The Battle of Bitteburg 1816

Once every three months or so we play a ‘mega’ battle where all the units that we have painted are placed onto the table. The last battle that we fought in this way was our Waterloo tribute, on June 13th. The battle of Bitteburg was the follow up played on Sunday 22/11/2015. We don’t get too vexed about how many troops are on each side, as long as they are painted , they are on the table! We are also quite lax regarding uniforms. I know that purists will find this difficult to accept but provided the troops are from the Napoleonic era, we are quite happy to mix Peninsular Uniforms with Waterloo issue. Likewise early revolutionary French will face off against 1815 Prussians. We even had a battalion of Caribbean troops to bolster the Allied numbers…

The scenario was as follows:

Following Napoleons victory at Waterloo, the Allies were able to retreat in good order back into Belgium, holding Napoleon back from capturing Brussels. The Allies were however, in no position to go back onto the offensive. Despite his victory, Napoleon was prevented from further pursuit of the British and Prussians by political unrest at home and again had to return to France to settle matters once and for all. Meanwhile, a combined Austrian/Russian Army was approaching from Germany and reinforced by a small Anglo Prussian force, threatened the borders of France. Napoleon swiftly marched out to meet the oncoming army and battle was joined just outside the town of Bitteburg.

First Table set up - note scenic cloth

First Table set up – note scenic cloth

We were using the basic Black Powder rules with a few of our own additions and modifications. There were four players on each side. Each player commanded a Division made up of between 3 and 6 brigades of Infantry and cavalry with the appropriate artillery support.  In all there were over 3000 figures to go ontyo the table! The French deployed their forces first, with the Allies responding. However, all players could only deploy half of their division, the rest following on, one brigade per turn at the Divisional commanders discretion. One player on each side was appointed ‘Army Commander’ and was given the ability to issue one additional order to each division ( four orders maximum) to any unit or brigade that had either not moved or failed an order to move. The Army Commanders rating was 9 and these orders were unaffected by distance to the unit. (We assumed a very fast ADC would issue the order!) However, the Army commander was still required to pass the order on a dice throw as usual and of course, subject to the ‘blunder’ rule.

Apart from adding to the fun, the idea of the extra order was to create a pause at the end of each turn so that the players would get a feel as to what was going on else where in the battle. In addition it ensured that all four players on each side kept in turn with each other.

The Zig Zag Table set up. Pete takes a break before deciding whether to place more cover on the tables!

The Zig Zag Table set up. Pete takes a break before deciding whether to place more cover on the tables!

Rather than lay the tables out in a straight line, we adopted a zig zag shape to create some ‘pinch points’ on the battlefield. This gave us about 26 feet of deployment area per side! Scenery was set up by three of us the day before the battle and placed arbitrarily to break up the battlefield without giving either side a particular tactical advantage. We modified the rules regarding fighting in buildings to make it easier for assaulting troops. The first round of combat would be fought as per standard Black Powder rules. If the defenders won the combat, the assaulting troops would immediately recoil, regardless of the outcome of the morale role. If the combat was a draw, the troops would remain locked in combat but the defenders would have their save modifier reduce from 2+ to 1+. In the event that the attackers won, the it was assumed that they had fought their way into the building and subsequent rounds of combat would take place subject to normal combat rules with no further advantage to the defenders. The aim was to encourage the assault of buildings!

The last of the Allies are deployed

The last of the Allies are deployed

With all of the above in mind, the troops were deployed, the Allies had the first turn and The Austrian Commander on the left wing gave his first order of the day… and with the first roll of the dice, a double six! A blunder! The omens did not look good for the Allies…

All troops deployed - let battle commence!

All troops deployed – let battle commence!

To be continued.

Lion Rampant – The Nine Bastards!

Wargames Illustrated were running a second ‘Lion Rampant’ event day at WI headquarters here in Nottingham. I had originally thought that I would be unable to attend but a last minute change in family plans left me with a free weekend. There was a place available and so it seemed sensible to sign up.

Dan, from Wargames Illustrated starts the day with a briefing and wonders how he will keep 18 gamers under control!

Dan, from Wargames Illustrated starts the day with a briefing and wonders how he will keep 18 gamers under control!

I had my retinue  ready to go and after a couple of games the week before the event, my knowledge of the rules was refreshed. My army was ready to take to the field of battle. My Retinue is based on a War of the Roses English Army and consists of:

Leader and 5 Foot Knights 6pts
Unit of 12 Foot Sergeants            4pts
Two Units of Expert Archers     12pts
unit of Bidowers                             2pts

My Lion Rampant Retinue

My Lion Rampant Retinue

The army is essentially a defensive unit, that although lacking maneuverability, given the right position, can hold it’s own against the more aggressive and mobile armies that are often fielded in the game.

Set up complete - players now check the rules...

Set up complete – players now check the rules…

The Lion Rampant day was themed around the 9 Bastards of the previous king ‘Jeffery’ from the first Lion Rampant day and involved each of the factions doing battle with the view of conquering their opponent thereby forcing them to switch allegiance to the victors faction. There would be three battles to see who won the day and as usual, Dan from WI had built in some twists and turns to the scenarios to keep the day interesting and balanced. I represented House Wagner – it was time to join battle!

The first battle is ready to commence

The first battle is ready to commence

BATTLE 1 – BLOODBATH

My first battle was against Sir Mike who was fielding an army consisting of 2 units of Mounted Sergeants, 2 units of Crossbowmen, a unit of Foot Knights and a unit of Bidowers.

Sir Mikes’ army immediately advanced, with his mounted troops leading the way. One unit of Sergeants attempted to flank my army, the other going straight for the archers in the centre. The Crossbow men had moved up in support and his  Bidowers made for the woods on my other flank, where they would attempt to harry my army from cover. My reply was somewhat slow, having failed a couple of activations but my Foot sergeants formed Schiltron on the Left flank, effectively stopping the Mounted Sergeants in their tracks. My Bidowers charged into the woods to meet the enemy Bidowers and hold them. Whilst in the centre, My Foot Knights stepped forward under the cover of my Archers to meet the other mounted unit.

The Schiltron holds!

The Schiltron holds!

A fierce encounter ensued in the centre, resulting in the elimination of the first Unit of Mounted sergeants. Although my Foot Knights had taken casualties they turned to face the enemy foot knights who were now ominously approaching. The encounter in the woods between the two Biddower units got off to a slow start. There was a suspicion of a party going on, but obviously at some point, someones cider was spilt and the fighting started. The result being that my Bidowers were routed and killed.

Foot Knights into battle whilst the archers await.

Foot Knights into battle whilst the archers await.

Although penned back on my start line, thing were not going too badly. I was helped by the fact that after a shaky start, my archers were now firing consistently at every turn, inflicting ever mounting casualties on the enemy. The other unit of Mounted Sergeants was destroyed by arrow fire as soon as it came into range, being no match for 24 English archers!  My fire superiority was helped by the Foot Knights, who were standing in range of the enemy crossbows, taking fire every turn but fortunately, their armour held and they shrugged this off. The only real threat now came from the enemy Foot Knights as they were determined to close with my troops. As the archers at last saw off a Crossbow unit, they turned and fired at the Foot knights, slowing them and reducing them to half strength, even killing the leader but unable to prevent combat with my Foot Knights.

