The bulk of the rules are a riff on my Men of Bronze rules for Greek Hoplite
warfare. However, there are various
tweaks to match the strategy and tactics of the time. For example, this is a game of battles and
units. Things like in and out of Phalanx
and battle formations are abstracted. It
is assumed all unit commanders have put their troops in the right formations
for the job.
Instead, this game focuses on unit vs unit in order to
get the best unit combined arms formations to win. It is about charging, supporting, and flank
attacks. In addition, there is an
element of command and control by using the Commander’s Gaze dice to influence
the flow of the battle at critical times and places on the field.
The units in the game tend to be abstracted. Most armies of this period had similar
elements and components. The trick was when
and how to use them. The abstraction of
units allows for the players to focus on other aspects of the game play such as
supporting and flanking. In addition,
armies were organized into wings and the armies in these rules are intended to
mirror this approach.
The game also take inspiration from Warmaster Ancients, Hail Ceasar, Lion Rampant, Sword and Spear, DBA, and various other ancients rulesets. This game is so new that it is not even in the Work-in-Progress section of the Blog for you to try yet. I am still working on the mechanics and deciding what I want it to do and how. Once they are fleshed out further, I will make a WIP available for you to try. In the meantime, I figured I would let you in on the play-testing. You can find the simple templates I used here.
Eumenes had once
been the secretary of Alexander himself.
He was not Macedonian, but his position provided him great privilege and
respect amongst the troops. He was a
well-known general in his own right.
After Ptolemy stole
Alexander’s body and spirited to Egypt The Regent Perdiccas organized an
expedition to punish the upstart Diadochi.
He gathered an army and marched towards the Nile. Perdiccas charged Eumenes with protecting
Asia Minor from the greedy Antipater and Craterus from attacking out of Macedon
and Greece. To aid him, Perdiccas placed
Neoptolemus the Satrap of Armenia under Eumenes’ command.
However,
Neoptolemus had his own ideas. Instead,
he had sided with Antipater and Craterus.
Instead of joining Eumenes, he intended to attack him. Eumenes learned of the Satraps plan and
marched his army out to punish the upstart.
The battle for Alexander’s empire was about to begin.
Forces:
Eumenes of Cardia
Center:
Silver Shields- General
Bronze Shields
2 Thureophoroi
Left Wing:
Companion Cavalry- General: Eumenes
Right Wing:
Epilektoi Cavalry- General
54 Points
Neoptolemus, Satrap of Armenia
Center
1 Bronze Shield- General
2 White Shields
Left Wing:
1 Asphract (Javelins)
1 Epilektoi- General: Neoptolemus
Right Wing:
1 Asphract (Javelins)- General
1 Archer
54 Points
Mission:
This is a standard battle. The object is to break the enemy force by the
end of turn 8.
Set-up:
Today we are using a 6x4 table. It is set-up as the steppe of Turkey. Historically, Neoptolemus was supposed to
support Eumenes in the defense of Asia Minor from invaders from Macedon. Instead, he turned to Antipater and Craterus
in Macedon. In response, Eumenes marched
to face the Satrap. Today’s battle is to
re-fight this battle, but few details survive other than the outcome.
The center is relatively flat and open, and good place
for Phalanx combat. The North has a
series of rocky outcroppings to block LOS and make movement more
difficult. The South flank has an oasis
and the ruins of an old town. This will
also serve to block hinder or block movement.
At this point, it is more likely that the Silver Shields
would have been deployed with Perdiccas in Egypt. However, to avoid confusion I am placing them
with Eumenes, the commander they followed after Perdiccas’ death. I addition, Thureophoroi were probably not
developed until a later date, but they serve essentially the same role as Hypaspists
in Alexander’s army with slightly different gear. Therefore I am using them here to represent
the Hypaspists likely found in Eumenes army instead. Beyond these details little is known about
the actual composition of either army in the historical battle.
Eumenes deployed with his Thureophoi positioned on the
outside of the center just ahead of his Phalanxes. His wings were deployed close to his center
to support.
Neoptolemus had his phalanxes in a line with the Bronze
Shields in the center. His right wing
was in echelon and ready to support he center, while the left was deployed
outwards for a flanking attack.
Turn 1
Both sides determined their Commander’s Gaze for their
wings. Neither side chooses to bid for
initiative so they roll-off to see who goes first this turn. The roll off goes to Eumenes.
Eumenes’s army moves forward with the center moving first. The Cavalry on the wings stays in formation by
reducing their movement. Neoptolemus
does not try to interrupt.
Neoptolemus’ troops also move forward. The center advances and their line turns to
an echelon with the Bronze shields in the center. The Left wing rides out wide. On the right, the Archers stay with the
infantry and the cavalry units range ahead towards the town.
