It's been a good couple of years since the halls of Bristol Independent Gaming echoed to the sound of chariot wheels and bronze age warfare, but recently we dusted off Chariots Rampant (the Bronze age supplement for Lion Rampant from Wargames Soldiers and Strategy).
Umpiring the game for two Rampant newbies, Jim took on the role of Muwatalli the Merciless, leader of the Hittite Warriors of Tarḫunna, whilst Phil channelled his inner Kubaba the Conqueror, commander of the Warriors of the Green, a Sea Peoples warband now in possession of a stolen sacred camel that the Hittites desperately wanted back!
Kubaba advances as part of a forward screen comprising of him with The Lightning of the Sand Sea (light chariots) and The Death Rainers (archers).
Meanwhile Muwatalli leads The Eye of the Storm (light chariots) forward, supported by The Vengeful Arm (veteran heavy infantry), with The Conquerors and The Stalwart Wall (both heavy infantry) following The Stabbers (skirmishers).
The Sea Peoples spread out with The Mighty Death-Bringers (Lukka warrior infantry) escorting the captured sacred camel, with The Thundering Hooves (ox-carts) moving remorseless forward to support their warlord.
The Lightning of the Sand Sea charge forward, Kubaba the Conqueror killing two of The Stabbers hiding in the palm trees.
Whilst The Vengeful Arm move forward to engage The Wind Runners (Trekker light infantry).
The Lightning of the Sand Sea charge into The Stalwart Wall but are beaten off, losing one chariot!
But The Thundering Hooves show how it is done, mercilessly hammering The Vengeful Arm and The Conquerors and trampling many a Hittite under their hooves and wheels!
Meanwhile The Ferocious Fiends (Lukka warrior infantry) attack The Stalwart Wall, but the Hittites beat them off.
However Kubaba sends The Death Rainers forward to shoot down the Hittite spear.
Meanwhile, their fellow archers, The Sky Blackeners, engage The Anvil of Heaven, a Hittite light chariot unit that was trying to outflank the Sea Peoples and re-capture the scared camel.
Sending the Hittites packing!
The Thundering Hooves (the King Tigers of the Biblical Age in my opinion) continue to trample The Vengeful Arm into the dust...
Before moo-ving in on The Conquerors...
Crushing the Hittite spear under their hooves! Muwatalli the Merciless flees the battlefield as the Ox-carts relentlessly plod forward.
With the Hittite right now just a bloody smear in the desert sand, The Death Rainers moved forward to engage the remaining enemy troops...
Raining death on The Stalwart Wall!
Which eventually crumbled!
Leaving a solitary Stabber alone to carry news of Muwatalli the Merciless's failure to recover the sacred camel to Hattusa and Kubaba the Conqueror's glorious victory...
It's been a long time since Lion Rampant (or the Chariots Rampant variant) had been on the table down Bristol Independent Gaming, and I'd forgotten what fast, furious and bloody fun it can be - even if I was somewhat rusty on remembering some of the rules...
Looked a lot of fun.
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