Author Topic: The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)  (Read 30003 times)

SubRosa

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« on: March 28, 2009, 09:41:28 PM »
I decided to take a break from mod work, and once more actually play what I have been working on. Since the largest changes to Amazon:Total War have been to the Valkyrja (formerly New Amazonia), I decided to do an AAR with them. To find out more about ATW look here, and here. This will be a little different from my past AARs, as I will be posting it on multiple forums. I never did that before. I hope it will work out.

So here we go. This will be a Valkyrja AAR, using Amazon: Total War version 2.4.


Difficulty: Very Hard/Very Hard
Scale: Huge
Battle Time Limit: On
Morale: On
Limited Ammo: On
Player Manages All Settlements: On


Here are my starting territories. As you can see, I am deep in the forests of what will one day be known as Russia, with lots of dark areas surrounding my three settlements.


There is one Rebel settlement in view from the start of the campaign. Androphagia. I send my slovenly spy in to investigate, and find it has a small, but potentially dangerous garrison. Naked Fanatics (which in ATW are nothing to sneeze at) and Archers.


I raise taxes in all my settlements, recruit Peasants, and build Roads. Then start sending my troops out to the borders building watchtowers along the way and seeking out neighboring settlements. I start with Antimache in the north, who marches east from Neo Themiskyra.


Polemusa marches west from Careotae.


Finally Makanyane heads south and lays siege to Androphagia.


Next turn Polemusa sights the Rebel settlement of Vicus Aesti.


To the south, Makanyane has built her siege equipment, and assaults Androphagia. I make it a night attack to reduce the range of the Rebel Archers.


My Agema Archers have the range advantage against the Rebel Archers.


We give them an Amazon welcome.


Once the defenders were slaughtered, I sent the infantry forward to batter a way through the walls.


Then I sent my women and men in through multiple entry points.


Advancing upon the town square, I have my Agema Archers open up on the Naked Fanatics there. I array my Spearwomen directly in front of them in a shield wall, with a Warband directly behind them to lend the weight of their numbers. A unit of Militia Axewomen waits on one flank, with Makanyane on the other.


The Fanatics are lured from the square and charge my spearwomen.


Then Makanyane and the Axewomen close the trap behind them.


Their Captain is cut down by a lowly spearman.


The Rebel Warband was finished off in similar fashion, and the city was mine. Losses were high though. Those Naked Fanatics took a real toll, even upon my Spearwomen in their shield wall. In retrospect I should have placed the Warband in front of the Spearwomen to soak up the brunt of the Fanatic's charge. They are much more expendable.


As it is a tiny settlement, I Occupy.

Jubal

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2009, 11:17:16 PM »
Poor androphagians...

*runs and hides from vengeful women warriors*
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SubRosa

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #2 on: March 29, 2009, 02:35:59 AM »
According the Herodotus the Androphagi were cannibals, so do not feel too sorry for them. (Androphagi meaning "man-eater").

Okay, back to the Valkyrja.

My Diplomat has found the Scythians and obtained the usual from them - trade rights and map info.


Back in the capital, the first purely military unit I recruit in the campaign is Horse Archers.


The reason why is the small force of Rebel Amazon Chariots that have appeared east of Neo Themiskyra.


It is your basic shootout.


This one unit eventually led me to create this entire mod. I suppose that is why even though they are incredibly out of place in this territory, I have resisted the temptation to remove them from the game.


Eventually I ran out of arrows. Losses are heavy on both sides. I am not about to go into melee with those Chariots, so instead I withdraw.


It goes down in the books as a defeat. This is a lesson in horse archer tactics for those unfamiliar with them. Do not hesitate to withdraw your army of HAs after you run out of ammo. Typically you are heavily outnumbered. The idea is to whittle the enemy down then retreat when you are out of ammo. Then next turn you go back and attack again with full quivers. Rinse and repeat and you can destroy an army that vastly outnumbers your own while taking very few casualties. The art of war is skill and cunning, not brute force.


In the east, Antimache finds the Rebel settlement of Gelonos. According to Herodotus it was founded by Greek colonists who came north from Maeotis. They sure walked a long way before putting down stakes.


In the west, Polemusa has laid siege to Vicus Aesti.


My slovenly spy has moved on to Vicus Neuri. Not much of a garrison, but that Mercenary Spearwarband could be trouble in the narrow streets.


Next turn, and round two against those Rebel Amazons Chariots.


It is a nice day for an archery duel.


They chased me across half the map before I realized that all of their archers were dead, and instead they had their full complement of chariots and drivers. I have seen this happen with Elephants and Chariots before in RTW.


I use up all of my arrows and kill only 1 Rebel. I have too few women with me to get through their extra hit points, and there are too many Chariots, causing my women to spread their fire out amongst them.


So I withdraw again.


Antimache assaults Gelonos.


I found a unit of Barbarian Cavalry waiting outside of the city and immediately charged them with Antimache and her bodyguard. They retreated to the town square, and I pursued.


Antimache got into range of them and stopped, throwing javelins.


That got their goat. The Barb Cavalry turned and attacked. Rather than duke it out with them, I pulled Antimache back to where my infantry waited.


Then I hit them with everything I had, and the Barbarian Cavalry evaporated.


