Dark Ages

Canis Canem Edit

Introduction

This is a Dux Bellorum campaign set in the late Roman empire, on a far-flung eastern boarder. The campaign features Roman troops attempting to hold back the barbarian hordes. Each player, or team of players, controls a Roman army with the army holding the most ground at the end of the campaign deemed the winner. In case of a draw the highest number of wins determines the victor.

Two battles will be fought a week with the players not commanding Roman forces filling-in as barbarians. The teams are 1 = John, 2 = Roy, 3 = Stuart/Mike, 4=Stu/Richard. the choosing of silly Roman names is actively encouraged.   

The Map

 The Romans each begin holding a border sector. The loser falls back and the winner may halt or follow-up. Romans never advance beyond the border. The campaign ends if the regional capital falls.

 

Terrain is randomly selected from a set of pre-generated tables to save time on deployment. Defender chooses sides.

Winning and losing

Each player records separately the number of victories achieved. If you win a battle for the next battle only you may

·         Increase your LPs by 1, or

·         Pick two random strategies and choose the best,

·         Add +3 to your Aggression.
 

Forces

 All armies are 32 points + 1 strategy. Strategies are random for the Romans but pre-assigned for the barbarians.

Roman - core ·         Mounted companions (5) ·         Shieldwall (O) * 4      (17) ·         Shieldwall (N)            (22) ·         Rider (O)                   (24) ·         Skirm (bow)               (26)        Roman - options ·         Cataphract         (6) ·         Warrior (O) * 2   (6) ·         Rider (O) * 2      (6) ·         Warrior (N) + Skrim (Jav)   (6) ·         Bow (O) + Rider (O)           (6) 1=Assassination, 2=Experience warlord, 3=Hurled weapons, 4=Javelins, 5=Imposing horsemen, 6=Veterans	The beastly Hun ·         Mounted companion   (5) ·         Riders (N) * 1             (10) ·         Riders (O) * 1             (13) ·         Mounted Skirm * 2      (17) ·         Mounted archers * 5    (32)   Swift deployment
	Sweet Carolingian ·         Mounted companion   (5) ·         Rider (N) * 2               (15) ·         Rider (O) * 4               (27) ·         Mounted skirm            (29) ·         Shieldwall (O)             (32) Imposing horsemen ((3 units)
Bloody Vandals ·         Foot companions      (5) ·         Warriors (N) * 2        (15) ·         Warriors (O) * 5        (30) ·         Skrim (Jav/bow) * 2  (32) Javelins	Chatti men ·         Foot companion             (5) ·         Warrior (N) * 2               (15) ·         Warrior (O) * 2               (21) ·         Shieldwall (O) * 3           (30) ·         Skirm * 2                        (32) Ambush

Mounted Archers: Move 4BW, Bravery 8 (6 for morale), Aggression 2 (3 with bows), Protection 4, Cohesion 3, costing 3 points.

 

 

Turn 1

John vs chatti: John was first into action fighting the Chatti with a strong defensive position on a hill top. The Chatti surged forward and good success against the Roman shield wall and the commanders cavalry on the Roman left. On the right the Romans took some damage from stampeding cattle but were able to get behind the Chatti with their cavalry. It was all too late though as the shieldwall crumbled and the Germans won.

Roy vs Carolingian: Roy's first outing was against the hard-charging Carolingian cavalry forces. Both sides deployed overlapping the others flank on their right, but this left the Roman skirmishers exposed with inevitable results. There then followed a period of marching with the Roman line wheeling forward and the Frankish horse back-peddling to reform its line. When the clash came the gods favoured the Carolingians and the Roman shield wall buckled leading to a second Germanic win.

Stu & Richard vs Huns: In an interesting encounter the slow-moving Romans lined-up opposite the fast moving Huns. Initially out maneuverer the Romans struggled forward under a hail of fire. With their space becoming restricted the Huns suddenly lapsed into indecision and for several moves seemed paralysed. This proved fatal with the Romans closing for the kill.

Stuart & Mike vs Vandals: This was a short and brutal encounter with the Vandals. Both sides lined-up and the Vandals surged forward in their eagerness to come to grips. The Romans stood firm but were overwhelmed by the Germanic hordes.

Turn 1 was a rough one for the Roman's loosing 3 of the 4 battles.

Turn 2

John vs Chatti: John fought his second action against the fierce Chatti - a classic warriors vs shieldwall encounter. Initially the encounter was a large scrum in the centre of the field with fortunes ebbing and flowing. the Chatti seemed to be gaining the upper hand until the Romans realised that in a classic caeruleus-on-caeruleus one of their units had accidently attacked another. Once the Romans were clear who the enemy actually was they managed to win!

Roy vs Huns: Roy's second action was against the massed archery of the Huns. The Huns closed rapidly to short-range, somewhat surprising the Romans. On the Huns right they scored notable success against the Roman horse. In the centre though they came too close to the Roman foot and became engaged across the line. They tried to back-peddle but their lighter armour proved inadequate and they succumbed to the Romans.

Stuart & Mike vs Carolingians: The Romans were initially conservative, sitting back and waiting for the Germans to attack. Perhaps Stuart was perturbed by the sight of his beloved dark ages figures on the other side of the table. The Germans attacked strongly on the Roman left flank but were eventually worn-down by the shieldwall.

Stu & Richard vs Chatti: The Romans aligned with horse on the left and attempted to flank the oncoming Vandals. In the centre the Vandals warbands surged forward and clearly the gods favoured them as they found success against the Roman shieldwall. The Roman horse made repeated charges but were rebuffed and failed to make much impact. In the end it was a easy win for the Germans as the Roman foot failed to cause much damage.

Turn 3

Roy vs Chatti:


John vs Vandals: In this encounter the Romans found themselves at an immediate disadvantage as their German opponents were joined by Saint Florian (later the patron saint of both Poland and Firemen). Florian's inspiration enabled to doughty Vandals to inflict a heavy defeat on the Romans.


Stuart & Mike vs Huns: Tsunami Mike pulled his usual trick on committing to a head-long charge and seeking to sweep the Romans aside. After a brief struggle the Romans were vanquished with the ease of an Australian middle-order batsman.


Stu & Richard vs Carolingians: This battle saw the Roman shieldwall stretch across the battlefield with a small mounted contingent to their left. The German cavalry deployed in a central position with a deep column of noble mounted to their right. The Germans advanced boldly and were soon locked in combat. They had some initial success but casualties mounted and eventually the Romans were able to grind out a victory.

Turn 4

John vs Huns: This encounter was one of the longest and most interesting battles of the campaign.

 

The Romans and Huns lined-up offset. The Huns advanced trying to outflank the Romans right. The Romans pressed forward trying to use the woods for cover. At this stage the Huns were back-peddling with the Romans seeming to have the edge.

As the Romans rounded the wood they then reversed direction on their cavalry with the Hun nobles in pursuit. The Romans felt that the Huns were too scattered and might be vulnerable.

 The Hun mounted archers began to take a toll on the Roman foot who struggle to come to grips. On the Roman right they found themselves trapped between two Hun forces.

By now things had reversed with Roman casualties mounting and the Huns eventually overcoming them. Hunnish Win for the first time