The Battle of the Iron Bridge

[GeneralHankerchief]

The Battle of the Iron Bridge

Prologue:

Both sides of the Orontes River were freckled by the soft glow of campfires burning in the night. The river itself glistened, basking in the glow of the fires as well as the moonlight. It was almost as if the river knew that this was the last night where it would look so peaceful, so blue. Tomorrow it would run with blood.

It is on the northern bank that we turn our attention to, where, despite the superior numbers and quality of his troops, Andronikos Komnenos is fretting along with his fellow generals in the command tent. Frankly, there is no reason that he should be doing this. He has the clear advantage, and is not to mention somewhat feared ever since the Battle of Edessa where he caught and massacred a doomed Theo Petzeas.

Still, though, he is worried. It’s just that bloody bridge.

No matter his military advantage, Ioannis Tagaris and his allies have the massive tactical advantage of defending a chokepoint. While Andronikos is thankful to God that Tagaris does not have enough money to construct proper fortifications, he has created rudimentary defenses around the area. These basic impediments combined with the bridge might just spell doom for Andronikos’s army. At the very least, it would certainly deplete his forces to the point where he wouldn’t be able to take on the remaining claimants to the Byzantine throne.

Fretting throughout the night, he is about to retire when the command tent opens. Three men enter: Andronikos’s two guards and an oddly-dressed man who most certainly does not have the look of a Byzantine about him.

“Forgive me for intruding, your Highness,” says one of the guards, addressing Andronikos as if he were Basileus even though the men across the river would probably have something to say about that. “This man is a local and knows the area well. He says he has information that would be of a help to you. We have searched him and he has no weapons.”

“Thank you guards,” Andronikos says, dismissing them. Turning to face the new man to get the measure of him, the general continues speaking. “You clearly are not a Byzantine. Speak, then, tell me why I should listen to you.”

“My name is Matthias,” the mysterious man says. He is not at all taken aback by the presence of powerful men staring him down. As a matter of fact he seems used to it. “I was born into the Holy Roman Empire before moving out here a while ago to be closer to the Holy Land. I have spent much time around this section of the Orontes and know the area of the Iron Bridge very well.”

“And your information?”

“The river shallows it several miles to the east, enough so that your men may attempt a crossing. It is not widely known, as the hue of the soil hides it, but it is definitely there and definitely crossable. Send scouts out to search it, if you wish. They will confirm what I say.”

Andronikos, his eyes now gleaming, rubs his hands together. “Is it close enough where the soldiers I send to cross it will be able to get back into the battle in a reasonable amount of time?”

Matthias grins. “That depends on what ‘reasonable’ means to you, General. They will lose a significant portion of the day doing so. But then again, once they do arrive they will almost certainly have a greater effect than were they to simply be bottled up on the Bridge, doing nothing but pushing forward and being shot to pieces by the enemy’s archers.”

Andronikos rubs his head with his right hand in thought. By the time he looks up, Matthias is gone. The information he passed along, however, remains.

On the south side of the bank, Ioannis Tagaris was also deep in thought. He too knew of the ford, having thoroughly scouted every inch of the river in several miles of direction ever since he arrived. He would not waste a man to defend it, however, as he needed every man he could get to start out with. He was promised reinforcements, but he wasn’t sure if they would be enough to stem the tide awaiting him. Hopefully his men, his loyal men, would be enough to hold on long enough… and then that his reinforcements would also manage to stay alive.

Background (mostly sniped from TinCow):

The War of the Four Basileis continues, entering its second stage. After initially gathering up all of their possible forces, the generals have all begun consolidating, and in some cases, moving.

Andronikos Komnenos (woad&fangs) marched back north, across the bridge west of Edessa, where he met his ally Nikitas Moschos (Ituralde). Together, the two armies turned west and began a march towards Antioch, along the north bank of the Euphrates. This route bypassed the bridge guarded by Iosef Ek Artas (mini), but it was initially without roads and thus the going was slow at first. When the river turned away to the south, they continued west, towards the north bank of the Orontes river and the famous Iron Bridge.

At this point, the outriders of Iosef Ek Artas' (mini) army, investigating the sight of the large dust cloud in the distance, caught sight of their foes. They immediately returned to report the move to Senator Ek Artas. The Senator had not made any plans to leave the bridge (no orders received) and indeed had been informed that the armies of Basileus Ioannis Tagaris were marching to join him at the bridge. Unsure of whether to abandon his post or not, he decided to dispatch messengers to the Basileus' approaching armies. It did not take long for these mounted riders to find Ioannis Tagaris (TheFlax), who had begun marching north immediately from Tortosa along the coast road to Antioch. With him was Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn-Khaldun), who had merged his ragtag band of peasants with the main force.

Upon being informed that Andronikos and Nikitas were marching for Antioch, Basileus Tagaris decided to fortify the river crossings and hold them against his foe. He had specifically made plans to fortify his encampment, but with the Empire bankrupt, he was unable to obtain sufficient resources to build a proper fort, and the only one in the region was on the wrong side of the river. Instead, he did what he could to prepare some basic defenses, such as stakes and a shallow ditch, while he waited for his allies to join him. Of these allies, only Georgios Angelos (Tristan de Castelreng) was on hand, having marched alongside the Basileus with his fast-moving cavalry. (No orders received, but previous turn's orders were to join with Ioannis Tagaris, so that order remained in effect in the absence of new orders.)

Vartholomaios Ksiros (Rowan) had immediately begun marching north to join with Basileus Tagaris, but he was much farther to the south and the Iron Bridge was near the limits of his marching distance. Realizing that Andronikos and Nikitas would arrive at the north side of the Iron Bridge before Vartholomaios Ksiros would arrive to aid him, Basileus Tagaris send the riders back east to notify Iosef Ek Artas of the impending battle. Iosef ek Artas immediately made preparations to march to the aid of his Lord, but his lack of preparation for this eventuality resulted in a slow start.

As dawn breaks over the Iron Bridge, Ioannis Tagaris (TheFlax), Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn-Khaldun), and Georgios Angelos (Tristan de Castelreng) hold the south bank against Andronikos Komnenos (woad&fangs) and Nikitas Moschos (Ituralde). The three members of the Tagarian Alliance are heavily outnumbered and the quality of their troops is inferior. However, they have taken the wise precaution of constructing some primitive defenses, which may buy them a small amount of time. The Battle of the Iron Bridge will surely be determined by their ability to hold their ground until Vartholomaios Ksiros (Rowan) and Iosef Ek Artas (mini) arrive to reinforce them.

Thus the Battle of the Iron Bridge begins. By day's end it is quite possible that the War of Four Basileis may be down to three - possibly even two.

[GeneralHankerchief]

General:

The Battle of the Iron Bridge will be your standard Throne Room Tabletop PvP battle, umpired by me in the style of the Battle of Trent and the more recent Battle of Edessa. Unlike the forementioned battles, retreat is an option for both sides. The Tagarian Alliance can fall back to Antioch and Andronikos Komnenos can retreat into the mountains of Asia Minor. However, I would personally prefer it if this battle was decided without a follow-up effort being required (PvP is quite time-consuming).

As this battle involves several commanders, I am going to bring back some mechanics from the Battle of Trent, but modified in order to serve this battle. The main thing to know is that The troops the character brings with him are under that character’s direct control.

Orders and resolution:

Players are to draft concise, in-character orders every turn and send them to me along with a map diagramming their movements. If orders are too complicated they run a risk of confusing the division commander and causing inaction. All divisions, unless being one of the two nearest the commanding general, are subject to an orders test (my rolling the die). 2-6, orders are executed, 1, they are not and the units are inactive for that turn.

To properly simulate medieval combat, orders will be given on a divisional level rather than a regimental one. Refer to the Word document (see below) to see a list of proposed divisions. Division commanders are generally experienced people and know how to execute operations such as wheeling, pivoting, and flanking. If you tell them to flank the left side of the line, they don’t need more information, such has how to do it in detail.

