Ahmed Shah was a cautious and vigilant general. Taking with him forty or fifty horsemen, he used, in company with his son, Timoor Shah, to visit daily every part of his army, and reconnoitre the enemy's camp. At night, a body of 500 horse advanced as near as possible to the enemy's position; remaining under arms till daybreak; whilst other bodies went the rounds of the whole encampment. On the day of the great battle, the Dooranees marched from their camp to the attack, when objects were only just visible. The Maharatta army was drawn up facing the east, a great mistake on their part, as they thus had the sun in their eyes; whilst the Dooranees fronted the west. The Maharattas entered the field with determined courage, each having taken a betel-leaf in the presence of all his comrades, and sworn to fight to the last extremity. The Shah ordered his trumpets to sound to battle. Breast works of sand had been thrown up, under cover of which the Nawab Vizier's troops advanced; upon which the bildars, or pioneers, proceeded half musket-shot in advance of the cover and threw up another; and in this manner the troops progressed about two miles, until they were within long musket-shot of the enemy. The Rohillas fired volleys of rockets,[49] as many as 2,000 at a time, which not only terrified the horses by their dreadful noise, but did so much execution, that the Maharattas could not advance to charge them. The Mussulmans did not make much use of their guns. The Dooranees were men of great bodily strength, and their horses, which were of the Toorkee breed,[50] were rendered hardy by constant exercise. Casi Rai Pundit, who was an eye-witness and attached to Ahmed Shah's allies, says: "About noon, the Shah received advice that the Rohillas and the Grand Vizier's division had the worst of the engagement, upon which he sent for the Nesuckchees--a corps of horse, wearing a peculiar dress and arms, and who were always employed in executing the Shah's immediate commands--2,000 being assembled, he sent 500 of them to his own camp to drive out all the armed people and fugitives whom they should find there, that they might take part in the action; the remaining 1,500 he ordered to meet the fugitives from the battle, and to kill every man who should refuse to return to the charge. This command they executed so effectually that, after killing a few, they compelled 7,000 or 8,000 men to return to the field."