Joe was absent this month but our substitute Crisistian, Sam, was able to join me, Martin and Ian. We began a little after eight, once Sam had been given a rules refresher and got someway back up to speed.
Ian was first to go and he chose Gallia as his starting province. I chose Pannonia, Martin occupied his favourite Macedonia and Sam said he'd "hide over here," in Africa. In round one, we all played two red, three blue and got ourselves an extra province. Ian got Hispania, I took Thracia, Martin invaded Asia and Sam moved east into Egyptus.
So far, so totally normal, apart from a lone Frank moving into Britannia.
Round two, and at the start of Ian's turn, a Goth moved into Asia. Otherwise it was business as usual, as Ian (3Y 3R) built a Basilica in Gallia, hired and placed a new General in Gallia and drew himself an "interesting" hand for the next round.
I (3Y 3R) kind of copied Ian, building a Limes in Pannonia and an new army there too. And another Frank went to Britain. Martin (3Y 2B 2R) was able to tribute the Goth in his Asia thanks to an earlier Pax Deorum. He then built a Basilica in Macedonia and hired a new governor and General. Sam (3Y 3B) built a Limes in Africa and hired his level three governor.
Round three saw the results of Ian's "interesting" choice of cards. Seven blue. In the end, after a few false starts and admitting he hadn't really thought it through, he hired his two and three governors and tributed the Franks in Britannia. I sent another Frank onto the map, this time into Gallia. Then, for my move (3B 3R) I moved my spare army from Pannonia into Galatia and hired and placed a governor there. The neutral emperor was weak now, just on level two, so it was easy for Martin (3B 3R) to kill the Goths in Asia and become Emperor, leaping into an early lead. Sam (2B 3R) took Syria with his governor and then built an army there.
Martin 15, Sam 9, Andrew 9, Ian 9
Ian sent an Alamanni into my Thracia, and then (2Y 3R) attacked the Frank in Gallia. He lost, with no sides getting a hit (Ian rolled 1-1). He tried again with his other army and won. Then he moved an army into Italia. With none of us seemingly able to attack Emperor Martin, I was delighted to see the Priest King of Emesa turn up in Syria. Sam was less enamoured, but it looked like stopping Martin from getting another Emperor turn. I (2Y 3R) tried to attack the Allamani in Pannonia and lost (I rolled a 1-1 and Ian asked me to stop copying him) so I moved my army from Thracia into Pannonia, fought, won and then boosted support back in Thracia. Martin’s 2B was useless, but he boosted Macedonia with 2Y and added a legion to his army in Italia with his 2R.
Sam (7B) hired a governor, a generously paid tribute to the Alamanni in my Thracia, ignoring Ian’s plight in Britannia. Then, after deciding he’d never get into Rome, he decided to get voted into my Thracia instead. Ian expressed thanks that Sam hadn’t helped him in Britannia after all. Meanwhile Syria was lost to the Priest King.
Martin 21, Ian 16, Andrew 16, Sam 13
Round four: Ian (2B 6Y) was able to tribute the Franks in Britannia and then used his Mobile Vulgus to force Macedonia to turn neutral. He then chucked a mob in Martin’s Italia. Finally, in a perfect example of Ian’s own brand of defeatist optimism, he decided he may as well try to get voted into Rome. He needed four votes from 3 dice and he got three.
On my crisis roll, Ardashir arrived among the Sassanids slowly building up on the Syrian border. Then I (6B 4R) reinforced my army in Galatia, moved it into Syria and took down the Priest King. I then used my blues to get voted into Rome! Emperor Me!
Martin, though, had 4B 2R 2Y and two spare governors. He was voted back into Macedonia with one blue and boosted support there, and then strode straight back into Rome. I did a passable impersonation of Theresa May as my governor was handed back to me.
Sam (3R 2Y) moved his African army into the Nomad heartlands to attack the barbarians there, but was wiped out. With his last red point, he put the general back on the board in Africa with a legion. And he boosted support in Thracia.
