ALESIA (Frédéric BEY) VV n°21
Why does a French magazine give us a game about a French defeat, in a place that is not really known and with troops similarly questionable? These are the questions asked by every Gallic player, disappointed by the impossibility of freeing Vercingetorix besieged by Caesar. This time the border between game and simulation is clear, here we have a simulation of the Battle of Alesia at the opposite of the game of Avalon Hill, for instance, which was more fun for both sides. The game runs for 20 turns of 1h30 duration for the day and 2h00 for the night.
The map gives the supposed place of the battle. In the middle is the Gallic oppidum, around it the Roman double fortified walls, and in a corner of the map the relief Gallic army's camp. Each hex measures 500 metres. Each Roman counter is a legion, divisible in half, an auxiliary unit or a leader. The Gauls are grouped by tribes with variable strength, at 500 men the strength point and five leaders. The Roman has 11 camps, too, to set up at the beginning of the game.
The rules are rather original with a strategic phase, where the leaders, in hidden strategic mode, and dummy counters move on the map (with the troops inside the leader box off the map), to find an attack axis or to try to counter such moves. When this phase is closed, if a leader is in range of an enemy counter, he is deployed tactically with the troops leaving their box to go to the map. The tactical phase can begin with classical move/combat. An eventual withdrawal phase can follow if a Gallic leader is out of range of enemy counters. He takes his troops and he is flipped to his strategic (hidden) mode.
The Gallic army can, in this way, march around the Roman walls like Indian warriors. The strategic uncertainty is interesting in its bluff part and, for Gallic player, is perhaps the best part of the game. Tactical movements are rather slow and combats not really bloody. Each player has his own CRT with specific DRM, Roman player is largely favoured being a real killer with camps and walls which can fire to disrupt ennemies and good legions to finish the job. If a Gallic attack succeeds against the Wall, a breach is open and boys can rush in.
To win, the Gallic player must exit Vercingetorix and some of the troops that began the game in Alesia. To do that, Gallic must breach the wall, makes a big hole, and simultaneously Vercingetorix should leave Alesia and jump into the hole. As the Roman is tough (the Xth legion afterall) and mobile, the mission will be hard, perhaps even impossible: like in the reality!
The Roman player wins by killing Vercingetorix or a lot of Gallic braves. In fact, the only hope of victory is by playing the Roman. The designer agrees and says that each player must play Roman once and compare scores. What a good simulation... (CHV: but not much fun).
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© Copyright 1999 by Charles and Teresa Vasey.
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