Ed Note: Bob is partner with Phil Barker in THE WARGAME RESEARCH GROUP. This title could be a misnomer as I hope these articles will also be some help to those who have played for some time. They will deal with organization, deployment and tactics on the Ancient wargames table without getting involved in the fine detail of any particular rules. We will not be dealing with convention type wargames which are generally played under even more artificial conditions than most wargames. The first point to be made is that all wargaming is a compromise between scale, time and imagination and the wargamer is playing with the benefit of hindsight and, if he has fully studied the subject, the accumulated knowledge of centuries. Even with this knowledge it is still possible to fall into the same traps and make the same errors as in the past, as well as inventing more of one's own. However, you will survive and may even learn from your mistakes - the only thing to get hurt is your feelings! SELECTION The idea of Army Lists giving scaled down representative compositions of armies within a points system has caught on very fast and especially in the Ancient period where they have been generally welcomed by wargamers. All these lists give various options, some quite simple, others rather involved. Knowing that you are going to meet a certain army gives one a good idea of what he could be facing and can choose your options accordingly. The main "don't" is to avoid the temptation to make up from your alternatives a deficiency in one arm or type. For example, if your opponent is going to be strong in cavalry as you are allowed. You will still be outnumbered and will just be giving him targets at which to aim his superior cavalry numbers. Chances are that you will find your own cavalry stripped away leaving your infantry isolated. Similar considerations apply if he has a choice of large numbers of infantry while your own force has a majority of cavalry. If you now try to invest in as much infantry as *possible you will still not be able to match his numbers and your infantry as possible you will still not be able to match his numbers and your infantry "scrapings" will probably be a lower quality. Also, where you do go in for the arm in which you are inferior you will be depriving yourself of some of the type in which you should be strongest. The real test comes when neither can have an "extreme" force but are required to have reasonable proportions of horse and foot with the possibility of some variation. Your choice could be influenced by what you already know Of Your opponent's temperment: is he forceful and aggressive, dour and stubborn, or possibly one of those baseline players who likes to set up in a rear position and make you come to him? In any case, your choice should not depend on your temperament. Ideally you should be prepared to play the type of game best suited to the forces, the likely terrain and what you know of your opponent, so that he can never be sure how you are going to behave from one game to another, however well he thinks he knows you. Planting uncertainty in your opponent's mind right from the start can be worth an extra move or so. So, against an aggressive type who likes cavalry lean towards cavalry if you can and try to be twice as aggressive. Faced with a defensive player, concentrate on infantry; you will be able to select the point of pressure and have enough cavalry around as a threat ready to counter any attempt at re-deployment for reinforcement on his part. In all other cases, where in doubt and you have options go for either as balanced a force as you can, say 3/4 infantry, 1/4 cavalry; or go for the wildest imbalance possible, depending how you feel on the day! A word on Elephants, Chariots and the Super Heavy types. These are often compulsory and essential parts of some armies and while very formidable used en masse must be supported by lighter troops, rather as capital ships at sea need screens and supports, Used in isolation even a half awake opponent can let them come and then engulf them. Your supports must prevent this. TERRAIN This can be fixed by competition organizers or as part of a campaign, otherwise in the majority of one-of games, and these are by far the majority, the rules will allow for some form of terrain selection by a combination of Choice and Chance, so that neither player will get the terrain he really would like but has to accept, and adapt to, a compromise. In so far as you can you should select terrain whether to help your plans or to hinder those of the other side. You may wish to inconvenience a mainly cavalry army by putting down woods and/or steep hills all over the place, but you will have to be prepared to hold these features, at least those within your side of the table. Even cavalry can pass through rough terrain, albeit slowly, and if there is nothing there to stop them they will eventually appear on the other side and a supposed asset will have become a liability. Again, you may want to use a terrain feature on which to anchor a wing of an infantry force, and you must put enough force in it to ensure you have a good chance of holding it. If you lose it you have an exposed flank "in the air" and you could pay dearly. If you decide that you must have a terrain feature that is likely to be disputed by the other side, don't send a boy to do a man's job. Do not send one unit when you can send two and be prepared to back up those you send. If something, in your estimation, is worth having, then make sure of it. DEPLOYMENT AND TACTICS IF YOU ARE MAINLY INFANTRY If heavily outnumbered in cavalry you will generally have to reveal most or all of your dispositions to your opponent while he need only show screens of cavalry or light troops. This does not mean that you must always be on the defensive but you must start you main force concentrated, cavalry to the rear or rear flank. Putting out a cavalry wing in this situation is as good as throwing it away. Cover flanks with (occupied) difficult