Old Man Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Mud is what did the heavy infantry in at Agincourt. Rain helped kill the legions in the Teutoburg. More generally, heavy infantry gets picked apart by archers or overwhelming numbers of lightly armored fighters, and are mainly useful as part of a combined arms force that can prevent them from being outflanked or ambushed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Infantry do not enjoy the company of mounted archers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Also, don't staff your infantry with infants. That never works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 "They're miners?!" "Sure, can't be more than twelve years old" "Miners, not minors!" "... You lost me." Pariah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Well, the situation is an assault on a fixed position, and the attackers will certainly outnumber the defenders (but the defenders include some fantasy monster types, not outrageous ones, but the defending force doesn't have to be much more than half composed of humanoids), though the terrain could be an obstacle. The fixed position has some formidable natural defenses, but those have not been augmented much. A siege is counter-indicated: the attackers believe they have something like strategic surprise, but they do at least potentially have more logistical problems than the defenders. The attackers are at the end of a sea plus road supply line (and the completion of the road is the last prerequisite for the assault), while the defenders have a teleportation circle through which they bring in reinforcements and probably supplies; there are some kinks in their supply line that the attackers don't know, but the attackers cannot indict it without breaching the defenses (i.e., they must already have won, for all intents). The attack will happen in mid-to-late July, game-world time. The campaign season comes to a close about October 1. (The general geography is pretty close to being like Labrador, so even Oct 1 may be pushing things.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 What assets are we talking about, on both sides? What are the numbers and types of combatants? Are the defenders' teleport circle limited in some way? Just reading your post, I'd hand victory to the defenders, hands down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Indeed, virtually instantaneous resupply and reinforcements would be a huge advantage. While the attackers could be hungry, tired, and underequipped. Any harassment the defenders could muster would be much more effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Neither side has that. Frankly, the defending position has already fulfilled its purpose in the grand strategic plan, but the local commander (and his immediate superior) want the place held, since they don't know the big picture. Defender's supply line is about a week long, but it involves a day's march, a teleport circle to another plane, four days' march through neutral but not really friendly environs, another interplanar teleport circle, two more days' march through uncontested country, and then finally the teleport circle into the actual installation. (That interplanar hopscotch is to render impossible anyone figuring out where the real base of operations is, since the third circle is intended to be destructible on a week's notice, and local instability ... geologic, not political ... could zap it even more quickly.). The defending position has two functions, one of which has already been taken care of and is McGuffinesque, while the other is just as spawning point for harassment raiding parties. Actual numbers are mutable at this point in the game. I was planning on two to three hundred Dwarvish heavy infantry attacking from the northeast, but that number could be as high as 500 ... though lower is better. Aside from combat engineers (who have just completed the road), the only supporting forces are about twenty light fantastic air cavalry (griffon riders, that sort of thing) and a couple of dozen rather light scouting infantry around the road itself. No engines. Defending is thirty to fifty mixed fantastic troops, not defined at this point, but at least half are intended to be plunderer-raiders, not battle formation troops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Oh, and the attackers include the six PCs, but for political reasons the local theatre commander wants his Dwarvish heavies to wipe out the defenders without the PCs participation. And what I am speculating about is how to make the PCs have to intervene, and that is predicated on the heavies getting stalled somehow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 The commander of the heavies, in his dwarvish headstrongness, decides on a full frontal attack which stalls. PCs roll their eyes, says "Let's do this", does it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 The commander of the heavies is the only personality capable of directing a small horde of angry drunken dwarves; when the defenders take him out no one among the heavies is left with any tactical sense (or sense of any kind) and the PCs must move in to lead small contingents of dwarves in critical scouting, flanking, and infiltration tasks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 I'll have to create the battle scene map to make more progress about this. I have larger scale maps, but if I'm messing with the battle, I need the real map. Won't happen this weekend; gotta grade papers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 I can hear your smile from here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Grimace, not smile. Both involve bared teeth, so the confusion is understandable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 As long as teeth are bared, I'm good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Well, see the Last Word thread about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 ... Did you bite someone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Not literally. Yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 As Droopy said: "Cheaters never win." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Yeah, just have to jump through the procedural hoops now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Throw the book at 'em! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 I have to choose one I don't want back. Pariah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 War And Peace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 ... and that won't blow my shoulder out when I throw it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted November 17, 2014 Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 ... and that won't blow my shoulder out when I throw it. get the two volume edition in paperback -- War in one hand and Peace in the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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