2nd Celtiberian War
The Battle of Numantia 153 BC
Romans vs Celtiberians
Historical Background
(From the Annals of Appian of Alexandria)
[§46] [153 BC] The Arevaci convened immediately, even in the night, at Numantia, which was a very strong city, and chose Ambo and Leuco as their generals. Three days later [the praetor Quintus Fulvius] Nobilior advanced and pitched his camp at some four kilometers from the place. Here he was joined by 300 horse and ten elephants sent to him by Massinissa. When he moved against the enemy he placed these animals in the rear where they could not be seen. Then when battle was joined the army divided and brought the elephants into view. The Celtiberians and their horses, who had never seen elephants before, were thunderstruck and fled to the city. Nobilior advanced at once against the city walls, where the battle raged fiercely, until one of the elephants was struck on the head with a large falling stone, when he became savage, uttered a loud cry, turned upon his friends, and began to destroy everything that came in his way, making no distinction between friend and foe. The other elephants, excited by his cries, all began to do the same, trampling the Romans under foot, scattering and hurling them this way and that. (This is always the way with elephants when they are enraged. Then they take everybody for foes; wherefore some people call them the common enemy, on account of their fickleness.) The Romans took to disorderly flight. When the Numantines perceived this they sallied out and pursued them, killing about 4,000 men and three elephants. They also captured many arms and standards. The loss of the Celtiberians was about 2,000.
[§47] Nobilior, recovering a little from this disaster, made an attack upon the stores which the enemy had collected at the town of Axinium, but he accomplished nothing, and having lost many of his men there, he returned by night to his camp. Thence he sent Biesius, his master of horse, to secure the alliance of a neighboring tribe and to ask for assistance in the way of cavalry. They gave him some, and as he was returning with them the Celtiberians laid an ambush for him. The ambush was discovered and the allies escaped, but Biesius, who engaged the enemy, was killed and many of his soldiers with him. Under the influence of such a succession of disasters to the Romans, the town of Ocilis, where their provisions and money were stored, revolted to the Celtiberians. Then Nobilior in despair went into winter quarters in his camp, sheltering himself as well as he could. He suffered much from scantiness of supplies, having only what was inside the camp, and from heavy snowstorms and severe frost, so that many of his men perished while outside gathering wood, and others inside fell victims to confinement and cold.
War Council
Roman Army:
Leader: Nobilior
Command: 4 Cards
Move First 
Victory
Victory is 8 Banners for both sides, scored in the normal way, however the Romans receive 1 Banner for each Celtiberian Camp tile they remove from the map and 1 Banner for every two Celtiberian Rampart Tiles removed.
Scenario Special Rules:
Command: All Leaders may cancel a retreat or a sword hit if present with the unit.
Units on both sides involved in close combat with the support of a Leader may only count one helmet hit amongst those rolled to inflict a hit on an opposing unit—
Units and the Rally Card: No unit can be rallied to beyond its strength at the start of the scenario. If a Player rolls “swords” when attempting to rally he may freely chose which unit gets a block back.
Outflanking---This is an easy way of introducing facing and flanks to the game with little fuss—it can be retrofitted to other scenarios where appropriate:
A unit is said to be “Outflanked” if it is surrounded in all six adjacent hexes by either enemy units, or hexes adjacent to an enemy unit. The presence of friendly units or impassable terrain does not negate an “Outflanked” situation in any way. Units on the board edges (and not surrounded by six adjacent hexes) cannot be “Outflanked”.
Effects of being Outflanked: “Outflanked” units when battling back roll only half the normal number of dice they would be normally entitled to rounded up—to a maximum of only two dice—“Outflanked” units when battling back never hit on helmet rolls even if supported by a leader. A unit’s “Outflanked” situation is judged at the instant it battles back. Celtiberian units in hexes G6, and G8 can never be outflanked as long as the special Rampart Tile for those locales is still on the map.
Barbarian Indiscipline: No more than six Celtiberian units in a single linked “blob” of hexes may be ordered by the Celtiberian Player via play of a single line Command Card.
Barbarian Exhaustion: Celtiberian Warrior units reduced to one or two blocks may not engage in Momentum Combat unless stacked with a Leader.
Roman Cavalry Discipline: Roman Medium & Light Cavalry only retreat 2 hexes per Flag result taken.
Pro-Roman Numidian Mercenaries: The Roman Light Cavalry unit in the game is considered to be made up of elite mercenaries from the Roman client state of Numidia, men born to warfare on horseback. This unit hits on swords in both close-combat attacks and battle-back.
Iberian Skirmish Style Combat: Auxillia on both sides may evade the close-combat attacks of enemy medium or heavy foot. Auxillia for both sides battle-back normally with only two dice.
Celtiberian Elephant Battling and Panic:
Battling the Elephants: The VERY first Retreat Flag result inflicted on a Roman Elephant unit in the scenario is always ignored—since the Celtiberians haven’t figured out yet how to deal with the elephants. Any other Flag results after the very first in the scenario is taken normally on Roman Elephants. ALL Helmet results inflicted on Roman Elephants are also ignored until the player-turns after the Celtiberian Elephant Panic Retreat (see paragraph immediately below). After that event in the scenario the helmet results are applied normally on the Roman Elephants, but see the Command rules above.
Celtiberian Elephant Panic Retreat: Once per game on the Celtiberian player-turn immediately after the first Roman close-combat attack by the Roman Elephants the Celtiberian Player MUST declare a Tactical Retreat at the start of his Player-turn in lieu of playing his Command Card and taking a normal turn. Every Celtiberian unit & leader must immediately be retreated by the Celtiberian Player, in any order, from two to three
hexes, the actual length of the retreat ( two or three hexes) is determined at the option of the Celtiberian Player. Units unable to retreat the required distances per the rules listed above immediately lose one block and stay in place. If the Celtiberian Player has not yet been attacked by the Roman elephants on his Player-turn 5 or later he may voluntarily declare and execute an Elephant Panic Tactical Retreat in lieu of taking his normal Player-turn. Only one Elephant Panic Retreat is conducted per game, it can be mandatory as a result of the first Roman Elephant attack, or voluntary on the 5th Celtiberian turn or later.
Terrain Special Rules:
Use all the normal rulebook terrain rules including the ones for Ramparts & Camps with the following changes:
Celtiberian Ramparts and Camps: Roman units can only conducted ordered moves into Celtiberian Rampart and Camp hextiles by starting their move from an adjacent hex and they must then halt their ordered move on the adjacent tile (and remove the hextile). Roman units can also remove such tiles by conducting momentum moves after combat into such tiles. Roman units may never retreat or evade into or through Celtiberian Rampart and Camp hextiles. The removal of these hextiles is mandatory the instant a Roman unit enters the hex in question. A Roman Leader cannot enter such tiles unless they are attached to a Roman unit.
Celtiberian Special Ramparts in G6 and G8: These hexes are treated as normal Ramparts, but they face into four adjacent hexes as noted above instead of the normal two hexes a regular Rampart faces. Also see the Outflanking rules above in regard to these Special Ramparts.