terrain wherever possible. Patience and good timing are essential, to judge when is the right time to go over to the offensive. This will be when your opponent has tried to lap all round your flanks and has become over-extended as a result. If he is also going in for elaborate tactics to try to draw you out possibly combined with a flank march then you might try meeting him more than half way by coming out quickly with your best infantry with cavalry backing up ready to exploit a situation. I have seen this work on a number of occasions to the discomfiture of over stretched cavalry armies. If you have infantry with a lot of missile power there will always be the temptation to get in as good a defensive position as you can and let him come. All right, if he obliges, but if he has any idea at all he will be able to concentrate against part of your extended line while skirmishing against the rest so that you end up with the larger proportion of you army not gainfully employed. YOU ARE MAINLY CAVALRY Where you have this superiority in cavalry you will usually see most of your opponent's set-up while you will be able to hide yours. If he has put any units out on a limb then you have a ready made target to defeat in detail before you start on the main body. If he is concentrated you must try to draw him out by being cheeky with skirmishers while heavier units wait to catch units, particularly cavalry, that may rush out to drive off the skirmish types. In any case you will have the opportunity to concentrate a large part of your force against a part of his army. Try not to be too clever and don't attempt flank marches just for the Hell of it, but only if you think that they can be decisive. Where there is the option of flank marching either side and you have chosen one, your opponent, being wise, will have both flanks covered. If your on-table troops now concentrate against the wing where your flank march is planned he may just get the idea that the flanker will be on the other wing so that when it appears on the wing already under pressure it may well be decisive. Don't be afraid to be unorthodox. You have the mobility and space to operate in. Cavalry can go through woods; they will be slowed, disorganized and will not be able to use all their weapons to best effect, but if they go in sufficient strength they will almost certainly be able to defeat light infantry by sheer weight of numbers. Also do not forget the use of dismounted cavalry, particularly bow armed lights. A steep, difficult hill is very little use to mounted troops who will not be able to effectively charge down it but dismounted horse archers on that same hill can be a pest to the extent that the opposition may decide to detach troops to drive them off; and this is what you want, is it not? YOU HAVE BALANCED FORCES When both sides have a reasonable balance between horse and foot try on deployment to use terrain and screening to get an imbalance on one wing while refusing the other. If it comes off you will usually win as you will hope to beat one wing before the other can get to grips. You have of course to be prepared for your opponent to be trying something similar! You will have to decide whether to operate with your infantry in one sector, usually the centre while cavalry are concentrated on one or both wings or with infantry and cavalry operating together with the cavalry working in the gaps between and on the flanks of the infantry. The first is quicker and easier to manage but could be dangerous against a mainly cavalry army. The second is slower and more difficult to control, but is surer and safer. YOU HAVE ELEPHANTS AND SIMILAR NASTIES Very few people seem to be able to use elephants to the best advantage, either distributing them in penny packets all around or nervously keeping them away from any concentrations of missile troops. Elephants are strike weapons, they should be concentrated, shielded and sent in at what you hope will be the vital point in company with you best infantry or cavalry - no half measures! The same general principal applies to heavy chariots, especially the scythed variety. All these are in effect "one shot" weapons. It is unlikely you will get two chances to put them in effectively so the first one has to be the right one. Against these monsters infantry should take the assault in deep formations in the hope that you can hold the initial rush and then expand to make use of numbers and if possible bring in light troops in the melee. With cavalry try to keep the battle open and work round flanks if at all possible. GENERAL HINTS One long established maxim applies to wargaming as well as actual battle: "Always reinforce Success - Never reinforce Failure" This may be obvious on paper but how many games do you see where one wing is failing and the player than feeds units in piecemeal to try to bolster up the rot, plenty I'd guess. Similarly, where one side is getting the upper hand in a sector the advantage is often lost when the player is not ready, or is nervous, about immediately following it up. Light troops are for skirmishing, not for head on attacks except against their own kind. Ambushes, flank attacks, or fighting in difficult terrain. Yes, then they come into their own, and don't forget that light cavalry can be at their best in pursuit. If enemy units have routed but have drawn away from pursuit then it usually pays to charge them with any light cavalry that should be around. This will prevent the routers rallying and will cause no end of confusion in the enemy rear areas. Finally, don't be beguiled by those people who say that the main purpose of a wargame is to have a hard fought battle. If you find yourself in such a situation where everything resolves into dice throws you can reckon that you have slipped up somewhere! Back to Table of Contents -- Courier Vol. III #5 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1982 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. 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