Piraeus
1st game - Renaud [rjvonline] SPARTA with 6 banners WINS vs Vladislav [Mad Doc] ATHENS with 5 banners
2nd game - Renaud [rjvonline] ATHENS with 6 banners WINS vs Vladislav [Mad Doc] SPARTA with 3 banners
1st game - Sparta started with Line Command, moving all of its infantry except the Warriors in the middle. There was some amount of missile exchanges on the wings, killing a Spartan AUX (1-0, Athens) but also weakening both Athenian LCs and 1 LS to 1 or 2 blocks. Eventually, most of the action took place in the center, as could be expected, initiated by the Athenians whose Peltasts killed 1 full-strength MC (2-0) and reduced the other to 1 block (which was later able to escape). However, they were eventually overwhelmed, thanks in part to Clash of Shields (2-2), although an Athenian First Strike took a Spartan hoplite unit down (3-2, Athens), but were eventually overwhelmed (3-3). Control of the hill was in sight for Sparta. Some more combat took place on the left flank, scoring a banner for Sparta (4-3, Sparta), but the hoplites in the Athenian second line double-timed it to the northern slopes. Fortunately, the Spartans could attack with 3 units on the heights. The battle see-sawed. The Spartaans forced the Athenian left to retreat, scored their 5th kill on a Hoplite unit (5-3, Sparta), but sacrificed their Warrior unit in a failed attempt to kill the Athenian leader unit, dying the battle back (5-4, Sparta). Then the Athenians killed Pausania's 1-block hoplites 5-5), but failed to eliminate Pausanias. That's when the Spartans played the Double Time card they had held from the beginning, brining on their full-strength Hoplite units next to a 1-block enemy unit and scoring their 6th banner.
2nd game - Sparta again started with a Line Command, and Athens responded with the same, bringing its Peltasts in direct confrontation with the Spartan cavalry and warriors, with only 1 MC unit surviving (2-0, Athens). The Athenian coordinated attack that followed did not achieve anything, nor did the 13 dice (10 missiles, 3 melee) rolled by the Spartan lights. Their hoplites, led by Pausanias' unit, then assaulted the hill, killing one unit of Athenian peltasts (2-1, Athens) and getting one of their units up the hill. Of course, Athens played Clash of Shields to follow, with 4 units (though all lights: 2 AX, 1 LS, 1 LI) in contact. The first AX attacked reduced a Spartan hoplite unit to 1 block, but rather than "waste" their second AX's 5 dice on killing a 1-block unit the Athenians decided to attack Pausanias and his 4 blocks. So of course Sparta played First Strike, but whiffed! And the AX attack killed all 4 Athenian hoplite blocks (3-1 Athens)! Pausanias did escape. Then the slingers killed a 2-block unit of Spartan peltasts (4-1, Athens). Teh next couple of rounds witnessed an another Spartan hoplite assault on the hill, killing a Peltast unit (but not its leader) (4-2, Athens), and a response by the Athenians that eliminated another Spartan hoplite unit(5-2, Athens). Three Spartan hoplite units double-timed it on the hill, trapping the remaining Athenian peltasts who were hard to kill, but did die (5-3, Athens). Next turn, the Athenians considered moving their hoplite line forward, but thought better of it an instead shot 4 dice at the Sparta MC unit that had moved right earlier in the game. It had 2 blocks left, but no support and only 1 hex to retreat. The first 2 dice whiffed, but the next 2 were both banners. Game over. 6-3, Athens. I certainly benefitted from some great die rolls in this one (except for the 13 dice, no hit, I rolled in one turn).
Thanks to Valdislav for two entertaining games.
