Post by chrisr on Nov 14, 2016 23:35:52 GMT
Quick report on the excellent one day ADLG competition held in darkest North London by the Central Wargames club.
On a dreary Sunday morning Steve T came knocking at my door at 8am - a time when I'm usually dreaming of Uma Thurman. The contrast was disappointing but I'd promised him a lift to the competition. Apart from Steve and myself there were 3 other SELWG entries - George Hobday, Bryan, and Marc Wilson. We went the scenic route via Hackney and the Angel and dropped down to the Escape Sports Bar - close to Mornington Crescent tube -at about 8.45am. Pubs never look as good in the daylight and The Escape is no exception. The people who run it are very nice but the building itself has seen better days, and many of them. Still we weren't there for the architecture we were there for 3 keenly contested games of ADLG.
Tim the organiser had kindly ensured none of us were faced with playing a fellow SELWG member in the first round. I had taken a Late Imperial Roman army; very Swiss Army knife - lots of bits and flexible. It included 4 HC Impact, 2 Elite Cataphracts, 2 other HC, 2 LC Bow, 1 LC Javelin, 6 Med Sword Impact, and 4 Legionaries - Heavy Sword Impact Armoured (of which 2 were Elite. I thought it was well equipped to face most things, but my first opponent was using Huns.
He out-diced me for initiative and chose to defend on Steppes. He then took as many of the terrain pieces as he could and placed them at minimum size. Med Sword are great in rough terrain and can cope in Difficult or open when facing foot. But they are useless in the open when faced with mounted. So my basic strategy - have an army that always has the tools for the fight - was already out the window, and I hadn't even deployed! The Huns had an interesting structure. Led by Attila, the central command had 4 Heavy Sword Impetuous Elite and 2 HC Impetuous. The other 2 commands had Ordinary commanders and each consisted of 2 LC, 3 Med Cav and 1 HC, all with Bows and all Elite. The Hunnic commands moved forward on either wing. I decided to attack with my mounted command - 4 HC Impact + 2 LC Bow and hold back on the other flank. I also started to push forward the central command - the 4 Legionaries and 2 Cats. The Huns countered by sending the 2 HC Impetuous over to join the command I was threatening. I countered by sending across the Cats to even up the numbers, but the Cats are slow (losing 2UD when you quarter-turn is a bummer) and the HC got a bit shot up by the Elite bow-fire whilst waiting for support. Meanwhile on the other flank the Huns had ridden up to where my Med Sword were sheltering in Brush and started shooting them. My attempts to combat this by sending my 2 HC to intervene backfired as they too were shot to pieces. Finally I charged home with the HC Impact and the Cats and found an overlap role for a Med Sword. The combats didn't go my way. The weakened state of my cav due to the shooting meant we traded units. But on the other flank my Med Sword were being shot to death and there was nothing I could do to stop it. The Legionaries tried to intervene and took down a unit of Huns, but chasing cav with HI is a frustrating sport. I slipped to an inevitable defeat.
Second game was against a huge Mithraditic army - 28 units (usually ADLG armies are 20-24 units). Fortunately for me size isn't everything! I lost the initiative and my opponent chose Mountains. We tried to place 9 pieces of terrain. 6 fell in just one sector so two never got on the board, and all of the terrain was on my side of the board. I decided to surprise the followers of Mithradates by deploying my Cav command (4 HC Impact, 2 LC Bow, 2 Med Sw Impact) on the far right in rough going. Again my rough going command (4 Med Sw Impact, 2 Hc, 1 LC Javelin) would be on the left and would use the presence of a Marsh (difficult going) to delay. In the centre my Legionaries and Cats would await developments. And these were good. My opponent deployed his cav (3 HC and 4 LC) on his far right, with a second command of light troops, a couple of units of Thracians (Med Sw 2HW), and some more mounted (2 MC Bow, and 2 LC Bow) facing the marsh. In the centre he placed 4 Heavy Spear and 2 Heavy Sword - all unarmoured. His left was covered by just 3 LI with Javelins and a couple of Medium Spears. Better still the spears were the only thing between my Cav command and his camp. The game went like clockwork for me. The HC Impact rode down his spears and a LC captured his camp. His initial push on my left stopped as soon as he realised what was happening on his left. His HC then rushed across the field to try and save the camp. They were joined by the 2 Heavy Sword from the centre command. Sadly for my opponent it was like they were queueing up to be ridden over. In the centre the legionaries and Cats closed on his centre. Having sent the Heavy Sword to firefight on his left (or more accurately act as speed bumps for my HC Impact who out-numbered them 2 to 1) he brought across the Thracians to help out his spears. The Cats rode these down without trouble and legionaries did for the spears as you'd expect. A victory! Made all the sweeter by breaking halfway through for an excellent curry lunch - three types of curry, rice, chips, and onion bhajis- washed down with a drink from the bar.
