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Post by hodsopa on Apr 14, 2019 18:33:45 GMT
I have played quite a few 16th century battles using DBR, including satisfying refights of Flodden and Pinkie. Whereas DBA is the Ancient and Medieval rule set for me, I'm still not sure about DBR and am planning to give Baroque a go soon. I would be delighted to see a DBR discussion place here.
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Apr 9, 2019 20:58:28 GMT
Arnopov is right, the armies seem well balanced (I just made the plan to come, and had a look through the armies). Lots of them are high agression. There are some tempting mounted armies, but always the threat of the Elamites with 9 Bw. I like the look of the early Arabs (5 Cm) but I'm not sure any of my existing camel riders are capable of pretending to be them. Too stately (early Islamic) or purple (Tuareg).
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Mar 3, 2019 10:08:29 GMT
Couldn't agree more. The Brussels contigent had a decent day too given Tom H's excellent score. (We will gloss over mine - 2 wins, both with light horse armies, and 4 defeats). Loved the varied elephants.
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Feb 17, 2019 19:54:34 GMT
I like the sound of the September rule, Cassandre. Haven't come across before the possibility of changing your army during the competition
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Post by hodsopa on Feb 11, 2019 20:33:03 GMT
On to Newark indeed!
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Post by hodsopa on Feb 9, 2019 20:18:30 GMT
Great day. I took Alexandrian Macedonian (6 Pk, Kn general, Cv, LH, 4Ax, 3Ax, Ps). The formula is that you play six games - the first, third and fifth with your opponent's army, and the others with your own.
My first game was against Richard Pulley. I played with his Achaemenid Persians and had to defend against my Macedonians. I had three Sp which I kept safely behind, believing - as I still do - that Sp vs Pk is a win for Pk. I had a nice mounted right wing including a scythed chariot that immediately crashed and burned. The game ended – timed out – as a draw, with me losing 3 elements (plus the chariot, which doesn't count) and Richard only 1.
My second game, now with the Macedonians, was against Martin Myers’ Gauls – 6 fast warband, 5 cavalry and 1 Psiloi. I invaded, with pikes in the centre, psiloi/auxilia refused on the left and the mounted as far on the right as possible. Martin did to me what I intended to do to my enemies. He turned my weak left flank with a strong warband push, then turned them inwards and used their threat zones to immobilise my pike columns. Hard flanking one of the columns, he killed both the pikes. Somehow I killed three of his elements, though I felt myself outmaneouvred. Another draw.
In the third game I commanded a Macedonian-style army like mine, Tim Rogers’ Kassandros army. It had only four pikes while mine has six; but it had an elephant; and plenty of auxilia. I defended again and made a tight battlefield, with the central plain flanked by a difficult hill centrally on one side (my right) and a wood near my opponent’s baseline on the other side (my left).
I put my pikes and elephant in the centre, the mounted on the right and the auxilia and psiloi on the left. This is the game I handled worst. I wasted PIPs to have my mounted troops wander around in front of my army. Instead, my auxilia should've been hurrying towards and through the wood on my left. Because this didn’t happen I got caught in a losing battle in the centre. Once again I lost two pikes hard flanked (by a psiloi that efficiently occupied the hill) and the other two got separated and cut down soon after. 4-0 defeat.
Two draws and a defeat at lunchtime.
Excellent Stilton panini from a café in the town.
In the fourth game I played Craig Allen’s Carthaginians, defending again. My army’s terrain is arable; as I result I placed two ploughed fields on the battlefield; it rained (1/6 chance), making these an obstacle to movement. This helped me by shortening the battlefront. (With a pike army it is good to have a narrowed battlefront because you need to put your pikes in double ranks, and you don’t want to be outflanked.) My line of 6 double ranked pikes beat his line of 5 spears; he could only get one of his two heavy chariots into the battle; that was his general; it advanced so enthusiastically that I could hard flank it; eventually I killed it and won.
