MATRIX GAMES AND THE FLOW OF HISTORY Off the subject of war for a minute. Matrix Games may be at the cusp of becoming a water fall. Now that the Matrix of MGs is done (the geography of barriers, statuses etc) a bed rock of rules that can do anything is done. Also the internet has come of age and looks to be the perfect platform in which to play these games. (MGs run easily and fast via email. Miniatures, Role Play Games and Card Games don't.) All of which means that this might take off. If it doesn't, then I keep on working. Someday it will. (My vision!) HOW THE GEOGRAPHY OF MATRIX GAMES MAKES A DYNAMIC PICTURE I know that I have gone on about the "geography" of Matrix Games. All the barriers, characters, statuses, trouble and conflict. All rather boring I'm certain. But they serve a very simple purpose. In a game, players must have things to manipulate. These things must be in few number and be able to be put together in many different ways. That is what Matrix Game geography does. With the same set of principles, one can play a romance story or a bloody fight. Of course the details of all stories are different. They must be or they would all look alike (like the old SPI games did). But the "flow of events" (see how that sounds like flow of history) is similar. Players will inevitably get lost in minutia of details. What happened first? Trying out variations on rules. But if you stick to the basics - ie nothing happens unless an argument makes it happen, then games will always work. WAR LESSON: TROUBLE AND CONFLICTS Matrix Game referees can decide that any argument causes trouble or a conflict. If the referee does not think this then the issue of what happened is settled by a single roll of the die. If the referee thinks the matter is too important to settle with a single roll then he pull is trouble and conflict. Trouble and conflict cause a second round of arguments to be done. What does it mean that a second round of arguments is done? Well, simply put it means that the first argument HAS NOT HAPPENED YET!!! So if I say I shoot the King. It triggers a conflict. A conflict to see if I actually did shoot the King. Or if I say my rival is assassinated and it is ruled "Trouble". Then my rival gets an argument to try to save his man. If he fails his saving argument (like the old D+D saving throw roll) then the bad effect happens. If he makes it, then his guy is safe. So Conflict allows two players to fight over who dictates the outcome of an event. While Trouble just lets a player survive and event! The players choose when to make arguments they think will cause dramatic moments but it is up to the referee to decide when to trigger conflict and trouble. I recommend doing it often but not for every dramatic moment. Small actions can get by without conflict arguments (actions like recruiting unaligned characters). This speeds up the game and centers attention on the real crux of the story. MY NEIGHBORS GET TRICKY The Kogyurians attempt to raise troops and seize vital points in one turn. Meanwhile the Chinese are moving it. Who will get the places first? Dear Marcus I understand your desire to have an advantage. And to be fair if I were the referee I would certainly give the advantage to the invading army rather than the defenders caught in the middle of mobilizing. BUT if Josep's argument happens then they succeeded in mobilizing before you go there! If they do then it is one of those accidents of war I was talking about. At least his men are completely untrained and likely to fall for all kinds of traps!!! You may have to work for this victory but I do think you will get it. Unfortunately for the Koreans, Josep's move fails and the Chinese score another moral victory over the Koreans. WHEN DOWN, ARGUE FOR THE OTHER SIDES FORCES TO MAKE A MISTAKE When your side is down. You can argue for another faction - that is up and strong. Get them to fight for you! Silla orders (Silla is down) Seeing the recent defeat of the Japanese navy, Korean pirates mass near Kimhae. They pick off the remnants of the Japanese merchant/war ships. The result? Japanese forces in Koea are cut off! All ship travel through these waters is blocked by a barrier of hostile ships. Why? 1. Pirates? In Korea? No...never. There couldn't be in pirates there. It wouldn't be nice! 2. OF COURSE THERE ARE PIRATES!!! 3. The Japanese are weak and weakness attracts attackers. My move succeeds but does nothing to stop the Japanese from moving north to join a great war of maneuver. Players jockey for position. WAR LESSON: MARCHES, COUNTER MARCHES AND SURPRISE The Japanese commander just wrote...the movement phase...introduces timing issues, a certain depth of complexity. Although it was problematic for me, it made me think about the game and how one engineers opportunities out of these mechanics. The free movement phase of Matrix Games allows players to fore shadow their moves. But it also telegraphs moves (ie sends signals to other players what your intentions are). Which makes movement another one of the subtle mind games that live inside MGs. Doing a free move up to a boarder strengthens the argument to cross that boarder. But since they know