Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Medieval Adventures => Topic started by: Captain Blood on October 16, 2016, 01:31:14 PM
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Here’s a battle report from our medieval game at last week’s BLAM, British Lead Adventure Meeting.
The lovely rugged moorland terrain was by Steve ‘Silent Invader’ Marshall – designed for a Game of Thrones, but here serving very well as a proxy Yorkshire, in a very (very) loosely based scenario along the lines of the Battle of Wakefield.
The figures (250 individually based) are by Silent Invader (the Yorkists) and myself (the Lancastrians). Purists, please ignore the fact that the liveries and standards don’t match up in all cases! (I explain the large number of liveried Yorkists in the Lancastrian ranks by appointing George Duke of Clarence, who turned his coat at least twice, as one of the Lancastrian commanders).
The rules used were Silent Invader’s new all-purpose generic rules for all periods and setting, which worked very well for the most part, although, as you’ll see, the effect of longbow fire proved a bit more bloody than anticipated! But it made for a fairly quick game.
The Lancastrians were played by Overlord, Romark and myself. The Yorkists by Slade44, Dr Zombie, and Hu Rhu.
A general view of the virgin battlefield from the ridge at the Western end of the field, with the Yorkist positions on the left and the Lancastrians crossing from the stream to the right.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_48_59_0.JPG)
The armies assume their positions. The Yorkist defensive line between the derelict fortifications and the farmhouse. The advancing Lancastrians arrayed behind the stream.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_48_59_1.JPG)
The Lancastrian line advances across the stream. Battle is joined as the first arrows fly from the Yorkist ranks, and the two sides exchange desultory cannon shot.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_48_59_2.JPG)
But wait, someone has obviously not told the numerically inferior Yorkists they are supposed to be defending! Their armoured men-at-arms in the centre rush out to meet the advancing Lancastrian line.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_48_59_3.JPG)
Straight into the teeth of the Lancastrian longbows - ye Gods! - with fairly devastating consequences later…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_48_59_4.JPG)
Meanwhile, near the Eastern end of the field, the Lancastrian men-at-arms watch in consternation as the Yorkist light horse make an early move from the cover of the farm…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_51_30_0.JPG)
The entire Yorkist line now advances to catch up with their on-rushing men-at-arms, with even the Yorkist longbowmen abandoning the safety of their stone walls on the Yorkist right, to join the general advance…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_51_30_1.JPG)
The Lancastrian commander sees his chance and throws his heavily armoured mounted knights across the river in an attempt to turn the Yorkists now undefended right flank…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_51_31_2.JPG)
…whilst the Lancastrians prickers and scurrers swarm across the stream to meet the threat from the advancing Yorkist light horse…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_51_31_3.JPG)
…who begin to come under sustained archery fire from a body of longbowmen on the Lancastrian extreme right.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_51_31_4.JPG)
A general view of the battlefield at this point in proceedings. With the Yorkist men-at-arms, still hell-bent on getting stuck into the Lancastrian line.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_55_34_0.JPG)
Meanwhile, at the Western end of the field, the Lancastrian heavy horse clatter into the Yorkist longbows. Unfortunately, this did not have quite the devastating shock and awe effect, as they managed to arrive at a trot rather than a gallop, somewhat drawing the sting from what should have been a devastating charge. (Note meanwhile, that the kamikaze Yorkist men-at-arms have been decimated by longbow fire as they close with the Lancastrian line… )
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_55_35_1.JPG)
As a body of Yorkist billmen swing right from the Yorkist centre to join in the melee, the Lancastrian heavy horse are thrown back by weight of numbers. Which the Yorkist master gunner decides is an opportune moment to let rip...
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_55_35_2.JPG)
In the foreground, the York billmen swing into the flank of the Lancastrian mounted men-at-arms; in the distance, on the far left of the Yorkist flank, the York billmen are thrown forward in support of their light horse who have ridden into the teeth of the Lancastrian arrow storm; in the centre, the rest of the Yorkist line decides to hold, as they watch their few surviving men-at-arms from the vanguard rush heroically towards the Lancastrians…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_55_35_3.JPG)
Meanwhile – Paf! The Yorkist gun open up at point blank range, devastating the Lancastrian mounted men-at-arms, now reduced from a 10 man unit to just two! (Who needless to say, break for the river).
