Puissant Pyrrhics

A Headless Body Production

Venue: Eisenhower Hotel
Event: Cold Wars, 2025
Theme: Classic Age, 6 mounted units maximum, Round 2
Players: Phil Gardocki running Pyrrhic, list 44
               Jay Stone running Triumvirate Roman
Game System: L'Art de la Guerre, 25mm, 200 points per side.
Font: Times New Roman

Other titles suggested: Plenitude of Pyrrhics, Ephemeral Epirus, Epidemic of Epiorites

The Forces

The pike taxis are commanded by Pyrrhus of house Aeacid, Toparch of Molossia and Epirus, a Strategist, and Agapitós, the Brilliant.  The Cavalry are commanded by Agapitós*, the Ordinary and Included.

2 Taxis of Hypaspist, Pike, Elite
5 Taxis of Pike
2 Mercenary Hoplites
8 Rhodians, Illyrians, Cretans. Various Light Infantry with bow, javelin or sling
2 Elephants
1 Xystophoroi, Heavy Cavalry, Elite
1 Greek Heavy Cavalry
2 Thracian Light Cavalry, Javelin
Breakpoint...23

 

Commanders are a Brilliant, a Competent, and an Ordinary who was Included and a Numidian Ally.  

This will come up later.

2 Numidian Medium Cavalry, Javelin, Elite
4 Numidian Light Cavalry, Javelin

1 Numidian, Light Infantry Javelin
10 Legionaries, Heavy Swordsmen, Impact, Armor, 4 are Elite
1 Medium Swordsmen
2 Thracians, Medium Swordsmen, 2HW
2 Velites, Light Infantry Javelin
Breakpoint...22

Pyrrhus is most famous because of his after action evaluation after his battle against the Romans near Asculum.

Plutarch quoted him as saying, "Αν νικήσουμε σε μια ακόμη μάχη με τους Ρωμαίους, θα καταστραφούμε εντελώς."

Which is Greek to me, and probably to you as well.

Wikipedia has the quote translated as, "If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined"

Display Conventions: When you see a word bubble like "Ouch!" or "Heus!", or "Ωχ!", this implies a disorder from missiles. Letters in parenthesis represent some value change for the specific unit. For commanders it is s for strategist, b for Brilliant, c for Competent and o for Ordinary, u for unreliable. For troops it is e for Elite, and m for Mediocre. Other abbreviations, Hvy Heavy, XB Crossbow, LB, Longbow, Jav Javelin, 2HW 2 Handed Weapons, B Bow, Kn Knight, HKn Heavy Knight, HC Heavy Cavalry, Md Medium, Sgt Sergeants, LC Light Cavalry, Chr Chariot, Cat Cataphract, Pa Pavise, LI, Light Infantry, HG Hand Gun, FKn Foot Knight, Hvy Spear, Heavy Spearmen. I tend not to point out Light Infantry, as it clutters the pictures for no real value.

Inappropriately capitalized words are used to highlight terms that are specific to the game. For example Brilliant, Competent and Ordinary have specific game values for the commanders.

"XX" implies a unit killed in that location on that turn.

Any vagueness or inaccuracies in the descriptions is to be considered is to be considered Fog of War, and is part of the fun.

The Board:

The limited horse for the theme occupies the Roman right flank

The center has full bore legions, and supporting Spanish

The Roman left is a solid force of 4 more cohorts and supporting Thracians

Pyrrhus takes the left with the bulk of his pike

Agapitós takes the center with his phalanx

Off in the distance, Agapitós forms up with his horse.

The official military observer from Howandaland is lamenting his choice of seats.

Turn 1:

Saving 3 points on buying an ally...  The cavalry go unresponsive.

 The odds of an ally/unresponsive at least once in a 3 round tourney is 1-.8333*.8333*.8333 or 42.14%

To be fair, the reason for the ally wasn't to save 3 points, but to get Numedians.  He was going for the unusual troop type of Javelin armed Medium Cavalry and 4 Light Horse with Javelins.

