What is the main feature of a wargame in the classical era? It is the clash of lines: heavy-armed infantry in close formation colliding at center stage. Entertaining as this can be, I've sometimes been intrigued by the role of skirmishers in classical Greek warfare. to explore it a little, I picked an incident from the Corinthian War (Xenophon's Hellenica, v.4 pp 42-45) and made a scenario of it. The scenario is expressed in terms of the Warriors of Antiquity rules, but hopefully the particulars will be transferable to other rules.

Thebes joined the revolt against Spartan hegemony in 395 B.C. (the Corinthian War). In this the Thebans enjoyed the support of many other Boeotian towns, and forced the support of others. Those few which remained in the Spartan camp were treated as traitors and enemies by the rebels.

One such was the town of Thespiae. For their protection the Thespians received a garrison of mercenaries from Sparta, probably petasts, commanded by a Spartan officer named Phoebidas. His skills were put to the test when the Theban army was called out to ravage the territory of Thespiae. At first the Thebans were successful and took a lot of loot from outlying farms. But Phoebidas counter- affacked the raiders and put some to flight. Phoebidas pressed them hard and the retreat turned to a rout. Sensing a big victory, Phoebidas called out the Thespian hoplite levy and gave chase.

The Theban infantry had to abandon their loot and scrambled to safety by crossing a ravine down which their own cavalry could not follow them. The famous Theban cavalry found itself pinned against the ravine by Phoebidas and his peltasts, with the Theban hoplites coming up behind. The Thebans gathered themselves into a body and routed the peltasts, killing Phoebidas in the process. The Thespian hoplites panicked at the flight of the professionals, and ran all the way back to their town walls.

In this game, the poorly-drilled Thespians have a discipline rating of only 3. This makes them a liability rather than an asset against the highquality Theban cavalry. The problem for the Thebans is to get in close to the peltasts without being shot down.

Order of Battle

(Figure scale 1:80)

Allies
Unit	Deployment	Attack-Protection-Discipline	Figs.
Phoebidas	open	4-C- 6	1
1,000 merc. peltasts	open	2j/3-D-4	12
2,500 Thespian hoplites	closed	3-C-3	30
Thebans
Boeotarch	open	4-C-5	1
1,500 Theban cavalry	open	3-D-5	18

Scenario

Terrain: The ravine is impassable by cavalry. All slopes are considered rough ground, but the ridge-tops are clear.

Camps: The Thespians and Spartans have no camp, but must retreat towards Thespiae. The Thebans have no camp, but must retreat towards their escape route.

Battle Array: The Thespians set up in their array zone. The peltasts must be spread out to cover their entire array zone, and Phoebidas sets up with them. The Theban cavalry sets up with all stands touching in their array zone.

Notes: Normally the heavy infantry are designated as core units, victory points being awarded for their destruction. In this scenario, the Theban hoplites are not considered a core unit, but the peltasts are. For their part the Thebans have no infantry at all, so the cavalry is considered the core. The Theban cavalry and the peltasts may form themselves into as many units as desired, but the Thespians must form a single unit.