Please... Can the reaction or defensive shooting of the archers be at medium and long distance or only at short distance (adjacent)? thank you very much.
I would have to break out my rulebook and have a look - not possible at the moment. I will PIN your question to the top of the comments so other folks can have a go with the answer. Take care, Javier. ~Fritz
Shooting by "Bows" is in each bound, that is by both sides in each bound (turn). Bows shoot 3 base widths if they did not move more than 1 base width. Shooting by Psiloi is only done as part of close combat (adjacent).
+donjondo It's a great system my friend. The basing it uses is pretty much a standard in the hobby for ancients. So you can always try out some other rules for a change of pace.~K
This is such a thoughtful and useful introduction to DBA 3. The whole wargaming community should give thanks, because it is such an important, and enjoyable set. Just two things I would add - the army lists also each give the historical enemies, as well as allies, for every army and listed faction. Of course, it is perfectly possible to play against non historical enemies, too. And the other thing is that I have never played any set that gives as much feeling of the little guys actually being alive, and the situation of each conflict so vital, and with so little fuss and snag in the rule details. These qualities, for me, belie its status as an introductory set, or a 'gateway'. I return to them again and again, as simply the best ancients set. Thank you for the excellent video.
I have been skirting around the idea of ancients for a long time, mostly between dba and fog. You sir have been a big help in deciding on my choice of DBA.
Well you are very welcome indeed Brandon. DBA really lets you explore ancient and medieval history without going broke or taking a life-time to pain and collect! In addition, if you DO find a particular conflict or era that really sparks your interest, DBA allows you to expand your collection and play out full battles. And of course, the basing is the standard in the hobby really. You can always try out other rules later on down the road as a change of pace. Excellent choice :)Thanks for the comment. ~K
+A Dash of Élan - Wargaming yeah I got some Sumerians and Bedouins for my first armies gonna be doing painting this week waiting on my bases in the mail
TheDiomedef16 Well, like I said, it is a gate-way set of rules. You can play with HUGE armies as well. in fact I intend to expand a few of my armies for use with Big Battle DBA for just that purpose. I love how the game is so expandable. Finally I can get to my Gauls, Numidians, and Thracian armies! :)
Thanks for making this. I've always been curious about DBA. There's a Field of Glory group here they don't seem to be a fan of DBA. I bet that section with the diagrams is a big improvement over the older versions.
Love DBA, it was my introduction to figure gaming (I'm one of the few of my age that didn't start with GW games haha). The rules don't seem to be available in the UK at the moment :( Will continue to shop around while I use 2.2
celtofkernow worth it. The new version is fantastic. I posted a couple campaign write-ups on my blog if ya wanna have a look. Was a blast :)wallofshields.blogspot.com/
Kurtus Brown Great stuff mate. A mate of mine backed the "Forged in Battle" ancient kickstarter... loads of figure and really nice too. So maybe a Punic campaign is in order.
I really enjoyed your video. It is nice to listen to a video where someone actually talks (as opposed to screaming the while time). I noticed you use 15s. I game DbA 3.0 in 6mm. Have you run across any other 6mm players? I second the request for a tactics video.
Ronald Brow We shall see what I can come up with regarding a "tactics" series. As far as 6mm, I have a couple friends on RU-vid actually who are big fans of 6mm (and Ancients/DBA). Look up these guys...ru-vid.com://ru-vid.com/show-UC-cWlLo55PMUyxqLBtqa7OQAs for me, I am in love with 15mm :) Been playing/collecting this scale almost all my hobby life. However, the smaller 6mm scale does have some interest for me. I have been considering using 6/10mm for larger conflicts such as Napoleonic's. But we shall see. A great scale to get that large look and feel of real battle!Thanks for the comments.Kurtus
6mm is great for the scale and mass of troops. If you need some convincing check out my blog: Www.nerdwargamer.blogspot.com Most of my stuff is 6mm DbA and DbMM. I have some 15mm but I only play warfare in the age of Madness in 15s. I got a baccus 6mm greek army pack for $40. It gave me the entire 2/5 Athenian list with all the options and I have enough stuff left over for another greek DbA army.
@ Ronald Brow, I totally agree about how nice it is for someone to speak in a normal voice, such as A Dash Of Elan and TheDiomedef16. I don't get why some feel the need to shout and put on a show of machismo.
I want to get started with ancients in 20mm. What would You recomend more for a beginner- DBA 3.0 or Basic Impetus 2.0? As far I see DBA has more of a following and Impetus seems to have a more no nonsense set of rules and I hear that more and more people are moving from DBA to BI. From what I can tell both are easy to learn and don't take a long time to play a match.