I sent an example of how orders could look like to both sides at the Battle of Trent, which also applies here:

BILLYBOB'S ORDERS
Infantry: Advance in line with the rest of the army and attack the enemy's infantry in front of you. We outnumber them by one regiment of DFKs so I want them to wrap around and hit them on the flank.

Archers: All fire is to be concentrated on the enemy general unit. If you are charged then fall back to the spearmen.

Spearmen: Guard the archers, but if it becomes apparent that the enemy cavalry is going to make an attack then shadow them and respond as necessary.

Cavalry: Once the enemy flank is engaged then swing around and hit the enemy's rear.

~~~~~~~~~

include the map of course as well.

Should combat arise, either TinCow or I, depending on real-life schedules, will resolve it via playing both sides from a custom battle in M2TW and sending the results to me, where they will be implemented at my discretion. We will be using the custom PvPMod that I mentioned in the Edessa thread that gives Egypt (a dead faction in-game) Byzantine units to make things fairer. All combat, unless it is a large infantry engagement, usually along the main battle line, will only take one turn to resolve. This includes operations that unbalance the line, such as throwing in reserves or a flank/rear attack. Losing units will be removed from the map, and victorious units, if necessary, will face a fractional reduction of their numbers.

The battle for the bridge itself will be a different case and will take longer to resolve, due to the giant pileup of units that will take place. For the first turn of engagement, I will include only the frontmost units included in combat, resolve it, and then we'll move from there.

Battle structure:

First, I will show both sides and approximately what turns they can begin to influence the battle.

The sides:

The Tagarian Alliance:

• Ioannis Tagaris (TheFlax) - available immediately - Overall Commander
• Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn-Khaldun) - available immediately
• Georgios Angelos (Tristan de Castelreng) - available immediately
• Vartholomaios Ksiros (Rowan) - possibility of reinforcement starting Turn 2
• Iosef ek Artas (mini) - possibility of reinforcement starting Turn 3

Andronikos Komnenos and friends (one may deploy immediately, the other may do so on Turn 1):

• Andronikos Komnenos (woad&fangs) - Overall Commander
• Nikitas Moschos (Ituralde)

For the two reinforcing Tagarian armies, they each have a 50% chance of entering the battle on the turn indicated above. If the die roll fails, they have a 5-in-6 of doing so the following turn. If the die hates their souls and still won't cooperate, they will deploy two turns after indicated.

Overall Commanders:

Those of you who participated in the Battle of Trent will be familiar with this role. Essentially, the Overall Commander coordinates all in-battle actions and covers for people who do not send in orders by providing skeleton, vague orders that will be implemented in the stead of the absent commanders. Unlike in Trent, the role of Overall Commander has been assigned to each side's respective would-be Basileus.

If the Overall Commander dies, is captured, moves off the map, or is incapacitated in any way, another one may not be appointed.

The other crossing:

As mentioned in the story above, there is a second crossing that will be present in the battle. As it is not present on the battle map I will be using (Po River) to simulate all combat, the crossing will be off the map, to the east. As such, no combat may take place over there and the Tagarians may not dispatch troops to defend it. However, it will take a while to properly execute the flank since it will take place in a very roundabout manner.

It will take three turns from the time the order to use the side crossing is given until the time where the flanking force is a threat to the defense. For cavalry, it will be two, but only if they are pushed, and they will definitely be tired afterwards.

For clarification, I'll break down exactly the turn order if Andronikos and his men decide to flank. This is assuming the initial order is given on Turn 1:

Turn 1: Initial order given, flanking infantry marches off the map.
Turn 2: Crossing initiated. Flanking forces still off the map.
Turn 3: Flanking forces reappear on the right edge of the map.
Turn 4: Flanking forces can attack.

In addition, if a general is not dispatched to lead the flank attack, every individual regiment performing the attack has a one-in-six chance of getting lost and not returning to the battlefield. If the Overall Commander personally leads the flanking attack, he may not perform his duties until he arrives. Any general leading the attack will also be cut off from communication of any kind until he returns to the battlefield; thus, if this occurs, I will not be posting public feedback until he returns and will ask that any Quicktopics that are formed to discuss tactics not be used until the flanking march is complete.

The Bridge:

The Iron Bridge will naturally play a major feature in the battle. To assist you in sending in your maps, the maximum number of regiments that the bridge can hold, width-wise, is two. For length-wise, just ignore my MS Paint map as I'm sure all of you know that bridges can hold an entire army if you work at it.

The map:

Divisions and deployment:

Attached in the Word Document below is a list of pre-created divisions for every army. You may rearrange these as you see fit, however, there are restrictions as you will see in the document. You will be copy-pasting these regiments directly from the Document onto the map and sending it to me along with your orders for every turn.

The turn schedule and respective deployment list is as follows:

Turn 0: Initial deployments (All initial Tagarian armies and one of Andronikos's two armies)
Turn 1: Early morning (The other one of Andronikos's armies)
Turn 2: Mid-morning (Vartholomaios Ksiros's first chance of entering)
Turn 3: Late morning (Iosef ek Artas's first chance of entering)
Turn 4: Early afternoon (absolute latest Vartholomaios will enter)
Turn 5: Mid-afternoon (absolute latest Iosef will enter)
Turn 6: Late afternoon
Turn 7: Early evening

A night turn and additional day turns will be added as needed.

The forces:

These are the forces each side has entered the battle with. However, due to ease of resolution's sake, I have consolidated and manipulated several army compositions. If you want to see each general's actual composition, refer to the Word Document below.

Andronikos Komnenos (woad&fangs):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Nikitas Moschos (Ituralde):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Ioannis Tagaris (TheFlax):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn-Khaldun):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Georgios Angelos (Tristan de Castelreng):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Vartholomaios Ksiros (Rowan):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Iosef ek Artas (mini):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

DEPLOYMENT INSTRUCTIONS FOR TURN 0: Please refer to IronBridge_units and let me know if you wish to rearrange things or keep them as they are. The Tagarians must send me deployment instructions for their three initial commanders as well as where they wish to place their rudimentary defenses which will slow the enemy down somewhat and give all units placed directly behind the defenses a one-chevron bonus. The Komnenians must inform me which army will be deploying on Turn 0 and naturally give me their deployment map.

ALL ORDERS ARE DUE BY MARCH 27TH, 20:00 GMT-5.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Note: At the close of the battle I will edit this and all future posts to include orders from all parties and umpire notes. For now, you will be receiving basic public feedback in this thread from the viewpoint of our mysterious German Matthias, who is watching the battle from afar. More detailed information will be sent via PM.

Orders
Komnenian orders:

Horse archers of division VI, you will be commanded by Nikitas. He will be lending me the foot archers of his division IV in return for your services. The archers will be rearranged so that the Trebizond archers will compose division V and be lead by Anthimus. The peasant archers will compose division VI and will be lead by Peter. Manuel, Cyrus, Romanos, you know your divisions already.

new army composition and divisional commander names


Romanos, align your men in a column in front of the bridge. You will be leading the first assault when the fighting starts. Cyrus and Manuel, prepare your men to the north-east of the bridge. Spearmen should be in front of the militia. Anthimus, there is an outcrop of land just to the east of the bridge. Hold that position and prepare to fire when the fighting starts. Peter, take the peasant archers to the west of the bridge. I will ride along side the infantry column. God speed, men!
Battle map

I confirm the rearrangement of Divisions between Nikitas Moschos and Andronikos Komnenos as outlined in the papers that were sent to you.

Tagarian orders:

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders

Division I: Stay to the left-hand side of Division II.

Division II: Move up to the Iron Bridge in two rows, with the peasants taking the center.

Division III: Stay to the left-hand side of Division I, while staying within range of the Iron Bridge.

Division IV: Merge with Georgios Angelos' Division III.

