Monday 10 October 2016

"Big Grey Pin Cushions" or "I wish my elephants were slightly more motivated tonight!"

The Sassanid left and centre are perfectly co-ordinated and prepare to sweep aside the Roman centre...surely!
When we last posted the battle was at an intriguing point.


On the Sassanid right flank the mounted command had performed well and had basically cleared a path towards the rear most elements of the Roman centre and the camp.  In the centre the Romans had advanced swiftly and with purpose and a few poor activations from the Sassanid's had seen a slight momentum shift in the game.  At this stage there were no critical mistakes from either side and the battle was still very much in the balance.



The moment of truth as the Pushtigaban (Catafracts to you and I) hit the Legio and Veteran Auxilia.

Slightly out of focus as we are already concerned as the disorder hits one unit.

However the Romans also suffer a disordering hit

The Sassanid second line approaches

A wider span of the action.  On the extreme right of shot the Roman cavalry are probing and holding
up the Sassanid advance on the their left.

Arab cavalry, albeit raw, look for an opportunity to earn their salt.

Martin powers his Roman cavalry further down the Sassanid left.  These chaps would cause issues
for Guido all night long.

A view down the table illustrating the Pushtigaban hitting the Roman centre and the strung out nature
of the Sassanid dispositions.  In the foreground the light cavalry commander (me!) has allowed himself
to be distracted by actions in the centre and the advantage we held on the Roman left is slowly
disappearing by the turn.


At this stage the Sassanids felt a distinct optimism.  Veteran and normal Catafracts hitting Roman infantry with lance.  In TTS using lance allows you the ability to draw an extra chit in combat the first time the weapon is used in the battle.  If you get lucky and your opponent saves poorly it can blow a hole in their line quite quickly.


The Sassanids didn't get lucky...

However the Romans did...dirty imperial scum that they are :^)

To make matters worse for the Sassanids the Romans unleashed their stratagem with a unit arriving at a random
point on the either the flank or rear.  This one appeared in the rear. 

Back in the centre the Senior Persian commander is having a better run against his counterpart.

However Guido to the left of shot is in trouble.

Roman Auxilia and Ctafractarii take advantage of the paralysis on the left and attack.

With the speed of a semi-trailer (or more aptly a Sassanid Elephant) the Paighan foot turn to meet the enemy
light cavalry threat...only to see them speed off.  What a surprise!


Sassanid skirmishing bow attempt to support a unit of Catafracts that are in severe discomfort.  Now you see them...

...and now you don't.  Disappeared quicker than David Copperfield at "The Mirage" in Vegas!

Some Roman reversals in the centre have been countered by this heroic cohort who have destroyed a unit of Pushtigaban Cataphracts as well as a unit of Saravan and now have their sites on my elephants. 

Looking grim on the left and central left positions.

About to look even grimmer - the Romans are dancing merrily on their right and despite a brilliant
last man stand from Guido's light cavalry it is going to be too tough to waltz away from this.

The Kamandaran bow set their sites on the rear enemy cavalry

The Sassanids now having dispatched a few units of the enemy also see a chance to steal victory as hiding behind
the red chit cup is the Roman camp.  Victory medals are tight and this could be the difference.




This won't end well!

The Saravan to the rear has turned to see if it can take advantage of the legio attacking the elephant whilst
these pesky skirmishers start to hit at their flanks.

The Roman Auxilia take the Sassanid camp and with it, the last victory medals.  It was a closer run thing
than it looked as the Romans had only a few medals left themselves.


What a great game! 


Lots of fun and the fact that it was so close at the end showed that anything is possible if you start to get on a roll.  In the end it was a well deserved victory to Martin and Steve and one which provided a much needed fillip to the Roman morale.


Next week we head into battle again with Cookie also joining us for his first run with the rules.  We will try the same armies however the Sassanid's may need to think a little bit about army composition this week.


Surely the elephants can come back with a vengeance next week...surely!

4 comments:

  1. Superb, so glad to see the ancient armies take the field, we don't see this period anywhere near enough these days. So it's good to see that Simon's rules have reinvigorated you.
    Graham

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Graham and yes you are spot on. Ts great blowing the dust off the figures and giving them a new lease of life with these rules.

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  2. A close and well-told game! Armies look terrific. TtS seems to be gathering a wide following. What are your impressions?

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    1. It was very tight Jonathon that's for sure. The rules are fantastic as they flow well, are easy to learn however full of subtle strategies that reward historical tactics and manoeuvres. The flow of the game and the uncertainty of commanded decisions through the random activation mechanism is brilliant. We are, as Graham mentioned above, fighting ancients again which used to be the " two veg" to my Napoleonic " meat" of wargaming diet when I first started off in the hobby.
      Well worth you visiting these rules.

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