Pennsic - Part 1 - Field Battle

I just got back from Pennsic and took down several notes.  I have a lot to talk about, and I don't tend to write these blogs too quickly, so I thought I'd break them up into several parts.  Some of the lessons learned from Pennsic are based on my unit's successes, while others are based on mistakes that we made.  In either case, I felt that tactical decisions had a huge impact on the results of our battles.

For this first post I'm going to focus on the perspective of Anglesey and the Bog Troopers (includes The Concusare and Galatia) in the first field battle.  Though we only brought a small unit of veteran fighters (~10), we managed to kill someone on the order of 50 opponents in each battle while securing the right flank for the Midrealm.

Field Battle Plan

The overall battle plan for this first battle was for the entire army to sweep left, hoping to avoid the Tuchux and other units that were lined up on our right and up the hill.  We were on our far right flank, supporting a much larger Atlantian army.  We considered a number of options, including running behind Atlantia and hiding in the backfield while waiting for an opportunity to exploit, but decided, instead, that we would move out to the right and give the Tuchux something that they would have to deal with as they moved down the hill.

As the battle began, we noticed two things that impacted our tactics.  1)  The Tuchux never came down the hill, but instead waited up there in reserve and 2) a large unit went straight at Atlantia, leaving their left flank completely exposed as they did so (not sure who it was, but it was a rather large unit, and I noticed Duke Tindal and Duke Byron in the mix, so I'm guessing it might have been the Aethelmearc army).

Realizing that the Tuchux would not be an immediate threat and seeing an opportunity of an exposed flank on our left, we turned and hit the large unit right in the flank.

This position put us at an excellent advantage.  Atlantia's front was matching the front of this large unit while Atlantia's right flank was completely protected.  The large unit, however, had a veteran unit attacking on its left flank.  

With their flank being attacked, they lose the advantage of having a unified front against a single unit.  Forward momentum is slowed, and fighters are being attacked from the side and/or from behind (with proper engagement).  It wasn't long before the entire unit was enveloped and killed.

Knowing that the Tuchux were likely coming up behind us, we continued to push through the unit and out the other side, circled right, and then turned to meet the Tuchux.  It turned out they weren't there as they went behind us, around, and into the back field.  By the time they had engaged, however, their side was down one of its sizable units.

Lessons to be Learned:

1-Protect Your Flanks

In this particular case, the larger unit from the other side left its flank completely unprotected.  Maybe they thought we were moving somewhere else.  Maybe they underestimated what a small unit with a disorganized appearance could do.  Either way, leaving their flank open hurt them in this battle.  

2-Bring as Many Weapons to the Fight as Soon as Possible

There are two aspects to this that are important.  First, I'm not a big fan of having a unit that goes 8+ ranks deep in an open field battle.  That leaves less than 15% of your force actively engaged.  More importantly, reserve units shouldn't wait to get themselves engaged.  Had the Tuchux moved maybe 30 - 60 seconds sooner, or even just moved themselves into a closer position where they'd had been a threat, the left flank of their battle would have played out much differently.