Britannia: Game 1

The Roman legions are poised to invade SE England.

Commentary:
The Romans plan on avoiding conflict with the Welsh and driving as far north as possible.  I will avoid the hiland areas as much as possible to avoid risky attacks.  My long term goals are to have 8 armies available for the Romano-British in defensible territories. - Roman

You, me.
Us, them.
Your armies, my armies.
All are one and the same.

The ego is a monkey.
Let this monkey go.
Let conflicts go.
Just remain at the center watching.

And forget that you are there.
- Pictish Saying?

brightly coloured armies
cubic random numbers
pile of cardboard
- Wargamer's Haiku

The Romans begin the game with the first turn of their major invasion.  Their primary target is the Belgae which inhabit the southeastern provinces of Britain.  Their secondary target is the Welsh province of Avalon.  The province of Downlands is targetted to avoid a retreat route for the Belgae armies in Wessex, Sussex, Essex and South Mercia.

Result:  Bloodless annihilation of 7 Belgae armies and 1 Welsh army and the establishment of 8 Roman forts.

VP Awards:
- Romans: +8

The Romans continue with their major invasion of the British Isles.  Again, they continue their assault of the Belgae.  This time, however, they drive northward as fast as possible and begin operations against the Brigantes.  To ease this drive northward, another Welsh army is outnumbered and defeated at Hwicce.

Result:  2 Belgae armies, 4 Brigante armies and 1 Welsh army defeated at a cost of 1 Roman legion.

VP Awards:
- Romans: +8
- Brigantes: +3

Commentary:
The Romans must get at least 2 of the 3 nations capable of submitting to submit.  These nations are the Brigantes, Welsh and Picts.  The Brigantes will be the easiest to submit due to the lack of favorable terrain.  The Picts and Welsh, however, inhabit excellent defensive terrain which nullifies the Roman armies advantage in combat.  - Roman

"Fig the Belgae" by Moon:
His name was Fig
He was a Belgae
And he lived in Lindsey
For a While
 

Everyone hunkers down.  The Welsh, Brigantes and Picts each gain an army through population increase.  The Welsh defend their border and wait.  The Brigantes condense into 3 territories, but do not submit yet. The Picts prepare to defend their homeland and pull out of Dunedin.  The Caledonians breed.

Commentary:
I do believe that I have no idea what I am doing...  Perhaps if I built a large wooden badger? - Brigante

The Brigantes sink below the submission level, but don't submit.  The Picts abandon Dunedin (3VPs for Rome).  Could it be a trick to get me to overextend myself?  What is my next move? Exterminate the Brigantes and risk the early submission and waste a turn?  Or, go hard into Wales or Pictland?  Wales is right there; Pictland is just out of reach of my armies, save 2. - Roman

The Romans target the Brigantes for submission or extermination.  The Brigantes choose the latter.  The Romans occupy Cumbria, Lothian, Dunedin, Pennines, Galloway and Strathclyde.  The Romans lose 2 legions in the Pennines, the Brigantes lose their final 6 armies.

VP Awards:
- Romans: +9
- Brigantes: +6

Commentary:
Never should a Roman be free to walk the Highlands. It is an honor earned not
given.  May the Romans bleed much on my axes and spears as they walk over
me...
I know that you will be asking me to submit and once more I tell you no...
sadly I tell you no.  I would rather die than let you walk on my land freely - Brigante

So be it... - Roman

The Belgae bide their time.  The Welsh gain two armies and move to the attack in Avalon, vandalizing the fort there at the cost of one army.  The Picts form a national redoubt in Alban and the Caledonians collect their new army.

VP Awards:
- Welsh: +1

Commentary:
The Romans have hit their high-water mark.  The only remaining Turn 3 VP sites are in Dalriada, Alban and in Wales.  I won't be able to get either nation to submit in that time, so I must now focus on "Limes" points and the departure of the Romans in favor of the Romano-British.  There are 16 armies appearing off the SE coast of England over Turns 4 & 5, not to mention the Welsh, so south we go. - Roman

The fires grow closer but having long been the neighbors of the Picts  I have faith that by the time the enemy is at my door they will be but empty threats... - Caledonian

"Time is the fire in which we burn"-- badguy from "Star Trek: Generations"

"We may not have a movie starring Mel Gibson to enhance our national pride,
but we are the Welsh, and we can outdrink those damn Romans!" -- Welsh saying?

The Romans begin their long trek back to the English Channel to guard their shore territories against the invading Angles and Saxons, foregoing the 6 VPs for Alban, and Dalriada.

The Belgae take advantage of this lack of Roman offensive spirit to sortie forth and liberate the Norfolk lands.  The Romans scream bloody murder; the Belgae are unimpressed.

The Welsh, Picts and Caledonians continue to breed fighting men and redistribute their forces.

The Irish come on board and grab Cornwall in lieu of attacking armies or forts and generating VPs.  The Irish are taking a long view.

VP Awards:
- Belgae: +2

Commentary:
During the highland games, which took place in Caithness, there was much drinking and fornicating.  We should see a good crop next time around... - Caledonian
 

Then the fur begins to fly...

