TTS AAR: Aghlabids versus Gauls
/Time for some more To The Strongest, and a clash between my Aghlabids and friend John’s Gauls: not exactly an historical match-up, but would hopefully give a good game!
As the Gallic horde was quite infantry heavy, my plan was to use my superior numbers of mounted troops on the right to smash the enemy horse from the table before turning and rolling the Celts up from that flank. This was helped by the Take the High Ground stratagem that I had drawn.
A good opening card saw my troops get into the perfect position to charge, but then the Card Gods punished me for hubris and my attack stopped dead. This gave the initiative to the Gauls, but it seemed that John had earned the CG’s wrath as well, as he forgot Trevor’s Law - “Always start with the General” - and also failed to charge home.
With my move on the right stymied, I tried the same thing on the left, with almost exactly the same result!
With the flanks getting nowhere, I move my infantry up to try and weaken the Gallic warbands with bowfire.
Back to the right flank, where my Arab cavalry finally charged home. An initial success was followed by multiple turns of frustration as the disordered Gallic horse in front of me just wouldn’t break, John saving time and time again.
Here’s an overview of the position so far:
Things continued to go wrong for me on the flanks. On the right, the Gallic chariots managed to send my other unit of Arab cavalry flying from the field…leaving me with a tactical advantage but not the crushingly dominant position I had hoped for!
And on the left I lost my Arab lancers and would spend the rest of the game with my two units of lights dancing around trying not to be killed as they harried the flanks of more Gallic cavalry and chariots!
The Gallic infantry warbands now started to move forward in the centre. I sent volley after volley of bowfire into them from my infantry, but John was saving and/or rallying like a demon, and although I did earn four coins from the Gauls drawing even cards for the latter, the writing was now firmly on the wall for the Arabs.
A last attempt on the right to save the day failed to deliver:
And although the Gallic chariots failed to take my camp, left unguarded courtesy of another Ace…
…the relentless wave of Gallic warriors (half veterans, half fanatics, all big and scary!) eventually smashed enough of my infantry from the field to capture my last few coins.
Despite the loss, this was a brilliant game of To The Strongest, full of action and Aces!
John played the Gauls masterfully: absorbing my early cavalry attacks and then advancing his warbands inexorably up the field to drive my infantry back and then off. Good fun and, hopefully, this will have used up all my Aces prior to the Worlds next weekend!
