Chapter 223: Armored Astragoths

Chapter 223: Armored Astragoths

The observers noticed the larger Astragoths before the first shots were fired. Several creatures at the front of the approaching groups were longer and broader than any Astragoth the goblins had faced before. Thick scales covered the front of their bodies, and their tails were heavier. They moved slower than the ordinary Astragoths following them, but the smaller creatures stayed close behind and matched their pace.

The first machine-gun crew opened fire when the leading group entered effective range. The gunner aimed at the largest creature and fired several bursts into its upper body. Scales cracked under the repeated hits, and blood appeared between them, but the Astragoth kept moving.

The officer beside the crew watched it continue forward after taking enough fire to kill an ordinary Astragoth.

"Stay on that one," he told the gunner. "You’ve already opened the scales. Keep hitting the same area until it goes down."

The machine gun fired again. The creature slowed, but it did not stop. Another burst finally brought it down.

The officer immediately looked toward the other approaching groups. The crew had spent far more ammunition than expected on a single target. Worse, while they had been focused on it, the ordinary Astragoths following another large creature had moved much closer.

A second machine gun tried to fire at them, but the larger Astragoth blocked most of the shots. The ordinary creatures stayed behind its body until they reached a shorter distance, then began spreading out from both sides.

The officer contacted the commander responsible for the defense.

"These large ones are taking too much machine-gun fire. We can kill them, but while the gun stays on one target, the ordinary Astragoths behind the others keep getting closer."

"Do the RPG teams still have clear shots?"

"Yes. They’re far enough away for now."

"Then use the RPGs on the large ones. Keep the machine guns on the ordinary Astragoths whenever a heavier weapon can handle the target. We cannot spend all our machine-gun ammunition killing one creature at a time."

An RPG team turned toward one of the larger Astragoths. The gunner waited until no goblin soldiers were near the line of fire and launched a rocket. It struck the creature directly and stopped it almost immediately.

The ordinary Astragoths behind it were suddenly exposed. A machine gun shifted onto them before they could spread farther apart. Several fell in the first bursts, and the survivors were forced to continue without the larger creature shielding them.

Tank crews received the same instruction. One tank turned its main gun toward another armored Astragoth and killed it with a direct hit. The machine gun covering the same group ignored the body and immediately fired at the ordinary attackers behind it.

A second tank shell landed beside another armored Astragoth instead of hitting it directly. The explosion tore scales from one side and opened a large wound, but the creature continued moving.

A soldier watching through his sights saw the exposed area.

"The shell opened its side. Put your fire there instead of shooting the front."

Several soldiers shifted their aim. Rifle rounds struck the damaged area repeatedly. The creature slowed, but it remained alive until an RPG team gained a clear angle and finished it.

After the first few engagements, the difference between the weapons was clear. Rifles and machine guns could kill the larger Astragoths, but they needed repeated hits, especially against intact scales. RPGs and direct tank shells killed them much faster. Conventional artillery could also stop them while they were still far enough away from the goblin positions.

Several armored Astragoths appeared in another approaching group, and the artillery crews were given their location. Shells landed among the attackers, killing ordinary Astragoths and breaking the group apart. One armored creature took a direct hit and stopped moving. Another survived an explosion nearby with several scales torn from its body.

The artillery stopped when the survivors came too close to the goblin positions.

One armored Astragoth continued forward with ordinary creatures still following behind it. Machine guns fired whenever the smaller Astragoths moved away from its body, but the larger creature absorbed several bursts and kept advancing.

It reached a damaged barrier before the goblins could stop it.

The Astragoth struck the barrier with its tail. The first hit broke part of the structure and threw debris into the soldiers behind it. The goblins fired at close range, but many rounds hit intact scales and failed to slow the creature enough.

A second tail strike widened the opening. Ordinary Astragoths rushed through behind it.

The nearby machine gun stopped firing into the breach because goblin soldiers were already fighting inside the same position. An RPG team could see the armored creature, but firing a rocket would have put the soldiers around it in danger.

The officer inside the position saw several wounds along the creature’s side.

"Stop firing at the front. The scales there are still holding. Aim at the open wounds on its side and keep your shots together."

Several soldiers adjusted their aim and fired into the exposed tissue. The armored Astragoth swung its tail again and killed one goblin before concentrated rifle fire finally brought it down.

