19th May, Newark

PARTIZAN 2019 at Newark Showground

Over 1,000 people visited Partizan this year according to the clicker tallies.   And it certainly felt lively and busy.  This time around, the SoA/NBS area in the History Zone was just me and Treb so we didn't get much time wandering or shopping.

Our feature game was Edgcote 1469 configured for Hail Caesar.

(Edgcote 1469: it's looking rounder and smarter though still requires some polish)

The corner details still need to be done and the wheel of fortune theme is currently understated.

(Edgcote 1469: here's Phil explaining the game - photo rights: GDE)

Edgcote Gallery

(Edgcote 1469: Robin of Redesdale arrayed on the East hill)

(Edgcote 1469: William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke and his Welsh host on the West hill) 

(Edgcote 1469: a party of Herbert's Men-at-Arms mount up and disperse the rebel archers)

(Edgcote 1469: Herbert's foot follow up as the cavalry withdraw)

(Edgcote 1469: Herbert's camp)

(Edgcote 1469: Herbert's camp)

(Edgcote 1469: Herbert's cavalry withdraw)

(Edgcote 1469: Herbert's foot drive Robin of Redesdale back from the river)

(Edgcote 1469: the battle for Danes Moor)

(Edgcote 1469: Warwick on the march)

(Edgcote 1469: the Earl of Devon's contingent leaves the battlefield)

Partizan, the show

As I said, there wasn't much time to look at the rest of the show ... however, also sharing a Lance & Longbow billing, Simon Chick's splendid battle of Bauge used Lion Rampant rules ...

(Bauge at Partizan 2019)

There were a lot of very impressive layouts ...

(different periods and scales at Partizan)

... I was rather taken with the Franco Prussian 'in the snow' thing ...

(Partizan 2019)

... and the Ottomans attacking the wagon laager ...

The participation zone looked interesting too, with Wargame Developments busy as ever ...

(some participation games at Partizan 2019)

It was all very brief but I will get to have a go at that Arnhem game at CoW in July.

It is, of course, the 75th anniversary of the battle this September.

Before then, the 550th anniversary of Edgcote comes up.  We are hosting a Conference at Northampton Museum (Abington Park) - book tickets here (there are still some left and you will be very welcome).  The cost covers refreshments, lunch and parking.  The battle of Edgcote game will be on display.

Links

Society of Ancients Membership

Lance & Longbow Society

Northampton Battlefields Society

Wargame Developments - CoW

Edgcote armies gallery

Building the Edgcote collection

11th - 12th May, Milton Keynes

CAMPAIGN 2019

It scarcely seems a year since we were last meeting the shoppers outside John Lewis's but it is early May again and the Society and Northampton Battlefields Society were back on the road again.

We were slimmed down in some respects (no Naseby stuff this time) in order to make way for the Edgcote game, which is larger than the other battlefield box projects.  The new boards were being trialled ... the armies are pretty much complete.

(Edgcote Battlefield)

(weapons and equipment on the NBS stand at Campaign)

The stand provided its usual attraction to people who otherwise (you would imagine) might not take much interest in battlefield studies and conservation.  But many left knowing a lot more about medieval equipment and weapons than they would from a normal weekend trip to the shops.

On Sunday we were joined by Peter and his archery equipment - and I understand a number of longbow myths were dispelled be fore the day was done.

The show itself was the usual mix of stands, participation games, competitions and shopping.

(tournament play at Campaign 2019 ... FoG-R)

(some of the participation games at Campaign 2019)

I know many visitors to the Shows Blog would have enjoyed the Peterborough Club's medieval skirmish game ... played with plastic 54mm figures and using Don Featherstone's rules.  Splendid stuff.

(Campaign 2019 ... skirmishing with the Don)

Edgcote 1469

Most of the weekend, of course, I was concrned with the 550th anniversary Edgcote Project and our 28mm presentation of the probable battle site and probable deployments.

Here's a photo story of the game ...

