The road to Manzikert is long… but only if you choose it to be! As the game gets closer to arriving to players, here is a spotlight on the scenarios in the game that showcase the breadth of available starting situations and game length options.
Because SELJUK covers four years and turn length is a 90-day season, there is a lot of flexibility to choose the right play experience for your game. All scenarios begin with the spring turn of a given year and represent the historical situation. This also has the convenient byproduct of confronting players with a variety of different strategic considerations and exploring the various new mechanics SELJUK introduces to Levy & Campaign.
Additionally, most scenarios will allow players the option to continue gameplay past the official stipulated final turn if they so choose; simply calculate victory via VPs as normal for any chosen stopping point. The modular construction of the game’s timescale and turn length gives players a great tableau for exploring historical outcomes, what-ifs, and campaign plans.
Let’s take a look:
Year of Treacherous Ambition (1070 A.D.)
This scenario is perfect for players new to Levy & Campaign. It only lasts three game turns, plus the Winter sequence, and only begins with three Lords per side in play. Unlike all other scenarios, it begins with the Campaign phase, skipping Levy and allowing players to dive right into the action without needing to worry about future planning and learning the rules at the same time. Both sides have one Lord ready to join the fray starting on the second turn, and both sides will have to do a healthy dose of attack and defense: the Romans are confronted immediately by a Siege in-progress at Manbij in Syria while the Seljuks have the onus to use their large army to take back the Forts around Lake Van from Roman occupation. Additionally, both sides start with a map-edge “ALL” Capability in play, which will educate players how important it is for the Romans to protect their conquests (via Armenian Garrisons) and the Seljuks to use their Coin to shorten supply lines (via Marwanid Alliance).
This scenario features special unique VP bonuses for controlling key Strongholds on the map at the end of the game, reaching specific locations with their Lords, and/or successfully causing the faction switch of one of the Sultan’s key allies via the game’s Treachery mechanic. Once players are familiar with the rules, this scenario can be played in as little as 90 minutes and is also a great demo scenario for teaching two virgin Levy & Campaign players.
The Emperor and the Lion (1068 A.D.)
This is the true beginning of the events in SELJUK. Romanos Diogenes has just been coronated emperor and the Sultan Alp Arslan has his eyes set on Aleppo and Syria while his coalition of allies seeks to plunder eastern Anatolia.
The game begins as a blank slate for both players, with complete freedom to muster whatever Capabilities and Lords they deem fit per the game rules. The initial campaigns of 1068 were historically fairly limited in scope, and players have the choice to pursue these along historical lines or make completely different decisions. The Seljuk player will take time to ramp up to full efficacy as their armies are dispersed. Ibn Khan has his home in Hama and can cause real headaches for the Roman player depending on how he is equipped and his level of aggression. The Romans, meanwhile, have a much more consolidated army under the emperor that they can get anywhere on the map before the year is over. This means it’s one of their best opportunities to secure territory on the offensive along the eastern border before the conflict expands. The decisions made in the 1068 scenario will have ramifications year-over-year when playing the full campaign, and is one of the most exciting parts of the full game.
This scenario can also just be played as the 1068 year if players so choose, and I have often demoed the game at conventions that way as it’s a great sandbox for exploring the opening possibilities for both sides.
Specter of Norman Betrayal (1069 A.D.)
Using the second year of the game as a starting point provides some interesting wrinkles to the dynamic between the two players. Historically, Alp Arslan spent a good portion of this year back home in Persia putting down rebellions, so he is absent to start this scenario. Both players begin with four Lords on the map and with the opportunity to add more as the scenario progresses; however, both sides are going to be bottlenecked by financial concerns. Both armies are scheduled to Disband in the fall turn, so working in Tax command actions over the first couple of turns is incredibly important for the Seljuk player since they will be missing the Sultan’s ability to use his Coin across the map on his subordinates. The Romans are hampered by a different problem: they start in a VP hole, and the Nomisma Debased Capability starts in play, which allows them to extend the Service of all their Lords in play for one season. This is very powerful, however once used, the Roman player cannot use the Tax command action for the rest of the game with anyone except the emperor! Historically Romanos debased the gold content of imperial coinage in 1069 in order to pay for the large numbers of troops he was levying, but it caused severe inflation over the next several decades.
The maneuver in 1069 will be about finances as much as it will be about battle. On top of that, one of the Roman player’s Lords, the Norman mercenary Robert Crépin, begins the scenario under control of the Seljuk player at Edessa, providing a very inconvenient (and effective) raiding or harassing force in the center of the map. Whichever side can wrangle the chaos of their situation should come out on top.
Showdown in Anatolia (1070 A.D. – 1071 A.D.)
For players who want a longer game or a chunkier commitment, this scenario also begins in the spring of 1070, but goes through the end of the calendar to the fall of 1071. If you’ve wanted to see if you could win (or avoid) your own Battle of Manzikert situation but want to lay a more successful groundwork for that fateful campaign, this is the scenario for you. It marks the beginning of Alp Arslan’s historical advance to Aleppo which was aborted over the winter and led to his speedy march to Manzikert where he caught the Romans by surprise. In 1070, Romanos did not command the army personally as he was engaged in political matters in Constantinople; because of this, he gave command of the armies to his ally Manuel Komnenos. In the game, Komnenos serves as the Roman Commander when Romanos is not in play, and while he does have a good ability to levy resources and troops, his action ratings are not nearly as good as the emperor’s; the Roman player will be ceding initiative in this scenario thanks to the Seljuk player’s speedy Turkic Horse and better available commanders.
Because the scenario is six turns in length, players will get to see the cascading effects of decisions over multiple years. Both sides start with the same VPs, but if the Roman player does not do well defending against Seljuk incursion, they will find themselves in the position of having to gamble the game on a big battle, perhaps participating in their own Manzikert-esque engagement. Both sides will need to manage their Lords’ Service length, with the additional handcuff for the Romans tied to Nomisma Debased having been considered used before the start of the scenario!
Manzikert: The Fall of the Roman East (1071 A.D.)
If you’ve ever wanted to see if you could change history or get a better understanding of the maneuver that led to this notorious battle, this is the scenario for you. Beginning in the spring of 1071, the game is essentially a race between the two players. Alp Arslan and the Seljuk army is engaged in a Siege at Aleppo, which could potentially produce big VPs if they crack the hilltop citadel. However, the Romans have assembled a huge army themselves and can win the game outright if they take both Manzikert and Khliat. On top of that, the weather over winter was chaotic and the mountain passes between Syria and Armenia are not traversable, hampering the Seljuk player’s ability to intercept the Roman march across the plateau. The scenario is designed in such a way that both sides will be incentivized to clash in a major action somewhere in eastern Anatolia… unless they feel that a more conservative approach in which they outscore their opponent in the long term is prudent. With no Winter phased at the end of the scenario, it is impossible for the Seljuk player to score any bonus VPs with Loot, so the decision about maintaining their position in Aleppo or contesting Roman advance will be critical in determining victory or defeat!
That is your detailed look at the scenarios on offer in SELJUK: Byzantium Besieged as you prepare to take the field very soon. I look forward seeing what narratives emerge when players command the Christian and Muslim powers of medieval Asia Minor.
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