Sunday, May 17, 2015

Carthage invades Spain!

Hello to all gamers and guests. This post is about three weeks late but here we go.
Mike started his campaign season with a spectacular game of Carthage vs Spain. As always the figures were outstanding and plentiful and the rules were Tactica. Our version of course since I seriously doubt that we will see Tactica II in our lifetime.

We had a great turnout with the following players:
As the defenders of Spain - Ken the greater as their leader and general, Jamie, Tyler  and two new players Brent and his son Logan.
As the invaders from Carthage - Bill our fearless leader, Mike, Wendel and myself.

Since we love to play around with the rules and tinker, we decided to try something the has been floating around in our heads for a while. We wanted to see if cavalry and light infantry could break through a battle line in the center and roll up to either flank. This tactic was agreed upon by all of the Carthaginian players and is reflected in our initial set up.


 Here are some pictures of our valiant heavy cavalry just before their historic charge.


 Below you can see our set up with the heavy cavalry leading the attack supported by copious light infantry to either side and the heavy infantry following close behind.


 Unfortunately this plan didn't work as well as the concept sounded. I bungled the use of the light infantry as I was too eager to get into combat. Oh yes this was my plan and I executed it clumsily. Well don;t cry over spilt wine. The cavalry and light infantry did make some minor dents in the Spanish line but all 4 units vaporized in two turns. 48 heavy cavalry and 48 light infantry devastated by 72 medium infantry.

None the less this cleared the way for the Carthaginian heavy infantry to advance. The Spanish though were not just sitting idly by. They had placed the major portion of their cavalry on their left flank with the plan of crushing our right. Facing this massive horde of Spanish horse flesh was one light cavalry unit and two heavy infantry units. The Carthaginians (Wendel and Bill) deftly handled these units to stop the Spanish long enough to allow our heavy infantry to close with the Spanish medium infantry.


 On the Spanish right, Brent and Logan intended to use a unit of light cavalry and some medium infantry to try and force the Carthaginian left. This eventually worked but again Wendel managed to hold them off long enough to get most of our heavy infantry past the flanking forces.



The flanking actions eventually worked but only briefly. Had they lasted longer this game would have been a cake walk.

Meanwhile in the center the battle was raging! The Carthaginian heavy infantry collided with the Spanish medium infantry and it was a battle of numbers vs quality. While exchanging casualties in fairly even amounts, the Spanish were slowly wearing down the Carthaginians and turning both flanks! Carthage (Mike and Bill) was between a rock and a hard place. Spain (Ken Jamie and Tyler) were relentlessly pounding away at the heavy infantry in front of them.




 After consulting with his generals and a heartfelt promise to the Gods, Mike came back to the fight with a vengeance and rolled a series of attacks that were historic! Trouncing his adversaries left and right, Mike saved the day for Carthage smashing the Spanish line.

All in all another great game with much bantering and camaraderie enjoyed by all. Thanks to Mike for hosting this great game and again allowing us to play with his wonderful toys.







Some of our gang.

Mike

 Logan, Brent, Tyler and Ken
 More or parts of the same but there is Jamie with his arms folded
 Wendel Bill and myself



 Thanks to all who help to make this such a fascinating hobby and stop by to partake of our adventures. And thanks again to our group of gamers for all being great sports and great gamers.

Take care and roll well!
Greg









3 comments:

  1. Nice report with beautiful armies...love the command stand!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lovely game - it's always good to see a full Spanish army on the table.

    ReplyDelete