"Rock the Casbah!" - The Wars in Persia, at Roll Call 2025
Sassanid Persian vs Maurikian Byzantine
Game 1 Sassanid Persian vs Maurikian Byzantine
Game 2 Sassanid Persian vs Sassanid Persian
Game 3 Sassanid Persian vs Konstantinian Byzantine
Game 4 Sassanid Persian vs Maurikian Byzantine
Game 5 Sassanid Persian vs Fatimid Egyptian
Roll Call, the first "big" UK event of the year hove into view in mid April, coinciding with some unseasonably decent weather for once.
The theme was a "Wars in Persia" one, looking at the armies and enemies who may have fought across the Iranian Plateau and Fertile Crescent from just after the end of the Achaemenids to the time of the Mongols - so, a pretty horsey set of opponents would be in prospect !
I'd elected to take a Sassanid Persian army, firmly in the heartland of the theme and using a load of mostly Legio Heroica figures which hadn't really seen much table time in many years, perhaps even since the 2017 BHGS Challenge at the NEC in Birmingham (yoiks!).
The Sassanid Persian army was a powerful and highly organized military force that existed from 224 to 651 CE, serving the Sassanid Empire in its long-standing rivalry with the Roman and Byzantine Empires. Its combination of traditional Persian military practices with tactics adopted from neighbouring civilizations, playing a crucial role in defending and expanding the empire.
The list features a strong core of heavy cavalry, both in the fully armoured form of cataphracts and the larger number of bow-armed Clibanarii.
The army list also includes light cavalry, levy infantry, some fierce Dailami mercenaries and of course elephants, giving it both flexibility and striking power - but fitting all of this into a list is rather tricky.
I had opted to forgo the Cataphracts, and instead have a couple of elephants, the Dailami, plenty of Clibanarii and a surprise package in the shape of an Arab allied contingent, which game me plenty of Light Horse with javelins and a block of 3 camel warriors who could use the "panic" of their camels to go toe to toe with potentially far better equipped enemy cavalry.
The lists for the Sassanid Persian and Maurikian Byzantine from this game, as well as all the other lists from the games at Roll Call can be seen here in the L'Art de la Guerre Wiki.
Having really pushed the boat out this time around I even indulged myself with a practice game, which was eventually won after an epic wait for the Arab ally to arrive on table on a flank march, after starting unreliable and off table.
This painful experience was a good reminder not to send a large, important and most importantly of all, ALLIED command on a flank march, but at least this did surely mean that the Arabs had used up one of their unreliable incidents in practice, so would be fine during the actual competition?
The first round saw the Sassanids taking on one of the more popular lists in the competition, a Maurikian Byzantine army with a whole host of double-armed cavalry with lance and bow
Several steep hills rather constrained the Sassanid deployment, which I guess was my fault for putting them on table and choosing mountain terrain, but even so a narrow field felt like a decent outcome for the 2 Sassanid Elephants to cause maximum damage to the Byzantines with a simple aggressive charge supported by horsemen and camels on either wing
L'Art de la Guerre hint - Oddly enough, "Mountain" terrain can be surprisingly open - perhaps representing the high steppes in the heart of Asia maybe?
The key aspect of Mountain as a terrain choice is that it only has 2 "Brush" areas of rough terrain, after which pretty much everything else is "Difficult" - which is kinda no use to anyone.
If therefore as defender you pick 2 minimum sized blobs of Brush, and a teeny tiny mountain too that leaves the opponent with a tough choice - take more "Difficult" mountains, woods or the Marsh which almost no-one can make use of, or just accept the table will be fairly open up on the High Steppe
(Yes, there are also 2 "Rough" Gullies in Mountain. But no-one knows how they work, so no-one really takes them - or possibly that's the other way round ?)
The Mauricians here also had a Turkish ally, and the deployment had seen both armies line up their allied opposite one another on the same (my left) flank.
But, as it turned out, the Sassanid's Arab allied contingent would not be troubling the Turks unduly, as they - for the second consecutive game - rolled a 1 for their first pip dice, rendering them Unreliable!
L'Art de la Guerre hint - I'm sure I've told you this rule before - but the narrative pretty much explains it anyway I think!
By the hump of my grandmother’s camel! The lack of enthusiasm by the hired help of the Sassanids clearly inspired the Turks, who also opted not to join in on behalf of their own paymasters either
With both sides now enjoying an unreliable ally, the extremely constrained board was now even more narrowed, as neither army commander would want to send any of his own troops close enough to the unreliable enemy contingent so as to trigger them automatically back into life.
This side of the board would therefore be fairly quiet until one or other of the allies managed to roll a 6 with their pip dice in a subsequent turn!
The Sassanians
The rest of the table was however a maelstrom of action. As if sharing a signal to get on and finish the job without their allies being able to claim any credit, both lines surged forward with terrifying grace, like twin storms racing to collide.
Hooves thundered, arrows hissed through the air, and the first volleys of mounted (and infantry) archery turned the sky into a screaming storm of barbed death.
A handful of riders fell, some hit markers sprouted behind injured steeds, but neither side wavered as they pressed what they hoped would be an advantage.
