Sad days indeed...

 What can be said about her majesty. What a life! What a Queen. A very sad passing indeed. The end of an era that both she and her late husband helped shape.

I'll never forget this one though ... 

L'Art de la Guerre : Charles the Bold & Anton the B**tard

 L'Art de la Guerre (LADG) by Herve Caille, is a definite favourite amongst the guys, and, since I was never a big Ancients player, I have avoided them completely :O

However, I have obtained a copy (1) to see what all the fuss is about and (2) since there is much talk of their suitability for C17th fighting (with a rough expansion out there, and an official Renaissance book to follow).

I took some pics of the '2 Steves'  game below, just before I got the rules.

These are actually fantastic value:

1. Without going into too much detail, much of the 'broken stuff' surrounding DBx series games is fixed. I do remember throwing dice during the DBA period, and kind of missed DBMM, so the relief that many feel with ADLG is somewhat lost on me.
2. The book is 260+ pages of rules which simple to learn and hard to master, plus lists spanning hundreds of years - for ancients and medieval.
3. 200 point games have 20+ elements per side - and gameplay is very smooth.
4. Certain elements have to be played in certain ways, and there are 'chess' like approaches to play, but it all makes sense, and still gets a good game in, in a few hours at most.
5. There's a lovely wee terrain and army placement phase that sets everything up for set piece battle - all seems smooth.

I mentioned that the rules were originally French, right?

A few of Steve's wonderful 15mm armies presented here. He has the largest collection, of best painted troops ever seen in all o' Christendom.  His stuff is eminently better than the dodgy painting you see in most rulebooks and magazines :

Burgundians

Late Romans

Assyrians

The guys had a War of the Roses army facing Burgundian (I think) - with the Burgundians fielding both Charles the Bold and Anton the Bastard on the same battleground.

Following a Terrain placement phase, and setup, the armies were ready to engage:

English set up after terrain placement on their left

'We few, we happy few, we...  where'd everybody go???'

I sense a few flanking actions with a massive melee in centre...might be coming

'There be Pavisse...es...es.'

Charles the Bold, or Anton the B'stard

Early push from the Burgundians...despite how it looks, they are seeking a flank

...even as the English loose their light horse against t'other flank

'Get stuck in lads'

It all goes tit up on the English left

The English centre is going to break like a wave 

...there it goes...

Anton the B'stard, or is it Charles the Bold

At the far end of the table here, you can see Burgundian moves against the English camp, which would net them 4 VPs - plus all the damage they have already dished out. Once they hit VP soak, the game will end, so it's all to play for.

In the end, the Burgundians had dished out enough damage, that it was very close to English surrender. I had to leave early, but the guys were able to get another game in on the same night. Great game

I have 20mm plastics, which will work for ADLG, though I may be convinced to dip into 15mm again. The size and scope of the armies seems to make it work with an eminently suitable set of rules that actually make the period work very well.

Salem Church 1863 (with Regt F&F)

Our annual July game (which folds neatly in with the Christmas / Easter and 'any excuse for a piss up' games), are now back with a vengeance.

John and Stephen set up Salem Church, for 4 players + ref, with the excellent Fire & Fury (Regimental) - which definitely has some advantages:

There is clear and unarguable attrition, as in the ACW accounts, so it feels like the ACW - though there is a 'cold steel' charge rule, which inevitably means that there are distinct advantages in charging home without shooting . We debated this for hours...well, minutes anyway (many minutes)...at least in terms of how 'ACW' it was, and whether it was a game balance thing.

(Yes, those are curtain tassels attached to the hat...)

The setup used the excellent 15mm collections of John & Steve.

The Union was forced to attack Reb positions - inevitably perhaps coming unstuck on one flank. A Reb drive on their left threatened to make good on the scenario conditions, after the Union had captured / and lost the church, but neither side was going to win in the end - neither the Union capturing the Church, nor the Rebs the toll house. In the end, it became a hard fought grinding draw - but a great day - followed by wine, beers, Indian food and John's (not) gay beer.