In the fifth game I commanded David Weston’s Imperial Macedonians against my own Alexandrian Macedonians. David’s army had six pikes, if I remember correctly, and also an elephant. Again I defended, with my pike block in the centre. David set up cleverly with a psiloi and a light horse in the centre (elements that pikes can't kill), the pikes on either side of them. I shoved the elephant over to my right to avoid it being hypnotised by the psiloi. Yet again, for the third time, I lost two pikes hard flanked. Again, though, an enemy knight general, in combat with my own knight general, advanced so far that I could hard flank and kill it. That reduced my opponent’s mobility. It meant that I could exploit his weakness in the middle and win in the end.
Finally, with my own army, I fought John Saunders’ Lysimachids – a Macedonian-style army with ‘only’ 4 pike and, to compensate, 4 rather than 2 peltasts (auxilia). Once more I defended. I managed to get my mounted elements lined up against John’s lighter infantry, had a couple of lucky dice rolls and created an advantage from which he couldn't come back.
People say this game is decided by luck. Maybe. But the same players always finish above me. Congratulations today to Mark Johnson (first), Mark Skelton (second) and Richard Pulley (third). Thanks also to:
1) My army, which scored more points than I did..
2) Rob Rush, who gave me a lift to Bakewell from Chesterfield. You’re right, Rob, this is a terrific rule set.
3) Simon Wilson, the organiser. It was a treat to spend a day doing this.
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Post by hodsopa on Jan 22, 2019 19:09:16 GMT
Simon, I'll be coming over from Brussels on the Friday. Can you give any advice on which place that is on the train is the best to get a bus from to Bakewell in the morning? Chesterfield? And do you have a likely finishing time?
Paul H
PS I am looking forward to this tremendously. For one reason and another I haven't able to get to a tournament since last year's Northern Cup. Missing DBA.
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Post by hodsopa on Jan 2, 2019 20:25:19 GMT
Here in Belgium the French speakers would say "Courage et soignes-toi, David" - meaning something along the lines of, keep your pecker up and take care of yourself. I transmit those wishes to you - Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Dec 29, 2018 11:50:00 GMT
Dear Simon, please make me definite. I'm moving house soon after, will make sure that at least one army doesn't disappear into the boxes!
Yours,
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Dec 4, 2018 22:59:32 GMT
The Normans were lucky not to fight the Tuaregs, is all I'll say
Paul "camellover" H
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Post by hodsopa on Oct 16, 2018 23:47:33 GMT
I think I'm too late to vote but if I did my vote would unhelpfully be for 8 Dec. Longstanding shrub-destroying commitment in the Lake District on 24 November.
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Sept 30, 2018 19:56:55 GMT
Thanks for all the battle reports, sounds like one of the best PAWS competitions, sorry I missed it (I was at a 60th birthday party with old old friends). It is great to hear that Terry's LH army did so well, I like LH and feel the rules could disfavour them less.
Looking forward to hearing Arnopov's December theme, I hope to make it then.
Paul H
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Post by hodsopa on Jul 22, 2018 19:58:08 GMT
Paul, thanks a lot for this information. We're in Santa Cruz 4-17 August, San Francisco 18-21st, Seattle 22nd-24th, so sadly those dates don't correspond - but I hope the games go well. And Mike thanks too, next time I hope!
Yours
Paul H
PS and if anyone is ever in Brussels, let me know!
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Post by hodsopa on Jul 19, 2018 19:58:59 GMT
I'm an English DBA and DBR player who lives in Belgium. Next month I'll be visiting my daughter who's living for a while on the US west coast. Are there any events, tournaments, meetings etc I could come along to?
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Post by hodsopa on Jul 19, 2018 19:47:42 GMT
I like to be the attacker (setting up second is like a free move) but that links to the armies I like to play.
At PAWS they play that each player can state the board size they like. If they disagree they dice, attacker wins ties. Another reason I like to attack. I find the bigger board more satisfying - again, whether it helps/is an advantage I am not at all sure.
Paul H
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