King David 300pts

 Hi

I had another go at the old King David rules yesterday, but playing solo. Both games were 300pts, getting close to the upper limits of what the system can comfortably handle, with the suggested size being 200-250pts, but as I had the day to myself, I wanted to try a bigger army. First game was New Kingdom Egyptians VS Sea Peoples, and the second Hittite vs Assyrian. Both games were from ( very ) approx 1200bc. 

I didn't bother with the Divine Favour rules as , given that I was playing solo, forcing myself to reroll and trying to counteract that would get very confusing very quickly, as I would forget who I was supposed to be rolling for ( or against).. 

I found the Hero mechanism of the game fun, with most of the effects having a penalty as well as a bonus. I gave Rameses II the Gazelle hero type, as a bonus to movement seemed appropriate. He hurtled off at high speed and met his ancestors shortly thereafter. The initiative penalty this forced on the Egyptians proved disastrous , and ended in ignominious defeat, with  the loss that broke the army being a light chariot without the Action points to turn going full speed straight ahead into impassible ground ( an oasis) and dying.

The second game was more balanced, with the chariots proving their worth ( and high points cost) on both sides and the Infantry archers achieving little of value. The Hittites had the better of the clash and came back from an early set back to win the game. Rolling very well for trophies ( a D6 roll of a 6 after destroying an enemy in melee gives an extra victory point along with the value of the unit ) meant that they broke the Assyrians before their counterattack could gain ground. 

Overall, I really enjoy this quirky rule set. The back & forth  initiative system could have been messy, but marking each activated unit with a little D6 kept it clear enough and lead to a chaotic battlefield rather than the standard activation systems we are more familiar with. The chariots are very difficult to control once they inevitably speed out of command distance and careen around the battle field doing drive bys and crashing into each other.