Michał Malinowski the answer to that is to simply use DBA basing. The basing used in DBA is very much the standard used with most ancients rules. Basic/full Impetvs uses basing which is simply double the bases used in DBA - two bases wide, two bases deep. You should have no problem what so ever switching from one set of rules to the other - it is what I do. :) However, if you like a diorama look to your bases - and prefer big bases - you could just go with Basic Impetvs. However, I do highly recomend using DBA style basing to get the most from your collection. As for the rules, Basic Impetvs is a bit easier to understand, and feels like a real battle. DBA can sometimes feel bland by comparison. That is a matter of taste really. Either way, you can't lose. DBA is a good game, highly recomended if you zre new to ancients gaming.
I really like DBA. They need a new layout though, badly. New players are not attracted to typewriter pages full of long sentences and no pictures etc. This game deserves a better looking rulebook.
Peter Magro To be competitive in the market I fully agree. But it serves its purpose at tye moment. The author, Phil Barker, id as 'old school' as you can get - to be expected really.
Kurtus Brown I went to a game convention a few weeks ago. It was 2 tables of "old DBA players" like me trying out the new rules. It has helped to get the 3.0 rules but they should look contemporary.
Any chance of a video on some tactics and gameplay for DBA? It seems such a simple game I don't see where the skill and tactics come in. Lots of very clever guys have been playing this for many years and I realise that there is subtlety but I just can't see it
A lot of the tactics actually comes in at the deployment of your forces, much as in real life the placement of your troops has a big effect on the outcome. However there's also skill in knowing how, when and IF you should redeploy. As well as how to use the more specialised element types.
Thanks for your video. I am thinking about getting into this as a bridge between bad wargames to this. You stated that this game has been playtested over the many years and remains balanced. I have yet to hear about units or armies being broken so this must be a good sign right? My local has a few very committed players which I like meaning that the scene shouldn't just dry up and die.
Hi Allen. So far the rules are spot on; great! No problems. This new v3 version is a much better game than previous. The many illustrations help in the understanding of much of the rules. Very fun to play, complete, and fast playing :) Glad you enjoyed.~K
I was worried that the rules would be hard to grasp but all I hear about is how easy they are. One thing that worried me is that I bought a couple of v2x armies and now we are on to v3 so before assembling them I should probably make sure I am using the right things. I will guess that v2x & v1x armies are not allowed in v3 games?
Allen Lancing Some armies have changed slightly - so I hear. However, you shouldn't worry too much about that. Most if not ALL of your models should work with no problem.
+A Dash of Élan - Wargaming sounds great. Rumor was that our tournament organizers were allowing all lists published by DBA thru all versions if it is all you had.
pancakepayney payne Well, you sold me on BP. I should have it in my clutches along with Rebellion and the Death on the Nile supplement books next week. Danke my friend.
The entire point of DBA in the DBx family of games is that it is dirt simple. If you want a more complicated/detailed set of rules there is DBMM, DBM and DBR. I hope they don't start complicating things just to make a buck.
Kurtus Brown Helps a lot. I have painted lots of DBA armies for other people but despite one of my best friends always nagging to I have never played it. I will now give it a go. It will have to be pretty good to come close to Impetus which I love. Working through your videos on that too.
David Harrison Only Bows (Bw), Warwagons (Wwg), and Artillery (Art) can shoot. All others have their shooting effects built into the melee rules; so they don't actually shoot. Page 10 covers Shooting. Nothing is FORCED to melee unless elements are in frontal base contact. Am I reading your question correctly?
Great video man! It's been too long since I've logged in to see what content you're putting out and it's great! I'm hoping to start doing bids again soon. I might check 3.0 out. Heard good things about it.
I plan to, I had a purge of all my wargaming stuff 2 years ago which I really regret but I'm re-starting the hobby again now so I'm going to be documenting my new projects.
From the giant wall of text school of rules layout! Board wargames have a more inviting look than this. A diagram here or there would be nice -- or a piece of clip art. Anything!
Good point, Don. I have to agree the rules need a visual overhaul. However, the rules themselves to produce a wonderful game. Thanks for your comment. Take care. ~Fritz
“Giant wall of text” - Yep, they certainly look daunting. Back when they were being written the alternatives/ predecessors were quite a lot simpler. But each new edition became more complex in an attempt to cater for any possible eventuality a gamer might encounter. And because the rules were often used in tournaments the language become ever more legalistic.
+Ronald Delval Yes. In the USA you can get it from On Military Matters: onmilitarymatters.com/pages/dfsearch.php?term=keywords&data=dba+3.0&submit=SearchOr in the U.K.: www.caliverbooks.com You may have to email Caliver to see if they have any copies still.
