Selective Seleucids Scythe Roaming Romans

A Headless Body Production

Venue: An undisclosed basement
Event: Saturday Afternoon Across the Trans Atlantic Cable
Players: Phil Gardocki running Republican Roman
               Tommy Worden running Seleucid
Game System: L'Art de la Guerre, 15mm, 200 points per side

Title suggested by Tony Noble

The great powers have vied for control of the spice routes for decades.  Some of the battles were fought by the great names of history, but many were fought by the "also-rans", whose names were largely forgotten.

The Forces:
Republican Roman (List 53)
The Romans are commanded by Marius (not the fourth founder of Rome, or even his son, but some other Marius), Darrylious and Darrylious.  All are Ordinary and Included, one was unreliable.
10 Legionaries, Heavy Swordsmen, Armor, Impact
3 Triarii, Heavy Spearmen, Armor, 2 are Mediocre, 1 is Elite
3 Roman Horsemen, Heavy Cavalry
2 Illyrians, Light Cavalry Bow
1 Cretan, Light Infantry Bow Elite
5 Triarii, Light Infantry, Javelin, 4 elite
Breakpoint of 25

Seleucid (list 42)
Commanded by Seleucus the Strategist and two ordinary sub commanders
2 Cataphracts  
2 Elephants, Elite
2 Thorakitai,  Medium Spearmen, Armour,
1 Thracian,  Medium Swordsmen 2HW,
2 Cretans,  Light infantry, bow, Elite
3 Archers,  Light infantry bow
2 Skythians,  Light cavalry bow
1 Agyraspids,  Pikemen, Elite
2 Phalanx,  Pikemen
2 Scythed Chariots
4 Jewish Swordsmen,  Medium swordsmen, impact
1 Javelinmen,  Light infantry, javelin
1 Slingers,  Light infantry, sling
1 Archers,  Light infantry, bow

Breakpoint of 24

Both Tom and myself had been listening to Tim "MadAxeMan's" podcast articles on list building and it shows in our lists.  I almost never use "Included" generals, or less than competent, but decided maximize the army size by minimizing the command costs.  In my case I went from +12 points of command costs to -12, for a savings of 24 points.  Tom was more cautious, and had a Strategist running a huge, 16 unit command including unmaneuverable and impetuous troops, but otherwise two ordinary and one included commander.  

I was thinking I would enjoy having the lack of control when the the lines collide and all my commanders would need an extra command point to do anything.  And it was fun.

The Board

Marius consults with his priests and the auguries auspicious.  He will attack at dawn.

On the Seleucid right are 3 units of light foot, ready to invest the field and support the flank.

In front of the camp are Hebrews and 3 Taxis's of pike

Seleucid himself, mounted in his elephant tower has the left flank.  His command it full of disparate troop types.

Darrylious takes the left with all the Roman horse, supported by a Triarii

While Marius and Darrylious occupy the center and right.

I have nothing but Ordinary, Included Commanders.  I want this army to be able to move.  So almost everyone is in a block that can move on 1 command point.

Mars looks on from on high and is pleased.

Turn 1:

The Roman horse races across the field.

My goal is to pin the Hebrews and the Phalanx, and let the Legions concentrate on the rest.

Both commanders get two command points.

Enough for a double march.

The Hebrews make a loud noise, then settle in for a belly laugh at the fleeing Roman lights.

The Selecuids advance as command points allow.  As a Strategist, he rolled a 1 for command points, and so the Scythed Chariots were left behind.

It is on the left where he will throw his heaviest blow.

Another view of the gods.

Turn 2:

The Hebrews are Medium Swordsmen and look vulnerable and isolated to the Roman Heavy Cavalry.

The Roman heavy infantry line advances.

Cataphracts beat Legionnaires 1 on 1.

My thoughts here is to keep marching forward.  If the Cataphracts charge, the Legions can stand long enough to flank them.

Odds interlude:

A cataphract will beat a heavy swordsmen 71% of the time, but it takes over 4 rounds of combat on average to do so.

If the swordsmen has support, the odds go down to 34%.  This does not include the supporting unit advancing and flank charging the cataphract.

Selecuid lights advance on the outnumbered Cretan archers.  The Hebrews ZOC the Roman horse.

Pike an Elephant advance in sync.

Chariots advance, replacing the light horse.

