SEA OF DOOM #5 : GETTING THE DUCKS IN A ROW - ORDERS OF BATTLE

 Herodotos conveniently provides orders of battle for the two sides. It is possible to nit-pick over details but in the overall scheme of 1500 or so ships fine details are not so important.

Rank hath its privileges

The biggest challenge is to assign the ships to a manageable number of counters. There doesn't seem any point in making a counter for every 10 or 20 or for each ship. The map game is just a way of easily providing variation for the clash of models. To reiterate - because a simple re-run of history is predictable and dull we are seeking here to provide some unexpected surprises and variation whilst still keeping contact with the ancient events.

The appropriate notes can be scribbled on the reverse of the counters thus preserving some uncertainty for the opponent until the battle lines meet.

My obols are on the cat

GREEKS - these can be ordered after ethnic lines relatively easily. The massive Athenian contingent being divided to make sure each counter includes about 30 ships.

PERSIANS - fewer and larger  contingents mean we can follow a similar principle but allot about 100 ships to each counter - one could just as easily use 50 - so as to keep the number of counters manageable.

A NOTE ON QUALITY - Following the basic variables of  + / - / = as outlined before, each counter needs to be labelled for quality. + being superior, = being average and - being deficient. There is no need to refer to rules here because who knows what models and rules will be used at last? Just the relative quality needs to be known for now.

ORDERS OF BATTLE FOR SALAMIS - COUNTER BY COUNTER  

GREEKS - 12 COUNTERS about 30 per counter

ATHENS - 6 counters each of 30 ships     3 +    3=

MEGARA - 20 ships =

NORTHERN STATES - Ambracia7, Leucas3, Ceos 2 Pentekonters, Naxos1, Styra 2, Cynthus 1 plus 1pentekonter, Crotoniats1, Melians 2 pentekonters, Syphnians 1 pentekonter, Serephians 1 pentekonter  all rated -

EUBOEANS - Troezen2, Hermione3, Chalkis20, Eretria7    all rated -

PELOPONNESIANS - Sparta 16, Sicyon15, Epidaurus10  all rated =

CORINTH - 40 rated +

AEGINA - 30 rated +

PERSIANS - 12 COUNTERS about 100 per counter

PHOENICIANS - 3 x 100 ships  all rated +

EGYPTIANS - 2 x 100 ships all rated +

HELLESPONTINES - 100 rated =

IONIAN GREEKS - 100 rated =

DORIANS AND CARIANS - 100 rated =

CYPRIANS - 150 rated =

CILICIANS - 100 rated -

AEOLIANS AND ISLANDERS - 77 rated -

PAMPHYLIANS AND LYKIANS - 80 rated -

The ratings can be tweaked as desired. The main thing is to give variation to each fleet.