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Post by jim1973 on Dec 5, 2018 10:33:44 GMT
I'm getting to the basing stage for my Great Fyrd. I'm allowed to base 40x40mm or 30x40mm.
So simple question. Is the basing choice purely aesthetic or is there some tactical nuance that I'm missing? (Ahhh for the simplicity of Spartans)
Cheers
Jim
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Post by stevie on Dec 5, 2018 11:05:40 GMT
Yes Jim, there is a difference. Troops with a depth of 1 base width often have no room to recoil when making flank attacks (called ‘shutting-the-door’). And if they have no room to recoil, they will be destroyed. Now it is true that ‘solid’ Hordes are hard to recoil...but they will recoil when attacking a flank and their friends actually doing the dicing and fighting the enemy front are defeated (see page 11, paragraph 4, last sentence).  Some potentially useful player aids can be found here, such as the “Quick Reference Sheets” from the Society of Ancients,
and the new “Army List Corrections” file: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Reference_sheets_and_epitomes
And this is the latest January 2018 FAQ: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ_2018
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Post by primuspilus on Dec 5, 2018 17:17:40 GMT
They also flee from shooting, and so would be super vulnerable to bows. I'd definitely use archers to bust up a line of Hd, where possible. Just a fantastic PIP mess for my opponent to deal with. Hordes: movable terrain that is cheap but messy...
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Post by Les1964 on Dec 5, 2018 17:27:50 GMT
They also flee from shooting, and so would be super vulnerable to bows. Page 11 Combat outcome . 5 Hd recoil from solid foot shooting if scores are equal Hordes recoil from shooting if beaten but not doubled |
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Post by primuspilus on Dec 5, 2018 18:11:40 GMT
I was meaning to write recoil. I've been up all night marking papers. Point is they don't get to ignore recoils if shot at and so the base size could be relevant in other situations. That means picking every second Hd in a line of Hd for shooting at creates an epic PIP drain for your opponent to have to fix.
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Post by jim1973 on Dec 5, 2018 22:17:36 GMT
I was meaning to write recoil. I've been up all night marking papers. Point is they don't get to ignore recoils if shot at and so the base size could be relevant in other situations. That means picking every second Hd in a line of Hd for shooting at creates an epic PIP drain for your opponent to have to fix. Hmmm...sounds like Hastings. Jim |
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Post by Baldie on Dec 6, 2018 19:36:25 GMT
Mine will be 40mm x 40mmto double up as lart and hc bases
40mm x 30mm def more sensible
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Post by Vic on Dec 7, 2018 9:13:07 GMT
I use 40 mm x 30 mm, but as with solid foot, I'd have no problem using the larger depth if required by larger miniatures.
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Post by paulhannah on Dec 7, 2018 20:19:22 GMT
Thank you, Jim! How did I ever miss not seeing this opportunity for optional, deeper bases for Hordes? I'll be tossing my Sassanids into the Dunk Tank™ shortly. As the poster boys of Hordes, surely Sassanid Levy Spearmen should be the first ones to benefit from the added visual effect of deeper bases. I oughtta be able to paint and add another 3-5 figures per base. Fun!
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Post by jim1973 on Jan 5, 2019 0:58:38 GMT
Yes Jim, there is a difference. Troops with a depth of 1 base width often have no room to recoil when making flank attacks (called ‘shutting-the-door’). And if they have no room to recoil, they will be destroyed. Now it is true that ‘solid’ Hordes are hard to recoil...but they will recoil when attacking a flank and their friends actually doing the dicing and fighting the enemy front are defeated (see page 11, paragraph 4, last sentence). Some potentially useful player aids can be found here, such as the “Quick Reference Sheets” from the Society of Ancients,
and the new “Army List Corrections” file: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Reference_sheets_and_epitomes
And this is the latest January 2018 FAQ: fanaticus-dba.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ_2018
Hordes are certainly interesting. "Shutting-the-door" against 7Hd doesn't seem to be worth the PIP in close combat. The equal result makes it a bit more useful against 5Hd. My new Vikings found that out the hard way on their first raid into Mercia. Cheers Jim |
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Post by stevie on Jan 5, 2019 12:14:22 GMT
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Post by jim1973 on Jan 5, 2019 22:33:31 GMT
Thanks stevie. I got your point but during my game I realised that even if 7Hd are completely surrounded but not doubled (admittedly a rare but not impossible die roll) then they survive! Perhaps there are just too many to butcher quickly?
Jim
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Post by twrnz on Jan 6, 2019 0:03:32 GMT
Hordes are wonderful! They can achieve little but cause great frustration to your enemy especially when deployed in numbers.
My Japanese 7Hd are based on 30mm deep bases, to allow their possible use in DBR, though they mostly only have outings on DBA tables these days. My Seleucid 7Hd will also be on 30mm deep bases to provide a similar depth to two deep Seleucid phalangites.
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Post by paulhannah on May 3, 2019 19:54:42 GMT
My "Horde Enhancement Project" (re-basing Solid Hordes on deeper, 40x40mm bases) continues apace. Currently, painting add'l "Mikes Models" Sarmatian axemen for the II/26 Roxies' 3x7Hd levied farmers.
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Post by paulhannah on Jun 26, 2019 20:53:10 GMT
My III/20b Sui Chinese went into the Dunk Tank™ recently for "Horde Enhancement" (rebasing on the optionally deeper bases). I painted an additional three figures per Horde. Here's an in-game view of some of them. (15mm Essex.)  (Apologies for the yellowish tint and cheesy backdrop to these in-game photos.)After much over-the-top, trash-talking, I ran them against Eric Donaldson's III/20c Early T'ang (below) last week. 15mm Khurasan.  I really thought a human-wave assault would work. We played two very entertaining, intense games, but I was sorely disappointed in my little Hordsters. Only once, could I get even a single Horde element "stuck in" against his magnificent 8Bw elements. -- Next time, Eric! |
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