Afterward I moved back to the square and tried the same trick against the Rebel Warband there.


They refused to leave their square however.


So I brought up my infantry, and let my Skirmishers pelt them with javelins this time.


They came out this time, but routed too close to the square, allowing many of them to escape and reform.


I pick off as many of the Warband as I can before I pull my troops back out of the square.  I really do not want to get into a slugging match there, where the enemy will not rout.


Okay, back to the drawing board again. This time I use the Skirmishers to pelt the Rebel Militia Hoplites, while my Amazon Warband sets up across from the Rebel Warband. in the meantime Antimache begins to circle around to the other side of the square.


I use the drag function to make sure my Warband marches into the square, but does not go into the Militia Hoplites. Still, the Militia Hoplites turn and advance on them from the flank.


This in turn exposes them to a flank attack from my Skirmishers, causing them to drop their spears and draw their swords.


Bam! Then Antimache and her bodyguard charged into the lot from behind.


Victory would be mine. But that slugging match in the square cost me a lot of men, and a few good women too.


As it is small, I Occupy Gelonos.


To the south, a lone Horse Archer runs down some Rebel Peasants.


It is not really very noteworthy.


However, it did give me a Commander of the Hour, which is why I mentioned it. I am so taking her.


Next turn, and round 3 against those Rebel Amazon Chariots. This time I have taken the time to retrain my Horse Archers in Neo Themiskyra before engaging however.


It was like shooting fish in a barrel.


Here is a look at the situation overall. To the south the Scythians are now on the move, having laid siege to Vicus Neuri while I was busy hunting Rebels.


To the east the Sarmatians are on the move as well, advancing into the territory of the Roxolani.
« Last Edit: March 29, 2009, 04:29:09 PM by SubRosa »

SubRosa

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #3 on: March 29, 2009, 07:16:16 AM »
One last update before I turn into a pumpkin.


In the west, Polemusa assaults Vicus Aesti.


It is a nice winter day for a battle. The cold will preserve the meat of the corpses for Freja's ravens.


After the first breach was made a unit of Barbarian Infantry came to the walls, received a dose of Amazon javelins, and promptly decided that they had other places to be.


With the second breach open I waited no longer and entered the town.

 
I saw the Barbarian Cavalry waiting outside the square and immediately charged them with Polemusa.



Those Barbarians were tough, and really chewed up her bodyguard before they finally broke.


Then my infantry had come up, and once again a Rebel Captain was laid low by a mere spearman.


I am not sure what these guys are cheering about, they are about to become pincushions.


The javelins pulled them out of the square, where they were promptly routed.


The second Warband followed suit. Most people would probably end the battle here when the game offers you the chance. I never do during sieges. I always fight to the bitter end, even though it means taking more casualties when the routed enemy units get back to the square and reform. It just does not seem right to take the easy way out.


So I take the hard way, and suffer my worse casualties in a battle yet. Obviously Polemusa is not one of my most stellar Generals.


She Occupies Vicus Aesti.


Nearby, the Scythian siege of Vicus Neuri has been broken by the Rebels. *cackles gleefully*


This gives Makanyane a chance to take a crack at the Neuri.


Back west, Polemusa was out building a watchtower when she spotted another Rebel settlement.


Doh! The Scythians have gotten to Vicus Neuri ahead of Makanyane!


Looking south, even though the banners still say they are rebel owned, right clicking on the map shows that the Bosporus now belongs to the Scythians, and the Kuban to the Sarmatians. Given the amount of devastation around each city, it looks like they were long and bitter sieges too.


Speaking of bitter sieges, the Scythians have been beaten back from Vicus Neuri a second time. Truly Freja is with us, for she has given us this opportunity to smite the Rebels.


A new woman has come of age and taken her place amongst the leaders of the Valkyrja. I can use her, and the few other Generals who have adopted in recently, as I have a lot of watchtowers that need building. Not to mention for the powerful heavy cavalry units they provide. I have been avoiding recruiting troops to keep my treasury in enough money to continue building economic buildings in every city. I start with roads, then go with mines (when available) farms, ports (where available), and finally traders. I have yet to construct a single military building. I always go for the money in the early game.


« Last Edit: March 29, 2009, 04:24:25 PM by SubRosa »

Jubal

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #4 on: March 29, 2009, 08:59:24 AM »
Just goes to show how much I know...
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SubRosa

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #5 on: March 30, 2009, 01:48:31 AM »
I only know because when I was working on creating new territories for the plains, Herodotus was the only source I could find for anything there before the Roman Era.

Now back to the Valkyrja Channel.

My Diplomat meets the Dacians and makes the usual agreements.


As with the Thracians.


Terrible news. My Faction Leader Antimache has died (I need to think of what the Valkyrja would call their leaders, obviously Queen and Princess is right out, Strategos does not feel right either.)


Now Makanyane leads the Valkyrja.


Antimache could not pick a worse time to meet Kybele on her mountain. She leaves young Alkippe to lead the Eastern Army against a large army of Rebels, while an ominous-looking Sarmatian army has come north into our lands.


I missed the odds screen of Makanyane's assault upon Vicus Neuri, but did get the enemy troop composition. The Rebels are all seasoned veterans after defeating the Scythians twice.


