DBA 3.0 - EIR vs Early Germans

Good morning,

Yesterday, at around lunch time, Young Stan popped around for a quick game of DBA with his newly completed II/47d [Other Batavin or Cherusci] Early Germans.

• 1 x General (Cv)
• 2 x Heroes with long spears (4Wb)
• 7 x Warriors (3Wb)
• 2 x Skirmishers (Ps)

So I, naturally, brought out my II/56 Early Imperial Romans.

• 1 x General on horseback (Cv)
• 1 x Equites (Cv)
• 4 x Legionaries (4Bd)
• 3 x Auxiliary pedites (4Ax)
• 1 x Archers (Ps)
• 1 x Numidian (LH)
• 1 x Lancers (3Kn)

My Wromans had already invaded Lower Germany, so the natives launched a counter attack. (Stan was the aggressor, I, the defender).

Being a bit tricksy, I send forth my Numidians to the other flank.

Very...

...very...

...very...

...slowly.

All while Stan had very poor pip dice and could only send forth his skirmishers into the wood.

And then out of the wood.

Umm...numerically speaking...

...that doesn't look fair!

So I pull the general out of the line to move him over yonder.

All while my Numidians (and my Equites and Lancers on the other side of the river) slog through their respective patches of bad going.

First contact.

Whew!

Aww, stink!

Stink indeed!

I, rather impetuously in hindsight, send forth my Auxila to catch the corner of an isolated Warband...

...while my mounted finally make progress.

The Long Spears conform to me (since I've got the bigger group)...

...for a nul result.

Still...

...huzzah!

Alas...

...aww stink!

Stink indeed.

Thankfully the rest of his hairy mob haven't had the pips to advance. And my eastern mounted column were finally making headway north.

Next bound...

Huzzah!

Stan redresses his line...

...and I sneak in my general to face his.

I redress my own line, and turn in my eastern mounted elements to threaten the German's flank.

And so it begins...

I manage to push back the initial shove...

...and follow up.

And here's where things go south for me.

One pip! One! There they are, all ready to cross the river to wreak havoc, and...one pip! So I move in my general to shore up the Legionaries' line...

...to no avail.

Stink!

Next bound...

Stink, stink, stink!

Blimmin Warband quick killing Blades!

And that was the end of that. Well played Stan, well played.

Still, it was a great game, and it was wonderful to have the ancients back on the table again. I do so enjoy DBA.

Thanks for the game Stan,

Nick

DBA 3 - Later Sarmatians vs Early Imperial Romans

...or how to lose with Knights...

Good afternoon,

Last night Mark O invited me around to his place for some 20mm DBA using my painted armies. So I brought all eight of them!

Good grief, I've been playing this for 25 years and I've only got eight armies done? Mind you, two of those are triple sized, so...

Anyhow, first up an historical match up - Later Sarmatians against Early Imperial Romans.

Since my entire army was mounted, and all of the terrain (a [28mm] hamlet and some woods) ended up on one side of the table, I chose that side rather than have Mark hide his infantry in it.

Hmmm...it did kind of mean I was bunched up in the space between them...

Mark took his EIRs with a heavy horsie flavour - Cavalry General, Cav, Knight and Light Horse.

In we close...

...front row first...

Dratted archers!

Mark tries sneaking through the terrain around my flanks.

Oh, come on!

Dratted archers!

But at least my lancers were able to push back his Auxilia.

Huzzah...?

Dratted die!

I'm sure I saw far more 1s than anything else on the dratted thing.

See what I mean?

Dratted archers!

Things were looking a bit dicey for the horsemen from the steppes.

Ha! Dicey! Gettit?!

Huzzah! That'll learn you!

Unfortunately...

...'twas too little, too late. Although I took out an Auxilia in the rough on my left, and Auxila in the rough on my right served the coup de grace, with the aide of some support from a cohort of Legionaries.

And that was the end of that.

Still, 'twas great to see my toys on the table, and being commanded with skill to which they are unaccustomed!

Thanks Mark,

Nick