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_55_35_4.JPG)
Finally the Yorkist men-at-arms close with the Lancastrian longbows. Unfortunately, despite their superior armour and skill with weapons, they are swiftly overwhelmed and killed by sheer weight of numbers. A heroic but ultimately doomed charge, ended at last.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_0.JPG)
Meanwhile at the other end of the field, the Yorkist bills have smashed into the Lancastrian right flank, and a confused and bloody melee ensues…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_1.JPG)
In the thick of it… Can you tell who’s who? No? Well, this indeed was part of the problem in the Wars of The Roses!
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_2.JPG)
The Yorkist light horse having largely been destroyed by arrow storm and in a few hand to hand flurries, the Lancastrian commander is able to summon his own light horse back towards his left flank. Or to attempt to sweep through the large hole that has appeared in the Yorkist centre…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_3.JPG)
With the battle now breaking up into small struggling knots of men, on the Lancastrian side, the Renegade George, Duke of Clarence, is undecided on a course of action - so stands with his men in the middle of the ford and shouts encouragement instead…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_4.JPG)
At the Eastern end of the field, the Yorkist bill attack has been whittled down to a few desperate men, who are finally flung back…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_00_12_0.JPG)
The last of the Yorkist light horsemen is cornered on the banks of the stream and taken down by a band of Lancastrian men-at-arms…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_00_13_1.JPG)
All that remains of the Yorkist centre… That company of longbowmen has just done sterling work however, wiping out the ENTIRE unit of 20 Lancastrian longbowmen facing them in just a single double volley (yes, the rules are brutal when it comes to close order men in the open at a reasonably close range – perhaps a mite too brutal: Silent Invader is adjusting as we speak!)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_00_13_2.JPG)
Despite the grievous loss of their centre company of longbowmen, the battle seems to have reached a tipping point… Lancastrian billmen rush forward to attack the Yorkist right flank, and the Lancastrian commander rallies the last of his mounted men-at-arms to join in the fray.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_00_13_3.JPG)
Whilst in the centre, the Lancastrian prickers and scurrers swarm onto the last isolated company of Yorkist men-at-arms and their commander…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_00_13_4.JPG)
Not many figures left on the table!
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_02_55_0.JPG)
A brutal melee on the Yorkist right / Lancastrian left begins to edge the way of the Lancastrians…
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_02_55_2.JPG)
The Lancastrian light horse ride down the Yorkist men-at-arms… And the Yorkist commander yields.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_2_02_55_1.JPG)
And that’s about that.
More or less fought to a bloody standstill, but just about edged by the Lancastrians, who had rather more men left on the field and mustered in more intact bodies of men.
What would have happened had the Yorkists held their defensive position? Who knows - but likely a very different outcome, because longbows turned out to be very powerful under these rules.
There again, the game was a loose ‘homage’ to the Battle of Wakefield, where Richard Duke of York unaccountably DID ride out from the safety of Sandal Castle, and was duly killed, along with Earl Warwick father's, Salisbury and a large part of his army lost. So not entirely implausible, and bravo to the Yorkists for having the chutzpah to sally forth. It was a close-run thing.
I hope you enjoyed the spectacle. Thanks to Steve for the gorgeous terrain, new rules, and half the figures. And to my fellow LAFers - a truly multinational force of English, Welsh, Irish and Danish, for playing the game :)
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Great to see your figures (and terrain) in action.
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Most spectacular indeed.
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Excellent battle report Richard, the figures and terrain are fantastic. Everywhere you look there's a diorama :)
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It looked great on the day 8) 8) 8)
cheers
James
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Thanks for the wonderfully detailed report Richard - most appreciated. 8)
It was a great learning experience for the rules, with the large number of minis (relative to what has been played before) serving to highlight the changes required. :D
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Great report Richard,looks just like I remember it,sorry I had to leave before the end but pleased that you and Overlord managed to see it out to a Lancastrian victory :)
Cheers
Keith
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Fantastic looking game and report!