you are coming they can get prepared. So fore shadowing is a trade off. If you don't care that your "march" will be blocked by a "counter march" then it doesn't matter. But what if you want surprise? Players can do this in a couple of ways. The simplest is to foreshadow a move in one direction and then argue to move in another. This is sort of what Napoleon did in the Austerlitz Campaign (a strategic arrow pointed at Britain turned to stab Austria). Another way to do this is to build a barrier of anonymity around your army so that it's movement is secret. Armies that are small or covered with lots of cavalry should be able to do this. The US army did this in Operation Desert Storm (in this case our air and space superiority gave us intelligence about them but their air surveillance was shut down). Either case leads to tactical surprise. What does surprise do for an army? EVERYTHING!!! The big effect of surprise is to increase your odds of winning battles. The Japanese at Pearl Harbor shot up the US navy without a fight because of surprise. At the beginning of this game Silla attempted to knock Peakche out of the game in a sneak attack. It failed (Damned wrong if you ask me - but I am hopelessly biased!!!) Surprise means you pick your own battle fields and never face all the enemies forces at once. As they come in piece meal, you get to pick them off. Surprise is a difficult thing to achieve and doesn't last long when it is achieved. More often wars consist of marches and counter marches. Matrix Games make this work by making movement VERY fast. So the whole game is not taken up with VERY SLOW marches that never end. Instead, players do a number of marches and then engage in a fight. Just like they did in real life. THE WAR OF MANEUVER LEADS TO A COUPLE OF GREAT BATTLES The war lessons peter out as the players seem to have mastered the basics of war. The marching goes on for a while but soon leads to a number of battles that would have been very fun to play out as miniatures games. The following arguments won. BATTLE OF THE LOWER HAN The Japanese picket first encounters a Koguryan army loyal to Kim Wang headed southwest... then the huge Chinese force! What happens? (China, Paekche) THE RESULT The Kimite Kogyurans are on the run, with 1 Chinese army and a Sillan division pursuing them from the northwest, and 1 Chinese army and 1 Chinese division pursuing them from the southwest. With baggage, artillery and other heavy equipment cast away for greater marching speed, the Kimite infantry still cannot outdistance the Chinese light horse that are spearheading the Chinese pursuit. The Kimites' only hope is to head west- to join with their compatriots from Upper Han who even now are believed to be heading south into Kum. And the Kum border is just ahead... But what is this? Japanese infantry on the hilltops, Japanese horsemen in the valley? Only a few Japanese are showing themselves, but these are probably scouts for a much larger force. The Kimites despair -- they are trapped between two armies! There is nowhere to run and nowhere to hide! With their retreat seemingly cut off, the Kimites turn to face the Chinese and Sillan forces. The Kimites make a stand, but more and more enemy come in -- even if the Japanese do not attack, the enemy clearly has a 3-1 superiority! The Kimite leaders split. One set of leaders decides they never should have rebelled against their King in the first place, and decide to attempt an accommodation with the Chinese. The other leaders decide that surrender is for cowards, and decide to try to cut their way out of the trap. The Chinese general, Ma Joong, accepts the overtures of the moderate leaders, and promises that if they join with his forces and serve well, he will personally intercede with King Pojang Wang and arrange a full pardon for the leaders and their troops. In the case of the diehard forces, some of the cavalry attempt to ride through the Japanese lines- finding them a mere paper tiger- and thus escape. Most diehards, however, are cut down by the pursuing Chinese horse -- particularly the weary infantry- or throw away their weapons to surrender or flee as individuals. The result is thus that 1 division of the Kimite Kogyurans become Kogyuran forces loyal to King Pojang Wang, whilst the other division is effectively destroyed. The Chinese and Sillans press on into Kum with their new allies in tow, looking for the Upper Han army. Reasons: 1. The Kimites are force-marching for their lives and so have no time for effective advance scouting. There is thus no way for them to determine that the Japanese are only a thin screen, rather than the advance guard of a substantial army. In any event, even a small Japanese force in a good defensive position could greatly delay the Kogyurans as they would be forced to spend hours drawing up their army for a full-scale attack and thus could be caught by the Chinese in the rear. 2. With the odds as they are, with the Kimites almost surrounded by enemies, with no baggage and with tired limbs, the Kogyuran force would doubtless conclude that matters were very desperate indeed. 