New FOGII (April 2018) Campaign Tournament (bbogensc)

[Morbio]

Numidian light troops, commanded by Morbio, held off the Carthaginian invasion. Battle indecisive at the end of the day.


P.S. I did have some MF BTW... it's just that you never saw them!

Well, I was very suspiciuos of that. Your numbers on the field didn't seem quite enough so I tried to keep away from the woods near you baseline.

Indeed, that is where the most were located. It's a wise general that has a suspicious nature

[Morbio]

Adieu gentlemen I am leaving the game at the request of the GM against my desire see you all around in future events, Leagues and Knockout tournaments.

I'm sorry to see you go Rex, I look forward to seeing and competing against you in future tournaments.

[Morbio]

Sorry, is not a contradiction. The tiebreak rule covers ties. The battle rules cover battles.

As a result of winning the tie last turn, you have more armies than anyone else in the game right now, and 4 provinces.

I read it as a contradiction because your battle rules quite clearly state the winner by margin takes the province...........then there is this one as well which will be important later in the game If 3 players attack the same province then all 3 will play a battle and the player with the best rout differential will take the province so you can't use the tiebreak rule in the way you say as that negates this one.....

As for your second sentence was that really necessary to say in public? plus I'm not the only one with four provinces there are four players with that many.

First, let me say it is no easy take to be a moderater in a game with people in all corners of the globe; Especially when you have to put yourself "out there" to form rules which will be studied and scrutinized by other intelligent people all looking to form an empire fighting battles in the way we have all read about and studied. I appreciate the effort, and I am happy to be able play the part of a Rome where you all want to rewrite history and crush a power than just wants to spread its good culture.

I am going to add my voice here but I want to make it clear that I am doing so because I would like to have a fun time at this new campaign component (for me) of FOG game play. Since this is competitive, and in the end one must prevail, it is important that there be a clear set of expectations. I am concerned by the issue rexhurley has raised on rule relationship. Both the battle rule and tie rule are clear, but taken together, they cause a relationship that becomes illogical. Consider this, two counties attack another and both win. The province goes to winner A with the larger differential. Then the same two countries attack another province and both win again with winner A having a larger differential again. It really does not follow that Winner B is given the province even though the B army achieved a win via an inferior result. In the end awards are best tied to generalship, not a sense of strategic balance, in my view ( the strategic balance is best at the front end with the connectivity rules and so forth). The battle rule ought to take precedence in this context; the general earn the right to territory as he devastated more enemies. That makes more sense to me.

I will play on despite this relationship I find troubling because this is your campaign and i am needed to fall on my sword as you all line up at my borders. I realize that this is a passion in motion and other things will arise and be considered. One long term suggestion might be that the campaign length be shorten so that lessons learned in the initial scrum can be incorporated. Perhaps it is 13 territories or 15 turns? A friendly suggestion.

I understand the concern raised by Rex and the answers given in response. My overwhelming desire is to play and have fun and I'd like to win (despite it being unlikely), but fun trumps all. I appreciate the time given by the bbogensc to devise and run this and will follow his rulings, but I do support nyczar's view that the better general should be rewarded. But to reiterate I support the view that the GM/moderator makes the decisions.

[bbogensc]

To be clear, Rex was never winning in his battle in Arabia so there was no tiebreak, and this was not a material issue to the gameplay, which is why I moved to the next turn. I did the same in the prior turn when Rex had an advantage and there was no need to further delay the gamecfor all 16 players. Rex was also raising 4 or 5 objections by PM to the battle assignments, movement, attacks against my integrity, and other players not moving due quickly enough due to time zone.

[rexhurley]

To be clear, Rex was never winning in his battle in Arabia so there was no tiebreak, and this was not a material issue to the gameplay, which is why I moved to the next turn. I did the same in the prior turn when Rex had an advantage and there was no need to further delay the gamecfor all 16 players. Rex was also raising 4 or 5 objections by PM to the battle assignments, movement, attacks against my integrity, and other players not moving due quickly enough due to time zone.

So much for not saying anything as you stated you would in your PM to me if I fell on my sword and left the game and not exactly true. I am winning the game against IMC, I questioned why we were moving ahead on day six after we were given seven days to complete and yes I did challenge the pace that IMC and I were able to complete due to being on other sides of the globe and both busy, I never challenged movement only asked if we could go sea to sea and land in the same turn, you took a question about position and play as the GM as a personal attack it was not and I apologised for it but you chucked that back in my face and removed me from the game and I could say more but oh well whats the point really.

