[amornojacoo]

Hi all,
New to this forum but loving it so far!
When the Host reached Coral why didn't they wait for Brood's army to catch up before attacking? This would have ensure superior numbers and reduction in lost of lives and Bridgeburber.
I'm flicking back through the pages now but can't determine the actual reason. Did I miss it completely?

[Abyss]

amornojacoo, on 25 September 2015 - 10:40 PM, said:

Hi all,
New to this forum but loving it so far!
When the Host reached Coral why didn't they wait for Brood's army to catch up before attacking? This would have ensure superior numbers and reduction in lost of lives and Bridgeburber.
I'm flicking back through the pages now but can't determine the actual reason. Did I miss it completely?

Iirc the Pannions were setting up an ambush from a ridge that would have been devastating against a late arriving army, so the Host took the ridge and held it rather than let them.

[worry]

They don't actually trust Brood completely. Also Malazan arrogance. Also competitive instinct. Also 'First In, Last Out' Bridgeburners.

[koehkont]

Didn't it also have something to do with Paran's and QB's plan to sort of help Pannion and fix up burn? Or was it all competitive/soldiers instinct and (lack of) trust.

I don't think they knew about the ridge before. It was more a lucky coincidence and it helped them in justifying their reasons afterwards. But maybe that counts as instinct as well

[Abyss]

Clarification - they knew the Seer would set up something and intended to get there first. The ridge was what they found. I can't recall Paran and QB saying anything to Dujek or WJ about their plans.

[jonny_anonymous]

It's been a while since I read it but weren't Brood and the Malazan's trying to screw each other over?

[Mentalist]

Dujek had 6k soldiers. Seer had over 30, iirc.

Dujek brought his troops to take the trenches in the killing field the Pannions prepared-he had to be the advance force, b/c if they came with Brood, Pannions would've had the time to prepare the trap.

But he couldn't defend them against the army attacking from the city-the trenches weren't designed to withstand an assault from that side. Also, mages and demon-condors. (also KCCM, but no one thought of those at the time).

So instead of being slaughtered in an un-defensible position in the half-destroyed trenches, Dujek decided to leap-quorl his 6k into the city, because Malazans would have better chances in street-fighting.

One of the 1 thousand-strong waves was incinerated by the condors mid-leap, but about 5k made it into the city. Then the K'ell Hunters happened.

[Kanese S's]

A number of reasons. Competitiveness. Politics (having gotten there first and gotten engaged and done a heavy share of the fighting, the Malazans would be in a stronger position from which to bargain after the battle/war), lack of trust, and also tactical concerns about getting the drop on the Pannions before they'd had enough time to fully set up their defenses.

[Abyss]

Also everyone expected everyone else to betray them and try to grab the Seer and Coral first... the Malazans to expand their Empire, Brood and co to keep the Malazans from doing that.

Ultimately Dujek's army did betray Brood and run ahead, but it wasn't to seize the Seer and Coral rather it was to prevent the Seer from entrenching and clobbering both armies. Had Dujek voiced that plan as reason to run ahead, Brood and co would have accused them of trying to grab Coral first, because by then the trust between the armies was already fraying.

[Kanese S's]

Yes. Despite it making a lot of sense, tactically, politics would have prevented it from being agreed to by the other army if it had ever been brought up.

[Kasrith]

Golden shovel for digging this up, but just finished MoI.

I think that beside Paran and QB having their plan on taking the Seer, they were also expecting the Imperial Fleet and interim governor to aid them (they were just stuck at sea due to all of the ice build up).