A SMALL BIT OF MEDIEVALS PLAY

 This past Wednesday, we played a game using a vast array of wonderfully painted 6mm Medieval figures, or as Mitch who ran the game prefers Dark Age. This was a test of a set of rules to see how they played and to tweak them ahead of their offering at the Little Wars convention in April. The game lasted about three and a half hours, and we cleared up a number of ambiguities we discovered. 

The scenario is set in the age of Charlemagne with the man himself and his Franks attempting to beat back the hoard of rampaging Moors attacking from Spain. The Moors have a lot of light infantry, a small core of heavy infantry, and an abundance of cavalry, primarily light horse archers. The Franks have a fair number of archers, crossbows, light infantry, a solid core of heavy infantry and a relatively small but very strong heavy cavalry. Organization, and deployment for each of the seven commands per side was determined by the players. The victory conditions were simple. Drive the opponent from the field.

The Franks Rear or Left Battle Being Lead by the Light Cavalry, Followed by Knights. To Their Side are an Infantry Command of Bowmen, Crossbowmen and Heavy Footmen.

  

Across From Them are the Moors Lead by Masses of Light Cavalry and Supported by a Multitude of Light Infantry. 

The Franks Main Battle Consisting of all Infantry. Lead by Bowmen, Crossbow, with a Central Core of Heavy Infantry, Flanked by Small Groups of Light Infantry. 

The Moors Central Commands. This Too was Mostly Infantry. They are Lead by Bowmen and Followed Up by a Hoard of Light Infantry. 

The Full Battlefield as Seen from the Franks Left Flank. In the Distance are the Franks Vanguard Battle Where the Best Cavalry is Deployed. To Meet This the Moors had also Deployed Their Finest Combination of Cavalry Consisting of Waves of Light Bow Armed Horse and Their Own Heavy Cavalry.

The game kept me busy, so I was not taking a lot of pictures. On the Franks right it was a long bloody fight right from the start. Both sides were giving as good as they got, but in the end the Franks had triumphed. After a long march both sides centers finally clashed. The Moors numbers kept them in the fight. They first defeated the Franks missile troops but were themselves being beaten back by the Franks heavy infantry. On the left the Franks light cavalry and missile troops devastated the Moors light cavalry. For a while the Moors light infantry held up this flank, but it too succumbed to the massed shooting and light cavalry's flanking attacks eventually completely collapsing. This freed up the as yet uncommitted knights who launched devastating flanking attacks against the Moors central forces. In the end it was a clear victory for Charles Martel and his Franks. It was a great bit of fun and an interesting challenge. 

Look for this game on the Little Wars schedule. 

WHAT"S OLD IS NEW

Amazing how phone cameras have improved in 10 years. 

Ten years ago, my good buddy Bob and I started a new project of the Glorious Revolution in 28mm. To afford this ambitious project, we went a little out of period to the uniforms of the Age of Marlborough plastic figures from the then new Wargames Factory. A few years ago, Bob moved to the far reaches of the Empire, Canada to be precise. This meant reducing his figure collection to fit his new space and I am the lucky inheritor of his Glorious Revolution Jacobite's.  

Unlike me, Bob is a very practical gamer who likes to use whatever he has around to base his figures with. If you need to understand my occasional over the top style, take a look at the Dog Wars bases. One thing that I like is for figures to have the same basing style, so they blend in together on the table. To this end, and because I needed to reorganize his figures in boxes I could store on my shelves, I began this latest project. I was also inspired to get on with this by Archduke Piccolo's latest blog post. Archduke Piccolo: Yet another Blast from the Past...

This is a Sample of Bob's Various Basing Styles He Used. All Green Grass, a Mix of Grass and Sand, and a Water Effect.

 

My Own Style at the Time. The First Use of Texture Groundwork, a Few Stones and Static Grass.

Groundwork, Stones and Paint Added.

Final Look Along Side My Own Figures on the Front Right. 

This is just the beginning with another mase of artillery, cavalry, infantry and officers to complete. Time for me to dig in and get these back on the table where all figures belong. Stay tuned for further developments. 

TILLEY'S VERY BAD DAY PART 2 - REVENGE

 This Wednesday I got to play a rematch of the Tilley's Very Bad Day game. Again, I played the Protestant Right Wing. The table setup was a slight variation and with the addition of some Dragoons and buildings. This time my force also began on top to the hill. This let me have my artillery in position from the start. Opposite me was the same cavalry force with the addition of the dragoons in garrison. The Center and Left Wing were again much the same for both sides. 

With the River Closer to My Starting Position I Choose to Advance Off the Hill to Meet My Opposites at the River Line. As can be Seen, My Artillery has Already had an Effect on Their Cuirassier. As I  Stated Last Time I have Brought My Own Less Curse Dice. 

A Closer View of the Action to Show Off a bit Better the Very Nicely Done Figures and Terrain. 