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Great write up. I really enjoyed this game. It looked spectacular and Silent Invaders rules were really good I think. I am keen to give them a go with my own collection.
As for the battle it self. I think it could have gone completely different if my fellow generals had taken my advice to take out the opposing archers and light targets first. In stead of insisting to shoot on the most heavily armored men at arms. As it turned out it really was the archers who decided this battle.
Not completely unhistorical. But as said a bit to powerful.
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What a wonderful looking game! :-* :-* :-*
Congrats to all involved. So much color and confusion!!
Love the plate clad gent impaled on the stake in the 2nd last shot. :o
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Love the look of the game and the figures.
Gaming at its finest.
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Gorgeous terrain and models, looks like a great day out!
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Well jealous - looks like a fab game... very atmospheric!
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Great battle report with some lovely figures and terrain.
After some recent success with making nice new hills I'll have to lift my game and make some decent terrain boards.
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A very good looking game and nicely photographed.
Given that all the minis were individually based, did you ever find yourself losing track of which were whose to the extent of affecting the game?
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Not really. It did however get a bit messy in the huge melee on the right flank. But Captain Blood and silent Invaders minis are on different sized bases so it was manageable.
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This is such a cracking stuff. Horsemen and Knights, footsoldiers in iron, archers, cannons, men in colorful garment and flags.
Eyecandy for the wargamer and everything laid out on a table that makles you drool. I wanna.....wanna....
My basement is full with this shit and me suffering from the wargamers disease which is....too many projects and not enough arms to paint....
I hope I can make it next year to Blamarambam and I hope you guys will offer this ten of a game holy piece of wargaming art once again....Hallelujah !
Björn
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It looks great!!! :o Liked the "dirty water" effect on the stream!
Was distracted by those beautifully painted miniatures, so the battle descriptions appears a bit confusing to me - certainly need to re-read it :)
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Given that all the minis were individually based, did you ever find yourself losing track of which were whose to the extent of affecting the game?
A few times there was a bit of confusion...IIRC, a player attacking himself. Fortunately Captain Blood's minis are based differently to mine (bigger with a different texture/finish) so any confusion could be quickly resolved. :)
EDIT:
Yorkists to the left (mine); Lancastrians to the right (Captain Blood):
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/577_16_10_16_1_57_52_2.JPG)
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Fantastic-looking game as always gents! I'll also repeat a comment I've made previously, that your games look far more like I imagine a WotR battle to look than those games with their nicely ordered units, neat ranks and formation dancing archer-bill combos.
:)
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Bloody gorgeous, chaps.
:-* :-*
Wish I could have seen it.... ::)
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I hope I can make it next year to Blamarambam and I hope you guys will offer this ten of a game holy piece of wargaming art once again....Hallelujah !
Thanks Bjorn. We sincerely hope you will be able to join us next year, and if you do, we'll definitely lay on a game like this for you :)
I'll also repeat a comment I've made previously, that your games look far more like I imagine a WotR battle to look than those games with their nicely ordered units, neat ranks and formation dancing archer-bill combos.
Thanks Jim.
I think it's just down to our use of individually based figures. I know many wargamers regard the idea of moving figures individually an abhorrent waste of their precious time which they just can't be bothered with.
The upside, however, is that it looks more like men in a battle, rather than regimented oblongs moving around the table in neat blocks like chess pieces.
You pays your money and takes your choice. For me, I'd rather take the minor inconvenience of having to move figures individually (or on movement trays, at least to begin with) and enjoy an evocative-looking game :)
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Just calling it how I see it. :)
You might consider the irregularly-formed 'skirmisher' movement trays offered by some companies though (as used in Dux Brit etc.), it might make life a little easier and still give the 'rabble-effect'.