The enemy Bidowers in the back ground are feeling a bit exposed!

The enemy Bidowers in the back ground are feeling a bit exposed!

In the brutal fight that followed, my Foot knights prevailed but only my Leader, Kenneth Hotspur was left standing. He was then struck down by a final shot from the last crossbow unit – the cry went up ‘They’ve killed Kenny!’. Despite this, the archers avenged his death by forcing the last Crossbow unit to rout. Only the enemy Bidowers were left on the field and given their precarious position in the open in front of the Archers, they threw down their weapons and surrendered. Victory to House Wagner!

Battle 2 – The Messenger

Before the start of the second battle, we were given the chance to spend some of our victory points ( represented by Chocolate coins!) on small upgrades for our armies. I decide to speculate to accumulate and purchase an extra unit of Bidowers. I think these are very underrated by some players and can be quite a nuisance if deployed carefully. I had already noticed that there was plenty of cover on the tables and Bidowers and cover go well together!

The Messenger scenario involves escorting a messenger from one end of the table to the other, with the opposing player doing his best to stop you. Deployment is in opposing corners of one end of the table, with the player trying to stop the messenger allowed to deploy 6 points of his army at the far end of the table ready to meet the messenger! A further complication is that there is insufficient room in the deployment zones to get all of your army on the table, so some units start off table.

My opponent for this game was Sir Phillip, who had the following army: 1 unit of mounted Knights; 1 unit of Mounted Sergeants; 1 Unit of Mounted Sergeants with Crossbows, 1 Unit of Crossbows with Pavasis. A very mobile army but despite this, I decided to elect to be the attacker and to try and stop the messenger. I had a cunning plan…

The messenger had to be attached to the Mounted Knights, and Phillip deployed them and his two other mounted units on the table ready for the off! I sent one unit of Bidowers to the far end of the table along with my trusty foot sergeants. As the game got underway, the mounted units of Sir Phillip moved off and started their journey down the table initially leaving my foot sloggers behind. However, this soon changed as my Biddowers took up position in the Woods near to the exit point and my Foot sergeants formed schiltron, blocking the exit. As Sir Phillip desperately tried to bring up support (His Crossbowmen repeatedly failed their activation roll and stayed off table), my Foot knights found their ‘running shoes’ and had almost reached the far end of the table in support of my detached units.

You mean we have to charge those Bidowers again?

You mean we have to charge those Bidowers again?

It was now that my cunning plan began to work. Sir Phillips mounted knights had to pass within 10 inches of the Bidowers in the woods. This would force the knight to make a ‘wild charge’ at the Bidowers. At this stage I was hoping merely to delay the messenger but my Biddowers in cover actually out diced the Mounted knights (the bonuses gained by the bidowers in cover put them on even terms with the mounted knights) causing them two casualties and making them fall back. Sir Phillip was not happy! As the Bidowers had held their nerve, they were able to fire on the mounted Knights in their turn, causing yet another casualty. Enraged, the Knights had to charge back into the woods again, only now they were down to half dice facing a group of confident Bidowers rolling twice as many dice in combat on even terms.

Once again the Knights were beaten back losing another casualty and once again, the bidowers stood firm in their woodland haven and poured arrow fire and scorn onto the Mounted Knights! Of course, whilst this was all going on, my Foot knights had gradually made their way to the scene of all the commotion and were now in striking distance of the messenger. Elsewhere on the table, Sir Phillips mounted sergeants had tried in vain to hold up the march of my archers whilst his crossbow men, having eventually appeared on the table were engaged with my other unit of bidowers ( in cover of course!) and my second unit of archers.

The killing blow was landed by the my Foot Knights, who although somewhat tired from their long march were strong enough to kill the last mounted knight and capture the messenger. Victory to House Wagner!

Battle 3 – the Final Encounter, Double Bloodbath!

The final battle saw four players fighting a last battle to secure the field for their faction. In theory, units from either player on one side could engage any opposing unit on the other side. In practice, it was a case of first deal with your immediate opposition before sending units to help elsewhere. Of course the real danger would be from missile troops who could take a shot at whatever unit happened to be in range.

The Final Battle!

The Final Battle!

My immediate opposition was from Sir Ben, fielding an army consisting of 2 units of Fierce Foot, 2 Units of Foot Knights and a unit of archers. I was somewhat wary of the Fierce foot. They are devastating units when charging and do not suffer from being in cover or moving through rough terrain. Despite this I sent my two units of Bidowers out as bait to draw the fierce foot into bow shot where they are very vulnerable.

The enemy are out there somewhere.

The enemy are out there somewhere.

The game this time was somewhat stop go for me. I failed a number of activation tests and was barely able to move my army. I watched with increasing trepidation as the Fierce foot bore down on me. However, Sir Ben had allowed his army to become divided and thankfully, just as combat began, his fierce foot were unsupported. Even better, the first unit of Biddowers that he charged managed to skirmish their way out of trouble causing the now not so Fierce Foot to retreat! My archers now decided that they would join the battle and sent flight after flight of arrows into the enemy causing a rout in the enemy ranks, both units of Fierce Foot were destroyed.

We're not moving - they'll come to us!

We’re not moving – they’ll come to us!

 

Although victory now looked likely, my army once again refused to move with any urgency and was unable to exploit the carnage caused. Gradually, we moved up the table and every now and then the archers would take a pot shot, wearing the enemy down. Eventually, another unit of Foot Knights were left looking like pin cushions and the opposition archers decided that they had had enough and took to their heals! Victory, albeit in slow motion, once again for House Wagner!

So three battles fought and three battles won was a good return for the day. Despite our good performance, House Wagner did not finish on the winning team or accumulate quite as many victory points as some of the other players at the event. Nevermind, though, we had a fine hoard of chocolate coins and had been fully involved in a superb day. You can read the full account of the day over at the WARGAMES ILLUSTRATED web site.

Should you have the opportunity to attend one the future WI days, I would heartily recommend that you do so. The team at WI are great at creating a friendly atmosphere in which to play the games organised and whilst there is a narrative running through the day, it is not about individual competition but on a team result. Great fun, all in all – now I’m off to eat my chocolate coins!

If you would like to try the Lion Rampant rules they are available in the Arcane Scenery shop. Even better, I’ve put together a little bundle of the rule set with a box of Perrys War of the Roses Infantry and English Foot Knights for just £50, post free, world wide of course! There are more than enough figures for you to build your own retinue. If you would prefer, Mounted knights instead of Foot knights, just add a note to your order and we will swap them over for you – watch out for wild charges though, they can get you into trouble….

LION RAMPANT BUNDLE DEAL – RULES SET plus 2 Perry Plastic boxed sets

Battle Report – Polish/Italians Vs British Napoleonics….

You can learn a lot by looking at photographs, they give you another perspective and a chance to see detail that you might otherwise overlook. My last two blog articles have been quite instructive in this respect. First of all, it’s clear from the photograph of me painting the house that I need to lose a few pounds. From my usual perspective I had always thought that I looked quite slim…..looking upwards, that clearly isn’t the case….

That aside, I also reviewed the Hanoverians and it’s clear that they would benefit from an ink wash over the bayonets & a highlight with silver just to bring out the detail at the top of the muskets – A job that will take about 10 minutes – more on that next week.