Note: Ioannis Tagaris is determined to win or die this day and thus will fight until death.

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders to Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn could not submit orders)

Division I & II: move up to the rear of Ioannis Tagaris' Division II.


The dark red lines on the map represent the makeshift defenses Ioannis Tagaris has built.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

OK, so it will be a simple deployment facing the ford with HA in the front line skirmishing and the rest of the cav in a second line farther back from the shore but still facing the ford.

Orders :

Will take of all my cavalry and add to the HA division the HA from TheFlax (pending his agreement) and march to the ford.

Will bar the way to any crossing by engaging in melee fire any unit crossing the ford (skirmishing) if any manages to cross, other cavalry will engage (only if lone unit manages to cross if more than one crosses at a time, HA will keep whittling them down by skirmishing and will slowly retreat towards main force or other force on our side of the ford).

If no enemy units are in view of the ford, will attempt to cross to make a flanking attack on the enemy.

All you need to do for Turn 0 is deploy your troops - no movement involved.

And just to be clear, the enemy has to cross the ford first. You can't contest it or use it in any way until you've beaten back the flankers.

Note: Ibn-Khaldun is having RL difficulties and thus TheFlax filled in for him.

Public feedback for Turn 0:

On the north bank, Matthias watches as Andronikos Komnenos takes the lead and deploys his men. The aspiring Basileus has decided to personally see the advance action, trusting Nikitas Moschos to back him up. Andronikos is clearly preparing for an immediate assault, lining up his best infantry behind the bridge. Off to the side are his lower-quality infantry, and his archers, plus a contingent of Nikitas's, have taken positions flanking both sides. In the meantime, Andronikos's horse archers are nowhere to be seen. Matthias reasons that he has entrusted them to Nikitas.

More interesting though, to Matthias, is the defense of the Iron Bridge. He watches very closely as Ioannis Tagaris and his allies deploy on the south side. Upon seeing the Tagarian formation, he gives a chuckle. It's nice to simply watch a battle, especially a bridge battle, and not have any interest invested in who wins or loses. As long as a lot of Byzantines die, Matthias is happy.

The Tagarians are crowding the bridge, while not placing any men on the bridge itself. Interestingly enough, Ioannis's front-and-center men are his peasants. Wooden stakes have been placed all around the immediate mouth, with only a gap in the rear. Outside of the stakes, Ioannis has deployed his archers to the west of the bridge, undoubtedly to challenge Andronikos's forces there.

To the far east, Georgios Angelos has taken most of the Tagarian cavalry, ready to meet any potential flanking force that reenters the main battlefield.

And thus the initial forces have been deployed in the Battle of the Iron Bridge. With reinforcements arriving on both sides in the next few hours, the one thing that is certain is that it will be a bloodbath. Matthias smiles at the possibility.

Map:

DEADLINE FOR TURN 1 ORDERS: March 29, 12:00 GMT-5.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Turn 0 feedback

Komnenian feedback:

Feedback to Andronikos

Signaling your army to join you, your men leave Nikitas's behind and take the lead in the assault. Ioannis's men definitely seem prepared as they're waiting for you at the south end of the bridge, but you're ready for a fight.

Borrowing Nikitas's archers, your men have the missile advantage at the moment, as you can counter Ioannis's archers in the west and your men in the east can fire unopposed. Frankly, this will be a big help as your front-line troops will probably be massacred.

With Nikitas coming up next turn, you feel reasonably confident, but it's still going to be a tough fight as you prepare to issue new orders.

Feedback to Nikitas

Your men are ready to deploy for Turn 1. Please send me a map of your placement of forces.

Tagarian feedback:

Feedback to Ioannis

You cluster your troops around the Iron Bridge, ordering them to prepare to receive a charge. In addition to a wall of soldiers, you have a decent amount of stakes ready to moderately impede Andronikos's troops.

One thing that slightly concerns you is Andronikos's missile advantage. Taking troops from Nikitas, he has both sides of the bridge covered whereas you only have the west. There's not much that stakes can do against arrows. You do feel good about Georgios Angelos covering the flank, but with Andronikos looking like he's preparing for an immediate assault, you wonder about his immediate usefulness.

With Andronikos about to give his orders, you instinctively brace yourself. It's going to be a long day.

Feedback to Aleksios

Ioannis places you and your peasants in reserve. However, it's quite likely that despite their positioning, you will still see action before the day is over.

Feedback to Georgios

Taking most of the initial Tagarian cavalry, you accompany them to the east of the battlefield, where they will be ready to deal with any potential flankers. However, if you stay around you may do a lot of waiting. Andronikos looks like he's going to make an immediate assault on the bridge.

In the case that Andronikos backs off, however, your horse archers are in a good position to take some of the meat out of any potential flanking attack before they even get to the ford.

Orders

Komnenian orders:

Romanos! advance across the bridge! I'll follow alongside and fight until my bodyguards are halved in number. Then I will fall back to our side of the river. Peter, have your men fire at the archers directly across from you. Anthimus, have your men shoot into the enemy infantry. All other Hecatontarchs, hold your positions.

Alright,

I hope this is the right way.

Deployment Turn 1:

Division III will march in a line behing the Heavy Infantry Column of Andronikos.
Division IV will go north-west of the bridge with Division II behind it in a mirror to Andronikos troops on the north-east of the bridge.
Division V will move along with the spears to the west of them. Keep out of bowshot from the opposite bank.
Nikitas will take his men and join with Andronikos Komnenos alongside Andronikos Heavy Infantry column.

http://rapidshare.com/files/21458590...kitas.doc.html

Cheers!

Ituralde

Tagarian orders:

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders

Division I: Maintain current position.

Division II: Maintain current position and brace for a charge.

Division III: Maintain position, adopt a loose formation and fire on opposing archers if in range. If not, fire at anyone crossing the bridge.

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders to Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn could not submit orders)

Division I & II: Maintain current position.


(Since no one is moving on my side, I guess I don't need to make a map, right? Sorry about sending a map in reduced format last time. )

Aleksios Orders:

Everything stays the same. We'll see what Andronikos does.

No orders from Tristan.

Umpire notes for Turn 1:

Units failing orders test: None.

The Komnenian infantry lined up behind the bridge stormed it this turn. As per my rules, only the first two in line will engage with the defenders (just Ioannis’s initial three regiments) this turn. With supporting archer fire from the east side of the bridge, we would see what would happen.

I was going to simulate this battle myself, but due to lack of time I PM’d TinCow, who earlier said he would step in if needed.

Hi TC,

If you have time tonight, we have some action that needs to be resolved. If not, then I'll do it tomorrow early afternoon.

Andronikos (woad) has ordered his lined-up infantry to charge and attack the units on the other side of the bridge. As I said in the thread, we will only be simulating the first two units in line - the others will have to wait, as there isn't enough room. This includes Andronikos’s personal bodyguard.

In addition, only simulate the first three units in Ioannis's line of defense as defending. The two units on the flanks (not the peasants) will get a one-chevron bonus, as they are behind defenses. In addition, there is archer fire, as noted by the diagram below. The two groups on the west are firing at each other (put Ioannis's men in loose formation), and Andronikos's unopposed archers in the east will fire into Ioannis's infantry.

Please simulate both sides and send me the results - use the Po River map, as that is what I've based my diagram off of. In addition, let me know if the Komnenians have achieved a bulge, for if they have then I'll allow more men over the bridge per turn.

Many thanks, and let me know if you have any questions.

Map:

TinCow’s reply (spliced together):

Ok, I've done it. I had to break it down into a couple different battles to get it to work well, though I guess that's what you typically do.

