And in the seventh year of the fifth sheaf, the Lord Water Monster did decree that we should set forth by canoe, and paddle into the uttermost east. Great and diverse were the monsters of the voyage, not least the perils of the Purser, for, lo! Lord Water Monster hadst neglected to pay full fares, so that we scurried hither and thither, seeking only a rest, and land to set foot upon.
Then did we find lands to set foot upon, for the Great Captain didst address us all, saying to all gathered "Kick this scum off the ship at the first sight of land", and we planted our feet firm upon Father Earth, and rejoiced, filling the votive urns with the thanks of our stomachs yet again.
Lord Water Monster didst sacrifice a passing peasant to the Humming Bird, divining that these lands wert called Sparta, and that the strange attired men in the distance were soldiers of the land. To our right extended the bottomless sea, with weird whales, spreading wings above them, while in the distance was a vinyard, withered and sere in the winter chill.
The Spartans lined this field of vines with their trusty spearmen, with a thin line of them glittering in the winter sun, stretching south to the seashore. More spearmen covered the rest of the field, with a deep column stretching back to form the L of Spartan legends. Behind these were a few strange man-beasts, with the head of a man, but the legs of a beast.
The Revered Speaker didst decree that the Knights of the Eagle should line themselves to the right, led by Lord Bobbing Reed, while he would lead the Quachicatl warbands against the vinyards. The Otomi warbands and archers, under Lord Three-Old-Men-in-a-Leaky-Canoe would take the left of the field, while the Jaguar Knights and much of the clansmen would make an invocation to Ayatocpoctli, God of the Small Windy Roads With Sufficient Tree Covering, and head off to sack the Spartan camp.
Lord Water Monster commenced by offering a sacrifice to Tichothan, God of Heavenly Flatulence, and he showed his mercy to us by blasting the land with great winds, pinning down the sea monsters to a crawling move. Then AxalDiip, God of the Pip Dice, did shower a great benefice upon us, and indeed did continue his favour throughout the battle.
The Spartans did then intrude their strange man/beast monsters, loosing them in a charge at the Otomi. One band of these, shaking in terror, did quit the field in a rush, but the rest stood firm, and found that these strange beastmen could be killed by a rush of javelins and a firmly wielded maquahitl, breaking the charge up and repelling the manbeasts.
The Jaguar Knights then fell upon the Spartiate flank guards. These were so cunningly positioned, and spaced apart, that progress was very slow. Meanwhile the Otomi rushed ahead, disordered, and some fell victim to flights of javelins from pesky skirmishers, while the rest drove through them, seeking some spearmen to fell.
On the right, one of the water beasts unfurled its' wooden wings, and stirred the waters, eventually coming near the shore and bombarding the clansmen there with rocks, to little effect. The spearmen to their front pushed forward timidly, eventually coming to grips with the clansmen, tho' shunning the sharp blades of the Eagle knights. They heaved and pushed at the clansmen, but to no great effect either.
On the left, the Otomi, although split and disorganised, continued to throw fear amongst the enemy, killing enough of the manbeasts to drive them headlong from the field, then rending holes in the line of spearmen, gradually, while the Jaguar Knights relentlessly drove back the flank guards, tho with little loss of life. However, the end of the line had finally been cleared by the eager clansmen, who started wrapping around the end of their line.
Lord Water Monster, after much cursing and swearing, and tugging the Quachics around to face the retreating spearmen, finally launched his men in headlong assault. After an initial rebuff, the veterans girded their loins, ready to rejoin the battle.
The Speaker then offered the heart of a prisoner up in sacrifice to
TlaxoBarker, God of All Sixes, and he did smile upon the Azteca, wreaking
great destruction amongst the Spartans - their King Brasidas did fall to
the Quachics, and many a Spartan fell to the flashing black maquahitl of
the Jaguars, and the remnants of the Otomi fell upon the
end of the Spartan line, slaying left and right.
At the fall of Brasidas, the Spartan centre let out a wail, and quit the field, hotly followed by their remaining, battered flank guards, while the untouched and undaunted wing, safe beside the sea, stalked off the field, covering their retreat.
This was the first time I'd tried the Aztecs, and Duncan - home for a holiday - kindly obliged me by using Spartans, a relatively easy opponent for them. The battle was really decided by the first Pip dice, as the large flank march arrived immediately - Duncan had strung out his army with the intention of rushing me, & closing with the ontable troops before the flank march arrived. After that stroke of luck, it was really just a grinding match, with my huge advantage in numbers outweighing his superior troop quality.
The Aztec army is, i've decided, quite demented - with so much impetuous troops, it's largely unmanouvereable, regular generals or no, but the sheer bulk of it does pose problems for almost anyone ... although I suspect it will melt like butter if faced by massed WB.