The Main Campaign: Blood River, Johnson's March, and the Siege of Kila Vas (1977-1978) (Full Text)
Type: Narrative — Canon History, WW3-Era (Full Text) Status: Canon (confirmed by creator) — full text preserved per archival standard
This continues the WW3 campaign following the fall of Spartania (see World War 3: Full Detailed Timeline for Spartania's fall, mid-1978), covering the war's grinding second phase across three fronts: the northern advance on Kila Vas, the Blood River stalemate, and Johnson's two-year march against the NUN. See Perold Jonas for his role commanding the Empire's Northern Army throughout.
Sides Clarified
✅ Confirmed nomenclature: "the Empire" refers specifically to the Empire of Xanydeo and Xanthus; "DE" (Desert Empire) refers to Medaris's forces and allies. On the Empire's side: Peplle, the PejSha Kaolsan (a faction of the Kaolsan League aligned with the Empire, not the DE), and the Eastern United Nations (EUN). On the DE's side: the Kaolsan League generally, and — following the fall of Spartania — the Republics of Waon. General Rabi commands for the Empire; Johnson, Bronson, Androve, and Admiral Tinin command for the DE.
Jonas's Detailed Origin (Expanded)
✅ This significantly expands the previously-documented Ark Royal journey — see the existing Perold Jones origin material for the earlier account. This telling adds the precise route: the Jones expedition traveled west through Peplle, skirted south of the Great Mountains, passed through Tranchon, arced northwest to discover the Organization of Federated States and the Federal States of Ghinim, then turned north-northwest, skirting the eastern flank of the Republics of Waon through dense temperate forests — territory that later became Hunter's Ranch (J.F.W. Hunter — hunting/fishing) and King Ranch (Shawn King — the continent's breadbasket). They then turned due west, reaching the coast 2,500 miles north of Kila Vas.
The splintering: of the original ~300, about a third (100) continued with Jones to build flying boats; nearly 200 settled the coast and inland regions. A smaller group drifted south — some settling Kila Vas itself, others entering the Dielvan Wac Desert. Tad McWilliams led one group to found the mesa-top city-state of McWilliams. Mindy Samuels and her sister Peggy, separating from McWilliams's group, married hill country sheiks — their descendants became the PejSha Kaolsan.
Jones (now with ~100 followers) built 3 flying boats over roughly a year, reaching the Janastian Islands, where he adopted the surname Jonas and enrolled at Durin College of War.
The Wrosjcec Kaolsan
✅ New confirmed detail: a distinct Kaolsan people, composed of 4 primary clans/tribes engaged in ~700 years of minor (never serious) inter-clan warfare, centered on the coastal city/port of Wrosjcec. Following WW2, encouraged by the Empire and the newly-formed Kaolsan League, they settled their differences and formed the nation of "Trucial Wrosjcec," shortened to simply Wrosjcec in 1960. Famous continent-wide for handcrafted goods (each family has its own specialty) — most prized of all are Wrosjcec Saddles, sought by elite horsemen, cowboys, breeders, and HNWI horse owners worldwide.
Jonas's Expanded Bibliography
Beyond the previously-documented "Tractics: Strategy and Tactics of Armored Warfare" (3 volumes), Jonas authors "The Essence of Planetary Operations: Attack and Defense of a Planet From Space" (~2017) — codifying best practices for planetary assault, covering orbital supremacy, invasion logistics, kinetic entry tactics, urban/terrain warfare, psychological warfare, and layered planetary defense. The book becomes a standard reference across MACOFS, the Kaolsan League, and even DE-aligned factions, though critics raise ethical concerns about its orbital bombardment doctrine.
Jonas's Future: 2016 Confirmation
✅ Independently confirms and connects existing archive material: by 2016, Jonas is engaged to General Tammi Lee Akarin, Commanding Officer of the Empire's Planetary Assault Command. His "nephew" David Jones is elected Coordinator of the 25-nation, 500+ planet MACOFS, and appoints Jonas as Executive Director of MACOFS Military Forces — which Jonas accepts.