3. After the recent treaty, the loyalty of Kogyuran troops was split 3 ways -- into the Loyalist, Kimite, and Lojang factions. Although the Lower Han army opted for Kim, it is likely that this represented the majority position of the officers rather than a unanimous decision by the entire army. There was thus probably a considerable Loyalist element in the army already, and in adversity this core would be supplemented those whose Kimite sympathies were not strong enough to die for. PAEKCHE MOVES FROM THE UPPER HAN TO KUM Another move against a Japanese picket. (Japan, Paekche) RESULT The Japanese picket line retires to their main body, refusing to offer Contact to a (numerically) superior foe. They oblige the enemy to pause their advance, and then withdraw. This happens because: 1) Japanese troops are not stupid - one thinly spread division is not going to resist even a single full-strength army. 2) Their orders instruct them to observe and report, not engage. Any junior officers foolish enough to engage the enemy will suffer exemplary execution. And they know it. 3) Morale is high after the successful, indeed uncontested, occupation of the two Paekche cities. Supply lines are once again being established, allies are bearing down on the enemy, and there are no meaningful difficulties retiring ahead of a large, visible, loud army. THE BATTLE OF THE TAEDONG 1.5 Chinese armies and a Koguryan division seek out and attack Lojang Wang's force. What happens? (China, Koguryo) RESULTS Lojang Wang's Army of Liberation (well, actually a division) is in a small port in western Taedong. Most of the troops are gathering supplies for a planned sea journey, although others are scouring the nearby area for seaworthy vessels, and a few units are attempting to provide security for the others by maintaining a loose perimeter to the east of the port. Security is not strong, however, as the Army of Liberation are convinced that they have moved like tigers secretly to their present position, and so believe that no enemy knows where they are. Anyway, the Chinese are far away, and the Loyalists are no match for the Liberators! Suddenly, out of the nearby woods, the Chinese forces erupt, led by units of the Loyalist Kogyuran forces acting as scouts. Some of the security elements of the Army of Liberation do their best to hold back the tide, but others simply flee back to the presumed safety of the port. Soon the resisting elements are overwhelmed and those who do not surrender are killed, and the Chinese and Loyalists- led by their general Chiao Tai- charge on to the port. The remainder of Lojang Wang's force are trapped between sea and enemy. Already in a state of disorder due to preparations for their voyage, the Liberators are thrown into further confusion by the presence of the panicked routers from the perimeter. With almost all leadership and order broken down, every man tries to board anything that can float, and many boats are thus sunk through overloading. Fortunately for Prince Lojang Wang, at the time of the attack he is aboard the junk he has selected as his flagship. As hundreds of his men try to force their way on board to join him, however, the junk threatens to capsize, and so the Prince is forced to cut the ropes and put his ship out into the harbor. Although some individual rebels fight on bravely to the last, there is no co-ordination to the defense and it soon collapses. Lojang Wang and about 200 of his adherents make it out of harbor in his overloaded junk, but the rest of the Army of Liberation- apart from a few small boatloads of troops which are scattered on the sea- is killed (with drowning being a common form of death) or surrenders. Lojang Wang's rebellion has been put down, although the man himself lives to brew more trouble. Reasons: 1. Lojang's forces have previously taken pains to conceal themselves. Although their efforts have been ruled to be unsuccessful due to the fact that their whereabouts becomes an open secret, the rebels might well believe their plans have worked. Lojang Wang might have faith in the local peasantry not to pass on information to the "enemy"- a faith that has already been proved to be misplaced. Also, there is no reason to believe that the Prince will be aware of the presence in the province of the Chinese forces which have rapidly marched south from Tonggu (where Lojang Wang doubtless considered they would be pinned by a local rising), and so he will probably underestimate the true danger his forces are in. As the Loyalists are familiar with tracks through the woods and the like, surprising the overconfident rebels becomes a distinct possibility. 