presents
A quick and easy campaign game for the
Crusades
period in the Byzantine Empire,
including map, counters, and miniatures
interface
for our "Ironbow" rules.
Now available, the Rules in Italian
Special thanks to Stefano Bonazzi!
Great Job!
The year is 1113.
The Byzantine Empire is experiencing an economic,
cultural,
and military renaissance.
Having recovered the Aegean seaboard, the Armies of
Emperor
Alexius Comnenus
have pushed inland up the Meander valley, across
Paphlagonia,
and along the
southern coast of Asia Minor. Cities once deserted have
their populations returning,
and after 40 years of Turkish domination and vandalism,
the land is growing rich again.
Now the forces of the Seljuk Sultan and his bands of
Turkomen
nomads are on the move.
Determined to set the land on fire and plunder all that
they don't destroy. Splitting into
long, fast moving columns, they spread out to all
corners
of the rejuvinated territories,
some being so bold as to set up satrapies and minor
emirates
in the face of the enemy.
To stay alive and keep their followers in line, the
Turkish
chieftans must bring their booty
back home to be displayed and enjoyed. The Byzantine
provincial armies have other ideas.
The hunter now becomes the hunted. Every mountain pass
may be blocked or have an
ambush prepared. Above them on the hills, two or three
horsemen stand watching them,
then ride of to make their whereabouts known to the
Emperor,
who is on his way with
the Imperial Host with his Latin and Varangian
mercenaries,
who could deliver a death
blow to your hopes if ever they catch you.
The Byzantines must protect their people and show
them
that the frontier is safe or they
will face a mass migration and the loss of the new
territories.
To do this, they cannot
be passive. They must destroy the invader any way they
can. Greek subtlety, caution
and a scientific approach was the hallmark of their
success.
Head on fighting may not
bring success and might bring annihilation; only when
the Emperor arrives will they be
able to rescue those taken captive and bring back their
property, while dealing with the
enemy in such a way that they won't dare show their
faces
for a generation!
-What's it like?-
Every commander and Emir mentioned by Anna
Comnena
in the Alexiad is present.
In fact, the game is leader driven- good leaders get
things done, while poor ones are
a hinderance. Counters representing every troop type
are here, including Turkish
Ghulam heavy cavalry, Turkomen horse archers, light and
heavy infantry, Byzantine
Cataphracts, Norman and Varangian mercenaries,
Petchenegs,
everyone. It comes
with a battle board so you don't have to stop the game
for every battle if you don't
want to, but the troops convert directly into "Ironbow"
units for those of you who
want to play miniatures.
-How do you win?-
To win, the Turks must get as many plunder
markers
out of enemy towns and off the board
as they can, and perhaps hang onto a town or two. You
will need to strike deep into Byzantine
territory to get the juiciest plunder, and then bring
it back. Remember, stacks carrying plunder
are significantly slower than those unencumbered, and
cannot easily disengage from battle,
so move quickly. Try and destroy enemy forces on the
way in, but not on the way out.
For the Byzantines to win, they have to stop the
Turks.
Early battles will be difficult, as you
are outnumbered, but you can't let light cavalry
columns
promiscuosly steal your people blind!
The occasional engagement should keep the enemy honest.
If the enemy gets through, and he
will, your best bet is to seal the exits behiond him,
so that the late-arriving Imperial Army can
get to grips with them. With Alexius in command, you
have a good chance of beating an equal
enemy force.
*To those interested in this game*
Allow me to convince
you to purchase or obtain from the library a copy of
-The Alexiad-
which is a book of the life and times of the Emperor
Alexius
Comnenus,written
with care by his learned and indomitable daughter, Anna
Comnena. This book
will give you a deep insight into the period in
question
which will fascinate and
amaze you. For the military minded every campaign
fought
from 1081-1118
on land and sea is covered in detail. For those who
want
to learn about a culture
which was truely one-of-a-kind, this is the book for
you. Romance, despair,
triumph, loss, everything! Read it NOW!
Since the "Prince of the East" Page to buy it from Penguin books.
Take a look at the rules,
and see if you think it's worth the download
Here's a look at some of the map! The counters are of
the same quality as those
in "Princes of the East".
The Downloads
All the files are available in one zipped file right here ----
Alexius
Enjoy yourselves. That's what
the
perfect captain
is all about. Oh yeah, and learning too.
Please contact me with any questions or comments you may have.
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since 7 April 2001