Yet another Macedonian Query

Three · Post by **Three** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 1:30 pm

My last Ancients gaming was a few years ago (WRG 5th) but I've been tempted enough by FoG to have a go. I'm about to start off with an Alexandrian Macedonian army, and have been trawling through the older threads to gather ideas. My initial thoughts included a bg of Hypaspists as MF Off Sp, but none of the earlier suggested lists have them so (a couple do have the option to dismount from Pk into MF Lt Sp Sw). Why does nobody seem to favour the MF Off Sp option?

grahambriggs · Post by **grahambriggs** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 2:54 pm

They'd be good terrain troops certainly. Perhaps it's that other terrain troops are available and they add a lot of strength to the Phalanx?

nikgaukroger · Post by **nikgaukroger** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 4:18 pm

Possibly the flexibility of the HF/MF version is more attractive?

Three · Post by **Three** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 5:10 pm

Thanks for the replies so far; I'd kind of made up my mind that I wouldn't use the Hypaspists as Pike (got this ingrained idea of them being the link between the phalanx and the cavalry from somewhere

but fancy having them in the army (with Philip/Alexander as OIC) so the choice is either HF or MF Off Sp. I was tending towards MF more because I have 24 figures painted and was planning to use 3 per base to give me a bg of 8 bases. So I suppose the choice is between a 6 base bg of HF or an 8 base bg of MF

Redpossum · Post by **Redpossum** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 6:18 pm

Three wrote:Thanks for the replies so far; I'd kind of made up my mind that I wouldn't use the Hypaspists as Pike (got this ingrained idea of them being the link between the phalanx and the cavalry from somewhere but fancy having them in the army (with Philip/Alexander as OIC) so the choice is either HF or MF Off Sp. I was tending towards MF more because I have 24 figures painted and was planning to use 3 per base to give me a bg of 8 bases. So I suppose the choice is between a 6 base bg of HF or an 8 base bg of MF

When I was studying such things intensively, which was 30 years ago, that was accepted as the intended function of Hypaspists. They were highly-trained (presumably for endurance) Pike or Heavy Spears which marched at a faster pace and served as a link between Infantry and Cavalry.

Or at least in theory, as Philip conceived them. I can't recall an account of Alexander actually using them that way, but as always with ancient battles (or modern ones) the fact that something is not explicitly mentioned is no indication that it didn't happen.

Then again, time marches on, and research happens

It's possible that the current conception of Hypaspists is different.

nikgaukroger · Post by **nikgaukroger** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 6:47 pm

Yeh, the lack of evidence supporting it has rather killed that idea off,

I never wanted the MF Off Sp option but Richard is nice and left it in for you

will05 · Post by **will05** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 8:39 pm

I believe that the maximum HF Off Sp Hypasists is 6 bases, so you might be alright.

Three · Post by **Three** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 9:19 pm

6-8 HF before 328BC. Ok, glue applied, I've gone with 6 bases of HF and shaved off some bases elsewhere to get another (going with a 6 of Hw) Thracian MF bg, so whilst we are here, would we look for the 2nd Thracians to be Off Sp or Lt Sp sw?