Kraxis
01-14-2005, 03:33
The game emulates history.
I have just had the greatest battle of this game yet. ~D It wasn't very big at all, both of us having some 12-13 units on Huge.
Being the Scipii I had to face the Greeks on their own turf, near Sparta (Seante Mission to take it). Now they had gotten mighty strong due to us and Thrace ganged up on Macedon.
Well, they turned up with 7 units of Armoured hoplites (two coming as reinfocements but managed to arrive before the clash) and 3 Hoplites as well as one Rhodian and a bodyguard.
My army was more set for a siege. 4 Principes, 1 Hastati, 3 Merc Hoplites, some Merc Skirmishers and a number of archers and slingers as well as the bodyguards for my general.
So obviously my archers and slingers begin to duke it out with the Rhodians. While I win the Rhodians cleverly target my Cretan unit and depletes them. Thus with archery I only managed to weaken one unit of Hoplites severely. Then I send in my peltasts while I screen the enemy general so that he doesn't run them down. The peltasts does little damage and the hoplites stoicly stands their ground. Then I send in the legionaries to use their pila, which do dish out damage within the Armoured Hoplites, but not much really. Finally I send in the Merc Hoplites in a special fashion.
I had set up to the enemy left so I could gang up on that flank (there won't be any real flanking though). So my three Mercs are engaged by an equal number of enemy hoplites, but to help my troops further I send them directly at the small gaps in the enemy line. The most weakened enemy Hoplite unit being attacked by two Mercs. The two lines crash into each other and my hoplites stand their ground (for once my phalanx didn't crumble) and soon the weakened enemy Hoplites break, but not before the outer unit of Armoured Hoplites begin a turn inwards towards my outer Mercs. I send the Hastati to deal with that.
Meanwhile the southern Hoplites turn inwards too, but by then I am too busy sending my Principes through the gap to deal directly with it. They are then met by the general of the field army (in a unit of Armoured Hoplites, the bodyguards came from the city) and he halts one of the Principes. Then the other two units of Principes fall into the enemy back and my bodyguards rush through the gap as well (a gap full of men by then).
The armoured hoplites stand their ground despite being flanked and worked on by many different troops. Finally some of them break and I use my peltasts to chase them down (they are simply great at that if you have no cavalry).
But now the general is engaged while the last of the Greek line has caught up with the battle (the battle has turned 90 degrees more or less) and I have to fight them downhill (lucky me) but in a state of rather extreme disruption. The Hoplites have a field day, routing one of my Principes and giving the others a bloody nose. Luckily I have the bodyguards who dash in and out.
Finally there are only two almost full units of Armoured Hoplites left and I still have most of mine (only those principes running).
Victory is at hand I think, then I notice something blinking... Noooo it ain't true! But yes it was true, I had 10 seconds left to finish the battle... A mad dash by my general fails to break them and I lose the battle.
I killed about 1200 Hoplites and lost about 600 troops myself, evenly destributed.
The worst part was that I lost my injured men, meaning my Cretans stayed depleted. When I looked at they armies again they had three full units of Armoured Hoplites and one half unit, but the Rhodians had almost all returned...
But I loved to see the battle work out like in history (though the Greeks actually had a reserve this time). First long range, then skirmishing, then engagement, then exploitation of any gaps, then resuming linebattle while skirmishers chase routers.
This battle could easily have been written about by Arrian or Polybius. ~:cool:
I love when such things happen.
I have just had the greatest battle of this game yet. ~D It wasn't very big at all, both of us having some 12-13 units on Huge.
Being the Scipii I had to face the Greeks on their own turf, near Sparta (Seante Mission to take it). Now they had gotten mighty strong due to us and Thrace ganged up on Macedon.
Well, they turned up with 7 units of Armoured hoplites (two coming as reinfocements but managed to arrive before the clash) and 3 Hoplites as well as one Rhodian and a bodyguard.
My army was more set for a siege. 4 Principes, 1 Hastati, 3 Merc Hoplites, some Merc Skirmishers and a number of archers and slingers as well as the bodyguards for my general.
So obviously my archers and slingers begin to duke it out with the Rhodians. While I win the Rhodians cleverly target my Cretan unit and depletes them. Thus with archery I only managed to weaken one unit of Hoplites severely. Then I send in my peltasts while I screen the enemy general so that he doesn't run them down. The peltasts does little damage and the hoplites stoicly stands their ground. Then I send in the legionaries to use their pila, which do dish out damage within the Armoured Hoplites, but not much really. Finally I send in the Merc Hoplites in a special fashion.
I had set up to the enemy left so I could gang up on that flank (there won't be any real flanking though). So my three Mercs are engaged by an equal number of enemy hoplites, but to help my troops further I send them directly at the small gaps in the enemy line. The most weakened enemy Hoplite unit being attacked by two Mercs. The two lines crash into each other and my hoplites stand their ground (for once my phalanx didn't crumble) and soon the weakened enemy Hoplites break, but not before the outer unit of Armoured Hoplites begin a turn inwards towards my outer Mercs. I send the Hastati to deal with that.
Meanwhile the southern Hoplites turn inwards too, but by then I am too busy sending my Principes through the gap to deal directly with it. They are then met by the general of the field army (in a unit of Armoured Hoplites, the bodyguards came from the city) and he halts one of the Principes. Then the other two units of Principes fall into the enemy back and my bodyguards rush through the gap as well (a gap full of men by then).
The armoured hoplites stand their ground despite being flanked and worked on by many different troops. Finally some of them break and I use my peltasts to chase them down (they are simply great at that if you have no cavalry).
But now the general is engaged while the last of the Greek line has caught up with the battle (the battle has turned 90 degrees more or less) and I have to fight them downhill (lucky me) but in a state of rather extreme disruption. The Hoplites have a field day, routing one of my Principes and giving the others a bloody nose. Luckily I have the bodyguards who dash in and out.
Finally there are only two almost full units of Armoured Hoplites left and I still have most of mine (only those principes running).
Victory is at hand I think, then I notice something blinking... Noooo it ain't true! But yes it was true, I had 10 seconds left to finish the battle... A mad dash by my general fails to break them and I lose the battle.
I killed about 1200 Hoplites and lost about 600 troops myself, evenly destributed.
The worst part was that I lost my injured men, meaning my Cretans stayed depleted. When I looked at they armies again they had three full units of Armoured Hoplites and one half unit, but the Rhodians had almost all returned...
But I loved to see the battle work out like in history (though the Greeks actually had a reserve this time). First long range, then skirmishing, then engagement, then exploitation of any gaps, then resuming linebattle while skirmishers chase routers.
This battle could easily have been written about by Arrian or Polybius. ~:cool:
I love when such things happen.