Re-thinking my warband - Clash of Spear campaign interlude - end of turn 1

Malchus leads his men through drills.

With the first campaign turn ended, and my record at a frustrating 0-4, it is time to regroup, reorganize, and re-think the situation. But rather than just tell you what changes I have made, I think I'll let Malchus do it...

_____________________________________________

Malchus stalked through the camp. He had been in a foul mood of late, but this morning he was more out of sorts than usual. He had slept poorly, plagued by evil dreams of which he had no memory upon waking apart from a general feeling of doom.

His sandals rubbed uncomfortably on a bruise he had suffered in the last skirmish. A rock had hit him in the ankle, not hard enough to wound, but enough to raise a welt. Of course, the sandal strap lay right alongside it and the friction kept it from healing. The irritation added to his dark temper.

And if that weren't enough, he was hungry. Food was getting scarce and this morning’s scant offering of stale bread and overripe fruit did nothing to help his mood.

To the left of the camp, in an open field, he could see the newly recruited Numidian horsemen. They rode for pure joy and seemed more comfortable on their steeds than upon their own legs. He could hear their leader, Juba, shouting encouragement and exhortation as his riders wheeled and charged, putting themselves and their mounts through their paces.

He had heard of their prowess and been overjoyed when Juba had ridden up to the camp the week before and offered his troops' service. They would be a welcome addition to his company, giving him a more mobile element with which to react to the enemy's moves. 

Of course, especially of late, resources were more limited than usual so some sacrifices needed to be made to accommodate the newcomers. That sacrifice had been the citizen spearmen - literally.

Malchus squatted in the shade of the crosses upon which the bodies of the unfortunate citizens still hung and watched as one of his lieutenants, Syphon, led the Libyan spearmen through their drills. The spearmen were the heart of his band, though their performance in battle lately had been inconsistent. Syphon was doing well, learning to lead. Soon he would be ready to join him in the field.

Malchus thought that seeing the citizen's fate would motivate the troops, though he knew that his second-in-command, Bostar, disagreed. While Malchus commanded with absolute authority, he respected the younger man and listened when he spoke, even if he then disregarded the advice.

As if the thought of Bostar had summoned the officer, Malchus heard him walk up behind him.

“Sir,” Bostar began, “there is someone here for you to meet.”

Malchus turned his head without rising. Beside the tall, proud Bostar stood a withered little man. He was dressed in an ill-fitting, filthy robe and smelled worse than he looked. His face was so ugly as to be nearly deformed, and as he opened his mouth to speak Malchus saw the rotted teeth within.

“Silence!” bellowed Malchus, now rising to his feet. He turned to his second. “Bostar, what is the meaning of this? We barely have enough supplies left to feed ourselves and you bring me this...," Malchus paused to examine the wretched man, "... this beggar?”

Bostar, sensing his commander’s mood and knowing the danger of further angering him, stared straight ahead as he answered.

“No, my lord Malchus,” he said formally. “At your command, I’ve traveled to the nearby cities and towns in search of a priest. I inquired at the shrine of Baal in Segesta. None of the fat priests there were willing to leave their positions to join us on campaign, which I count as no great misfortune. But, as I was leaving, a local merchant approached and asked me to visit his home. When I asked why, he would only say, 'It has been foretold.' Curious, I went with him and he introduced me to Menestar, whom you see before you.”

Malchus grunted noncommittally, “Continue.”

"It seems that Menestar had been expelled from the temple recently for certain of his divinations that cast a poor light on the activities of the high priest and his cronies. Since that time he had been wandering the city, offering fortunes for food.

“The merchant had taken pity on him and had been feeding him and allowing him to sleep in the lot behind his home.”

Malchus lowered his tone menacingly, "And you thought it would be a good idea to bring me this disgraced priest?”

“No sir, not initially. But as I turned to depart the merchant's home, Menestar spoke.

'Dark have been your days of late, defeat by Greeks has been your fate.

By sons of the she-wolf you've been bested, the pride of Carthage sorely tested.

The plans of gods have yet to bear fruit, for you and the riders that you recruit.

All is not lost despite the pain, victory is possible and with it much gain.'”

Malchus’s anger had faded, now he was intrigued. “He said that? Surely he or the merchant overheard you speaking to the priests about our situation.”

“At first I thought that as well, my lord, but I did not mention the Numidians at the temple, and surely those are the ‘riders’ to which he refers? I believe him to be genuine. Despite his appearance, he has an air about him.”

“Well, he certainly does have an ‘air’ but that can be remedied with a dunk in the stream,” Malchus chuckled.

The fact that Bostar had been impressed by this unlikely character interested Malchus. He knew that his second-in-command didn’t place much stock in omens and such. That Bostar would vouch for this seer was enough for Malchus not to have him summarily executed.

He turned to face the priest. “Well, do you speak?”

“Not well, my lord Malchus, except when the gods choose to speak through me.” The priest’s voice was deeper and more resonant than Malchus had expected from his appearance.

“You say you speak for the gods?” Malchus’s tone turned serious.

“My lord, at times the words I say and the things I see do not come from within myself. I believe they do come from the gods.”

"That is a bold claim, little man," Malchus replied, coming to a decision, "And it is one we shall put to the test."

Malchus turned to Bostar, “Very well. Get him cleaned up and situated. Then gather Syphon and meet me in my tent. We have much to discuss.”

He turned once more to the seer. “As for you, we shall see if it is as you say. I have no patience for tricksters or frauds.” He inclined his head to indicate the crosses. “And as you see, failure comes with a high price.”

As Bostar led Menestar away, Malchus began to walk toward the mounted Africans. Their first mission would be to scout westwards and find either food or foe. To Malchus, either would do just as well.

_____________________________

For turn 2 of the campaign, we can build warbands of 800 points, an increase from turn 1's 600 points.

Because of my lackluster efforts in turn 1, neither of my leaders was able to level up, so I am still at five command points (CP) for my army, unless I add a third leader.

Adding a fifth unit with the extra 200 points without increasing my available CP doesn't make much sense to me. If I stay at five CP, then having five units will leave no margin for attempting reactions or even activating my leaders themselves. Adding a third leader (another level 2) then is a must.

But what to do with the points I have left? 

I'm definitely replacing one unit (dropping the underperforming Punic citizens in favor of Numidian cavalry).

With what's left I think I'm going to add a second unit of javelin men and a soothsayer, putting me at 798 points. If my soothsayer model comes in before the start of the turn I can save 5 points, but I don't think it'll get here in time.

Syphon leads a unit of spearmen.

I believe the Numidians and additional javelin men will give me the maneuverability and ranged attacks that were missing with the Punic citizens. 

I will, of course, report back with the results of the first battle. Hopefully, I will get to write about a victorious Malchus. If not, well, he's running out of crosses and men...

'Til next time!

(Edit: I don't place my trust in the "gods," regardless of what Malchus believes, but rather in cold steel. So I'm dropping the soothsayer in exchange for an extra spearman. With the tweaks, my list comes in right at 800 points.)