2. Kogyuro's last movement orders placed the Prince and his division in a port in western Taedong ready to embark, with only part of the force acting as security. Trapped against the sea and with only a fraction of the force on the alert, the Prince is at a considerable tactical disadvantage as he cannot easily flee. The fact that the division did not in fact embark and sail off in the Argument Phase is highly suggestive of the fact that there were insufficient ship to be had, so large-scale escape by sea will not be an option, even if there was time to organize it. 3. Surprised soldiers tend to panic and therby make a bad situation even worse. Lojang Wang escaping with his life and a few followers is thus all he can really hope for. THE BATTLE OF KUM -- RESULTS The battle of Kum is joined on a windswept and rainy morning, as the two armies maneuver into position for battle. The Chinese open the battle with a frontal assault on the Korean positions by heavy infantry backed by cavalry and lighter troops. As the battle is joined the rain thickens. Chinese heavy cavalry bogs down in the muddy earth and their crossbow men are unable to produce anything like their usual weight of fire. The main thrust of the fighting is left to the Chinese infantry spear men who plunge remorselessly into the enemy. Kim Wang's defensive lines (supported by field defenses) buckle, but they do not break. The Hwa Rang Do in particular fight valiantly, they have a reputation to restore!, and Kim personally leads several crucial local counterattacks to restore the Korean line. As the fighting enters it's critical point the Chinese general decides to throw in the last of his infantry reserves, the puppet Korean forces, and pull back some exhausted Chinese infantry units in his center to regroup. The Chinese move back, but the Kogyurans do not advance. Perplexed, the general sends messengers across to order the Kogyurans to come forward. The Chinese officers arrive screaming at the Kogyuran commanders to advance or be executed for their failure. Their arrogance snaps something in the Kogyurans - the Chinese messengers are dragged from their horses and hacked to pieces. Unwilling to fight their Korean brothers, The Kogyuran division begins to withdraw from the battlefield in good order. A huge gap opens in the Chinese lines... At this moment A huge cry for revenge goes up across the Korean lines! Kim Wang's army goes onto the offensive, counterattacking against the weakened Chinese units. Chinese regiments start to break then run. The Chinese attempt to plug the gaps with bowmen and dismounted cavalry both using sidearms, but they are cut to pieces in unfamiliar foot hand to hand fighting. The Chinese army breaks, then panics. Rumors start to spread that the Kogyurans are planning to loot their camp and cut off their rear. The Chinese army dissolves in panic, losing heavily during the rout that follows. Total losses - Chinese (1 Army, 2 Division), Paechke losses are minor. The puppet Kogyuran division scatters to the winds, trying to make it's way home or disappear into the countryside, killing Chinese stragglers as it finds them. This happens because: 1) The weather. The Chinese are unprepared to fight in rain, this completely screws up their battle plan as it worsens and begins to bucket down, closing down their cavalry artillery and archery options. Communications can also screw up big time for ancient armies, especially those with less than loyal allied subordinates. Unfortunately, it rains a lot in Korea... 2) The Kogyuran puppet forces morale is bad. They are confused. Do they fight for the puppet king (with a general and army which treats them as foreign barbarians) against Kim Wang, folk hero of all Korea?? Better to keep out of it. 3) Kim Wang's army is by now Korean, not Paechke. They have marched together and bonded. In troop quality they are the equal, (and in the case of the Hwa Rang Do, the superiors) of the Chinese. They are also masters of defensive fighting (see the army lists correspondence. 4) Kim Wang is one top hole charismatic general - his men will follow him to the ends of the earth! they *will* blunt the Chinese attack then counter attack. They *will* go beyond fatigue - unlike the Chinese. THE SECOND BATTLE OF KUM The great battle for liberation is all but won! The Kimite armies have shattered the only Chinese army in southern Korea. All that remains are the Japanese forces that can be overwhelmed by sheer weight of numbers when all available troops are gathered by Kim Wang... So think Kim Wang's men and the Hwa Rang Do as they camp on the site of their recent great victory. As thousands of starry-eyed peasants flock to Kim Wang's banner, the veterans of the recent battle sit in their sprawling camp, gorge themselves on captured Chinese supplies of food and drink, and drunkenly boast that a true Korean can beat any 10 foreigners. The most serious task presently facing these troops, in their own minds, is to consume all the captured supplies before the army from Upper Han arrives to claim a share. Suddenly panicked sentries ride into camp- the few that were posted had not taken their duties seriously, the undetected enemy had stolen a march and was almost upon them! Most of the Kimites can hardly believe their good fortune- time for another easy victory. But Kim Wang has greater respect for the hazards of war, and knows he now has little time to form his army for battle. He races to and fro throughout the camp urging his men to make haste and form. But although everywhere the King is cheered as a hero, the jolly and over-fed troops do not respond quickly to his commands. A rough battle line is formed, but there is no time to close gaps between units and properly dress the ranks. 