Although the veteran Rangers felt that taking a recruit along would hamper them somewhat, they did not complain. Many of the Mages, however, were far less content. There were only 180 places in the forward formations, and fierce competition broke out over them.
Most of these Mages did not want to stay at the very rear, in the Five-Element Formation guarding Gourd Waist. They argued endlessly until their commanding officer had no choice but to make them draw lots.
Refined Mages could be this eager for battle? Yu Lin Bloodhawk had never expected that.
During the drills, the Rangers and Mages proposed various hypothetical approaches and methods the Orcs might use to attack. After hearing Yu Lin Bloodhawk say that the Dwarves had a knack for dealing with Infernals, most of the officers strongly requested that at least fifty Wildhammer Dwarf Gryphon Riders come over to help handle any unexpected developments.
They felt that the other demons were nothing to worry about, but stone creatures such as Infernals and Voidwalkers were somewhat troublesome. They were almost immune to poison, so things would become difficult if the Orcs summoned too many of them.
Yu Lin Bloodhawk agreed to their request and sent a Gryphon-mounted Bodyguard to speak to Mez'dra. Without another word, Mez'dra sent over a hundred Wildhammer Dwarf Gryphon Riders.
The Wildhammer Dwarf Gryphon Riders rested with their Gryphons half a kilometer behind Small Gourd Belly. Several days of ferrying children back and forth had exhausted the Gryphons. Although they had largely recovered after two days of rest, it was still better to let them rest a little longer while they could.
Halfway through the drills, the Rangers and Mages decided that each of the three Five-Element Formations in Big Gourd Belly should also have three emergency Mage squads.
They