The ordinary Astragoths that had followed it were still inside the position. Soldiers from nearby firing points moved toward the breach and opened fire on the creatures that had already crossed through. Grenades were used only where the soldiers could throw them without hitting their own men.

The last Astragoth inside the position was killed before it could move farther through the defenses. The goblins immediately pulled damaged material into the opening while another group kept watch for the next attack.

The commander gathered reports from the crews that had faced the new creatures. One officer explained that their durability was only part of the problem.

"The large ones are giving the ordinary Astragoths cover during the approach. If a machine gun spends too long killing one, everything behind another one keeps moving. If we ignore the large creature, it reaches the barrier and breaks the position open. We need different weapons working on different targets."

The commander agreed. "Tanks and RPGs take the armored ones whenever they have a clear shot. Machine guns stay on the ordinary Astragoths. If no heavy weapon can fire, then the machine guns concentrate on one armored target until it is dead."

"That works until several armored ones appear at the same time."

"Then we take the ones protecting the largest groups first. A lone one is dangerous, but it is still one target. If another has ten ordinary Astragoths behind it, that one gets the tank or RPG."

The next attack gave them a chance to use the new order.

Three armored Astragoths approached in separate groups. One had many ordinary creatures following directly behind it. Another had only a few. The third moved with a group that had already begun spreading out.

A tank crew asked which target they should take.

"Take the one covering the largest group," the commander replied. "If it goes down now, the machine guns can hit everything behind it before they reach us."

The tank fired. The first shell missed and struck the ground beside the target. The armored Astragoth continued moving.

The crew corrected its aim and fired again. The second shell struck directly and killed the creature.

Two machine guns immediately opened fire on the ordinary Astragoths behind it. They were still crossing open ground and had not spread far enough apart. Several were killed before the survivors separated.

An RPG team took the second armored Astragoth and killed it before it reached close range. The few ordinary creatures following it continued without cover and were stopped by machine-gun and rifle fire.

The third group was harder to handle because the ordinary Astragoths had already moved away from the armored creature. One machine gun fired at the smaller targets while another used controlled bursts against the larger one. The armored Astragoth continued moving until a tank became available and destroyed it.

Another attack brought two armored Astragoths forward at nearly the same time. The nearest tank could engage only one before both became dangerous.

The officer controlling the weapons looked at the groups following them before making the decision.

"The tank takes the one with more Astragoths behind it. Put short machine-gun bursts into the second one and slow it until the RPG team can fire."

The machine-gun crew hit the second creature several times. It kept moving, but the repeated shots slowed its advance.

The RPG gunner watched the soldiers in front of him. "I have a clear shot now. If it comes much closer, our soldiers will be inside the danger area."

The officer checked the space between the target and the goblins.

"Take the shot now. The line is clear."

The rocket struck directly and killed the creature before it reached the barrier.

After that, the officers changed the way observers reported approaching groups. Saying that an armored Astragoth was present was no longer enough. The commanders needed to know how many ordinary creatures were following it, whether they were still grouped together, and which heavy weapons could fire without putting goblin soldiers at risk.

That information changed which target received the first tank shell or RPG.

During another attack, one armored Astragoth moved alone while a second had a large group behind it. A tank crew asked which one mattered more.

"Take the one with the group," the commander replied. "If you kill it now, the machine guns can hit everything behind it. The lone one can be slowed until an RPG team has a clear shot."

The tank destroyed the first creature. Machine guns immediately shifted onto the exposed group. The lone armored Astragoth continued forward until an RPG team moved into position and killed it.

The goblins also learned that a heavy explosion did not always kill the target. One RPG hit the ground beside an armored Astragoth instead of striking its body. The blast tore scales from one side, but the creature stayed on its feet.

The RPG team prepared another rocket, but ordinary Astragoths moved between them and the target.

A nearby machine-gun crew could see the damaged area.

"The RPG opened the side. I have a clear view of the wound."

The officer beside the crew looked at the target. "Then use it. Put your bursts into the damaged area. Do not wait for the RPG team to get another shot while it keeps moving."

The gunner fired two concentrated bursts. The first slowed the creature. The second struck the same wound and brought it down. The gun immediately returned to the ordinary Astragoths.