I attack the city from two walls.


My Agema Archers soften up the defenders as my women bring up their ram.


The men have no opposition at the other wall, and enter freely.


Makanyane charged in once her wall was breached, and cut down the Neuri leader.


Then it was on the the town square, where the Agema Archers took over.


Makanyane's Bodyguard lent a few javelins to help.


I let the missile troops finish off the Rebels without entering the square. My preferred tactic. I hate those prolonged slug-fests in the square, where the enemy cannot rout. Note the difference in my losses compared to the bloodfests Polemusa has had in the west.


As it is small, I Occupy. As is probably obvious now, I always do so when a settlement is 1st tier or just over it.


They have a shrine to Bendis! Excellent, this will give my missile troops a bonus to their weapons.


In the East, Alkippe has caught up with that big Rebel army near the banks of the Volga.


There sure are a lot of them, including more Fanatics.


These guys are nothing to sneeze at in the early game.


The Rebel General gets the scent of Alkippe, and goes straight after her. She flees, and leads him to where she has her infantry hidden in the woods.


Then she turns and drops the hammer on him.


He fled. Alkippe let him go, having bigger fish to fry. Instead she let her Mercenary Virgin Horse Archers intercept him across the battlefield and run him to the ground. The caused a unit of nearby Peasants to rout just from proximity. Got to love when that happens.


Then it all fell apart. Two units of Barbarian Infantry got into the woods where my infantry was. My Warband evaporated in moments, and the Skirmishers chain routed a second later.


Worse, my Virgin Horse Archers were caught by a unit of Naked Fanatics while riding down the aforementioned Peasants. That was the end of them.


Okay, I still have a Horse Archer and my General. I did not realize it at the time of this pic, but the remnants of my Warband had reformed and were hiding in the woods somewhere. Things are not that bad though. I have the mobility, and I use it to pick apart the Rebel infantry one unit at a time. The trick is to let them chase the General and become exhausted, while shooting them in the back with the Horse Archer. Then charge them and finish them off. Often they will rout before you even make contact.


I stop and rest my women while more of the Rebels come charging up. It is important to give your cavalry breaks to rest during large battles. The more tired a unit is, the closer to routing they are.


I isolate another Naked Fanatic.


They rout without me going into melee.


I have to be careful while I run them down, lest my women blunder into these Barbarian Infantry. Thankfully the Barbarians routed themselves a moment later. Panic is infectious.


Then it was down to this last Barb Infantry unit. It did not last long.


Heroic Victory.


Young General Okypous intercepts some Rebels near the capital. I only mention it because the Rebels are two Generals, and I use some basic Horse Archer tactics to deal with them.


One of the Rebel Generals locks on to Okypous. She flees, leading them past her reinforcing Horse Archers.


Now Okypus will ride in a circle around her missile troops, who pelt the Rebel General with arrows as he rides by them. I call this the Scythian Circle. This trick will work with foot archers and slingers as well.


When the Rebels are whittled down, Okypous turns and slaughters him.


Then it was time for round two. But the second Rebel General was not so obliging. He catches one of my Horse Archers in melee and thrashes them before they can run far enough away to escape.


But then he was trapped. I call this the Triangle of Death. Basically you surround a unit (or units) with Horse Archers. That way you always have a back shot at them, and no matter which way they go, there is no escape.


He locks on to Okypous, and she takes him into another Scythian Circle.


Finally he routs.


Victory.


Another battle with Rebels. This time a lone Horse Archer takes on a Warband and a Peasant.


I concentrate all my fire on the Warband. I do not want to waste arrows against Peasants if I can help it. There are no fancy tactics needed here, just ride away and shoot them as they pursue.


I was able to finish off the Warband with arrows, but then I was out of ammo with plenty of Peasants left.


I ride in close, daring them to come after me. I want them to chase me to get them to Exhausted. But they will not budge.


I hate to leave the field to Peasants. My Horse Archers have axes, which gives them a so-so melee attack. Sometimes you have to roll the hard six. I throw the dice and charge.


The Peasants rout!


Another Heroic Victory.


After the losses she took assaulting Vicus Aesti, Polemusa wisely decided not to take Vicus Gepidae by storm. Instead she settled into a long blockade to starve them out. On their last turn the Gepids sallied.


I move my infantry behind the rams, so they would break up the enemy line, while my cavalry moved to get around behind the oncoming Gepids.


Their first unit is quickly routed.


They head back to the city, and Polemusa see the gates open before her.


She rushes into the defenseless city. I could have had her ride around to all of the gates and this point, and then take the square unapposed to win the city. But I hate to do that when I know I can beat the enemy.


So she came back out to finish off the Rebels.


Down they went.


Victory.


Again, I Occupy.


Uh oh. Over the computer's turn the Sarmatians attacked. One force laid siege to Gelonos, while two others bypassed it and are now marching upon Neo Themiskyra.


Yet another Sarmatian army marches upon Melanchlaeni, and the Scythians hover like flies around my southern settlements.


Now the real fun begins! Young Alkippe hires mercenaries to replenish her Eastern Army and marches to the relief of Gelonos. See how it turns out next post.



