guide to things your mother never told you

[Treefrog]

This is a beer and pretzels offering with a killer AI. The "theater" restrictions, "command/initiative" restrictions and card play may be new to many players. I suspect that some newbies are resisting the game mechanics rather than sitting back and enjoying them for what they are.

After my initial draw, I goofed around with 3 or 4 "false starts", meaning starting a game and playing until I made a mistake (typically from not understanding a rule) with far reaching consequences. As I own the game, the computer and my time, I restarted to avoid any frustration and gain maximum enjoyment. My second game was at Introductory level and ended on turn 12.*

Assuming a noob is willing to take a half hour to "play" with the mechanics, I have the following offerings to explore the things your mother never told you (TYMNTY), i.e., concepts and circumstances that may help you bend the game system to your will.

1. Save frequently and replay.

Whenever you are about to do something that may produce an untended outcome because you are not sure you know the rules (i.e. nobody knows what attrition or combat will be until you do a few), save the game before you start. Then do it. If you plans is thwarted because mechanics don't allow it, simply replay that element. This is called learning from your mistakes, not cheating. Remember, this is solitaire and you are playing against yourself. When you have mastered the mechanics of the game and are playing on "hard", that is the time to cowboy up and take your reverses per Rudyard Kipling's If.

2. Theaters.

"Theaters" is an admittedly tough and novel concept. Wargamers typically move almost every unit every turn everywhere they can. No so in Hannibal. You can only move units out of theater with Senate approval and then to only one other theater. Unless you are planning ahead a few turns this is frustrating. For example, you send all the Spanish to Italy, figuring that next turn you'll send a new commander to Spain to start recruiting again. But next turn comes and you want to reinforce Italy again (attack with your fleet or invade from Carthage or something) and you realize that the Senate is single minded, you can only do one of those.

Speaking of theaters, your fleets (move 2) may not enter and exit a theater in the same turn. It may have been in the rules, but I missed it, and characterize it as something mother never told me.

3. Dispersing/concentrating.

This is an art all by itself. I experienced early frustration with trying to bring reinforcements into and area AND getting Hannibal to assimiliate them. That can't be done by Hannibal (because the troops that move in have already moved and you'll get the annoyong "illegal move" pop up). The trick is to move the troops into Hannibal's area and have the commander with initiative (moving commander) "concentrate" Hannibal and your other forces in the area into the inititiative (moving) commander's force (seems goofy, but true). Then they can all move together.

If you attack in that area Hannibal will still probably command (an extrapolation based on my experience with seiges, again, something your mother never told you; test it and report back to all of us).

The intiative commander can then move everyone to an adjacent area, risking attrition unless and extended move card is played.

4. Seiges, sally/relieving forces.

Beseiging cavalry can pursue troops that sally back to the city gates. TYMNTY.
When a force tries to break a seige, it is commanded by the best commander, not the one with initiative. TYMNTY.
When facing a sally attack, beseiging elephants and cavalry are at full strength. TYMNTY.
When a port is captured, any fleets inside automatically enter the adjacent sea zone. TYMNTY.

Only a commander with initiative may commence a seige and a commander loses initiative if he initiates that seige (which is in the rules) so you may not do the obvious which is to "disperse" a commander with a few troops from the moving force to beseige a city. The method to accomplish this is to plan ahead: give initiative to a seige commander and dispatch him from the main force to initiate the seige, then do you other moves.

When moving into an adjacent area, the method is to have the main force move first and clear/attack the cities that typically block the passes and any "intercept" forces, clear/attack any cities you wish in the new area and then cease movement. He remains in the area as a covering force to "intercept" enemies that enter to raise seiges. Then have the seize force/forces move into the area under their own commander's initiative and lay the seige.

5. Casualties.

Taking casualties is also an art form for Carthanigians because of the variety of troops.
When attacking cities in a fairly even battle, consider sending in a few elephants and cavalry; they don't cause many hits but are good for taking routs. TYMNTY.

In pitched battles 8 Roman/Allied legions will typically cause 4 or 5 hits or routs. Plan for this when you select your troops. To address this while keeping maximum punch, my fantasy first/front lineup is:
Companion cavalry: gets a bonus on two die rolls. Best unit in the game; always the last unit to take a hit.
Elephants: gets a bonus on two die rolls, but subject to the 3 Roman rout cards (track the play of these cards). I typically include 1 or maybe 2.
Gauls: get two die rolls, so I include 2 or 3. I avoid them routing unless Hannibal has played the "inspired troops" card.
African/Italian infantry: one die roll but takes two hits; I always have one and usually two to absorb the not unusual result of "take 4 hits.
Spanish infantry: one die roll with bonus. I usually have 1 or 2. They give offensive punch and are cost effective in taking either routs or hits.
2-2 Cavalry: Use these when your Africans/Italians are gone.
2-1 Cavalry: I include 1 in the front line if I'd rather use them for the "take 1" or "take 3" results instead of the Spanish or Gauls (note, on the "take 3" hits, 2 of those hits are absorbed by an African/Italian).

