Cynoscephalae

Here are some shots from a recent solo refight of Cynoscephalae. (Note the new hills in use - I'm not very pleased with them: I need to improve my flocking techniques!)

The first shot shows a scene from about the fourth or fifth turn. Philip has reinforced the ridge after some early hits by the Romans; Flamininus have been forced to delay his advance in the foreground to press the attacks on the left.

The next shot shows the situation two turns later. The Romans are under a lot of pressure facing Philip's veteran phalanx on the ridge. They have won the cavalry battle, but the cavalry flank attacks are not proving very effective in dislodging the phalangites. The Roman troops in the foreground are all spent. In hindsight, these should have retreated at this point, forcing Philip to come down off the ridge and press the attack. Note also the Roman zone (with elephants and Flamininus himself) in a pocket (flanked on both sides).

This is a shot showing the entire battlefield. The Romans are taking heavy casualties assaulting Philip on the ridge. In the foreground they have come to grips with the other phalanx units and are having the better of it. Unfortunately for Rome, the hour is getting late (as Bob Dylan said in another context...).

The last shot shows the phalangites (painted by Fernando Enterprises) in the centre thumbing their noses at the Romans, who have been forced to call it a day. The phalanx has held its ground and inflicted a bloody nose on the legions. Although the battle has been inconclusive, Flamininus has had the worst of the exchange, and will have to do a bit of creative reporting to keep the senate off his back...

The points tally is Macedon 97 vs 57 to Rome for a solid victory to the fellows with the pikes.

The battle was good fun and a bit of a puzzle for both sides. The Romans suffered from poor command rolls early in the game vs strong ones for the Macs, which allowed Philip more options for deployment and cut down the Roman chances to make optimum use of the veteran legions' ability to manoeuvre trickily. Again, Lost Battles proved a most enjoyable way to spend an evening.