An Unstoppable Force Meets an Immovable Alliance
Attila the Hun had spent time "visiting" various parts of both the Roman East and West, but taken home more loot from the East and decided there must be riper pickings in the West. By 451 AD, adding much of Gaul to his empire and plundering the rest looks to have been his aim, but his movements suggest as much opportunism as strategy. For Hunnish leaders like Attila, were far more than merely brutal, creating alliances, taking advantage of the deaths of neighboring leaders, and playing both Eastern and Western Romans as clients and victims.
Defending the Empire, was a half-Roman (but all business!) general, Flavius Aetius. In fact, his father was also a Roman general but of "Scythian" origin, one of the original groups of powerful mounted nomads, so you could say he was closer to his allies and adversaries than most Roman commanders of the day, which is one reason he was one of the most influential men in the Western empire for over 20 years.
The "two" armies met at Châlons and were a varied hodge-podge of peoples, with the "Hun" side including various Goths, Alans, Burgundians, Rugians, Franks, Thuringians, and many more. The "Allied" side was primarily Visigoth and "Roman" (which would be a broad mix of peoples in the same uniforms) but also included various Celtic and German tribes, Romano-Britons and their own allies of Franks, Alans, and Burgundians.
Now, you can apply those multi-faceted armies against each other in a way that really shows off their diversity. The Battle of Châlons game uses full-sized cards for each unit (rather like our Arbela game by the same designer). Each card has all the information you need for movement, activation, combat, and morale. Players set up their best available deployments to execute their strategies and win the game (if the gods of fortune smile!). Your leaders allow activations and assist in combat. Some troops may make choices other than what the commanders might have wished (and that can work out well or otherwise). It's all part of presenting this chaotic game in a timely and playable fashion.
A full battle will last 60 to 120 minutes. And then you can swap sides and try it again!
