A gentle breeze swept across the Gods Eye, sending a cascade of ripples over the surface.
The longship, adorned with the black bat banner, pushed vigorously forward.
Arthur looked back toward the northern shore at Harrenhal, its five massive towers jutting into the sky from behind its impossibly thick outer walls. Between the fortress to the north, the massive lake to the south, and the Trident's estuary further afield, it formed a robust, three-dimensional defensive network.
If they could extend that control to the Bay of Crabs and Blackwater Bay, the network would become an impenetrable, sweeping blockade. But even two centuries ago, the Crownlands had just been a contested border region, devoid of any true cities.
"The number of longships is decent for now, but we need to ramp up their training," Arthur calculated.
Currently, the Gods Eye Fleet consisted of roughly thirty longships, usually docked at Harrentown and Gods Eye Town. This matched the size of the longship fleet maintained by the Isle of Tarth—though Tarth also possessed additional merchant cogs and true oceangoing carracks. If House Whent were to requisition the boats of local fishermen and ferrymen in an emergency, doubling their fleet size wouldn't be a problem.
"Ho!"
"Ho!"
"Left, right," the rowing master chanted, pounding out the rhythm on his drum as the oarsmen, muscles bulging, hauled on their heavy wooden oars.
Even at a longship's impressive speed, fully patrolling the Gods Eye took considerable time. If the wind was right, the longships equipped with single, square-rigged sails could cut through the water much faster.
Centuries ago, the Ironborn had used their longships to strike deep into the Riverlands via the intricate waterways. By pairing Harrenhal with a dedicated longship fleet, the strategic value of both would be multiplied exponentially.
Before Aegon's Conquest, the successive Kings of the Rivers and the Hills from House Hoare had ruled the Riverlands, yet they had never truly mastered the synergy between ships, waterways, and super-fortresses. Because the River Kings couldn't fully unlock the region's military potential, they had all ultimately fallen.
"These longships remind me of the Orphans of the Greenblood, though yours are much grander," Ser Lucas remarked. "The Greenblood's flow isn't nearly this deep, and Dorne certainly doesn't have lakes of this size."
The Greenblood was a shallow, sluggish river. It earned its name from the muddy, silt-choked green hue of its waters. Dorne was perpetually starved for water; a river with a flow rate that would be considered utterly average anywhere else in the Seven Kingdoms was practically worshipped as Dorne's Mother River.
"And I intend to use these longships to protect this beautiful lake," Arthur said, gazing out over the water.
"Many castles in the Riverlands have longships, but none of their lords pay as much attention to the rivers and fleets as you do, Arthur," Lucas Roote observed, watching the bow of the ship cut through the waves.
The Riverlands' longship fleets weren't particularly famous, certainly not when compared to their legendary longbowmen or heavy horse.
"That's because they don't truly understand the land or the rivers," Arthur replied. "The Riverlands cannot afford to neglect its naval power."
"If you don't adapt, you can't advance," Ser Lucas agreed, gripping the ship's rail.
"Perhaps they just don't have the same geographical advantages as Harrenhal," Wylis Wode suggested.
Historically, Riverlords had relied on building massive castles to survive in a region surrounded by enemies and devoid of natural borders. The castles Wylis was referring to were Riverrun, the Twins, Maidenpool, and Seagard.
Riverrun and the Twins were formidable strongholds explicitly designed to hold off the Westerlands and the North, respectively. Other castles, like Raventree Hall, Stone Hedge, and Darry, couldn't compare to their defensive capabilities.
The triangular Riverrun sat precisely at the confluence of the Red Fork and the Tumblestone. With a man-made moat that could be flooded at a moment's notice, the castle could instantly transform into an island fortress. Riverrun guarded the vital western crossings into the heart of the Riverlands; it was the unavoidable chokepoint for any Westerlands army marching out of the Golden Tooth. The Riverlords could use Riverrun to bottle the Westermen up on the plains between the two rivers, or force them south to cross further upstream—where Houses Piper and Vance would be waiting to hammer them.
The Twins, acting as a massive fulcrum on the Green Fork, guarded the only crossing point on the long stretch of river between the Neck and the Ruby Ford. If a Northern army attempted to invade the Riverlands, the closed gates of the Twins would force them to march painfully far south, right into the teeth of a waiting Riverlands army at the Ruby Ford.
