In Progress Hannibal: Rome and Carthage in the Second Punic War

[DakaSha]

Turn 5 – 214 BC – Action 2
“Hannibal”


Hannibal, confident in his ability to best Fabius, moves his troops onto the field of battle and is promptly engaged by the roman shithead. Apparently Fabius likes his odds. So be it. We were hoping for a battle that is to our favor, but at least we are getting one at all.



The fighting starts immediately. Both sides refuse to give into fear and the clash is fierce and bloody, however, as was to be expected, Hannibal proves to be the better tactician. We do, however, lose an African and Gallic infantry while our Spanish unit routes.

Round 1
Romans: 3, 1
Carthage: 5, 2
Romans Retreat

Of course, the coward Fabius flees at the first sign of defeat. Hannibal calls in his cav to finish off the job

Spoiler

Finally I get to show how pursuit works. The winning army may us their remaining cavalry to inflict damage on the fleeing enemy. If the enemy has cav then it turn into a 1 round combat between the cav of both sides. I think if the enemy has no cav u have the chance to get free hits on the enemy

Hannibal gives the order to pursue the cowards and destroys the remaining cavalry.

Persuit
Rome: 0
Carthage: 2
Carthage Victory



Word of Hannibals victory spreads, leading to an increase of support in the fatherland and to the switching of alliance of Patavium. Fabius takes refuge in Placentia.

We draw:



Hannibal is very pleased with the result. He managed to crush an army that was larger than his. However his work is not done. His men have marched through the entirety of Italy, stormed two cities, fought and defeated a larger enemy force, and now must secure a rout to Gaul, in order to allow his horrible brother Mago to join the party. And so they march on to Mediolanum which falls with no losses.

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Well that went well




Now the question remains as to what to do with Hannibal before his turn ends. There is a fairly large army in Rome that could attack Genua. Should we defend it? Leave Hannibal in the field (dangerous)? We still don’t know how well our bros in Spain will fair but I need to decide on what to do with Hannibal now, before handing over command.

Also should I maybe leave Mago in Gaul? He only has 2 units now and the recruitment pool there hasnt dried up.

edit: Hmm.. If I leave mago in Gaul, then I'll have 1 excess command. I could us it to ferry our general in Carthage to Bruttium, to recruit troops. He would fairly lightly defended (I'd place him in Rhegium, a major city and hed recruit 2 units at the end of our turn) but if the Romans decide to go take him out then:

a) They leave Hannibro alone
b) They Leave Ertruria alone
c) They may split their forces to attack north and south.. that would be good
d) The general I'd send has only a 5 command rating.. so its not like hes all that important
e) They (hopefully this time) lose units while trying to get to him

 

[Azira]

Hannibal in a city seems foolish. He'd be unable to flee, and it could lose the game for you.

 

[KoolNoodles]

Not a bad outcome at all. Not sure what to do with Hannibro, but he is fairly weakened. I think consolidating forces with him + Mago will at least stave off an advance into northern Italy for the next turn. Recruit what you can there. I like the idea of getting a general from Carthage to southern Italy, basically as bait/thorn in their side. If they attack him then that's more time for Hannibal etc. to regroup. If they don't you can start doing some pillaging and so forth from their south. It seems like most of your major victories are going to come from Hannibal anyways, so any action that strengthens him(even a sacrifice) is a good one on the long run.

Edit: And I don't know how the AI works exactly, but if they've only ever lost against Hannbro, then maybe having a small force in Southern Italy would really focus their attention, because the AI would see that as the better option as opposed to facing Hannbro again. Essentially you want to stall for time, get Hasdrubul over from Spain, and then start going crazy all over Italy.

 

[DakaSha]

Hannibal in a city seems foolish. He'd be unable to flee, and it could lose the game for you.

I'd generally agree, but the Romans barely have a large enough force to attack him in a major city (and to gather all of their forces would require a treck through multiple provinces subjecting them to attrition and/or card use).
Still what you say is completely warranted and the reason behind the situation not being cookie cutter.

Having said that I've already played and have another update coming in a few mins

 

[DakaSha]

Turn 5 – 214 BC – Action 3
“Hasdrubal”

Hannibal decides to camp his men around Genua for the time being, hopefully keeping the city in Carthage’s hands.

