L' Art de la Guerre Andelusian Arabs vs Burmese

A Headless Body Production

Venue:   Lancaster Host, Lancaster Pennsylvania.
Event:    HMGS's Fall-In
Players: Phil Gardocki running Burmese

                  Chris Corman, Andalusian Arab
                 
Game System: L' Art de la Guerre, 15mm, 200 points


The Forces:
The Burmese, led by the Kings Narathihapate, Pagan and Pagan, all Competent.
      5 Elite Elephants, full fat.
      4 Medium Spearmen
      6 Bowmen
      2 Elite Medium Swordsmen, 2HW
      4 Light Infantry, Bow
      1 Elite Light Infantry, Firearm
Breakpoint...22

Andalusians 

      Who knows?   The list has Heavy Cavalry Impact, Light Cavalry Javelin, Heavy Spearmen and a couple of Javelinmen.  There is an option for Impetuous Knights which I think were there.

Breakpoint...24


About the Kings.

Anyone that has read my Anglo-Irish battle reports knows of my running joke of naming my generals Larry, Darryl and Darryl.  So too, the Kings Pagan and Pagan.  But it is not entirely a joke. Using Wikipedia as a single source.  Burma had a number of kingdoms, some were merely city-states, but the name Pagan was a common royalty name.  I can't say they took to the field together, but the possibility existed. 

The Board:

The last fight for the weekend.  The Burmese go into this with a win and a mutual destruction.  The Andalusian's win the initiative and elect to attack in the plains.  They select a plantation and a road, while the Burmese select a hill, 2 fields, and a gully.  After all the dicing, the majority of the terrain is on the side of the Burmese.

Deployment

The Andalusians deploy all their cavalry on their right. with strong infantry in the center.

On their left is another strong infantry force.

On the Burmese left, King Pagan deploys with 2 elephants, and 6 infantry units, armed with bow and spear.

I found a wonderful camp at the flee market.  It comes in 3 pieces to suit size and plan.  King Narathihapate deploys with one elephant  and three supporting foot units visible.

The other King Pagan with only his elephant and their runners visible.

FIGHT!

(ok, I have been watching too much anime this weekend)

Andelusians race across the board.  Picking up a missile hit for their trouble.

Their light horse splits to screen both their right and center command.

Their left command advances without fear.

King Pagan opts not to advance at all.  Arrows loose, and 3 light horse are now disordered.

King Narathihapate reveals his ambush.  Another elephant ascends the crest of the hill.

King Pagan also reveals his ambush.  Archers trade missile fire.

Turn 2:

Operating on the assumption Javelinmen are good against elephants.  Andelusian javelinmen enter the fields.  The damaged horse archer line retreats for a reorganization, while the remaining horse archers, relying on their speed gang up on the corner of King Pagan's line.

Andelusian spearmen enter missile range, and begin to take hits.

The Andelusian left halt, rally, and continue to shoot.

Burmese bowmen cut off the Andelusian horse archers, preventing them from evading.  They are attacked with spearmen, with elephant support, and King Pagan.  The Andelusian horse blow the spots off the dice, and survive.

The Burmese center holds it's ground, awaiting results from the left.

As noted earlier, meh.

The Burmese have 1 point towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andelusian Arabs are 5 points towards their demoralization level of 24.

Turn 3:

Andelusian horns signal the charge!  Javelinmen charge in the field, and are defeated.  Their horse runs down a bowman and a light infantry unit.

The Andelusian heavy spear units are picking up numerous hits from missile fire.

The other heavy foot approaches the lone elephant on the hill.

At the bottom of the turn, Andelusian javelinmen are destroyed., A heavy cavalry is disordered, a light horse is also destroyed.

With 3 disorders on the infantry line, and with overlaps on both sides, and the potential of trapping some cavalry, King Narathihapate orders a charge.  One heavy spearmen is trampled into the mud.  There was a cost though in Burmese Bowmen.

With the approach of heavy infantry, King Pagan retreats his elephant.

The Burmese are 9 points towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andalusian Arabs are 14 points towards their demoralization level of 24.

Turn 5:

In a daring move, Andalusian horse charges an elephant in the rear and scores!

The Andalusian center is near collapse.  Another Heavy Spear falls, but so too, a Burmese Bowman.  In the rear, impetuous knight are held in check by the rule that even impetuous units don't have to charge elephants.

On the Andalusian left, the Heavy spear decides to hold rather than advance into the plantation and hill.

The Burmese are 11 points towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andalusian Arabs are 15 points towards their demoralization level of 24.

Turn 6:

Save some lights in the background, the Andalusian right flank has all but vanished.

The center has some power left, in the form of a pair of knights and a damaged spear.

On the Burmese right, King Pagan deems he does not have the power to deal with the Andalusian forces arrayed against him.

The Burmese are 11 points towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andalusian Arabs are 18 points towards their demoralization level of 24.

Turn 7:

One of the problems that must be dealt with in this game, is that the game devolves down to 3, 1 on 1 command combats.  Supporting another command from a current command often tips the balance on that fight, temporarily overwhelming your opponent.  But when you have a blow out win, then the problem is how to reinforce the adjacent command.  

With cavalry armies, this is relatively easy.  They have the maneuverability and the speed.  Elephant and medium foot, not as much.  Close order foot, obviously, is the worst at this.

So, while the Burmese have won the left and center, they still need 6 points to demoralize the  Andalusians.  Their weakest command on the right dares not leave the plantation, as doing so runs the risk of giving the Andalusian's a bunch of points, enough to win the game for them.

The Burmese are totally suffering from hubris here, for example see the above monologue.  Andalusian general throws caution to the winds, and charges and elephant, routing it, then suffers the misfortune of having it rampage through his lines. 

The Andalusian center knights do not have enough command points to turn and leave, and so wheel away from the rout lines of their center command spear units.

On the far flank, the score here is 1 to 1.

King Pagan begins to pull his fragmented force together.

One elephant had turned in order to flank charge the last heavy spearmen in the line, decides to slide and slams a Knight in the rear. From the picture, it looks like he traveled a long arc to get there, but in truth, it was a straight shot, and then conformed on the rear.

Ohhhh, the excitement!  The score is now 1-2

The Burmese are 15 points towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andalusian Arabs are 21 points towards their demoralization level of 24.

And now, for something completely different.  Pike attacking war-wagons.

Turn 8:

The Andalusian commander on the right sees what will happen if he sticks around.  And dives towards the center of the Burmese lines, defended only by a Light Infantry bow.  Just off panel to the lower right is the Burmese camp!

Another cavalry on elephant charge.  This one also started as a flank charge.

Desperate to do something, Andalusian heavy spear split in prep for an assault on the hill.

There are a lot of complications in this frame.  Burmese bowfire is vectored in 3 angles upon the Andalusian General (lower portion of the pane, with the red number 1 on it).  But his armor proves resilient against their arrows. But one of the bowmen ZOC's the General, so he cannot make the charge on the Light Infantry in front of him.  In the center, another elephant catches a knight in the flank and tramples it into the ground.  The two elephants, side by side, offers a comparison of the painting styles between the one I bought, (further away in lighter grey) and my own, (nearer and darker)

A Burmese spear unit is sent to the hill, should Andalusian intentions become real, and time permits.

Final shot.  Two successful rallies for the Burmese.

The Burmese are 13 points towards their demoralization level of 22.
The Andalusian Arabs are 24 points towards their demoralization level of 24.