Pseudopolis and Hoplonea are two rival city-states somewhere in Ancient Greece. They differ socially, politically and philosophically; in short, they are born enemies. Hoplonea is essentially an army in being; not the most fertile or richest of states it is one of the more militant. Disciplined and tough, the Hoploneans are proud of their army. It comprises of heavy citizen hoplites supported by a few peltasts recruited from the lower orders. There is a nominal king (Phlegmatus II) but he is a figurehead for the aggressive policies of the leading soldier statesmen, the Strategoi. The King and the Strategoi foster the concept that one Hoplonean is worth two, three or even five Pseudopolitans (or anyone else). They are entrenched in the view that they need no allies and are eager to pick a fight with Pseudopolis. There are several schools of thought on the Pseudopolitan State; most of them can be found in Pseudopolis - arguing. It is a city of philosophers, thinkers and rabble-rousers. Unlike Hoplonea where there is a hardened clique of pragmatic soldiers in command, here there is a council of elected generals and politicians. There are two main fears. Firstly that they will be defeated by the Persians or Hoploneans and thus lose their ancient freedoms and secondly that the cenerals they elect will defeat the enemy and then use their popularity with the army to enslave Pseudopolis. If these generals do too well they are seen as tyrants, impeached and exiled or executed; if they are defeated, they face a similar fate. Most seek to tread a path of cautious mediocrity. Meanwhile Hersonissos, Alymnos and Lato are smaller cities currently allied to Pseudopolis via the Pseudolian Lea-ge. Malia, Lasithi and Dikti are dirt poor areas inhabited by brigands, runaway slaves and dubious looking goats. The forces of each City-State are up to you, but I have decided to use roughly the following proportions: Pseudopolis, two units of heavy hoplites Lato, 1 unit of peltasts Alymnos, 1 unit of light or medium hoplites Hersonissos, 1 unit of heavy hoplites Hoplonea, 2 units of heavy hoplites There are no cavalry simply because I have not bought any - fit them in as you wish. Lato and Oolos also have a small fleet each. These can transport troops, see below. Each year has one campaign season. Hoplonea declares an attack on a 3,4,5,6. Firstly see where it falls by randomly choosing an area adjacent to one under Hoplonean control. On a further roll of 5,6 the Hoploneans announce the attack but are put off by inauspicious omens. In this case, you get a chance to move troops to the area or even move and attack a Hoplonean held area. If not, move the Hoplonean army and any allies that can reach into it. You then react with your units and any allies. If the Hoploneans have had bad omens amend their morale down a bit or use 1d6 for their omens if using Warhammer Ancient Battles. Troops may move 1 area. They may move into Lato or Oolos and then take ship to another area. On a 4,5,6 they may not disembark and return to Lato or Oolos. Troops beginning at the port area disembark automatically. Defeat in an area means that that area is under Hoplonean control and is wrested from the Pseudolian League. Roll to see reaction in Lato, Hersonissos or Alymnos: 1,2 Abject surrender to the Hoploneans; this City will never field an army against Hoplonea again. -1 morale anyway 3,4 A client state; the army will fight the Hoploneans on a 4,5,6 but with -1 off morale. 5,6 Riots ensue in the City; the Hoplonean army will attack here on a 4,5,6 next year to quell the locals. There is a -1 for being defeated more than once. The Citizens of Pseudopolis also take defeat badly. 1,2,3 Rioting in the streets, losing General exiled or worse 4,5 As 1,2,3, but a unit is recruited from the lower orders - 1,2,3 Psiloi, 4,5 peltast, 6 Hoplites of dubious quality. Morale of all these is at -1; desperate times call for desperate remedies. 6 As above but the council decides to march through the mountains to attack Hoplonea or Oolos if Hersonissos is occupied and Lato and Alymnos are still in the League. If only Lato is an ally then the whole army can go by sea. There is a +2 if the defeat was in Lato. If the defeat was in Pseudopolis, the City is under siege. "The Oolos Expedition" Move all available troops to Oolos, including the Lato fleet if available. You can either assault or siege. To assault, presume there is a smallish garrison of Hoploneans supported (?) by a levy of very dubious Oolians. Then fight it out, scaling ladders, the lot. No scaling ladders? Then besiege them. Roll 1xd6: 1,2 Yes, you starve them out 3,4 No result 5,6 A Hoplonean army arrives and besieges you. You must fight your way clear or surrender. There is a -1 if you have the Lato fleet. On the 5,6 result you can use the Lato fleet to evacuate but may (on a 1,2,3) have to fight the Oolos fleet. Anyone know naval rules - if in doubt use highest dice wins. If you do not get a result in the summer, you can press on the siege into the autumn but then roll at 1,2,3/4,5,6, ignoring a no result. "The March on Hoplonea" Another strategic masterplan by the Hoplonean Council. Move all the available troops through the mountains into Hoplonea. Allied units go by the shortest route and meet outside Hoplonea City on a 4,5,6. Roll 1xd6 for your troops: 1,2 They get there in good order and on time. 3,4 They cet lost, arriving late and hungry and weary, -1 on morale 5,6 The march goes well. An eagle is spotted and omens are thus good, +1 morale. A full strength Hoplonean army will appear to give battle. If Hoplonean units are in another area for some reason, rawer units will make up the numbers. These will not be as tough the usual Hoploneans; there will always be one regular hoplite unit though. "The Siege of Pseudopolis" The Hoploneans will not assault. So settle down for a siege. Roll 1xd6 per month for events in the city: 1,2 Nothing happens, the siege continues 3,4 Food Shortage - each unit loses a figure on a 5,6 5 Faction Feud - d6 random figures fight another d6 random figures 6 Traitors open a gate - defend it against a full strength unit. You Start with d6 men and add d6 each turn - a chance for you general to hold the breach single-handed. 7 Council votes for surrender. This is where you take over as Tyrant. Fight a mob of 2-5 council loyalists with your bodyguard of 2-3 hoplites and your general's figure. Once you are tyrant, ignore faction feud - you quell this with martial law. On another roll of 7 another officer decides it is folly to continue and tries to take over to surrender - fight it out with your respective bodyguards. All casualties caused by food, faction fights or Tyrant bids are permanent. Casualties from sallies or defending gates are recovered on a 5,6 each turn but on a 1,2 they become permanent losses. To be generous, roll once every two months, on a 5,6 1xd6 of assorted Anti-Hoploneans sneak into the City. There is +1 for each two months that pass. There is a -1 for a sally that actually damages a siege engine or causes more Hoplonean casualties that Pseudopolitan. Some notes All dice rolls use 1xd6. The game is loaded against the Pseudopolitans, based as it is on the Peloponesian War. The Siege of Pseudopolis will last as long as it takes, until there are no defenders left, they fail to defend a gate or a pro-surrender general takes over. You could use the rules for the Bruce/Comyn fight from an earlier Gauntlet to resolve the coups if you wish to preserve vital Pseudopolitan soldiers. Back to The Gauntlet No. 17 Table of Contents Back to The Gauntlet List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1999 by Craig Martelle Publications This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com