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Our admiral stationed in the port of Carthage joins the fleet outside in the Iberian sea and awaits the storming of Emporion by Hasrubals forces.



The opening stages of the battle are a fiasco for both sides. Hadrubal managed to find a weak spot in the cities defenses and sent a section of his army to storm that location, resulting in the destruction of 2 unaware Roman units, however, the Spaniards in Hasdrubals army have shown themselves to be incredible cowards, and 4 whole Spanish units flee. This is incredibly unsettling as the storming of the city must now be completed in large part by inefficient Cavalry and elephants.

Round 1
Rome: 0, 4
Carthage: 3, 0



After the craziness of the opening, both sides become more cautious, with the one Roman cav fleeing, and a Spanish Cav on the Carthagian side being destroyed. The elephants have also been routed. Hasdrubals nerves are shot at this point.

Round 2
Rome: 1, 1
Carthage: 0, 1



The Carthagian army, however shows it’s true fighting spirit and rushes the defenses of Emporion killing the remaining units stationed there. Two Carthagian units flee but it does not matter at this point. Grachuss body is found among the rubble of the city a few days later.

Round 3
Rome: 0,2
Carthage: 3, 0
Carthage Victory



Despite being hungover, Hasdrubal has won an absolutely amazing victory over Grachuss, taking his well defended city with only a single loss! The Senate in Carthage sends a message, congratulating, and promoting him for his service. He now has a command rating of 8.

Card Drawn



The Roman fleet that was stationed in Emporium was seen to be leaving port as Carthage rushed in, and is now off shore in the Iberian sea

Spoiler

If I had known exactly how that worked, I would have moved my fleet after the battle, and attacked them now.. oh well.

Himilco stays behind while Hasdrubals army, finally, makes its way into Northern Italy.

Spoiler

I fucked up and placed Himilco into the less safe Emporion though.. *shrug* I doubt the Romans will even be able to attack Spain in the next round, KNOCK ON WOOD NIGGERS

Hasdrubal is now confronted with the hard decision making that his brother has be subjected to for the past 4 years. Four possibilities come to his mind:



Hasdrubals Army



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Yellow: Stay on the field in Cisalpine Gaul,

Probably my least favorite of the bunch. It does protect C Gaul from further invasion to an extent but does not accomplish anything. Also there is the chance that the Romans combine armies, and just attack Hasdrubal, putting us on the defensive. We could probably evade that battle, forcing a camp fight that the Romans would likely not pursue, but then they’d just be sitting with a stronger force in C Gaul forcing us into a deadlock. The up side would be that they leave our general in the south alone

Overall yellow sucks I think

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Red: Besiege Placentia,

This would trap Fabius (or whoever is elected into his position next year), and make the taking of Placentia easier in the future. It is a fairly safe, if sluggish, option though. The Romans could try to relieve the siege, which we would have to avoid, giving them another option card, which is pretty meh.

Overall probably also a gay choice

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Blue: Take Ariminum and camp in Umbria-Samnium,

This is a more active plan that I favor over both previous plans. It would allow us to do what we had considered a couple turns back: Lock down Umbria Samnium with the intention of forcing a fight. If the Romans move into the province with the Roman army, we will have the advantage both in numbers and General skill. If they don’t, we have locked down the 4 units there.

It isn’t perfect though. It doesn't gain us any recruits, nor does it do much unless the Romans are dumb enough to attack. It also requires the use of an extended march card and keep in mind this allows the Romans to also use one, if they please. Remember the beginning of the campaign phase niggers.

Overall this plan is ok I think, if not perfect. It is better than last time we suggested It because we now have multiple generals in Italy. We wouldn't be wasting as much.

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Green: Set up camp on the villa in Etruria,

Currently (very much subject to change) my fav option. Although we do kind of let the army in Placentia free reign, we are achieving three things here: Blocking the Roman army from entering Ertruria without a fight, keeping that roman villa destroyed, and perhaps more importantly, recruiting. Pisa will offer us one recruit at the end of the turn.