January-August 1977: The Race for the Oil Fields
Colonel Khan (Empire) races ~3,000 miles south from Kila Vas to intercept Bronson before he can secure the central oil fields; a fierce battle breaks out 500 miles north of the Great River. The PejSha Kaolsan, led by PejSha and his older brother "King" Rudy, maintain relentless guerrilla pressure against Bronson's eastern flank, helping stall his advance just 50 miles from the oil fields, and ambushing Republic of Waon reinforcements trying to reach Bronson through PejSha territory.
Jonas, recognizing his young Northern Army remains under-trained, refuses to commit it prematurely — instead reinforcing Khan with seasoned troops from the Empire, Peplle, the EUN, and NUN volunteers.
March 1977: the Janastian Warhawks (founded by Jonas in 1973, now 80,000 strong) are released from training duty. Jonas assigns Lt. Gen. Johovus Helvatica to lead them northeast through Nasobeem (doubling their force to ~160,000 with elite Nasobeemian fighters), then south across the Itsara Mountains into the Republics of Waon's northern flank — catching them completely off guard.
Mid-August: when Kaolsan League forces mass north of Khan threatening encirclement, Jonas redirects Helvatica to strike them from the east — decimating the assembled force and triggering a Kaolsan League-wide rout. Khan conducts an orderly tactical withdrawal, ceding the oil fields to Bronson's now-overwhelming army.
October 1977: The Battle South of Kila Vas
Bronson's army, now 2.5 million strong (reinforced by Androve, Faraday, and troops from Shapas/Morpasya/Anais), drives north. Jonas deploys a three-pronged defense: Khan on the right flank, Helvatica on the left, Jonas himself commanding 750,000 troops at the center. In mid-October, the forces clash 220 miles south of Kila Vas — an inconclusive but critical engagement that stalls Bronson's momentum without achieving decisive victory for either side.
September-November 1977: The Battle of Blood River
1,000 miles southwest, Rabi (Empire, ~2 million troops) is ordered to block Androve (3 million troops) from capturing the Empire's Northern Territories and destroying Desert One, the Empire's premier nuclear research/production facility. The two armies — over 5 million troops combined — clash on September 4, 1977 at a dry riverbed valley 650 miles northeast of Desert One, along a front stretching 100+ miles.
✅ The naming of "Blood River": on September 17, an extraordinarily rare thunderstorm sends water cascading over iron-rich mountain soil, turning the runoff genuinely blood-red as it surges into the Great River — a natural phenomenon that, combined with rumors of the sheer casualty count, gives the battle and the dry riverbed itself their enduring name. The battle grinds on for weeks — the "Night of the Crimson Moon" (September 24) saw a failed DE special forces raid exploited by Rabi's troops to capture supply depots.
On November 1, 1977, both sides agree to a ceasefire — one that, unknown to either Androve or Rabi at the time, becomes a decade-long standoff, with neither side launching another major offensive in the region for the remainder of the war.
The Fox Den's Blood River Origin (Alternate Telling)
⚠️ Fog-of-history note: this is a second, distinct origin story for the Fox Den (see the previously-documented Fox Den full origin and legends page, which was tied to an earlier Bronson/Androve standoff before Kila Vas). This telling ties the Fox Den specifically to the Blood River theater:
The Desert Empire's Army Corps of Engineers complete a wooden NCO club for the 3rd Mechanized Division, sited on the leeward side of a mountain ~12 miles from the front, opening October 2, 1977. Though intended for opening night only, officers decide — since no separate enlisted club exists — to let it serve both NCOs and enlisted permanently. Nearby forward medical facilities mean medical/admin personnel of both sexes frequent it too. Named the "Fox Den" after local desert foxes.
Two weeks after opening, on the night of October 16, 1977, two Imperial soldiers — Sergeant Kaldor and Corporal Pethrin, separated from their unit while scouting — are discovered drinking casually at the bar. After a tense standoff, the mood breaks: "If they're drinking our beer, they should buy a round!" The two men are welcomed, dance the foxtrot, lose a darts match, and become an overnight legend.
