Wargaming with Numidians
Richard Bodley Scott
My Numidian army has grown gradually from my Carthaginian army, whenever time and inclination permitted a few more to be painted. I did not pick it as a potential killer army, but because I like light horse and I already had many of the required figures. For a number of reasons, however, it is surprisingly effective under DBM. [Note: This article was written before DBM 2.0, but most of the advice given still applies. I have added notes regarding some of the changes.]
"Jugurtha had everything in his favour except the quality of his troops." Sallust
The key to its success is the combination of light horse, light infantry and a low aggression factor (1). None of the LH (S) lists have this combination, to their fatal detriment. My Krim Tartar army, for example, has an apparently excellent combination of LH (S) and Cv (S)/(O) and yet has suffered frequent defeats. The crucial difference is the light infantry and the terrain in which to deploy it.
Terrain
Areas of rough or difficult terrain occupied by Numidian light troops allow the Numidian light horse to avoid close combat with enemy heavies until everything is in their favour. In order to press his attack the enemy must break up his own line and expose his flanks.
"Jugurtha would not fight except from ambush or on ground of his own choosing." Sallust
I have found gentle sloped rocky or brush-covered hills the most effective terrain type, as well as being representative of the historical terrain of Numidia. Rough going causes sufficient disruption to enemy cavalry and heavy infantry, while still allowing relative freedom of movement to Numidian types. Psiloi can be deployed in ambush on the front slope of a rough hill, gaining a +1 tactical factor if attacked, while other types can be concealed in ambush behind the crest. Difficult going restricts movement too much, and deters the enemy from attacking. Impetuous troops can be lured into spontaneous advance into rough going, but not into difficult. [Version 2.1 note: Difficult going no longer restricts the movement of Psiloi, but may still be undesirable for the latter reasons.]
Hills should be as big as possible to permit large ambushes to be concealed behind them. Generals must be placed so that they are within command control distance of such troops, and preferably of those on the forward slope as well. [Version 2.1 note: Ambushes can no longer be placed in the central sectors except in the player's own deployment area.]
Deployment, Ambushes and Flank Marches
Where terrain permits I try to place the army so that as little as possible is visible to the enemy at deployment time. It has to be disconcerting to face an enemy whose only visible elements are his baggage and a few elements of Ax (I) on the baseline. Although the enemy knows that there are troops in ambush, he cannot be sure which ambushers are where, nor how many, if any, are flank marching. He is quite likely to make false assumptions, or even to be sufficiently disconcerted to make a major mistake. The Numidians thrive on enemy mistakes.
"The forces [Caesar] had were accustomed to fighting in Gaul, on level terrain, and against the Gauls, an open-natured people and not at all given to guile, who were accustomed in warfare to rely on their valour, not on trickery. Now, however, he had to try to accustom his men to recognize the guiles, traps and ruses of the enemy, and know when they should pursue and when to give them a wide berth." The African War
Flank marches are particularly useful to a Numidian army, whether defender or invader. Owing to the character of the army it is usually easy to keep the enemy safely occupied until the flank march(es) arrive. Flank marches increase the chance of getting round the flank of the enemy and into his rear, a critical part of Numidian tactics. Because of the size of the army, flank marches can be large enough to drive an enemy flank march back on to the table. Even if the enemy has taken precautions against a flank march, the troops he has left to guard the flank will often be insufficient to deal with the large force that arrives. Attempts to delay a large force of Numidian light horse are unlikely to be successful for long, particularly if the enemy is also being assailed from the front by one of the on-table commands.
"Since the scouts came from [all quarters], and all agreed in reporting the approach of enemy forces, Marius could not tell on which front to form his battle-line. ... Jugurtha ... had divided his forces into four parts, feeling certain that as they all converged one or another of them could not fail to take the Romans in the rear." Sallust
Tactics
The vast majority of the Numidian army are skirmishers. It is important, therefore, to avoid the temptation to engage in frontal close combat with superior troops. In the case of the light horse, this means most knights, cavalry and even light horse (S). It will therefore generally be necessary to fall back slowly in front of such troops, keeping out of their charge reach. Meanwhile, any opportunities to work round their flanks should be taken, with the intention of attacking them in the flank when possible.