« Last Edit: March 30, 2009, 06:03:56 AM by SubRosa »

SubRosa

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The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkyrja AAR (ATW)
« Reply #6 on: March 30, 2009, 05:51:33 AM »
One more post tonight.

Alkippe leaves her infantrymen behind and rides to the rescue of Gelonos.


The Sarmatians have Virgin Cavalry. These women are very dangerous in the early game, thanks to that armour-piercing attack.


These guys are dangerous at every phase of the game. They are the top of the Sarmatian heap. Their charge bonus is the highest of any unit in the game.


The Sarmatians have one weakness however. They only brought one horse archer. I concentrate all of my own horse archers against it.


In the process their Virgin Cavalry were drawn out after one of my Mercenary Virgin Horse Archers. I trapped them with my Sarmatian Mercenaries and General Alkippe herself.


That was the end of them.


At the other end of the battlefield the two Peasants from Gelonos arrived on the field in time to meet a depleted unit of Sarmatian Nobles. 480 Peasants vs. 32 Sarmatian Nobles. Who do you think will win?


The Sarmatians lost only one man in the process of crushing them both.


However, while they were running down my Peasants, I saw a weakness in the Sarmatian line. They had a unit of foot archers with no spearmen in front of them. I charged in with Alkippe and her Sarmatian Mercenaries.


The Sarmatian Virgin Archers simply disintegrated under the attack.


Then Sarmatian cavalry started to come in from both sides, and I pulled Alkippe and her mercenaries out of there.


These Sarmatian Nobles followed a little too far, and she turned and destroyed them.


That was enough for the rest of the Sarmatians, and they headed for the exit. I fell upon as many as I could before they could escape.


Heroic Victory.


Also my first famous battle marker of the campaign.


Back at the capital, another Rebel Amazon Chariot has appeared.


They are a pretty strong unit.


Just to see how it would work out, I charged the Peasants in to swamp the Chariots.


Victory, but with heavy losses from the Peasants. Plenty more where they came from though...


Okypous received a Graea as a retinue member after that battle. That should not have happened, only the Gorgons should be able to get them. One more thing for the fix list.


Back east, a Sarmatian force has crossed the Don to attack the lagging infantrymen of the Eastern Army.


My men do not stand a chance against those Virgins. I run for it.


Here is some good news, another General. Too bad she turns up in way out in Vicus Gepidae.


Those Eastern Army infantrymen retreat back to the safety of the walls of Gelonos, while Alkippe took the women and rode north west in pursuit of the Sarmatians converging upon the capital.


The Sarmatians have besieged Melanchlaeni as well. Makanyane is heading to their relief, and is forced to leave her infantrywomen behind to get there in time. At the end of her move she begins hiring mercenaries.


Then she send the mercenaries east to Melanchlaeni to reinforce the city, along with a lone Amazon Horse Archer that had been doing rebel-hunting duty.


In the middle of all this the Britons want to trade. Sure, why not?


When it rains, it really pours. Now the Scythians have attacked my mercenaries outside of Melanchlaeni.


At least I have the high ground.


Once again the AI made the fatal mistake of leaving its archers unprotected.


I think one of these archers was the first woman to reach the moon...


The rest of the battle did not go any better for the Scythians.


Unfortunately some managed to escape.


Heroic Victory.


Next turn Makanyane reaches Melanchlaeni and hires more mercenaries. This is really killing my treasury. I have had to suspend all of my building projects to hire and maintain all of these hired bows.


Makanyane does not wait for the rest of her army to come up. She immediately attacks. Her bodyguard is now the size of a regular cavalry unit.


She sees a good piece of high ground in this hill on the Scythian flank and swings her army up around them and onto it.


The Sarmatians come around the left, but are met by infantry and Sarmatian Mercenaries.


While on the right, Makanyane is simply rolling over the Sarmatians.


The Sarmatians have had enough, they head for the exit.


Victory, but many escaped.


Melanchlaeni is now safe.


But the Sarmatians have also besieged the capital of Neo Themiskyra.


Alkippe has caught up with them however, and she attacks one of the besieging armies. She does so at night, preventing the second Sarmatian army from entering the battle.


This rock has a good view of the battlefield.


This unit of Steppe Lancers came too far forward, and was pounced on by Alkippe and her Sarmatian Mercs. You can see Okypous and the garrison of Neo Themiskyra are now engaging the right flank of Sarmatians in the background.


Alkippe and her heavies chased the fleeing Sarmatians directly into the rest of their line, and sent them all packing.


Not to be outdone, Okypous took on a pair of Steppe Lancers and defeated them handily.


The rest of the Sarmatians were on the run.


Then their army just disintegrated.


Sadly, a few got away. It is usually impossible to catch all of the routers in these steppe battles.


Victory.


Same turn, the second Sarmatian army outside of Neo Themiskyra is attacked.


Alkippe grew tired of waiting for the garrison of Neo Themiskyra to get on the field, and attacked the Sarmatian center on her own.


Still taking their time....


Alkippe crushed the Sarmatians.


By the time the garrison arrived, the Sarmatians were in full retreat.


Victory, and the capital was safe from invaders.


Here is the situation. In the east the Sarmatians do not have a lot in sight, but I am not sure what might be lurking in that dark area where Campus Roxolani is.