Cataphracts charge, but whiff their die rolls.

Turn 3:

Cretans are considered Elite for a reason, out shooting their Seleucid counterparts.

Roman horsemen charge!  These are not real cavalry.  Caesar himself thought all it took to create a cavalryman was to put a footman on horse.  The Hebrews are Impact Swordsmen, and I forgot that they keep their impact before non-impact mounted.  Only luck, and armor, saved the day for the Roman horsemen. 

As it was, Darrylious (upper left, with the red die on the stand) narrowly missed being slain by an errant sword stroke.

Shock of impact begins.  A Velite and a Legion charge the Scythed Chariots.  The Velite is dispersed, while the Legion disperse their foe.

On the left, only some of the legions charged.  I was thinking going for the whole line or not and settled for just a Legion supported by a Mediocre Triarii. My reasoning is this.  The Legion had an advantage over the Spearmen they charged, albeit a small one.  But if I charge the whole line, my legions on the far left would be overlapped by the Phalanx.  So in the end I was still yielding an overlap position.  If it was going to happen anyway, and nothing else changes, the odds are going to be exactly the same but one turn later.  

There was a chance, a small one, that the spearmen would be destroyed on contact, and if so, the elephant's flank turned.  That didn't happen, but the spearmen did take a hit, and so the that turning of the flank could still happen sooner.  

Meanwhile, the Mediocre Triarii supporting them should be able to take a Chariot hit or two, and I don't care.  

That was a lot of thought on what was basically a +3 to +2 battle.

The score is a tie at 5 all.  Scythed Chariots do not count for the total.

The Roman cavalry command is in serious trouble.  And since their commander is engaged, there is little he can do about it. 

The Seleucid army surges forward.  Romans roll a stunning series of 2's and 3's, nearly breaking a commander's legion. 

But the Seleucid commander also proved fallible to the capricious dice god, and had a least a pair of 1's of his own.  

Since we both were running vastly ordinary armies, it was only fitting that most of our die rolls were in the 2-4 range.  No one really whiffed much, and no one rolled a bunch of 6's either. 

The Cataphracts break off.

Taking the score 8 to 9.

Turn 4:
So far, this is a pretty good game.

Once again, Darrylious has only 1 command point to call for help.  And that is not enough.  But he can rally himself, and does.

First legion is crushed.  But the plan allowed for it, as two Triarii stand in the way of the Phalanx flanking the main Roman line.

Both lines are now crumbling.  But the elephant on the Seleucid left is now both disordered and vulnerable.

The Legions chase the Cataphracts down, exposing their flanks.

Aries is pleased at the carnage.

At his Tree of Woe, the toll is counted. 

The Roman Cavalry get a break!

The Legions likewise get 2 breaks, traded for 1 of their own.

The Cataphracts cannot retreat, and so charge, destroying another Legion.

The Death toll mounts.  14-13.  But other than an elephant, the Seleucid dead are low cost mediums, the Romans high cost Legionnaires. 

Turn 5:

With Darrylious's win, he can now issue commands.  The Cretans retire, replaced by a pair of Scythian Light Horse.

In the center, another Elephant falls, leaving just the Thracians and their cruel Falx's to hack at the legionaries.

A Cataphract is routed.  But a Legion is flanked.

The tide seems to have turned against the Seleucid.

The Hebrews and Roman Horse trade losses.

Agyraspids (Pike, Elite, included commander) run over their Triarii (Heavy Spearmen, Armor Mediocre)  But one Triarii, though flank, still stands.

Cataphracts charge, nearly destroying another legion.

Making the score 20-17

Turn 6:

Once again, Darrylious is engaged, and dodges an arrow.

While his brother Darrylious starts to redeploy the legions on the right flank.

But he has a conundrum.  Does he go to a flank the cataphract, when the legion engaged with it has 3 hits?  In the end, prudence (or cowardice) prevails.

The Seleucids are one away from their break point.

Seleucid javelinmen run off the Scythians.

And in an unrelated note, Darrylious dodged his last arrow and is slain.

In the center, the Elite Triarii hold.  But one of the other Taxis of pike are seriously disordered and about to be flanked.

And in a nearly miraculous combat, the last Cataphract is dispersed.

Closing out a very exciting game with a 24 -21 win for the Romans.