But the absolute best strategic position in the Riverlands was Harrenhal. The second best was the now-ruined Oldstones. House Mudd's Oldstones had sat squarely on the upper reaches of the Blue Fork, effectively projecting power over the other Riverlords before it was eventually destroyed by the Andals.
The Ironborn's profound understanding of the Riverlands was perfectly demonstrated by House Hoare. They used the rivers to transport their armies and constructed the monolithic Harrenhal right on the shores of the Gods Eye. Relying on their longship armadas and Harrenhal, House Hoare had completely seized the Riverlands by the throat.
Once trade flourished around Harrenhal again, Arthur knew he could essentially incubate an entire new city. Armed with a super-fortress, a thriving city, and a dedicated longship fleet, Harren the Black had climbed higher and achieved more success than any River King before him.
It was just a shame about the dragons; that particular glitch in the system had reduced Harren's imperial ambitions to ash.
If you want to conquer the Riverlands, learn from those who came before. The ultimate secret to dominating the region was a synchronized, combined-arms approach using both land and water routes.
"As long as you have the gold dragons, building up the Gods Eye Fleet will be fast," Ser Lucas noted.
For now, their fleet was small, designed solely to project power across the Gods Eye and its immediate shores.
"And with the fleet, transporting goods across the lake is much faster," Wylis added, nodding.
River and sea trade required a fleet to protect it. The Redwyne Fleet, for instance, had been built on a massive scale explicitly to guarantee the security of their maritime shipping. Aside from selling their famous wines, House Redwyne engaged in international trade and whaling. Lord Paxter Redwyne commanded a staggering two hundred warships, alongside five times as many merchant carracks, wine cogs, trade galleys, and whalers.
"Longships are relatively cheap to build, nowhere near the exorbitant cost of full-sized war galleys," Arthur considered. "The real task is training the fishermen and sailors. River combat is completely different from naval warfare on the open sea; if we want proper blue-water sailors, we'll have to recruit them in King's Landing."
The Gods Eye Fleet could currently guarantee total control of the lake. Projecting power to the Bay of Crabs estuary was a long-term goal.
The immediate purpose of training the fleet was to protect their current trade routes. The secondary purpose was to prepare for the Greyjoy Rebellion in 289 AC, as the Riverlands would inevitably become a theater of war. For repelling an Ironborn invasion, longships were the perfect size and countermeasure.
Overland portage? I can play that game just as well as the Ironborn, Arthur thought.
In terms of timelines, Arthur was easily the first lord in Westeros actively preparing for the Greyjoy Rebellion. Balon Greyjoy was a bizarre, unpredictable lunatic; absolutely no one saw his rebellion coming.
When Balon's father, Quellon, died fighting at the Shield Islands during Robert's Rebellion, Balon hadn't pressed the attack on the Reach. Instead, he waited until Robert had been securely seated on the Iron Throne for six years. He waited until Robert's nominal heirs were born, and the combined power of the great alliance looked utterly impregnable on paper.
Then, Balon decided to rebel. It was practically suicidal.
Balon convinced himself that Robert's rule was unstable, that the King lacked the support of the high lords, and that Robert couldn't possibly organize an army to oppose him. He also genuinely believed he could crush the Royal Fleet at sea.
The end result was Robert beating Balon into the dirt.
The Greyjoy Rebellion was spearheaded by Balon as the self-proclaimed King. His younger brother, Euron Crow's Eye, served as the primary strategist, while his other brothers, Victarion and Aeron, along with Balon's eldest sons, Rodrik and Maron, acted as the primary commanders. Beyond the Greyjoy family, the various lords of the Iron Islands—like House Harlaw and House Blacktyde—all mobilized their forces. (As for Balon's youngest son, Theon, he was currently just a small child and completely irrelevant.)
They're dead men walking anyway, Arthur mused coldly. Might as well make their deaths useful. I'll just be borrowing their heads for a bit.
Arthur had no desire to alter the outcome of the Greyjoy Rebellion; his only interest was extracting maximum profit from the bloodshed.
Killing a Greyjoy or slaying an Ironborn lord would be highly visible, undeniable acts of martial glory. Since the Greyjoy Rebellion was doomed from the start, Arthur fully intended to use it as his personal ladder to the top.