This was one of the longest Optio games I can remember playing. About 3
hours 40 minutes, compared to the 2-hour average of most games. For the pregame we used a heavily forested map, just for a change. Peter played Carthage as usual, yours truly played Rome.
I managed to locate Peter's army fairly quickly, and was then able to manoeuvre and get the battlefield I wanted, with plenty of forest on my flanks to counter Peter's cavalry advantage. Locating the enemy army first with one's scouts usually gives an advantage in determining the battlefield.
Here is the deployment: Rome on the right, Carthage on the left. Peter had a much better general than I did: command rating of 6 to my 4, obliging me to deploy 2/3 of my army first.
Since I deployed first I moved first. For this turn I was content just to turn my cavalry from column into line. My plan was to sit tight and let the Carthaginians come to me, whilst possibly advancing my cavalry to take possession of the hill between them and their Carthaginian opposite numbers.
Peter's general led his slingers and skirmisher foot double time in column up towards my flank. What did he intend to do with them?
Up move the cavalry. Time to seize the hill advantage.
Peter's light foot deploy into line and advance through the forest whilst his warband and Poeni foot advance.
I move my Auxilia up to ZOC the nearest Carthaginian skirmisher foot unit whilst my cavalry take control of the hill.
Peter moves his ellies up and deploys them from column to line.
Chaaaarge! My medium cavalry are qualitatively better than Carthaginian medium cavalry and have the general with them, so why not? Meantime my Auxilia close in on the Carthaginian skirmisher foot who can't evade since they have other skirmisher units behind them who are not facing the same direction.
Leaving his one skirmisher unit to its fate (nothing he can do for it) Peter double-marches his other skirmishers (slingers and javelineers) in column to the centre of the battlefield, where they will confront my own. So that was his plan!
Melee and nobody dies just yet.
As I recall, Peter's MC at the top left broke off after melee (cavalry can break off from cavalry after melee by moving one square directly backwards). I then charged it in my turn and routed it.
My other MC charge the Carthaginian LH and MC, hoping to overwhelm them with the aid of the general's MC on their right. Bad idea.
My skimishers move up and start pincushioning the Carthaginian LI.
The Carthaginian LI move up (they are not ZOCed by the Roman LI since light foot do not exert a ZOC), form line and return the favour. Meantime their one free MC unit moves to the rear of my engaged MC. Ouch!
The Carthaginian LI unit in the forest routs.
The Roman auxilia occupy its square.
The general's MC unit pulls back to help its beleaguered colleagues. The LI soak up Carthaginian javelins and slingshots (they can't shoot back since they have a negative modifier for being in a thin line and can shoot only during the enemy's move). The Auxilia move up, half a square per turn since they are out of command.
The Roman MC unit is rear-ended and routs. the Roman LI can now return fire.
The Carthaginian MC unit that contacted the routed Roman MC unit on its front occupies the vacated square.
All alive.
My MC breaks off after melee. It is severely battered and in no condition to continue the fight.
I pull my hammered MC well back and move my good MC with the general across to start pelting the Carthaginian horse. Meanwhile my LI gradually turn into sieves.
As the LI exchange continues in the centre, Peter moves up his ellies on his right and repositions his cavalry on his left.
No melee so straight to turn 8. I need to get my auxilia in the forest into the fight, but they cannot turn 90 degrees unless they have enemy on their flank or are disordered. Being unwieldy they can't form column either. What to do? If I rotate them 180 degrees they become disordered and in the next turn they can then turn 90 degrees. All to show that ballet dancing with unwieldy troops is a real bind.
Peter's unwieldy elephants just plough ahead, scattering my LI who get a shot in first. His uncommanded Numidian LH moves a square - their maximum distance when out of command.
No melee again. My evaded LI reform and shoot up the ellies whilst another unengaged LI moves up to donate generously to the Gallic javelin collection fund. One auxilia unit moves to hopefully engage the elephants.
Wham! In go the ellies against the legions, knocking a morale off two units from the shock of their impact. The LI reform, turning around and the LC reaches the main cavalry line.
The ellies, already weaker for being in a thin line, had been shot to heck before the charge and succeed only in drawing the melee, losing their last morale interval and routing. Roma Victoria!
Forward, O noblest Romans!
The cavalry creep forwards whilst the legions reform the line.
The Numidian LH does a 180 and is now in command again.
The legions advance. The LI get off a shot then get out of the way of the legionaries by passing through them. The auxilia also move up. There is nothing to stop them flanking the warband and Poeni.