Turn 2
Each side again determines Commander’s Gaze, and wager
none for the first turn. Eumenes wins
the roll-off. Again, he starts off by moving
his center forward, the Thureophoroi first.
Neoptolemus does not interrupt.
The Epilektoi move up with the center, but the Companion cavalry holds
back.
Neoptolemus has his archers move up to support his main
advance, and they rain arrows on 1 of Eumenes Thureophoroi. The arrows rain down with surprising
effectiveness and reduce them to 2 Courage!
The unit passes a Disciple check.
The Commander decides to rally them with his Gaze, and uses 1 point to
move them back to 3 Discipline.
Neoptolemus’s left flank the Javelin Asphract goes out
too wide and loses cohesion. They are
Wavering until they get back into cohesion with the general. However, the rocks may make it tough.
Turn 3
Neoptolemus gets some bad Commander’s Gaze rolls. This time, Eumenes bids 1 Commander’s Gaze
token from the Center to move first. The
Thureophoroi move forward and attack with their Javelins. They return the favor on the archers and hit
them three times. The archers pass their
Discipline check. On the other side of
the line, the Thureophoroi pepper the White Shield phalanx and reduce them 1. Eumenes Phalanx moves forward ready for the
big push.
Neoptolemus’ right wing tries to interrupt with their 1
Commander’s Gaze token. However, Eumenes
beats him in the roll-off. The Epilektoi
move forward. The Companion Cavalry
turns to get behind the Phalanx units.
On Neoptolemus’ left his Asphracts stay wavering as they
can not get back to the general. With
the Companions moved, it is hard to see who they plan on fighting out
there. On the right wing, the Asphract
cavalry turn and move into contact with the Thureophoroi. The Commander of the Center spends a point
Evade. The Evade is unsuccessful as the
Asphract can still get them within 1 BW.
The Asphract inflict a hit and lock them in combat. The infantry pass their discipline
check.
Turn 4
This time, Neoptolemus bids 3 of his Commander’s Gaze to
win initiative. Eumenes bid 2 of
his. Neoptolemus gets to go first.
He spends 1 Gaze to charge with his Bronze Shields into
the Silver shields, with the White shields in support. They inflict two hits, but the Silver shields
hold. The archers fire on the Epilektoi
Cavalry but fail to cause an injury. The
Asphract cavalry causes one more hit on the Thureophoroi, but they also hold.
On the far left the Asphract and Epilktoi of Neoptolemus
get back into cohesion.
The Silver Shields fight back and cause two hits in return
but the Bronze shields hold. The
Epilektoi of Eumenes charge the archers, but they manage to evade the charge. The Companion cavalry charges into the
Asphract cavalry flank and combined with the Thureophoroi manage to route them
along with the Neoptolemy right wing general.
This time Eumenes out bids Neoptolemus 3 to 2 for first
turn. The Thurephoroi move forward and hit
the unengaged white shields for a hit.
Neoptolemus tries to interrupt from the Center, but fails. The second Thureophori does the same and hits
the White Shields for another one.
Eumenes Bronze Shields charge home on the last White Shields unit for
another 1 hit to Courage. However, the
unit passes its Discipline check.
The Silver Shields push the Neoptolemus Phalanx and cause
1 more hit, but the enemy is shattered by the charge of Eumenes and his
Companion Cavalry. They Phalanx is
destroyed and both the White and Bronze shields are routed completely! Eumenes Epilektoi Cavalry also manages to
charge the injured archers and obliterates them as well.
Conclusion
With over half of
his army routing, Neoptolemus decides to retreat with the troops he has left
and join up with his ally Craterus. He
vows vengeance on Eumenes for the defeat.
Final Thoughts
If Neoptolemus and his left wing had actually stayed to
fight in the battle instead of going on a scenic ride around the rocky bluffs
of Asia Minor they might have actually helped his center stay in one
piece! Only being able to turn the
cavalry up to 45 degrees once per turn really put the left wing way out of
position during the battle. Eumenes was able to use his veteran center units to pin
the enemy center for a Cavalry charge finish, how Alexandrian! This led to a historically accurate victory
for Eumenes.
As for the game rules themselves, I think the movement
rules need some tweaks for light infantry and cavalry. Plus, during the opening moves the Commander’s
Gaze doesn’t do too much for you. I kept
forgetting to use extra Gaze for re-rolls in combat. Finally, the Morale rules need a bit of a
tweak as units tended to fight until all their Courage was spent since no one
failed a Discipline check. Eumenes
Thureophoroi took a pasting and stood firm as did Neoptolemus’ archers. Perhaps I need to reduce some units’
discipline?
More to come as I develop the game further.
More to come as I develop the game further.
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