This week I finally got in my second game of L’Art De La Guerre (following on from my introductory game June last year), this time 300 points and hosted by Andre at the Christchurch Wargaming Club. I decided to trot out my Mycenaeans who have not seen action in a long time, and opposing me Andre fielded Achaemenid Persians – so an anachronistic match-up but a not too far off semi-historical mix of opposing troop types – well at least if you ignore the wheels on the chariots (and think of them as cavalry)!
My Mycenaeans were organised as follows (left to right as deployed on table):
Mycenaean (Pre-Trojan War) ~1280 BC Initiative: 1 Corps IV: Tlepolemus (ordinary) 6 Spearmen with Tower Shields (heavy foot, pavise) 2 Slingers (light infantry, sling) Corps I: King Atreus of Mycenae (competent) 6 Chariots, Dendra Armour & Spear (light chariot, armour, impact) 3 Bowmen (bowmen) 2 Libyans (light infantry, javelin) Corps III: Ergiyios (ordinary) 6 Spearmen with Figure-8 Shields (heavy foot, pavise) 2 Light Bowmen (light infantry, bow) Corps II: Attaginas (competent) 6 Chariots, Warriors w. Javelins (light chariot, javelin) 3 Bowmen (bowmen) 2 Libyans (light infantry, javelin) 1 Standard Camp ARMY SIZE: 38
Meanwhile Andre’s Achaemenid Persians were composed as follows (this time goign from his right to left so in the order they opposed my corps as listed above):
Achaemenid Persians 479 BC Initiative: 5 Corps I: Mardonius (Strategist) 5 Immortals (½ medium swordsmen, ½ bowmen, elite) 5 Sparabara (½ medium swordsmen, ½ bowmen) Corps IV: Greek Ally (allied, ordinary, included) 5 Hoplites (heavy spearmen) 1 Skirmisher (light infantry, javelin) Corps III: Cavalry (competent) 4 Persian Cavalry (heavy cavalry, bow) 5 Scythians (light cavalry, bow) Corps II: Guard Cavalry (competent) 3 Guard Cavalry (heavy cavalry, bow, elite) 1 Persian Cavalry (heavy cavalry, bow, elite) 2 Bactrians (light cavalry, bow, elite) 3 Scythians (light cavalry, bow) 1 Standard Camp ARMY SIZE: 32
As will be obvious the Persians won initiative and chose to attack Mycenae, placing the battlefield in the plains. The Mycenaeans’ managed to anchor their left flank on a river, however their deployment was hampered due to some pesky terrain (some fields and a plantation/vineyard) alongside the waterway in their deployment zone. A small Mycenaean ambush was however placed in the plantation to keep the opposition ‘honest’. The Persians were little hampered by the terrain on their side – being such masters of the rough going – and also had the added benefit of a gentle clear hill.
Initially both sides advanced confidently, the Persians leading the way very aggressively marching towards the Mycenaeans – the latter having to perform some fancy manoeuvring in the centre-left to relocate Atreus’s bowmen to the left of Tlepolemus’s spearmen to counter the turning of the left through the rough terrain by the Persian Immortals and Sparabara.
From here the pictures will do the talking for a bit…
By Round 7 things were starting to look grim for the Mycenaeans, despite a good start the gods were not with them this day and they repeatedly failed to exploit advantages in combat (i.e. threw huge numbers of 1’s and 2’s for combat dice), and were slowly outmanoeuvred by the Persians. on the far left the 3 units of bowmen valiantly fought off 3 units of Immortals and 3 of Sparabara, and despite losing one of their number about the end of Round 6 the other 2 hung on tenaciously to bravely hold up that flank – and they destroyed some of the Immortals!
In Rounds 8-9 the Persians moved in for the kill however, in the centre the Scythian light horse got onto the flank of the armoured chariots, the remaining spearmen of the left (pictured above) were overrun; and with the final succumbing of the “brave bowmen on the left” the Mycenaean army broke and the battle was over. The Persians were about halfway to their break point, if I recall correctly.
Overall a great game, and thanks to Andre from the Christchurch Wargaming Club (New Zealand) for the game and the instruction. Now I must actually go and dig my rulebook out of my boxes of books and actually reread it!