"... the Numidians on the Carthaginian right were attacking the cavalry opposite them on the Roman left; they did not inflict many casualties, however, nor did they suffer any serious losses themselves because of their peculiar methods of fighting. Nevertheless they kept the Roman cavalry effectively out of the battle by drawing them off and attacking them now from one quarter and now from another." Polybios
The optimum flank attack is by three elements of light horse, forcing the enemy to turn to face the middle element with an overlap on each side. It will only be necessary to recoil the enemy element to destroy it and at least one other element behind. A multiple element flank attack should not be risked however (unless there is a chance of destroying an enemy general) if there are other enemy elements in a position to attack the flank of one of the Numidian elements next turn - thus risking the loss of two Numidian elements. [Version 2.1 note: It is no longer sufficient to attack a group of Light Horse in the flank to destroy several on a recoil. You must also pin the group by attacking one of the other elements in front, or by moving troops close enough to the other end of the group to prevent them being pushed back sufficiently to allow the flanked element to recoil fully .]
Numidian foot javelinmen [Ps (S)] are effective against enemy light infantry except possibly Ax (S). Even these can be successfully resisted and possibly defeated from an upslope position. This is where I must come clean and admit that my army is not Numidian at all, but Moorish! With King Bogus [alias Bogud] as C-in-C the army can have eight elements of Spanish Ax (S) which beef up the light infantry contingent considerably. Nevertheless, I find that the javelinmen do most of the light infantry fighting and usually defeat the enemy light foot without the aid of the Spanish. They are also more expendable, being only worth half an element equivalent, so can be used to threaten enemy flanks and distract opponents even when there is a high risk of being caught and ridden down. Many is the enemy general who has been killed by rashly ignored psiloi.
The Ax (I) javelinmen, however, are not fit to stand in the line of battle even against light infantry, and should be kept away from the enemy at all costs. They do have one vital function, however, which is to increase the size of the army and thus raise the demoralization point of the whole army and of each command. This allows a certain amount of attrition to be accepted and permits risk-taking attacks where the rewards would be great.
Generals, however, should never be placed in risky situations. It is a shame to have a command with a demoralisation point of ten elements go demoralised after the loss of only a few elements because the general has been lost. As a rule Numidian generals should keep out of the fighting and concentrate on remaining within control distance of their whole command. They should only be committed later in the battle where their intervention may be decisive [because if Cv (O) their combat factor is 2 higher than that of the light horse] - preferably against opponents who cannot kill them even on a 6:1 dice roll - and when there is no danger of their being caught by an enemy counter-attack.
Elephants are not permitted to King Bogus, but other C-in-Cs can have several. I do not find myself tempted to include them, however, because it is difficult to fit them into the tactical scheme of a skirmishing army. They are slow, unmanoeuvrable and easy to counter with light infantry. The AP can be better spent elsewhere.
The last troop type to be discussed is the imitation legionary [Bd (I)]. At first sight this is another fairly useless troop type. Imitation legionaries are compulsory for the later kings, however, so one might as well make the best of them. In a competition situation, they do improve the army's chances against opponents with large numbers of bowmen. Otherwise, at worst they can be left on the baseline as bait to draw the enemy forward. I often find it useful to send them on a flank march. This can be quite effective against an unsuspecting enemy, particularly as the formation of arrival does not have to be decided until the flank march arrives. This allows the legionaries, light horse and psiloi comprising the flank marching command to be deployed facing their best match-ups.
