Hail Caesar: Successors

Chris as Ptolemy v. James' Greeks

Chris had a 6 unit phalanx supported by skirmish archers & 3 smaller divisions. 2 elephants + 2 light inf. 2 Agema HC + 2 LCav.  2 Cleruch MC + 2 LCav.  Command ratings were 9 for the cav, 8 otherwise.  Army break test = fail if phalanx fails or any 3 divs.

James had dvisions: 4 HI hoplites (phalanx) + 2 skirms, 4 HI Thorakiti + 2 skirms, 4 MI Thureophori, 2 MCav + 2 LCav.  Command ratings were 9 for the HI, 8 for the rest.  Army break test = fail if both HI fial, or any 3 divs.

Ptolemy is on the left.  Elephants & LI on the left of the phalanx, cavalry on the right.  James has the Hoplites on his left, then the Thorakiti and the cavalry & Thureophori in two lines on the far flank.

Both sides advance their cavalry on their right flanks.

On the far flank, the Greek horse pushed back the light infantry but a counterattack by the elephants sent the cavalry back in turn.  In the centre an Egyptian phalanx made a breakthrough only be broken in turn by the second line of Thorakiti. On the near flank the Egyptian light horse is peppering the Hoplites though a hoplite charge has take out a medium cavalry unit that came too close.

On the far flank, the Greek horse has fallen back.  In the centre both sides are manoeuvring looking for an advantage.  On this flank the victorious hoplites have been broken by the hail of javelins from the light horse.

On the far flank the Greeks are attacking again & one elephant has gone.  The Thorakiti have taken out another phalanx.  The hoplites are circling the wagons in the foreground.

On the far flank the elephant division is hanging on.  The Greek medium cavalry has been sent across the rear to the near flank to take some pressure off the hoplites, but the right side of the phalanx has finally got moving and the hoplites are in big trouble.

The elephant division has finally broken on the far flank, but so have the hoplites on the near flank.  All the remaining Greek divisions are badly damaged.  James looks in deep trouble now, but he's taken one last throw of the dice and charged the far end of the phalanx with the usable remnants of his army.  The end phalanx was hit in front & flank and broke.  The next one was already shaken and in the next turn it breaks, thus the phalanx division breaks and so the Egyptian army.

This was a very exciting battle with frequent changes of fortune& lots of blunders (some fortuitous) on both sides.  Possibly Ptolemy's critical mistake was to take himself with the cavalry on his right.  Much of the large phalanx division didn't get any orders on some critical turns - it really needed him there.