Iberian Campaign, Autumn 218: Cissa, part 2.

Turn 4 (continued). 


[Part one can be found here]

With both sides having won on one flank, Gnaeus recalls his victorious cavalry, sending them back round the rear of his army to confront Hasdrubal and his hordes.  The Roman centre is under severe pressure and the triarii are having to be committed forward, which means that they will need reinforcing if they are to hold Hasdrubal off.

View of the field.

Turn 5.

Hanno and Hasdrubal now have victory within reach, but it will require a concerted effort.  The infantry oblige, scoring four hits along the line, with most of them in the centre where the veteran legionaries continue to bear the brunt of the Punic fury.

But these farmers are made of stern stuff, and it will take more than a few hill-tribesmen to send them on their way.

  

All examples of Roman stoicism aside, the situation is dire for Scipio.  His centre is almost entirely spent and it has nowhere to fall to back due to Hasdrubal's presence in the rear.  The men there have no choice but to hold their ground and take the fight to the enemy, whose right is also becoming dangerously spent.  The question is, who will break first?

Turns 6 and 7.

Hasdrubal engages the Roman reserve - comprised of triarii and blown horse from the right - and scores another two hits.  He is proving to be a commander of genius!

The Roman centre begins to crack, and a unit of legionaries shatters.  Is Gnaeus going to be defeated?

But Gnaeus will not countenance a loss, and continues to exhort his men on to greater deeds, as is right and proper for a Roman.  And it is not false hope: the battle is still in the balance.

Spent zones everywhere!  First hit will cause a shatter.

And Scipio's personal intervention turns the tide: his men - the men of the left centre - break through, and the Punic army dissolves!

Two hits, and then they run!

Well, not entirely dissolved - there are still five Punic units left on the field, but surely they will depart soon enough.

Scipio praises his men (and thanks his lucky stars).

Turn 8.

This Hanno character does not know when to give up.  His men attack again....

...and they've have put the fear of Capitoline Jove into the Roman veterans.  Three hits are scored, three units are shattered, and the centre falls back in near panic.

Turns 9 and 10.

The exhausted troops of each army try in turn to finish those of the other off, but neither side can force the shatter that is needed.

The Carthaginian reserves venture out from the camp to support their brethren, and the veterans turn back to the fray, but it is a stalemate.

Finally, dusk falls, and the Romans pull back, allowing the Carthaginians to return to their camp unmolested.  It is a draw, and Hanno has shown himself to be an inspired commander in beating the odds to claim a share of the field.

Iberian Campaign, Autumn 218: Cissa, part 1.

With Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus working his way down the coast, Hanno, in command north of the Ebro, sent for assistance from Hasdrubal.  The two armies combined in the autumn of 218 and attempted to bring Scipio to battle near the town of Cissa, inland from Tarraco.

Scipio perceived that he had an advantage in both numbers and quality, and decided to accept battle.

The forces were as follows:

Rome

Commander, Cn. Scipio, average commander.

6 units of veteran legionaries (3,750 men)
9 units of average legionaries (11,250 men)
2 units of levy light infantry (5,000 men)
3 units of average heavy cavalry (1,875 men)

In Lost Battles terms this equates to a fighting value of 79.

Carthage


Commanders, Hanno, uninspired commander; Hasdrubal, uninspired commander.

2 units of veteran heavy infantry (1,250 men)
12 units of average heavy infantry (15,000 men)
2 units of average light infantry (2,500 men)
3 units of average heavy cavalry (1,875 men)

In Lost Battles terms this army has a fighting value of 65.

Terrain

Clear, but Hanno has a fortified camp in his central rear zone.

Hanno has the first move.

Turn 1.

Hanno deploys out of his camp.

The cavalry are split one unit left and two units right, with Hasdrubal accompanying the stronger wing.  The veteran infantry are in the centre.

Scipio responds by deploying his veterans in the centre also, but he keeps the triarii in reserve.  He splits his cavalry to match Hanno's - two left and one right.

Turn 2.

The cavalry engage on the Punic right, and Hanno and Hasdrubal are clearly apprehensive about the coming fight.

They need not have worried: Hasdrubal draws first blood with a hit on the equites!

Elsewhere the lines close to contact.  The Roman cavalry have less success than their Punic counterparts, but the velites skirmish effectively.

Turn 3.

Hanno nominates the lead cavalryman as the Punic left gears up for the fight, but the presence of their grim commander serves only to terrify the poor men, and they make no impression on the enemy.

Despite the difficulties of the cavalry, a flurry of hits on the veteran legionaries in the centre does not bode well for Scipio's chances.

The lines engage.

View from the Roman left.

The legionaries drive off the Punic light infantry, but make no headway against Hanno in the centre.

Rueful marker placement as the legions get into their work.

The situation is even as turn three draws to a close, but the Roman right has not yet made its attack.

The attack, when it does come, is devastating.  A double hit is scored, and the Carthaginian left is shattered!!

Turn 4.

Hanno's men redouble their efforts, as time is now short.  They continue to apply pressure in the infantry fight...

Hasdrubal leads his horse in again for another charge, and they meet with success.

Three hits are scored, and the equites of the Roman left are shattered!  The Roman rear is open to Hasdrubal and his command.

To be continued... 

(the second report is here)

A Campaign: The Iberian Adventures of Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus.

In 218 BC, with the war against Carthage just begun, the brothers Publius and Gnaeus Scipio found Hannibal had bypassed their position on the Rhone and headed inland for Gallia Cisalpina via a certain mountainous path.    As consul, Publius directed his elder brother Gnaeus to proceed to Spain with the bulk of their forces while he himself returned to see to the defence of Italy.

Thus Gnaeus, in command of around 2000 horse, 22,000 foot and 60 quinquiremes, made for Emporiae, and commenced working his way down the coast securing a base for future operations.

Hanno, the Carthaginian commander in charge of the area north of the Ebro, made haste to confront Gnaeus before the latter could enlist the aid of too many of the natives.  With only 10,000 foot and 1000 horse under his command, Hanno did not have much in the way of men with him, and despite an apparent enthusiasm for a fight was soundly defeated at Cissa.  He had had assistance coming in the form of Hasdrubal with 8000 foot and 1000 mounted, but Hasdrubal was too late: Hanno's army had been destroyed by the time he arrived.


Having researched this episode recently in an attempt to put together a Lost Battles' scenario for Cissa, it struck me that we have here an intriguing 'what-if':  suppose Hanno had waited for Hasdrubal to join him before he came to grips with Scipio; how might this have affected the battle for Iberia, and the Second Punic War at large?

As I've been looking to do a series of linked encounters to give some context to Lost Battles solo games, this seemed a perfect opportunity to start an alternative history campaign that has Hanno and Hasdrubal doing just that: joining forces prior to the battle of Cissa, meeting Scipio as a combined force, and forcing him to do a bit of hard fighting.

The campaign will take the form of a series of battles - interspersed with some other events I will dice for as I go along - and will follow Gnaeus' attempt to establish the Roman presence in Spain.

Below is a stylized map of the areas in play: orange shows Roman control; yellow shows Carthaginian control; white shows no control.