Collaborative Campaign Year 4: Part 1

 Game Year 4 (Year of the Mountain Lion): notes from the Campaign Diary

Campaign Map at the Start of Year of the Mountain Lion

The dice have rattled and the Random Events have been checked:

War continues between Picenia and Luss. A scandal among the elite of Picenia threatens internal security

In Zigura a year of peace follows the successful capture of more territory

There are no further attacks on the Cyraenian Pentapolis, however a fleet has been sent from Therissa to the Pylonian coast after attacks on merchant shipping..

The following background regarding the war between Luss and Picenia, and the latter's civil woes, has been received from Mark Cordone...

Picenia

After the Twin disasters of the previous year, the Senate had appropriated a huge sum to raise six new legions and made Multiflavus Imperetor to command the new army.  He formulated a plan whereby two frontier armies, A northern one under Caius Sulpicius and a southern one under Lucinius Stolo were to contain the Luss while Multiflavus trained the new army and launched an offensive in the fall.  The second and fourth legions were disbanded to form cadres for the new formations while the first Legion along with the new fifth legion was to form the backbone of the Southern army and the third and new sixth would do the same for the Northern army.  The bulk of these armies would be made up of Limitarri (militia) units drawn from all over the Republic.
However, the process was not to be an easy one.
In Agrina, old political rivalries came to the fore when Senator Lucus Paetus (of the Axius family) a retired general of some note, accused Senator Valarius Verres of the Calventius clan, of embezzlement and supplying sub standard equipment to the army after he had managed to win the very lucrative contract to supply the new legions.
A certain amount of graft was normal in situations like this, and Valarius didn't exceed the expected level of corruption, but in the politically charged atmosphere of the times he managed to get enough votes for a trial and subsequent conviction.  Valarius was sentenced to exile to Kartos and his family hit with crippling fines.  The verdict met with predictable levels of political violence between the supporters of both factions.  At first this fell within accepted levels but an incident at the Hippodrome would send things spiraling out of control.  Both families were prominent supporters of two of the racing teams, the Calventius backed the Greens and the Axius the Blues.  During the final race of the annual tournament held each year to commemorate the founding of the Republic Arulius Tatiannis, driving for the Blues, forced Flavius Scarpus, driving for the Greens, into the wall on the final lap.  Flavius was killed, and Arulius won the race.  The ensuing violence in the stands spilled out into the streets and bloody riots followed.  The city guard proved completely incapable of putting an end to the violence, and after the second day a delegation under Senator Galenus went to Multiflavus's camp to seek his aid in putting an end to the violence.  Multiflavus was drilling his new troops at the city of Terrarium ( with it's famous gardens and temple dedicated to the Goddess Marta).  He received the delegation cordially, but indicated that legally, he could do nothing.  He proposed that should the Senate vote him the powers of Dictator, then he could legally act.  Seeing that there was no other choice, the Senate reluctantly convened an emergency session and conferred the title and powers on Multiflavus.  He was now in complete control of the army and government and acted quickly to restore order.  His troops entered the city six days after the riots had begun and within 24 hours they put an end to the violence, but not before more than 6,000 people had lost their lives, and 20% of the city had burned to the ground.
Multiflavus, mindful of his fathers rivalry with general Paetus, then staged a trial in which general Paetus was found guilty of inciting the riots.  He was then exiled Heralion with huge fines to his clan as well, to pay for the damage done during the riots.

Luss:
Beligerans called a council of war in which he and Catacius successfully argued the only way to end the war was to utterly destroy the Picenian armies and sack and burn their cities.  Flushed with victory, the sub kings agreed.  The plan for the spring campaign was for Catacus to mount a large raid deep into Picenian lands to the north, and hopefully draw off troops before Beligerans launched the main effort in the south with the intention of taking Areligno.  At the end of the fourth month of the year of the Mountain Lion Catacius crossed the frontier, to be met by the northern army near the town of Ferentium.

The Battle of Ferentium

After nearly a month of devastating raiding, the northern Picenian army under the command of Caius Sulpicius finally managed to intercept Catacius near the town of Ferentium.  The battle was fought on the 25th day of the fifth month of the year of the Mountain Lion.
It was a fine day for a battle, cool and breezy with a mix of sun and clouds.  Caius drew his army up blocking the road to Ferentium and on the high ground alongside the road where it emerged from an extensive area of woodland.  He had at his disposal his old Legion, the veteran 3rd (disciplined) which he deployed on the road, the new 6th Legion (regulars) on the high ground and a body of Limitarri archers ( regular) to the right of the heights.  In reserve ( unreliable) Limitarri missile cavalry and his regular cavalry as well.  ( To reflect the ad hoc nature of his force I only gave him 10pts of troops)
Catacius had his own elite force, 2 ferocious melee cavalry and one ferocious melee infantry.  The cavalry were deployed in the left and center sectors, the foot in reserve.  His ranks were also swelled by large numbers of unreliable but eager younger tribesmen seeking wealth and glory with a warlord of great renown.  They consisted of A large body of slingers and javelin men posted to the far right in front of the woods and bodies of missile armed foot and hotline reserve.

The battle opened with Catacus's cavalry charging down the road only to be put to flight by the disciplined ranks of the third legion.  As this was happening the archers and slingers on the right began an exchange of missiles that would continue for some time without a decisive result.  As Catacius rallied his cavalry his seasoned foot advanced only to be crushed by the 3rd Legion who then advanced down the road.  They were met by Catacius who led his rallied cavalry in a counter charge.  The resulting bloody combat left both units utterly spent. 

As the combat on the left settled into a lull the Luss cavalry in the center charged up the hill and routed the green 6th Legion.  Having committed the last of his Limitarri to shore up the left sector and continue to block the road, Caius rode among the exhausted men of his old Legion, crying out, "Brave soldiers of the sixth, without you the day is lost!  Will you follow me to death or glory?!". With a great cheer they followed him in a charge up the hill that routed the Luss horseman who had put their comrades in the sixth legion to flight.

As this was happening Catacius led the last of his cavalry forward to plug the gap in his center and sent his green foot to hold the left.

The climax of the battle saw both sides suffer the collapse of a wing, with things finally being decided in the center.  On the left, the Picenian Limitarri advanced, and the Lussation foot men in front of them lost their nerve and fled.  On the right the Luss slingers finally won their duel with the Limitarri archers, who broke and ran.  The victorious Luss then swarmed up the hill taking the third in the flank, but the legioniers calmly formed testudo and repelled the attack.  As this was happening the Limitarri charged the Luss horseman in the center from the flank, and pinning them against the woods, destroyed them.  Brave Catacius, along with his personal guard was slain as they made a desperate last stand.  With his death his army disintegrated, only to be hunted down and slaughtered by the jubilant Picenians.

The first part of the Luss offensive had ended in disaster.  Next we will turn our attention to affairs in the south at the battle of the Anio river.

This game was played using the Dominion of the Spear rules, with the Picenian army having 10pts worth of troops and the Luss 12.  Both sides featured a number of unreliable units, most of whom performed well, except at the end, which likely cost the Luss the battle.

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Thank you Mark! A success for Picenia, at some cost. We wait with bated breath for the next installment. There may even be a chance that I get to play a game in my creation this weekend - stay tuned...