The final insight and the real point of this observation was last weeks battle report and just how good the battle was, in part because of the scenery that we were using. I had actually commented that good scenery wasn’t really necessary for Napoleonics as you needed plenty of space for your troops. Well looking back at the pictures made me question this and at this weeks club battle, we put a bit more effort into both the scenery and the scenario itself. The result was a most enjoyable battle. We used one of the new ‘Cigar box’ battle mats that has a scenic design printed onto it. Although a bit expensive, there is no doubt that the result is much better than playing on just a plain battle mat. Some of the scenery that we used is a bit tired and battered but by adding a bit more than usual, the table was broken up and a few problems were added for the ‘generals’ to solve.

Italians & Polish take up position on their new battlefield!

Italians & Polish take up position on their new battlefield!

The actual game was an entirely fictitious affair involving a joint Italian/Polish force (Duncan) taking on a British force (Steve). The objectives being to secure one end of a bridge and capture the two hills dominating the approaches. Deployment was carried out simultaneously, without too much regard for each other, although the objectives became the focus of the main Infantry forces, with the cavalry deployed facing each other out on the far flanks. The British won the initiative and ordered an advance to secure the objectives. Unfortunately, the first roll of the evening produced a blunder, leaving the largest British Infantry brigade out of position, hard against the river in column of battalions.

Polish Artillery supported by infantry

Polish Artillery supported by infantry

Polish advance in column - figure from the Trent miniatures range

Polish advance in column – figures from the Trent miniatures range

The opposition, taking full advantage of both the confusion in the British ranks and the terrain, moved forward at a more measured rate forming a cohesive line as can be seen above. If the British Infantry were somewhat slow to respond, the cavalry ( two heavy regts, two lights) did as they were ordered and advanced to threaten the Polish Flank. The response from the Polish/Italian force was immediate and a fierce cavalry battle ensued. The action was so ferocious that I didn’t have time to take a photograph! The result was a victory for the opposition. Although they lost one heavy cavalry regiment and two horse artillery guns, the British lost a whole brigade of heavy cavalry and a regiment of light cavalry, leaving the right flank somewhat exposed.

British hold the line!

British hold the line!

Despite the set back on the right flank the British infantry held the Italians in the woods, firmly anchoring the left flank. The Polish infantry, encouraged by the success of their cavalry, advanced in the centre to capture the road.

Poles capture the road and take position behind the hedgerow.

Poles capture the road and take position behind the hedgerow.

This move was in turn, matched by the British infantry who immediately engaged the forward elements of the Polish advance with a superior force of infantry.

British advance to drive the Poles back

British advance to drive the Poles back

The initial British musketry was somewhat ineffective, and despite the overwhelming odds the Poles held on long enough for reinforcements to arrive.

Polish reinforcements arrive.

Polish reinforcements arrive.

With a fierce battle raging for control of the centre and the Polish/Italian Cavalry threatening the right flank, held only by a solitary regiment of  British Hussars, the Italians consolidated their position in the woods by the bridge on the left flank, threatening to take yet another objective.

Italians hold their ground in defensive position at the wood

Italians hold their ground in defensive position at the wood

The British response was again to attempt to drive the Italians back with superior musketry. Volley after volley was poured on the Italians but their clever use of the cover and terrain meant that the British were unable to inflict the casualties required.

British Musketry attempts to remove Italians

British Musketry attempts to remove the Italians

As the infantry faced off against each other, the casualties began to mount! Virtual stalemate was the result on the left at the bridge but in the centre the British were able use fresh battalions and it was the Polish that were begining to waver.

Casualties mount!

Casualties mount!

At last the Polish Battalions broke under the constant volleys of the British and the whole brigade started to retreat. The centre belonged to the British!

Charged in the flank!

Charged in the flank!

This victory was somewhat short lived. The Italian Cavalry had by now brushed aside the last British Hussar regiment and charged into the flank of the British line! After a brisk engagement, despite the loss of an infantry battalion, the cavalry were driven off and finally the Polish were sent on their way. The centre did now belong to the British.

The Poles repelled!

The Poles repelled!

If the British had won the war of attrition in the centre, things were not going so well at the bridge on the left Flank. In an attempt to bring their superior Fire power to bear, the British had advanced to close range of the Italians and their solitary artillery piece. Initially, there was some success as the British destroyed an Italian column. That success was once again double edged, as it made space for yet another Italian Cavalry attack!

The attack reaches a critical point!

The attack reaches a critical point!

With the lead British battalion pushed into square under the guns of the Italians and casualties mounting in the supporting British battalions, the Brigade began to run out of steam – and men! The next round of Italian Musketry and cannon fire inflicted sufficient casualties to shake the brigade! With both of the British Cavalry brigades broken and now the largest infantry brigade in retreat, this meant that the British Army was forced to withdraw. The field was left to the victorious Italians troops and their courageous cavalry!

Muskets and Tomahawks – take the Fort!

Defend the Fort!

Defend the Fort!

Most of our club games are played on a basic games table with the minimum of scenery. When you are playing Napoleonics, it makes sense to leave room for maneuver. However, Muskets and Tomahawks is a skirmish game that looks and plays better with more scenery and we are very lucky indeed to have John, who has a superb collection of scenery made for the job. In this weeks game, John excelled himself by bringing a beautifully made fort. The scenario was simple enough. The British had to defend the fort and prevent the French Regulars and Indians from capturing it.

To add a bit of spice, the British were able to send a runner from the fort on the turn of a special card. The runner would be opposed by two French Irregulars and if the runner won the combat, it would trigger a reinforcement column to march to relieve the Fort. Just to add to the excitement, after the first failed attempt, the next runner would receive one shot of covering fire from the fort. If it all sounds a bit familiar, it’s true to say that we did have the ‘Last of the Mohicans’ in mind when we added this extra!

French Artillery

French Artillery

To start the game the French and Indian forces were set up just outside the perimeter of the fort and the British Forces, in the main, were safely inside the fort. However, Pete, the British player, had chosen to keep one unit of  Rangers outside the fort to infiltrate the flanks of the attacking French. In addition, just outside the gate of the fort, a barricade was protecting the main gate, so Pete had stationed three artillery pieces here along with a unit of regulars to keep the French at bay.

open fire!

open fire!

The game started with an diversionary attack by a unit of french regulars, supported by the french militia. This was met by a massive artillery bombardment as well as volley fire and grenades from the fort ramparts! The first French unit was wiped out just leaving an officer to shout encouragement to the next unit to leave the cover of the woods and pick up the siege ladder! The Militia also fell back somewhat discouraged, leaving more than a few of their colleagues wounded at the walls of the fort along with yet another discarded siege ladder.

A brave French Officer encourages the next wave!

A brave French Officer encourages the next wave!

The British seemed immovable and with their vast superiority in fire power it seemed impossible that the fort could be captured. To add to the French woes, the besieging artillery was largely ineffective, causing no casualties or damage and on the second attempt, the fort runner had fought his way through the French encirclement and British reinforcements were on the way.

Despite the apparent British Superiority in fire power, the Indians had taken advantage of the diversion on the left of the fort and were sneakily making their way to the walls. Using the cover available, they had massed just close enough to the fort to launch a mass attack on both the walls and the forward barricade. At the same time, the French musketry had finally found it’s range and the gunners behind the barricade were struck down leaving this position vulnerable to attack.

