A Charge of Chariots

A Headless Body Production
Venue: An Undisclosed Basement

Event: Playing a game for the camera

Players: Phil Gardocki running Classic Indian

               Tom Worden running Samurai

Game System: L'Art de la Guerre, 15mm, 200 points per side.

The Forces:
Samurai (list 210)
The Samurai are commanded by Yoshitune, the Strategist, his brother Darryl-San the Ordinary and his other brother Darryl-San, also Ordinary.
9 Samurai, Medium Swordsmen, Bow, Elite
4 Yari, Medium Spearmen, Mediocre
4 Mounted Samurai, Heavy Cavalry, Bow, Elite
2 Followers with Bow, Bowmen, Mediocre
Breakpoint of 19

Classical Indian (list 79)
Led by King Porus (included), Prince Malayketu, and Prince Porus (included), all Competent
3 Elephant, Elite
4 Heavy Chariots, Impetuous, Elite
6 1/2 Medium Swordsmen, 1/2 Bowmen
5 Light Infantry, Bow
1 Guardsmen, Medium Swordsmen, 2HW, Elite
1 War Wagons, Bow, Mediocre
1 Medium Cavalry, Mediocre
Breakpoint of 21

Tom has been beating me badly with the Samurai army of late, and allowed me to customize a list to deal with them. I stopped short at Palymrans, which seem to be custom made to kill Samurai, and opted for Classic Indian. The chariots should kill the medium bow/swordsmen, while the Samurai seem even up in killing the elephants.

The Board:The Indians win the initiative and elect to attack in the plains.

The Samurai right is just 3 Elite Samurai, backed by 3 mediocre units.

Their center command is identically outfitted.

Their left command is spread out over half the board with their cavalry on the far left.

The Indians are much more condensely deployed. Their "Flank Guard" Command, which should have been on the right, is on the left, figuring their Sword/bowmen can fight in the plantation well enough to support the chariotry.

The center is the chariots, to their right, the elephants.

The elephants suffer a penalty for fighting in the plantation, but still move 3 across it. They hope to do so before the Samurai can get there.

Meanwhile, 30 feet away, there is much pounding and power tools working.

The view from the Fuji Blimp.

Turn 1:

Spitakes is still recovering from the victory party the night before and gets a late start. Barely getting his main line moving.

Prince Porus is eager to start and gets the whips out.

The prince is riding on the white tiger striped chariot, 3rd from the left. I am running two included generals here. Normally, I avoid using including generals. The lack of flexibility is not worth the points saved. However, the impetuous troops are not going to be stopping to rally this game.

With similar justification King Porus is also "Included". You can't rally an elephant.

The Samurai now can see where the attacks are going to come from and mass left to meet the chariots.

Their foot on the left step forward 2 paces and loose arrows. To no effect.

Except to fix the attention of King Porus away from the mounted Samurai racing around the flank.

Turn 2:

More general advance, Arrows flying to the sky Samurai ascendant

Ok, this haiku is not 5-7-5, but I'm going with it.

At this point, it looks like turn 3 will tell the tale

It looks like all the chariots and most of the elephants will be engaged.

All the bowfire is in Japan's favor. 5 Indian units disordered to 1 Samurai.

What is this? Samurai maneuvering? Not fair! Samurai shoot around the skirmishers, slaying horse and rider. Their main line withdraws barely out of charge reach

On the far left, the Samurai have selectively destroyed the Indian Guardsmen, exposing the flank of the elephants to attack.

Their horsemen thread the needle twixt bowmen and ambush to approach the camp.

Increasing the lead of the Samurai, 7-1

Turn 3:

Up to this point, the bow command has been command point starved, barely able to keep the bowmen going. But this turn Spitakes is a flurry with activity.

The Chariot line comes apart like a firework. Charging left, center and moving forward.

King Porus picked bad time to roll a 1 for command points. But his one elephant is at corner to corner, and so can conform on a Samurai. Personally, he prods his own elephant into flank support.

The random splats with 痛い！ and आउच! are troops complaining about receiving denoting fresh missile hits.  Haiku's denote successful rallies.

All the that charging, and not much change in the score.

A couple of reasons for that. One was the same samurai unit was hit, another was a set of good rally rolls by Tom. He went 7 for 8 this game.

The one line of Samurai holds steady.

The other can retreat no more and turns and faces their foes.

The haiku signify a successful rally

Another view from the Fuji blimp.

Turn 4:

The battle for the left continues, soothing words keep some Samurai in the line. But their positions have been compromised.

Chariots have broken a group of swordsmen. And what is this? A herd of cattle have been herded onto the battlefield.

King Porus has trampled another Samurai unit.

Bringing the score to 7 - All

The Samurai right is doggedly determined to hold...

...even though their center has collapsed.

Their left is hard pressed.

The Indian camp is now in charge range.

So while the official score is 9-11 in Porus's favor, the score is really 13-11 to the Japanese.

 Turn 5:

Two Samurai units are flanked, one is destroyed.

The ???? is by a confused chariot. I forgot he was impetuous, and could, nay, must have flank charged another Samurai unit.

Another Samurai down, a chariot is lining up a shot on the Followers with Bow.

The herd of cattle are driven up the hill.

The Samurai have destroyed all resistance in the plantation, but their comrades have also fallen.

Spitakes and Prince Porus are victorious on the left.

The final reserves are being lined up. the Yari approach what appears to be lunch on the hoof.

An elephant is flank charged, but the dice went badly against Yoshitune's personal guard.

The Indian camp has fallen.

The story at the Tree of Woe. Indians 14 of 21, Samurai 17 of 19

Turn 6:

Camp or no camp, 7 of 9 elite Samurai foot troops are destroyed. Prince Porus rest's his chariot, recovering his disorder. His other chariots flank one of the two remaining Samurai, the other goes for the bowmen near the camp. That's the two points needed to win.

But the Indians were not taking chances. The herd is stampeded, and win impressively. King Porus issues an order for his reserve elephant and bowmen to ascend the hill, where they find another Followers with Bow, and disorder them as well.

King Porus flanks the Yoshitune's personal guard, who so far are victorious in defeating the monsters from the tropics, and offers terms, which are accepted.

Leaving the score 19+ for the Samurai to 14 for the Indians.

A surprising win.  The Samurai advantage of initial missile exchanges was more than made up for when the elite chariots and elephants got into tusk reach.  But also, there as the numbers advantage.  The Samurai mediocre troops, which were mandatory, were not supporting the elite Samurai in a meaningful way.  So the Samurai were fighting with their elite skills against supported Indians.  

Elite Samurai receiving a charge by Indian 1/2 Swordsmen, Bow will win 91% of the time in 3 rounds on average.  But if the Indians have support, the odds go to winning only 56% of the time in 4 rounds.  Not in the Indians favor, but better and longer to allow for chariots and elephants to do their work.