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Post by dpd on Apr 18, 2023 15:27:34 GMT
The "Forlorn Hope" was an infantry formation deployed out in front of the main battle line.
Its job was to make a suicidal charge into enemy lines disrupting them as much as possible and opening the way for the troops behind it.
More common in late medieval and renaissance armies (though units of religious fanatics would also qualify), it was typically made up of criminals who were given the choice between an honorable death on the battlefield or a shameful death on the gallows, few if any men of this unit would survive the battle.
So how about a rule where a unit of foot can be designated as an expendable Forlorn Hope.
It's attack would automatically result in the destruction of both itself and its opposing enemy unit - no die roll necessary.
Thoughts or comments?
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Post by Brian Ború on Apr 18, 2023 16:16:20 GMT
The "Forlorn Hope" was an infantry formation deployed out in front of the main battle line. Its job was to make a suicidal charge into enemy lines disrupting them as much as possible and opening the way for the troops behind it. More common in late medieval and renaissance armies (though units of religious fanatics would also qualify), it was typically made up of criminals who were given the choice between an honorable death on the battlefield or a shameful death on the gallows, few if any men of this unit would survive the battle. So how about a rule where a unit of foot can be designated as an expendable Forlorn Hope. It's attack would automatically result in the destruction of both itself and its opposing enemy unit - no die roll necessary. Thoughts or comments? Hi dpd, the idea of a forlorn hope element is nice! But with your rule suggestion I think it is simply to strong. It should be an expendable unit (not counting, like scythed chariot) but something more like warband or better: hordes... Yes, hordes would be fine, I think. |
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Post by martin on Apr 18, 2023 20:55:57 GMT
The "Forlorn Hope" was an infantry formation deployed out in front of the main battle line. Its job was to make a suicidal charge into enemy lines disrupting them as much as possible and opening the way for the troops behind it. More common in late medieval and renaissance armies (though units of religious fanatics would also qualify), it was typically made up of criminals who were given the choice between an honorable death on the battlefield or a shameful death on the gallows, few if any men of this unit would survive the battle. So how about a rule where a unit of foot can be designated as an expendable Forlorn Hope. It's attack would automatically result in the destruction of both itself and its opposing enemy unit - no die roll necessary. Thoughts or comments? Don’t need more rules: Already possible (eg with a Shang Chinese 5Hd convicts element (ask gonatas)…send ‘em in front to delay pike phalanxes single handed). |
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Post by gonatas on Apr 19, 2023 6:07:21 GMT
I am still feeling forlorn about that......
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Post by menacussecundus on Apr 19, 2023 7:23:41 GMT
I cannot see that this would be an improvement in terms of either historicity or gaming.
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Post by martin on Apr 19, 2023 7:56:08 GMT
I am still feeling forlorn about that...... I was a corker of a game…..🙃⚔️⚔️ |
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Post by stevie on Apr 19, 2023 9:56:39 GMT
Some time ago Greedo came up with an interesting idea.
Some players feel that the loss of a lowly Psiloi should not have
the same effect as say the loss of a high ranking Knight element.
So he suggested that the first Ps lost doesn't count.
In other words, treat it as a Hd, SCh or sallying Civilians.
That would make your expendable ‘forlorn hope’…
…it’ll ignore corner-to-corner overlaps, be out in front all on it’s own,
and its low combat factor reflects its low quality and lack of equipment.
Just a thought…
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Post by Les1964 on Apr 19, 2023 10:28:20 GMT
DBA is meant to be a quick play game , not the ancient rules version of Challenger 2000 .  |
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Post by vodnik on Apr 19, 2023 14:39:58 GMT
...victories by skirmishers over generals or knights must be evaluated. Then it is necessary to count the killed opponents killed by a commander...
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Post by snowcat on Apr 20, 2023 0:20:31 GMT
Some time ago Greedo came up with an interesting idea. Some players feel that the loss of a lowly Psiloi should not have the same effect as say the loss of a high ranking Knight element. So he suggested that the first Ps lost doesn't count. In other words, treat it as a Hd, SCh or sallying Civilians. That would make your expendable ‘forlorn hope’… …it’ll ignore corner-to-corner overlaps, be out in front all on it’s own, and its low combat factor reflects its low quality and lack of equipment. Just a thought… Conversely I think the first loss of a double-element = 2pts is (still) more of a penalty in the 4pts = defeat conditions game than their actual worth. Not sure what the solution is, other than something like in drawn games, the player who has lost more double-elements is deemed the loser overall. Anyway, just a thought.
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Post by Brian Ború on Apr 20, 2023 13:44:32 GMT
Some time ago Greedo came up with an interesting idea. Some players feel that the loss of a lowly Psiloi should not have the same effect as say the loss of a high ranking Knight element. So he suggested that the first Ps lost doesn't count. In other words, treat it as a Hd, SCh or sallying Civilians. That would make your expendable ‘forlorn hope’… …it’ll ignore corner-to-corner overlaps, be out in front all on it’s own, and its low combat factor reflects its low quality and lack of equipment. Just a thought… That's right, but I still think that Psiloi perform much better than the 'forlorn hope', you see: Psiloi are supposed to fly from danger and are highly skilled, while the ‘forlorn hope’ is supposed to be a nuisance to the enemy and to be killed on the spot. So I think it should be 5Hd (or better 3Hd )... |
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