First, the archer duel on the west side can't actually be simulated on the Po map, because those units don't have long range and can't shoot across the river. I simulated a straight duel on a normal flat map as a result. When simulated from Ioannis' side, he won with about 1 unit of archers lost with all enemies killed. When simulated from Andronikos' side, he won with about 1 unit of archers lost with all enemies killed. The key seemed to be that the side I controlled always got a shot or two off before the AI side responded, which then snowballed into larger and larger casualties due to the reduced firepower. I used loose formation when I was on Ioannis' side and tight on Andronikos, but I honestly couldn't see any difference in the result due to that. End result in my opinion: 1 unit dead on each side.

Second, the infantry battle was simulated. When controlling Andonikos' units on the offense, each unit lost about 1/3 of their strength and routed the enemy. However, the AI put both spear units in front, with the peasants in the rear. The fight was thus with an even front on the bridge instead of with the swordsmen flanked as they dug into the peasants.

I ran [the defensive] simulation a couple times, and Andronikos' units were massacred both times. The peasants are definitely toast as well and Ioannis' units took moderate casualties. Combined with the losses from the archer firings, I would say that Andronikos lost both of the two attacking units and Ioannis lost the peasants and the easternmost spear unit.

So, end result is: 1 unit of archers each lost in the western duel. Both of Andronikos' attacking melee units are lost. Ioannis' defending peasants and eastern side Spearmen are lost.

If you'd like to give a bit more credit to Andronikos' eastern side archers, we could say that they shifted their fire to other units after their initial targets were engaged. I would say this either reduced second rank spear unit on the east side either to half or nothing, depending on what you think the best balance would be.

If I had to decide, I would say kill all three defending units as well as both attacking units, but do not add any additional casualties to the second row units due to the archers shifting their fire.

Let me know if any of that is unclear or needs to be redone.

I changed one thing from TinCow’s simulations: the western archers. After looking at the old Iron Bridge Battle reports from KotR, I determined that the Orontes was wide enough where non-elite archers wouldn’t be able to fire far enough for the arrows to make a difference. Thus, the western archers were inactive this turn.

Roll for Bart entering on Turn 2 (1-3 no, 4-6 yes): 2. Thus, the Tagarians will be without reinforcements until at least Turn 3. Bart will have a 5-in-6 chance of entering the battlefield on Turn 3.

Public feedback for Turn 1:

Wasting no time, Andronikos begins his assault and storms the Iron Bridge with his infantry that was lined up the previous turn. Matthias watches silently and hears the pounding sound of feet marching on iron that he knows so well.

Naturally, this assault is not an isolated affair. Andronikos has called his archers on both sides of the bridge to begin firing. To the west, what appears to be the start of an extended missile duel with Ioannis's archers breaks off quickly as both sides realize that they can't reach the opposite bank. Somewhat embarrassed, the archers stop firing and wait for further orders. On the east, however, Andronikos's unopposed archers, blessed with a jutting-out bank, begin supporting fire, dropping some front-line Tagarian defenders.

Matthias's attention is quickly averted from the archers' actions, however, as the first wave of the Komnenian infantry hits the defenders on the other side of the bridge. For Ioannis's two non-peasant units, his prepared, roughshod defenses are serving them well as they fight with slightly more bravery and experience as they would without them. However, the poor peasants, stuck in front on the defenses and not even on the flanks, are unceremoniously massacred.

Tagarian placement and numbers seem to be winning out, as the classic bridge defense strategy of bottlenecking the enemy is serving them well. Matthias watches as Komnenian numbers quickly disappear. However, the supporting archery fire from the east side of the bridge is taking its toll on the defenders. What would normally be a victory for the defenders turns into a draw, as all units engaged on this turn are annihilated.

A breach has now been opened, and it will be a race to exploit it. If the Tagarian second line cannot get behind their defenses before the Komnenian second wave arrives, they will lose the protection it provides. In addition, if the Komnenians maintain the breach, then they will be able to funnel more regiments into the fight at once.

Matthias also notes that Nikitas Moschos has arrived and appears to be in position to support Andronikos's main assault rather than attempt to flank the ford. It looks like the bloody business that is a direct bridge assault will continue.

Matthias grins at the prospect.

Map:

DEADLINE FOR TURN 2 ORDERS: March 31, 18:00 GMT-5.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Turn 1 feedback

Komnenian feedback:

Feedback to Andronikos

You order a direct assault on the Iron Bridge, ordering your lined-up infantry as well as your own bodyguard into the fray. However, as a breach has not yet been achieved, the Tagarian bottleneck is at work and only your front two regiments engage the defenders this turn.

They fight the defenders to a bloody standstill, although the draw is largely thanks to your supporting fire coming from the east side of the bridge. Without those three regiments of archers (and a favorable bank), the Tagarian first line would surely have held. However, your archers on the west bank were useless this turn, as they couldn't reach their counterparts on the other side of the Orontes.

A bloody gap has now appeared on the south side of the bridge. Your two infantry units are poised to exploit it, and it will be a race to see if you can get past the Tagarian defenses before Ioannis's second line arrived (and please note that the map is not to scale, as in the battle, units are by lines and not columns). If your men win, then the Tagarians will lose the advantage of their defenses and you can personally join the fray yourself.

Nikitas has arrived, ready to support you. It's up to you to decide what to do next.

Feedback to Nikitas

You deploy your men in support of Andronikos. You can begin to assault the Iron Bridge this turn, however, you probably won't actually see combat unless Andronikos maintains the breach and orders your infantry in rather than his own.

As Andronikos is also feeling a bit ill, you may also have to assume overall command of the Komnenian forces. However, since you are not Andronikos each of his divisions may not listen to you (OOC: orders test). You pray that they will, though, and also that it won't even come to that.

Tagarian feedback:

Feedback to Ioannis

Well, that defense had mixed results. The good news is that Andronikos's first wave got slaughtered. The bad news is that so did your first line, and you now have to push your second line like never before to get to the prepared defenses before the second Komnenian wave arrives. If they don't... well... you don't even want to think about that.

In addition, the Komnenian archers on the east side of the bridge are also going to be a problem, as it was their supporting fire that prevented a defensive victory last turn. Your men on the west side, due to your ordering of them in a loose formation, would probably have won the archery duel, had they been able to reach the opposite shore. You will probably have to find a better use of them this turn.

With no sign of Vartholomaios Ksiros coming up, the best you can do is grit your teeth, continue holding fast, and pray that your men get back to the defenses before Andronikos's men do.

Feedback to Aleksios

You watch as the battle in front of you turns into a massacre for both sides. You and your loyal peasants are one step closer to being in the front lines. You're not quite sure how you feel about that, but they may see action if Ioannis's remaining defenders don't win the race to the defenses.

(OOC: Sorry about the short feedbacks, but there's not much I can do when you have three regiments of peasants in reserve! )

Feedback to Georgios

You and your cavalry watch as the main melee takes place to the west. You note that Nikitas Moschos has deployed in support of Andronikos rather than appearing to move on the ford.

Feedback to Bart

"Forward!" you keep crying to your men. This battle is going to be enough of a close-run thing as it is without your intervention. Hopefully that's the Orontes you see up ahead and not a mirage.

Suddenly, over the marching, you hear a loud "CRACK!" That can't be good. It turns out that an axle on the Great Cross your men have been carrying for good fortune has broken. Your men are working very hard to fix it, but they will not abandon it (that's bad luck, you know) and you will be delayed at least a turn. You can only hope your men fix it quickly so you're able to deploy next turn.

Orders:

Komnenian orders:

Romanos, exploit the gap and secure the ground on the other side of the Tagarian defenses. Anthimus, continue to fire at the enemy infantry. Peter, shadow the enemy archers. If they come into range, commence firing upon them. If Romanos can secure a foothold on the southern bank, I will come across and personally join the fray. Nikitas, I wish for you to ride alongside me.

Nikitas will follow Andronikos with his bodyguard across the bridge once Andronikos deems it fit to do so.

Division III form up in a column and prepare to cross the bridge in reinforcement of Andronikos Heavy Infantry.