Putting the Theory into Practice (or Not)
My son Thomas and I took King Bogus's Moors to the fourth round of the 1996 Doubles League at Devizes. I did not play in the first round, at Usk, because I was umpiring. In the second round, at Weston, we scored 20 points out of 40 with Sassanid Persians. In the third round, at Berkeley, we scored 24 points with Later Hungarians. Could we do better with Early Moors? In preparation I had cunningly manufactured rocky hills with a ridge along the middle and crests at each end, to allow the maximum number of elements to be concealed in the rectangular dead ground behind. For those still blissfully unaware of the usual doubles format, two players command an army of 500AP. Our order of battle was as follows.
King Bogus
1 Cv (O) C-in-C, 13 LH (O), 6 Ps (S), 4 Spanish Ax (S), 8 Ax (I), 4 Baggage.
Nabdalsa
1 Cv (O) SG, 8 LH (O), 4 Ps (S), 12 Reg Bd (I), 6 Ax (I), 2 Baggage.
Gauda
1 Cv (O) SG, 14 LH (O), 6 Ps (S), 4 Spanish Ax (S), 4 Ax (I), 2 Baggage.
Gulussa
1 LH (O) AG, 13 LH (O), 6 Ps (S).
Our total element equivalents excluding baggage was 101.
First Game - vs Ancient Britons
This was not an unexpected matchup. As the first round draw is determined by date, at 47 BC our most likely first round opponents would be Romans or Ancient Britons. For some reason several teams like to field Ancient Britons despite the fact that they always do badly in competitions due, amongst other failings, to their vulnerability to knights. We have no knights, however, and were concerned that our usual tactics might be turned against us by the Britons flank marching on both flanks and crushing us in a box with their superior numbers. Having successfully diced to be the defenders, therefore, we placed a wide river down one table edge and covered the rest of the table with our rocky hills, some of which we specified as having steep slopes at each end only - to disrupt the advance of the enemy warbands.
Our opponents removed 3 of our hills, including all but one of the steep ended variety, but left the river. After dicing for sides, we ended up with the river protecting our left flank and the steep ended hill also on our left, a short distance in front of the British deployment zone. Other hills were on our left and right. The centre of the battlefield was clear.
In accordance with our general principles, we sent our ally Gulussa on a flank march on the R wing. We expected an enemy flank march on that wing, probably larger than our own, but Gulussa's troops would have no difficulty in escaping from these and preventing their interfering with our other commands. Most of our on-table troops were concealed in ambush, apart from 12 Ax (I) and 6 LH deployed near our baseline due to lack of sufficient room to hide them. Our most important ambush was of most of Gauda's command lurking behind the steep ended hill on our left near the enemy deployment zone.
Owing, presumably, to the expected disruptive effect of the steep slopes, the Britons had deployed all their warbands in the centre and on their left, facing clear terrain or rough hills. Their right wing command consisted of psiloi, chariots [Cv(O)] and light horse. As expected, they flank marched on their left flank with another force similar to their right wing command.
On their first move the Britons commenced a general advance, including their right wing psiloi up the hill in front. On our first turn, therefore, we were able to charge Spanish Ax (S) over the ridge into contact, supported on each side by Ps (S) javelinmen. Our superior troops, with the advantage of higher ground, of course made short work of the psiloi (O) and (I) facing them - first blood to the Moors.
Meanwhile their R flank light horse came round the outside of the hill followed by some of the chariots, the rest being left to protect the gap created by the demise of their psiloi. Nabdalsa's light horse moved out to face theirs. On the other wing their flank march arrived, driving Gulussa ahead of them on to the table.
As our light horse advanced, they tried to withdraw theirs to make room for their chariots. Unfortunately they misjudged the manoeuvre and were charged in the rear by our light horse, losing three elements. Their right wing command was now only one element away from demoralisation.
On the hill, Gauda's victorious light infantry were attempting to redeploy to face some of the British centre warband who had been released from their C-in-C's control to assault the steep slope of the hill. This absorbed most of Gauda's PIPs, and a loss of attention on my part as I concentrated on finishing off the enemy light horse allowed the British to charge Gauda's light horse - still on the hill due to lack of PIPs - in the flank. Allowing a two deep group of light horse to be attacked in the flank by Ps (I) coming downhill in rough going is not recommended [Combat factor 3 vs 0], and in this case resulted in the loss of 4 elements of light horse. [Version 2.1 note: Under 2.1, I would not have lost these light horse if there was room for them all to be pushed back.]
