3rd and 4th October, Donington Park

 

DERBY WORLD WARAGMES 2015

As a one time petrol-head I'll happily put up with chilly feet and a concrete floor for the sweet music of the racing engines screaming around the circuit outside in free practice.  Yes, it's the first weekend in October and we're back at Donington for the Derby Worlds event. 

 

The Society of Ancients combined this time with the Northampton Battlefields Society for another presentation of my DBA V3 treatment of the 7th century Battle of Yarmuk.

(catastrophe on the plateau beyond Damascus ... the era defining battle of Yarmuk from The Society of Ancients)

Most of the voluntary groups and learned societies were present at the event including the Lance & Longbow Society, The Pike and Short Society and various charities ...

                             

.. the usual suspects perhaps but it is good to see all these organisation still going strong, getting out on the road and supporting historical wargaming and wargames shows and events in the manner they have for decades now.   

                            

 (Yarmuk 636 ... armoured cavalry of the Byzantine centre - figures by Phil Barker refurbished by Phil Steele)

 

 

(scenes from the Battle of Yarmuk refought at Derby 2015 by the Society of Ancients)

We refought the battle twice on the Saturday of Derby - in both cases to a plausible Arab win as the Roman commanders fought to break through from their outflanked position ....

The battle was fought using traditional flat tin soldiers from the 1960s collections of Phil Barker, Tony Bath and Deryck Guyler ... staged and added to by Phil Steele to reconfigure the armies to the Yarmuk scenario.

The battle was refought using DBA version 3 and the figures were based on a standard 60m frontage.  The battlefield was approximately 3'x4' but the wargame begins with the armies pre-deployed as at the start of the critical phase of the battle.

 

 (Yarmuk: the Byzantine C-in-C, Vahan, drives forward relentlessly in an attempt to force the Arabs from the field)

Yarmuk was one of a number of splendid *ancients* games ... of particular note, the Battle of Bosworth (Graham Fordham and Paul Tysoe of Phoenix Gaming Club for the Lance & Longbow Society) picked up an award in the Best Participation Game category (well done them) ...

 

(Jed D, formerly Mr Chariot Miniatures, has a crack at Paul and Graham's Bosworth game)

The game was based on the latest evidence from the battlefield, successfully played out to a home variant of Warlord's Pike and Shotte rules. 

 

(scenes from Bosworth)

Also nice to see Rob Broom's Greeks out again 

 

... and plenty of other good ancients fare ...

 

Looking around the show I enjoyed some of the 20th century content as usual  ...

 

 ... and that splendid 'light horsemen' game showed a lot of potential though I didn't see it getting played much over the weekend ...

... actually, these days it is a very big show with most popular historical period represented ...

 

(Other periods wargamed at Derby 2015)

 

 

(a closer look at that splendid 10mm ACW terrain)

... and of course, Derby owes its name and legacy to competition wargames - especially ancient and medieval periods and this year along with reliable stalwarts like Armati, there was strong support for the Saga tournament ...

  

(tournament wargames at Derby World Wargames)

All in all, another splendid and well organised event ... thanks to everyone who stopped by to talk about old flat tin soldiers, 50 years of the Society of Ancients ... the manifold merits of DBA V3 and chew the wargame fat for a while.

Its never too late to join in The Championship ... play DBA V3 in The English Open ... or sign up for The Society of Ancients.  

See you in Portsmouth for the Open maybe ...