An Epic Battles for the Imperial Roman Army - Adrianople
C3i19 EPIC Adrianople (378 AD)
The Battle of Adrianople, 378, is one of the more decisive battles of the late empire, sometimes mistakenly called the “beginning of the end of the Empire.” While its effects are well known, its details are surprisingly vague. We can be confident that the battle started before the Romans had their army entirely ready, due to an impatient subordinate commander, but reports vary on whether this happened on the right or the left flank! Perhaps the details are murky because so many of the Roman leaders died, including the emperor himself.
We do know the Romans blundered their way into the war to begin with. A collection of mostly Goth tribes with some allies petitioned Valens to be allowed land and foederati status to escape the Huns. Valens badly needed such allies and agreed, aided in the decision because the Goth leader, Fritigern, had accepted Christianity. Unfortunately, the greed and brutality of the provincial commanders quickly prompted a Goth rebellion. Two years of running battles against subordinate Romans ensued, with no clear winners or significant victories. Valens petitioned the Western emperor for help and took the field himself.
In August, his scouts reported finding a large Goth camp and Valens moved in for the kill, electing not to wait—as requested—for the supporting army Gratian was leading to help. We can surmise Valens wanted to gain the victory himself and recognized he had significant superiority over the Goth camp and laager. We do not know if he believed the Goth cavalry were off on a raid or what, but clearly he aimed to defeat the camp quickly. His troops made a seven-hour march over difficult terrain and met with a variety of emissaries and delaying tactics from Fritigern. When a hasty attack began on one (or the other) flank, Valens launched a general attack on the position. His army was heavily engaged all along the laager position when the Goth cavalry returned, hitting first one flank and then the other. The Roman cavalry was first to rout, leaving the infantry to be surrounded and cut down. About 2/3 of the entire Roman army was destroyed, including Valens and most of the top generals. The disaster changed the very character of the empire and made certain the Goths would be major players for the next several centuries.
Notes: In game terms, we again face the challenge of dealing with “surprise” and the unexpected, as neither player can know for certain when the Goth cavalry will arrive. We aimed to make it worthwhile for the Roman to attack the laager, as there are enough banners available for victory…if he succeeds quickly. And, our wooden blocks don’t suffer fatigue or confusion, so the Roman troops will not crumble from morale…though the Roman player might!
We hope you will enjoy these scenarios. I noted the twin arrival of Expansions 4 and 5 that we had a great evolution of the Epic game but no big battles involving our new purple Roman army. I hope these fill that gap until someone else adds more.
Many thanks to the Playtesters,
Jim Cacy
Alessandro Crespi
Steven Duke
Miguel Marques
Sean McGrath
John Oliver
Brady Severns
And the folks at NashCon and MidSouth Con who played.