ADLG Syracusan v Etruscan

Another practice game for Gordon's competition armies, this time with Gordon using Etruscan and me taking Syracusan for a change. Even using a strategist (Timoleon) and a brilliant sub-general the army still came out as an impressive 28 elements!

Winning the initiative the Syracusans decided to attack in the plains. The Etruscan army consisted of two heavy foot commands and an allied Samnite command:

The Syracusans advance to occupy the plantation and contest the fields on the right:

On the left the Syracusan mounted move to the left while the Tarentine light horse advance to delay the Etruscan foot:

Having drawn the Etruscans forward the Syracusan cavalry begins to redeploy to the centre:

On the right the Syracusans attempt to make use of their cavalry superiority and numbers:

The Etruscan foot continue their advance:

They attack the plantation wiping out both Syracusan light infantry. However, there is now a substantial gap between the Etruscans and their Samnite allies the Syracusans can exploit:

Syracusan javelin men evade from Etruscan heavy foot in the plantation:

On the right the cavalry clash with the Syracusans coming off second best:

Javelin men reoccupy the plantation as the lines close:

Gauls, Spaniards and Samnites face off:

Syracusan cavalry lose the fight against the Samnite cavalry:

The two centres clash!:

Initial combats do not go well for the Syracusans:

The remaining Syracusan cavalry on the right are charged by Samnite foot and take two hits, things are going from bad to worse:

The Etruscans plough through the plantation. In the centre the Syracusans begin to fight back aided by their cavalry:

On the right things are also looking up for Syracuse. Hoplites and cavalry have outflanked the Samnite line while the Samnite infantry fighting the wounded cavalry takes two hits itself:

Sensing that the situation isn't going to improve the Samnite foot charge before their flanks are overwhelmed:

Again the initial combat goes badly for the men from Syracuse:

Hits are mounting up on the Syracusan mercenaries:

In the centre the Syracusans are mopping up the last of the Etruscan foot:

One Gallic unit goes down but the Samnite's flanks are falling rapidly:

The Etruscan general fighting with his Guard are being overwhelmed by numbers:

The Etruscan general falls while Syracusan light horse and Balearic slingers try to stop the Etruscan cavalry capturing the baggage:

Both armies are close to breaking and continue to trade losses:

The allied Samnites are now struggling badly being attacked from all directions:

In an effort to save his cavalry the Samnite general joins in the fight! Unfortunately a 6-1 in favour of the Syracusan mercenary infantry kills him!:

Counting up the losses at the end of the turn the Etruscans have lost 25 points and break exactly. The Syracusans have lost 27 points and have a 28 break point! Victory to the Syracusans:

A bloodthirsty slogging match which was great fun and the Syracusans won by a whisker, it could easily have been a mutual destruction or win for the Etruscans. 

Moving my cavalry from the left once the Etruscans had advanced to the centre  was perhaps the vital choice for me, with a gap appearing between the Etruscans in the centre and their Samnite allies there was a lot for the mounted to exploit whereas at best if I'd left them on the left they would have killed a few of Gordon's mounted then been swept off table by his heavy foot.

Using Syracusans made a change as well, the Hoplites got on the table again as did some cavalry I don't use much. Next time I'll use the new Palmyran army I think.