(Edgcote at Campaign: Robin of Redesdale's host form up on the East hill)

(Edgcote at Campaign: the Earl of Pembroke joins his men on the top of the West hill)

(Edgcote at Campaign: Robin of Redesdale leaves the East hill and sends forward his archers)

(Edgcote at Campaign: Pembroke leads a mounted charge to disperse the archers)

(Edgcote at Campaign: melee over the river - Pembroke is winning but Gates and Parr arrive reinforcing the rebel side)

(Edgcote at Campaign: with both sides fully committed, a third rebel force under John Clapham arrives and panics Pembroke's Royalist army)

See us again at Partizan on the 19th

25th April, Northamptonshire

BATTLEDAY 'PLUS' ... Double DBA

Building upon the experiences of the BattleDay itself, I respun the set up used at Hammerhead with some variations as a 'Double DBA' scenario.

(the Telamon table: the apparent 'ravine' on this side of the table is not there for game purposes)

The Gauls are in the centre, of course, with a reserve army in the middle and engagement lines facing both ways.   Unusually, the Romans are effectively in a race to gain the laurels: whichever of them does the most damage to the Gallic front lines with be the army that fights out the decisive endgame.  The less effective Roman will see his army withdraw when the engagement battle is concluded.

It worked very well, although it may have been a little too generous to the Gauls.

Armies 

Gauls: the army baggage was placed on a hill (left, in the picture above)

Engagement lines ... 2 x Cav, 4 x WWg, 6 x 4Wb (one of the WWg was a command post - General for the force) ... deployed as a line facing each direction with 3 Wb flanked on each end by a WWg.

The cavalry were deployed on the hill (opposite to the hill secured by the defended baggage)

Note: the chariots have been replaced by WWgs following how Polybius describes their use at this battle ... Their wagons and chariots they stationed at the extremity of either wing and collected their booty on one of the neighbouring hills with a protecting force round it. (see the text cap 28)  ... this worked very well and is 'food for thought' re how we depict Celtic chariots.

Reserve lines: 4Wb Gen; 9 x 4Wb; 2 x Cv (deployed back-to-back)

Romans:

Papus: 4Bd Gen; 2 x Sp; 4 x 4Bd; 2 x Ps; 1 x 3 Ax; 1 x Cv; 1 x Art

Regulus:  Cv Gen; 2 x Sp; 4 x 4Bd; 2 x Ps; 1 x 3Ax; 2 x Cv

(so a consular army each, based around a core of 2 Triarii, 4 Principes/Hastati and 2 Velites ... Papus with a foot general and a bolt-shooter, Regulus with a mounted general and a 2nd cavalry element).

The Roman baggage was off table in both cases.

The table was pretty much as depicted - the 'cavalry' hill was gentle, the 'baggage' hill was bad going to anyone trying to attack the camp (to simulate it being protected).

(Double DBA Telamon: the Gauls screen Regulus's force while attacking Papus)

Unlike his historical character, in this battle Regulus was slow to get engaged.  The Gauls took this opportunity and threw a screen against Regulus whilst attacking Papus more aggressively.  As a consequence, there was no real cavalry battle on the hill opposite the camp.

The Romans won the fierce fight, but not without damage.

Papus was the more successful so fought the decisive reserve battle against the remaining Gauls.  The Romans had won by 1 element (engagement armies result was 4:3 to Rome) but Papus had lost 2 elements in the process so fought with 10 remaining + 1 from Regulus (as the margin of victory in the opening phase).   The Gauls had lost only 1 from their reserve lines at this point ... so the showdown would be 11 vs 11.

(endgame: 10 Romans under Papus close with 11 Gauls - and in the background, 1 Cavalry from Regulus comes up in support)

So a remarkably 'fair' fight, although the cavalry element from Regulus was floating around the Gallic rear so looked quite dangerous.

The Gauls therefore got stuck into the Romans as quickly as their Pips allowed  ... and rolled high enough on the dice to get a series of 'quick kill' wins in hand-to-hand combat, breaking the Romans virtually with their first charge.

(endgame: the Roman line disintegrates under a fierce warband charge) ..

A rare win to the Gauls.  As you would expect, the game was completed within a couple of hours.

Tactically, in this game, the Gauls achieved their breakout, fighting Regulus to a standstill, then breaking Papus with the charge.

Historically, of course, there is still another Roman army mobilised, so there would still be a lot left for the Gauls to do to escape the Telamon pocket.

Very much a simplified version of Telamon, of course, but the players seemed broadly satisfied with how we had represented the events of 225 BC.

I hope to get one more variant out of this rich narrative.

DBA Gauls