What's Going on Here Then?
Missing the Arab ally is a bit of downer, as the three camels would really fancy their chances against a small block of cavalry such as the Turkic command opposite them has, but even so a narrow table means that the Sassanid Elephants will potentially be able to spread "panic" across quite a lot of the enemy line.
Fear of the elephants - and the highly effective infantry archer nestled between them - has kept some of the Byzantines most effective cavalry out of the game so far, allowing me to stack what I hoped would be just about enough of my own good quality cavalry on my right wing to first absorb, and then defeat the inevitable charge from the somewhat 2nd string of Byzantine horsemen facing them
The Byzantines charged home immediately, piling into the Sassanid Asarvan at breakneck speed, their charge silent at first, and then a growing crescendo of hooves, steel, and war cries which crashed upon the Persians like a tidal wave.
The two ranks of armoured horsemen clashed in a cacophony of steel and muscle, sabres flashing, lances shattering on impact (actually, these were both armies of metal figures so none of the problems which sadly are still inherent in many 3D printed models here!).
The air filled with the clang of iron and the cries of men locked in mortal struggle, as the first round ended somewhat shaded by the Byzantines, with a hole appearing in the end of the Sassanid line as the the two iron waves crashed together, rolled back and surged again with almost equal force.
With the Byzantine left wing having impaled itself on the Sassanid right, the main body of Elephants charged forward, their trumpeting split the air with a sound that froze blood and shattered nerves.
Any cavalryman who dared stand their ground would surely have found themselves crushed underfoot or flung like dolls by flailing tusks - which is probably why the creme of the Byzantine army simply turned a sensible retreat into something of an art, firing over their shoulders with deadly calm as they fell back ahead of the randomly rampaging pachyderms.
But the space opened up by the mad elephant charge was now about to be exploited by the Dailami hillmen, who swung into the recently vacated space, carefully sidestepping any elephant poop patties left behind as gifts from Blue Peter's finest hour as they homed in on the flanks of the fully committed Byzantines.
Blue Peter Pooping Elephant
(For many years this clip was widely regarded by most of the British population as the greatest 3 minutes of television ever aired.)
The ground quaked as the war elephants advanced, each step a drumbeat of doom echoing across the plain as the beasts towered above the battlefield, their armoured hides gleaming like grey painted pebble dashed 4-legged outside privvies on the move through the back streets of some Northern industrial town's last surviving tenement terraces
But, with the elephants overcommitted and leaving their supporting Dailami far behind gingerly picking their way through the pachyderm poop minefield, suddenly the Byzantine commander gave the signal.
A blast of a curved Constantiopalese warhorn saw the Byzantine cavalry turn about, and suddenly well equipped cavalry were attacking the isolated elephants from all sides as the Byzantines surged forward with terrifying grace, like twin storms racing to collide over the Bosphorus.
Hooves thundered, arrows hissed through the air, and the lances of the Byzantines pierced the elephants flanks creating a screaming storm of barbed death as the mahouts fell, their steeds collapsing under the unexpected assaults.
What's Going on Here Then?
The Sassanid Elephants have overcommitted, and their initial success in chasing off some of the Byzantine horse meant they were also unable to help out their own Cavalry, who are starting to struggle against the Byzantine horsemen over on my right wing.
Once isolated, the Byzantines no longer fear the elephants, and are attacking them from all sides. My hope now is that this sequence of elephant-destroying combats is taking place sufficiently far up the table that the Dailami and archers the elephants have left behind have time and space to swing decisively into the flank of the main body of Byzantine cavalry, helping out my onw Asarvan to re-establish a tactical advantage before the elephant killing Byzantines return to the fray.
By the sacred shadow of my sandal! The sight of their legendary elephants falling to a flurry of enemy horsemen sent a wave of confusion rippling through the Persian ranks.
And then, at this perfect moment, the Byzantines unleashed hitherto hidden reserves of fury - the Kavallorio suddenly gained extra impetus, and took the fight to the Persian Clibanarii as if possessed.
The supposedly equally matched Byzantines were instantly in the ascendant, breaking through the distracted Persians and sweeping them away with brutal finality.
The clash was savage — Iranian armour crumpled, spears pierced flesh, and the Persian formation shattered under a crushing weight of shock and surprise.
In the meantime, the Turks & Arabs were still conversing gently at long distance, neither command having moved a muscle, their mounts stock still and grazing calmly on the very limited amounts of grass on the Rafa-esque desert cloth which I only realised was not a green one a little too late in the process of writing this sentence
Neither would play a part in this battle, but at least some cultural cross fertilization has taken place which would see several lamb kebab recipes exchanged across the relatively narrow cultural divode
With the Arabs out of the picture, the rest of the Sassanid army was in bits and being utterly smashed by the jubilant Byzantines
The Persians, outmanoeuvred and now outfought. began to falter. Riders tried to regroup, but panic spread like wildfire. Some fled, others stood and were cut down, their banners trampled beneath hooves.
Long before 11am, the golden sands of the desert plain fell quiet.