As always it has it’s downsides, if the Romans have an extended march card (not even sure if they have them at all), they could potentially march into Umbria-Samnium, gather forces, and attack Hasdrubal. I don’t think this is to horrible though because we could always attempt an evade (the province offers a ‘very good’ chance at evasion) and force a camp fight on them, and even if that fails, we would only be like 2 units down (barring roman card use recruitment) with the better general and the option to evade.

This plan also requires the use of the Extended march card, which again, is meh.

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*shrug*

Thoughts? Overall I think it is safe to say that we pulled ourselves out of the mess we were apparently in, and definitely back in the game.

Also we have elephants in Italy now

 

[DakaSha]

Just realized a problem with Blue,
Roman army in Rome can link with troops in Placentia and attack Genua. It's a major city, but twice as many units is probaly enough to finish it, and Hannibal, off. Can't have that. It would be Scipio leading the army and hes more likely to take the risk of storming

 

[oscar]

From my experience it's definitely nicer holding Etruria than Cisalpine Gaul. It grants a respectable amount of Allied Latin soldiers and can be navally reinforced. If/when Spain stabilises you can you just send someone over to recapture it anyway (you seem to end up with a massive number of allied Spanish units from holding Spain even though they're pretty weak stats wise).

Plan Green

 

[DakaSha]

From my experience it's definitely nicer holding Etruria than Cisalpine Gaul. It grants a respectable amount of Allied Latin soldiers and can be navally reinforced. If/when Spain stabilises you can you just send someone over to recapture it anyway (you seem to end up with a massive number of allied Spanish units from holding Spain even though they're pretty weak stats wise).

Plan Green

From my understanding the Spanish units aren't really weaker, they are just different. I think certain units work better with different general command ratings, due to the way the combat mechanics work. Keep in mind that Spanish infantry gets a flat 20% bonus to cause a hit, which the gallic troops dont.

Basically:

Spanish Inf: Most reliable
Gallic Inf: Least realiable but potential to cause a shitload of damage
Italian Inf: Best defense

And yeah I think green is the way to go

 

[Trash]

The AI has a tendency to go for Cisalpine Gaul. Heavily. I'm all for plan green to stop you getting into an endless back and forth there.

 

[Malakal]

I favor plan red that is besieging Placentia. Enemy will suffer losses due to siege or has to go into the offense. We dont need to rush right now since we have gained the upper hand. Locking down Roman army and general is also a big plus.

Genua has lost its strategic importance for now since we dont have anything we could send to Italy from Iberia any more. It may be captured no problem.

Leave Mago in Gaul to recruit, at least until he hits 4 units.

Ferry a general to Bruttium for extra recruitment.

 

[DakaSha]

Turn 5 – 214 BC – Action 4
“Leave it to Fate”

Hasdrubal decides to implement plan green and keep up the pressure, but not before stationing two Spanish units in Genua with Hannibal, who has become weary of a Roman sneak attack on his position.. He messages Mago to do all in his power to get his units down to Genua.



He does somehow manage to get them to Hannibal with a message: “Bro, now I’m alone and could be niggered”. “Two birds with one stone.”, Hannibal thinks.

Spoiler

After looking at the map again, Hannibal could potentially be attacked by 19 units… That would probably mean the end, and I decided to get him as many units as possible while leaving enough with Hasdrubal to be a threat in Etruria. I’m playing risky. But I think I’m going to have to take some risks if I want to get Rome.

Meanwhile in Carthage, Hanno is preparing to embark for Bruttium. A plan he is REALLY not happy about.. stationed in Italy on recruitment duty with no army around doesn't sound like fun. Not only that but he must traverse enemy waters if he is to get there!

Spoiler

Realized that he has to go through the Ionean which contains enemy fleets… This means hes subject to attrition, and seeing that he is alone he could die. However the chance of him getting caught is slim since he is alone, and the enemy only has 3 ships to our 5

In the end Hanno settles in Rhegium and begins enlisting fresh recruits.



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So.. this turn could end the game. Hannibal has the potential to be killed and Hasdrubal could be attacked by a massive army (although he could flee then)

The reason I didn't hold back and besiege Placentia is because they could relieve the siege which would mean we accomplish nothing and also fail to keep up the pressure.

If the AI doesn't kill Hannibal, and doesn't wipe the floor with Hasdrubal, then I would think we have achieved something in the past turn. Of course I could have just thrown it all away as well We’ll see.