Martin 28, Andrew 24, Ian 20, Sam 17
Round five and Ian’s crisis roll was a crisis indeed. Three sassanids (including Ardashir, their leader) piled into my undefended Galatia, and a fourth carried on into Asia. Ian stared at the board with little hope for the future. He was especially bitter about the army he’d moved into Italia in some now-forgotten plan of world domination. He used his 3R, 3B to move that unused army from Italia into Thracia where it killed the barbarians there and then got voted in there.
I had 3R 3B and moved my army from Pannonia into Macedonia to attack the Emperor in his homeland. And I won, with my legions rolling 6-6, getting voted in too. But then I lost Galatia to the Sassanid hordes. Martin (3B 3Y 2R) attacked the Sassanid in Asia and won. Then he got voted into Britannia, tributed the Franks there and boosted support too, just for good measure. Sam (3R 3B 5Y) was all about Syria this turn. He got voted back in (clearly on the promise of plenty of public spending) then built a basilica there, added a legion and a militia there and then attacked my wounded army who were still there. It was a draw. Another less-than-productive turn but at least Syria looked more presentable now.
Round six, Ian’s crisis roll put Cniva on the board along with his Goth friends. Meanwhile Ian (4B 3Y) used Mobile Vulgus to turn Martin’s Asia neutral, weakening the Emperor enough to get voted into Rome, getting six votes with five dice.
My crisis roll was Ira Deorum, so now Cniva had even more Goth friends to hang out with. I did very little with my 3Y, 2R and useless 2B: I added a legion in Macedonia and boosted support there, mentally flicking the Vs to Martin as I did so. Martin rolled the Goths onto the board with his crisis roll: three of them joined the Sassanid hordes in neutral Galatia and the fourth carried on into Sam’s Syria. Galatia was no pretty much a no-go area, with two barbarian leaders commanding two barbarian legions each. That’s eight dice lined up against anyone who fancied having a pop.
Meanwhile, on the board Martin (4B 4R and I think 1Y) only had one governor on the board and that was surrounded by the Franks in Britannia. He moved his now unseated army from Macedonia to Thracia and foederatied a Goth into it. Then he killed Ian’s army, got voted in with one blue and then became Emperor again with three blue points. Sam (1R 4B maybe?) killed the Goth in Syria, and was voted into now neutral Britannia, paying tribute to the Franks who’d been there so long they were starting to lose their French accents.
Martin 45, Andrew 36, Ian 35, Sam 31
Round seven: Ian (8R 3Y) built a new army in Gallia, reinforcing twice and moving it into Italia where it fought Martin’s two-legion army there and, despite a flanking maneuver, lost. So he built a basilica in Hispania. I roll my second Ira Deorum in a row. As for my turn (3R 7B) I was going to attack the Franks in Pannonia for easy points until Martin kindly pointed out I could reach Italia with my Macedonian army and fight him there. Maybe he just really wanted me to leave Macedonia so he could take it back. I followed his suggestion, won and then got voted into Rome. I was so excited I forgot to put on my points or buy a card until after Martin had started his turn. Which was a very neat and functional turn (3R 3Y 4B) getting him voted into Africa and taking back Macedonia and then neutralising Britannia with his Mobile Vulgus.
I'm emperor again and, at this point, feeling pretty good about my situation
Sam’s crisis roll dropped a whole load of trouble in his lap as 2 sassanids joined their friend in Syria and a third kept going into the previously untroubled Egyptus. Sam (1Y 1R 3B) attacked the Sassanids in Egypt with no hits on either side, but then was wiped out when he attacked them in Syria, receiving five hits in the process! He lost Egyptus, and tributed the Sassanids in Syria.
