Picts vs Brits

I threw together a game of DBA this morning, as the last time we played we found that the Picts were a surprisingly fun army to play. I used list 68b. Their opponents were Sub-Roman British (81c), with a Cv general and some Hd.

The British (right) defended.

The Pics massed their army on their right - their mounted on the wing and a block of fast spearmen inside them. The centre was covered by their skirmishing archers.

The British had their mounted opposite that of the Picts, and their spearmen in the centre. Their right flank was covered by the hordes and their skirmishers, but a hamlet in the way prevented them from effectively deploying for most of the battle.

The battle consisted of a rush for the hill in the centre of the one flank; both armies reorganised their lines slightly then pushed forward with all speed to get the high-ground.

The armies met across the crest-line.

The Pictish mounted was slightly outclassed and they lost some light horse, but their spearmen, in their deep formations, pushed their British counterparts down the back-slope, destroying one.

The British had a chance to end the battle by killing the Pictish general, since they had cavalry ready to deploy onto his vulnerable flank, but that was the turn they roll a 1 for PIPs.

They had to simply content themselves with a charge.

Meanwhile the British spears were crumbling before the Pictish attack. And the lighter Pictish spearmen quickly turned onto exposed flanks in order to exploit their advantages. In the centre Pictish archers pinned some of the other British spears, preventing them from reinforcing the centre.

And it was an exposed flank that did for the British general to give the Picts the win.

The Picts actually got off to a bad start, losing the mounted battle early on. But the poor British PIP roll when they needed more than a one, followed up by a couple of excellent Pictish combat rolls to destroy the British spear-line, secured them a resounding 5-1 win.