Friday 31 December 2010

Magnesia: A Game of Two Halves (Part 1)

I think this should cover the way the first half of the game went, at least up to the point at which most troops were engaged:
A long view of pretty much the whole table as the battle begins; taken from the extreme right wing of the Roman army.  In the foreground, the scythed chariots are advancing on the Pergamene cavalry.  The Seleucid cavalry on this flank elects to stay put, hoping that any scythed chariots that rout back will not disrupt their own formation.  Stretching off into the distance you can see the Roman infantry advancing.
A shot from directly behind the scythed chariots.  I printed out details of the various commands and placed them behind the figures before the battle; I wasn't sure how many players we'd get, and whether or not they would all be familiar with the rules.
The Romans are coming!  The photo above is taken from behind the Seleucid left centre.
A shot of the phalanxes from the same position.  The elephants have dropped back somewhat to make it more difficult for the Velites to shoot them up before they get into combat.  In the far distance at the top right of the picture you can just about make out the massed Seleucid cavalry advancing.
The same position, a turn later.
Back on the Seleucid left, the charge of the chariots has broken up.  One of the five has made it through.  The two end units are already in rout due to shooting hits, and two others are stalled in disorder.

A side-on view on the central lines, taken from roughly the whereabouts of the chariots.  The infantry are about to meet.
The same point, from a slightly different perspective.  In the distance, the Seleucid right wing cavalry are going in.
A close-up of the leftmost phalanx in action against the Hastati.  The accompanying Galatians have held off a bit, at least until the pila are discharged.
One chariot remains.  The whole lot has broken by now, except for this one.  Its momentum gone, the Pergamenes charge it with their cavalry anyway, showing the chariots the contempt they deserve.

The Seleucid left wing cavalry begins to advance, now that the chariots are all but destroyed.
The action is now general across the rest of the field.

2 comments:

  1. Great stuff! Lokking forward to the outcome.

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  2. Cheers, Phil, thanks for looking in on us.

    Paul

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