Now They Are Horde-able

 This was a bit easier than I expected. 

Apparently I should add some armoured Spahis for the early 16thC, but it'll probably be awhile before I work that out. A few more artillery and infantry will come first before the next engagement.

Chanaaaaaaaa_ng Arms!!

The work will probably be intermittent and slow, but it has begun. The Turkish cavalry's pistols and carbines are being changed for bows or lances.

to be continued......

The First Encounter

Well..... its been "one of those"  weeks, well, two weeks to be honest. (it's June! Spring is easing into summer and there's planting and mowing and well,...."WINTER IS COMING!"...so there's firewood to be cut down, split etc). That's why the 12 turns I played took me 2 weeks despite each turn taking 5-10 minutes! 

Anyway, my late 18thC Mamluks have had experience of combat with infidel soldiers and they are keen to do it again, but in the mid-16thC now. They just need to rearm the cavalry with bows instead of firearms,  recruit some more troops and.....and....and, well, you know. 

However, both the Sultan and the Holy Roman Emperor are now determined to continue the fight. (What can I do to stop them?) I suspect some recruiting will end up being done by both sides.

Now, here is the brief illustrated news about this first clash (previous pictures not repeated...I think...).

________________

Rumors had started to appear about Turkish raids over the Emperor's lands and so a force was recruited and marched to the border. They managed to arrive in the nick of time as the Turks arrived at the little Blutaip river where there was a very small border guard at the main ford. (see previous posts for the early moves)

The Imperial forces arrive just in time to dispute the crossing.

The Imperial reinforcements pushed on while the Turkish light troops searched for fords and probed the strength of the defenders along the line. 

There were just enough Imperial troops to dispute the handful of river crossings but the Turks also had just enough troops. They sent their cavalry and skirmishers to probe for fords while the bulk of the Turkish infantry and artillery marched forward and began to deploy.

The Turkish light cavalry managed to cross the river on each flank, but not with enough strength to clear the Imperial cavalry and flank the Imperial infantry. Meanwhile, the infantry at the main ford fought a long bloody fight across the river, muskets, pikes, sword and shield and whatever was at hand.

At last, in the center, the Turks got their powder wet or they ran out of it, we'll never know for sure but the Imperial arquebusiers fired a deadly volley as the pikemen and halberdiers  pressed forward and some of the Turkish infantry broke.

With the sun sinking low, the Turkish commander recalled his cavalry. Time for a Truce.

 

And Now The Battle Has Come And Gone

A battle report to follow. 

Late in the Battle

I'm going to have to convert the Turkish cavalry's firearms to bows given that the setting is the early 16th Century, and then add more Turks and Imperials, and......

One Is Better Than None

 Its been one of those weeks. Here's a peek at turn 3.

Hopefully, the game will be played Saturday and a battle report posted on Sunday or Monday.

. 

And So It Begins

Due to brilliant commanders, the Imperial reinforcements arrived at almost the same moment as the Turks. As the armies deploy, the battle begins.

To be continued...

ALARM!!!

 In the mid 16thC, on the Eastern frontier of the Imperial lands, Turkish cavalry suddenly appear! 

ALARM!! STAND TO!!!

As reinforcements, already notified by scouting patrols, arrive, the villagers gather what goods and livestock they can, and head for the woods and hills!

"Get Up Daisy!!"

...To be continued...

For My Next Act.....

Holy Roman Emperor's army clashes with the Sultan's raiders.

Having decided that the Revolutionary French miniatures were not interested in returning to Egypt, it didn't take long to decide that the Mamluks and various infantry would serve a 16thC Turkish Sultan and march on Vienna. 

It took longer to get around to reorganizing and, in much of the army,  rebasing to match my 16thC armies. More cavalry, guns and infantry will follow if the first raids are worth it.

"Home Boys Home"

The English leaders were stirred to revenge the Scots ambush last summer (see Ambushed!)  and so sent out a force of cavalry backed by some bills and bows. After causing havoc and destruction, they turned to head back to Haddington but they were on the far bank of the Blutaip River. Scouts reported that there was a nearby village with two bridges and a small garrison. 

So it was that the English raiders sent a company of archers to make their way to a wood by the northern bridge during the night, ready to surprise the Scots at dawn.

Dawn breaks!

The English archers soon forced the Scots picquet from their post and the cavalry moved to cross the bridge. Alas for the English, the infantry commander missed the order to advance while the mounted arquebusiers were slow to finish their breakfast and join the column of cavalry. 

The archers' arrows were too much for the Scots pikes and they fell back. The Scots cavalry rode forward to repel the English cavalry but they were also forced back. The road over the bridge seemed open.

The English infantry was not as fast as the cavalry, and the eager Highlanders were soon locked in hand to hand contact with the Sassanach while Scots pikemen marched forward to block the English escape.

The fighting was fierce but the Bills & Bows did their work.

