Enphunian-Ihhirian Conflict of 785

Prelude

Provoked by a continued and unexplained refusal to conduct business with the elite members of Enphune, following a decree from Ivayim, the Empire accelerated its invasion plans of Ionin. Surmising that the coastal island had minimal defenses against an invasion force, and with the confidence of successful military operations in which the Empire disposed of dragons in the past, Emperor Dain Dorven, 6th Supreme Emperor of Enphune, organized the attempted hostile takeover of Ihhir in 785. Conditions for surrender were delivered to Ihhir by a Class-IV Warship, which contained the following;

• The unconditional surrender and disarmament of all defense forces
• The annexation of Ihhir under the Enphunian Empire
• Immediate cessation of all trade exports and mining operations, pending takeover and oversight by Enphunian leaders
• The permanent departure of Ivayim from the island

The Warship was sunk within minutes of delivering the message by Ivayim, having initiated a flanking maneuver from one of the island's many deep coves, with the delegation from Ihhir serving as a distraction. When other ships from the Enphunian fleet returned to deliver the news, a large dispatch of the Empire's force was sent to slay the dragon and deliver the nation to the Emperor.

Engagement

What was intended to be a brief days-long operation would soon turn into a several month long siege. While Ivayim was not particularly stronger than most dragons Enphune had dealt with previously, the synergistic strategy with the residents of Ihhir was a factor the military had underestimated, utilizing underhanded tactics and technological superiority that they had secretly obtained in deals with Urushee (A long standing rival nation of the Empire) to repel the forces from ever making landfall.

Siege cannons, underwater mines, arcane barrages and frequent hit and run tactics by their draconic overlord proved difficult to deal with, as a level of co-ordination previously unseen by military historians was demonstrated - Any attempts to attack Ivayim directly were immediately harassed by the Ihhirian's defense force, even at the cost of their own lives, while attempts to decipher their defensive strategems or bypass their coastal defenses were met with precision exploitation of weaknesses the Empire had previously been unaware of, due to their inexperience at naval warfare.

Outcome

After one and a half months of continued sieging, and no meaningful progress being made, the Empire were forced to retreat. While the city state had been battered, the indomitable resolve of Ihhir had not been pierced by their would-be invaders.