011 Baecula (208 BC)
30 %
70 %
Baecula 208 BC
Carthaginians vs Romans
Historical Background
Publius Cornelius Scipio inherited his slain father’s bravery, but he also had the intelligence to modify standard Roman tactical doctrine. As he rebuilt and retrained the legions in Spain, he made them far more flexible tactically than any other Roman legions. He first put this training to use at Baecula where Hasdrubal, Hannibal’s brother, had drawn up his army in a strong hilltop defensive position – light troops to the front; heavy troops in reserve in the camps. Traditional Roman practice would have sent the legions straight ahead at the hills. Scipio, however, put his legionary infantry on each flank and advanced his light troops in the center. As the battle was joined, Hasdrubal discovered he was being outmaneuvered. If he advanced his heavies to support the light troops, the Roman legions on each flank would encircle his entire army. Knowing his army was urgently needed in Italy, Hasdrubal withdrew his heavies and left the light troops to either escape or die in place. While not a complete victory, Scipio had beaten a good Carthaginian army without the heavy casualties that would have occurred in a traditional Roman frontal assault.
The stage is set. The battle lines are drawn and you are in command. The rest is history.
War Council
Army: Carthagian
Leader: Hasdrubal
4 Command Cards 
Army: Roman
Leader: Publius Scipio
6 Command Cards
Move First 
Victory
6 Banners
Special Rules
A Roman unit that captures (enters) a camp hex gains one Victory Banner for the Roman player. The unit must stop on the hex, not just move through the hex. A camp may be only captured once, and when the Victory Banner is gained it may not be lost.
Tags: Base Game, 6 banners, Carthage, Roman, Playable with Base Game
Carthage 6 - Rome 3
The early Roman strategy was to force the light Carthaginian units off the hills, which was surprisingly effective. The Roman command was enabling them to constantly harass and weaken these troops, forcing them back. Rome pushed their right legion forward to try and take a camp but was met with a well orchestrated defense that cost the lives of all four units. Hasdrubal was not going to go down easy. The next period of the battle focused on Rome taking the hills and trying to pick off light units. Though they caused casualties they failed to eliminate anything. The final phase of the battle began when Laelius pushed his legion forward. They were very effective and swept through the Carthaginian troops to claim the remaining banners.
Rome 6 - Carthage 5
The Romans marched forward secure in both their numerical superiority as well as the awesome command of their officers. I mean, how could having two line commands, a rally, and several leadership cards go wrong? They are just facing light troops after all. Well, just being the \"obvious\" favorite does not matter on the field of battle. Carthage eliminated FIVE units before Rome had even killed one. Hasdrubal expertly led his heavy infantry against the Roman legion completely smashing it to pieces using a combination of First Strike and Double Time. Rome stood no chance against such an onslaught. Needless to say, Rome did not have a chance to recover very well, but still managed an aggressive push with the remaining legion. It was set to destroy several Carthaginian units, until a lone heavy infantry finally had enough and advanced cutting down a whole unit in a single attack. Every Carthaginian melee attack by heavy infantry resulted in an eliminated unit, 4 of them being at full strength.
Carthage 6 - Rome 2
