Battle of Sambre 57BC using When Warriors Collide

 Introduction

This is game 57 in play testing my ancient rules by replaying historical battles.  I I was using my own rules Ancient Battlelines Clash but am now using some new own rules When Warriors Collide 2.0, a combination of Bill Bank’s Ancients with some ABC elements.    I am in the process of writing up some revisions to these rules.  I continue to play test the rules by replaying all the Peter Sides scenarios from his Historical Battles books.  WWC2 is designed to finish in around 30 minutes on a 2’x2’ table.

Battle of Sambre 57BC

While making camp Julius Caesar is attacked by a coalition of Gallic Tribes hidden in woods.

Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Sabis 

I also used the Society of Ancients battlepack for this battle to help out with forces and deployment.  Details are in the Slingshot magazine #241.

Troops

Roman

2 Elite Legions, elite HI

6 Legions HI

2 Raw Legions, HI, poor

1 Camp

3 Leaders

 

Gauls

2 Elite Warbands, elite WB

8 Warbands, WB

1 Camp

1 Leader

Scenario changes

I modified the Peter Sides scenario to align better to the Society of Ancients Battle Pack

I considered adding in special hedge rules, or simply making linear hedges exist between the 3 groups of legions. I felt there was no need as group rules, and the fact warbands represent a lot of warriors, will be fine to limit the movement and flank attacks.   The Sambre provides no impediment to movement nor effects combat.

Deployment

Romans to the left, Gauls to the right

The elite legions are on their right flank.  The Gallic elite warbands are on their left flank.

Game

All the warbands advance but the Gallic right leads the way and contact first.  Appallingly they did not do so well in combat (roll a 1 each) and are both disordered.

The Gallic right flank does not do well.

The remaining Gallic warriors clash with the opposing Romans.  Better than the right flank, there are disorders on both sides.

Combat along the line

An interesting next round of combat.  Swings everywhere!  The Nervii (Gallic left flank) lost a unit but in the centre, both sides lost a unit.  The Gallic right flank, after doing so poorly in the first combat, manages to hang on an inflict disorder on the opposing legions

Current state of the battleline.  One unit each lost in the centre.

The Gallic centre unit has made it to the Roman camp.

Gauls have reached the camp.

The centre legion about faces to help defend the camp.

Another Gallic unit is lost to the Nervii. 

The roman reinforcements arrive! As well as the centre legion attacking the Gauls attacking the camp.  The Gauls rout.

The Roman reinforcement and camp attack are in the foreground.

After two more rounds of combat the Romans manage to rout another warband.  This takes the Gauls over their breakpoint and they flee.  The Romans win.   Not this was actually in the last turn so it could have been a tie if no further warband was lost.

End game

 

Rule changes

None.  But it is hard for me to go from a “unit does everything when activated” to IGOYGO. Every time I move a unit into contact I want to conduct a melee straight away, rather than wait for the melee phase or that side.  I may have to go back to doing all the phases for a unit at once, purely to stop tripping me up!

Also, the leader function is really only undisordering a unit if not melee, and a loss cause more breakpoint loss. Jury is out if I want to change that – it was useful in this game as the about face by a legion disordered them but the leader was able to undisorder.  Also, I do know in previous games a unit will eliminate the unit it is melee-ing and so would have an opportunity to remove disorder. No change for now.

Verdict

A very interesting game.  The wild swings of the dice (1 and 6’s) provided some nail biting moments.   The Gauls made it to the Roman camp but the Romans did not make it to the Gallic camp, unlike history. The Roman right flank could have been in trouble if they had continued to roll badly.  The rules held up well.