Here are four more Mitanni Maryannu chariots, 15mm this time. Figures are by Gladiator Miniatures and Chariot Miniatures. Unfortunately these are no longer available with the closing of Fighting 15s and Magister Militum. I had a hard time fitting the crew into the chariots, something I remember from my last batch of these figures. There are very limited options now for metal 15mm Biblical figures with Essex Miniatures and Old Glory 15s being the main ranges left.
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| Side view of the table |
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| Hittite force deployed |
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| Mitanni force deployed |
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| Hittite attackers advance |
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| Mitanni chariots suffer casualties from shooting |
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| Hittite chariots on the left flank are destroyed by shooting |
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| Hittite chariots |
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| Hittite spearmen and guardsmen |
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| Hittite spearmen and skirmishers |
Last Saturday afternoon I played a solo Chariots Rampant game out in the shed with my 15mm Hittites and Mitanni. I've just been reading Trevor Bryce's latest book Hattusili, the Hittite Prince Who Stole an Empire, it's a fascinating read, highly recommended, quite a bit of it is speculative but very interesting none the less. Writing about Suppiluliuma I (1350-1322 BC) he says:
he undertook the biggest challenge of his reign - the annihilation of Hatti's arch enemy, the kingdom of Mittani. After a long, hard-fought war lasting almost two decades, Suppiluliuma succeeded in demolishing the kingdom, rounding off his conquests by capturing the last Mittanian stronghold, the city of Carchemish on the Euphrates. We are now in the year 1326 or thereabouts. A rump kingdom called Hanigalbat was all that remained of Mittani, and Suppiluliuma promptly converted it into a Hittite puppet state.
Trevor Bryce, Hattusili, the Hittite Prince Who Stole an Empire, Bloomsbury Publishing, London, 2025, p.17.
In my game the Mitanni chariots suffered early casualties from shooting but on the other flank the entire Hittite chariot unit was destroyed by shooting. The Hittite guardsmen charged the Mittani spearmen but retreated battered and at nearly half strength. On the Mitanni left flank the Hittite chariots charged and destroyed some skirmishers forcing the Mitanni spearmen to retreat and protect their flank. The Hittite chariots charged the spearmen but were forced to retreat, at this stage the game was evenly poised. The Hittite guardsmen and spearmen then both routed after failing courage tests. The Mitanni had repelled this Hittite attack.
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| Mitanni spearmen and skirmishers |
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| Mitanni chariots and skirmishers |
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| Mitanni spearmen and archers |
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| Hittite guarsdmen charge Mitanni spearmen |
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| Hittite guardsmen retreat battered and nearly at half strength |
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| Mitanni spearmen on the left retreat to protect their flank |
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| Hittite chariots charge the Mitanni spearmen but are forced to retreat |
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| The battle is evenly poised |
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| Hittite spearmen and guardsmen rout, the Mitanni have repelled the Hittite attack |
Here are some 15mm Mitanni infantry and Canaanite javelin men. The Mitanni infantry are by Chariot Miniatures and the Canaanite javelin men are by Essex Miniatures. I'll try the Mitanni against my Hittites in a Chariots Rampant game soon.
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| Hittites and Mitanni deployed |
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| Hurri-Mitanni force with captured Egyptian camp! |
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| Hittite force |
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| Forces advance |
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| Shooting commences |
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| Mitanni direct some withering bow fire |
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| Hittites are on the back foot |
I really enjoy these small ADLG Bronze Age games, they're so quick and easy to set up and play. This morning I played another one, a solo game with the Hittites taking on the Mitanni. The Mitanni got off to good start with some withering bow fire and the casualties quickly mounted for the Hittites. Most of the Hittite chariots routed from combat and it seemed to be just a matter of time before they became demoralised. The Hittites managed to rally and invoking their Storm God Taru, counter attacked routing the Mitanni chariots on the right flank then most of the Mitanni infantry in the centre. It was quite a come back, the Hittites had two more units than the Mitanni, breaking on 13 rather than 11, which saved the day!
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| Hittite chariots and infantry charge |
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| Casualties mount for the Hittites |
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| Will Teshub or Taru, the Hurrian or Hattian Storm God intervene? |
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| Hittite chariots rout on the left |
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| Hittite infantry rally and counter attack |
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| Mitanni infantry rout and force is demoralised |
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| Mitanni (foreground) and Egyptians (background) deployed |
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| Sides advance and exchange bow fire |
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| More shooting |
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| Pelset are impetuous and charge |
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| Libyans are impetuous and charge |
On Monday Craig came over to my place and we played a small 100 point ADLG 15mm game with the Mitanni taking on the New Kingdom Egyptians. I'd only just finished painting and varnishing the Syrian/Canaanite/Mitanni infantry, so I was keen to give them a run. The mixed units of swordsmen and bowmen seemed to be very effective but we forgot that they fight as mediocre in combat. I was pretty lucky with my shooting, rolling quite a few sixes, so the Egyptian infantry didn't last long and some were already disordered before they charged into combat.
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| Mitanni chariots charge |
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| Egyptian infantry are worn down by bow fire and combat |
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| Egyptian chariots charge |
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| Egyptians are demoralised |
Here are a few shots of the Syrian, Canaanite and Mitanni infantry that I just finished painting. They're all Gladiator Miniatures figures sold by Fighting 15s. I just finished varnishing them this morning but didn't have time to finish off the archer bases with tufts and flock. Eventually I'd like to refight the Battle of Megiddo with these 15mm armies.
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| Syrian and Canaanite archers |
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| Syrian, Canaanite and Mitanni infantry |
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| Mixed units |
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| Mitanni Maryannu with supporting infantry |
About a month ago a pair of yellow-tailed black cockatoos visited and were feeding in our neighbour's trees and they were surrounded by at least a dozen king parrots. Very strange, maybe it was a territorial thing?
Here are some Norman Milites from the archives. These are mainly Conquest Games Norman plastic cavalry with two Crusader Miniatures figure...
