Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Road to Damascus 1148AD

This scenario is based on the Road to Damascus scenario in the Hail Caesar book (tweeked a bit to suit available troops).  Mark & Chris command the Crusaders, Jim & James command the Turks.  Both sides have 21 units. The Crusaders have better troops, but more difficult victory conditions. 
The Crusaders are coming onto the table on the far left in 3 columns lead by 3 kings - Baldwin inthe centre (with the baggage on the road), Louis on his right and Konrad on his left. the armies of Baldwin in the centre, Louis.   Their objective is to get across the table & exit on the road off to the right in the gap between the rivers with at least 75% of their army unbroken.

The Turks have 2 infantry divisions in the village and a relief column comin down the road from the near edge.  The relief column's advance guard of Turomen is already deployed.  4 more divisions of cavalry are coming down the road. 
 Baldwin is marching up the road straight at the village.  Konrad is moving to outflank the defneces on their right.  Louis has turned left to hold off the Turk's relief force.
Konrad is dithering about how to deal the horse archers on the plain.  Baldwin is pushing into the far end of the village.  Louis is fighting through the orchard with hsi foot and marching his horse around it.  The head of the relief column moving up towards the rear of the village. . 
On the near more Turkish cavalry has arrived & is trying to wear Konrad's force down.  Kronrad has sent his sprearmen towards the village.  Baldwin is mopping up the far end of the village & has sent his horse to help Konrad.  Louis has swept around the village  is moving his knights up to the front line.
Konrad's knights have made an uncontrolled charge at the horse archers which have evaded the charges.  Turkish heavy cavalry has charged some archers left exposed by this.  Louis' knights have charged behind the village.  Turliish infnatry still hang on to this end of the village.
The charge of Konrad's knights did not end well & the Turks are now pushing forward on their left.  Louis' knights are getting the upper hand behind the village.
Another uncontrolled charge by Konrad & Baldwin's knights has again caused a mass evade by the Turkopoles.  Louis' knights have cleared the road behind the village but are shaken and unable to advance further.scattered the
Konrad has lost another unit of knights and his force is verging on breaking.  The Turks have been trying to get the Turkopoles on the left to go forward and finish his battered division off. but they refuse to advance.  Baldwins counterattack has pushed the cloud of Turkish cavalry back, but is running out of steam.  The Turks in the village are on their last legs.  Louis' infantry is moving up to cover his shaken cavalry and protect the road to Damascus.
The Turcomen on the left have still not advanced & Konrad's division has survived.  The Crusadrers have secured the road to Damscus for their baggage train and have lost less than 25% of their units so the Turks concede the battle.

Both sides seemed to think the scenario was difficult for them to win.  The Turks felt their units lacked the punch to break enough Crusaders.  The Crusaders felt helpless under the hail of arrows from Turcomen who ran out of reach whenever they were charged.  But it turned out to be close run thing.  If the Turomen on the left had gone forward again they would have had a good chance of breaking Konrad's division & that was all that was required for them to win. 

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