The Indians carefully make their way forward under the cover of the French Attack.

The Indians carefully make their way forward under the cover of the French Attack.

With the Indians threatening the right of the fort and the British Artillery frantically trying to reload, the French once again launched an assault, this time the irregulars managed to pick up a discarded ladder and began to climb the walls, fighting their way into the fort. Seeing their moment, the Indians surged forwards and catching the British facing the wrong way, massacred the units behind the barricade! The gate was now in Indian hands!

Indians take the gate!

Indians take the gate!

This was the turning point! With the Indians trying to force the gate, the French assault on the walls continued pushing the British defenders back into the fort. This allowed the Indians to force a second breach of the walls and a torrent of angry Redskins and French besiegers poured into the fort. As if to rub salt into the British wounds, an attempt to fire the fort mortar at short range resulted in the shell going straight up and landing back down on the mortar itself, killing all of the crew….The British were forced to strike their colours before the much needed reinforcements could arrive.

The French Gain the Battlements!

The French Gain the Battlements!

So victory for the French – Indian alliance! A most enjoyable game made all the better for the superb scenery. If you haven’t tried Muskets and Tomahawks, I’m very happy to recommend it as a very enjoyable skirmish game and a good excuse to start collecting figures form the French Indian wars and also the American War of Independence.

muskets & tomahawks from Studio Tomahawk.

muskets & tomahawks from Studio Tomahawk.

 

Waterloo June 13th 2015!

British deploy behind La Haye Sainte

British deploy behind La Haye Sainte

The plan for this years ‘homage’ to Waterloo was to re-fight the battle on the biggest table that we could find, with as many troops that we could muster. It really was ‘all the toys on the table’! We were lucky enough to be able to secure the Polly Bowling Club hall as a venue. This is the home of the Mansfield War gaming club, and many thanks to Quinton Dalton for helping us to arrange this.

The view along the ridge to Hougomont

The view along the ridge to Hougomont

As for the players, there were just the four of us; Myself and John Grant playing as the British, Peter Harris and Mick Rood as the French. The latter have massive figure collections and as well as providing the French opposition, they were also able to provide reinforcements for the British and Prussians as well as some Brunswickers! We had thought about bringing more people to the table but the difficulty with this is that you then need a command and control system and getting a big group of war gamers to work in concert can be the equivalent of herding cats….. I think four to six is the optimum number of players, even for a game of this size.

The Fench Troops advance past La Belle Alliance Inn

The Fench Troops advance past La Belle Alliance Inn

As for the tables, we had five 6×4 foot tables side by side to give a playing surface of 20 foot by 6 foot. On one end we had an additional table in an ‘L’ position to represent Plancenoite and as an entry point for the Prussians. As regards scenery, we were very lucky to be able to borrow the painted versions of all the main buildings from Sarissa Precision. So present on the battlefield were Hougomont, La Haye Sainte, Pappelotte farm, La Belle Alliance and for Plancenoite, the church and windmill, as well as a small farm made by Pete Harris. A few hills were used to make the ridge line at Mont St Jean and the Battlefield was ready.

The Prussians Arrive at Plancenoite

The Prussians Arrive at Plancenoite

We then deployed the troops. There were approximately 2000 figures on the table! We deliberately did not count who had what or what the points value of each army was. It was clear that the French outnumbered and out gunned the British but the Brits had the stronger position and the buildings to defend, whilst the French had to go on the attack.

The British Defend the ridge to the left of La Haye Sainte

The British Defend the ridge to the left of La Haye Sainte

Finally, we were using the ‘vanilla’ version of Black powder with very few additions or modifications. Our reasoning being, that in a game of this size, trying to remember which unit has what attribute or special ability just slows things down. Let the dice decide who will be the heroes today!

The view of the battlefield from Hougomont to La Haye Sainte

The view of the battlefield from Hougomont to La Haye Sainte

And so at 11.00 am precisely, the French players proceeded to attack. Pete Harris facing John Grant along the area from La Haye Sainte to Hougomont, I was facing Mick and defending La Haye Sainte to Papelotte. The British side had a brief meeting to decide on tactics. It went like this. John: what are the plans? Me: Hold! On reflection, less like tactics and more like Tic tacs…

The Guards defend Hougomont

The Guards defend Hougomont

TheFrench prepare to Advance!

TheFrench prepare to Advance!

The first moves went largely without incident, the ranges being too far for effective artillery fire. The French were maneuvering to assault La Haye Sainte but it was clear that they intended to ignore Hougomont and focus on the British centre. At Papelotte, the British were attempting to use their cavalry to flank the French & draw them onto the defensive position of the farm.

British Light Cavalry deploy behind Papelotte

British Light Cavalry deploy behind Papelotte

The French comence their advance down the main road to Brussels!

The French commence their advance down the main road to Brussels!

The British rocket batteries were actually very effective at this point, causing casualties in the advancing French Columns and throwing them into disorder, slowing the advance. However, confusion also occurred in the British ranks, as a result of a blunder, the 52nd Light Company defending the ridge towards Hougomont rushed forwards in a charge toward the enemy.

French Columns march against Papelotte.

French Columns march against Papelotte.

The flanking move at Papelotte was under way but largely ineffective. As the morning moved on, the French artillery moved into position and started to take a heavy toll of the British defenders. La Haye Sainte was subjected to a fierce bombardment!

The Light Companies of the KGL and 95th Rifles hold on!

The Light Companies of the KGL and 95th Rifles hold on!

It’s fair to say that at this point, any real communication between the two wings of the British Army began to break down as they fought for survival! A flanking attack by Cavalry around Hougmont had been stopped by the French and the 52nd were now in square after a French cavalry attack. Despite the overwhelming odds, the British right was drawn off the hill in a desperate attempt to rescue the 52nd!

The British attempt to relief the 52nd!

The British attempt to relief the 52nd!

At La Haye Sainte, the French continued to pulverise the defenders, causing them to break. Fortunately, the British were able to move in a fresh unit. But they were being pressed hard by the French Infantry columns!

The French Army assaults La Haye Sainte

The French Army assaults La Haye Sainte

Difficult times at La Haye!

Difficult times at La Haye!

If things were hard pressed at the centre, at Papelotte, the British were not enjoying success either. A determined cavalry attack had been pushed home catching two French columns in the flank but despite this, the French were only forced to retreat, without losing their batalions. The British cavalry faired far worse, losing two regiments, one to artillery fire, the other to combat. As a result, the British cavalry in this sector became ineffective, with a further two regiments of heavy’s refusing to move all battle!

French Pressure begins to tell!

French Pressure begins to tell!

The Defence of La Haye Sainte

The Defence of La Haye Sainte

So where were the Prussians? They arrived on the battlefield at 1.00pm but despite all the encouragement from Blucher, they were tied up in Plancenoite. Although only faced by a smaller French detatchment, they were making slow progress and had yet to join the battle. Even their Cavalry were ineffective. When they finally did charge, they were roundly beaten by the French and fled from the table…

The Prussians had reached Plancenoite but would not move much further than this.

The Prussians had reached Plancenoite but would not move much further than this.

