@chiquichops @kronenblatt @nathangun @cargol
After re-watching the Mini Wars TV's Return to Graecia campaign video recently, I was inspired to start developing a multi-player campaign set during the Roman Civil Wars between the forces of Caesar and Pompey.... using parts and map from the board game Julius Caesar.
Looking at maybe as many as six players (if we can import or reactivate some inactive FOG II players)... or even four players.
Each player playing a general taking command of a theatre of the war and being assigned legions and fleets. One player on each side will taking the roles of Caesar and Pompey of course.
Each Turn will represent one year in the 4 year civil war. The play system will be similar to the operations system used in Return To Graecia, with players alternating taking turns to perform 8 operations per turn -- maneuvering armies, commanders and fleets ... establishing garrisons, besieging cities or using diplomatic operations to sway them over to your cause ... and of course fighting field battles in FOG II.
...and did I mention there'll prossibly be an element of FOW with hidden army strength until contact is made.
Here's a sample pic of a test playing session. Red are Caesarean forces, blue Pompeian.
Most of the fighting took place in the western theatre in Spain with the Caesarean general Curio capturing Tarraco and Bilbilis, but was repulsed from Carthago Nova by reinforced Pompeian armies.
In the central theatre, Pompey pulled back to Syracuse in Sicily ... Caesar followed and in a battle at Massena, Caesar got a bloody nose and retreated to Neapolis to reorganise -- Pompey pulled back to his base in Syracuse as it was too late in the year
In the east, Scipio raised new Pompeian legions at his base in Antioch -- used diplomacy operations to get Damascus over to the Pompeian cause, but failed to sway Jerusalem. He then advanced as far as Ephesus, to secure it as a naval. Mark Anthony advanced with his army from Ravenna to Brundisium, successfully deployed his fleet and crossed by sea with his army to Dyrrachium and then successfully captured Athena - -a vital base for future naval operations. No battles were fought in this theatre.
Egypt is currently "allied" to Pompeyan side (the blue diplomacy marker next to Alexandria) -- but not an active combatant unless actually attacked. But the 2 resource/victory points of Alexandria (white number in circle) can be used to help resource the Pompeian war effort.
Order of play in this first turn was:
1. Caesar
2. Pompey
3. Curio
4. Afrianus
5. Anthonius (Mark Anthony)
6. Scipio
Now with FOW included, the map from the Pompeian side would look like this... army strengths and attached cavalry units hidden. (see below)
More information as testing continues and rules get properly written up. 🙂
One of the most horrible features of war is that all the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.
- George Orwell, Homage To Catalonia
and did I mention there'll prossibly be an element of FOW with hidden army strength until contact is made.
Nice
You know I'm always game
"En cualquier dirección que recorras el alma, nunca tropezarás con sus límites." Sócrates
Guess I'll have to brush up my skills now... 😎 Been doing awfully little wargaming recently anyways!
Update: I’ve been doing some more play testing and I’ve decided it’s back the drawing board with this one — there’s just too many steps and procedures - which would be fine for a face to face board game, but too cumbersome for this format. As it stands, one year turn would involve 48 actions plus accompanying die rolls plus the FOG battles… way too much admin to keep track of.
Next step: strip it down and simplify and streamline it without losing the flavour and interactivity.
One of the most horrible features of war is that all the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.
- George Orwell, Homage To Catalonia
Too bad but yeah 48 sounds a lot. Is it because each of the potentially 6 player generals gets 8 actions, or why is it so?
Yes ... that and tracking the different kinds of operations (and each having a die roll modifier as well) -- also tracking FOW army strengths across three maps (one for each side and a GM master map) is an absolute pain in the ass 🤣
Got my thinking hat on ... I want to adapt it to the simple Initiative Point system I used for the Roman/Sassanian campaign.
Still have three theatre commanders per side playing as a team.
One of the most horrible features of war is that all the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.
- George Orwell, Homage To Catalonia
An updated version after refining and testing ... maybe I can finish this over the holidays and we can launch ourselves a proper Roman Civil war in the new year.
(click on the image for a full size view)
One of the most horrible features of war is that all the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.
- George Orwell, Homage To Catalonia
More play-testing with this system (I resolve battle using die rolls) ... things didn't go so well for the Pompeian Republican faction... Pompey himself died in battle early on facing consecutive battles in southern Italy vs Caesar and then losing badly to Antonius (Mark Antony) at Neapolis.
A year-long campaign in Spain eventually saw victory for Caesar there... while Antonius captured Sicily, crossed over to North Africa, defeated and pursued Pompeian general Labienus to Leptis Magma, where his army was destroyed.
Caesarean general Curio was transferred from Spain to Greece, where after capturing Athena and Thessalonika, was then defeated and killed by Scipio's army there. Curio's replacement, Calvinus, recaptured Thessalonika with a fresh army shipped over from Italy, isolating Scipio in Athena.
Caesar in the meantime has shipped his army and fleet to Utica in North Africa and is preparing to join the campaign in the east... with things looking bleak for the Pompeian side with only one commander left and only two armies (one in Athena and one in Antioch). Ptolemaic Egypt is still sympathetic to their cause (so the 2 victory points in Alexandria still count for them, but will take no part in fighting unless directly attacked)
I'll end it here for the moment and start refining and start doing a proper first draft of the rules -- and also work one a possible four-player adaptation as well.
(click on image below for full size)
One of the most horrible features of war is that all the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.
- George Orwell, Homage To Catalonia