Alexander rides again!

After enjoying our last Alexandrian Lion Rampant game we thought we would try again.

The scenario this time was Hold On Tight.  The Macedonains, having regrouped from their early defeat were looking for revenge.  Invading Asia Minor again they met their despotic foes in a lightly wooded valley.   Both armies would fight for a small rise in the centre of the field.  History does not record why but local rumour has it that Dionysus had stood there to gaze on the setting sun.

The armies we used were little modified from last time.  We toned down the Companions and used them as Mounted Serjeants.  This was mostly to make them more manoeuvrable with a 5+ move activation.  The Schiltron's hadn't worked too well as Phalanxes, so we allowed them to move in Schiltron at 4".  Lastly the Saka were no longer Expert. and the Kardakes were raised up from Yeoman to Serjeants by virtue of a spare point.

Alexander's men moved quickly across the valley, beating the slow footed eaterners to the mound.  It's the probably the effeminate trousers that slowed them down. 

 

Persian arrows did darken the sky, as their general had boasted before the battle, but the fine Greek armour and shields saved many a mountain man's life.

The climax of the battle saw a Macedonian Phalanx on the hill attacked from three sides, until a last desperate cavalry charge was thrown back and the Persian's realised they were beaten.  Basking in the glory of holding the hill few Macedonians afterwards recalled how they hadn't killed quite so many Persians as Alexander had boasted they would.

Surrounded by slain Median horsemen the Phalangites looked west into the setting sun as Dionysus had before them.  Was this an omen from the gods that all the Persian Empire would fall?

Alexander Rampant

My newly completed Macedonians took on my club mate Freddy's old WAB Persians in our first try at using Dan Mersey's Lion Rampant rules for Ancients.

I had not played Lion Rampant before but had heard good things and liked the look of the game scale.  I struggle to finish painting big armies so skirmish games are a nice level for completing projects.

While not up to speed with the rules at the start we had a good fun game and were doing most things without the book after a few turns.  We played the brutal, as written, end your turn on a failure activation tests, which didn't prove as jarring as I expected.  On occasion we failed the first test and at other times activated every unit.  Nobody seemed to dominate on luck and I don't recall the sequence spoiling anything.  Rather the risk was part of the fun.

We used the standard medieval stats, which probably need a bit of tweaking for the armies we used but worked well enough for the test.

    Macedonians

    Companions (Mounted Men-at-arms, Drilled) 7pts, 6 figures

    Thessalians (Mounted Serjeants) 4 pts, 6 figures

    Phalangites (Foot Serjeants) 4 pts, 12 figures

    Phalangites (Foot Serjeants) 4 pts, 12 figures

    Phalangites (Foot Serjeants) 4 pts, 12 figures

    Agrianians (Bidowers) 2 pts, 6 figures

    Cretans (Bidowers) 2 pts, 6 figures

    Macedonians (Bidowers) 2 pts, 6 figures

    29 pts

    Persians

    Persian Cavalry (Mounted Serjeants) 4 pts, 6 figures

    Persian Cavalry (Mounted Serjeants) 4 pts, 6 figures

    Sakae Horse Archers (Mounted Yeoman, Expert) 6 pts, 6 figures

    Greek Mercenaries (Foot Sejeants) 4 pts, 12 figures

    Kardakes (Foot Yeomen) 3 pts, 12 figures

    Mardian Archers (Archers) 4 pts, 12 figures

    Takabara (Bidowers) 2 pts, 6 figures
    Takabara (Bidowers) 2 pts, 6 figures
    29 pts

I've just realised I cheated myself out of a third unit of Bidowers but I don't think it would have changed the result.

Freddy missed his massed ranks but his army mostly performed well with the Saka the Persians' star unit.  The Macedonian Companions were impressive but were whittled away as they rampaged across the battlefield. Despite chasing off Darius and his bodyguard Alexander was finally brought down by Takabara javelins and the Macedonians were defeated.  A lesson for future games is to focus the companions' power where it counts.  

My Thessalians were my newest unit and their inexperience showed in the game.  Hopefully they will improve next time.

Sadly my phone battery died after just four game photos but we'll definitely be trying this again. 

Sorry Old Bean

To be deployed when someone takes their wargaming playing with toy soldiers too seriously.

Eastern Front 1945

We played a late war eastern front clash recently.  Russians versus Germans in the dying days of the third reich.

The game was played using the Battlegroup rules from Iron Fist.  This is probably larger than most Battlegroup games but the rules scale up quite well. 

The Soviets were closing in from two directions to capture a bridge needed for their advance while the isolated German defenders clung on in desperation. 

The terrain was heavily urbanised with ruined factories and administrative buildings most common. Break points were divided between the two Soviet forces but combined for the Germans.  We had two players on each side.

 

On the south bank attack the Soviets has a mix of regualr infantry, engineers and some inexperienced naval troops.  They were backed up with an SU bunker-buster tank.

To the north of the bridge a second force of Russian infantry, scouts, mobile artillery and some cavalry aim to link up with their comrades in the southern attack and secure the crossing point.

Traditional mounted cavalry versus machineguns is a brave tactic but ultimately there is reason it's rarely seen in WW2.

Fighting was at close quarters with the Soviets picking their way through booby-trapped buildings and viscious ambushes.

House to house fighting was the order of the day.

The SU Bunker Buster ran over a mine and proved a damp squib  after looking so threatening.

These guys were prepared but probably releived it wasn't down to them to knock it out.

A close of play the Germans had been pushed back but still held the bridge with their numbers  dwindling fast.  

The sailors had done surprisingly well.

The Soviet engineers bring up a flame thrower to burn out the remaining Germans.

Lots of fun and a first outing for Paul's new sarissa ruined factories and the Soviet sailors I painted.

Battle for Hougoumont

To try out the Fistful of Lead: Bigger Battles rules for Napoleonics we used our new Hougoment castle terrain, recently aquired from Sarissa Precision. 

The nicely painted figures were British and French, including Grenadiers, Light Infantry, Marines and Riflemen from the collection of my club mate Dean. 

The stats were modified from the suggested Horse and Musket era examples in the rule book. 

I made the French army trait Quick, to represent the rapid French maneuovre and the British had Deadeyes to represent their famed prowess in shooting.

Lost French units were replaced with fresh units to represent the waves of attacks throughout the day.  We were only trying the rules, so played to the time we had but if this were a scenario I would set a limit.  Maybe 12 turns.

 Our game was not really historical but the redcoats held the castle as they did in 1815.  

Although there were some dicey moments.  An attack on the side gate was only just held by the rifles and the French Marines twice drove back the British fron the front wall.

 

The remnants of the French Grenadiers run from the Riflemen after a very bloody melee.

The FFOL reload rule works nicely in Bigger Battles to represent the first volley and making use of 'sixes' to reload can be vital.  You can't always wait long enough to play the six on the right unit though and the difficult turn decisions ramp up the tension.

The game was lots of fun and I expect we will try another, perhaps with cavalry next time.