Hannibal in a city seems foolish. He'd be unable to flee, and it could lose the game for you.

Let’s see how this goes ^^. If I lose this turn I will avoid all future threads you could possibly see me in

I’m honestly also just interest in seeing what the AI does.

 

[corvus]

What oscar said. Green accomplishes something and doesn't keep you sitting with your thumb up your butt for little (or no) gain.

GREEN

Too late! I really want to get this game, the AI is full of tricks and doesn't cheat out the ass. Crossing my fingers for Hannibal.

 

[DakaSha]

What oscar said. Green accomplishes something and doesn't keep you sitting with your thumb up your butt for little (or no) gain.

GREEN

Too late! I really want to get this game, the AI is full of tricks and doesn't cheat out the ass. Crossing my fingers for Hannibal.

It's risky, but I think we are doing the right thing. I doubt the AI is going to do an extended move into C Gaul. Keep your fingers crossed anyways ^^
edit: at least ive never seen them do it..

 

[Gondolin]

The AI has a tendency to go for Cisalpine Gaul. Heavily. I'm all for plan green to stop you getting into an endless back and forth there.

I disagree. If we're reasonably certain that the AI wants C. Gaul badly, then we know we can catch its armies there again and again. Our problem is storming heavily defended cities, not pitched battles in the field.

Also: That damned fleet escaped.

 

[DakaSha]

The AI has a tendency to go for Cisalpine Gaul. Heavily. I'm all for plan green to stop you getting into an endless back and forth there.

I disagree. If we're reasonably certain that the AI wants C. Gaul badly, then we know we can catch its armies there again and again. Our problem is storming heavily defended cities, not pitched battles in the field.

Also: That damned fleet escaped.

No they didnt really escape. If they want to move out of that province we can intercept them. (At least im pretty sure)

 

[DakaSha]

The AI has a tendency to go for Cisalpine Gaul. Heavily. I'm all for plan green to stop you getting into an endless back and forth there.

I disagree. If we're reasonably certain that the AI wants C. Gaul badly, then we know we can catch its armies there again and again. Our problem is storming heavily defended cities, not pitched battles in the field.

Also: That damned fleet escaped.

No they didnt really escape. If they want to move out of that province we can intercept them. (At least im pretty sure)

Nvm

 

[DakaSha]

Turn 5 – 214 BC – Romans
“214 Bc, Year of Rape”

Recruitment
Himilco in Spain: 1 Spanish Inf
Mago in Gaul: 1 Gallic Inf
Hasdrubal in Etruria: 1 Italian Inf
Hanno in Bruttium: 2 Italian Inf

Card Drawn





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The Roman campaign season began with a great storm in the bay of Tarentum, sending their fleet to port. This is fine by us as it will cost them a command just to get that fleet back in action



Hasdrubal praises the lord. The gamble seems to have paid off. Scipio being the impulsive dipshit that he is…



…decided to move into Etruria and face Hasdrubal in a balanced battle.



So be it. We promptly intercept. Fucking faggot.

The battle lines are drawn. The armies stare each other down and do some spear shaking for the look of it all. The order is given to advance and the armies march slowly towards one another, ready to take on the enemy.



Suddenly extremely loud trumpets, accompanied by fierce banging of war drums, erupts from the Roman army. It only confuses Hasdrubals troops but the elephants become mad with fear retreat off the battlefield!



Regardless. The men, hardened after this years battles, continue marching on and Hasdrubal, not one to be distracted by a few rampaging elephants, proves himself to be every bit the tactician that his brother is. Well, maybe. Although his army inflicts more overall carnage in the enemy ranks, the enemy is much better at defense and shrugs the losses off to some effect

Round 1
Rome: 1, 2
Carthage: 3, 2



Hasdrubal decides to relinquish command for a short while and ride off after the fleeing cowards so as to rally them back onto the field. He also reinforces his front line with the Spanish Inf he had in reserve

Spoiler

Rallying units lowers the commanders provided bonus for that round

The site of Hasdrubal riding off after the fleeing Spaniards had a detrimental effect on performance, but this was made up by our advantage in numbers. Still the Romans are a hard nut to crack and enemy losses are low despite a well performed attack. We lose 1 Spanish Inf and 1 African Inf. Although the battle is still perfectly even in terms of numbers, the enemy recognizes that he is outmatched by Hasdrubal and flees.