NOT a gay beer

Reb positions at the church, with skirmishers along the walls. It's not a big position, and thereby only holds skirmishers at this scale.

Union attacks straight at the centre, with cold steel charges for the most part, with some smoothbore/RM discipline from the Rebs

Billy Yank was determined to say the least

Union attacks in the centre initially - but they can expect reinforcements

Federals hold the church...for a time

Building attacks on the Reb left

A mass battle in itself on the Reb right - was turning into a bloody stalemate - though the Union were still concerned enough to send multiple reinforcing regiments in that direction...

'Here they come again boys!' Union attacks are hard and fast, but, the Rebs can still counter-attack as the turns wear on, on their left...

Terrible melee on the left flank (my dice rolls were terrible anyway)

The bloody centre

Reb pressure tells terribly on their left flank...but it's too late

The centre and right are in stalemate...

...and the (Reb) bands played on...

I am 10 !

 On this day, ten years ago, I put up my first blog post – without any idea where it might lead.

It really only seems relatively recently, when I was typing up the ‘I am 5’ post - 5 short years ago. I am now looking forward to some kind of semi-retirement over the next few years, with at least lecturing and writing forming the cornerstone of that, and at the very least, it should allow more blog time, and some rules and period research.

The blog has seen massive change - even despite its limited scope. Fitz and I started this as a way of keeping photos of the odd game ‘somewhere’, actually having a central focus for playing games and thereby creating a need to fill the blog – so it would be self-fulfilling, compelling us to fill up the space.

That original premise has morphed out of control.

I’ve found good gaming friends right on my very doorstep, and re-found some old ones – who I thought lost to time.

I’ve formed great friendships with other bloggers from the UK to the USA, even been given figures (you are the men Sprinks & Steve), and played across the world in epic and dramatic AWI games with Steve & Jon (and his excellent rules), had great blogger visits (Tony from Prometheus in Aspic), and played a small part in an online battle of Germantown – which was a real nail-biter (thank you Norm), and have helped form part of ww2 campaigns (Steve’s 2019 Firestorm Russian Front was epic).

I've missed a lot of other stuff and people there - and I never envisaged any of this 10 years ago, and granted I don’t post a lot, but have discovered new found love for the hobby and all its varied facets in the last 10 years, and the great people that form this eclectic bunch that we call 'wargamers'.

 So, I’m hoping to get more from the blog and develop some of the things I’ve already got - as example:

Field of Battle (you knew it would come up), continues to be my faviurite set of rules that is both straightforward and derives an excellent narrative – more to come from this.

Field of Battle ww2 – the bastard son of above, and yet I was able to do Arnhem with in in 2020. With each stand being a company: Bulge, Normandy, Crete – then telescoped into Vietnam and Falklands actions. A really underrated set of rules.

More Aquilonian Special forces stuff. Started that story and never finished. A way of doing moderns, with a little bit of fun, and not getting any tech or operational stuff wrong, or misinterpreting it.

The grand Altar of Freedom experiment – I remain convinced that Little Wars TV’s ‘Altar of Freedom’ rules, could be re-directed toward a set of battlefield/campaign rules for Nine-Years-War / Marlburian (1685-1715). …this might develop further.

All those other rulesets which are sure to usurp all of the above, including Koenig Krieg and others. It’s what the hobby is about really.

…and much more…

Thanks to everyone for your comments and time over the years. Here’s to the next TEN! 

(cue the pics)

A scene from 'Aughrim'. More 9YW to follow.

More from 'Steve's bunker', including moderns

A scene from the epic 2 day Arnhem game in 2020

...and a certain bridge

Neerwinden 2018 - when Tony from 'Prometheus in Aspic' played many games during a great visit

FoB ww2 action

AWI is a perennial favourite

...as is gaming with Steiner & the boys

1/300 Moderns just keep coming back

Did I mention FoB ww2?