Divison IV and V also be prepared to cross once the initial defenses are breached. Division V will be protected by Division IV then.

Tagarian orders:

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders

Division I: Move Back.

Division II: Rush to take up defensive positions on the western side of the bridge defenses.

Division III: Maintain position, adopt a tight formation and fire on any unit crossing the bridge.

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders to Aleksios ek Kerkiras (if Ibn could not submit orders)

Division I: Move to the side of the Ioannis Tagaris' Division I.

Division II: Rush to take up defensive positions on the eastern side of the bridge defenses.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

No orders from Ibn-Khaldun. TheFlax’s orders will be vaguely interpreted.

Still no chance of crossing to Andronikos' side as there seems to be no opposition ?

If possible, will cross with all cav units under my command with the intent of engaging Nikitas left wing (skirmishing with the HA). All other cav will try to single out units straying from the main army and take them out without taking too much risks (Ie, charge, withdraw and repeat as many times as necessary).

If not possible, all cav units will realign at the back of Ioannis line.
with HA in the first rank to peper Andronikos units on the bridge.
Should a breach in Ioannis line occur, then HA will retreat to safety and all other cav will charge the units responsible for the breach and withdraw, charge again, etc...

Note: I told Tristan that if the Komnenians made no approach on the ford this turn, his men would be free to cross the following turn. Naturally I will tell the Komnenians about this as well.

OOC: I'm sure Matthias can sympathize...

Bart:
"Bodyguard! You two head to the front of the column, you two head to the rear. At least some of the peasants must be wagonsmiths. Get me them here NOW! The wagonsmith will take the other horse and one of YOU will walk back! We have no time to waste! Rest of the bodyguard, dismount! Rise that platform off the axle and prop it up with rocks! Peasants, HURRY to that forest and get the straightest tree you can find that has the diameter to carry the weight of the cross! If this cross isn't moving in an hour you will be CARRYING it to the battle!"

At least he gets to show his logistics traits, for once.

Umpire notes for Turn 1:

Units inactive this turn: Andronikos’s eastern archers (with IK absent, I did a special roll for TheFlax ordering around Aleksios’s peasants – it passed).

A lot of my resolutions were contingencies based on whether Andronikos got his men to Ioannis’s defenses first or not. As such, my first resolution was simply a race based on rough battle map positions. I must stress that the map I post and send does not necessarily accurately represent actual unit positions or formations, since unit cards are in “column” forms and most of the infantry (save for the infantry on the bridge) is in line formation.

Playing the attackers, I couldn’t get the AI to cooperate with what I wanted it to do so I discounted its result. Playing the defenders, I deployed my men a bit back from the bridge, representing the second line not being in position. Naturally, the AI infantry stormed across. Once I judged it to be in the right position I paused the game and gave my orders, then resuming play. The Tagarians won the race. However, their ceding of the part in front of the center defenses allowed the Komnenians to being over one extra regiment (one of Nikitas’s Division III infantry).

When simulating the battle, the lack of archer fire (plus the support of the Tagarian archers) really hurt the Komnenians. Andronikos’s lead unit got obliterated. The other two infantry regiments, specifically trying to maintain and if possible expand a foothold, did slightly better. Andronikos’s final remaining regiment of his Romanos division took the brunt of Tagarian fire and also accomplished little before being destroyed. However, Nikitas’s first regiment, taking the peasants to the east, destroyed Aleksios’s first regiment and is still making trouble.

A moderate breach has been achieved and the Komnenians are in a decent position to exploit it. The Tagarians are most likely robbed of some of their eastern defenses unless Aleksios’s remaining peasant units can somehow beat back Nikitas’s infantry and fast.

Roll for Bart (needs 2-6): rolled a one!
Roll for Iosef (needs 4-6): rolled a two.

Bad luck for the Tagarians as Bart will only be able to deploy on Turn 4. Iosef ek Artas may deploy on Turn 4, but if a one is rolled will have to deploy on Turn 5.

I will inform all sides that Georgios Angelos and his cavalry may commence with crossing the ford.

Public feedback for Turn 2:

"Forward! Go! Go! Go!" Even from a safe distance, Matthias can hear Andronikos Komnenos screaming at the top of his lungs, urging his infantry to move faster, to get by the Tagarian defenses before Ioannis can deploy his second line. On the south bank, Ioannis is also animatedly ordering his men around. It is not a straight move-up however, as he is shifting his good infantry to the left. Meanwhile, Aleksios ek Kerkiras's trusty peasants have taken up the right side of the bridge.

Even with this shifting going on, the Tagarian infantry still reach their defenses with seconds to spare. Not opting to put a regiment in front of the center defenses this time, Ioannis has instead given the Komnenians a funnel of sorts once they get to the south side of the Iron Bridge. In order to squeeze some of Nikitas Moschos's men across and get them into the fray as well, a regiment of Andronikos's infantry takes the bait and is summarily annihilated.

Indeed, this would seem to be the case with all three Komnenian regiments of infantry that made it across the bridge this turn, as Matthias sees for some reason that their archers are not firing, and the Tagarian archers on the western side of the bridge are instead providing enfilade fire to any infantry crossing the bridge. At least they can hit something, Matthias thinks, and continues to watch the melee.

The Tagarian archers primarily hit Andronikos's final regiment of bridge-engaged infantry, and they too were defeated, heading for the west and thus the stronger infantry. However, in the east, Nikitas's first regiment over, relatively unharmed by archer fire, were met by only peasants. Naturally, they were decimated.

With the latest wave over, Matthias takes note of the situation. While the Komnenians have taken more numerical casualties, they have achieved another breach, one that the Tagarians will be hard-pressed to overcome. Ioannis and his followers must destroy Nikitas's regiment before help arrives or else the floodgates are open. With Vartholomaios Ksiros still not in position and no sign of Iosef ek Artas as well, this next wave could be the supreme moment of the Battle of the Iron Bridge.

Matthias notes that, despite his scouting, the Komnenians have made no attempt to take the ford to the east. A very impatient-looking Georgios Angelos, realizing the same, may take the initiative and cross it himself. The German has many things to watch for.

Map:

DEADLINE FOR TURN 3 ORDERS: April 2, 18:00 GMT-5.

As mentioned in the above, Georgios Angelos and his cavalry may cross the ford.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Turn 2 feedback

Komnenian feedback:

Feedback to Andronikos

Well, Romanos is no more. Despite pushing his remaining men hard, they weren't fast enough and without supporting archer fire (you will have to chastize whoever was responsible for delivering your orders to their division commander), got crushed by Ioannis's defenders.

Your infantry is now in a supporting position, with Nikitas Moschos's men lined up to support and expand a breach they created last turn by overwhelming Aleksios ek Kerkiras's peasants. In addition, if your archers ever manage to fire, they could provide an immeasurable hammer of support on that side of the bridge, since the Tagarian defense there is weakest anyway.

Having ceded the ford to Georgios Angelos, you may have to watch out for him, but the pressing concern at the moment is still the infantry on the other side of the Orontes.

Feedback to Nikitas

You managed to get one regiment of infantry over thanks to Andronikos's sacrifice, and boy, was it useful. Taking the eastern part of the Tagarian bottleneck, it found only peasants waiting for it and did its job well.

The rest of your forces are now ready to pour onto the other side of the river. It will now primarily be your job to annihilate the defenders. Don't let your liegelord down!

Tagarian feedback:

Feedback to Ioannis

Surprisingly, none of your regiments die this turn. They win the race and beat back Andronikos's infantry. However, you're still very worried. You ordered Aleksios ek Kerkiras's peasants to the right side of your defenses, anticipating archer fire that never came. Instead, a regiment of Nikitas Moschos's infantry stormed over and mauled the frontmost group.

You're now faced with a continued threat as well as the promise of more infantry coming up to assist the enemy. In addition, you have received no word from Vartholomaios Ksiros or Iosef ek Artas. For now, it's still you, Aleksios, and Georgios against a great tidal wave that's about to hit.

Batten down the hatches.

Feedback to Aleksios

You order your peasants to take position to the right of the Iron Bridge. You know they're going to face impending death thanks to Andronikos's archers, but such are the cold ways of war.

