The Umayyad, encamped south of the Zab
River, deployed its force into two wings of equal strength. The long line of spearmen was
flanked by archers and small units of heavy cavalry protected their flanks.
The remaining mounted units formed a reserve behind each of the infantry wings.
The Abbasid, as the attacker, positioned all their infantry to face the
Umayyad left wing and held a large cavalry group to face the Umayyad right.
Both commands were of equal strength with one exception, all the light horse were deployed on the right wing.
The
opening moves.
The infantry lines of both sides moved forward and
took up positions on either side of the river. The resulting sporadic archery
had little effect but did offer both sides a moments respite to consider some new
options. On the extreme right flank, the crossing of the river by the Abbasid
light horse was contested by Umayyad light horse and Jund cavalry.
By good fortune, the Umayyad light horse had been
beaten offering the Abbasid an opportunity to counter which they did with good
effect (2 – 0).
Despite the setback, the commander of the left wing
held the river bank with his spearmen and re positioned his remaining infantry in
echelon and Jund cavalry still further back. This offered the Abbasid an
unopposed crossing but it was no means a coordinated one; this opened a
possible opportunity.
The
middle game.
That opportunity presented itself on turn five when the
Umayyad struck a small group of infantry with their Jund cavalry. The success
of having eliminated one infantry unit was offset by the loss of their own
bringing the score to a desperate 3 – 1.
The Abbasid infantry of the left wing were now engaged
with the Umayyad on the opposite bank.
After two hours of battle (turn 8) the Umayyad left
became demoralised as another unit of Jund fell to Abbasid javelins but the
effort had cost the Abbasid dear (4 – 2).
On the Umayyad right, the infantry were holding the
river line sending every Abbasid recoiling back for their effort.
With the infantry of the Umayyad right hotly engaged,
the Jund cavalry, five units strong, reached the bank of the Zab intent on
forcing the battle to a conclusion. On the left flank, the slaughter continued as
Abbasid caught isolated units, yet the spearmen of the left wing held their
position at the river bank with their general directly behind them.
After two and a half hours of battle (turn 10), the Abbasid
archers demonstrated how well their condition had not slackened one bit.
The end
game.
The drama that developed for the Umayyad now moved to
the right flank as isolated infantry and cavalry units quickly moved forward to
defend the river bank. The battle took an unexpected turn as each of the four
combats fell in quick succession against the Umayyad bringing the battle to an
end; 10g – 2 on the Umayyad left, 4 – 2 on the Umayyad right.
Order of Battle
Right
Wing Umayyad Army
1 x Marwan II
(Cv), 3 x jund cavalry (Cv), 3 x spearmen (Sp), 2 x archers (3Bw), 1 x Bedouin
(LH), 1 x Dailami (4Ax), 1 x archer (Ps).
Left Wing
Umayyad Army
1 x General (Cv), 3 x jund cavalry (Cv), 3 x spearmen
(Sp), 2 x archers (3Bw), 1 x Bedouin (LH), 1 x Dailami (4Ax), 1 x archer (Ps).
Right
Wing Abbasid Army
1 x Abul Abbas as-Saffah Cv), 2 x lancers (Cv), 3 x spearmen (Sp),
2 x archers (4Bw), 2 x Bedouin (LH), 1 x Mutatawwiá (3Wb), 1 x archers (Ps).
Left Wing
Abbasid Army
1 x General (Cv), 4 x lancers (Cv), 3 x spearmen (Sp),
2 x archers (4Bw), 2 x Zanj (3Bd)
Each command consists of 12 elements, therefore four
casualties are needed for a command to reach demoralisation. Umayyad commands are identical
while the Abbasid have redeployed their light horse and Zanj infantry.
Optional
scenarios.
The historical strengths for both sides varied great,
but most set the Abbasid force at around 35,000 troops with the Umayyad
fielding two or three times that number. Despite the odds, the Abbasid had a string
of victories the previous year and were eager for battle, more so as their
leader, Abdallah ibn Ali had been proclaimed the rightful Caliph.
In contrast, the frequency of rebellion over the past
four years had eroded the confidence the troops had with Marwan II’s capacity
to lead; this was demonstrated by the reluctance of some units to obey orders
during battle.
There are a few ways to reflect this in the game, one,
by increasing the number of Umayyad troops and/or two, adjusting the total
needed to demoralize an Umayyad command.
Option 1, the Abbasid retain their two commands totaling 24
elements while the Umayyad are increased to 36 elements but still form two
commands. This would prompt an Umayyad player to maintain larger groups or
maneuver part of a command while the rest remained inert which would
demonstrate to a degree a level of disunity within the command.
Option 2, the 36 elements are distributed among three commands
and not two. The total needed to reach demoralisation however, should be
lowered by one for the two commands subordinate to Marwan II. Both sides must demoralise
two commands to reach victory and despite the Umayyad having a superiority of
numbers, their confidence can be shaken when the casualties mount.
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