Collaborative Campaign Year 4: Part 2

 Further action from the Year of the Mountain Lion:

Battle of the Mouth of the Ypokos (the B movie)

In response to attacks on Cyraenian merchants by pirates (thought to be of Pylonian origin), a fleet was sent from Therissa (commanded by Praxitos Mytes) to the coast of Pylonia. Fearing an invasion, the God King Hipohap dispatched his own fleet under the command of Admiral Amenemsou. The two fleets met at the mouth of the river Ypokos.

The game was played to give me an excuse to try out Mark's Dominion of the Oar and Ram rules which I believe were posted on Facebook. After a few dummy games, the main event was fought. Regrettably the light was poor, so the pictures are rubbish. Suffice it to say, the larger Cyraenian ships won the day, though Praxitos didn't have it all his own way, and half the Cyraenian fleet was lost.

Murky image of the action, Pylonian fleet to port, Cyraenian to starboard

   

Defeat for Amenemsou

And now for the Main Feature (words and photographs by Mark Cordone)

The battle of the Anio river, or Rullanius, after a nearby villa.

This battle was fought using the Dominion of the Spear rules.  Once again, I only gave the Picenians 10 pts, but they had a good position.
Picenia:  1 disciplined melee infantry (1st Legion), 1 melee infantry (5th legion), 1 melee cavalry, and one each Limitarri missile cavalry and foot (unreliable).
Luss:  4 melee infantry, one missile infantry (slingers) and a melee cavalry.

Having learned of his rivals' victory at Ferentium, Licinius Stolo, commanding the Picenian southern army, decided to give battle so as not to be out done.  He chose a good position along the Anio river.  At this time of year, it was fordable along its entire length and offered a defensive advantage only in melee.  He had to defend a bridge and ford, which neutralized this advantage, but a short way from the bridge in the right sector stood the Rullanius villa which did give an advantage to defense.  Licinius posted 5th legion to defend the ford, and 1st Legion to defend the bridge and villa.  In the center he placed his Limitarri archers.  In reserve he had his regular and limitarri cavalry.
Beligerans was very happy to accept battle. With his much larger force and was very confident of victory.  He posted foot to the left and right and his singers opposite the Picenian archers in the center.  In reserve he had two more bodies of foot and his cavalry.

It was a windy, cool and cloudy day as Beligerans opened the battle with a charge by his foot down the road and over the bridge on his right.  The veterans of the 1st legion easily dealt with them and the survivors fled back down the road and exited the field.  As this was happening the archers and slingers in the center exchanged fire, to little effect at first.

Infuriated, Beligerans sent a second unit of infantry to attack the bridge again, only to see them meet the same fate.  After rallying this unit Beligerans decided to shift his attack and try his luck at the ford.  Both units were spent in heavy fighting and Licinius sent his Limitarri cavalry to shore up the left sector while Beligerans committed his last unit of foot. 
Meanwhile in the center the limitarri arches got the better of the slingers and Beligerans was forced to commit his cavalry to hold the line.

 

At the ford a prolonged combat saw the Limitarri forced to withdraw.  Licinius then charged at the head of his cavalry and swept the Luss foot away, then continued across the ford and up the hill into the flank of the Luss cavalry who broke and fled.

His army shattered, Beligerans was forced to retreat back over the frontier.  Fortunately, the Picenians had suffered heavy casualties and were unable to mount a vigorous pursuit.  Still, it was a decisive victory and once again a smaller Picenian force had defeated a larger Luss army, leaving the promising Luss spring offensive shattered.

Thank you, Mark. Another success for Picenia as the Gods' look with favour once again upon their military endeavours. Will their luck hold? More action is to come from this campaign.