[bbogensc]

Rex I am going to get permission to delete any further posts from you as you are just attacking me personally and obstructing the game.

[rexhurley]

For the record province 40 Slaves 59 defeat IMC's Arabs 64. Thanks for an intense and intriguing game IMC all the best with the rest of the campaign

[bbogensc]

For the record, your game drew on time a day ago. You were further nowhere near winning on any tiebreak. Again, I'd ask you to move on.

[bbogensc]

Turn 3 Battle List

Note: 2 players are on vacation this turn. I've assigned some battles so as to have new opponents. Thanks to those players who have sent positive feedback. I considered just ending the campaign after the last turn, but decided to continue based on the feedback. Thank you.

(1) 3x1 paulmcneil (British) v Ireland (Ironclad)

(2) 2x1 Kabill (Spain) v Iberia1 (shadowblack)

(3) 2x1 gamercb (Antigonid) v. Lysimachid (nyczar)

(4) 2x1 morbio (Syracuse) v. Greek27 (najanaja)

(5) 1x1 nosy_rat (Dacia) v. Bosporous29 (bbogensc)

(6) 3x2 nosy_rat (Dacia) v. Macedonia (ktonos)

(7) 2x1 Ludendorf (Galatia) v. Gaul6 (ragnaronetooth)

[Ludendorf]

Hang in there, bbogensc. It's cool to have a campaign to take part in.

[Morbio]

Challenge posted to najanaja for Greece (27). PM sent with details.

[Ludendorf]

Galatia (Ludendorf) defeats Gaul (RagnarOneTooth) 19-48 (10% attacker casualties). Both armies survive, Gaul 6 captured.

Sporadic reports are trickling down of a catastrophic battle in the fields and forests just south of the Aedui capital of Bibracte. Large numbers of Gallic warriors are streaming back towards the capital in disarray, their armies pursued closely by Galatian horse and with massive numbers of picked Galatian warbands following close behind. Despite around half the Gallic army managing to make it from the field, it is expected that the city will surrender soon.

The defeat appears to have come despite clever ambush tactics by the Gallic infantry. They fought bravely in the face of the superior Galatian warbands, but were let down by their outnumbered cavalry arm. The Gallic horse failed to stop their Galatian counterparts from sweeping round the back of the line from two sides and ending the fight at a stroke. By the time the dust settled, one thousand Galatian horse had slammed into the backs of the Gallic infantry line within the space of a couple of hours, and there was nothing a late ambush by the Gauls could do to save the day.

Reports are that a group of Galatian infantry and two cavalry bands were routed in the course of the battle, and the Galatian skirmishers suffered heavy losses. The Galatian king is said to be furious at the warband for breaking suddenly in the face of a Gallic ambush, and has stripped them of their status. Trailing elements of the Galatian cavalry line were caught in woodland and half their number surrounded and destroyed, but the battle ended before the second group could be wiped out, and it was able to disengage without further slaughter.

[paulmcneil]

British- paulMcneil 4 defeat Irish -Ironclad 48

The Guinness was delicious.

[Morbio]

Two Syracusan armies landed on the Peloponnese near Sparta and were met by a Greek army holding the high ground. There were a number of skirmish battles and the Greek skirmishers were soon routed and the Syracusan hoplites waited at the bottom of the hill as the skirmishers rained death on their Greek counterparts. Meanwhile the advantage of Syracusan numbers was significant as it allowed a flanking force of hoplites, MF and cavalry to attack the lightly defended flank and soon numbers told and the Greeks were routed.

Syracuse 3 - 48 Greek

Greece (27) now belongs to Syracuse and its armies live to fight another day!

My thanks to Najanaja for valiantly trying to hold against superior numbers.

[gamercb]

At last a victory for the Antigonids to celebrate as they defeated the Lysimachids 41 to 13.

