When did the Battle of the Maginot Line begin?
It seemed like a rather metaphysical question. By the time everyone realized what was happening, the entire front line was already teeming with enemies.
The clamor of gunfire tore through the calm of the wait, while the continuous thunder of heavy artillery heralded the arrival of the trial.
This was a test of iron and fire.
It was as if everyone had been thrown into a blazing furnace. Only by enduring the flames and the hammer's blows could they be forged into tempered steel—or reduced to scrap, left to await a future shrouded in darkness.
The first section attacked was the stretch of defensive line closest to the Filthy Swamp. It lay in the central region, like a wall wedged between the rolling hills. An abandoned mine served as its defensive hub, and the Stonemasons' Brotherhood had designed three bastions on the high ground. During the more than three months of preparation, the Earth Priests of Silverkeep had carefully reshaped the surrounding terrain.
The gnolls first had to cross several kilometers of trenches divided by barbed wire, then charge up the bare hillside before reaching the main defenses. Waiting for them was the combined fire of three artillery positions, along with a defensive line manned by seven thousand soldiers from the Kademan People's Army.
Lord Murphy had set up a respawn point here. That meant the gnolls would have to endure the "trial" of the undead heroes while getting beaten to a pulp by the local soldiers.
After spending days absorbing the theories on the war history section of the forum and the interworld network, Commander Kudell had learned the basics of firepower superiority. During the morning's attack, he didn't send a single one of his own troops into battle. He