Pugnacious Peasantry!

After too long a time away from gaming the mojo is beginning to trickle back. I recently finished slapping pigment on the 15mm Blue Moon medieval peasants I bought two years ago for the First Barons War.

They're now based and awaiting warmer weather for the final varnishing. I did give them a coat of matte varnish once the shading dip dried, but it looks glossy. I was able to score a spray can of matte varnish and another can of hunter green from the local JoAnn's outlet in their closing-down sale for 60% off. It's sad to see a staple of the US hobby scene closing down. My cosplay friends are seriously annoyed.

Painting Peasantry - 1

I've made a little progress on the peasantry for Lion Rampant. Given I have sixty figures to paint up I am breaking them down into batches of twelve.

A slightly blurry image of progress so far.

I prefer to use a mid brown undercoat for most figures these days, as it's more subtle than black especially for irregular troops like these with mixed coloured clothing. 

As usual I painted in the faces and hands before moving on to blocking in the clothing. Thanks to my archaeologist daughter's expertise on historical fabric dyes I can get something approaching the authentic garb our ancestors wore.

Happy New Year! And...

Some figures. 

These chaps are the peasantry contingent for the Lion Rampant First Barons War collection.

They have four basic poses - pitchfork, axe, hatchet, and club. I might convert a few to bidowers (light infantry). There's an extra chap in one pack, so I'm thinking of making a small vignette of a woodcutter.

Lion Rampant ~ The End at Cockham

With Friar Balsam and his copy of the Passion of Saint Tibulus (illustrated edition) safely in the care of his foot serjeants, Sir Oswald de Patton led his men-at-arms into action against Sir Jean to buy the serjeants time to retire with their charge.

The serjeants begin to retire from the field as Sir Oswald leads his men up the road and into combat.

The men of Sir Jean's retinue were making good practice against their enemy. Sir Jean counter-charged Sir Oswald's men-at-arms with his own with every expectation of continuing the good work.

However, fate decided otherwise...

A short but vicious fight broke out on the approach to Cockham, the air filling with the hammering of metal on metal and the screams of men and horses. After a man fell on each side the opponents took stock of the situation. 

Sir Oswald's men were still full of fight. Sir Jean's men... were not. With shouts of suavez-vous! they had it away on their heels, fleeing back up the road to whence they came, leaving Sir Oswald and his men standing pleased but baffled.

Er..?

Seeing their leader fleeing the field had a dampening effect on the rest of Sir Jean's retinue. They stayed their hands, allowing Sir Oswald and his men to retire unmolested from the battle. Friar Balsam and his precious charge are safe.

* * *

That was unexpected. Sir Jean's retinue really piled on the pressure throughout the encounter, causing more casualties than they received, yet when it came to the crunch Sir Jean and his men were paper tigers. There's not much that can be done with a roll of two 1's on the Courage test. 

With no other of his bands within charging distance of the serjeants escorting Friar Balsam, I called the game at that point. An odd ending, but satisfying.

Lion Rampant ~ Clash at Cockham - continued

Sir Oswald de Patton's men may have beaten Sir jean to finding Friar Balsam, but Sir Jean's men are full of fight. 

Crossbowmen pick their way through the wood as Sir Jean leads his men into the village square.

With Friar Balsam recovered from the byre and in their charge, the foot serjeants begin to retire from the field. Pressure mounts as Sir Jean's troops advance.

Sir Jean's crossbowmen emerged from the woods to see their foe beginning to withdraw with the prize. Before they can act they come under fire from Sir Oswald's archers. A flurry of arrows and quarrels hum across the ploughed field. Men fall, but honours are even.

Close by, Sir Jean's mounted serjeants are punching well above their weight, driving Sir Oswald's men-at-arms back twice at little cost to themselves. Their opponents are at half strength and beginning to falter...

Lion Rampant ~ Clash at Cockham in the Wood

A fine Autumn day saw Friar Balsam, Holy Order of St. Aimless the Confused, running for his life up the Almost Great North Road. 

He'd been entrusted with a valuable copy of the Passion of St. Tibulus, a highly controversial work the existence of which had inflamed the already nasty war between King John and his Barons. The sympathetic Sir Oswald de Patton, of the Baronial Faction, is on his trail. Sir Oswald learned the King's men are abroad searching for the errant friar, and he seeks to give refuge to the holy man and peruse the naughty Passion for himself place the holy book under lock and key. 

Meanwhile, Sir Jean the Unreasonable is hot on the trail of the friar, seeking to arrest him for heresy and take the holy book for his own gratification to ensure its heretical notions are kept away from the impressionable public.

Friar Balsam reached the village of Cockham in the Wood, known as the site of an ancient battle between Romano-British Christians and pagan Saxons. A structure on the village square both commemorated the Christian victory and served as a butter market. The church of St. Onan the Blind stood the other side of the square, but the priest was away visiting his mistress a sick parishioner and couldn't offer Balsam sanctuary. It behooved Balsam to seek cover from his pursuers.