The password emerges: over subsequent weeks, small groups from both sides begin crossing the front lines nightly to reach the Den. By the 4th week, the password "Fox Den" lets any soldier from either side pass checkpoints safely. Officers from both sides — Desert Empire Colonel Harriman (objecting) and Brigadier Rokes (approving, "keeps morale up"); Imperial General Vasille and Colonel Jans — independently decide to look the other way once morale and reduced-desertion benefits become clear.
Mysterious resupply: unexplained shipments begin arriving — beef from the Empire, fruit/beer/condiments from the DE, 40 new tables, two restaurant ovens, with shipping labels sometimes tracing to unrelated destinations like a Maiha restaurant. Troops are told: "Don't ask questions. Just unload it and keep your mouth shut."
December 20, 1977: representatives of both armies formally (if quietly) agree to let the Den continue operating as a strict non-combat zone. When rumors reach the respective capitals, Rabi and Androve both deny everything to their superiors — Rabi: "Just rumors... no truth whatsoever." Androve: "You know how men talk... a tiny fable grows and grows." By March 1978, the Fox Den — confirmed to predate the November 1 ceasefire by roughly a month — has become the favorite gathering spot for troops across the entire front, from both sides.
December 1977 - January 1978: The Siege of Kila Vas Begins
Bronson reaches within 40 miles of downtown Kila Vas on December 3 — tantalizingly close, yet functionally unreachable. His supply lines now stretch over 1,000 miles, while the Empire's supply network into Kila Vas (ports, factories, continuous reinforcement) has become a "masterpiece of efficiency." Bronson's forces batter the outer defenses through relentless artillery duels and air raids, but the Empire's defenses — now bolstered by millions of trained refugees under Jonas — hold. Winter arrives by mid-December, crippling Bronson's already-overextended logistics while the well-supplied Empire adapts with relative ease. Facing this reality, Bronson chooses to dig in and fortify rather than risk an all-out assault, and the siege settles into a grinding stalemate as 1978 begins.
Johnson's Long March: The Elves and the First Turning
By October 14, 1977, General Johnson's force (1.2 million troops, plus 180,000 under Sheik Qem Al-Kumaar) has captured the Isle of Trade, Lake Deni, Deni Ranch, Mediqjor, and over a dozen other nations in a devastating eastern campaign, driving hundreds of thousands of refugees into Peplle. Johnson advances 150 miles into Tranchon, just 100 miles from the sacred First Turning — the only viable route to Peplle, since it fills the entire gap between the Great Mountains and the Zerti Mountains.
The Elves intervene, pledging neutrality only if Johnson refrains from entering the First Turning — a demand Johnson considers hypocritical, since Peplle/EUN forces had already been allowed through to reach him.
Johnson's Childhood Memory
Johnson hesitates, haunted by a personal memory: at 14, hunting with his father and grandfather in the First Turning, the three defied an Elven warning not to hunt there. After killing a deer, reality itself seemed to bend — days compressed into hours, the party walked in circles crossing the same tree three times, until Johnson's grandfather found a "totem" that broke the spell, letting them escape. None of the three ever spoke of it again.
Johnson's Decision
After days of deliberation, Johnson chooses to heed the Elves' warning — pulling his main force back from Tranchon (leaving Colonel Packer's contingent to block EUN westward movement), and instead skirting west of the Great Mountains to strike the NUN from the south. The Republics of Waon pledge a parallel force 700 miles further west, aiming to create a combined 1,000-mile-wide front sweeping north.
The unforeseen cost: reaching the southern flanks of the Circle Mountains (separating the NUN from the central states) takes nearly two years — the terrain (dense forests, populated nations, constant resistance from EUN/NUN/central-state coalition forces) grinds the advance down to a mile-by-mile slog, exposing the fatal flaw in coordinating two armies separated by such vast distances.
Appearances
- Creator-provided detail (ChatGPT export, "Continent Topography and Climate" — see RAW SOURCE, conversations-001.json #19)
Open Questions
- The two Fox Den origin stories (this Blood River telling and the earlier Kila Vas-standoff telling) are preserved as alternate accounts per the fog-of-history principle, not reconciled into one timeline
- The ultimate resolution — see The Ides of March Offensive: World War 3's Endgame (1979-1987), which continues directly from this page and covers the stalemate, Jonas's 1987 offensive, and the Desert Empire's collapse