I will admit to being impressed. Durham Wargames Club’s huge model of the city of Troy is the backdrop to a serious and (I would judge) successful attempt to produce workable rules for the Trojan War.
The background set of rules used as the template is Dux Brit, from the Toofatlardies. Not rules I've ever really gamed to be honest, and the darkest of the dark ages is not a period that has ever attracted me much. It does however have parallels with the fighting that the Iliad rejoices in, so armed with the Sea Peoples I was keen to give it a go.
My Peleset can at a pinch stand in as Trojans, and with my Canaanite Maryannu bases newly complete I fielded some of my chariots to defend Wilusia against the marauding pirates of Ahhiyawa.
With Doctor Pea as umpire I took up the reed helmet of Hector, facing Achilles (or Jim, to friends and deadly enemies.)
Now I have nothing against Hector, and in fact as a child I watched the documentary “Hector’s House” which revealed this particular Trojan hero’s domestic circumstances as that of a puppet dog who lives in a strange menage a trois with a cat and a frog.
Facing this “hero” against Achilles was probably always asking a lot. He was a great big petrified old Hector.
I had one of those moments. I must have been transfixed by the walls of Ilium. Without thought to tactics or much of anything else. I placed Hector with three groups of warriors on the right, my other two “heroes” guys pretty much nobody except Dr Pea has ever heard of, to the left of Hector. I had already mentally labelled them Middle hero and Left hero.
Then I realised that there were two olive groves smack in the middle of the table, between Achilles and me. Fair enough.
I had also supplied most of my civilians to this game. Thier job over on the far, and I mean far, left was to implore me to save them and, in the words of Achilles, to watch the spectacle. Ah! I thought… he believes there will be a spectacle.
I did complain about the lack of any hills in this terrain. It was pointed out that Troy was on a hill. Retreating inside the city was probably prudent, but this was the Trojan War, and I was a great big overconfident Hector. I would like to point out that under WRG rules I was entitled to claim that the fault line between two of the boards created a hill, which I brilliantly exploited, but apparently this sort of thing is frowned on. An Ancients game without a hill to fight over… it's just not traditional.
On my right Hector stormed forward, whilst Achilles seemed to be forming phalanx, and wandering slowly in my direction. The second Greeky hero was Ajax. I had already, and with some asperity inquired as to which Ajax, Major or Minor. “Oh one of those” I was told. Now if I recall my myths that ain't right. One was a hero, one a zero. I determined to find out which.
A divine interlude occurred whilst a naked Aphrodite wandered around my troops demonstrating the faith of the gods in my cause, if not my plan.
Plan! As if...
Hector, with more agression than skill, fought a single combat against Ajax, stunning him, but receiving a wound. Hector threw back Ajax Greeky pirate buddies, and then sat there for ages examining the stunned Ajax, probably poking him with a stick. This went on for half an hour until Ajax recovered, leapt up and legged it.
Seemed wrong...
Seemed wrong...
In the centre my chariots wandered forward, met Achilles and fled. My middle Hero (it began with an A. Alan probably) was in no mood to fight Achilles, and wasted his time.
My Trojan archers meandered through those olive groves, but would have been better ganging up on Achilles. I did get one shot at him but missed his foot.
Can't help but think that the godlike hero should have a special rule for being shot at that gives him a chance of being hit in the heel! If Orlando Bloom can do it...
My Hero on the left (it also began with an A. Albert probably) went between those olive groves, and fudged his way into Combat. My dice let me down to get him into contact (by one pip), a pity since this was critical for the large and protracted melee that followed. As the fight got more and more bloody Albert kept himself alive but he was losing.
Back on the right we had established that this was not Telamonian Ajax, but rather Ajax the lesser, or Brown Armour Ajax. He was reforming, but he wasn't the issue. Achilles was roaming about shouting at my troops and threatening Hector.
The Gods granted me a moment of Divine clarity, Hector decided it was time for the pub. Wheeling his chariot the master of horses led his men back to the city, where the naked Aphrodite was loitering in the back of an ox cart. Not sure why entirely...
Achilles will have to wait for another day.
I'm a great big cowardly old Hector.
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