Heraclea 280 B.C.
11 January 2011 22:29![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kmusserAnother blog post for a snowy evening, this time it's a gaming session report. The game is Ancients, a quick 2 player wargame featuring battles of antiquity. My opponent is ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
auror. The battle is the Battle of Heraclea.
To give some background, this is the first battle in the Pyrrhic War. Rome was still a young Republic in the process of consolidating Italy. King Pyrrhus of Epirus came to the end of the Greek cities in southern Italy being threatened by Rome. Pyrrhus amassed a large army, including elephants from Egypt and after crossing to Italy set up camp behind the river Siris and waited for the Romans. When the Roman army crossed the river he attacked. It would be the first battle between Greek and Roman forces and the first time Romans encountered elephants. Historically Pyrrhus won the battle but with heavy casualties, a typically Pyrrhic victory.
I was hoping for a climatic stuggle in which the victor is in doubt until the last moment, instead I was handed one of my quickest defeats ever.
A little about the game - the armies are represented by blocks, usually 3 or 4 to a unit. Card play determines which units you can move on a given turn. Most units can move and fight on the same turn. Results of fighting are determined by die rolls, with stronger units getting to roll more dice. If a unit is not destroyed or forced to retreat it may fight back. Cavalry and units with leaders can follow-up a successful attack with another. Victory is determined by the elimination of units, in this battle 7 units must be eliminated.
auror took the role of Pyrrhus, with the Greek phalanx (heavy infantry) in the center, some light bowman on the left flank and the cavalry and elephants on the right flank.
I am Publius Valerius Laevinus in command of the Romans with our legions in the center and right with cavalry on the left - all with our back to the river.
Turn 1 - The entire Greek infantry line moves forward. I respond moving a couple of light units on my right towards the Greek archers.
Turn 2 - The Greek cavalry leader is inspired and begins a charge towards my left flank. I respond by ordering my skirmishers to go forward and harass the enemy and then retreat, unfortunately I don't really have many skirmishers, they force one cavalry unit back, but don't actually do any damage.
Turn 3 - The attack on my left continues with the cavalry I pushed back coming right back to the front, and the elephants strike my skirmishers who run like the cowards they are. I don't have any effective response for my left flank, so I make an attempt to shift the focus of the battle to the right flank where I move up my heavy infantry in preparation for an attack next turn (not pictured).
Turn 4 Epirus - Everything turns to dust as the Greek cavalry charges and my right flank completely evaporates. My cavalry, trapped against the river is eliminated - the Greek cavalry leader takes out a light infantry unit at the end of my line - and then the true death blow, the elephants charge straight for the middle of our legions. The front line doesn't even slow them down, my leader retreats to the second line, but the elephants continue their charge and our heavy infantry freaks at the sight and doesn't even try to fight, my leader runs for the hills. Stunned, I've lost 6 units in a single turn and the two units remaining on the right are in a bad situation.
Turn 4 Rome - I know to have any chance of a turn around I need to save the 2 trapped units on the right. I abandon my plans for the left flank and order all my units currently engaged in close combat to fight back. My legions and cavalry force back but fail to eliminate their respective opponents. Unfortunately my aforementioned cowardly skirmishers fail in their attack and are eliminated by the Greeks return fire, losing my 7th unit and the game.
The mighty Greek phalanx never even entered the fray, the Roman legions dispersed by a cavalry charge and the scary elephants. At this rate Rome won't manage to conquer Italy, much less the rest of the world.
auror. The battle is the Battle of Heraclea. To give some background, this is the first battle in the Pyrrhic War. Rome was still a young Republic in the process of consolidating Italy. King Pyrrhus of Epirus came to the end of the Greek cities in southern Italy being threatened by Rome. Pyrrhus amassed a large army, including elephants from Egypt and after crossing to Italy set up camp behind the river Siris and waited for the Romans. When the Roman army crossed the river he attacked. It would be the first battle between Greek and Roman forces and the first time Romans encountered elephants. Historically Pyrrhus won the battle but with heavy casualties, a typically Pyrrhic victory.
I was hoping for a climatic stuggle in which the victor is in doubt until the last moment, instead I was handed one of my quickest defeats ever.
A little about the game - the armies are represented by blocks, usually 3 or 4 to a unit. Card play determines which units you can move on a given turn. Most units can move and fight on the same turn. Results of fighting are determined by die rolls, with stronger units getting to roll more dice. If a unit is not destroyed or forced to retreat it may fight back. Cavalry and units with leaders can follow-up a successful attack with another. Victory is determined by the elimination of units, in this battle 7 units must be eliminated.
auror took the role of Pyrrhus, with the Greek phalanx (heavy infantry) in the center, some light bowman on the left flank and the cavalry and elephants on the right flank. I am Publius Valerius Laevinus in command of the Romans with our legions in the center and right with cavalry on the left - all with our back to the river.
Turn 1 - The entire Greek infantry line moves forward. I respond moving a couple of light units on my right towards the Greek archers.
Turn 2 - The Greek cavalry leader is inspired and begins a charge towards my left flank. I respond by ordering my skirmishers to go forward and harass the enemy and then retreat, unfortunately I don't really have many skirmishers, they force one cavalry unit back, but don't actually do any damage.
Turn 3 - The attack on my left continues with the cavalry I pushed back coming right back to the front, and the elephants strike my skirmishers who run like the cowards they are. I don't have any effective response for my left flank, so I make an attempt to shift the focus of the battle to the right flank where I move up my heavy infantry in preparation for an attack next turn (not pictured).
Turn 4 Epirus - Everything turns to dust as the Greek cavalry charges and my right flank completely evaporates. My cavalry, trapped against the river is eliminated - the Greek cavalry leader takes out a light infantry unit at the end of my line - and then the true death blow, the elephants charge straight for the middle of our legions. The front line doesn't even slow them down, my leader retreats to the second line, but the elephants continue their charge and our heavy infantry freaks at the sight and doesn't even try to fight, my leader runs for the hills. Stunned, I've lost 6 units in a single turn and the two units remaining on the right are in a bad situation.
Turn 4 Rome - I know to have any chance of a turn around I need to save the 2 trapped units on the right. I abandon my plans for the left flank and order all my units currently engaged in close combat to fight back. My legions and cavalry force back but fail to eliminate their respective opponents. Unfortunately my aforementioned cowardly skirmishers fail in their attack and are eliminated by the Greeks return fire, losing my 7th unit and the game.
The mighty Greek phalanx never even entered the fray, the Roman legions dispersed by a cavalry charge and the scary elephants. At this rate Rome won't manage to conquer Italy, much less the rest of the world.
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no subject
Date: 12 Jan 2011 19:12 (UTC)Also note: A bottle of wine was consumed this evening during the four battles... *grin*
no subject
Date: 12 Jan 2011 20:43 (UTC)The Senate will debate the entire matter, examining your battle plan in detail and engaging in extensive Monday-morning-lanista-ing. Your character and manhood will be called into question. Your political career will end. Your family will be disgraced and have to go live in the country for a generation. Your clientes will desert you for other politicians.
And then the Senate will vote to raise an entirely new army and send it out against the Greeks... ;-)
I confess I bought CCA but have not yet played it, partly out of fear that it will turn into a new addiction. I'm a completist, so if I get into it...
no subject
Date: 12 Jan 2011 20:52 (UTC)no subject
Date: 12 Jan 2011 21:05 (UTC)no subject
Date: 12 Jan 2011 22:16 (UTC)