However, for whatever reason, Andronikos's archers do not fire. Your peasants are grateful for the reprieve, however, it is only temporary. Soon, they are faced with Nikitas Moschos's fresh infantry breathing down their necks. The closest regiment to the Orontes is destroyed.

You are now in full panic mode. Your two remaining regiments of peasants are tasked with defending the weakest Tagarian point where Andronikos and Nikitas are surely going to pour a lot of their strength. It you are not a praying man, it would be best that you start, and in a hurry.

Feedback to Georgios

It has become apparent that the Komnenians are not going to use the ford. Thus, you order your cavalry to prepare for a march and a crossing.

However, this may not be the best opportunity to use your horsemen. The Tagarian infantry is most likely going to be facing immense pressure on their right - the part of the battle closest to you - very soon. Giving up the ford for a while would give you the chance to smash the Komnenian strongpoint and help close the breach while you wait for the delayed reinforcements to come up.

The choice is yours, but neither is what you would like.

Feedback to Bart

Oh, the unfairness of it all! You, you, one of the oldest of the Senators of the Magnaura, you who broke bread with Makedonios Ksanothopoulos and once wrote Patriarch Nicholas II for advice in a desperate situation, you who has a relatively strong army that could help the pushed-to-the-limit Ioannis Tagaris and turn the tide, you who has always been a man of faith, even in dark times, cannot reach the battle in anything remotely resembling good time... because of a broken axle on a Great Cross.

Your logistical skills, your men's devotion, their tireless effort - it all means nothing, because the stupid thing just refuses to be fixed. Getting more and more agitated as time moves on, you see Iosef ek Artas in the distance, coming up on your position. At least he's not going to pass you... but still. There's no way that you should even be in this position right now.

You curse your bad luck and simply hope that Ioannis can hold on for a little longer.

Feedback to Iosef

Your men are on the march, making time; slower than what you would want, especially in a critical situation such as...

...well, they're making time at any rate, which is more than what can be said for poor Vartholomaios Ksiros. You won't be reaching the battlefield this turn, but at least you'll get there in relatively good order... you hope.

Orders

Komnenian orders:

Anthimus!! If you stop firing again for any reason other than lack of arrows, I'll make you PERSONALLY lead the next assault! Focus on the spearmen if you can reach them. Otherwise, shoot whatever Tagarians you can.

Peter, move your men closer to Anthimus. Fire upon any Tagarians that are within bowshot.

Cyrus and Manuel, you can rest for now. Nikitas' infantry are next in line to be thrown into the fire.

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Map

Divison III continue across the bridge and crush the peasants, if you can push through turn around to flank the other defenders.

Division IV will march across the bridge closely followed by Nikitas, who will support fighting as long as it doesn't lead him straight into enemy spears.

Divison V will enter the bridge and shoot at the enemy troops not engaged in the melee.

Tagarian orders:

I'm probably too late, but...

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders

Division I: Hold Position.

Division II: Hold Position.

Division III: Fire upon any units crossing the bridge.

My orders for turn 3:

Orders:

Peasants - stay where you are and please.. try to stay alive!

Me and my bodyguards will Charge that regiment of Nikitas! Hope this will boost morale and keep Andronikos' men busy. I will fight to death if I have to!

Orders :

Georgios and his cavalry will provide support at the bridge, abandoning the ford, and using the BG and the lancers to charge into Nikitas' men, intent on closing the breach.

HAs will relocate at the back of the line and provide covering fire by shooting any Komnenian units on the bridge...

The Militia cav will follow the HAs and provide support for them and charge any unit that breaches the center of Ioannis' line.

Umpire notes for Turn 3:

Units failing orders test this turn: Andronikos’s eastern archers (!!!)

The grand assault begins this turn, with the Tagarians hard-pressed to stop. Nikitas is throwing most of his good infantry into the fray and it will be up to basically the remaining infantry plus a few well-placed cavalry charges to hold them back.

While Nikitas will be possibly be in the battle, there is no chance that Andronikos will this turn (woad&fangs sent in no personal orders, so I went with the standard silence=inactivity protocol).

I PM’d TinCow with resolution instructions:

Hi TC,

Hate to do this to you, but it looks like RL is going to take full command until late Monday. We've got a big battle to simulate this turn and I just don't think I'll have the time to see it done.

Nikitas's infantry lined up behind the bridge (as indicated in the included diagram) are going to assault the Tagarian defenders. Ituralde has specified that his lead division is to concentrate on eradicating the remainder of the peasants and then preferably flank the other infantry. The backup division will take whatever it can get. Nikitas can enter the fray provided that he isn't fighting spearmen (Ituralde's orders) but Andronikos is not to enter the battle under any circumstances.

You'll have to do with two Tagarian counter-charges this turn, the first being a (probably suicidal) one by Aleksios ek Kerkiras (Ibn-Khaldun) aimed at the regiment already over the bridge. The second one is Tristan's melee cavalry coming in to close the breach. His HA's will take a position to the rear and fire at any units still on the bridge. I would put the starting position of this force near the right edge of the map.

As far as archers go, Ioannis's men will continue firing at any units crossing the bridge, which should definitely do some damage. Andronikos's eastern archers rolled a one again and will be inactive. woad&fangs has orders his western archers to take position beside his eastern archers and fire at anything they can get, but I doubt they'd have enough time to fire in order to make much of a difference.

The map is below. Let me know if you have any questions, although I probably won't be able to answer them until early tomorrow afternoon.

GH

Our conversation:

Ok, I've run the tests. I simulated the depleted spear units on the defending side by using 90 man town militia units with a single weapon upgrade, to give them equal stats. I figured this was fair since while the town militia wouldn't get the anti-cav bonus, they weren't really fighting cav anyway. Here's how it went.

I started off taking control of the defending side with all of their units, with the cavalry placed way off to the side like you suggested. I did not add in the Komnenoi horse archers and foot archers, as the AI would just charge the bridge with them, which would screw up the melee situation. Plus, it didn't seem like those archers would really do anything in this battle anyway.

I ran it like this twice. On both times, the attackers broke and fled when Tristan's units arrived. At the time they broke, the first time the defenders had lost the full size spear milita unit, the byzantine spearmen, and 1 unit of peasants. On the second run, the results were the same except that the second spear militia unit also lost about half of its men. In both situations, the enemy broke when they were at somewhere between 1/2 and 2/3 strength. The archer were firing the whole time, but it was hard to tell what damage was caused by them and what was caused by the melee.

I then took control of the offense. On my first try the AI lined up Tristan's cav right in front of the bridge and used them as the melee defenders. So, I aborted that battle and removed Tristan's cav from the AI army and ran it again. I was relatively satisfied with the way this ended up being simulated, as the AI deployed in a reasonably close approximation of the current defensive line. I focused the movements of the attackers on the eastern flank, as ordered. Without Tristan's cavalry there to interfere, it was a clear defeat of the defenders. On my first simulation, the defending peasants broke first, then the rest of the line a short while later. At the peasant break, the attackers had lost about 1 unit of dismounted lancers. At the final break, the attackers had lost about 1.5 units of dismounted lancers. On the second run, they all broke together, and at that point the attackers had lost 2/3 of a lancer unit and 1/3 of a spearmen unit. In both of these simulations, the defending archers stood in the back and did not participate in the melee, but they also didn't fire after the initial bridge rush.

I then went back and ran this again from the defender's side but without Tristan's cavalry there to intervene. The casualties were almost identical to the first time, with the attackers breaking even though they were winning.

In my opinion, the bridge melee is a clear victory for the attackers, because even when I 'won' as the defenders, I had lost 2/3 of my units and was left with 1 unit of peasants and 1/2 to 1 unit of spear militia to face the equivalent of 2 to 3 dismounted lancers and 1 to 1.5 spearmen. If this was resolved as a straight melee without Tristan's cavalry, my results would be:

All defending melee units destroyed, except for the full unit of spear militia and Ibn-Khaldun, who would survive solo with all bodyguards lost. The cost to the attackers is 2 of the lancer units.

The problem comes in figuring out the impact of Tristan's units. I couldn't accurately incorporate them into the battle when I was attacking, and when I was playing as the defenders they caused an instant rout which was unrealistic and thus I couldn't get any casualty results with them. It's also difficult to figure out their timing. If they are ordered to run to the bridge, they arrive very quickly, before there is any breach in the defensive line. If they walk to the bridge, they arrive after the peasants have already been breached and flanked in the east.

I'd like some advice on how to handle Tristan's cavalry response. I'll be happy to run more simulations, but I'm not sure what kind of setup to use for accurate results.

Have you thought of making Tristan's cavalry a second, reinforcement army? That might give you what you're looking for.

Alright, replayed it from the Komnenoi side with Tristan's cav as a second, allied AI army. I couldn't find a way to make that army come in to the battle later. They still deployed right from the start and the cav defended the bridge first. However, I played around a bit and got some useful results.

First, the two Komnenoi spear units can tear up Tristan's cav on their own as long as they are not charged. Both spear units are almost completely destroyed in the process, but so is Tristan's cav. Since Tristan's charge would almost certainly hit the right side of the line, which would be held by the dismounted lancers, it should be accurate to say that the Komnenoi spears would avoid the charge, which would instead be soaked up by the easternmost unit of dismounted lancers.

In addition, I also put the Komnenoi horse archers back in. Interestingly, they have a longer range than the peasant archers, because they can comfortably hit the southern side from the head of the bridge. If they were on the promontory where the Trebizond archers were or moved onto the bridge itself, they could comfortably shoot the archer militia in the west or Tristan's horse archers when they arrived in the east.

So, I would say the battle unfolds like this:

Dismounted lancers charge across, followed by the spearmen. 1/2 unit of dismounted lancers are killed by the defending archers in the crossing. The dismounted lancers then proceed to maul the defenders, with the peasants on the east side breaking first. By the time that the peasants break, another 1/2 unit of dismounted lancers has been lost. Aleksios ek Kerkiras tries to plug the gap, but it's impossible to get a full charge off in the chaos, and he can only engage with normal melee. This takes down half a unit of dismounted lancers, but he is killed (or captured depending on his preferences) in the process.

So, the Komnenoi would at that point hold a bridgehead on the south side with 2.5 dismounted lancer units facing the increasingly depleted Tagarian spears, but also outflanking the Tagarians on the east side where the peasants have bugged out and Aleksios has fallen. Behind the dismounted lancers, backed up on the bridge, are the spearmen, waiting to get into the mix. The horse archers are backed up behind them.

Tristan's charge then hits. This makes the eastern most dismounted lancer unit evaporate. This opens a gap for the spearmen to move forward, and they move off the bridge and engage the melee cav. Nikitas rides in behind them to give added punch against the melee cav. In the process, all melee cav are destroyed. Combined with minor losses from archer fire while they were on the bridge, the spearmen take enough casualties to eliminate them from the battle. While this has been going on, the 1.5 remaining dismounted lancers have routed the spearmen that they were facing, taking another 1/2 unit in casualties in the process.

At this point, the round ends. I imagine the end state as follows:

All Komnenoi infantry on the south side have been killed. The south side of the bridge is held by a single unit of dismounted lancers and Nikitas' bodyguard. To the west, the archer militia is still in place. To the east is Tristan (now alone without any bodyguards, giving orders only) and his two units of horse archers. To the south, Ioannis Tagaris remains in his current spot.

In addition, the Komnenoi horse archers have eliminated one unit. The unit eliminated depends on where the horse archers went. If the horse archers went right to the north end of the bridge, or onto the bridge, it is one unit of the west side archer militia. If they went to the promontory to the east where the Trebizond archers are, it is one unit of Tristan's horse archers.

All in all, a bloody round, but the Komnenoi have succeeded in breaking the bridge defenses. They will now pour across and prepare for the fight with the reinforcing armies that Ioannis Tagaris had better pray arrive soon.

I agreed with TC’s results and implemented them without any changes.

Roll for Iosef (needs): Rolled a three!

Both Vartholomaios Ksiros and Iosef ek Artas will be able to deploy next turn.

Public feedback for Turn 3:

The best analogy that Matthias can come up with to describe what is happening on the south side of the Iron Bridge is one involving Andronikos Komnenos seeing a crack in a block of cement and hitting it with a sledgehammer.

Wasting no time in exploiting the breach created in the previous turn, Nikitas Moschos orders most of his infantry across the bridge in order to further put pressure on the Tagarians, who must be wondering where their promised reinforcements by now. Very shortly, despite Tagarian archer fire from the west and - once again! - a lack of supporting Komnenian archer fire from the east, Nikitas's remaining regiments of Dismounted Lancers were putting pressure and overwhelming the beleagured peasants belonging to Aleksios ek Kerkiras. Right behind them, pushing to get off the bridge and away from the archer fire, were his spearmen.

From his distance, Matthias sees Aleksios nodding to himself, and then a second later charging straight into the fray in order to help seal the gap. A noble and brave gesture, yes, but a futile one too, as the morass of men was so great that most of the impact potential of the charge was nullified. However, this did not matter to Aleksios as he still pushed farther and farther into the fray, hacking his way through Nikitas's infantry until numbers finally overwhelmed him and he fell.

With this aborted rescue attempt, Matthias notes that things are looking worse and worse for the Tagarians. Two out of the three Komnenian archer divisions, including the horse archers, have shifted positions and are firing at whatever they can get, slowly whittling down the remaining defenders. In addition, the entire eastern defenses have been overwhelmed and Nikitas's men are still pouring through, flanking the Tagarians. All in all, it looks like the south bank of the Orontes will be taken, and shortly.

However, the Tagarians aren't done yet. Out of the corner of his eye, Matthias sees Georgios Angelos and his entire cavalry contingent abandon their positions near the unused ford and charge straight for Nikitas's lead infantry. This more determined charge hits home and immediately shatters the remaining Dismounted Lancer regiment that was not working on killing the Tagarian spearmen.

However, Matthias giggles as he sees that the charge has worked too well. Having obliterated the troops that were not a threat to his horsemen, Georgios Angelos had created a gap... a gap that was filled by troops that were - mainly, Nikitas's spears, eventually followed by Nikitas himself.

There isn't much more tactical maneuvering that Matthias can watch, just a brutal slugfest on the bridge's south side as once again, units begin to disappear. When the dust clears, the only melee units on either side remaining are the bodyguards of Nikitas Moschos, Ioannis Tagaris, and one of Nikitas's regiments of Dismounted Lancers. Georgios Angelos and his horse archers have withdrawn, the cavalry commander having barely made it out alive. Every single other regiment south of the bridge has been destroyed, save for one of Ioannis Tagaris's archers - and that one most likely isn't long for this world either, as its counterpart was eliminated by the Komnenian horse archers.

With the south side taken, the Battle of the Iron Bridge has become more of a field battle. Andronikos and Nikitas will surely bring their remaining units over and then it will be a fight to the finish between them and the belated Tagarian reinforcements... if they ever come.

Map:

DEADLINE FOR TURN 4 ORDERS: April 6th, 22:00 GMT-5. I apologize for the delay in running things, but after Monday it shouldn't be so bad.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Turn 3 feedback

Komnenian feedback:

Feedback to Andronikos

For most of the turn, your men sit back and watch as Nikitas Moschos takes the lead in trying to crack the Tagarian defenses. He does so, but at a terrible price - most of the infantry he brought over has ceased to exist. Luckily, you have more, and they'll have a much easier time crossing the Iron Bridge than their predecessors.

Your eastern archers once again somehow did not fire, but it's not too much of a concern as your mission was still accomplished. However, they may need closer looking-after in the upcoming fight against the Tagarian reinforcements, as you are by no means finished this day.

Feedback to Nikitas