The Irish, taking advantage of Welsh passivity, use boats and raiding armies to attack the Welsh in Gwynedd.  The Scots try to gain a foothold in Galloway, but the Roman garrison slays them on the beaches.  The Jutes then try their hand in Kent only to retreat back to the English Channel after taking a loss against the Roman legion there.  The Saxons are much more successful in Kent and defeat the distracted legionnaires and burn the fort there before returning to sea.  The Angles, after learning tactics from the victorious Saxons, land at Bernicia and destroy the fort there, but not after losing 2/3 of their number.

VP Awards:
- Belgae: +1
- Welsh: +6
- Picts: +5
- Caledonians: +6
- Irish: +2
- Saxons: +4
- Angles: +3

Commentary:
The Irish could have gone to sunny, open Avalon, but instead they chose WAR with the Welsh.  Outdrinking them might be tough, but outfighting and outphilosophizing them will be cake. - Welsh

The fires have receded, but I now grow wary that my fellow highlanders may now turn their sights to me... - Caledonian

An ill wind up my kilt... - Scot

Die Roman pigs! - Saxon

We come from the land of the ice and snow
Of the midnight sun where the hot springs flow.
Hammer of the Gods will drive our ships to new lands
To fight the hordes, sing and cry:
"Valhalla, I am coming!" - Angle war chant?

The Belgae raise a new army and attack Suffolk, but the legion there is too strong.  The Welsh, after recent attacks by the Romans and Irish, simple occupy Avalon and Cornwall.  The Picts raise a new army and redistribute forces.  What are the fiendish highlanders planning?  The Caledonians continue to breed.

Ireland foregoes Welsh colonization and lands in Cheshire, destroying the Roman fort there.  Irish calls for leniency to the Romano-British lord go unanswered.  The Scots attack the fort at Strathclyde and are defeated again!  Must be the kilts.

The Jutes land at Wessex in strength and successfully wipe out the fort without loss.  The overconfident Saxons, after watching the Jutes sack Wessex, try their hand at Sussex and Essex in a grand pincer movement.  They succeed at defeating two Roman legions and sacking one fort, but lose 4 armies in the process.  Ouch!  The Angle raiders attack two Roman territories in the north and succeed in destroying two forts, but lose two armies in the process.

VP Awards:
- Romans: +17
- Welsh: +1
- Jutes: +3
- Irish: +1
- Angles: +6
- Saxons: +5

Commentary:
Just remain at the center.
Watching.
Understanding the Universe.
- Highland Taoist Monk (Pict)

Where is Mel Gibson when you need him? - Scot

The Romano-British armies raised to defend civilisation head for the hills in the face of impending invasions.  They occupy Pennines, Lindsey, Clywd and Gwent.  The Belgae continue their pacifistic lifestyle in Norfolk.  The Welsh abandon Avalon and expand into Cornwall, Hwicce and March.  The Picts expand into Dunedin and the Caledonians build a new army in the Orkneys.

The Irish head north and settle down, while the Scots await further developments.

All is not peace and harmony, however.  Jute raiders head for Lindsey and slay the Romano-British armies there at a cost of one army.

The Saxons conduct a major invasion lead by Hengist.  The Saxons avoid the power vacuum left by the Romans and slay Welshmen instead.  The southern coast of England and Wales is now Saxon territory.

Meanwhile, the Angles bide their time.  Their raiding fleets head north to frigid seas.  The reasons for this move are mysterious.

VP Awards:
- Jutes: +2
 

The Belgae move back to Lindsey, now that the fighting there is over.  The Welsh prepare for their bid for York by moving in force to March.  The Picts prepare for the Scot invasion by manning the western beaches.  The Caledonians continue living their idyllic lives.  The Irish gain an army and occupy Bernicia.

Fergus the Scot lands with 4 armies in Dalriada with 4 Pictish armies, while one army takes Strathclyde.  After losing two armies to one, the Scots return to the sea, then land again in Skye, the army in Strathclyde joining them.  This time they are successful at gaining a foothold in Scotland (or should that be Pictland?).

The Jutes attack the Saxons in Kent and claim their territory.  The Saxons go into real estate and grab as much land as possible.

The Angles attempt to end British hegemony in central England.  Their first attack goes into the Pennines, with a flanking attack in North Mercia.  After losing 2 armies to none against the Britons in the Pennines, the Angle armies retreat to York.  Their attack in North Mercia falters as well losing one army to none.  However, the Saxon decides to live to fight another day and retreats to Suffolk.

In the followup move, 6 Angle armies attack Arthur and his cavalry.  However, a pinning army is not placed in Pennines, giving Arthur an escape route.  After exchanging one army apiece, Arthur and his remaining knights escape to Pennines.

VP awards:
- Romano-British: +1
- Welsh: +4.5
- Picts: +5
- Caledonians: +6
- Scots: +2
- Jutes: +2
- Saxons: +16.5
- Angles: +10

Commentary:
The Eternal Ballad of Fig the Belgae
His name was Fig
He was a Belgae
And he lived in Lindsey
For a (Long) While

The Romano-British armies sally forth from their mountain camps and wage war on the Angles and Saxons.  The British attack Cheshire, York, North Mercia and Hwicce.  While losing only one army, they destroy 2 Angle armies and one Saxon army.  The Angle army in Cheshire retreats to the Angle host in Cumbria.

The Belgae build an army in Lindsey and attack the British in North Mercia, but are unsuccessful.

The Welsh, eyeing York's fertile fields, attack the British and successfully defeat them in one fell swoop, losing only one army in the process.