A Backlog of Battles

The hobby emphasis has shifted... September has seen a fair number of games played, and only a little painting.

It's a shift I am rather enjoying... However, I've fallen behind with battle reports on the blog, so thought it about time I rectified that.

Mind you, I'm not one for writing (or reading) over long game AARs, so I'll keep it brief, allowing a few pictures to tell the story.

First up - Billhooks with the NOBs...

With two of our normal Old Berks foursome unable to attend, Andy and I were able to introduce two newcomers to the throng - Pete and Rich. Hence the New Old Berks, a group name that looks better when written in full than when abbreviated!

We played a game of Never Mind The Billhooks on a 9x4 table, each of us commanding a standard 120 point army, playing in pairs. Andy and Rich played the part of the Lancastrians, whilst my Warwick contingent allied with Pete's Yorkists to face them.

I have to say, all the armies looked glorious on the table, really showing off the colour and splendour of the period.

And the game didn't disappoint. My dice rolling continued to be outrageously good (and very lucky), and my dolt cavalry commander (Sir Gregory Carrodus) was anything but a dolt on the day, leading his men on a very successful charge to destroy Rich's light cavalry, and causing panic on the enemy right flank. In total, I think my light horsemen were responsible for taking 6 of the enemy's tokens on the day, so bravo to Sir Gregory! 

Mortimer of Arden also continued his run of form, and with Warwick adding his weigth to the attack, i managed to make the breakthrough. My allies, under Pete's command, were starting to come under pressure on my right, but I had faith in Pete's generalship, despite the nasty little Kern of Andy's again making an appearance and causing trouble. Pete held on,and we were victorious, just.

It was a game of firsts:

The first time the four of us had played together.

The first game in which we hadn't had an artillery piece blow itself up.

The first game in which Andy's latest trophy was introduced (The Billfookery Award, for the general who makes the most ridiculous and obvious error, tactically) - no one made any foolish errors on this occasion, so the trophy remains unassigned, for now.

And so to the pictures:

Next up - Billhooks in Salford

A business trip to Manchester allowed me to enjoy a trip to Salford to stay with Steve and Gwen Ayers and get a game with David "Low Roller" (aka Wargames amateur blogger).

First night, Steve and I had a quick game of Billhooks, using Steve's medieval forces. Again, a fun game. And again, my dice were embarassingly lucky.

I took only a couple of photos of this...

Another victory!

Finally - Eastern Renaissance

Next day, David arrived and we played a fantastic Eastern Renaissance game, using the Pike & Shotte rules (with their local Salford amendments!).

I took the role of Ottoman commander, advancing to take a small village defended by David's Poles and Steve's Muscovites.

The flanks were packed with cavalry of all types, charging hither and thither, and the swirling melees could have gone either way.

My lucky dice continued for about two-thirds of the game... but eventually the tide turned. David "Low Roller seemed to have been taken over by his evil twin doppelganger "high roller" on my left flank and I reached a high water mark before being repulsed all across the table.

Eventually, David had to depart for a family gathering, just as my infantry in the centre had started to break over the defences and attack the village, the Tufeckis leading the way, closely followed by units of Janissaries. This was, however, the high water-mark, and I was soon repulsed by the valiant defenders. It was a close run thing.

My brigade of Sipahis of the Porte had remained on a hill on my baseline for the whole game as I was unsure where to commit them, and held them back to hopefully make a decisive impact, or shore up a breach in my lines. An opportune moment never came really, and I chose to save them to fight another day.

A great game, really great. It made me want to recharge my own Eastern Renaissance project, that's for sure. Added to the list for 2027.

Anyway, David has done a couple of updates on his Wargames Amateur blog with lots of nice pictures, which you might like to enjoy.

Meanwhile, here's a few more pictures of the action...

It was a great weekend, and thanks to Steve and Gwen for their hospitality. Thanks also to David for the use of his vast (and still growing) Eastern Renaissance collection. All that cavalry certainly makes for a very different game. Inspiring!

This coming weekend my gaming adventures continue: Steve Gill is heading over for a bit of Horse & Musketry, so the 1704 (Wars of The Vaubarian Succession) collection will get a run out.

Looking forward to it.