***Battle*** Your troops are divided into four sectors: left, right, center, and reserves. Each sector (except for the reserves) engages the enemy. As the battle progresses, and casualties mount, your less loyal subordinates might lose heart and cave in under enemy pressure, but the more loyal people will hang on despite heavy losses. For this reason, you don't ever want to group disloyal people together; they'll just run. Stiffen their resolve by putting loyalists into their group. It's harder to run when the guy next to you is putting up a good fight. Most importantly, remember that when one sector has routed its opposite number, it attacks a nearby enemy from the flank or rear. Such secondary attacks are devastating; battles are always won by this maneuver. Therefore, strive to crush one enemy sector before one of your sectors collapses. This is where your reserves come into the calculation. You can send them to bolster a threatened sector at a critical moment, or you can send them to break through the enemy at a critical moment. The decision as to whether to use them for attack or defense is the fundamental tactical decision you must make.

***Weapons*** The primary weapon of the Celtic fighter is a straight iron sword, much like that used by the Romans, only somewhat longer -- about 30 inches. Anything longer would just break in combat. A very few people (yourself among them) enjoy the use of true steel swords instead of the iron that most fighters have. These steel swords are much stronger and better than the plain iron swords, which is why they are prized so highly and given personal names, such as "Excalibur" for your sword. Many fighters also carry spears as their weapon of choice. After all, a man with a six-foot spear squaring off against a man with a 30-inch sword has a big advantage. Even more important, you have to thrust a sword with your arm, but you can throw your whole body weight behind your spear, giving it tremendous punch. A skilled spearman can drive right through a wooden shield. Some fighters also carry light javelins, but they're rare -- you really can't afford to waste good iron on throwaway weapons. Bows and arrows are also frowned upon; they're fine for hunting but most of our fights are too sudden and too close to allow somebody to stand back and lob arrows from a distance.

***Troops*** We don't have regular soldiers as we did when we were Roman. Trained soldiers are the luxury of a rich country. Nowadays, when his lord orders it, every able-bodied man abandons his plow, grabs a sword, and fights. You have to realize that these troops are farmers at heart, not soldiers, and so they're quite clumsy on the battlefield. However, tactical leadership is provided by your battlelords who command their troops. These lords, your fifteen close companions at Camelot, are the only people on the battlefield with any military skills. By the way, the women lead their troops as readily as the men do. We Celts have a long tradition of elite female fighters.

***Spoils of War*** Cattle -- that's what it's all about. Cattle are about the only source of wealth left in Britain. All combat is fought for cattle. If you invade the Saxon lands and win a big battle, the Saxon warriors are scattered and your men can spread out and round up plenty of cattle before the Saxons can hide them. These cattle become your property, but you're expected to distribute them to your followers. Those who did particularly well in battle should be rewarded. A king is measured by his generosity, and criticized for his stinginess. Remember that when your people ask for their share of the spoils.

***Justice*** We don't have courts and complicated laws and judges and advocates as we did under the Romans. The king is the only law, and you are expected to judge fairly. Remember, though, that trials are primarily political events. People will urge you for or against the defendent -- pay heed to their urgings. Remember also that a light verdict might easily infuriate the plaintiff, who expects to gain something from the verdict.

***Camelot*** This is the front line against the Saxons. This little hill was once the capital of an ancient British Celtic tribe called the Durotriges. There was a pitched battle here when the Romans came; they massacred the Durotriges. But with the walls rebuilt and the ditches redug, the place is almost impregnable, and you can sally forth at will to wreak havoc against the Saxon lands just to the east. There are only two entries: one on the northeast, and one on the southwest. Both are well-guarded with strong gates. Inside, your longhouse sits astride the highest point on the hill, on the west side. Sloping down from there are the quarters of your companions; further down are the longhouses for the many commoners needed to keep this place running. Altogether, there are perhaps a thousand people living in the dozen acres on the hilltop. This makes Camelot one of the most populous towns in all of Britain.

***Saxons*** The Saxons first showed up about 75 years ago. The last of the Roman legions had left Britain to participate in the Roman civil wars, and Britain was left defenseless against the barbarians. Soon enough, every wandering band of marauders was preying on the British people. We couldn't seem to get together a proper army so our leader, Vortigern, invited a group of Saxon warriors to come to Britain. The deal was simple: they protected us against the barbarians, and we provided them with a fixed amount of food and clothing. But then Hengist, the Saxon leader, brought over more Saxon warriors and demanded additional food and clothing for them. When Vortigern refused, they went on the rampage, burning and looting. For a while it looked as if all was lost, but somehow the Britons fought back. Eventually a strong leader, Ambrosius Aurelianus, stabilized the situation.

***Women*** Our British women are unlike any in the world. They're Celtic by nature, like the Irish women, but they have been changed by the Roman experience. They're more civilized than the Irish and more independent than the Roman women. Our women can own property, lead clans, and even lead armies. Indeed, our most nearly successful rising against the Romans was led by a woman, Boudicca. Some of our women, such as Nineve and Morgana, have learned the healing arts although they are not permitted to recite the great stories.

***Economy*** There isn't much to speak of. A hundred years ago, Britain had a flourishing economy with agriculture, industrial production, and towns for trading. But that has all decayed in the last hundred years of chaos. The towns were magnets for marauders, so they were abandoned. The big manors that organized the labor of hundreds of people were indefensible, so now people work in tiny groups scattered all over the land. If an enemy comes, they gather their few goods and hide in the forest. The only populated places are fortresses like this one.

***Roman Britain*** It was glorious while it lasted! At first, we Britons resented the heavy-handed Roman rule, but after a few decades we came to appreciate the advantages of Roman civilization. There was so much wealth! We made bronze and iron, pottery and roof tiles, statues, and huge stone buildings. You can't appreciate how dry, clean, and comfortable a home can be until you've lived in a stone building. And the roads! Why, the Romans built roads crisscrossing Britain. They did it to make it easier for their legions to march anywhere quickly, but it also stimulated trade all over the country. Britain has never known happier days than the 300 years of Roman rule.

***Britain Before the Romans*** As far back as I can remember, Britain was Celtic. There was no government such as the Romans had; instead, we used a system of families organized into clans under subkings. Every now and then a subking would become so powerful that he would be acknowledged by the others as the high king, but in practice the title was largely honorific. Mostly, we just fought lots of petty little wars with each other, never really doing much damage; they were really just to allow the youngsters to let off some steam. Then Julius Caesar came with his army, and that gave us a good scare. We fought him off but his invasion showed how vulnerable we were. It's a shame that we didn't learn the lesson. We grew complacent, confident that the Romans had been beaten and would never try it again. So when they came again a hundred years later, we weren't ready and they swept over us.

***Christianity*** Christianity is a religion that started about 500 years ago in Judea, a land on the far side of Rome. The Romans have embraced this religion, and so they brought it to Britain about 150 years ago. Many of our people like this religion. However, some people associate it with the Romans, and believe that we should go back to our Celtic beliefs, worshipping the old gods of forest and stream. You would be wise not to take sides in this acrimonious dispute; allow each side to worship as it pleases, and try to keep them from killing each other.