Desperate fighting at La Haye Sainte!

Desperate fighting at La Haye Sainte!

The French assault on La Haye Sainte and the centre of the British line was relentless. There was nothing to divert them and gradually the British were worn down. The 27th and 40th were shaken and as a result began to fall back with the rest of the brigade. At Papelotte, although resisitance was stuborn, a further disaster occurred when a Battalion of Hanoverians, rather than rally, enthusiastically charged the nearest French column only to be routed!

The French tide sweeps around Hougomont!

The French tide sweeps around Hougomont!

La Haye Sainte is by passed as the French advance towards Brussels!

La Haye Sainte is by passed as the French advance towards Brussels!

The battle was lost! With the Prussians bogged down in Plancenoite and unable to reach the British, French numbers were begining to tell. Papelotte was holding on but in the centre, La Haye had now fallen! The road to Brussels was open. Hougomont was still held but all support was being driven back, it would be a matter of time before the Guards would have to retreat.

The French flag flies over La Haye Sainte!

The French flag flies over La Haye Sainte!

And so the battle was lost! The French had a clear strategy of forcing the centre and were not to be diverted from this. On the other hand the British had spread their forces too thinly and engaged in diversionary attacks that just took valuable resources from where they were needed. At around 4.00pm, the British withdrew from the field leaving the French to march on Brussels!

A fantastic game, played in the true spirit of Black Powder! Thank you once again to Quinton for helping with the Hall, Steve at Sarissa for the loan of the fantastic buildings and of course to Pete, Mick and John for being such great gaming companions!

Black Powder for Club Nights

BLACK-POWDER-rules-for-Wargames-from-WARLORD-games-400569960224Playing Black Powder with Napoleonic figures continues to be my obsession, with no sign of ‘game fatigue’ appearing. I still play at least once a fortnight at the club, only recently having a break every other week to play Muskets and Tomahawks. The other guys at the club are quite amused at our adherence to this rule set and period and we are now known collectively as the ‘Black Powder’ lot! That said, our ‘gang’ is growing and whereas it used to be just two of us slugging it out over a table, there are now at least six ‘hardcore’ members of the sub club, so to speak, with a few more that are happy to join in and even more that come over to check our battle progress during the evening.

So whats the secret that keeps us locked into this rules set. Well, read the opening line of this blog. We are well aware that we are playing a rules set with Napoleonic figures and we are not too hung up on how realistic the rules may or may not be, we just know that we will have a fun game. Of course, there is a nod in the direction of historical realism, but thats all. When ever we play there will always be a talking point about what may or may not be realistic. Our current debate concerns the use of Howitzers and the limitation on the effectiveness of these guns at close range. The rules say that you cannot fire on an enemy that has closed within 6 inches of a Howitzer, which pretty much implies that you have no closing fire option. It also prevents you from firing canister into Squares at close range.

Is this historically accurate? Probably not, but I don’t think it matters too much when playing a table top game. The rules are clear, and you take a howitzer in your ‘army’ knowing those limitations. Of course there are benefits in the game for Howitzers and when you put your army list toALBION-TRIUMPHANT-VOL1-The-Peninsular-Black-Powder-Napoleonic-rule-supplement-181303809372gether, you take the rough with the smooth. That’s not to say we haven’t  modified some of the Black Powder Rules to suit our style of gaming. The two Napoleonic Supplements, Albion Triumphant 1 & 2,  introduced some new rules and ideas, some of which we have adapted, some not. The beauty of Black Powder is that it allows this, provided everyone is clear at the start of the game.

For anyone that is interested, here’s the points system and a few of the rules modifications that we use for our club night. They are designed to allow us to play a reasonable game on a 6 foot by 4 foot table in an evening or a couple of hours.

The 30 Point System

Level 8 Commanders are free. +1 point for each addition level (Max 10)

Regular Line Infantry = 2 points

Regular Light Infantry = 2.5 points

Militia, Conscripts, Reserves = 1.5 points [Cannot be upgraded]

Foot Artillery ( 1 Cannon = Battery) = 1.5 points [No half Batteries]

Horse Artillery ( 1 Cannon = Battery) = 1.5 points [No half Batteries]

Regular Heavy and Lancer Cavalry = 2.5 points 

Regular Light Cavalry = 2 points

Vetran Status = + 0.5 points

Elite Status = + 0.5 points

Rifles = + 0.5 point

Old Guard = + 0.5 points in addition to Veteran and Elite Status cost

Large units = + 0.5 points

Small units = – 0.5 points

Tiny units = – 1 point

Unit Sizes

Standard Infantry = 12 to 16 figures

Small Infantry = 8 figures

Tiny Infantry = 4 figures

Standard Cavalry = 6 figures

Small Cavalry = 4 Figures

Tiny Cavalry = Not Permitted

Unit Restrictions (Maximums)

Rifle Units = 9 points

Old Guard Units = 9 points

Lancer Cavalry = 9 points

Regular Light Infantry = 15 points

Notes:

Small and Tiny units cannot constitute more than 25% of a brigade and do not count towards the Brigade’s morale.

Infantry brigades must have a minimum of three infantry units and Cavalry a minimum of two units in addition to any Artillery.

Mixed Brigades must have a minimum of two Infantry units.

Brigades and Army break on greater than 50% loss

Cavalry may retire in the movement phase when disordered.

Mixed Order Columns do not benefit from a column save bonus if you are shooting at the skirmishers or from artillery fire.

French Columns do not benefit from Pas de Charge – they already have a bonus from being in column.

British first fire only applies if you have not moved more than once during the orders phase.

British troops fight in line and do not form column

Now I guess that there will be a few dissenters out there with regards to these amendments but don’t worry, they are not official and you will only be asked to use them if you join us at the White Hart…. In the meantime, I can only hope that other gamers enjoy Black Powder as much as we do.

Prepare for Battle!

Prepare for Battle!

Small is beautiful!

The setting for the Show was somewhat rural!

The setting for the Show was somewhat rural!

Having recently attended the largest Wargames show in the UK, Salute at Excel, this Sunday gone, I went to probably the smallest, at Owthorpe village hall, Notts. The show is hosted by Shaun Mclaughlin, who is well known for running the Wargames bunker holiday home. The show was themed as the Last of the Mohicans but it is worth having a quick look at the event page on face book to get an idea as to what was there.

The welcome was warm though!

There were lots of bargains!

The beauty of this event was its size. I have found recently that the larger events are great but it is difficult to settle at a stand or game to have a chat without feeling that I was in the way of somebody else. No such problem here. There was one large Demo game – a last of the Mohicans scenario, beautifully constructed with hundreds of miniatures and a fantastic scenic board as the centre piece.

The British Evacuate the Fort!

The British Evacuate the Fort!

There's more Indians coming!

There’s more Indians coming!

Supporting this were a few other games. A science fiction game with a very nice Thunderbird two at the centre!

Thunderbirds are Go!

Thunderbirds are Go!

The other game to catch my attention was a Dead Mans Hand participation game run by James Woodward from my local club. James had taken the Bushwackers and Jayhawkers scenario from Wargames Illustrated 320. Once again, there was a superb table to play on with all the figures provided so it would have been a shame not to join in! I actually played twice, completing the opening scene and second scene from ‘Ride with the Devil’. The games were played at a leisurely pace, as befitted a relaxed sunday morning, with plenty of banter from the spectators and much amusement at my ‘demise’ in both games. The photo below sums up my performance in the game…

The last man standing was about to meet his maker!