The Roman center command advances at a trot.

While their left stumbles along...

Pyrrhus also double times it.  Not having enough CP's to keep his lights up though.

Agapitós advances to the fields edge and pivots.

Agapitós splits his command in twain.  The lights to keep one legion from deploying rapidly, the other to threaten the flank of the center legion when it pivots onto Agapitós line of battle.

Turn 2:

Romes right flank remains hesitant.  

Their center command splits in... Thrain?

The Scutari advance, and are surprised by archers in the field 

Pyrrhus continues to advance.  His left flank slides left, making the hesitant command responsive.

My thought here was to try to run off the cavalry command...

Pyrrhus and Agapitós line up.

Agapitós orders a charge.  Supported by light foot.  The dice went both ways.  With a tie, a crush by the horse, and a rout by the Pyrrhic lights.

Turn 3:

Well that plan didn't work out...

Despite being outnumbered, the Romans inch forward.

They bring up support to the beleaguered Scutari.  

While their left command keeps the pressure on the Pyrrhic lights.

Pyrrhus has committed his left to a plan that they are ill equipped to perform.

At this point, the only thing limiting the Romans is their Ordinary commander.  He had 4 CP's this turn.  But following turns were much more limited.

Pyrrhus and Agapitós inch forward, challenging the Romans to charge.

The Romans had the overlap advantage in the field, but with the Hoplites and Lights, that advantage is gone.

But even so, the Hoplites are -2 in the field, while the legions are -1.  

In a sleezeball move, Agapitós charges the last Scutari.  While ordering a Disengage to his other cavalry troop.  

He also orders his Disordered light horse back to rest and recover.

Turn 4:

The far left Pyrrhic lights held for two bounds, then surrender.

The main line of the Roman legion decline to commit.  But they do try to sweep the field.

Agapitós finds himself surrounded.

His lights evade, but roll short and stay on the board.

Pyrrhus deploys his elephant outwards?

We can all agree here that this part of the battle is ridiculous.  I knew at the time it was a waste of Pyrrhic resources.  But these units were never going to get into action against the legions, and as a Strategist, Pyrrhus had the Command Points.

A clear win for the Romans with 4 points for kills, and distracting 55 points of the Pyrrhic army

While distracted he may be, Pyrrhus turns the Roman flank.

In the field, Agapitós's lights are containing their attacking cohort.

Agapitós's horse cannot Disengage due to ZOC rules.

Turn 5:

Roman light horse look for a cheap point.

The Roman main line of battle charges.  Winning 3, losing 1 of the initial contacts.

;) Agapitós won't make that mistake again ;)

More waste of resources.  Pyrrhus brings back his light foot to scree his elephant.

OK, what to do with these guys.  There is a surplus of command points, so down the road they go.

 

Effort without result...

The center battle goes, 'ok'.  A legionary cohort is routed, but so to the Hoplites.

Pyrrhus's losses are 18 of 23

To the Romans 10

Turn 6:

yadda-yadda  nothing to see here.

Another trade off.  A cohort for a taxis.

Pyrrhic pike are defeated, but the lights are still holding the shoulder.

Due to a shortage of command points, the Thracians will just pick some grapes.

With a total waste of command points, a light foot is rallied.

 

And the Taxis on the road?  There is actually someone in the Seleucid ambush marker!!

Elephants turn and charge a cohort's rear

Though leaderless, the Pyrrhic heavy horse decide to make another charge on the Roman Velites in the field.

The current score was 19-14 and we called it here.  There was time for another turn but nothing was going to stop the Romans from sacking Pyhruss's camp.  So the game was logged in as a win for the Romans, 23-14.

What went wrong?

Agapitós's horse committing early, where he was eventually surrounded and overwhelmed.  

But it really was the geometry of the board, where Pyrrhus just had too many units that never fought.