by Nalekh
Hi there!This is the first of a short series of tips written for people who have already played Polis.
Some of them may be useful for newbies and others for more experienced players. But in one way or another, I hope all of them have some interest.
HOW TO AVOID SIEGES IN 3 & 5b ROUNDS (first and last of a standard scenario)
Losing a polis by siege to the opponent can be crucial at the beggining or the end of a game, but it's possible to avoid it.
As you know you can besiege a polis if (rules P. 9):
- You have as many hoplites as its fortification or more.
(and)
- Control that territory by having more hoplites than the opponent.
In the first round (type 3) can't occur battles, because 8 or more units will never be in the same region, so as long as you leave 3 units in the territory of the polis you want to protect, the opponent will never be able to control it. So this polis can't be taken by siege.
In this example, in round 3, Sparta owns Poteidaia (fortification 2). As long as they leave their 3 hoplites in Makedonia, Athens won't be able to control the territory: battle can't happen (lowering the number of Spartan hoplites) and in this situation nobody controls the territory.
In the last round (type 5b), if a player leaves 5 hoplites in a territory, some of them can be removed causing a battle.
But if the player leave those 5 hoplites and passes the opponent won't be able to force a battle, to remove some of them, and siege the polis. Why? Let's see the rules (p. 14 - 3rd par.)
It may be the case in which a player has passed and 8 or more units coexist in one or more regions. On this assumption, the player who has not passed could keep carrying out actions and when he finishes with all of them and passes, the battle will take place
If one player passes, battles will only be solved after the opponent also passes. And after passing he won't be able to besiege the polis.
In this example, Athens owns Syrakousai (fortification 4), that secures his victory by 3 points. He knows that if Sparta achieves a desperate siege (25% of success after paying 2 Prestige points minimum - Moving + Besieging) could be the final winner.
To avoid this situation, he moves 5 hoplites to Sikelia and passes. Sparta may still move there another 5 hoplites, but only after he passes the battle will occur. Too late to siege Syrakousai then. And the 3 points difference let Athens to even withdraw from battle before cards are drawn, securing the victory by 1 point.