You may favor losing infantry if you intend a cavalry pursuit (where infantry are not used).
You may favor losing cavalry if you foresee an immediate attack on a city (where cav are halved).

So my generic pitched battle fantasy line up is:
1 Companion Cav
1 elephant
2 Gauls
2 Africans/Italians
1 or 2 Spaniards
1 2-1 cavalry (unless 2 Spaniards).

6. Recruiting.

Recruits dry up, especially Gauls.
Your fleets are limited and you have fewer available than the Romans.
Unless you interfere or recruits dry up, Rome will always be able to recruit 4 new units in Rome everyturn (how many do you recruit on the whole map?).

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* The After Action Report part of this posting follows to illustrate what was discussed above.

I used a "custom" start, meaning leaving a commander in Spain, Hannibal took all the troops in Spain and moved to Cispaline Gaul (losing a few to attrition, capturing a total of 3 cities, playing the Gallic Aid card and remaining as a cover/intercept force), dropping a commander in Gaul to recruit. Hannibal recruited in Spain, Gaul and CaGaul until the recruits dried up; the Gaul troops (2 or 3) move to CaGaul the turn before the Spanish arrive. Hannibal is now about 20 factors. I chose "Reinforce Italy" and accomplished the great consolidation. The Spanish troops moved into Genoa (sometimes they have to attack if there are any defenders after the Treachery card). Hannibal is now about 30 factors.

In this particular game, Hannibal beseiged Placentia that contained Scipio (rating 9) and 12 units plus the 4 garrison. A relief force of 10 or so came up and attacked. Hannibal prevailed and continued the seige until Placentia surrendered, killing Scipio in the process.

Hannibal then used an extended move card, blitzed through eastern Italy ignoring the Roman cities, and moved into the area south of Rome, playing a Treachery card to seize Capua (to sop up the remaining recruits before Rome could) and laying seige to Rome. The next turn Hannibal split his forces three ways: the main under Hannibal continued the seige, a covering/interceptor force led by Hastrubal and a small force to beseige the port. Carthage invaded and laid seige to Pisa, sending all but one infantry south the next turn to reinforce Hastrubal. The Rome garrison sallied but was repulsed, losing the 2 Urban cohorts.

On the last turn before Rome would surrender, Hannibal attacked the surviving 9 legions with the combined Carthaginian forces totally 36 elephants, cavalry and infantry. The Romans placed a distant second.

[nalivayko]

Nice guide, especially the section about units.

Question: when you consider your fantasy army line-up, do you take into account city assault needs?

For example, I always find myself saving Gauls and Spaniards (and more Spaniards than Gauls, since for some reason I consider the bonus more important than an additional die roll) just to have that additional punch. I often sacrifice Italian infantry on lonely hit, even if Spaniards and Gauls are available. Of course, if I have too much cavalry, then I sacrifice it instead, usually Numidians go first (go figure, in RL they were the most useful unit to Hannibal), since they are prone to treachery, then Gauls and then Spanish cavalry.

[Treefrog]

Nalivayko,

It is a pitched battle fantasy lineup.

Your suggestions for city battles are good ones.

All infantry is unique and each is the most valuable in a specific circumstance. Nonetheless, I tend to lose Spanish infantry or any 2-1 cavalry as the 3rd hit in a 3 hit loss event; if 4 hits, I'll lose two Afrian or Italian 1-2 infantry.

City battles are idiosyncratic; they depend very much on (1) minor, major or capital, (2) how many and type of defending troops beyond the garrison, (3) how badly I want the city immediately and what my immediate plans are after the city falls. I tend to attack only minor cities with a garrison of 2; they are typically overrun immediately with a 2/3 chance of causing a hit on the attackers (my experience). The non-minor cities I reduce by seige (I can wait; beseiged cities do not deplete the recruit pool.)

For city battles one obviously commits all infantry except perhaps one or two elephants/cavalry to absorb routs (not hits).

I am not a big fan of saving cavalry. I recently had 16 "factors" pursue 8 Roman/Latin "factors" and and got a result of 2 hits to each side. Although this is anecdotal and I don't have much experience with the game or pursuits, it is disappointing and hardly an endorsement for saving cavalry. Saving them for what?

Now that I am playing at Normal level there are possible camp battles in which elephants and cavalry are worthless; all the more reason to lose the cavalry in battle and save the infantry.

[nalivayko]

Hmm, I have to backtrack on my words a bit. Seems like you had some bad luck with pursuits. I've had a lot of battles where having an edge in cavalry ensured annihilation of enemy armies. And Cavalry Maneuvre is one of the most potent Hannibal's tricks... you obviously need a lot of cavalry for it.

Then, of course, there is a matter of slowly disappering Spaniards and Gauls and Italian infantry is not helpful at delivering a powerful punch. So, as long as we do not view cavalry as panacea for all our problems, it still remains an useful arm. This is especially true for armies raised in Africa (imagine fighting battles with African infantry alone) and Hannibal's army in Italy toward the endgame (where Italian infantry becomes a standard unit).