The last man standing was about to meet his maker!

And so on to the trade stands. I won’t list them all but I must mention the ‘Galloping Majors’ stand. This company specialises in the French Indian Wars and AWI periods and has a delightful range to support these periods. The owner, Lance, was happy to spend time explaining the differences between the various Indians tribes involved in the conflicts and was clearly an expert in this area. I came away with my first pack of Indians ( Mohawks) and an enthusiasm for a new period….It looks as though I will be painting an army for the Muskets and Tomahawks rules after all.

The Galloping Majors Indians - coming soon to my work bench!

The Galloping Majors Indians – coming soon to my work bench!

So all in all, a morning well spent! A couple of games of Deadmans Hand (I’ll be painting cowboys for this game as well it just plays too well to not have it as an option!), a few extra figures from the bargains stand for the lead mountain and a lovely pack of Indians that I will be painting sooner rather than later. Of course, the coffee, Kit Kat and conversation were pretty good as well. There’s a lot to be said for the smaller show and I’ll be going again!

 

Scenarios for Black Powder

The Guards line up ready for battle!

The Guards line up ready for battle!

In an ideal world, where we all have plenty of time and unlimited resources for our hobby, we could spend hours re -enacting all the battles of the Napoleonic era, exploring the ‘what if’s’ and ‘if onlys’ of history on accurate terrain boards, with all the right troops in all the right uniforms! It would be the ‘Carlesberg wargaming club’.  However, for me the reality is that I get to the club once a week on a Thursday evening and we fight a battle that lasts for about 2 hours using the troops that I have to hand with a rules system ( Black Powder) that allows an easy flow to the game on a gaming cloth with a few pieces of terrain to make it look pretty. Sure, once in a while we get to play the ‘mega’ battle on a posh table with special scenario rules and the correct force but that this is a rare exception in my gaming calender.

The real problem is that there is a tendency to just line our armies up on the table and try and win the game by breaking more of the enemies units than he breaks of yours. OK, it’s still good fun but it can get a bit repetitive. So we were looking for a quick fix to make our games a little bit different and to start to introduce a bit of narrative into the games –  this is the ‘back of a fag packet’ ( in our case more likely to be the back of a crisp packet….) solution.

The Line Advances!

The Line Advances!

We quickly came up with a list of 6 simple scenarios and before our game we roll a dice to decide which scenario  we will play. The exception being of course, when the same one has come up and every one groans ‘we played that last time’ – just roll again and let the dice decide. Here is the list that we are using at the moment. The intention of course is to add to them, rolling a D10 or D20 would be even more interesting!

Scenario 1 – The River

The battle is fought on a table with a river running across it. We use strips of painted paper to represent the river. It’s not the quality of scenery that you would find in Wargames Illustrated but quite adequate for a club battle. The river sections are about 12 inches long and we place a dice on each section. As a unit attempts to cross the section of river, roll the dice. On a 1 to 3 the unit will become disordered as it crosses. A roll of 4 to 6 means that the unit crosses safely. These are just our basic river rules – we have quite a few variations but these simple rules add another dimension to the game and will give commanders something else to think about when planning their battle.

Scenario 2 – One of your brigades is late!

Just pick a brigade on each side and roll a dice. The dice roll indicates on which turn ( 1 to 6 ) it arrives in your deployment zone. A variation on this scenario is to test each brigade in the army. Roll for each brigade, on a 1 or 2 ( or whatever you deem appropriate) the brigade is late. Then roll to see when the late brigades arrive. Great for players with Prussian armies…..

Scenario 3 –  Flank March

The two opponents roll a dice. The winner will get the flank march option and can choose a brigade that will deploy on one of the side table edges. Roll a dice to decide which on turn ( if it’s turn 6 it can be tricky…) your brigade will arrive. When the turn arrives for deployment, roll a dice. On a 1-3 you can deploy on your left flank, 4 -6 it’s your right flank. We allow deployment anywhere on the side of the table so beware  – you may have an enemy brigade that is  effectively deploying in your rear!

Scenario 4 – Off Table Deployment

Both armies start off the table. Before any orders are given to a unit, roll a dice. In the first turn, on a roll of 5 or 6 you may place the unit in your deployment zone on the table and issue it with an order as usual. On this first move, movement is reduce by one order. In other words the maximum that you can move is two ‘orders worth’ of movement. You can apply the rule to individual units or brigades or a mixture of both. After that, movement is as per normal Black powder rules. On turn two, the dice required to deploy is reduced to 4,5 or 6. Turn three, you need 3 to 6, turn 4 you will need 2 to 6 and this stays in place so if you throw a one in turn 5 your brigade still will not arrive!  It happens and can be quite frustrating. We rename those units as the Grouchy Brigades…

Scenario 5 – Capture the Flag!

A simple objective is placed in each half of the table. The objective is to capture the opponents objective whilst protecting your own.

Senario 6 -Pitched battle

Straight forward enough – back to the usual set up in deployment zones and beat the enemy. You can give this a bit more flavour by altering deployment zones rather than just lining up along the back of the table.

The other interesting variation is how to place the scenery. Rolling a dice for this is a good idea but we just tend to take it in turns to set the table out each week. We have had some interesting results when we have asked a non participant player from the club to set out the scenery though!

Stopped by the Cavalry!

Stopped by the Cavalry!

The scenarios have certainly thrown out some interesting games. The pictures that I have used for this blog article are from our game last week where I had the Flank March. I thought that I would easily pin my opponent and out flank him with an extra brigade of three battalions of Infantry. As it turned out he held those battalions in check with his cavalry and after forcing them into square, proceeded to pound them with his artillery. I was then forced into trying to rescue my flank and more Battalions were drawn out of position and the army was eventually broken as they were pushed into square as well and shaken by artillery fire. It was the most effective use of cavalry in a Black powder game that I have seen and despite the musket fire that the cavalry were facing, by clever use of rotating the cavalry and rallying them it was the infantry that broke first!

The Flank is in Trouble!

The Flank is in Trouble!

Muskets and Machetes!

Chasseurs de IriosI’ve been blathering on about my Carribean force for sometime now but have yet to use it on the field of battle. There have been two problems; one, the lack of a rules set and more importantly, the lack of an opponent! I started to collect and paint the Trent Miniatures Caribbean figures because I thought they were superb models. The sculpting is of high quality with some really characterful models in the range. Add to that, the uniforms look pretty good and there is plenty of scope for all sorts of variety when putting together a force. The theatre of action, the Caribbean islands in the late 18th Century provides plenty of scope for all sorts of battles, from small scale skirmishes to full on battles, naval landings and sieges. And of course the scenery will be interesting – anything from Plantations to Jungles.

The History of the region is also fascinating, if somewhat poorly documented. As well as the fighting between the ‘Super powers’ of Britain, France & Spain,  there were multiple slave uprisings, none more successful than Haiti, the former French Colony of Saint Domingue. Indeed this uprising resulted in the independence of Haiti, which was the first Caribbean nation to gain independence from European powers in 1804.  Under the leadership of Toussaint l’Ouverture ( sometimes referred to as the Black Napoleon), the former slaves defeated the French army (twice), the Spanish army, and the British army, before becoming the world’s first and oldest black republic, and also the second-oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere after the United States. This is additionally notable as being the only successful slave uprising in history.

