Volko’s test replay of Levy & Campaign Volume III proceeds into the scenario’s first Campaign, with the formation of each side’s Plan, while he incorporates and explains some ongoing development of the game. All art shown is merely for playtest, not final. …

In the first two parts of our Inferno replay we set up this introductory scenario (set in the Spring of 1259) and then Levied some added forces. Now it’s time to Plan each side’s Campaign—the movement of troops and stuff by marching and gathering supply and their pursuit of objectives by ravaging, besieging, and perhaps even fighting each other.

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Here again is our situation in Tuscany, with Guelph and Ghibelline armies in the field (the cylinders, “Lords”) and towns in revolt on either side of the rather faint red/white political line. If you recently read the previous replay parts, you may spot that some markers are changed: what happened to the “Rebels”?

Good eye! In the midst of this little test game, we made some broad adjustments to the game design’s rules for Revolt. We streamlined them by merging “Conquered” and “Rebels” victory markers into just “Guelph” or “Ghibelline” Allegiance. A change from ½VP Rebels to 1VP Guelph/Ghibelline also amplifies the incentives for going after Strongholds that are in revolt within a side’s own area. Finally, simpler Revolt procedures cut down on die rolls and put more of the responsibility for spread or squash of rebellion on the players than on luck of the dice.

Tuning this Revolt subsystem is essential to the feel of Inferno because it characterizes this Levy & Campaign volume compared to the rest. There is a political border across the region, but it is informal and highly contested. The reality is a patchwork of shifting allegiances, with adherents of either faction among the notables of each city and town, and the holder of any given castle susceptible to switching sides in the midst of a campaign. That is the political environment that will guide the captains’ march of armies. Players must feel the danger of contagious revolt and see opportunity in planting treachery in the enemy’s midst.

One way that the game brings in the unstable nature of rebellions to either spread or snuff out is that the presence of Guelph/Ghibelline Allegiance markers (in contrast to Stronghold’s printed purple and gold circles on the map) make the Revolt of nearby Strongholds more likely, such as by a random Revolt location table for each side. The more enemy Allegiance you have in your rear areas—and the more you have enemy armies running around there—the more likely that rolls on these tables will add Revolt to an adjacent Stronghold. On the other side of the issue, just Besieging a rebellious Town can lead it to give up, if it sees that things in the conflict generally are not going their chosen side’s way. Victories in the field—the Sack of a rebel Stronghold, for example—can earn rolls on these tables. So the fighting and politics become suitably intermeshed.

That at least is the design intent! Perhaps we have already achieved this vision. But since this underlay departs markedly from the political underlay to either Nevsky or Almoravid, testing and very likely tuning will continue—until we can be sure that the game brings 13^th-Century Tuscany to life.

So with that political context in hand, let us plan plan the combatants’ military maneuvers. In Levy & Campaign, each player after Levy will commit ahead of any maneuvers to a rough outline of the coming Campaign, in Infernorepresenting 60 days of activity. That outline is a hidden stack of Command cards—a Plan—that will activate individual Lords in a set order that each player has chosen.

Here is the first Campaign’s Plan for the Guelphs. Heraldry – coats of arms, banners, livery badges, or the like – mark the various Lords in Levy & Campaign games and therefore the maneuver forces. Here we see that the Plan stack held like a normal hand of cards will, when collapsed and placed face down on the table, result in a one-by-one activation of Lords in the order seen from left to right.

The Guelph Plan envisions several activations by Firenze’s Commander, who can join with Arezzo and advance together on the enemy. With a Surprise Event held by scenario “Night March” special rule, the objective will be to invest the rebel Town of Cortona and take it by the end of 60 days, either by Revolt or Surrender to Siege. Not all seven cards for the 60 days can activate Firenze, because each Lord has only three action and one Revolt card. So cards for Arezzo will contribute preparations such as Tax or Supply actions or advance the Siege once the joined army arrives at Cortona.

So I am opting for an somewhat historical course for Arezzo to take against its rebels: a “Cavallata per Cortona” (ride to Cortona) indeed!

The next graphic illustrates Firenze and Arezzo’s rough plan. But will the Sienese Ghibellines interfere? I have no idea, nor would a Guelph player in a true 2-player session.

Now to compose the Ghibelline Plan. There are options to head in any direction of the compass and achieve something, as there are enemy sympathies all about Siena. For test purposes, as I want to see a direct clash play out, I will assume that the Sienese will seek to support they fellow Ghibellines at Cortona and in the process seize or Ravage the Locales in Arezzo’s immediate neighborhood.

Getting their army from Siena to Cortona will be a bit tricky, as the Guelphs in charge of Montepulciano in opposition to Siena are blocking the friendly route eastward. So the Plan will be to March around them and perhaps take the Guelph Castle of Monte San Savino along the way.

Here we see the Ghibelline Plan stack (still face up) and necessarily vague concept for the army’s line of March.

(A brief correction of an error in the previous article: I called the Sienese special Vassals Sestieri [meaning “Sixths”]. In fact, Siena’s three urban districts mustered in Terzi [“Thirds”]. It was the larger city of Florence that mustered Sestierifrom its six districts. The correct terms will appear in Inferno itself, naturally.)

In the next part, we shall see how the Guelph and Ghibelline Campaign Plans interact!

To be continued.

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Previous Articles in This Series: 

Cavallata per Cortona – INFERNO Scenario Replay, Part 1

Cavallata per Cortona – INFERNO Scenario Replay, Part 2

Later Articles in This Series: 

Cavallata per Cortona – INFERNO Scenario Replay, Part 4

Cavallata per Cortona – INFERNO Scenario Replay, Part 5

Cavallata per Cortona – INFERNO Scenario Replay, Part 6