|
|
Post by paintdog on Sept 18, 2021 10:08:15 GMT
Somewhere in the province of Gallia, two Roman forces clashed:  Artorius, Dux Britanniarum, wished to seize "the purple" & led his forces towards Rome:   Sebastianus, Comes Gallia, was tasked to stop him:     Just to make things interesting, a force of Ostrogothic foederati were not sure who to support:  And a raiding party of Visigoths added to the possibilities"  The game is tomorrow as a final play test for my rules, "A Tribute of Spears'. Four of my pals will each command a faction with differing objectives & victory points. I'll umpire. Should be an exciting tussle. donald Figures are HaT, Italeri plastics & Tumbling Dice metals |
|
|
|
Post by paintdog on Sept 19, 2021 12:28:36 GMT
The game has been fought, won & lost & it was possibly the best wargame I've ever been in. As a civil war, each participant was as devious, untrustworthy & treacherous as possible & the twists & turns meant the game progressed in an entirely unexpected manner. After deployment, the two Late Roman forces faced off in the south wit the Goths entering from the north:  Unexpectedly, the usurper's forces adopted a defensive posture whilst the defenders attacked aggressively:   The heart of each Roman force were the heavy infantry supported by numerous cavalry:    There were all sorts of bonus victory points to be gained by committing mayhem - burning down villas:  But wide flanking movements were the order of the day:    The best moment of the game came quite early when the Ostrogoths, advancing on Artorius' forces were attacked by Huns allied to Sebastianus. A "friendly fire" incident that caused them to swop sides.  No one knew who to trust when the two Roman sides dropped their antagonism & turned on the Goths:   In the final turn of the game the Ostrogothic leader, Odoacer, was killed. Gaming does not get any better. donald |
|
|
|
Post by lunch on Sept 19, 2021 15:35:27 GMT
Very nice, thanks for posting.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2021 0:31:57 GMT
Great looking game Donald. It sounds like the players really got into the spirit of deceit and deviousness to make it a really uncivil contest (on the board, that is) with twists a plenty!
Who is emperor, for the mo'?
Regards, James
|
|
|
|
Post by paintdog on Sept 20, 2021 2:38:58 GMT
Great looking game Donald. It sounds like the players really got into the spirit of deceit and deviousness to make it a really uncivil contest (on the board, that is) with twists a plenty! Who is emperor, for the mo'? Regards, James The usurper Artorius, Dux Britannarium, was sadly assassinated by his own troops at the end of the game for failing to win (a poor dice roll).
The Goth chieftain was killed in battle.
So that leaves Sebastianus, Comes Gallia.....a very loyal (??) servant of the latest emperor - whoever he is.
All I can say is watch this space as to future news of 'The Purple".
donald
(BTW there's been news of Hunnish activity. If I could get a few boxes of the HaT Huns, this might result in further "disturbances")
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2021 18:15:47 GMT
"Artorius, Dux Britannarium"......
Hang on, wasn't that the name given to King Arthur in that film with Clive Owen & Keira Knightley a while back?
Been a while since I seen the film but ever since I was a kid reading arthurian legends, I did always feel that King Arthur was more than likely a Roman who was born & raised in Britain.
Anyway, thats some wonderfully painted figures there!
|
|
|
|
Post by paintdog on Sept 20, 2021 21:04:47 GMT
"Artorius, Dux Britannarium"...... Hang on, wasn't that the name given to King Arthur in that film with Clive Owen & Keira Knightley a while back? Been a while since I seen the film but ever since I was a kid reading arthurian legends, I did always feel that King Arthur was more than likely a Roman who was born & raised in Britain. It gets deeper. The Celtic word for 'bear' is Artos. You might not have noticed the banners with bears on them in his army.
It is one theory the mythological King Arthur might have been a Romanised Briton, left behind when the Legions pulled out around AD 400. Probably baloney.
At any rate, I could have chosen the earlier British usurpers such as Maximus or Constantantine but it's a bit of fun having "Arthur" in charge.
donald
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2021 21:46:40 GMT
The legend around King Arthur is a fascinating one for sure.
I tended to put him towards the end of the Roman era mainly due to the fact that we know he wasn't a king in the often based middle ages, when we have a good understanding of the lineage from William the Conqueror onwards. Then we know about the earlier kings such as Ethelred & Harold for example.
So if he did exist, that really only leaves the fall of Roman Britain and some of the dark ages really.
Don't know why I gravitated towards a "Roman" King Arthur as a kid, just seemed more plausable if he did indeed exist. The end of Roman Britain into the dark ages sounded like a time of hard struggle for Britain & if ever a time needed a strong & heroic leader, someone worthy of starting a legend, it was then.
It seems such a strong and enduring legend, I do wonder if there isn't a truth in there somewhere.
Either way, I really enjoyed seeing the figures here, & enjoyed your narration of the flow of battle!
|
|
|
|
Post by paintdog on Sept 20, 2021 23:39:39 GMT
Thanks, Roger. I appreciate the kind remarks. I *think* my Late Romans are about done & Artorius might rise again to lead further revolts. Additionally, I've secured some Huns.I think I have enough "hairy barbarian" types to raise a Hunnish-Gothic army. A pal just gave me a box of the HaT Visigoths whih contains some needed archers.
I'd really like some more Germanic cavalry but in 1/72 plastic, there's essentially nothing available. My other desire is wagons for a lager. Both Huns & Goths used these "mobile forts". I can't think of anything available & cost effective. However, this should lead to a set-piece battle towards the end of the year. donald |
|