The armored Astragoths remained most dangerous whenever they reached the goblin positions. One survived machine-gun fire long enough to reach another damaged firing point after the nearest tank had already turned toward a larger attack. Its tail struck the barrier and knocked two soldiers down.

The remaining goblins moved away from the front of the creature and fired into its side. A wound opened by earlier machine-gun fire became visible when the Astragoth turned. The officer nearest it pointed toward the opening.

"Keep your fire on that wound. Do not spread your shots across the rest of the body."

Several rifles fired into the same area until the creature stopped moving.

No new ranged ability appeared during any of the attacks. The armored Astragoths still depended on their bodies and tails. They did not throw larger stones or use another weapon the goblins had not already seen. Their advantage came from thicker scales, heavier bodies, stronger tails, and their ability to stay alive under fire that would have stopped an ordinary Astragoth much sooner.

The commander sent the first complete assessment to Noah after the same pattern appeared several times.

"The larger Astragoths are slower, but their scales can take sustained rifle and machine-gun fire. A machine gun can kill one, but it uses too much ammunition doing it. The ordinary Astragoths are staying behind them until they are close enough to spread out."

Noah studied the reports before answering.

"Which weapons are stopping them before they reach the soldiers?"

"Direct tank hits are the most reliable. RPGs work when the teams have a clear shot. Artillery can kill them while they are still far enough away. Machine guns are what we use when none of those weapons can engage."

"What happens when several armored ones appear together?"

"We kill the ones protecting the largest groups first. If one is moving alone, we slow it with machine-gun fire until a tank or RPG team becomes available."

Noah agreed with the method. "Keep that priority. Do not put several machine guns on one armored target while another group walks closer behind a different one. Use the heavy weapons where killing one armored creature exposes the most ordinary Astragoths."

The order passed through the crews. Tanks and RPG teams prioritized armored Astragoths protecting larger groups. Conventional artillery targeted mixed groups while they were still far from goblin soldiers. Machine guns focused on ordinary Astragoths unless an armored creature was close enough to threaten a position and no heavier weapon could engage it.

The new method reduced the number of attackers reaching close range, but it did not solve every problem. There were not enough tanks and RPG teams to guarantee that every armored Astragoth received a heavy weapon. Some still had to be stopped with concentrated machine-gun or rifle fire, while others reached damaged positions before a tank could change targets.

The crews began coordinating their targets more closely. Tank commanders reported when they were already committed to a creature so RPG teams could watch another one. Machine-gun crews warned nearby soldiers when they had to shift from ordinary Astragoths to an armored target. Officers avoided assigning two heavy weapons to the same creature unless it was already close enough to break into a position.

The ordinary Astragoths also changed their spacing during later attacks. Some began spreading out sooner instead of remaining directly behind the armored creatures until the final approach. That reduced the protection they received, but it forced machine-gun crews to cover a wider area. The goblins kept the same priority. Heavy weapons dealt with armored targets while machine guns fired at ordinary Astragoths that separated from them.

One group nearly reached the defenses after its armored Astragoth survived an RPG explosion that landed beside it. The nearest tank was already engaging another target, so two machine guns concentrated on the damaged creature while soldiers fired at the ordinary Astragoths around it.

The armored creature fell before reaching the barrier, but the machine-gun crews used enough ammunition that nearby soldiers had to bring additional belts forward after the attack.

The officers understood the limitation clearly. The armored Astragoths could be killed with the weapons already available, but every one of them required more fire than an ordinary creature. When several appeared at once, the problem was no longer how to kill them. The problem was deciding which heavy weapon could engage each target before the creatures reached the soldiers.

By the end of the fighting, the goblins understood how the armored Astragoths attacked and which weapons worked best against them. They had also confirmed that the new type was not limited to a few individuals. Observers reported several more among the groups preparing for another assault.

The crews assigned targets before the next attackers entered range. Tank commanders received the armored Astragoths protecting the largest groups. RPG teams moved into positions with clear firing lanes. Machine-gun crews watched the ordinary Astragoths following behind the larger bodies instead of automatically aiming at the largest creature first.

When the next armored Astragoth started forward with a group behind it, the goblins already knew which weapon would engage the creature and which weapons would fire at the Astragoths using it for cover.