So, with all this fascinating background, a superb range of figures, never mind the possibility of adding in Voodoo, Zombies and Pirates, it’s a mystery to me as to why there isn’t a rules set for the period!

muskets & tomahawksWell, as usual, the answer was right in front of me. There is a superb rules set by the very talented Alex Buchel of  Studio Tomahawk called ‘Muskets and Tomahawks’ for skirmishes in North America during the 18th Century. I could see immediately that it would be very straight forward to transpose the Caribbean forces over the North American Forces in the rules set and I could use my figures on the wargames table! Luckily there are a few players at my local wargames club that play M & T’s, so I asked one of them, John Grant (or Nice John as he is known locally!) if he would take me through the rules with a practice game. John has a terrific set up with plenty of scenery and AWI figures, so the game was great fun and confirmed my impression that the rules set would transpose to the Caribbean. The next step was to ask if I could use my Caribbean force in a game!

60th Rifles prepare to fire!

60th Rifles prepare to fire!

John was happy to oblige, and so my 60th Rifles became British Light infantry ( actually, not much of a change here! The 60th were after all founded in America…) The Black regiments became Militia and the freed slaves were used as Indians. Although this was our first ‘rough fit’ as we played through the game it became clear that we would perhaps modify some of the rules to reflect conditions in the Caribbean. So for example, the freed slaves or Maroons were given the ‘blood thirsty’ rule in combat and their shooting ability down graded accordingly. There was some debate as to the quality of the Black regiments and whether they should be re classified as normal infantry or have the same stats as ‘ Compagnies de la Marine’ from the French Army.

The Black Chasseurs advance!

The Black Chasseurs advance!

It’s fair to say that it is early days before we get to a rules modification that suits this period but for the time being, it’s a close enough fit and I hope that over the next year or so, I can produce a stat’s board for the Caribbean and the correct cards to match. I see that Wargames Illustrated are giving away a free figure of Toussaint l’Ouverture at Historicon this year so there is obviously interest in the period – who knows, perhaps they can be persuaded to do a supplement…

How to win the battles and lose the war…

So the big day arrived on Saturday, the Lion Rampant event at Wargames Illustrated HQ. As with past events, the day was very well organised, with plenty of refreshments on hand and after the briefing and the mandatory mug of coffee we were off to fight the first battle! The day would consist of three scenarios, the first a pitched battle, the second, a random scenario chosen from the rule book and the third, a final battle with set objectives. In the first battle, we could support an ally by donating a unit to him at any point in the game. The second battle was as per the scenario and the third Battle was an eight player (four a side) grand battle with objectives. We had been split into two groups, Rebels & loyalists and with each scenario, it was possible to score ‘advantage points’ for our team as well as accumulating kill points which would boost our individual retinues.

The question was how would my retinue perform?

Scenario 1 – Pitched Battle

AtlLast the Retinue advances!

At last! The Retinue advances!

I had drawn Karl as my opponent, a familiar enemy from the club, so no surprises as far as his retinue went. He had a mixture of  Crossbowmen, Archers, Bidowers, Mounted Sergeants and his command group of foot knights. The big problem was my command rolls – I just could not roll to get my retinue to move! The one time I managed to advance, Karl retreated and the frustration was building! After a brief arrow fight, I goaded Karl into advancing, although by now I think that he had seen me fail so many command rolls that it looked as though he would run me down with his mounted sergeants. At last, my archers decided to loose! The ensuing carnage saw Karl’s mounted units wiped out and his missile troops retreating as they failed their rally attempts. However, both of our command units proceeded to commit mutual destruction and in all the excitement,  I forgot to use my special ability to automatically pass rally tests, meaning that my leader also fled the field.

I had killed or routed the majority of the opposition when the game ended, losing ‘only’ my foot knights & bidowers but alas, my victory was tarnished by losing the boss unnecessarily.

Scenario 2 – Meet The Neighbours

Loose!

Loose!

After a very relaxed lunch break (more on this later), it was on to the second scenario. The scenario involved getting your retinue across the table to exit from the opponents deployment zone whilst stopping your opponent from doing the same to you. My opponent was Wayne, no less a personage than the Wargames Illustrated Sub Editor! His retinue was very similar to Karls with a good mix of mounted & missile troops. The game started for me where I had left off previously. I could not pass two command rolls in succession! I was beginning to become more frustrated with my dice rolling rather than focusing on the scenario. In my eagerness to at least do something, I moved one unit of archers straight down the board, unsupported,  to engage the enemy. Well they moved and inflicted a few casualties but they did very little else until they were ridden down by the enemy…

Fortunately, those few casualties were enough to slow Wayne down and at last the other unit of archers joined the fight. My other success was that my defensive dice rolling with the foot sergeants in Schiltron meant that Wayne’ s attacks had ‘bounced’ leaving him vulnerable to failing his rally rolls. With a few hits from my archers, his mounted troops routed or were wiped out, along with most of his retinue. However, by now he had moved one of his units off of the table, his foot Knights, leaving just one unit of archers in my way.  At last  my retinue started to move and with two units just one move away from the edge of the table and two other units close behind, all I needed to do was to keep his archers out of the way.

I couldn’t resist a final shot at them though…. I passed the command, rolled for hits. I rolled 8 fives & sixes out of 12 dice, my best roll of the day so far. Four casualties inflicted in one go. Brilliant! Except it wasn’t. Wayne, of course, failed his rally test and the unit routed off the table, immediately ending the game. He had won the scenario as he had moved more of his units off of the table, one unit to my nil! Doh!

Well, my kill points were accumulating nicely, but that was about it.

Scenario 3 – Final encounter – capture the buildings

The last battle.

The last battle.

My Final opponent, Duncan had a Caliphate Army with a 50-50 split between mounted troops & foot troops, supported by 2 units of bidowers. Where he could, he had upgraded all of his units with bows or spears so that all of his army could fire missiles at 12 inch range. As well as capturing the buildings, the scenario was played over an open table so you could target and attack any enemy unit, regardless of who controlled them.

Once again, my command rolls were letting me down. It felt like I had failed 66% of my command rolls during the day, when it should have been closer to 33%. I think the day was summed up when my Foot sergeants took just one casualty from a bidower unit. They needed to pass a courage test of 5+, I rolled 3 and they became battered and moved back. I tried to rally them next go – I still need a 5+, I rolled 4, so they moved back again and lost a man. I tried to rally them again. I now need 6+, I roll 5, so they lose a man and go back. I try once more for a rally, I now need 7+ and yes you’ve guessed it, I roll a 5 again and now they have run out of table, so good bye Foot sergeants…

The rest of my command rolls are about the same, so whilst Duncan outmaneuvers my troops, attacks my ally and generally seems to go where ever he wants to, my army stands to one side, like the Stanleys at Bosworth, occasionally firing and inflicting the odd casualty. However, at last my luck turns and once again, the archers do the business, killing anything in range ( which is pretty much everyone by now!). So once again my kill rate is high and apart from the cowardly Foot sergeants who ran away from the bidowers, my army is intact. As regards the scenario, I captured just one building and two are required to score victory points. Oh dear!

