Four-Player Empire: Turn 19 (170-160 BC)

Situation in 170 BC

More unrest in the Roman empire as Gallia revolts.

Rome is drawn first, and Richard continues his policy of ignoring revolts in favour of attacking the Macedonians, and again rolls 6, conquering Thracia.

I fail to spark a rebellion in the Carthaginian homeland, and the Parthians likewise fail in theirs.

The Macedonians narrowly fail to reconquer Thracia, the roll of 4 being reduced by 1 thanks to attacking a controlled province.

There are holes in the Roman empire near the Italian mainland, but the empire continues expanding eastwards

Four-Player Empire: Turn 18 (180-170 BC)

Situation in 180 BC

Rome suffers a setback as Sicilia revolts.

Macedon is drawn first, and Andy decides to attack Parthia, succeeding on a roll of 5, thus once again eliminating the Parthians.

I fail to roll a 6 to cause rebellion in AFRICA.

Rome, at least for the time being, ignores the revolt in Sicilia and instead attacks Macedonia, easily conquering it with a roll of 6.

The Parthians fail to create another rebellion in their homeland.

The Macedonian successor states are mostly holding on for now

Four-Player Empire: Turn 17 (190-180 BC)

Situation in 190 BC

AEGYPTUS revolts from Macedonian rule, but the Macedonians are drawn first and they immediately reconquer the province.

The Romans no longer have Scipio, but for the rest of the game they get a +1 modifier for not having a great captain and a further +1 modifier for having had a great captain no more than five turns ago. Richard attacks Macedonia, but his roll of 2 is not enough as there is a -1 modifier for attacking a controlled province.

I fail to throw the necessary 6 to spark a rebellion in the Carthaginian homeland, but the Parthians do roll 6 and so regain Parthia.

The Parthians have made a second comeback, but will this one be any more successful than the last?

Four-Player Empire: Turn 16 (200-190 BC)

Situation in 200 BC

The revolt dice land on Mesopotamia.

This is the second turn in which the Romans have Scipio, and they start by conquering Magna Graecia, but require two campaigns to conquer Sicilia (the first failed on a roll of 1).

With their fourth campaign they successfully complete a naval crossing and conquer Graecia.

The fifth campaign is affected by -1 modifier as it is against the Macedonians' homeland, and the modifier makes all the difference as 2 is thrown.

Both the Parthians and Carthaginians fail to spark rebellion in their homelands.

The Macedonians reconquer Mesopotamia.

Two giants collide

Four-Player Empire: Turn 15 (210-200 BC)

Situation in 210 BC

This is the first of two turns in which Scipio the Younger is a Roman great captain.

The revolt dice land on Graecia, which is independent, so there is no effect.

Richard launches his first campaign against Cisalpina, receiving a +2 modifier, as he will for the other four campaigns of this turn.

That means only a 1 fails, and he rolls 4, following up by conquering IBERIA and Numidia. That leaves two campaigns with which to take AFRICA.

It will fall if successfully attacked as there are no other Carthaginian provinces that could revolt. However there is a -1 modifier as AFRICA is the Carthaginian homeland.

The first roll is 1, but the second is 4, meaning I am eliminated, at least for the time being.

The Parthians fail to foment rebellion in their homeland, and I fail likewise with mine.

That leaves the Macedonians, but their invasion of Graecia fails on a throw of 2.

The Romans have suddenly exploded across the west Mediterranean

Four-Player Empire: Turn 14 (220-210 BC)

Situation in 220 BC

This is the turn in which Carthage gets Hannibal as a great captain, meaning I can launch five campaigns, each with a +2 modifier.

But first the revolt dice fall again on Numidia, so I spend my first campaign reconquering that province. Next I conquer Gallia, and then attack Cisalpina.

I have my +2 modifier, and having a great captain means there is no -1 modifier for attacking a controlled province, but there is a -1 modifier for a Carthaginian campaign outside of the city's original empire. All of that means I need to roll 3 or better, and I succeed with a 4.

I use my fourth campaign to attack ITALIA, which has a special rule meaning success would not capture the province but would cause every other Roman-controlled province to revolt and become neutral.

My +2 great-captain modifier is cancelled by -1 for attacking outside the original Carthaginian empire, and a further -1 for attacking a controlled homeland. I therefore need 4 or better, and succeed with a 5, meaning Magna Graecia, Sicilia and Graecia become independent.

With my final campaign I try to invade Sicilia, but the naval crossing fails on a roll of 1.

The Macedonians conquer INDIA on a roll of 5, an important gain as the province is worth two victory points.

