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Miniatures Adventure => Age of Myths, Gods and Empires => Topic started by: markw on March 06, 2020, 09:24:06 AM

Title: Philip v Macedon
Post by: markw on March 06, 2020, 09:24:06 AM: Hi,
I am putting together a small force for Clash of Spears. I want to do a small later Macedon force and apart from the Phalanx core troops. What other troops would be available apart from skirmishes of course. Would he have fielded Thuerphoroi, Thorakitai and Thracians?

Thanks
Title: Re: Philip v Macedon
Post by: Easy E on March 06, 2020, 02:55:57 PM: Agema and Peltasts......

This might be useful... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonid_Macedonian_army
Title: Re: Philip v Macedon
Post by: D. Brownie on March 06, 2020, 07:19:38 PM: Hi,
from "Armies of the Macedonians and Punic wars"...
Please don't use pikemen...
Davide
https://www.academia.edu/33809977/Macedonian_Armies_after_Alexander_323_168_BC
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:abo:tlg,0543,001:18:24
Title: Re: Philip v Macedon
Post by: Jjonas on March 07, 2020, 12:20:59 AM: Pikemen seem silly in a skirmish. Macedonian phalangites in earlier times mostly used javelins in skirmishes and sieges. In Philip V times, the phalanx was much more rigid and seems to have not been useful in the battles for the passes that the Romans excelled at. However in one siege assault a phalanx unit defended a breach so well that Romans were forced to break off the siege and give up in humiliation.

Normally the skirmish actions in the Macedonian Antigonid army fell to the Thracians, Illyrians, Cretans and other useful mercenaries (horse and foot) they hired in abundance. The Thracians used the thureos, but other thureophoroi seem lacking in big battles- but as AMPW states - were of great use in garrisons. The Macedonians also hired other Balkan migrants such as the Bastarnae - but they were deterred by Thracians from intervening with Philip or Perseus' wars with Rome.
There is even an account of a failed attempt by Cretan archers to hold a pass against Roman legionaries. They failed because the pikemen were off somewhere else picking their noses. Which was the problem for the phalanx that Polybius describes. It doesn't work with dribs and drabs, small units cant hold areas, only the massed phalanx. Romans were strategically more flexible as their units were more used to operating in cohorts for special missions. Tactically, of course, the phalanx kept getting tangled up in rough ground and not deploying properly. Two good ways to lose any fight.
Title: Re: Philip v Macedon
Post by: Wiegraf on March 07, 2020, 12:43:41 AM: Yes, Pikemen are an option in CLASH and they have stats for some in the Pyrrhic list.. but honestly, for a skirmish based game pikemen seem rather silly. Going for the other unit types you mentioned make a lot more sense. Leave the pikemen for big rank and file games ;)
Title: Re: Philip v Macedon
Post by: Easy E on March 11, 2020, 08:09:08 PM: At the time, wasn't the term 'Macedonain" typically to mean a man who could fight in the Phalanx, whether they were from Macedon or not?