I can't imagine any true wargamer ever seeing moving figures around as a waste of time; what a strange notion. ::)
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I can't imagine any true wargamer ever seeing moving figures around as a waste of time; what a strange notion. ::)
You'd be surprised. I see a lot of comments to that effect. But I'm probably oversensitive to it since I have a collection of some 1,000 or so figures - all individually based ;)
Yes, I do usually use movement trays for the first few moves before 'decanting' the figures once they get into action. The size and topography of Steve's table on this occasion didn't make that viable though.
To be fair, with three players on each side each controlling a 'battle', even a game like this with 250+ figures only entails each player moving around 40 figures, so it's not exactly an intolerable chore :)
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just stunning figures terrain and game :-* :-* :-* :-*
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You pays your money and takes your choice. For me, I'd rather take the minor inconvenience of having to move figures individually (or on movement trays, at least to begin with) and enjoy an evocative-looking game :)
Couldn't agree more. I find movement trays abhorrent - even the well made ones, and find that they detract too much from the look. I find it hard to believe that people spend so many hours painstakingly painting their minis and then can't spend a few extra minutes moving them individually in an actual game.
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Beautiful looking game! :-* :-*
Christopher
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Capt I'm with you on that (Single bases) with the majority 99.9% of my 28 mmm Historical, Fantasy and Scifi and 80% of my 15mm scifi on them.
At the moment I'm experimenting in the 28mm with multiple bases for some troop types-hordes and peasants like I use in the 15mm scifi - the thin line of professionals verses the mass of rabble. From experience can look great on the battle- "We need more cannon", "they ain't stopping for ----!!"
In one of our classic fantasy a multiple based unit of goblins looked unstoppable until blown away by the volley fire from the landsknecht gun line of the "Bad Konig Regt". (Rules = Slim Mumford Medieval Rules Pub 1968) see soc of ancients.
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I agree an epic looking battle, serious eye candy and the individual basing seems the key to an authentic looking game. If I can achieve 1/1000th of the effect you guys have achieved with my own GOT figures, I'll die a happy man!
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Thanks for the comments on the game. As well as the individual basing both Captain Blood's force and mine are pretty much all Perry minis (I also have a few Steel Fist in there, not sure about their enemy) and you'd be hard pushed to find two identical minis on the table, which of course adds to the somewhat manic spectacle of the melee. :)
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And just to add to that, my favourite of Captain Blood's photos cropped (forgive me Richard!) to take out the more obvious bases:
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/26/2031_20_10_16_10_36_31.JPG)
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Love it when a melee gets that hyper even the bloke's who owns the figures can't tell who's who! We have one house rule, that's enforced with great glee by everyone... if you fire at/hack down your own chaps in the red mist of battle the result stands.
Wot, with galloping old fartdom and failing minces this happens in nearly every game these days.
:'(
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Thanks for the comments on the game. As well as the individual basing both Captain Blood's force and mine are pretty much all Perry minis (I also have a few Steel Fist in there, not sure about their enemy) and you'd be hard pushed to find two identical minis on the table, which of course adds to the somewhat manic spectacle of the melee. :)
True enough. The great pleasure of the Perry medieval plastics - especially now with so many sets to smoosh together - is the ability to create endless unique figures.
That said, there were a few of the metal figures that I noticed fighting on both sides lol
Ditto, we both had a smattering of Oliver's brilliant Steel Fist fully armoured men-at-arms in our forces :)
But I completely agree - having so many different and unique miniatures on the tabletop, as well as having them individually based, is a large part of the visual appeal. Creating a much more diorama-like asthetic.
When I think back to my early wargaming years marching units of 20 identical figures around the table top, based in rows of four, it is indeed an entirely different hobby.
Many people still like and enjoy that style of wargaming of course, and fair play to them.
Personally I much prefer the way we are able to do it these days though :)
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Personally I got quite giddy with the numbers of options in the original 'Citadel Wars of the Roses' range back in the day, the plastic sets have certainly taken the period to heights unimaginable just a few years ago.
:)
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Brilliant stuff 8) :o :-*
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What a cracking battle report. I kept trying to figure out what was going on as I passed by but I kept getting distracted by the beautiful figures and terrain.