The 3rd Game in Seville!
After a huge meal of meat, potatoes, meat, potatoes, bread, meat and meat the evening before the morning found us all eating ham sandwiches and drinking cafe con leche before facing off against another Jesus lookalike - Javier. After introducing himself with the classic line of "Hello, I am your enemy this morning" I knew the game was to be something special.
Javier's army were Medieval Germans with Swiss Allies. They set up in a solid line, but with the dangerous troops - the DBE knights - lurking at the back, ready to redeploy to face my clever tricky English style attack.
The Teutonic Infantry were a motley mix of auxilia in two ranks on one flank supported by bowmen, and (X) blades on the other, built around a core of rock-hard Swiss. This looked like two prefect targets for my elephants and warband wrapped around some clock-makers who hopefully I coudl avoid fighting until we crushed both flanks.
I chose to wrong-foot the Germans immediately, and lined up in a long line, and then rolled my pip dice to begin the attack - and was rewarded with a rather spectacular 6 6 5 6 !!!!
This put me just outside 4 inch / 10cm range before the Germans had even moved! And even better, my opponent had not realised that Auxilia didn't count two ranks against warband. The game of German Skittles was well and truly on!
A skin of Ps (S) protected my army from the bowmen who had chosen to wheel in slightly - a move I was happy with, as it brought the moment of combat even closer.
But even better news - the Swiss were uncommitted - seeing how their colleagues were likley to be swept away by my blitzkreig-like advance. Clearly the education system in Medieval Zurich gave one a a better understanding of the DBM auxilia rear support rules than that currently prevalent in contemporary Spain.
In turn 3 another fabulous set of pips - 6 6 5 4 - gave me carte blanche to attack along the line. I had lost a warband and a couple of psiloi to shooting, but I was able to get in cleanly along the line, protecting flanks and avoiding bringing the Swiss into the game as well.
The odds in the forthcoming combats were looking good:
| Ax v Bw | Ax v Bw | Wb v Wwg | Wb v Ps | Wb v Ax | Wb v Ax | Wb v Ax | Wb v Ax |
| 3-1 | 2-2 | 4-3 | 4-2 | 4-3 | 4-3 | 4-3 | 3-3 |
And on my right, things also looked good. Elephants and warband clattered into a wavering line of Bd (X), as the DBE Germans struggled to get into a position to even watch, never mind influence the outcome of the battle that had now been joined. The odds were not quite so good, but I had reserves and was attacking in three ranks, and had the choice of where to start, so the portents were good
| Wb v Bd | Wb v Bd | El v Bd | El v Bd | Ps (S) vs Bd (X) |
| 3 - 5 (QK) | 4 - 5 (QK) | 4 - 3 | 3 - 3 | 2 - 3 |
But what is this? Psiloi repulse the first Spanish warband attack, and then there are 4 Warband dead on my left? And the other 4 have pushed forwards into the black hole of doom? Oh well, best go to the other side of the table, when things would surely go my way?
Bada-bing! The 4-3 elephant shot dies instantly on a 6-1, the other elephant also explodes, and then 4 warband are killed outright. Only the Psiloi manages to hold his position.
The German auxilia eagerly lapped round the brave - yet rather rubbish - warband.
Blades rushed forwards to envelop the brave psiloi.
The Germans streamed forwards, and delivered a stunning coupe de grace. Both Carthaginian flank commands were broken in turn 3, and without the Swiss even becoming committed the game was over. 0-10 !
Post Match Summary
Well, what can you say? I was beaten, inside 3 turns, despite having excellent matchups, better pip dice and with most of the enemy army uncommitted. If I played the game again, I do not think I would have done anything differently - except tried harder to roll better combat dice!
To add insult to injury, this was a game the Germans could have won without spending any pips at all.
