koshchunism being Lutoslav, a noble from the tvrdjava of Dolta in northeast Razaria. Lutoslav tried to muster support for Mstis but was opposed by rivals who forced him and hundreds of followers to flee. Banding together with other newly converted groups, Lutoslav rallied an army of thousands, and seized the city of Dobvod and welcomed Mstis, offering refuge for him. Many inhabitants of the city converted as well after hearing of Mstis's ideas.

When news of this reached Tastanic clergy and local lords, they were concerned at the presence of such an insurgent force and agreed to rally an army to crush the heresy. Neither Tastanic or Koshchunist codices have given detail on the lords and priests actually involved in the operation. The anti-heresy army was gathered from several local fortresses and domains. Noting the seriousness of the heresy, the force employed mainly noble cavalry and Tastanic warrior-monk infantry instead of conscripted peasants to avoid chances of the army converting.

Preparations for the battle were made by the Koshchunists as well, they dug ditches, reinforced walls and gathered makeshift weapons and armor. According to Koshchunist scripture, an unnamed believer motivated the city's residents to prepare for the battle, stating that 'no blood is spilt in vain for God and against impostors'. However certainly the insurgents did not intend for a last stand as plans were made for a retreat in case the defense failed.

The battle

Lutoslav gathered about 500 of his well-armed followers, of which only a few were mounted, along with 1,200 newly converted insurgents in a formation outside of the city just before the battle, confronting a formation of armoured cavalry of the nobles that numbered about 900, in addition to 1,500 infantry not far behind. The Koshchunists deceived the attackers with the ragged appearance of their foot-soldiers, which prompted the prideful cavalry to charge, expecting the seemingly disorganized rebels to be easily scattered. However, with instruction and encouragement from Koshchunist priests standing on wagons, the insurgent spearmen maintained their formation and fought off the cavalry who sustained heavy losses and were forced to retreat. The insurgents' archers also bombarded the enemy. The cavalry charge was a failure and the Tastanic fanatics took over as the main force of the assault.

The fanatics approached in a phalanx and the formations of them and the Koshchunists soon clashed. The fighting was indecisive until later another group of 1,000 cavalry charged the flank of the Koshchunists, destroying their formation and forcing them to retreat into the city. Meanwhile thousands of Tastanists and feudal armies had approached from other directions ready to lay siege to Dobvod. Using bow and crossbow fire the defenders tried to repel assaults from multiple directions, while this was somewhat effective, one of the gates of the town was breached by a Tastanist-operated battering ram, followed by the amassed attackers swarming into the city and cutting down resistance. Elsewhere fortifications were breached soon as well due to their low quality and hasty reinforcement.

Koshchunists in the city began fierce resistance, fighting over the control of individual houses against the attackers. However their resistance was seldom effective and many were slaughtered, and according to legend, the Martyrs' Square in St. Lutoslav was an area of the city where 'hundreds of believers' were massacred after being cornered by the attackers. The Koshchunist command structure was destroyed with the collapse of its formations and its forces in total chaos, which impeded ability of priests to instruct armed crowds. In the carnage, many Koshchunist leaders were identified and killed, including Lutoslav who was slain in combat against several Tastanist fanatics. Resistance quickly collapsed and Dobvod was cleared of Koshchunists by the next day.

Aftermath

During the fighting, Mstis along with about 1,500 followers and insurgents escaped the city by charging one of the breached gates and exiting through another which was unnoticed. Directionless, many of these remnant Koshchunists fled into nearby mountains and forests, becoming bandits, while only a few hundred followed Mstis to the Gozar Mountains after a long trek escaping from Tastanic orthodoxists and local lords. In hideouts in the mountains Mstis would further develop his teachings, and the Koshchunist faith would further grow until decades later it re-emerged in one of its first proselytism campaigns.

In the immediate aftermath of the battle 900 of the Koshchunists captured were executed, some of them crucified on roads to warn people of consequences of heresy, but most were beheaded or burnt to death. 2,600 of the heretics were imprisoned, though many would later escape. The remains of the Koshchunists slain and executed were hastily buried in mass graves. Some of the remains were exhumed for rites of the dead by fellow adherents later, including Lutoslav's body.

Nearby, some fighting broke out sporadically in the following months as the orthodoxists attempted to clear out pockets of surviving Koshchunists, though these met only limited success.

In scriptures and culture

The battle is recorded in detail in several codices...

The battle holds a parabolic role in Koshchunism, being used to symbolize the inevitable resistance to truth and faith from the ignorant and the false, and the challenges that believers will face which not even Mstis and the first Koshchunists overcame easily.