A fundamental founding precept of Avalon is that your actions have consequences. The history of the world is fretted with tales of individuals and organisations whose actions and deeds have left an indelible mark on the world to be remembered - whether in joy or in sorrow - for ever more.
The most significant difference between the consequences of these day to day occurences and the fall-out from a warfare scenario is that the former are often minor - spilt blood, trading deals gone wrong, plans foiled or brought to fruition, fights won or lost on a small scale to name but a few. The consequences of the warfare battlefield, however, are much greater in scale and weight. The stakes are higher than any other arena in Avalon, owing to the extent and permanence of the potential harm done by a successful warfare campaign. For the victor, an enormous trove of spoils, renown or infamy in equal measure and the irrevocable mark stamped on Avalon's history as a conquering party - whether tyrant or saviour. The land itself can be altered, harmed or destroyed beyond repair; the victim's homes, wealth and peoples broken to never be the same again. In short: warfare has the potential to destroy, deface and despair as surely as it is a cause to inspire, unite and rally.
Although treaties and divine negotiators tend to involve themselves in aiding peace settlements long before anything so serious as a complete annihilation of one party is countenanced, the theory remains that if a victorious group was so inclined they could chase down and slay every last defender, besiege, raze to the ground and plunder every construction, all the opponent's wealth, possessions, commodities and artifacts; burn down and pillage, to an irretrievable extent, the homeland of the defeated foe. It would therefore behoove any would-be-warmonger to reflect on the possible outcomes of their actions; to consider the unmitigated destruction potentially in their hands and spare a moment to appreciate the enormity of a city invasion - from both sides.
See HELP BESIEGING for information on the laying of the siege, the destruction of defences and the removal of non-legion opposition from a target locale. This is followed by the plundering and razing stages, see HELP PLUNDERING or HELP RAZING for documentation on these aspects of battlefield conflict.
The end-result of success on the battlefield and subsequent eradication of defences (legions, fortifications, whatever they may be) is the perogative of the victor. This may be withdrawal; but likewise it may be an attempted conquest. Conquest of a town or village, where the sphere of influence/occupation is being expanded, is different to conquest of an entire city. Occupation and conquest within one's sphere of influence, of towns and villages, is documented in HELP OCCUPATION and HELP CONQUEST while the momentuous final occupation and conquest of a major city is detailed in HELP SUPPLICATION.
