The Forest Road - Turn III

Situation after two turns

The start-of-turn-event die is a 3: Dacian war horns. This lets every Dacian cavalry unit move a bonus hex (not the usual two hexes that they have in the movement phase).

Situation after the war horns

I begin the movement phase by leaving my archers where they are, and the Dacian archers choose to continue skulking to the rear of the Dacian position.

My commander uses all three hexes of his movement allowance to move behind the Roman archers that are supporting the Praetorian Guard, putting him in command range of my cavalry, but out of command range of my legionaries.

My rearward cavalry advance diagonally right a hex, which puts them out of command range, so I roll three dice for the next move. The dice land 6, 4, 4, and, consulting the compass in the bottom-right, I use the 6 to move the cavalry onto the hill, where they charge-attack the warriors, needing 6+. However, I roll 5.

I do not want to risk urging my other cavalry onto the hill, as they would very possibly be attacked by Dacian horsemen. Instead, I pull them back diagonally right, and then advance them diagonally right, ending on the right flank of my other mounted unit.

The leading Dacian cavalry advance against my Praetorian Guard, launching a charge-attack. They need 8+, and get 10, meaning my men retreat three hexes. Because my unit is equidistant from both side-edges of the battlefield, and there are no other tiebreakers, I roll to decide which way they retreat for the first hex. Luckily for me, they fall back to the right, because this means their next two retreats take them to the bottom edge of the map, rather than off it, as would have been the case had they started retreating to their left. Dacian cavalry never advance after a victory, and since a charge ends a cavalry unit's movement, the Dacian horsemen stay where they are.

Three of the other Dacian cavalry units advance, but one fails to move as its preferred route is blocked by comrades.

My Praetorian Guard have retreated this turn, so do not get to (further) move.

The Dacian swordsmen remain in reserve.

All three of my legions are out of command range, so I roll three dice for the furthest-forward unit, getting 4, 4, 1, which suits me as the unit can advance through the big wood and make contact with the falxmen.

However, I roll 5, 3, 2 for the second legion, and, since I do not want it moving in any of those directions shown on the compass, I leave it where it is. For the third legion, I roll the even worse 5, 5, 2, and so also leave the unit kicking its heels.

The falxmen cannot move as they have become engaged in combat, as have the furthest-forward warriors. The unit behind them also fails to move, but the warriors on the Dacian right advance into the wood to support the falxmen.

The Romans look ragged and disjointed

The Forest Road - Turn II: Attack Phase

Ready for action

My further-forward right-flank archers are within range of the leading Dacian horsemen, but line-of-sight is blocked by trees, so the attack phase starts on the Roman left, where my second unit of legionaries attacks the Dacian warriors, needing 6+. There is a -1 modifier for a friendly unit also being adjacent to the warriors, but a +1 for attacking into trees. I roll 7, forcing the warriors back two hexes.

My forward legionaries attack the falxmen, needing 7+, but I roll 3.

Now it is the falxmen's turn, and they need 6+, but there is a +1 modifier for the legionaries having support from another legion. The dice land exactly with the 7 required, forcing my unit back two hexes.

My main worry right now is that some of my units are perilously close to the edge of the battlefield

The Forest Road - Turn II

Situation after the first turn

The start-of-turn-event die lands as a 4, which allows me to move one unit that is in command range of the Roman general, and is not engaged in combat. I take the chance to advance my extreme-left legion, which puts it just two hexes away from the falxmen, so contact can be made in the movement phase of this turn.

I start the movement phase by advancing two of my archer units in the main wood on the Roman right-flank, and put the other archer unit immediately behind the Praetorian Guard.

The single unit of Dacian archers advances a hex.

I advance my commander a hex diagonally right, putting him within command range of one of my units of cavalry, as well as keeping him within command range of all three legions. Since the further-right cavalry are out of command range, I roll three dice to see in which direction I can move them (using the compass at the bottom-right of the map), getting 6, 6, 3, which is satisfactory as I want to move the unit back a hex diagonally right. The other unit of cavalry moves in the same direction.

The five units of Dacian cavalry are next to be activated. They all advance, albeit tending to zigzag, rather than rushing straight down the map.

I leave the Praetorians where they are.

The Dacian swordsmen advance diagonally to their right.

I advance all three legions a hex, which puts the leading unit in contact with the Dacian falxmen, who therefor cannot move.

The left-flank Dacian warriors advance through the trees, putting them in contact with two of my units of legionaries.

The warriors on the hill advance into the hill's rocky ground, and their nearby comrades follow them, mounting the hill.

The melee on the Roman left should prove interesting

The Forest Road - Turn I: Attack Phase

My legionaries get first crack at the enemy

Legionaries need 7+ to score a hit on falxmen, but my forward unit has a -1 modifier for having friends also engaged with the enemy, and another for being adjacent to the commander. However, I roll a disappointing 4.

My other legion in contact with the falxmen only gets one -1 modifier, but I roll 7, forcing the falxmen to retreat two hexes.

No more combats are possible, so that ends the turn

The Forest Road - Turn I

Starting positions

The start-of-turn-event die lands as a 6, which means Roman ballista fire. This entitles me to shoot at the enemy unit furthest down the map and which is not in trees, on high ground, or engaged in combat. That means, in this case, the falxmen, but whatever the target, I need 7+ (with two dice) to score a hit. If a hit is scored, the unit retreats three hexes, ie there is no question of it routing and so being removed from the battlefield. However, this all proves hypothetical as I roll a pair of 1s.

The movement phase begins with my archers, who have an initiative number of 1. I advance two of the units a hex, and leave the third where it is, as forward movement is blocked by friendly units.