The Parthians fail to pull off a rebellion in their homeland.

The Romans invade Cisaplina, which for them does not carry the usual -1 modifier for attacking a controlled province, so they only need a 3 as they have a +1 modifier on this turn for not having a great captain, and 3 is what is rolled.

Carthage has setback Roman expansion, but it will it be the Macedonians who ultimately benefit?

Four-Player Empire: Turn 13 (230-220 BC)

Situation in 230 BC, with the Romans having taken the interesting decision to interfere in Greek affairs before seeing off the Carthaginians

The revolt dice again fall on India, and so there is no effect.

Rome is drawn first, and Richard decides to invade Cisalpina, easily succeeding on a roll of 4.

I attack Gallia, but yet again roll 4 and so fail thanks to Carthage's -1 modifier for attacking outside of its original empire.

Andy orders a Macedonian invasion of Parthia, succeeding with a roll of 6 and so eliminating the newly arrived Parthians, who fail their subsequent rebellion roll.

Back to three peoples

Four-Player Empire: Turn 12 (240-230 BC)

Situation in 240 BC

The revolt dice show Graecia throwing off Macedonian rule.

Rome is drawn first, and Richard decides to take advantage of Graecia's revolt to try to invade the province. The naval crossing is no problem (6 is rolled), and the attack narrowly succeeds on a 3, which is enough as Rome enjoys a +1 modifier (as explained on the previous turn).

The Macedonians, rather than counterattacking, go for the easier option of attacking Bactria, and are successful on a roll of 4.

The Parthians roll a 6, thus regaining control of their homeland province of Parthia.

I attack Gallia, but again roll a 4, which fails thanks to Carthage's -1 modifier for attacking outside of its original empire.

The Persians, in the form of Parthians, are back

Four-Player Empire: Turn 11 (250-240 BC)

Situation at the halfway mark

From this turn on the Romans receive a +1 modifier for every turn in which they do not have a great captain, ie turns 11-14 and 17-20.

The revolt dice fall on INDIA (really the kingdom of Alexander's old foe King Porus), which has no effect as that province remains independent.

Rome is drawn first, and Richard decides to attack AFRICA, but the naval crossing fails (a 2 is rolled).

The Macedonians successfully invade Persia, and I attack Gallia, rolling a 4, which narrowly fails as Carthage suffers a -1 modifier for attacking outside of its original empire.

Finally the Parthians fail to bring about a rebellion in their homeland.

A relatively uneventful decade

Four-Player Empire: Turn 10 (260-250 BC)

Situation in 260 BC

This is a particularly important turn since at the end of it victory points will be awarded. Remember the Carthaginians and Persians/Parthians start the game with 12 victory points as a legacy of their already existing empires, while the Romans and Macedonians start on zero. Turns 10 and 20 are the two times extra victory points are awarded.

But first the revolt dice show the province of Persia throws off Macedonian rule and becomes independent.

The Parthians are drawn first, and they roll a 5, one short of the 6 needed to foment rebellion in their homeland.

The Macedonians are next, but they fail to reconquer Persia.

Then, as Carthage, I attack Cisalpina, which gives better odds, thanks to there being no naval crossing, than attacking Sicilia, but I roll a disappointing 2.

The Romans could attack AFRICA, requiring a successful naval crossing followed by a roll with a -1 modifier for attacking a controlled province. If successful, AFRICA would not fall - a special rule has it that instead Carthage's other provinces would revolt and become independent, which would be a big blow for me on turn 10 as it would cost three victory points (one for Numidia, and two for IBERIA).

Alternatively Rome could attack Cisalpina, suffering a -1 modifier for tribal unrest.

Richard ums and ahs about his choice, finally going for Cisalpina and a hoped-for victory point. However, he rolls 1.

The map at the halfway stage

Victory Points

The Persians/Parthians control no provinces, and so remain on 12 victory points.

The Macedonians have 10 provinces, including the double-points scoring AEGYPTUS, scoring 11 points.

The Romans score victory three points for consolidated ITALIA, and one each for Magna Graecia and Sicilia, taking them to five.

The Carthaginians score two victory points each for AFRICA and IBERIA, and one for Numidia, taking them to 17.

The map after the halfway victory points have been added

So the scores are: Carthaginians 17, Persians/Parthians 12, Macedonians 11, Romans 5.

The scores at this point in the solo game that I posted were: Carthaginians 17, Macedonians 14, Persians/Parthians 12, Romans 5.

The two games have played out very differently, but the scores are remarkably similar.