Gauda's command, however, required the loss of 9 element equivalents to demoralise it, so was able to continue pressing the enemy light horse and soon inflicted the crucial additional element loss, demoralising the British right.
Meanwhile, in the centre, King Bogus's light horse had ridden down the enemy psiloi deployed in front of their warband. On our right, the enemy advance was bogged down by swarms of Ps (S) javelinmen infesting the rocky hills.
Then, in the centre, a bad PIP throw resulted in the centre warband dissolving into spontaneous advance. Taking advantage of their loss of formation, our light horse charged their C-in-C and slew him, after which the Britons fled the field, giving us a 10-0 victory.
Second Game - vs Alexandrian Macedonians
Our second battle was against an Alexandrian Macedonian array which we knew from previous acquaintance to be heavily weighted towards close order infantry. This promised to be an indecisive affair as most of their troops are unable to kill our troops, and to all practical purposes vice versa.
Our only hope of victory would be to get round the Macedonian flanks. Looking at the terrain remaining after our opponents had removed four of our hills, we guessed that the Macedonians would deploy facing our left, so we sent Nabdalsa on a flank march on the left.
Unfortunately he arrived too soon, before the Macedonians could advance their line. They would certainly not advance now. Our imitation legionaries could make no impression on the Thessalian cavalry guarding the Macedonian flank, our other troops had not even a hope of breaking the enemy line, so the battle ended in a 5-5 draw with the Macedonian army embattled in a small corner of the table, surrounded on three sides by Moors. Cowboys and Indians, as Thomas put it.
Third Game - vs Yuan Chinese
This was another army whose [exact] composition we knew from previous acquaintance. We have fought it in each round of the Doubles League. It consists largely of Cv (S) and (O) which have the option to dismount as Bw (S), plus some LH (S), assorted Chinese infantry and Javanese allies. Each Yuan command was composed of a balanced mixture of Cv, LH and infantry, the Javanese of Wb (S) and an elephant.
Cavalry armies cannot safely be faced in the open by LH (O). Only a mistake by the enemy could allow a victory - and our opponents were unlikely to make one.
Once again the defenders, we placed rocky low hills all over the table. Our opponents cleared one side of the table, leaving only one very small gentle unrocky hill in front of their advance.
We decided not to attempt a flank march - if our opponents were prepared it would be too easy for them to drive us back off the table. We intended, however, to keep Gulussa's command hidden as long as possible (until we should throw a 6) to maintain enemy anxiety regarding a possible flank march.
In the event our left wing light horse first advanced then retreated in front of the enemy. We were forced by some poor PIP scores to leave some elements behind to delay the enemy advance so that the rest could get away. Apart from these sacrificial elements, however, we suffered no losses and the two armies eventually lined up at 90o to their original positions, with their army on the level and ours on and between the rocky hills. Neither side could then safely advance, and despite a token light horse combat in the centre of our new positions - more for the sake of honour than for any hope of a breakthrough - the battle inevitably ended in a 5-5 draw.
Fourth Game - vs Thracians
This promised to be a more interesting battle, with the armies well matched and, in fact, largely consisting of the same combination of troop types - mainly light horse, light infantry and close order infantry - in their case hoplites instead of legionaries. With 49 elements of light horse in our army and potentially 32 in theirs, it promised to be a light horse battle.
For once we were invading. We did not want to be ambushed as it could slow down any advances we chose to make, so we removed the woods our opponents had placed, leaving only some small gentle hills, one area of rough going and a BUA.
We deployed all the Spanish Ax (S) ready to advance on to the low hill in the centre, with Ps (S) supporting their flanks. Bogus and Gauda's light horse were deployed on left and right wing respectively.