The Action Became Hot and Heavy and I Missed a Number of Turns Taking Pictures. A Quick Recap of the Action is the Cuirassier Crossed the River and Fought my Cavalry Forcing them Back, but Themselves Nearly Destroyed. The Following Turn My Second Rank Cavalry Charged and Eliminated the Cuirassier. On the Left Side Their Cavalry Crossed the River and was Eliminated by My Cuirassier.

On This the Final Move of the Game My Combined Cavalry Eliminated Their Shot, My Cuirassier Eliminated the Remaining Cavalry in the River. Across the River Our Central Command Cavalry had Finished Off the Harquebus. 

On our Left Flank both sides cavalry had fought well, but the overall losses have gone over the breakpoint for the Catholics. A well-earned victory this time by the Protestants 12/6. The game went very quickly taking around 8 turns and only 2 hours, including the time need to review the rules. Everyone enjoyed them and I am sure these will be revisited soon. 

OFF TO SOUTHERN GERMAN CIRCA 1642

Saturday, I got to play in a first run of the Tilley's Very Bad Day rules. This is a set I have been wanting to try for some time. Steve brought his wonderful 6mm figures and terrain to run the game with. Sadly, he also brought his dice. These rules call themselves Fast Play and I have to agree. After a quick going over of the rules, we got in around ten turns in about two hours. That for me is a real set of Fast Play rules. 
 

Turn Three and my Protestant Union Forces Reach the Forward Edge of the Hill. I was Feeling in Good Spirits as I had an Uphill Advantage, had Fire Power in the Way of Command Shot to Lend me an Edge. What's not to Like? 

Then the Imperial Forces Harquebus Opened Fire. Hmmm...Three sixes out of Three and My Medium Cavalry is Wiped-out. The Follow-up Roll to Kill the General is Another Six and I Fail to Save Him.  OK, but I Still Have a Solid Positional Advantage. Then My Cavalry Fails to Hit and in Return is Destroyed. I'm Starting to Sense a Pattern Developing. Going...

Next Turn in Goes My Second Unit of Cavalry. Again, I Fail to Hit and Take Two Hits in Return and am Retreated Back. Meanwhile the Main Battle Between Both Sides Pike & Shot in the Centers Begins. Going...

A Better View of the Central Fight Along the Length of the Stream. 

Finally, My Luck Begins to Change. My Cavalry Hits but so Does Theirs Causing a Locked Combat to be Resolved Next Turn. My Artillery also Hits a Supporting Pike & Shot Unit Advancing in the Center. 

The Next Turn We Win the Initiative and Need to Move First. As seen in the Picture Above Their Command Shot and Harquebus Fire Before my Command Shot and Down They Go. On Turn Nine with My Screening Shot Eliminated the Imperial Shot Charge My Cannon. Goodbye Cannon. Yet Again My Cavalry Fails to Hit and the Imperials Cavalry Eliminates My Last Unit on the Flank...Gone! 

The Pike & Shot Reserve in Position to Repel the Imperial Left Flank Attacker Who are Completely Unscathed. In the Center and Left of the Protestant Line There is a Good Give and Take, But at Last the Imperials Eliminate a Protestant Pike & Shot and that Seals the Win for Them. 

A well-played game by the Imperial and Central Protestant players. The whole loss falls firmly on my shoulders having lost six of the eight elements that caused the army collapse. That and effectively doing nothing to them in return. Yes Steve. Your dice are cursed for me. 😄 

Things I came away with are I do like these rules a lot. The maneuver is a bit sluggish as it should be. Shooting combat is good to try and create an advantage, but not really game winning. Close Combat is generally decisive, but there is just enough resilience of units to take a while to wear them down. Support is critical and lack of it leads to bad things happening. I am certainly looking forward to the next game. Lastly, I'm bringing my own D..n dice! 

WEDNESDAY HMGS MIDWEST - BLUCHER & WWI

Since once again I have been locked out of my Eccentric blog I am switching Dog Wars to Cover all my gaming. First up this week HMGS Midwest at Games Plus are two games, Napoleonic's using Blutcher in 6mm run by Steve, and WWI Trench Raid in 28mm using home grown rules written and run by Mitch.

Opening of the Battle of Aspern-Essling. French Left Flank (Center Right) on the Interior Lines Holding Against the Austrian's Assault. 

French IV Corp Holding Aspern. The Austrians have Begun Bombarding the Town and Working to Evict the French from the Nearby Woods. 

The Guards Artillery and the Cavalry Corp Holding the Central Dike Position, While II Corp is Seen in Control of Essling.   

Near Games End and the Austrian's Control the Woods Outside Aspern. Despite Continuous Bombardment the French Still Retain full Control of the Town. In the Center an Entire Austrian Corp has Been Repulsed.   

On the Essling Front II Corp Reinforcements are Coming Across the River, while on the Flank the Cavalry Corp has Succeeded in Holding off the Austrian Infantry and Repulsed Their Cavalry. The Center is Firmly Held and the Austrian Corp Opposite is in a Highly Weakened State.  