The Carthaginian MC and Numidian LH charge on the left. The battered Roman MC unit evades whilst the elite Roman MC unit under the general stands its ground. Meanwhile Peter pulls back his LI.
Die, sons of maggots!
The Carthaginians break off instead.
Up come the legions and blitz the slingers and skirmisher foot with pila, who return the compliment. Meantime the general's MC unit charges the Carthaginians again and routs them. Roma Invicta bis!
And occupy the square vacated by their early military retirement.
A Numidian LH unit gets behind one of the legions. This will prove a major problem.
The legions advance, obliging one LI to evade through them - and creating a convenient buffer against that Numidian LH unit. Two legion units charge the LI who cannot evade as there are too many units behind them for them to move clear.
No matter. The Numidians choose another target, support by a frontal charge by warband.
After resolution of charge combat, the Numidian break off. Cavalry don't do well against heavy infantry in melee, so can break off before resolution of melee combat.
Down go two LI units.
Forward go the two victorious Roman legions.
Over on the Roman right flank, things are up close and personal between the two generals. The Roman general charges whilst the Carthaginian general, with an inferior unit, wisely evades. One legion closes with warband whilst an auxilia unit charges another warband unit in the flank, disordering it.
Furious fighting but no routs.
The Roman MC charges again and the Carthaginian MC evades into the woods. The rightmost legion charges again - a bit of a confusion here as it had already charged in the previous turn. We clearly forgot the fact. One auxilia unit works its way around the other.
That blasted Numidian LH rear ends the legion again as it is charged frontally by the warband.
The Numidians break off, obliging a LI unit to evade (LI get out of the way of anything except other LI).
Down goes a warband unit.
On to the Poeni!
The LI reforms facing the Numidian LC whilst the auxilia move to the flank of the Poeni. The Roman general, leading the elite Roman MC, drive the Carthaginians deeper into the forest.
That Numidian LH is proving a real problem. Meanwhile the Poeni start mixing it up.
Back and forth....clash of swords and spears....no man yields....
I forgot to photograph the Roman turn so here are both together.
That Carthaginian LH unit is proving a real problem so the Roman MC leave the Carthaginian MC to deal with it. The Carthaginian MC emerge from the woods to muck up Roman plans. On the Roman right flank the auxilia prepare to flank charge the Poeni. However they are still disordered so need to get back to order first.
No dead bodies this time.
The Roman MC turn back to confront the Carthaginian MC who don't have a forest behind them this time. I'd love to say I planned that but actually just saw the opportunity.
Another charge by the Numidian LH who finally rout the legion. They were going down anyway in the melee.
Up come the warband.
A warband unit routs.
Difficult to say who is winning. Both sides are looking battered and bloody.
Time to finish off those Carthaginian MC whose general incidentally had left them for the LH.
Another Numidian LH charge. Ouch!
And the break off.
The legion commander is killed! It'll make good material for the bards -
if Rome wins the battle. 🤞
His body is respectfully carried away.
Nothing for it but to try and get those LI in the fight against the Numidian LH.
Another rear ending charge by the Numidians, whilst the unengaged warband move into the Roman rear.
Break off.
Things start turning in Rome's favour again. A warband unit goes down as does the MC cavalry.
Let's finish this.
Up come the Roman MC to ZOC and finally neutralise the Numidian LH. The auxilia on the Carthaginian right have finally restored order and charge the Poeni in flank, disordering them, which guarantees a winning fight in melee. The other auxilia unit turns to face the charged Poeni, ready to charge them in turn and prevent them from recovering order.
The Numidians turn to face the Roman MC whilst the Poeni infantry charge. Peter has committed his last reserve.
Desperate and indecisive. The Roman legion falls back instead of losing morale, trading space for time. Drilled infantry have this option. Meanwhile the Poeni commander is wounded!
The Roman MC hunt down the Numidian LH who flee. The unengaged Roman legion forms column and gets moving somewhere useful. The auxilia charge the Poeni foot in the flank to keep them disordered.
Up come the Poeni to the legion's flank. The warband turn to ZOC the Roman MC, who now cannot charge the Numidian LH.
The legion chooses again to recoil rather than lose morale.
See my cunning 😁. The legion charges the warband ZOCing my MC, obliging them to turn and face the chargers. This frees the MC to charge the LH who cannot evade clear since the woods are in their way. I love it when a plan comes together, to quote the A Team.
Nothing for it but push the free Poeni forwards.
Down goes the last warband unit.
And that's it. The Carthaginian losses oblige all resolute units to decamp, which happens to be the rest of the army. Game over!
A tough and drawn-out battle. Thanks for a great evening Peter!
