Pugnacious Polybians

Wargaming with Polybian Romans in DBM

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Republican or Polybian Roman armies aren’t common on the wargames table (and never have been). You see far more Carthaginian, Imperial Roman and Macedonian (including Successors) armies. Yet this was the Roman army which went from being a fairly minor power to Great Power status (i.e. it overcame Carthage, Macedon and Seleucid powers, all of which started out stronger). Perhaps it lacks a single great charismatic leader and/or lots of odd exotic troop types (at least one of which will always be useful under any set of ancient wargames rules).

I’ve built most of my armies after a lot of thinking, reading, considering army use and looking at figures. My Republican Romans were an impulse buy – they were on a bring and buy stall, at a very reasonable price and would provide opponents for my other armies.

My first attempts at using the Romans were complete disasters. I vividly recall four games against Gauls (and a regular opponent of mine) in which the Romans lost badly each time (even when we swapped armies). These defeats tempted me to build a large Spanish or Numidian allied command (to replace the third Roman command), but this would have diverted me from my other painting projects. Also I really wanted to learn how to use the Romans instead of reacting to each defeat by building a new ally. Perseverance has paid off and I’ve begun to understand how to use the army so I thought I’d pass on a few lessons (which probably mainly apply to 400 AP 15mm games as these are what I most often play).

  1. I prefer the post 202 BC army with 3 Roman generals and a high aggression factor. This, after all, is the period of expansion so history is on your side, and it suits my attacking style of play. At 500 AP, I add Pergamene allies (as a 4th command) as they have both Kn(F) and Ax(S), and it worked at Magnesia. See the two example army lists at the end of this page.
  2. Try to avoid wide open spaces and flat battlefields. The high points cost of the Legions means the army is small and being infantry based it is slow so must avoid a battle of manoeuvre. Also a cluttered battlefield can lead to command and control problems for opponents who spread out: take care to avoid becoming spread out yourself. Hence it is worth attacking through hilly terrain or along a river.
  3. Have three roughly equal sized commands. I’ve tried two small commands and one big command, but found the fragility of the Legions (as Blades) against many opponents and the lack of control of the manoeuvre battle means this doesn’t work very well.
  4. A large fortified camp can fulfil a number of functions. It can fill a gap; provide a pivot for the army to turn on; a base for reserves and somewhere to hide any poor quality troops. A small camp at least guards the baggage from the odd element of light horse.
  5. A significant contingent of Italian infantry and other auxilia are useful. The Italian infantry can provide a second or third line so bolstering the break point of the main fighting commands. Good quality auxilia can contest all the difficult terrain.
  6. The army’s strength is its infantry. The mounted troops are primarily a reserve, flank guard and delaying force. Don’t waste points or PiPs on them when they are needed elsewhere to win the battle.
  7. Give the Roman C-in-C an infantry based command and push the infantry forward as quickly as possible with his first PiP die (including his free PiP). This will fix the enemy’s attention and get the infantry forwards.
  8. Exploiting success is difficult. It is hard to follow up a battered enemy command quickly enough to finish it off, or to move a command to a new part of the battlefield once it has beaten its immediate opponents.
  9. Blades are rather fragile and can start to die in worrying numbers against warband or knights. As they move too slowly to disengage, it is best to press on and hope.

Before closing, I’ll note that the army list answers one of the odder questions about DBM – i.e. how many men each element represents. A Roman Legion of this period had equal numbers of Velites, Hastati and Principes (1800 each in theory). The army list specifies 1 element of Velites to 2 elements of Hastati/Principes, so clearly each element represents the same number of men regardless of how many figures are mounted on the base. Or can anyone provide a counter example from another army and list?

Overall, I’ve come to enjoy the challenge of using my Republican Romans and sometimes I even win a game!

400 AP Republican Roman (aggresion 4)

1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
3 Reg Cv(O)
1 Reg LH(O)
8 Reg Bd(O)
2 Reg Sp(S)
4 Reg Ps(S)
4 Reg Ax(I)
1 Reg Ps(O)		 1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
2 Reg Cv(O)
8 Reg Bd(O)
2 Reg Sp(S)
4 Reg Ps(S)
3 Reg Ax(S)
3 Reg Ax(I)
1 Reg Ps(O)
7 TF camp no gate		 1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
7 Reg Ax(S)
5 Reg Ax(I)
2 Reg Ps(O)
3 Irr Ps(O)

7.5/21.5

7.5/21.5

5.5/15.5

Auxilia are mix of Italians and Achaian peltasts

500 AP Republican Roman (aggresion 4)

1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
8 Reg Bd(O)
2 Reg Sp(S)
4 Reg Ps(S)
4 Reg Ax(S)		 1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
12 Reg Bd(O)
3 Reg Sp(S)
6 Reg Ps(S)
9 Reg Ax(I)
8 TF camp no gate		 1 Reg Gen Cv(O)
5 Reg Cv(O)
1 Reg LH(O)
3 Reg Ax(I)
1 Reg Ps(O)		 1 Reg Ally Kn(F)
2 Reg Kn(F)
1 Irr Cv(O)
6 Reg Ax(S)
3 Reg Ps(O)
2 Irr Ps(O)

6/17

9.5/28.5

4.5/12.5

 4.5/12.5

Uses Italian Auxilia with Pergamene allies

Last revised: May 17, 2000.  
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