Well, nobody ever said this would be easy. Cracking a bridge defense without any flanking involved requires brute force, plain and simple. The majority of your infantry that crossed the Orontes provided the required force to do so, at the cost of their lives. Things wouldn't have been so bad had it not been for a thundering Georgios Angelos cavalry charge that tied up a lot of your infantry and impeded the flank effort. However, your spearmen, aided by your own bodyguard, dealt with him. The melee power of the enemy cavalry, aside from the bodyguard of Ioannis Tagaris, is no more.

Your men have done their job and the threat at the south side of the bridge is all but gone. You'll still have to be watchful, but in the meantime, you have a lot of infantry you need to pour over the bridge and set into a line. Bart Ksiros and Iosef ek Artas may be coming up.

Tagarian feedback:

Feedback to Ioannis

As Nikitas Moschos's men pour over the Iron Bridge and deal with failed cavalry charges from both Aleksios ek Kerkiras and Georgios Angelos as well as your spearmen, you see your dream to stay Basileus and reunify the Byzantine Empire rapidly dying.

Should you somehow manage to turn things around and win the day, Ioannis Komnenos III and his massive forces at his command still loom in front of you, and you yourself are down to precious few men, with no possibility of recruting more. After all... if you can't afford proper bridge defenses, good luck recruiting replacements for the hundreds of brave men who have died here today.

Under your personal command are your bodyguard and one regiment of archers (the other was shot to pieces by Nikitas's missile cavalry last turn). You really have little choice but to withdraw. Hopefully your reinforcements will be waiting for you.

Feedback to Aleksios

You charged. You died, but not before killing a significant amount of Komnenian infantry. The charge may have been more effective were there not so many men. A lot of the impact power was lost because of that.

Feedback to Georgios

Abandoning the ford overlook, you order a near-all-out charge to the eastern bridge defenses, which are quickly becoming overwhelmed. The charge power definitely works as the men you're aiming at are quickly knocked out. However, it works almost too well.

Filling in the gap your men created are Nikitas's spearmen, eager to showcase their strength and kill cavalry. Nikitas himself arriving to join the battle only worsens matters.

Eventually, you do deal with the spearmen and you do get out, however, the only melee cavalryman to survive the charge is... you. You are now in command of two regiments of horse archers and nothing else. The corpses of your bodyguard are added to the pile on the south side of the Orontes.

Feedback to Bart

At last! The Great Cross is fixed and you're finally on the road again - marching alongside with Iosef ek Artas, who has caught up with your men. You will be ready to deploy this turn, however, instead of being reinforcements you may find yourself quickly at the front of the fight - the Komnenians have cracked Ioannis's bridge defenses.

Feedback to Iosef

Catching up with Bart Ksiros on the march, you grin. You were supposed to arrive on the field after him, although this is probably more attributed to Bart's broken Great Cross than your making good time.

However, your grin is quickly reversed as you see the grim scene on the battlefield ahead of you. You have barely any army to reinforce, as the Komnenians now hold both sides of the Orontes.

Please send me your deployment for Turn 4.

Orders

Komnenian orders:

Aleksios, inform Anthimus that his services are no longer needed. He obviously wants to see the fighting up close. You are the new leader of the foot archers. Fire at the enemy cavalry if they come into range. Inform Peter to do the same.

I'll cross the bridge behind Nikitas' cavalry. Once across I'll charge straight for the boy king. I'll only fall back to our infantry if I'm in severe danger of dying or they underhandedly send more regiments into our combat.

Cyrus, cross the bridge immediately after Nikitas' militia.

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map

ooc: Ituralde's orders made it sound like he wants to attack the foot archers so that is where I put his cavalry on the map. However, I am not 100% sure of that.

Also, Aleksios is the new leader of the foot archers. If I don't make good on my threats, the hecatontarchs will start getting uppity

Division III advance slightly to make room for Division II which should start making its way across the bridge at full speed.

Division V will join with Nikitas and move East towards the Archers. If the Archers don't fall back engage them but keep an eye out for the enemy bodyguard to the South. Keep one unit of Cavalry back for flanking. Do not follow fleeing Archers and stay close to the Infantry.

Ioannis Tagaris' Orders

Division I: Retreat to Antioch.

Division II: (Dead)

Division III: Retreat to Antioch.

No orders from Tristan de Castelreng.

New orders for Bart:

General withdrawal to Tortosa.
The Great cross and escort will leave the field first, protected by the militia of 2nd division. After that the second division will leave with Bart commanding the rear guard.

If it aint obvious already: retreat ;p

Umpire notes for Turn 4:

Units failing orders test: Andronikos’s ever-failing archers.

The Tagarians gave up this turn, calling for a general withdrawal. As Bart and Iosef weren’t even on the field, they were able to retreat without incident (i.e. I didn’t even simulate anything). For the remnants of the Tagarian advance guard, however, it would be a bit tougher.

First of all, Tristan de Castelreng gave no orders. Ordinarily his retreat would be covered for by TheFlax, as Overall Commander, sending in general orders. However, since Flax only sent in division-specific orders, Tristan was left out to dry for this turn.

woad’s map that Nikitas and his cavalry would attack the remaining Tagarian foot archer regiment, however, Ituralde specifically said “move east and attack the archers”, which I interpreted as Georgios Angelos’s horse archers. These would be the only Tagarian regiments in danger this turn, as Ioannis and his foot archers would be able to leave unopposed.

In terms of simulating the actual battle, Georgios’s horse archers were slightly out of range of Andronikos’s archers (especially since the one that was actually doing the firing was Peter, the divisional commander farther back). I turned off skirmish mode for Georgios’s HAs as they were inactive this turn. As such, they were slowly overwhelmed by the steady influx of the remaining Komnenian forces coming over the Iron Bridge. They didn’t cause enough casualties in order for it to show up on the map.

Thus, the Battle of the Iron Bridge concludes with a minor Komnenian victory. Although it took them probably more casualties than they would have liked, Andronikos and Nikitas cracked the Tagarian defenses and sent them retreating south. The casualties for the Tagarians is worse. While they were able to get the reinforcement armies out alive, most of their initial forces, including Aleksios ek Kerkiras and Georgios Angelos. The Tagarians may or may not be seeking a settlement with Andronikos, but the one thing that is certain is that the War of Four Basileis will continue, with Constantinos Ksanthopoulos and, of course, the more-and-more imposing Ioannis Komnenos III yet to be dealt with.

Public feedback for Turn 4:

Turning his gaze to the south, Matthias can see... finally... the armies of Vartholomaios Ksiros and Iosef ek Artas nearing for the battlefield, preparing for deployment, and... turning around. Evidently Ioannis Tagaris has had enough and called his forces back from the battle, seeking safer ground.

Matthias quickly averts his gaze from the belated reinforcements that weren't to be. They had no chance of being caught by any of Andronikos's forces. Instead, he looks to see, once again, the forces by the Iron Bridge. Ioannis Tagaris, whom the Komnenians had derisively dubbed "Boy-King", would surely be a target in the withdrawal... but he isn't. Ioannis and his remaining foot archers are also able to make a clean getaway. Some of the later Komnenian forces that cross the bridge seek him out for a bit, and then, seeing that he is so far away, give up and turn their attention elsewhere.

The one force that seems to have been left behind is Georgios Angelos and his remanining cavalry. For some reason, as if he didn't issue any orders, he made no attempt to withdraw along with the others. This would be explainable to Matthias had he charged or something, perhaps a holding action in order to buy his leader time to get away, but he didn't even do that. There was no motion.

Naturally, the Komnenians take advantage of this and quickly swarmed the remaining Tagarian commander on the field. The man who had spent nearly all morning vigilantly watching the ford to the east for a crossing that never came, who had left his position to partake in a futile charge, was unceremoniously unhorsed and killed by the seemingly-numberless Komnenians. The sight of so much needless death was probably only appealing to Matthias, whose hatred of Greeks knew no bounds.

For the rest of the soldiers, however, on both sides, it was a grusome sight. So much death... for so little purpose. It seemed like nothing was resolved. Ioannis Tagaris was bloodied, yes, but he also escaped with a significant portion of his forces. And thus, the War of Four Basileis would continue.