An Objurgate of Ottomans

A Headless Body Production

Venue: An Undisclosed Basement

Event: Playing a game for the camera

Players: Phil running Thematic Byzantine

John Doe running Ottoman Turk dressed in drag

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

It is Sunday afternoon, and the back yard work is done. The privet hedge is trimmed, bulbs have been dug up. Time to head to the basement for some miniature action.

The Forces:
Ottomans (list 251) I have no Ottomans, but the Samurai were out for tomorrows game, so they will have to do.
Commanders, 2 Brilliant and one Competent
6 Sipahis, Heavy Cavalry Bow
2 Syrians, Heavy Cavalry Impact
4 Akinji, Light Cavalry Bow
2 Bedouins, Light Cavalry, Impact
4 Janissaries, Medium swordsmen, Bow, Elite
2 Azab Bowmen
1 Light Infantry, Bow
Breakpoint of 21

Thematic Byzantine (list 127)
Commanded by Nikephoros (the younger), Brilliant, Pumaphoros, also Brilliant, and Adidasphoros, the Ordinary, and somewhat Unreliable.
12 Thematic Kataphractoi, Medium Cavalry, Impact and Bow
4 Cursors and Alans, Light Cavalry, Bow
3 Skutatoi, Heavy Spearmen, Missile Support, Mediocre
2 Light Infantry, Bow
2 Light Infantry, Sling
1 Light Infantry, Javelin
Breakpoint of 25 

The Board:

The picturesque River Danube anchors the Byzantine right. Nikephoros wins the initiative and elects to attack in the plains. The Ottomans select a village and a field. The positioning is perfect for restricting the board down by 40%. Not allowing much room for the cavalry to maneuver. 

The gap between the field on the left and the field on the right is around 11 UD's.

 

Deployment:
The Ottomans have two identical cavalry commands, each with 4 heavies and 3 lights, led by a brilliant commander.

They are deployed hub to hub

And mirror images in deployment.

The Janissaries are deployed to invest the field.

The Byzantines deploy a "micro-command" on the right.

And also have two nearly identical commands of mixed cavalry and foot.

The Byzantine line is some 14 elements long, the open space is only 11 elements wide.

But the open space is even narrower. The Janissaries are bow armed and elite, and project 4 UD's from the field. The Byzantines also have bow, but are not elite, and cavalry is more vulnerable than foot, so it is a very bad matchup.

Effectively the Ottomans have totally removed the Byzantine numbers advantage 25-21 units, 16 shooters to 14. Now this is down to a quality on quality fight, where the Ottomans have the advantage.

Turn 1:

Adidasphoros rolls a 1 and goes unresponsive.

Nikephoros (the younger) also rolls a 1. He runs his Light Infantry into the field and advances.

Pumaphoros also rolls a 1 for command points.

The Byzantine right advances cautiously. There is no percentages in a shoot out against the Janissaries, so his role is more containme

The rest of their main line stands eerily quiet.

The only motion are the Janissaries, who invest the field and begin quietly emptying their quivers to good effect.

Thematic Kataphracts approach to missile range and loose arrows. Their lights advance to cover their flanks.

A 1 to 1 trade off. But the Byzantines have more effective shooters, and can do this all day.

On the Byzantine right, the Kataphractoi split. One block to threaten the Janissaries if they decide to leave their field, the other to threaten the Ottoman heavies if they should pull any tricks.

Skutatoi advances to cover the flanks of the cavalry.

The Ottomans are not going to give the Byzantines all day, and order a charge. It's heavies vs mediums, but the mediums are also impact.

The result is a mixed. Two Byzantine Kataphracts are disordered. but one Sipahis is destroyed.

On the Byzantine right, more charges. The Byzantines lose badly. But their Skutatoi are available to run up and take up the slack.

On the far right, nothing much happening.

On the river Styx, the score is 4 to 8 in favor of the Ottomans.

A view from the sky

Turn 3:

The Ottomans have destroyed to Byzantine horse units.

Nikephoros (the Younger) makes a nube mistake. He rallies a kataphract to go back into combat, when he should have pushed one into the hole presented earlier.

That may not have been a game changing mistake, but the score would have been more even.

On the right, status quo is maintained.

The Syrians are destroyed, but the Kataphractoi flank is truly turned.

On the right. A Kataphract is flanked and destroyed, the Sipahis pursue and catch an Alan.

The score is 6-16.

Turn 4:
An offer to accept a surrender was placed on the table and declined. The Byzantine player was suffering from delusions of grandeur from those two games last month where he came back from 12-1 deficits to win.

The Byzantines trap an Akinji, then pursue into a Bedouin On the main line the a Kataphract penetrates the Ottoman line, but too late.

Desperate times, desperate measures. The Sneaker brothers are all in, leading from the front.

A real sign of the situation is that the Ottomans did not feel compelled to match the Byzantines on the front lines.

The battle is largely lost, time to withdraw the solid troops to cover the wounded.

The score is 8 to 16. (the dice are wrong)

No longer out numbered, the Ottoman horse begin to turn the flanks everywhere.

The Byzantine center, with direct support by their commanders, barely hold.

The Ottomans switch to pursuit mode.

Ending the game at with a 10-23 win.

Few battle plans survive contact with the enemy. This one didn't survive camp deployment. The terrain placement was perfect for the Ottomans, denying the Byzantines their advantage in numbers and maneuverability.

Coupled with a commander that played everything correctly. And dice that rolled about even down the line, and it was just a slaughter.