To the south, powerful Scythian armies lurk along my frontier near Androphagia. Not good.



« Last Edit: March 30, 2009, 05:59:39 AM by SubRosa »

SubRosa

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« Reply #7 on: March 31, 2009, 01:44:19 AM »
I spent about an hour and half playing this afternoon and when I went to start my writeup discovered to my horror that I had forgotten to turn on FRAPs before hand. (I will have to put in my startup folder for the duration of the AAR so it does not happen again). So no pictures for those battles. No great loss, it was basically rebel-hunting, and cleaning up some small bands of Scythians and Sarmatians on the borders. Alkippe did advance upon Campus Roxolonai in the east, but saw a huge Sarmatian army coming up to its defense, and she was obliged to retreat north.

That is where things pick up. That huge army has caught up with Alkippe at the westward bend of the Don river. Alkippe does not want to fight such a huge force at a river. She does not have the infantry to hold the crossing, and will have only half the map to maneuver upon when the Sarmatians did come across. So instead she withdraws.


The Sarmatians pursue and bring her to battle in the open. Just as I had hoped (well, actually I was hoping they would not reach her until next turn, when she would have reinforcements from the capital joining her).


The battlefield is dominated by this big rock. Maybe I can put that to use...


I move all of my cavalry over to my left and charge in at the Sarmatians. This is something I learned in my Defensive Scythia AAR. When you are outnumbered concentrate all of your force upon one flank of the enemy and attack. The other flank of the enemy will not be able to attack you, and has thusly been taken out of the battle. At least temporarily. If you have an all cavalry army as I do currently, you can even gain a local superiourity at the point of attack.


With Alkippe in the lead, my Amazons and mercenaries smash the Sarmatian right.


I have to keep moving, as the rest of their army is trying to swing around and get at me. Chasing the remnants of the Sarmatian right gives me a good opportunity to kill more nomads while staying out of the grasp of their comrades.


I have gotten clear of most of their army and run the routers as far as I can go. I leave two horse archers behind to mop up a routed Sarmatian Virgin Horse Archer. In retrospect this was a mistake, as they would be trapped themselves and routed.


I keep moving my main force around that big rock, keeping it between me and the main Sarmatian army. One of their Sarmatian Mercs followed, and I treat them to a dose of arrows from all of my horse archers as they vainly pursued Alkippe. They would be destroyed when she turned to face them soon later.


The rest of their army came around the rock, and after a bit of skirmishing I was forced to withdraw across the map. By now I do not have much left. Alkippe is down to only herself and one of her bodyguards. I will have to be careful not to get her killed.


Then the Sarmatian General was cut down by my arrows. Just the turn of luck I had been hoping for!


I decided to relocate again and run across the map as their infantry come up. This is a good tactic, as once you get to the far side of the map you can stop and rest your cavalry, and the enemy infantry will be exhausted by the time they catch up with you.


They pursued, with their last cavalry unit coming far out ahead of the others. I stopped my flight and came back, concentrating all of my arrows against them.


The Sarmatian Mercenaries rout, and I run them down like dogs!


All of their cavalry are dead now. I cannot believe I have done as well as I have, given the circumstances. The trouble is that I am almost out of ammo, have no heavy cavalry left, and they have two Mercenary Amazon Archers and a Virgin Archer in that infantry. I cannot win a missile duel, and cannot finish them in melee.


So I let them chase me around the map. In the process one of their Steppe Spearman units come out too far from the rest.


They are surrounded and annihilated.


That was enough for me. I let them chase me until the clock ran out (this is why I always play with a time limit). Somehow I pulled a victory out of it.


In the middle of all of this a Gallic ambassador turned up and concluded a deal for trade between our far-removed peoples.


Here is what I was afraid would happen. The Scythians have begun the assault upon Vicus Neuri before Makanyane could reach the city.


With only two Warbands and a Peasant, there was no point trying to defend the walls, so I let them in unopposed.


Instead I waited for the Scythians in the town square, where my men would not rout. I actually beat off their first wave.


But the second wave was of Head-Hunting Maidens. Eeep!


Then the third wave came.


My valiant captain was laid low.


The rest of her troops soon followed her to the afterlife.


The city was lost! The shame of it all!


However, vengeance will soon be at hand. Makanyane has reached the city to take it back!


While in the east, the battered but victorious Alkippe once more advances upon Campus Roxolani.
« Last Edit: March 31, 2009, 01:51:08 AM by SubRosa »

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« Reply #8 on: March 31, 2009, 05:15:00 AM »
That other forum is TWC right? Well, great AAR. But I prefer to not link the pictures though. I would like what happened in my own AAR, instantly showing picture in the correct resolution.

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« Reply #9 on: March 31, 2009, 05:26:06 AM »
Once more, the Sarmatians scraped up enough troops to counter-attack the Eastern army, now led by Okypous. Only four of the Sarmatian units are new, and they are only Steppe Lancers. The rest are troops I have already beaten once.


These big jagged rocks appear to litter the steppe, like the broken teeth of a long-dead race of giants.


The first Sarmatian force of Steppe Lancers is quickly surrounded. They really had no chance.


Once they were out of the way, the second Sarmatian force was starting to come into action, cavalry first.


