Thinking Redwall
Bi-Monthly
I Have Conquered Redwall!!
February-March 2002
Okay, so I haven’t conquered Redwall, but in the past Redwall has been conquered before. Only Cluny truly conquered the abbey, but Ironbeak and the marlfoxes came close as well. In this article of Thinking Redwall I will detail just how to defeat Redwall Abbey, as others have in the past.
Cluny the Scourge had the most success against Redwall in the book that started it all, Redwall. After numerous attempts of all shapes and sizes, it was the simplest idea that worked.
Cluny found the way to Redwall was to get an outsider to help you from within the abbey. Slagar the Cruel later implements this strategy with Vitch, to a different degree and purpose, of course. Plumpen was the perfect choice. Plumpen would never be suspected as a traitor, being a mouse like most of the abbeydwellers. Not only was he unsuspected, but Plumpen had no choice but to follow through with Cluny’s instructions, if he ever wanted to see his family again. So at night, while every beast in the abbey was asleep, Plumpen silently let in Cluny and his horde. The key to their success was the silence, to be unnoticed by the guards.
From Cluny’s adventures and misadventures at the end of Redwall, we can assume these attributes as key to Redwall’s capture: having an unsuspected inside traitor, speed and silence, the cover of night, and of course, never let your guard down after you have won.
The next to come close to conquering Redwall Abbey was General Ironbeak in Mattimeo. Ironbeak had one advantage that was key to his almost victory. This was of course the ability to fly. With this ability the General and his followers managed to take control of the abbey from the top to the bottom. This was a very effective method, so effective that all of the things Cluny implemented to capture the abbey were totally unnecessary in this attack.
Ironbeak saw this flaw with Redwall, how the only inhabitants at the top of the abbey were a few old and weak sparrows, when the rest were off to send help for Matthias. Ironbeak quickly worked his way down from the top, using his position and view of the abbey grounds to prohibit any food collecting attempts from the dwellers within the abbey.
From the noble attempt of General Ironbeak we can learn the following keys to success in Redwall’s fall: fly if you can, come as a guest unnocticed at first, patience is a virtue, and once again never let your guard down once you think you’ve won.
The final great attempt to capture Redwall was that of the marlfoxes in the book Marlfox. Together with the clan of the ferret chieftain Raventail, the marlfoxes Ascrod, Predak, and Vannan managed to take control of the entire abbey grounds outside of the abbey itself. The foxes and their crew would have obtained total victory had it not been for the keen old eyes of Friar Butty, who had spotted the vermin as they came in, undetected by the Guosim guards. Once again the fall of night and a silent entry were the main factors in the short-lived victory.
From the marlfoxes’ attempt to capture Redwall we learned yet another key to success, that of numbers. With their alliance with the ferret Raventail, the marlfoxes and their warriors easily outnumbered the few warriors within the abbey. The final key of success we see in this attempt is to keep alive. So simple as it may seem, an army of any size cannot win if all their leaders are dead. The vermin who survived after all the marlfoxes and Raventail had been killed could still have easily outnumbered and killed the abbey fighters, but without a single leader they were hopeless and set down their weapons.
Next time you or a friend of yours wants to try to take control of Redwall Abbey, make sure you implement the tricks that have worked in the past. Never go into battle outnumbered, always use stealth to your advantage, exploit any advantages, and always remember, never battle yourself when your army will be victorious as long as you survive. Just stand back, give orders, and make sure they’re the ones who surrender. Just one more thing, when you think you have won, think again…
Coming April-May: Vemin Specialties