So it is both sides enter the field of battle...

Sir Oswald to the left of him, Sir Jean to the right, Balsam's stuck in the middle and blue.

The mounted men-at-arms on both sides approached along the road. Catching sight of each other caused both to draw up short to assess the situation. It appears neither want to get involved in a ruckus in the middle of the village. 

Sir Oswald's retinue begins to roll.

Sir Jean's retinue seems reluctant to budge.

Eventually both sides begin to advance. The cheeky mounted serjeants seem to fancy their chances against the better armed and equipped men-at-arms.

Sir Oswald's foot serjeants approach the village. The nearest of the two bands draws close to the barn and a copse of trees, both potential hiding places. Is Friar Balsam hiding in either?

The mounted serjeants have a point-or rather, several nasty sharp points, and the men-at-arms get the worst of the encounter.

As the mounted men square up to each other the commander of the longbowmen begins to position his troops to fire upon the mounted serjeants once they get a clear shot. 

A rustling in the byre startles a serjeant. Moments later a scruffy figure emerges into the light...

Well, waddaya know? Friar Balsam was in the second potential hiding place. Now let's see if his friends can get him to safety...

To be continued.

 

Raid on the Village ~ Part Two - The End

The raid on Coccium in Carnutii continues, and it's not going the Saxon's way...

The raiders begin to retire with their spoils.

Lord Cynbel the Magnificent leads the Companions in a fierce charge that arrives like a thunderbolt amongst the startled Saxons.

A group of looters is sent reeling back as their comrades slope away across the field with the goodies. Cedric the Quiet attempts a counter-attack to pin the Britons...

...but it fails.

Ebba orders a general withdrawal.

Cynbel the Magnificent isn't done yet. Close pursuit makes the Saxons jittery.

Thanks to a rare piece of accurate shooting from the British archers, Saxon Lord Wigmund takes an arrow in the leg. The Briton Militares close into combat with the loot-burdened Saxons.

The result is predictably bloody. Saxons fall in droves beneath the vengeful spears of the Britons. Hampered by his wound, Lord Wigmund breathes his last.

The Saxons' force morale plunges below zero and they break. The death of Wigmund following the terrible casualties inflicted on the Saxons during the raid was too much for the Sea Wolves. Dropping the loot they run for their lives.The Romano-Britons pursue, driving the raiders from their lands.

* * * *

Gaius Menusius scored heavily in the post-game wind up. This takes into account the prestige of his victory, recovery of the loot, the casualties inflicted on the Saxons in battle and during the pursuit, and the spoils gained from their bodies. Gaius is able to replace all his casualties right away, replace the losses from the summer's campaign during the down-time of winter AND score a thief's hoard in wealth. Thanks to the scale of his victory the icing on the cake is Gaius being named Menusius the Proud.

Ebba retreats to his hall, to rebuild his forces and his reputation over the winter months. His men aren't happy with him, but he's already paid off his king, and has a modicum of wealth to spend. He vows to avenge himself come the spring. For now, both sides are in winter quarters and the land of Britannia is quiet.

Raid on the Village ~ Part one

Ebba felt confident as his warriors advanced on the village. Then the early morning mist burned away, showing the British on a hilltop overlooking the target. Their watchtowers must've sighted him and gave warning. Still, with judicious deployment of his hearth guard he could face-off against his enemy whilst the warriors got down to looting.

Britons to the left, Saxons to the right.

The warriors enter the village while Ebba takes the hearth guard to face down the Britons.

Things aren't going well for the British - but the Companions are lurking close by...

Saxon warriors get down to good dishonest looting, but come up dry, even in the church.

Both sides take and give shrewd blows. The British milites retire, allowing the Companions to surge forward to deadly effect. The Saxon group has found loot in the next house!

The Companions make short work of their opponents.

Although his warriors are now heading off with the loot, the British milites have re-entered the fray, his hearth guard are decimated, and Ebba's now seriously worried...

Raid on the Village ~ Set-up

Murmurs in the Saxon ranks as to whether he's too rash for competent leadership have Ebba concerned. As a consequence Ebba made some slight adjustments to his raiding force, which were required by the loss of his Champion, Oeglath, and the late-demented un-lamented Oeric the Insane, as well as a number of warriors.

A newcomer to Britain joined the warband in the shape of Cedric the Quiet. A peasant-born fellow from northern Germany, he's 36 and of average build. Cedric does have a quiet air of authority about him, having earned it during the internecine warfare of his homeland. Faced with unemployment and penury he crossed the sea to find service with the new warlord, and perhaps some land to call his own. Appreciating the need for a capable leader, Ebba placed Cedric in command of the warriors.

Stepping up to replace the mighty Oeglath (or did he not run fast enough when called upon?) is Berhtulf. It remains to be seen if he can earn the title of Champion.

So, on to the first deployment for the Saxons, who made a good beginning, advancing quite a ways toward the village. Ebba kept hard to the left of the area and has pushed his bowmen out front, the better to interfere with British deployment.

