Trojan War Midgard Game

 

Side view of Trojan defenders on the left and
Greek attackers on the right

Aeneas and Trojan warriors close on
Achilles' Myrmidons in the centre

Diomedes and Greek chariots in combat
with Sarpedon's Lycian warriors

Last Monday afternoon Craig came over to my place and we played a Trojan War Midgard game. We used the 300 point Greek and Trojan lists in Chapter 16 of the rules. Craig commanded the Greek attackers and I commanded the Trojan defenders. It was Craig's first game and my second, while we were still figuring things out, we both really enjoyed it. Garry and George also came over to check out the game as spectators. After a few turns we got in to the swing of things with heroes attached to units opting to fight single combats. 

Aeneas was killed by Achilles and both Greek and Trojan chariots on the right flank were routed. Sarpedon's Lycian warriors routed the Greek chariots on their left flank and Diomedes, the Greek army commander, was also killed. The Trojan warriors had better luck with their dice and the use of supports to save casualties really helped their cause. Once the Myrmidons routed in the centre with Achilles wounded, the Greeks soon had lost their final reputation token and the game.

Diomedes is killed and chariots rout

Myrmidons rout and Achilles is wounded

Skirmishers in combat, Greeks lose the game

Assuwa versus Hatti ADLG Game

 

Armies deployed - Achaeans left, Hittites right

Achaean left flank

Achaean centre

Armies advance

Hittite left flank

Shooting commences

On Wednesday Craig came over to my place and we played a 200 point ADLG game out in the shed. Craig commanded an early Mycenaean/Achaean force that was supposed to represent the lands of Assuwa, a confederation of western Anatolian kingdoms against the might of Hatti. This proved to be a fun, close and hard fought game and the Achaean/Mycenaean forces and the Hittites were well matched. In the end it was a prolonged, bloody draw but we got the armies' break point wrong so it could have finished sooner!

Achaean chariots and infantry charge

Infantry stoush in the centre

Combat on the Hittite right flank

Combat on Hittite left flank 

Hittite left flank under pressure

Game ends in a bloody draw

Early and Later Mycenaean Chariots

 

Box chariot with Dendra armoured charioteer

Rail chariot

Here are two Mycenaean chariots that I've just finished painting, both are by Eureka Miniatures from their Bronze Age Greeks range. The first one is a box chariot with a charioteer in Dendra armour which dates to the end of the 14th century BC. The second one is a rail chariot which first appeared in the 14th century but is mainly depicted in vase paintings dating from 1300-1150 BC. The back drop photo is of the hill behind Mycenae.

Andrea Salimbeti has an excellent website, The Greek Age of Bronze: Weapons and Warfare in the Late Helladic Time 1600-1100 BC, which has a very interesting page on Mycenaean chariots:

http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/chariots.htm

Mycenaeans

Here are some Mycenaeans, Achaeans or Bronze Age Greeks. Most I've just finished painting but some I painted years ago. Apart from the first photo, of a box chariot with charioteer in Dendra armour, most are mainly later types. The figures are a mix of Eureka Miniatures, Wargames Foundry, Redoubt Miniatures, Cutting Edge Miniatures/Warlord Games and Old Glory Miniatures. I plan to eventually create four forces with two sides of early and later Mycenaeans but will initially use them for Chariots Rampant, the Bronze Age variant of Lion Rampant.

The two infantry units in the photos below have a mix of round and upright pelta type shields. In fact the upright pelta type shields should really be reversed as depicted in the Warrior Vase from Mycenae, although it is possible that these shields were used in this way. Some of the shields are cast on the figures and others I couldn't face pulling off the completed figures, reversing them 180 degrees and then gluing them back on. Future units will have a mix of round and reversed pelta type shields but I suspect not too many opponents will care one way or the other!