Nightstar The Bright

Proper Alethi warcamps are often arranged neatly, with the barracks placed in rows which are in turn arranged into radials, with a meeting ground and a mess hall at the center of each battalion.{{book ref|sa1|26}} The ‘close order’ drill is a an essential exercise to an army’s performance, although few outside the military appreciate its importance. There is also a drill called the ‘extended order’ drill, sometimes called the ‘extended combat’ drill, this drill focuses on practicing formations and movements used on the battlefield. The Alethi army adapted to the [[listener]] strategies by increasing the flexibility of their armies, making them able to respond quickly to the uncanny way the listeners fought. Each brightlord has his own personal glyphpair, which is usually made up of two glyphs.{{book ref|sa1|28}} Low ranking men in the armies are often susceptible to bribes. Soldiers can pay their brightlord’s scribes to send a message via spanreed, although this is considered extremely expensive, with even a terse note costing roughly a week’s wages for a common spearman, which translates to about forty clearmarks. Army surgeons wear white, and the apprentices are almost all men who have some incapacitation, preventing them from fighting. Most common spearmen in the Alethi military wear specifically designed skirts, and don’t wear trousers. They also wear the colors of their highprince. Common spearmen are trained in a formation called ‘pincer pattern’. This formation looks, like the name suggests, like a pincer, the formation is meant to distract and then destroy an enemy target. The troops at the side generally distract the target while the troops in the middle go for the kill. When the sound of battle is loud enough, a squadleader may decide to give his commands by banging his spear against his shield in a certain rhythm, which different rhythms meaning different commands. Stealing from the dead is strictly prohibited, although this doesn’t stop some soldiers from doing it. If regular soldiers killed a noteworthy target, usually an important brightlord, they can send for their captainlord, who will confirm the kill, to earn a reward.{{book ref|sa1|47}} A shardbearer will almost never give up his shards, the only time he might is when he is to weak to use them.{{book ref|sa1|52}} The soldiers in more professional and organised armies wear steel armour, such as breastplates and helmets.{{book ref|sa1|55}}{{book ref|sa1|57}} In these armies archers generally wear leather vests, while foot soldiers wear steel breastplates.{{book ref|sa1|57}} Officers in the Kholin army wear uniforms that are coloured a darker shade of blue.{{book ref|sa1|68}} Each enlistment lasts four years, after which you can enlist for another four years. Upon completing your time in the army, after four years of fighting, you receive a war bonus, equal to one tenth of your total wages. If you manage to distinguish yourself and rise to a high rank, you could rise in nahn. The army generally travels around a region, visiting towns wherever, looking for men to recruit. Apart from the volunteers, a citylord has the duty and honor of deciding which men are forced into the army. Men who provide an essential service to the settlement, such as surgeons, can’t be forced to join up, although they can still choose to join the army. Recruits may bring two changes of clothing and three stoneweights of other possessions with them.{{book ref|sa1|44}} Generally, a man in the personal guard of a lighteyes earns thrice as much as the wage of a standard spearman, so about 15 clearmarks each day.{{book ref|sa1|73}}

Messenger women often wear travelling dresses of a particular fashion. These dresses have the front and back slit open, all the way to the waist, to allow for greater mobility.{{book ref|sa2|76}}