Next up, with an initiative number of 2, is the one unit of Dacian archers, and a roll of a die determines it stays where it is.

My cavalry are next, and I move both the units to the foot of East Hill (assuming North is at the top of the map).

Now it is the turn of the AI's five units of cavalry. They all advance, but as they do so they converge towards the centre of the battlefield, creating a distinctly formidable-looking mass.

I advance my Praetorians a hex, but the AI's swordsmen remain where they are at the north edge of the map.

My legionaries advance diagonally left, with two of the units engaging with the falxmen, and at the same time I advance my commander (he can move at any point when Roman units are being activated) to closely support the legions.

The falxmen cannot move as they are engaged, and I have no spearmen, which leaves the three units of Dacian warriors. The unit on East Hill rolls a 6, which means it can launch javelins at a range of two hexes in what would effectively be a bonus attack, but my cavalry are three hexes away, so the warriors have to seethe impotently where they are. The right-flank warriors advance a hex, which is what the rearward left-flank unit wants to do, but its way is blocked.

Unlike in the first scenario, it seems this time blood could be spilt in the very first turn

The Forest Road - Roman Dispositions

Dacian setup

It seems to me my early priorities should be to deal with a) the falxmen, who, although threatening my position, are isolated, and b) the furthest-forward warriors on the other flank.

Accordingly I have placed both cavalry units on my right, as they need only 6+ to score a hit against warriors, and placed my legionaries on the left, who need 7+ against falxmen

The Forest Road

THE second scenario in Mike Lambo's latest boardgame book, Commander - Romans v Dacians, is entitled The Forest Road.

Map

The human leads a Roman force tasked with advancing into heavily defended enemy territory along a forest road.

To win, I must have at least three units within the solid-red outlined area at the top of the map at the end of turn XII.

The AI, which commands the Dacians, receives troops worth at least 40 points, chosen in the usual way by rolling dice.

Die Unit             Cost   Total

2     Cavalry       5pts    5pts

2     Cavalry       5pts    10pts

4     Falxmen      3pts    13pts

2     Cavalry       5pts    18pts

2     Cavalry       5pts    23pts

1     Archers       3pts    26pts

5     Warriors      2pts    28pts

3     Swordsmen 3pts    31pts

6     Warriors      3pts    34pts

6     Warriors      3pts    37pts

2     Cavalry       5pts    42pts

This is very much a cavalry-dominated army, which, if the behaviour of Dacian horsemen in the first scenario is anything to go by, means I need to be prepared for swift assaults from the get-go.

The human receives troops worth at least 38 points, chosen in a similar manner, except that a Roman army always starts with the commander, who costs 5pts.

Die Unit             Cost    Total

-     Commander 5pts     5pts

2    Cavalry        6pts     11pts

1    Archers        3pts     14pts

3    Praetorians  5pts     19pts

5    Legionaries 3pts     22pts

2    Cavalry       6pts     28pts

5    Legionaries 3pts     31pts

5    Legionaries 3pts     34pts

1    Archers        3pts    37pts

1    Archers        3pts    40pts

Just like the Dacian army, my force is two points over the minimum, but I have 10 units, against the AI's 11.

I am pleased to have the Praetorian Guard among my recruits as they did not feature in the first scenario, but  I would have been even more pleased to have received some anti-horse spearmen.

The next step is to place the Dacians on the map, the units' positions determined by dice throws.

Thankfully, from my viewpoint, the Dacian cavalry are near the top of the map, and are fairly spread out across the width of the battlefield, but note the falxmen lurking behind trees near the Roman deployment area (dotted red line at the bottom of the map) 

Pyramids

THINGS Seen In Egypt is not your usual travel book, or, at least, it is not the sort of travel book I usually buy.

True, it qualifies as 'history' - it was published in 1908 - but is not really an account of a single traveller's journey along the Nile and its environs.

Rather, as the title suggests, it is a guide to what visitors can expect to see, and the best ways to do so.

Clive Holland was apparently the pen name of a lawyer who turned to journalism and photography

My edition is a reprint by Forgotten Books - it makes for an interesting read, but the reproduction of the book's many photographs leaves a lot to be desired.

Slingshot 364

THE May/Jun issue of the magazine of the Society of Ancients arrived earlier this month.

Striking cover ...

... and great contents

I find it hard to pick out a 'most-interesting' article, but for me the frontrunners are David Harvey's on a leading (East) Roman general, Mike Maddin's on a Dark Ages battle in 616, and Phil Sabin's on refighting Cunaxa with two of his rulesets.

Battle Of Ulai - Afterthoughts

THREE things stand out.

1. It was an incredibly exciting battle, fittingly decided in combat between the rival monarchs and their immediate entourages.

2. Reg was very fortunate - outrageously so, at times - in his dice-throwing, as he freely and generously admitted afterwards.

3. Open-order archers need debuffing. They are far too potent as things stand.

The last point is the most important, and I must admit I always thought there was a discrepancy in the rules, in that open-order archers and close-order archers both roll one die per base for shooting, even though a unit of the latter obviously represents many more men.

Accordingly, I am reducing the potency of the former by requiring open-order archers (and bow-armed light chariots) to roll a 6, rather than 5+, to score a hit. This, on average, will cut the number of hits by half.

I am also limiting units to one change of direction per turn, so open-order archers, for example, cannot swivel 180°, move 12cm, swivel back 180°, and then shoot. This will also make them much less effective.

We think these changes should prove to be exactly what is required, but only testing will show if this is really so.

Bloodied, but victorious - King Teumman and the surviving Elamites