Round 2
Rome: 3, 1
Carthage: 4, 0
Romans flee the battlefield



Hasdrubal, aware of a possible retaliatory attack by the enemies stationed in neighboring provinces, decides to not pursue the enemy and risk his sole cavalry unit.



We have won today but it is an expensive victory. Although Hasdrubal was able to outsmart Scipio, the Roman troops themselves were better armored and able to largely negate the better tactics. However, word of Hasdrubals skill spreads and garners him prestige.

Card Drawn



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Meanwhile, the Roman navy that had managed to flee the destruction of Emporion, gets the fuck out of the Iberean sea and take refuge in the Iconean.

Spoiler

L

The roman admirals also, strangely, pull the 1 squadron docked in Rome into the Tyrhennian. They don’t stop there however, and send the fleet that had been sent back to port due to the storm, back to where they were.



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Minicius is sent from Rome, on a vacation to Tarentum, presumably for recruiting duty.

Fabius is assigned a command (Christ how many do they have) and proves himself to be infatuated with C Gaul. He storms Patavium and Mediolanum, taking both with no losses. He then regarrisons in Placentia. What a worthless prick.

And that ends the Roman campaign season.

Roman Recruiting
Ancona: 1 Latin Inf
Asculum: 1 Latin Inf
Rome: 3 Roman Inf
Tarentum: 1 Squadron & 1 Latin Cav

Roman Elections



Back in Genau, Hannibal receives word of the Roman elections, takes a look at the messenger, and bursts out laughing hysterically.

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So… I think 214 Bc was a good year. A very good year. Taking the risks worked out, although Hasdrubal did get quite beat up. Still, we recruited a lot and got a lot of shit done. We also got 2 fantastic treachery cards. Both of those effects are incredibly good and I see them being put to use very soon.


Enemy fleet is still a problem, though the vast majority of our recruitment is taking place in Europe anyways.

The Roman election are incredibly laughable. They must be on crack. Barring some stupid shit happening, next year should see us continueing the success. Especially if the AI performs as piss poorly as this last year we keep making brilliant tactical decisions.

edit: We have a potential 28 units next to Rome...

 

[Erebus]

The treachery cards look awesome. How about using one to retake Placentia and crush the army stationed there ?

I'd suggest reinforcing Italy. Spain is a bit vulnerable, but the Romans don't seem able to threaten it right now.

 

[DakaSha]

The treachery cards look awesome. How about using one to retake Placentia and crush the army stationed there ?

I'd suggest reinforcing Italy. Spain is a bit vulnerable, but the Romans don't seem able to threaten it right now.

Can't use it when a general is stationed there. My tentative plan is to move units from hannibals army to hasdrubal, move hnnibal into Umria Samnium, use a treachery card on Asculum and take it, then make camp, locking the province down finally. Then using a treachery card to give hasdrubal 4 units, and laying siege to rome

 

[SCO]

Hasdrubal needs to move. Possibly to combine with Hannibal possibly not. What happened to Mago units?

If you siege Asculum while Fabius is still in Placentia, he'll probably try to sandwich you.

 

[DakaSha]

Hasdrubal needs to move. Possibly to combine with Hannibal possibly not. What happened to Mago units?

Read Lp or gtfo fag

 

[DakaSha]

If you siege Asculum while Fabius is still in Placentia, he'll probably try to sandwich you.

I never said I was going to besiege Asculum

 

[SCO]

Oh a update between, ok. Strange the Lucius sits on his ass.

 

[DakaSha]

Oh a update between, ok. Strange the Lucius sits on his ass.

It is kind of, but honestly what could he have done? If he moves into a province, the units with him can not be moved again by another commander. And staying in the province allows them to recruit there

 

[Erebus]

Can't use it when a general is stationed there.

Right, I guess it would be a bit too powerful otherwise.

If you siege Asculum while Fabius is still in Placentia, he'll probably try to sandwich you.

Judging from the elections, it's no longer Fabius who's in charge of the army in Placentia.