My third game brought the Romans up against an historical foe - the Sassanids. It was a small army; 2 elephants, 4 Cats Elite, 2 Cats Ordinary, 4 HC Bow Elite, 4 LC Bow, 2 LI Javelins, 2 Levy. Of course I lost the initiative. I placed the rough going command in front of my camp where there were 2 fields with just a 2 unit wide gap between. The legionaries deployed to the right of the fields with the Cats extending their line and the cav command beyond that on the far right. The Cats and Elephants headed towards my legionaries but my HC got round his right flank and the 2 Med sword found a use fighting the elephants. I destroyed 5 of the Cats and both Elephants for the loss of one unit of legionaries and one HC. But whilst I was winning here things were going awry elsewhere. His 4 HC Bow Elite with 2 LC Bow in tow had attacked the command covering the camp. With Med Sword in both fields and 2 HC blocking the gap I felt I could hold on. But once more the effect of Elite bowfire told on my troops. With my HC a cohesion level down my opponent charged in. The fights were at evens because I had support from Med Sword, but a 5-1, followed by a 6-1 blew my HC away. A desperate attempt by the Med Sword to save the camp killed one of his HC but the other reached the camp - a massive 8 demoralisation points lost (with only 21 needed) on just two dice rolls. We now stood poised on mutual destruction - I had gained 18 out of the 20 points needed to break his army and he 20/21 needed to break mine. Surprisingly the game lasted two more turns. My fighting troops had nothing to kill left in front of them - his remaining Cat and hid LC ran away, and the Levy and LI were at the back- so I was racing across to try and help my beleagured rough going command. But I was too late and yet more shooting sealed my fate. A loss but a close and exciting game in which I felt I played reasonably well but didn't get the rub of the green when I needed it.
Despite losing twice I came second out of the SELWG contingent. Steve T did best, and if what he told me in the car home was correct, he would have done better still with just 3 minutes extra in his second game as he was on the verge of winning. The upside was that for his final game he played Marc. Marc really hasn't played much but he did creditably well in most games. He got a draw against Dave Allen who anyone who played the DBM or FOG competition circuit will know is a better than average player. I didn't see much of Mr Hobday's exploits but I don't think he was overwhelmed. Bryan on the other hand had a bit of a mare. First game he drew the Central London ADLG champion and was soundly spanked. Second round he drew a 12 year old. Now we all know that playing kids is a no-win situation; if they are making silly mistakes you feel you have to warn them and they always throw fabulous dice. So it proved, and Bryan was beaten by a 12 year old! However for the last round he drew Blind Pugh (that's actually unfair, I think the guy just hadn't played very much ADLG)and got a consolation win on bottom table.
So all in all a great day.
Regards
C
On a dreary Sunday morning Steve T came knocking at my door at 8am - a time when I'm usually dreaming of Uma Thurman. The contrast was disappointing but I'd promised him a lift to the competition. Apart from Steve and myself there were 3 other SELWG entries - George Hobday, Bryan, and Marc Wilson. We went the scenic route via Hackney and the Angel and dropped down to the Escape Sports Bar - close to Mornington Crescent tube -at about 8.45am. Pubs never look as good in the daylight and The Escape is no exception. The people who run it are very nice but the building itself has seen better days, and many of them. Still we weren't there for the architecture we were there for 3 keenly contested games of ADLG.
Tim the organiser had kindly ensured none of us were faced with playing a fellow SELWG member in the first round. I had taken a Late Imperial Roman army; very Swiss Army knife - lots of bits and flexible. It included 4 HC Impact, 2 Elite Cataphracts, 2 other HC, 2 LC Bow, 1 LC Javelin, 6 Med Sword Impact, and 4 Legionaries - Heavy Sword Impact Armoured (of which 2 were Elite. I thought it was well equipped to face most things, but my first opponent was using Huns.
He out-diced me for initiative and chose to defend on Steppes. He then took as many of the terrain pieces as he could and placed them at minimum size. Med Sword are great in rough terrain and can cope in Difficult or open when facing foot. But they are useless in the open when faced with mounted. So my basic strategy - have an army that always has the tools for the fight - was already out the window, and I hadn't even deployed! The Huns had an interesting structure. Led by Attila, the central command had 4 Heavy Sword Impetuous Elite and 2 HC Impetuous. The other 2 commands had Ordinary commanders and each consisted of 2 LC, 3 Med Cav and 1 HC, all with Bows and all Elite. The Hunnic commands moved forward on either wing. I decided to attack with my mounted command - 4 HC Impact + 2 LC Bow and hold back on the other flank. I also started to push forward the central command - the 4 Legionaries and 2 Cats. The Huns countered by sending the 2 HC Impetuous over to join the command I was threatening. I countered by sending across the Cats to even up the numbers, but the Cats are slow (losing 2UD when you quarter-turn is a bummer) and the HC got a bit shot up by the Elite bow-fire whilst waiting for support. Meanwhile on the other flank the Huns had ridden up to where my Med Sword were sheltering in Brush and started shooting them. My attempts to combat this by sending my 2 HC to intervene backfired as they too were shot to pieces. Finally I charged home with the HC Impact and the Cats and found an overlap role for a Med Sword. The combats didn't go my way. The weakened state of my cav due to the shooting meant we traded units. But on the other flank my Med Sword were being shot to death and there was nothing I could do to stop it. The Legionaries tried to intervene and took down a unit of Huns, but chasing cav with HI is a frustrating sport. I slipped to an inevitable defeat.