At this point the game was only in its sixth turn of thirteen when we had to call it because of time. It was a draw with both sides having lost three units of the near dozen both sides needed before their respective collapse. By games end turns were going much faster as all the players had a better understanding of the rules. 

Yet again Steve put on another fantastic looking and fun to play game. 

Overview of the Trenches and No Mans Land of the WWI Battle. The British and French on the Right Supported by Tanks. The Germans Waiting in Their Trench Line to the Left. 

British Advancing Steadily Against the German Line. In the Background can be Seen One of the Tanks and a Gas Attack Underway. 

German Lines Under an Allied Gas Attack as a Tank Nears the Wire. It is being Supported by French Infantry Who are Taking Shelter in the Nearby Craters. 

The game was still going on when I left but the Allies forces had started the assaults into the German trenches. The final outcome was unknown, but everyone seemed to be having a good time, so a victory to all the players. 

Games are hosted at Games Plus every Wednesday around fifty weeks a year. There is typically one large game on the 6x10 table and one small game on the standard 4x6 table. On occasion when turnout demands it a third game is also available. 

DOG WARS - EVOLUTION

 

From This

And This

There was This 

And This

Before there was the Dog Wars, a fictional Seven Years War era series of games, there was Alternative Armies Slaughterloo, or Sloo for short, a Napoleonic period game. With a mind to getting these veteran figures on the table again I have switched rules from Sloo to Buck Surdu's Wars of Eagles and Empires. These are a quite different style of game from both Sloo and Honours of War/Post of Honor rules used in the Seven Years War games. The two key features are the Double Random Activation and the Army specific Reaction Table. The Activation system gives a limited amount of control as to when your troops can act during a turn. The second is that every combat action causes a reaction from the other involved players troops. By this I mean that if you fire on an opponent they could immediately fire back. That would cause the original unit to react and so on back and forth until one side retires or just stops. This means that in a turn a lot of combat can take place. The initiative system is really a two-turn affair as both sides units will activate twice before a new initiative phase begins. Ultimately this produces a very fluid game turn as you are never sure how much combat will take place, what that combat will be like, such as a long fire fight, or a single volley that brings on a close combat. This system effectively simulates higher command where you send your troops out to accomplish a general goal, but how they respond to that is mostly out of your control. For me this is a great level of command friction, where you can plan an action with a certain level of expectation on how your forces will go about accomplishing it, but not able to micromanage that outcome. 

While my Napoleonic forces are not as large as the Dog Wars, there are still a lot of them. Games will normally see about 2-3 Brigades per side, with a healthy mix of Infantry and cavalry Brigades possible. Unlike Dog Wars there are not just dogs. My forces include rabbits, rats, humans...kind of, but still lots and lots of dogs. 

I will post more details and eye candy as I work up to the first games sometime in April. 

 

A Close Up of the Infantry and Cavalry.

A Rather Aged Lord Barksalot. Best Showing of the True Colors of the Mat. 

LET SLEEPING DOGS LAY

In the final battle of the Fall '25 Campaign the Empire and United Packs Commonwealth (UPC) are in a fight to the death. Both sides have seen success and failure this season and this battle will bring a full-scale clash of their armies. 

The battlefield is fairly open but there is a dominate hill and fences that will provide a defensive bonus. Victory will be determined by which force can do the most damage to its opponent, with the loss of Elite troops, Cuirassier, Guards, Grenadiers counting greater than standard line forces. 

Empire Cavalry Advance on Their Right Flank. The Cuirassier Have Been Under Heavy Fire All the Way from the Initial Bombardment. The Von Mutts Line Stands Steady as the Empires Horse Thunders Past. 

Empire Cavalry having Defeated Their Opposite Number Beginning to turn the Flank of the UPC Line. 

The Empire Infantry Beginning Its Assault on the UPC Line. Both Sides Cavalry Reinforcements can be seen Maneuvering Behind Their Respective Infantry Lines. 

The Combined Infantry and Cavalry Attack on the UPC Line. In the Right Background can be Seen the UPC Cavalry Racing to Come to the Rescue. 

On the Opposite Flank the Empire Again is Bringing Their Combined Arms to Envelope the UPC Line. 

On the UPC's Right Flank the Second Cavalry Chash Begins as Pressure Build All Along the Infantry Line. 

On the UPC Left Flank the Empire's Cavalry Awaits any Weakness Created by Their Infantry to Exploit and Break Into. 

In a close match the Empire forces weight finally prevailed. Both sides had fought tenaciously but the UPC had again lost more of its elite forces giving the slightest edge to the Empire in a hard-fought victory.

This battle concluded the Fall '25 Campaign Season with both sides battered and needing to rebuild their strength. By the Spring both were still licking their wounds and neither able to start a new offensive. 

This concludes the Dog Wars Campaigns for a while. They will return later this year, but on the horizon a new era is about to begin. Stay watching for Dog Wars Evolution.