The Border Horse were first to cross the bridge while the rest of the English moved as swiftly as possible to cross the bridge and resume their march back to camp. It seemed to be all over until there came the roar of canon!  A battery of guns had been established on the river bank, pointing across the river, but the gunners had slowly dragged a gun through the streets of the village until they had a line of sight.
(Rumours that the Scots commander forgot about the artillery until the game was almost over, are firmly denied by the Scots commander.) 

The Scots were not strong enough to stop the remnant of the English raiders but they inflicted heavy enough casualties to dissuade their commander from trying it again. 
( The scenario was #35: "Surprise 2" from "Scenarios For All Ages" by Charles S Grant and Stuart Asquith.  The goal for the English was to escape without losing more than 3 stands, but they lost a 4th on the last turn!) 

Halfway To Home

 I managed to start the 1st game today......

Early in the day.....

and after nearly 2/3 of the 'day', the end is still undecided but we should know tomorrow.........  

Wrapping Up 2025

I've settled on three of my collections to take part in the last games of 2025. The first will be a 16thC  Red Book scenario with an English raid trying to get safely back to Haddington. 

Already laid out.....

The second will be another raid from the Midlands into Valdur, Hopefully, this time I will manage a report,  before a year goes by!

And for the final game...........wellll.....we'll see but it just might take place in the Days of King Arthur.

Stay tuned!

What Report From The Scouts?

 "Milord! They have just reported that the road to the bridge is clear."

But is it? or are those sneaky Scots hiding in those hills?  

Stay tuned!

Come On Ye Sassenagh Sissies!

 That didn't take as long as I expected.

40mm: 2x3d printed (1 highlander, 1 viking), 1 homecast Prince August Viking, with minor tweaks.

The gathering of the clans. 
(Is that it?? Should I recruit more?)

Now, I need a scenario, maybe for these guys, or maybe for the West Indies in the 1790's, after all, we've been suffering temperatures over 30C so it would feel more authentic than usual.

So Far...

..so good. About 1/2 done.

1/2 Done.
(Is it just me or does the bald but bearded guy bear an eerie resemblance to Graham McTavish in his role of Dougal MacKenzie.)

I have vague memories of another blogger, or maybe a pre-blog webpage, writing about how weakening eyes and increasingly shaky hands was reducing the pleasure of painting miniatures.  Well, over this last year, its begun, a bit at a time. Luckily, I'm fine with simple painting with less detail etc and have found that the reduction in sight also means not noticing the simpler painting style or all but the worst slips or twitches of the brush, or omissions of some detail etc. 

So: "balance in all things". 

While I'm waiting.....

 I decided it would be a good time to paint a few more figures. Since I had recently seen some unpainted 25mm Garrison medieval figures when looking for something else, and there were two votes for the Gathering of Hosts, I decided to dig them out. 

Hmm, not here......Hmm, Hmm, not there, what about in here...  Oh look!  ....I'd forgotten that I still had a dozen of these to paint..... Well, might as well paint a few more of them, and then, maybe a few more, or at least fix a few of the veterans, dropped pikes etc. 

Of course, the new lads will have to see the Woolly Mammoth. (Well, no elephants in Scotland were they?).

40mm resin Highlanders for Rough Wooing/Henry VIII's Wars.
3d Resin figures from Day of Battle , the 40mm option.

  I guess Rough Wooing is up next after all, but north of the border, not across the channel.

https://gameofmonth.blogspot.com/2022/11/cometh-hour.html
A game from 2022, including the first appearance of 3d printed Scots,
(Well, these 2 didn't exactly start as Scots, but, hey! Look! T\hey're flying the Macfarlane arms on their flag.)

How Went The Battle?

 It was a long and bloody affair. Check in on Friday to find out more.

__________

"Just a roll on the drum and the war has begun"

Well, this war actually started 20 years ago, but I have high hopes of the game being finished tomorrow.

Note: Post title from lyrics of Fairport Convention "Sloth" (Full House album.) Ahh the 70's!

"The trumpets to the cannons, the cannons to the heavens"

In other words, the battle has begun!

The English have taken up a position on a ridge across a pass in some hilly ground and defied the French to dislodge them. As the French begin their attack, the English cannon open fire. 

40mm figures. About 60% are original homecast figures, the rest are a mix including Elastolins, Mertan,  a handful of modified Irregular, a couple of Perry's and a few odds and ends.

To be continued....

Meanwhile, Back in France....waaay back.

The table is reset, the rules have been slightly revised, (one page rules here), a scenario designed, and there is no other plan for the day. 

What are the odds that something will interfere? I think I'd rather not know!

The French army finds the pass blocked.

These 40mm armies are mostly original homecast figures,  reinforced by various commercial figures and some Elastolins.

To be continued.....

Vorwärts!

 After a short council to decide what period should be played next, a 2:1 vote decided on the 16thC.

Just A Roll On The Drum
Aug 2021
An old chestnut of a scenario from a well known wargame book. My American hardcover was published in 1970, my 2nd book on wargaming, bought with one of my first paychecks from Her Majesty. 

But, before I play the game,  I need to pick, or make up, a scenario, make some repairs (esp dropped weapons)  AND. maybe even a new stand or so, maybe. 

It'll be a few days before the game hits the table.