Game:

Field of Glory II (2017)

Duration: 1:25:29

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4

Sick of living under the oppression of a distant monarch the Syrians and Canaanites have thrown the Egyptian pharaohs out of the Levant. God-kings tend to take such displays of public displeasure poorly and so it was inevitable that Thutmose III would set out to destroy the rebellion and bring our strategically important region back under their control. After slipping through a narrow pass unnoticed due to incompetent scouting by the rebels, Thutmose has emerged with a gigantic army to assault the relatively humble rebel army defending the hills around Megiddo.

Faced with annihilation, the king of Megiddo turns to a little known mercenary general for help. He knows that while the Egyptian infantry cannot be confronted as a full force, they might make mistakes if drawn into a pursuit, and if separated from their forces, they may become vulnerable. He also knows that despite all their pomp and arrogance, the Egyptian chariot force is beatable by the rebellion's own provided they use the terrain correctly. If the chariot force can be broken then perhaps the infantry can then be rounded upon or at least distracted...

There is a sea of Egyptians out there. With such horrendous odds arrayed against them can the Syro-Canaanite rebellion hope to win even with an asymmetrical strategy?

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Spoilers!

This was a hellish test of concentration and micromanagement. The combination of massed archers and much better enemy infantry attacking defensive (and thus largely passive) spearmen meant that trying to hold either flank was futile while the infantry force was still intact. Breaking through the chariots here was a matter of pure luck, and even with carefully directed fire I was lucky to get as many disruptions on the Egyptian chariots as I did. Sitting back and firing is not an option as the Canaanite chariots simply don't have enough ammunition to beat the second Egyptian line, and the advancing infantry won't brook such a delay anyway. As the enemy infantry advanced I was close to giving up on hope, but the AI scattered its forces as they usually do and I was able to seize key chances to pin and then flank (or otherwise disable Egyptian units. The Egyptian right flank then descended upon my struggling forces but I was able to keep ahead of them just long enough to end the battle in a victory for the rebellion.

This was a frustrating test of endurance. I am not looking forward to doing this again as the Egyptians next week, but at least they have the advantage of the initiative. Winning here felt like holding back a tsunami with a sponge.

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