Post match analysis

On the positive side, there’s no doubt that my retinue is a killing machine! Two units of expert archers can inflict deadly casualties when acting together. The down side is that the retinue lacks mobility, even allowing for my poor command rolls. There is no doubt about it though, I let my poor dice rolling cloud my judgement and as a result I lost my leader in the first scenario and the second scenario was lost outright. Had I stayed cool and worked with what I had, I would have won the first two scenarios, which would have given me a much stronger position for the third. On the day, the rebels were vanquished and the King was securely on the throne!

Armour On!

Armour On!

As regards the overall day, it was one of the best that I had attended. Superbly organised with plenty of refreshments and a superb Medieval meal of Beef stew, Ham, Pease pudding & cheese all served in a huge loaf or trencher. We also enjoyed a demonstration of how Medieval Armour was put on and the chance to handle some authentic medieval weapons. I cant wait for the next event!

Helmet on!                                 Ready fo Battle

Ready for Battle

Helmet on!

The retinue is ready!

Let battle commence!

Let battle commence!

Last Thursday I went to Battlefront HQ to play in a Lion Rampant rehearsal day. The ”rehearsal’ was to see if a big multi-player game of Lion Rampant would work and also to check out some ‘house rules’ for the big Lion Rampant day being held on 31st January. It was of course a good opportunity to see how my retinue played against the competition and to hone my tactics for the day. Well the evening went reasonably well and lesson were learnt by both the organisers and players!

The big battle suffered from the usual problems of keeping 12 noisy war gamers in order and somehow coordinating the turn system so that players at one end of the table knew when it was their turn to go. The other issue was that although I knew what was happening either side of me, it was very difficult to know what was happening elsewhere. In a way, this final problem isn’t so much a problem as a reflection as to what really happened in a battle in the middle ages. With no radio or mobile phone you would have no idea how your allies were doing until a messenger managed to find you and even then, the information would be out of date. So as a commander you could be winning your part of the battle, only to find elsewhere things hadn’t gone so well and a large force of very angry enemies were charging into a flank that you had previously thought secure.

2015-01-22 11.12.28

I’ll leave Dan & Wayne, the organisers, to figure out how and if to sort out these complications and focus on the lessons learnt from my own battle. My retinue, now complete, consists of  a Unit of foot knights ( including the leader), two units of expert archers, a unit of foot sergeants and a unit of Bidowers. It’s a typical English skirmishing force circa Agincourt to the Wars of the Roses ( if there is such a thing) & very much a defensive retinue. With no mounted units, I’m not going to be swiftly maneuvering around the battlefield, picking off the opposition. The expert archers are the killing units but they are fragile if caught in the open. Mounted knights will just ride them down. So the trick is to protect them whilst drawing the enemy into range.

So my tactics will be to keep the two units of archers in a central position as close together as possible. Any unit that comes with in range will have to face an onslaught of archery! I’ll protect the flanks and the front by positioning the Foot knights ( with the leader) to one side and the foot sergeants ( forming Schiltron) to the other side. My leader, Harry (Kane) Hotspur, should be close enough to add a point of courage to the archers in any morale test. Of course, I will use any rough ground to help protect the archers without compromising line of sight. The last of my units, the bidowers are there for two reasons. At worst ( for them!) they will be bait to draw the enemy into bow range. If all goes well, I will use them to skirmish and either add strength to a flank or wear the enemy down by fighting from cover.

Now all of that sounds great. I have a plan, what could possible go wrong…?

Well, on Thursday there were two problems. Firstly, I couldn’t roll the dice to get my units to move! It must have been six moves before I actually got within bow range of my opponent. By which time he had given up attacking me ( he wasn’t going to risk the archers even with my terrible dice rolling) and was attacking my ally on the right. By the time I started to move it was too late, my ally had been out numbered and slaughtered. The only good news was that because my troops had stood around impersonating the Stanleys at the Battle of Bosworth, the army was still intact. My ally on the left had suffered the same fate and had been all but wiped out, so I now had to fight three damaged enemies on my own.

The dice gods now intervened and at last things started to move and I was able to close with the opposition. The problem being that I was now trying to fight an offensive battle with a defensive force and all thought of a cohesive attack had disappeared, along with my allies.  The battle ended in a sort of a victory. I had killed the opposition leaders and reduced their forces to a few half units but it did not feel like a victory, more an avoidance of defeat. The other issue was that on this occasion, the terrain was as much of a problem to me as it was a help. There’s nothing like a battle with the whim of the dice throw to remind you that war gaming is not chess! Ah well, I still have a plan and I’ll stick with it for now. Despite the set backs, I dont think that I could fight with this army in any other way and it’s too late now to change.

The final parting shot from Dan was ‘whats all that stuff on your bases?’ ‘Well it is a War of the Roses force Dan….’

2015-01-22 11.12.12

What’s the use of Bidowers?

2014-11-27 13.16.33Well that was the question I asked myself when putting together my Lion Rampant retinue. With just 6 men in the unit, an armour value of  1 ( 2 when shot at) and a points value of 2, I couldn’t see why I would bother having these in my retinue. The fact was that I had never heard of a Bidower before, come to that, neither has Wickipedia. A google search revealed the following link, which was sort of useful:

Bidower

So why would I have them in my Lion Rampant retinue. Well, after a number of battles facing these units, I realised that despite their cheap cost, they were very useful indeed. For a start, they move on a 5+, and they move quickly, 8 inches a turn and are not slowed by rough terrain. Add to this that they can Skirmish ( shoot and move), cant be targeted from over 12 inches and have the ability to evade. If they do get caught in hand to hand they are going to be slaughtered by most units on foot. However, in rough ground they can hold their own against mounted men at arms, even dragging them into combat ( on a Fierce Charge) on equal terms.

I soon learnt that they were very useful indeed, particularly after they had badly mauled my unit of Foot knights and killed my Leader ( now named Kenny, as he seems to die in every battle) before I could close with them and finish them off. The result is that I have now included a unit of Bidowers in my army. OK, it’s another 6 men to paint but it will give me just a little bit more flexibilty in battle.

And flexibility is badly needed in my retinue. Having chosen the later English retinue from the Lion Rampant rule book, I have found that although they are good in a pitched battle, they can only fight in a tight defensive formation. The bowmen need protecting from any marauding foot or cavalry units by my Foot Knights & Sergeants. So I have made the Foot Sergeants a standard unit ( allowing them to form Schiltron) to save the 2 points need to add the Bidowers. I’ll still need to fight on the defensive & try to lure or goad my opponents to advance within arrow range but once the two expert archers get to fire they cause mayhem among most of the opposition units.

So it’s back to the battlefield tonight with my new look army to see how it can cope with the new tactics that I have planned! The picture at the top of the page shows my latest finished unit, the Foot Sergeants and here is the army that I will field tonight. The archers & bidowers are still temporary units made up from some very old figures that were kicking around in my spares box! They will need rebasing & touching up before they become permanent additions. However, the plan is to replace them with archers from the Perry’s boxed set. The next batch is on the work bench as I write!

2014-11-27 13.28.19

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