I'm pleased with the way the bases and scenery merge with the newly-painted ground cloth. Using the same paint for all has paid off.

 

Romano-British deploy. Gaius Menusius stands near the dolmen, contemplating the field of battle.

The post-Roman period was one of deep superstition. As a house rule for the game I declared any group or formation nearing the ancient dolmen will give either a +1 to force morale for the British (fighting for the bones of their fathers and the temples of their gods), or a -1 to the Saxons (fighting on land which is not theirs may very well anger the spirit residing in the dolmen). 

Through the magic of the die roll the R-Bs appeared right beside it. Inspired by this Gaius decided to make a speech. Added to the dolmen's effect it boosted his personal status by one, and earned the R-B another Fate card. After his near-Pyrrhic victory of the summer, are things looking up for the captain of the Home Team?

Across the valley Ebba spied the approaching British and gave a speech of his own. It steadied his men (increasing the force morale by one) and improved his own status (by one). The stage is set... 

Ground cloth in action - Set up

It's time to revisit the Dux Britanniarum campaign and the final action of 472AD, this time using the new cloth with Autumnal scenery added. 

From the Saxon entry point. The green die marks the approximate position the Saxons will reach by the time the British appear.

From the Romano-British end. The red die marks the entry point

Having failed to conquer the Roman-British province of Durobrivae, Ebba the Saxon Warlord has decided on a late season raid on the village of Coccium in Carnutii. He hopes to lay his hands on some significant loot, especially from the church of St. Aimless the Confused. It'll keep his warband quiet after the grumbling that ensued from their defeat in pitched battle during the summer.

Roman-British General Gaius Menusius finally got his game on and handed the invading Saxons a defeat this summer. Unfortunately it cost him significant losses in his own army. Still, he got word of the Saxon raid in plenty of time and has managed to march his army to the scene to catch the raiders in the act. Maybe, just maybe, he'll put an end to that pestiferous Ebba once and for all...

In game terms it's not shaping up too well for Ebba & Co. They've failed to steal much of a march on the Roman-British, and Gaius Menusius is close enough to the village to put a major crimp in Ebba's looting.

I hope to play out the game over the weekend. Watch this space...

Lion Rampant ~ Bloodbath

And so battle is joined between the forces of the French Pretender Prince Louis, and King John's Loyalists. 

The Franco-Scottish Knight Sir Jeckyl A' Pliance and the English Knight Sir Kit Breaker have been at odds all year. With Autumn coming on, they decide to meet and settle matters once and for all. The showdown is at the ford crossing a stream in the unremarkable village of Little Snogging. For the game, Sir Kit is 'insipid,' and Sir Jeckyl is 'blessed.'

The French approach from the west

The English approach from the east

The field of battle

A hesitant French advance. Mounted serjeants swing north towards the open ground

A more robust English advance

Mounted English men at arms head for the gap 'twixt hill and river

The French converge on the village

English foot serjeants hesitate whilst Sir Kit heads confidently right for the ford

To the north French mounted serjeants clash with English men at arms...

...and are thrown back, battered

Sir Kit squares off against Sir Jeckyl. French crossbowmen skirt the village heading for the river

Crossbowmen and archers exchange fire to the left. French men at arms recoil in centre. French serjeants and men at arms clash again on the right

Crossbowmen close up to the river, men at arms clash again in the village, but the foot men at arms have cut off Sir Kit's escape. On the right the English men at arms take a beating

A devastating volley of quarrels almost annihilates the longbowmen. The foot serjeants are repulsed from the ford. The English men at arms are taking a beating, too...

The End. A last ditch attempt to break through the ford is repulsed once again with loss. In the village, alone and surrounded, Sir Kit goes down fighting.

So endeth the first game. 

What do I think of the Lion Rampant rules? On the whole, they're pretty good. They're easy to grasp and give a quick game. One rule I did change almost immediately was the Activation roll. Under the rules if one unit fails to activate, all subsequent units (if any) on that side automatically fail and the initiative passes to the other side. After FIVE failed activation rolls where nobody moved, I decided it was too much 'friction of war.' I'm here to game, not look at a static display...

Straight away I decided to limit the fail to the unit rolling. All subsequent units got their chance to move. This sped things up nicely, and I'll keep this house rule in future.

Six Knights of England ~ almost...

Progress (finally) on some of the remaining mounted men-at-arms from my original (30 years+ old) collection. 

They've had their dip in dark varnish. One figure fell off the peg and into the dip, leading to several minutes of hilarity... not, as I tried to retrieve the slippery little bugger. That's him on the right.

All that remains is to base them up. I have another six mounted figures like these, but they need more work to get them ready since they have broken parts which need replacing. The same applies to a batch of foot figures, both serjeants and yeomen. One crowd that shouldn't take too long is a group of six falchion men. Under the Lion Rampant rules they ought to be twelve strong, so I'll just mix them in with other foot figures and count them as upgraded rather than buy a new batch.

Hopefully I'll get them all on the table for a game before long...