Second game was against a huge Mithraditic army - 28 units (usually ADLG armies are 20-24 units). Fortunately for me size isn't everything! I lost the initiative and my opponent chose Mountains. We tried to place 9 pieces of terrain. 6 fell in just one sector so two never got on the board, and all of the terrain was on my side of the board. I decided to surprise the followers of Mithradates by deploying my Cav command (4 HC Impact, 2 LC Bow, 2 Med Sw Impact) on the far right in rough going. Again my rough going command (4 Med Sw Impact, 2 Hc, 1 LC Javelin) would be on the left and would use the presence of a Marsh (difficult going) to delay. In the centre my Legionaries and Cats would await developments. And these were good. My opponent deployed his cav (3 HC and 4 LC) on his far right, with a second command of light troops, a couple of units of Thracians (Med Sw 2HW), and some more mounted (2 MC Bow, and 2 LC Bow) facing the marsh. In the centre he placed 4 Heavy Spear and 2 Heavy Sword - all unarmoured. His left was covered by just 3 LI with Javelins and a couple of Medium Spears. Better still the spears were the only thing between my Cav command and his camp. The game went like clockwork for me. The HC Impact rode down his spears and a LC captured his camp. His initial push on my left stopped as soon as he realised what was happening on his left. His HC then rushed across the field to try and save the camp. They were joined by the 2 Heavy Sword from the centre command. Sadly for my opponent it was like they were queueing up to be ridden over. In the centre the legionaries and Cats closed on his centre. Having sent the Heavy Sword to firefight on his left (or more accurately act as speed bumps for my HC Impact who out-numbered them 2 to 1) he brought across the Thracians to help out his spears. The Cats rode these down without trouble and legionaries did for the spears as you'd expect. A victory! Made all the sweeter by breaking halfway through for an excellent curry lunch - three types of curry, rice, chips, and onion bhajis- washed down with a drink from the bar.
My third game brought the Romans up against an historical foe - the Sassanids. It was a small army; 2 elephants, 4 Cats Elite, 2 Cats Ordinary, 4 HC Bow Elite, 4 LC Bow, 2 LI Javelins, 2 Levy. Of course I lost the initiative. I placed the rough going command in front of my camp where there were 2 fields with just a 2 unit wide gap between. The legionaries deployed to the right of the fields with the Cats extending their line and the cav command beyond that on the far right. The Cats and Elephants headed towards my legionaries but my HC got round his right flank and the 2 Med sword found a use fighting the elephants. I destroyed 5 of the Cats and both Elephants for the loss of one unit of legionaries and one HC. But whilst I was winning here things were going awry elsewhere. His 4 HC Bow Elite with 2 LC Bow in tow had attacked the command covering the camp. With Med Sword in both fields and 2 HC blocking the gap I felt I could hold on. But once more the effect of Elite bowfire told on my troops. With my HC a cohesion level down my opponent charged in. The fights were at evens because I had support from Med Sword, but a 5-1, followed by a 6-1 blew my HC away. A desperate attempt by the Med Sword to save the camp killed one of his HC but the other reached the camp - a massive 8 demoralisation points lost (with only 21 needed) on just two dice rolls. We now stood poised on mutual destruction - I had gained 18 out of the 20 points needed to break his army and he 20/21 needed to break mine. Surprisingly the game lasted two more turns. My fighting troops had nothing to kill left in front of them - his remaining Cat and hid LC ran away, and the Levy and LI were at the back- so I was racing across to try and help my beleagured rough going command. But I was too late and yet more shooting sealed my fate. A loss but a close and exciting game in which I felt I played reasonably well but didn't get the rub of the green when I needed it.
Despite losing twice I came second out of the SELWG contingent. Steve T did best, and if what he told me in the car home was correct, he would have done better still with just 3 minutes extra in his second game as he was on the verge of winning. The upside was that for his final game he played Marc. Marc really hasn't played much but he did creditably well in most games. He got a draw against Dave Allen who anyone who played the DBM or FOG competition circuit will know is a better than average player. I didn't see much of Mr Hobday's exploits but I don't think he was overwhelmed. Bryan on the other hand had a bit of a mare. First game he drew the Central London ADLG champion and was soundly spanked. Second round he drew a 12 year old. Now we all know that playing kids is a no-win situation; if they are making silly mistakes you feel you have to warn them and they always throw fabulous dice. So it proved, and Bryan was beaten by a 12 year old! However for the last round he drew Blind Pugh (that's actually unfair, I think the guy just hadn't played very much ADLG)and got a consolation win on bottom table.
So all in all a great day.
Regards
C