Martin 51, Andrew 45, Ian 38, Sam 35
Ian had a fallow round in round eight. His 2Y 1R 3B was not much use for anything. He got himself voted into the Barbarian packed Galatia and then boosted support there. I (1R 8B) foederatied a Frank into my army in Pannonia and then made him turn on his brothers stationed there. I won. With eight blue points, I got myself voted into Martin’s Macedonia even though I’d lose it immediately. I was hoping to distract him from unseating me in Rome. Martin (1Y 4R 3B) got voted back into Macedonia, reinforced his army there and then moved his army from Thracia into Pannonia and wiped out my army.
Sam (3Y 7R 5B) had his move of the game. He foederatied the sassanid from Egypt into his African army. Then he reinforced it, moved it into Italia and, attacked me. His Spiculum killed off my Frank before I knew what was happening and then he decimated me 4 hits to 1. Then he used a Mobile Vulgus to make Rome neutral and sauntered into the Senate. And he got voted into Egyptus as well.He still had three blue left so he recalled the governor from doomed Syria and tried to get voted into Thracia, needing to roll a six, but failed.
Martin 57 Andrew 53 Ian 44 Sam 44
Round nine would surely be the last round, we assumed, as we all loaded up on our best available cards. Ian (2B 3Y 9R) killed Sam’s army in Italia and then used four dice to get three votes. He rolled 6, 1, 1, 1 and then a 4. That was his plan up in smoke. He boosted support in Gallia and used the remaining one yellow point and his Mobile Vulgus to turn Martin’s Thracia neutral. It was then pointed out to him he could’ve used those three yellow points to weaken Sam in Rome and he’d have only needed two votes. He was appalled at himself especially, if my notes are correct, that was exactly the tactic he’d suggested to Sam only a few minutes beforehand. He then built a 3-legion army in Gallia, moved it into Pannonia and killed three barbarians there.
I (5B 2Y 5R) healed the army in Syria that had been doing nothing except sit there bleeding for most of the game, and then moved them into Egypt to attack Sam. But I failed, despite superior numbers and a flanking maneuver. My plans, too, were scuppered. I needed six votes from five dice but didn’t even come close. I had no provinces on the board and scored no points this round! Oh, the indignity.
Martin (6R 5B 3Y) moved his army from Asia into Egyptus and won, and was then voted in too. But wait! That was his spare governor! Had he blown his chances of being emperor? Would the game go on another round? He moved another army from Macedonia into Italia and beat Ian’s army 4-0. He then MVed Sam’s Africa into neutrality before recalling the governor from Asia and becoming Emperor. He passes sixty points and triggers the end game. The state of the board at this moment was a sight to behold: only Martin and Ian had any provinces and there were seven neutral governors.
Sam’s move, the last of the game, (6R 2B) allowed him to get Africa back, kill a Nomad (needs two armies to do it, though) but can’t get voted into Thracia.
And there it was, the end of the game. Six neutral territories and I only had one hapless army on the board.
Martin 78, Andrew 59, Ian 58, Sam 56
So what happened? The Mobile Vulgus was used often as people used yellow points to attack others instead of boosting support or building things. This meant that long-term plans seemed thin on the ground, as we all moved armies around, leaving provinces undefended, once we thought that we might be better off somewhere else. In fact this whole game was played out with only two level-four cards being bought, one of which was never actually played.
As I drove Sam and Ian home through the dense post-festival traffic, Sam said he wasn’t familiar enough with the game to know how strange it was while Ian and I just sighed and shook our heads in disbelief.
Good write-up Andrew! A fun night. ToC is a long game to play knowing you're completely out of the running, but despite my inefficiency and back-bench status I enjoyed returning to it. The fact I was in touching distance of Andrew and Ian at all was down to all the other players helping me out, so thank you chaps! I even got to be Emperor at one point, which is nice.
ReplyDeleteI think you're right that the Mobile Vulgus had a big impact - lots of yellow being spent on removing support instead of adding it made it hard to afford good cards and/or trash. Interesting as always!
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