The Lysimachids decided to await the advance of the Antigonids on the edge of the battlefield in a tight formation with their pikes in square formation on good ground with broken ground before them. The Antigonids advance as quickly as they could but looked in dismay at the rows of pikes awaiting them. The light troops probed for openings, skirmishing with the Lysimachids lights in an attempt to get the upper hand. Surrounded on three sides with the edge of the map on the fourth, they stood unperturbed until their elephant charged and defeated the Antigonids cavalry and pursued it off the table, leaving a hole in the rear of the formation that the Antigonids quickly exploited. Having driven off the enemies light troops on one side, the Antigonids concentrated their fire on a single pike square holding a corner of the formation until it was deemed weak enough to attack with three units. If fought tenaciously but was finally overcome, whilst more Antigonid troops force the Lysimachids cavalry to flee the field and leave the surrounded infantry to throw themselves on the mercy of the victors.

Thanks for a great game.

[Najanaja]

[quote="Morbio"]Two Syracusan armies landed on the Peloponnese near Sparta and were met by a Greek army holding the high ground. There were a number of skirmish battles and the Greek skirmishers were soon routed and the Syracusan hoplites waited at the bottom of the hill as the skirmishers rained death on their Greek counterparts. Meanwhile the advantage of Syracusan numbers was significant as it allowed a flanking force of hoplites, MF and cavalry to attack the lightly defended flank and soon numbers told and the Greeks were routed.

Syracuse 3 - 48 Greek

Greece (27) now belongs to Syracuse and its armies live to fight another day!

My thanks to Najanaja for valiantly trying to hold against superior numbers.[/quote]

I was given a demonstraion of how to clinically and systematically eliminate light troops - nice work.

[bbogensc]

Bospo defeats Dacia invasion, 51-23.

[Kabill]

The invasion of Iberia had not been decisive, but it had certainly crumbled the morale of the Iberian armies. With the Spanish able to freely move across the peninsula, Iberia was no longer able to exploit their choke-hold over the passes and valleys which had previously brought them victory. On receiving news that the Spanish were continuing their invasion, and with fresh reinforcements, what remained of their force turned to the woods and hills with a view to evading and ambushing the Spanish host.

On spotting a small force of Iberian troops, the Spanish army arrayed for battle. But rather than stand and fight, the force broke in two, one half heading to hold a steep hill and the other - the Iberian cavalry - lurking near a patch of dense woodland. Concerned that the Iberians would draw out the battle with a view to stalling the Spanish attack, the Spanish force advanced aggressively, veteran troops splitting off to assault the hill while horse and light troops advanced on the Iberian horse expecting an ambush. An initial skirmish with the Iberians was won decisively, the sheer size of the Spanish army overwhelming the Iberian defence. As expected, approaching the woods, Iberian soldiers began to emerge, first one troop, then another, and another still. The size of the hidden Iberian force had been underestimated and was at first intimidating. But in the face of this attack, the swarm of Spanish skirmishers scuttled back out of reach, pelting the Iberians with javelins and stones while cavalry charged and supporting infantry held the Iberians in place. The Iberian assault thus lost momentum, and troops began quickly to turn tail.

Meanwhile, over by the hill, the veteran Spanish troops began their assault. Establishing a foothold was difficult at first, with initial attacks repulsed. But a few of the attackers managed to get purchase on the cusp of the hill, allowing for others to move into flanking positions. The Iberian commander, seeing his forces surrounded and allied troops below fleeing from the combined force of javelin and horse, saw doom approaching and gave the signal to withdraw.

Days later, a message arrived in the Spanish camp, suing for peace through the submission of Iberia to Spain. The war was over.

Spain defeats Iberia 8-40. Total Spanish casualties come to 8% so Spain retains both armies (I can post a screenshot later if needed). Thanks for shadowblack for playing - I remain sorry it wasn't a more even setup.

[bbogensc]

The Turn 4 map is ready (and the next turn strategic move phase will be initiated now). The Macedonian battle is still incomplete and both players will be allowed the full time to finish. As a campaign matter, I don't want to delay the next strategic turn 2 more days, however, and the Turn 4 strategic move phase will run in parallel as the Macedonia battle finishes. Accordingly, I've reflected this as a provisional result only on the Turn 4 map. Dacia currently leads in the battle by +15. A time draw would only occur if the game narrows in score. This game will expire at 5.4 1100GMT.

Any player (including Macedonia and Dacia) can contact the moderator and submit a provisional strategic move or just wait until the battle finishes before submitting Turn 4, hopefully later today.

The Turn 4 orders will be due 5.4 1300GMT.

[bbogensc]

The Turn 4 strategic orders will be due 5.4 1300GMT.

Please check the forum later today if you need to see the results of the Macedonia battle in planning your strategic move.