We did not expect to be able to outfight the enemy on our right, because of the BUA which they would probably hold in force. We therefore sent Nabdalsa on a flank march on our left flank. We had considered the possibility that the Thracians might also flank march on that flank, possibly with a command larger than our own. During the terrain placing, we had cunningly placed one of the low hills so that if we were on that side of the table and were forced to flee on to the table, our Bd (I) imitation legionaries would end up in an upslope position of the arriving enemy, whereas, if they had that side of the table and their peltasts had to flee on to the table, their longer move would mean they would end up on the far slope, so that we would still be upslope of them at contact. As they had no flank march, however, nothing came of this.
We wanted to ensure superior numbers at the decisive point, so Gulussa's whole command was kept in reserve, to be committed once our opponents had revealed their plan.
As it turned out the Thracians deployed all their Ax (S) in the centre, where our outnumbered Spanish would at least have the advantage of higher ground if attacked. Their Greek mercenary allies were deployed between their centre and the BUA. Their light horse were deployed on each wing, with a reserve of Cv (O) and Ax (O) on their right. We were pleased to see that many of their light horse were Getic horse archers and hence LH (F), thus further increasing our LH superiority.
We felt that Gauda's light horse could probably hold off both the Thracian left wing light horse and the hoplites for long enough, so decided to concentrate all our efforts on smashing the Thracian right. Gulussa would therefore ride round behind our centre and reinforce the left. On our first two moves, however, he remained inactive, to allow the Thracians to commit themselves.
This they did in no uncertain fashion, advancing as fast as possible along the whole line. Fortunately we were able to send single elements of light horse to slow down the advance of the hoplites and light horse facing our right wing.
Once it was apparent that the Thracians had no light horse in reserve, Gulussa was ordered to commence his manoeuvre. Unfortunately, he must have stood down his troops while they were waiting, since he then proceeded to throw a sequence of poor PIP dice. In the event Nabdalsa's flank march arrived before he did, forming a line of legionaries and light horse occupying the whole enemy half of the side table edge, and rapidly advancing over the hill. The enemy faced these off with their reserve Cv (O) and Ax (O). With no room to get into the front line, Gulussa formed up his light horse as a single line behind Bogus's.
This was just as well, for the Thracian light horse then charged our own, destroying three elements at the first onset. They also charged the imitation legionaries with their heavy cavalry, but made no impression. Next turn Gulussa's reserve line filled the gaps in our front line, the Getae attempting to hold the bend between the Thracian front line and their reserve crumbled, and our legionaries started to crumble their heavy cavalry and Ax (O). With the weight of numbers heavily against them, the Thracian right soon became demoralised and started to flee off the table.
By this time the Thracian centre had advanced to just below our hill, with the hoplites on their left and not far behind. Their left wing light horse was pressing in on Gauda's right, but no significant contact had yet been made.
Most of Nabdalsa's command and Bogus's light horse dissolved into pursuit of the Thracian right. Gulussa maintained control of his troops, but could find no suitable gap to advance through. With the time limit looming, Bogus and our Spanish charged down the hill to contact the Thracian centre. With the help of flank attacks, we started to roll up the right of their centre.
Meanwhile, our attempts to stave off a full scale combat on our right were becoming desperate, individual elements being sacrificed to preserve the safety of the rest of the command.
Sadly, the time limit intervened, leaving the result 6-4 in our favour, with Gauda's command 2 elements from demoralisation and the whole enemy army only half an element from demoralisation. Had the game continued for a few more turns, a 9-1 result would have been more or less inevitable with Gauda's command demoralised but the enemy defeated.
Conclusions
At the end of the competition we came away with a score of 26 out of 40, our best so far this year. The first battle was a decisive victory, the fourth would have been had the time limit not intervened. The second battle was compelled to be a draw by the nature of the armies, unless our opponents had suicidally advanced far enough to expose their flanks. The third battle was also inevitably a draw unless we had suicidally engaged Cv (S) with our LH (O). Avoiding suicide corresponds to historical Numidian/Moorish tactics, so we feel no shame at having done so.
"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Cassius Clay