Their Captain was cut down by my Generals.


As my women closed in on their army, I had to be careful to ride around those Mercenary Amazon Hoplites of theirs.


I later looked over to see that Alkippe had blundered into those Hoplites while chasing routers. Clicking like a madwomen I prayed to Freja that their spears did not send her ungently into that good night.


Lucky girl. She escapes unscathed, and now the Scythians are surrounded.


The end followed soon after. Heroic Victory and another famous battle marker. It seemed barely noteworthy.


It did leave Campus Roxolani denuded of its garrison however. Now it would fall easily. Once I brought a Warband up from Melanchlaeni that is.


For those of you unfamiliar with Amazon: Total War, every faction in the game has a unique artifact which only its Generals may possess. These are items from the myths and legends of those factions, which bestow great prestige - and some even whisper magical power - upon the wielder.


In the west, Makanyane was ready to liberate Vicus Neuri. The Scythians have a lot of archers in there, so I make this a night attack to reduce their range. This is just in time too, a full stack of Scythians is headed north from Vibantavarium to attack her.


One of my own Horse Archers is now at silver experience.


A ferocious archery duel erupted at the walls of the city.


One which I would eventually win. Amazon quivers are open graves.


The way cleared by the archers, the rams made short work of the city's defenses.


Then the remaining defenders were swept aside.


My army streamed into the city down two roads. One led directly to the lightly defended town square. The other to a side-street where a large mob of Scythians lurked around the corner.


Makanyane led the troops down the sidestreet, and pulled up to a stop to rain javelins upon the Scythians. She did not want to charge in there until her infantry had the chance to catch up with her. Especially since her spies reported Bosporan Infantrymen among the Scythians.


In the meantime Polemusa went directly to the town square.


It was quickly hers, and the remaining Scythians were now trapped between Makanyane and Polemusa.


They crumbled before Makanyane's advance.


Routing defenders in a city battle always head for the town square. This sent them directly into the waiting spears and axes of Polemusa's women.


Here is a shot of my Spearwomen receiving a power up.


There are no survivors among the Scythians.


The citizens cheer as they are freed from the yoke of the treacherous Scythians.


On the AI's turn, that full stack of Scythians from Vibantavarium wants no part of Makanyane.


Makanyane pursues. Right now her primary goal is to destroy the Scythian armies in the field, leaving their cities easy targets.


Speaking of which, now that the Sarmatian field armies have been cleared from Tribus Roxolani, Okypous leads the assault upon its Campus.


Their archers were easily swept aside by my own at the walls, leaving no one to hinder my entrance.


The Barbarian General was drawn out of the town square by arrow fire, and met by Okypous and her Warband. The Sarmatian Steppe Lancers quickly followed their leader into the melee.


That left the town square empty as Alkippe rode in from behind them.


Bam! She charged into the Sarmatian rear, trapping and destroying them.


No survivors.


Once more I Occupy. I was very disappointed to find there was not even a 1st tier stable in the city. Now I will have to build one in order to retrain my Horse Archers. Still, this will be an ideal place to defend the eastern frontier against further Sarmatian attacks.




« Last Edit: March 31, 2009, 05:33:23 AM by SubRosa »

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« Reply #10 on: March 31, 2009, 11:29:44 PM »
News reaches the plains that my Gorgon sisters have found a new homeland.


Closer to home, that Scythian army continues to flee from Makanyane. I think they are headed for the low-hanging fruit of Vicus Venedae to the west. I cannot seem to catch them, so they will probably take it, meaning I will have to take it from them. I was hoping to leave it as a Rebel buffer against Dacia and Germania.


In the central plains, Xanthippe rode from Melanchlaeni to intercept a Scythian force south of the city.


It was all going well until the Scythians high tailed it for the map edge. I did not want that General of theirs getting away, so I sent my Horse Archers into melee with him. I know, Horse Archers vs. a General. But I needed to stop him inside the map in order for Xanthippe to reach him. Sometimes you have to roll the hard six.


Stop him they did, and once Xanthippe caught up with him he was sent to meet his barbarous gods. The butcher's bill was high. But I can retrain my Horse Archers next turn, while the Scythians are not getting that General back.


My economy is improving, but money is still tight. So I sell my map to the Romans.


An Amazonian Diplomat offered me trade rights, I accepted and suggested we become allies. I hate to stand with those arrogant royalists, but for the moment we women need to stand together.


The Britons seemed to have the same idea. They are at war with Germania, who are allied with Scythia. Given this I thought it would be a good idea to take them up on the offer.


Now the Scythians want trade rights? Did this Diplomat not get the memo that we are a war?


A Scythian army attacks Xanthippe immediately after their diplomat's offer to underscore the point. They have an awful lot of horse archers in there. Xanthippe withdraws rather than face certain destruction.


Next turn I learn that Amazonia has broken our alliance, and Scythia and I are at war? Ahhh, I see. Scythia and Amazonia were allies. So when I allied with Amazonia, that automatically made Scythia and I neutral. Until the Scythians attacked again that is.


Speaking of Scythian attacks, they did take Vicus Venedae as I suspected.


Now Makanyane will have to dig them out of there. They have the missile advantage, so she does it at night to reduce the range of arrows.


