Give me back my legions!: A wargame fought using WhatsApp

For some weeks I have been taking part in an online wargame involving approximately thirty people. It is set during the period at the end of Augustus's rule in Rome, and the rise of Tiberius.

I am Silius (Gaius Silius, who was probably the son of Publius Silius Nerva), military governor of Upper Germany (Germania Superior), and whilst machinations are taking place back in Rome, my task is to keep Upper Germany safe from the German tribes. I am serving under the command of Germanicus and my main base is Mognotiacum (modern-day Mainz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) with another at Vindonissa (modern-day Windisch in Switzerland). Directly across the Rhine from Upper Germany are the areas occupied by the Chatti and Hermenduri.

The game is being run by an old friend of mine, John B. He is the umpire as well as acting as Emperor Augustus up until the latter's death. All communication within the game takes place using WhatsApp, and John B has set up several groups to facilitate this. For example, I am within the Rhine Army HQ group which allows me to communicate with my fellow Romans in Germany as well as the main group where I can communicate with Rome and pick up on what is happening elsewhere. We are also allowed to communicate privately with other players using emails etc.

To date, two of my four legions have marched north into Lower Germany to assist in the suppression of the troublesome Cherusci, who seem to have been encouraged to attack Roman Germania by the turncoat Arminius*. Now that they have been suitably chastened, I have moved back to Mognotiacum with one of my legions in order to deal with the Chatti, who have used the absence of the two legions I took north with me to come across the Rhine and to menace this fortified Roman base. (The base had been fortified and is occupied by a legion. The legion has been using a mobile column to try to keep the Chatti at bay without getting themselves involved in a major battle.)

Each turn lasts three or four days in real time, and covers a period of several months in game time. The pace has been quick enough to keep the participants interested without becoming onerous, and using WhatsApp means that an ongoing record of who did what and when has been easy to keep. I'm not sure how long the game will last, but it could easily go on for quite some time.

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* Arminius (or Hermann) was the son of a chieftain of the Cherusci tribe who had been taken as a hostage of the Roman Empire as a child. He was brought up in Rome and joined the Roman military during his youth. He was eventually granted Roman citizenship and became a Roman equites (or knight). After gaining distinction during a revolt in Illyria, he went to Germania to serve under the governor, Publius Quinctilius Varus. At this point he changed his allegiance, and began plotting the overthrow of Roman rule in Germania. This culminated in the destruction of three Roman legions in the Teutoburg Forest.