It is worth it to study how the Ottoman player played. From terrain, to deployment, to arraigning local superiority, to removing all the advantages his opponent had. If there was a text book on LADG strategy and tactics, this game should be in it.

The Byzantines only made one or two tactical mistakes, not enough to lose, so the magnitude of the victory was totally on the Ottoman player.

A Seppuku of Samurai

A Headless Body Production
Venue:   An Undisclosed Basement 

Event:    Playing a game for the camera  

Players: Phil Gardocki running Anglo-Irish

               Tom Worden running Samurai 

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

Formally titled, "An Injection of Irish"
The Forces:
Samurai (list 210)
The Samurai are commanded by Larry-San, 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

Anglo Irish
Commanded by Larry, the Competent, his brother Darrel the Competent, and his other brother Darrel, also Competent.
4 Nobles, Heavy Cavalry
2 Foot Knights, Heavy Swordsmen, 2HW, Heavy Armor, Elite
2 Galloglaich, Heavy Swordsmen, 2HW, Elite
2 Billmen,  Heavy Swordsmen, 2HW, Mediocre
5 Kerns, Light Infantry, Javelin
2 Light Cavalry, Light Cavalry, Javelin
4 Longbowmen, Stakes
2 Javelinmen
Breakpoint of 23

The Board:The Anglo-Irish win the initiative and elect to attack in the plains.
...............................................................Samurai Side

Anglo-Irish side

 Deployment.

Off on their far right, 7 units of Samurai, 4 on horseback.

On their left, the Samurai are in twin columns, backed by Yari and lower class archers.

The Irish left is set to delay any attacks upon their undefended camp. 

Darryl has a variety of troops on the far right.  There is a flank march running on the right, and his job is to run across the bard and support it.

Turn 1:

Seeing that the Samurai cavalry are massed on the left, Larry leaves a unit of billmen and kerns behind to protect the camp.

Double marching his remaining swordsmen forward.

Darryl advances into the terrain.  But not too eagerly.  He only has two longbow against 6 Samurai.

The Japanese decide to go for crushing the flank march.  Their left most command turns and races for the right.

Their foot samurai expand and advance to cover them.

Turn 2:
Off board Darryl rolls a 6, and will be arriving next turn.

Larry's troops continue to advance.

Darryl advances as he can.

The Japanese swing command continue to advance.  Their mediocre troops vacate the arrival zone.

Turn 3:

Larry and Darryl converge on the Samurai main line.  Arrows fly.

Despite fewer shooters, the Irish score 4 hits out of 5 shots.

The Japanese archery largely fails.  7 shots and only one hit.

The Japanese commander decides he has enough to deal with the flank march and releases his trailing Samurai foot to face the Irish knights.

His cavalry charges, running down a longbow, disordering another.

The score at the Tree of Woe is 2 to 7

The official military observer from Howandaland is vacationing at the beach.

Turn 4

Knights, Galloglaich Clan O'Lyre and a Javelinmen from Cork charge!  The Samurai line holds firm.

Things are complicated here.  A couple of Samurai are charged in the flank.  But overall, hold firm.

Question for the group.  Can this Light Infantry charge the camp?  The gap between the Samurai cavalry and the edge of the board is exactly 40mm, so the LI would be in edge to edge contact with the cavalry before contact with the camp.

We ruled it was not a legal charge, and the only effect on the game was it would have ended half a turn earlier.

Second question, if the LI was any other troop type, would it be a legal charge?

The score is 3 to 8

A refresher on who is who.  More hits are applied on the Irish Heavy Swords.

The Samurai are cleaning up the flank march

The score is 3 (of 19) to 15 of 25

Turn 5:

In for a penny, in for a pound.  We were not winning the fight on the main line, so lets charge the secondary lines.

On the Irish right, the only saving grace of the flank march.  Where the end of the line was flank charged.  The Samurai fight with skill and panache, and begin to win.

4 to 16.  It doesn't get any better.  There are no surprises, you can save yourself about 2 minutes of scrolling.

Larry enters the fray, and his presents prevents another loss.

The last unit of the flank march is wiped out.

A desperate charge by Irish Nobles puts two hits on the Samurai Cavalry.  But they will surrounded next bound.

Turn 6:

At last, a clean kill of a Samurai warrior.  And billmen arrive to turn the flank, if the knights can hold out another turn.

Irish Nobles actually destroy their Samurai foes!

Bringing the score to 7 to 21

The one unit of knights holds on.  Both knights, the flower of the Irish Nobility, are at the verge of destruction.

Melee has stopped on the right, let the arrows fly!

Taking the Irish to 1 away from their break point of 23

Remember that LI that couldn't charge the camp?  If he had, he would have been killed, and the score now would be 10-23, a decisive win for the Samurai.

So Tommy is going to have to fight another round for his victory.

Turn 7:

In baseball parlance, it's called "An out at any base", any new hit or kill wins the game.  They didn't get it here.

The storm of arrows continues.  Most of Darryl's troops withdraw out of range, but another troop of nobles approaches to charge the Samurai line, but is disordered instead.

Ending the game with a Samurai win, 6 - 23.

So what went wrong?

The Flank march match ups were wrong.  I tried to cheap out with using the LI to grab the camp.  Which wound up being a "Camp too Far."  

But that doesn't give any credit to Mr. Worden.  He correctly divined the correct flank, and how slowly my left flank attackers advanced, and utilized his resources, IE Elite Cavalry commanded by a Strategist, and shifted from one side of the board to the other.  Just barely arriving in time.  If Tom had dallied just one turn, the situation would have turned out much differently.