I come at the settlement from two sides.


Makanyane sees  two juicy targets at the edge of town and immediately charges in at them.


Polemusa does likewise at the other wall.


She drives the Scythians before her.


She has to stop short to avoid blundering into a mass of Scythians however. Time to bring up the infantry.


On the other side of the settlement, Makanyane was pushing her way in.


She had the Scythians trapped between two streets, but for every unit she routed there was another waiting behind it.


Polemusa had become bogged down as well.


Then her archers cut down the Scythian Captain.


Now she was able to charge into the settlement.


Makanyane finally dealt with the outer defenses, and closed in on the town square.


Polemusa cleared the Scythians before her and was on her way to reinforce.


A horrific bloodletting erupted in the center of town.


Victory belonged to Makanyane. But the losses are staggering.


Still, Makanyane has 628 kills just to herself.


I liberate the people of Vicus Venedae from the terrible Scythians.


My treasury is just barely keeping a profit, but not much. Still, I am constructing buildings in many of my settlements again. After all, having lost so many soldiers means I do not have to pay as much in upkeep every turn...


Over the AI's turn the Scythian army that Xanthippe was forced to retreat from followed her to Melanchlaeni. Alkippe is on the way from Campus Roxolani to reinforce her however.


Then next turn another Scythian army besieged Androphagia.


Xanthippe sallied from Melanchlaeni, bringing Alkippe in the battle to assist her.


The Scythians began the battle on the corner of the city on the strat map, so they head for that corner as the battle starts. Alkippe starts near that corner, and will move in to intercept them.


Xanthippe waits as the Scythians go past. She does not want to rush out and be shot to pieces by those Horse Archers going by.


In the map corner, Alkippe's force and most of Xanthippe's Horse Archers (who exited by another gate than Xanthippe), had met the Scythians.


Xanthippe left the city as the tail of the Scythian column came by and charged directly into them.


All the Scythians on hand rush into melee with her.


Seeing that they were all Horse Archers, it did not work out well for them.


Now Alkippe and Xanthippe were penning the Scythians in the corner.


The trap was almost shut when several of their Horse Archers ran for it and squirted free.


Still, it is a victory, and the siege was lifted.


The same turn, Alkippe took on a small group of Scythians who had come up to help their comrades.


Nothing special about this one. Alkippe leaves no survivors.


The same turn Tereis sallies from Androphagia. This gives me a look at the army the Scythians have besieging the city. I do not like it one bit, and Tereis withdraws back to the city. I expected as much, I just wanted confirm the makeup of their army before I brought in reinforcements from Melanchlaeni.


In the west, Makanyane is marching east upon Vibantavarium. If I can weather the Scythian storm in the center, she will sweep across the plains from the west and wipe them from existence.



« Last Edit: March 31, 2009, 11:37:48 PM by SubRosa »

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« Reply #11 on: April 01, 2009, 04:22:03 AM »
The Greeks wish to trade with us? I wish to have their heads on a platter. Well, time enough for that later. We will sell them Amazon trinkets for now.


This is what I have been dreading ever since I took Vicus Gepidae, and the reason I have made sure I have had a General there at all times since. Germania has attacked.


Kardika, a new member of our august gathering of Amazon heroes, rides north from her post at Vicus Venedae as far as she can go, then hires a mercenary band of Barbarian Cavalry. She sends the mercenaries on to Vicus Gepidae to assist Pantariste there.


Pantariste then sallies, bringing the Barb Cavalry mercs in as reinforcements.


The Germans were on the corner tile of the city on the strat map, so they head for that corner as the battle starts. Pantariste finds an opening in their column and charges.


Scratch those Screechers.


Her Skirmishers come out of the city and proceed to give this lagging German Spearwarband volley after volley of javelins.


The Germans are setting up a line in the corner of the map. I want to get at their Barb Archers and Barb Cavalry, so I sweep around their line with my horse. In the background all of my infantry is converging on that lagging Spearwarband above.


Charge!


There goes the German Captain. Their archers followed soon after.


Mopping up. The Spearwarbands are in phalanx, and thusly are too slow to do anything but watch me butcher their comrades.


My infantry is finally catching up to that Spearwarband.


Uh oh, they turned and lowered their spears, this will get ugly fast.


My infantry routs before I can order them to retreat.


Okay, time to rest a bit.


Pantariste tries to lure the German Axemen out of formation to pursue her. They do not go for it.


So she rides over to the spearmen and give them a few volleys of javelins. Alas, that does not budge them either.


Finally she simply charges into the Axemen on the flank, routing them instantly (they were exhausted, which helps a lot).


Ooops, here comes another Axe unit. Pantariste stops before she blunders into it.


The Axemen charge her, and follow her back to the walls of the city. Right in front of a tower.


They changed their mind about attacking her when she saw the rest of my army.


Too late, there is no escape for these Germans.


After another rest break, another Spearwarband is lured out of formation.


Again, they get close and change their minds.


Too late for them as well...


While my cavalry was across the field chasing down routers, my infantry dispatched another Spearwarband on their own after surrounding it.


It is round four or five by now, and only three Spearwarbands are left. I pick them apart. This one on the flank looks like a good target.