L'Art de la Guerre hint - We actually stopped the battle here, as my army had reached what I thought was its' break point, calcuilating that total as being less the 7 non-participating, unreliable Arabs.
A little while after I remembered that this is incorrect, and only troops "off table" don't count towards the army break point, but an on table ally does still contribute.
This is on p69, in the section Army Rout - which has also been errata'ed to remove the reference to ambushes not counting. So, it's only troops off table on a flank march who you don't count.
In reality this cock-up on my part made absolutely no difference anyway - I'd lost almost all my combat troops, the Byzantines were a long way off breaking themselves and they'd have won anyway, even under the correct rules (!) in a turn or so.
Crows now circled above the battlefield as the Byzantine post-battle thievery department rode slowly among the fallen Persians — bloodied but victorious.
Through daring and discipline they had turned over the ancient empire of Persepolis with steel, violence, and an utterly useless non-contribution from the Persians Arabian allies.
Click here for the report of the next game in this competition, or read on for the post match summaries from the Generals involved, as well as another episode of legendary expert analysis from Hannibal
Post Match Summary from the Sassanid Persian Commander
Let it be known to all gathered in this hall, scribes and satraps, warriors and priests, that the sun does not blame itself for clouds that veil its light. Nor does the lion account for the cowardice of the jackals.
On the field of Qasr-e-Turab, where our banners flew proud and our warriors held firm, fate turned her gaze—not by the will of Ohrmazd, but by the sloth of those who pledged fealty and gave none. While our noble immortals bled under the swords of the Roman tricksters, where were our Arab 'allies'—those desert-charmed flatterers from Hira?
Aye, I saw them. Garbed in silks we gifted them, astride horses we bred, they watched from their dune-side perch as our brave sons were cut down. Not a spear thrown, not a blade drawn. Their silence roared louder than our horns.
And now, some whisper of haste—of overconfidence! They dare say I moved too swiftly, that I did not wait for the Lakhmid host to stir. But tell me—what is a pact worth when the tongue is forked and the sword stays sheathed? Would you have your King beg for loyalty already sworn?
Nay! I acted as a Shahanshah must—boldly, as the lineage of Darius commands. I cannot be blamed if the jackal turns fox and plays still while the lion charges!
Let the minstrels sing it straight: we were betrayed not by strength nor by Rome’s cunning, but by the soft-footed Lakhmids, who wear our coins yet hide when swords are drawn. Let every desert wind carry this: the throne of Ctesiphon does not forget. The fire of Atar may dim, but it does not die.
So let us rebuild, reforge, and remember who stood, and who slunk into the sand.
Hannibal's Post Match Analysis
Ah, Khosrow Dastan, Lion of the Sands, Falcon of Failure, Shahanshah of Shenanigans!
You weave your tales with all the subtlety of a Bedouin in a date orchard claiming he invented the palm tree. Your speech, Shah, is a silken tent over a camel's behind—ornate, perfumed, and flapping uselessly in the wind
Tell me — who but a genius such as yourself would entrust the fate of an empire to allies whose greatest martial feat is vanishing into a sandstorm before the battle horn sounds?
And yet you placed them, like forgotten sandals at the edge of the camp, far on your flank where even the Byzantines said, ‘Oh, leave them be, they’ll probably fall asleep or start selling frankincense.'
You claim they did not move. Perhaps they were meditating. Or divining omens from the flight path of dung beetles. Did you ask them why? Did you stir them? Or were you too busy preening atop your war elephant like a rooster on a spice cart?
Your plan—if such a desert mirage can be called a plan—was this: march forward blindly, hope the Lakhmids wake up, and blame them when they don't. Brilliant! Why draw the Byzantines towards them? Why force a choice? Why manoeuvre? You’re not a general, you’re a gambler with a sand-addled skull.
You call their inaction betrayal. I call it predictability. You knew they were unreliable—like a camel promised as dowry that turns out to be a goat in a blanket. And still you leaned on them like a drunk on a date palm.
You speak of fate and treachery. I speak of incompetence, wrapped in gold thread and riding a howdah
Oh, noble Shah, prince of poor planning, oiled and perfumed master of military mime! Go back to your perfumed gardens, gather your astrologers, and ask the stars why they weep when you take to the battlefield.
Next time you wish to conquer the Byzantines, try something new—like thinking. Or listening. Or not placing your hopes on men who count sheep for strategy and sandstorms for backup.
Hannibal Reply
And please—spare us your next chronicle of glorious self-delusion. I hear enough whinnying from the stables
Yours, with enduring disdain, Hannibal Barca, conqueror of fools, whisperer of elephants, and your better in every age. May the fleas of a thousand camels tickle your dignity and scratch some sense into you before the next game!
Click here for the report of the next game in this competition
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Game 1 Sassanid Persian vs Maurikian Byzantine
Game 2 Sassanid Persian vs Sassanid Persian
Game 3 Sassanid Persian vs Konstantinian Byzantine
Game 4 Sassanid Persian vs Maurikian Byzantine
Game 5 Sassanid Persian vs Fatimid Egyptian
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