2 Japanese armies come into view, supported by an assortment of Chinese and Sillan divisions- divisions from the same army that Kim Wang so recently chased in terror from this very place. The King smiles. The Japanese troops are the only real threat and the Chinese and Sillan rabble will surely flee when the Japanese are defeated by his Korean victors. The Kimites and Hwa Rang charge forward exuberantly into the Japanese, whose bowmen and swordsmen are knocked back a few steps yet hold. Japanese and Korean cavalry clash on the flanks. The Japanese fight well, but are outnumbered as their allies seem to have no stomach for a fight and hang shamefully back in reserve. It appears that it is taking all the skill of Ma Joong and his officers just to hold the Chinese and Sillan troops in the field at all, as they are shouting and gesticulating at their troops. But wait a moment, the officers seem actually to be trying to... hold their troops... back!?! A horn sounds and Kim Wang looks west. A great force of Chinese and Kogyuran troops appears atop a low ridge and unfurls its banners, and the personal standard of General Ciao Tai appears. Suddenly, Ma Joong orders his reserve to attack, and the Kimite army finds itself pressed to the limit even before Ciao Tai's men descend on their flank. The double shock is too much for the Koreans. The new, virtually untrained, peasant army is the first to break, opening a large gap in Kim Wang's lines. The Hwa Rang then break off with Muyol Wang, but are pursued closely by Chinese cavalry. The remaining Kimites are now in a hopeless position, and rout en masse, only to be slaughtered in large numbers by the enveloping enemy. Kim Wang himself- staying to the last in true heroic fashion to inspire his troops- is killed when Japanese cavalry crush his bodyguard. The destruction of the Kimite forces is near total. 1 division of the newly recruited peasant army and the equivalent of 1 division of veteran Paekche troops manage to escape, but are demoralized, scattered and without heavy equipment. The other Kimite troops perish, with the exception of a small proportion of the Sillan renegades who transfer their allegiance to Kwis-Ling Wang and join the loyalist Sillan division. The Hwa Rang also suffer badly, with only Muyol Wang and his bodyguard of spies successfully escaping. On the victors' side, losses are comparatively light, and mitigated by the Sillan defectors and the recovery of some Chinese prisoners taken in the earlier battle. Reasons: 1. Kim Wang will not be aware of or even remotely suspect the presence of Chiao Tai's Chinese and Kogyuran troops. In his mind these troops are well to the north, desperately defending Pojang Wang from a full-scale uprising of all righteous Koreans. And anyway, Jong Mi's bandit forces would surely prevent any Chinese units from marching south. 2. Assuming the lack of reinforcements from the north, Kim Wang would rightly consider that his army could beat any force thrown against him, with the Chinese survivors being demoralized and the Japanese outnumbered. He would thus take no precautions against such a battle but would actually hope the battle would take place so his victory could be complete (just like the British at Isandlwana). 3. The plan plays well on the ignorance and weaknesses of the Kimites, and on the strengths of the Japanese and Chinese. Kim Wang sees only what he is expecting, and so surprise is maintained to the last moment. The Japanese are brave and staunch fighters but lack the subtle training of the Chinese, so are given the tactically simple role of engaging the disorganized and over-confident Koreans until the crucial moment, while the tactically-skilled Chinese win the battle through the use of a flank march and the proper use of reserves (throwing them in at the crucial moment when the foe is wavering). Any residual fear of the Koreans engendered in Ma Joong's men from the last battle would also be well and truly passed by the time Chiao Tai's men arrived on the scene, and would be replaced by a strong desire for revenge against an outmaneuvered foe. SO IT LOOKS LIKE A CHINESE VICTORY WITH THE JAPANESE IN STRONG SECOND PLACE All my aggressiveness led my poor little kingdom into ruin. As the game slows down the only question in my mind is "HOW DO I GET EVEN WITH THE NOBLES WHO DOUBLE CROSSED ME?" The game is a success in my mind. I have succeeded in teaching all the players of the game how to whip me solidly in my own game! Good show!!! A FINAL TRIBUTE TO THE PLAYERS Matrix Games have always been an international phenomena. This game is no exception. Due to the world wide web the players of this game have ranged from the United States, England, Spain, New Zealand and (correct me if I'm wrong) South Africa. Not to mention that the referee is in Kentucky (which speaking as an immigrant from that fine state, I can say is a land unto itself as well!) I want to thank everyone for playing. Let's do it again real soon!!! Back to Table of Contents -- Matrix Gamer #18 To Matrix Gamer List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2000 by Chris Engle. 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