DBA: 10 Years
After and Beyond

Big Battle DBA (BBDBA)

by Bob Beattie

Big Battle DBA (BBDBA)

Enough of us were able to convince Phil that we want to play big games, even multi-payer games without going to DBM or some other non DB game. The first edition had some such options but by the second, Phil must have thought all big games were being done with DBM. Such was not the case as my article on Big Battle games in The Courier, No. 79 showed.

By including specific rules in the text, Phil has now allowed for tournament and other style competition at conventions. A standard set of publicly available rules is what is needed for that sort of activity. In a single page, the BBDBA covers all that is needed. The text gives just the variance from the normal game. The game is played with the equivalent of 3 armies (36 stands), either all a main army or a main with an ally, on a two by four foot board. There are 3 commands of at least 6 elements, each getting a PIP dice. One is assigned the highest dice and one the lowest dice. If an ally army, it has its own PIP dice so the main army has only the high and low dice. Defender deploys 2 commands, then invader all, then defender one last one. Game proceeds as with the normal rules.

Certain losses cause commands to be demoralized and some elements must flee. Loss of half the army or demoralization of the commander-in-chief’s command end the game. Our groups has played this a number of time and all enjoy it. There is a further set of instruction for Giant DBA games that Phil envisions as multi-player, historical scenario driven games. I see no reason why a Big Battle game cannot be done with 2 or 3 players, except the one stuck with the low die gets frustrated :) At Cold Wars, 2001, and in future if successful, I will be running a BBDBA Doubles event - BBDBAD.

New Army Lists

One of the most excellent of additions to the book is the inclusion of DBA size armies based on all the armies in the four DBM army list books. This represents 63 from the first book - THE CHARIOT PERIOD - 3000BC TO 500BC; 84 from the second book - THE CLASSICAL PERIOD - 500BC TO 476AD ; 79 from the third book - THE EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD - 476AD TO 1071AD; and 84 from the fourth book - THE HIGH MEDIEVAL PERIOD - 1071AD to 1500AD Some of the numbered armies have options so there is a total of over 300 different choices. A good example is the Greeks:

II/ 5. Later Hoplite Greek 450BC-275BC (235BC if Italiot or Siciliot).

Littoral if (b), (g) or (h), Hilly if (e), Arable if others. Ag: (a) 3, (b) 2, others 1. E = (a) I/54, II/5bcdi, 6, 7, 12, 16b, 17, 27b. (b) I/48, 54, 60c, 62, II/5acefhi, 7, 9, 12, 15, 16b, 17, 18ac, 30a. (c) II/5abdefi, 12, 16b, 30a. (d) I/47, 54, II/5abcdef, 12, 15, 17, 30a. (e) I/47, II/5bcdi, 18abc, 30a, 33. (f) II/5bcd, 12, 30a. (g) II/5gh, 8ab, 9, 10, 13, 33. (h) I/61b, II/5bgh, 9, 33. (i) I/43a, 47, 48, 54, II/5abce, 12, 15, 16b, 18c, 27a. A= 0-2 of any II/5 except II/5a or II/5g or II/5h. Ref: AMPW.

(a) Spartan: 1x4Sp (Gen), 8x4Sp, 1x4Sp or 4Ax, 1x4Sp or 3Cv, 1x2Ps.
(b) Athenian: 1x4Sp (Gen), 1x3Cv, 1x2LH, 7x4Sp, 1x4Sp or 3/4Ax, 1x2Ps.
(c) Theban: 1x4Sp (Gen), 2x3Cv, 6x4Sp, 1x4Sp or 4Ax, 2x2Ps.
(d) Thessalian: 1x3Cv (Gen), 3x2LH or 3x3Cv, 6x4Sp, 2x2Ps or 4Ax.
(e) Aitolian or Akarnanian: 1x4Sp (Gen), 3x4Sp, 7x2Ps, 1x2LH.
(f) Phokian: 1x4Sp (Gen), 1x4Sp, 4x4Ax, 3x2Ps, 1x3Cv, 2xArt or 2Ps.
(g) Italiot: 1x4Sp (Gen), 1x3Cv or 2LH, 2x2LH, 7x4Sp, 1x2Ps.
(h) Siciliot: 1x4Sp (Gen), 1x3Cv, 7x4Sp, 3x2Ps.
(i) Others: 1x4Sp (Gen), 1x3Cv or 4Sp, 7x4Sp, 2x4Sp or 4Ax or 2Ps, 1x2Ps.

Besides giving the name and dates, topography and aggression and sometimes a reference (in this case Armies of the Macedonian and Punic Wars 359 - 146BC. by Duncan. Head), all historical enemies and allies are shown for each sub-listed army. Thus we find Spartans with Arable terrain, aggression of 3, enemies begin with I/54, Early Macedonian. 650BC-355BC. No allies for Sparta, but Athens, Littoral and aggression =2 could have 0, 1 or 2 allies from any but the Spartans or Italiot or Siciliot.

Players must look to other sources, such as the DBM list books for more detail as to what the historical referents of the various types are. Note that those DBM books do not include the enemy and ally components. Here in DBA 2.0 is the complete military history of 4 and a half millennia broken down into little 12 stand armies. The original rules had about 112 armies. Dickie’s short review of that set included reference to “an abbreviated army list” while Duckworth’s comment on this topic is “The army lists are too simple to follow unless you really know the army involved.” Perhaps the new massive compendium of historical armies will meet those objections.

More DBA: 10 Years

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