I hit it with everything from both sides and they insta-rout.


I let the momentum carry my army into the second Spearwarband next to it.


Chain rout.


Only one left. You can guess what happened next.


Heroic Victory.


It was a slaughter. Over one thousand kills for Pantariste alone. Pretty good for her first battle.


I just love when the AI does this.


In the east, Xanthippe raises the siege of Androphagia by attacking the Scythians blockading it.


The garrison of the city enters the battle right on the Scythian flank.


It was your basic plains battle. Here goes the Scythian General.


Their handlers all dead, these Wardogs are now ghostly apparitions.


Victory.


Even further east, Okypous sallies against the Sarmatians besieging Campus Roxolani.


It is not a battle, but a slaughter.


Finally, Makanyane has her chance to take the war to our enemies. She assaults Vibantavarium.


She attacks from two walls.


Polemusa's force enters the city first.


But Makanyane's follows soon after.


The Scythian General saw a chance and attacked one of Polemusa's Warbands that was far out ahead of the rest of her force.


They held long enough for Polemusa and the rest of her women to come up.


Scratch one barbarian warlord.


Then it was on to the town square.


No survivors.


Makanyane shows no mercy to the vile Scythians. They are put to the sword.


After withstanding attacks on all the frontiers, Valkyrja lands are once again clear of invaders. Next stop, Olbia.


« Last Edit: April 01, 2009, 10:33:31 PM by SubRosa »

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« Reply #12 on: April 01, 2009, 09:49:34 PM »
What diff setting are you on?
The duke, the wanderer, the philosopher, the mariner, the warrior, the strategist, the storyteller, the wizard, the wayfarer...

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« Reply #13 on: April 01, 2009, 09:56:51 PM »
Just reread the first post, ignore me.
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« Reply #14 on: April 02, 2009, 01:34:29 AM »
Ignoring on request...  :P


The Scythians and Sarmatians are still testing my borders. However, where previously I was rushing reinforcements from one endangered city to another in a desperate race to hold back the barbarian tidal wave, now I am using my cities as strong points to dominate the terrain. When an enemy force appears over the horizon I ride out and destroy them before they can get far, let alone lay siege to anything. It also helps that there are much fewer Scythians and Sarmatians than before. Here is one such example near Campus Roxolani.


An easy victory for Okypous. I have made her my Faction Heir rather than Alkippe, as she was the one leading all of the battles anyway.


I saw a lone Scythian unit wandering north of Vibantavarium and sent Polemusa out to deal with it. It shows as having only 49 soldiers, but a closer look shows it has 193. It is a dog unit. The first is the human handlers, the second is the animals (or animals + handlers?).


Flawless victory.


A lone Horse Archer rode out to intercept a small Scythian force not too far away but could not reach it. The Scythians obliged me by attacking my Horse Archer on their turn.


The Scythians are annihilated for a Heroic Victory.


Far in the east, the garrison of Gelonos spotted a small Sarmatian force that had crossed over to our side of the border. They rode out to chastise them.


This is an example of a very successful horse archer tactic I call the Scythian Horse Ride. Basically you get an enemy cavalry unit to attack one of your own. A General makes the best bait, but as in this case, a simple Horse Archer will do as well. Your bait unit flees from the pursuer. Then you slide one or more Horse Archers in behind the pursuer and follow them. Your bait unit leads the enemy across the map, and you shoot them in the back with the second unit the entire way until they rout. If you have a General acting as bait, you can just wait until they are whittled down a bit and then turn and destroy them in melee. This is especially effective in destroying enemy Generals, but you better have a General of your own acting as bait.


Second Heroic Victory in a row.


In the west, Tereis goes to deal with a Rebel General who has been waylaying merchants on the road from Careotae to Vicus Gepidae for years. I have only now had stable enough borders to send a General after him.


Third Heroic Victory in a row.


Polemusa has joined forces with that lone Horse Archer of mine from before, and they took on another small Scythian army, this one led by a General.


Only a Clear Victory this time, so my string of Heroics is broken. But I killed the General, and that is most important.


Someone was asking for a pic with FOW off. Here is a look at the world so far. The Gorgons have settled in North Africa, after driving Carthage from its shores. Numidia actually looks very strong. The Romans are doing nothing, as are the Iberians and Gauls. The Britons are fighting the Germans around Batavodorum. Big Yellow, Amazonia, and Armenia are all tearing pieces out of the Seleucids (funny, in my Gorgon campaign The Seleucids absolutely dominated the Near East).


Here is another example of what I was talking about in the beginning of the post. A small Scythian force has crossed the border east of Androphagia. Xanthippe immediately rode out to attack them before they could penetrate far into Valkyrja lands.


She leaves no survivors.


In the east, Alkippe was building watchtowers south of Campus Roxolani when she saw that Tanais is tantalizingly open.


The reason for the lack of defenders is further west. Makanyane is one turn away from laying siege to Olbia. The Scythians seem to have shifted their armies from the east toward her. They have two half stacks of horse archers on the road between Olbia and Tanais, as well as the garrison of Olbia itself. But all are low-tier troops. They have long since used up all of the elite troops they started the game with.



« Last Edit: April 02, 2009, 01:42:14 AM by SubRosa »