Longships Game.

Yesterday at the club Graham put on a game of Longships by Peter pig. So all the figures ands all the terrain belongs to Graham and he has to bring it all to the club. So none of these fancy set ups in your own home. Everything has to be portable!

There were a choice of armies (I did NOT get to choose but if I did I would not have picked a Dark Age Irish army. ) So Either Matt or Dick selected Irish and I teamed up with them. Opposite the enemy had selected a Scottish army, and on the day Bob (directly opposite me) Peter and Tim faced us.

We rolled the pregame and we were attacking. (Remember the Irish have many qualities in this period but having much armour was not one of them.

Irish at bottom of picture attacking the hills (That was were we would get the most victory points!). I was on the Right, Matt the Left and Dick was the centre.

Assaulting up hill from a stream with unarmoured troops. Well what can I say! things could be better. So not ideal.

Taking turns to set up units.
The Scotts occupy the hill
and would be hard to shift!

But as I was both the last to set up and the Irish moved first.
I threw caution to the wind
crossed the river and climbed the hill
In an area which was not defended.

And feeling bold immediately attacked!
And Miracle apon Miracles actually WON!

The Gratuitos picture of Tims Dice rolling
Uncharacteristically good on the day!

Matt buoyed on by the successful assault on his right also crossed the river.
The bad news is that Tim could roll dice this day.

Foolishly I press on with a depleted unit.
My luck holds and they rout a second unit.
But are in turn in a very bad shape at the end of it.

Bob's Cavalry arrive from off table.
A small unit of 5 bases.
It was 8 bases but he elected to bring them on early
before they were fully mustered.

My 2 units form up on the hill.
My peaseant/levy unit on the left and by battered and wounded unit on the right.

Bob charges the levy unit.
All of my weakest troops in the unit die (I had them at the front)
Yes cruel and heartless
But it left my more competent troops alive
After the first clash.

(This was not my tactic just me moving the wrong figures
and exposing my weaker troops and not fighting with my better troops in
the charge! OPPS!

But as the Dice gods smiled bobs Cavalry charge was blunted by my levy.
Yes he killed more than me,
BUT
I inflicted more hits (Which he mostly saved)
So the 5 bases of cavalry were reduced to 3 bases and being counted as a small unit in the game
routed from the table at the end of the turn.

Tim meanwhile had butchered Matt and Dick had butchered Tim. Peters troops had all fled, half from my endeavours and half from Dicks.

At the pack up when the game was over I was the only player with a credible force left. All Bobs Infantry and Cavalry had been destroyed by me. In fact the only troops the Scots had left were skirmish units (Good for harassing units but not able to fight ) Matt had also lost all the troops he had (apart from Skirmishers) Dick had 1/2 a unit left (Very badly wounded)  as well as some skirmishers and I had 2 units left (One very badly mauled) along with nearly all the skirmishers I started with.

So on the day the Irish beat the Scots 40 Victory points to 22 Victory points.
Which only meant a minor victory. So despite them having no troops left on the table not the raging and crushing victory we would all hope for (When we played) .

One of the best victories I have had in this game ever. Actually one of the better victories (from my perspective) I have ever had at the club. But because of the losses only a minor victory over all.

But most importantly a good fun game with some great chaps.

I will probably start to build a force for this game soon. So watch out for that. And While I would like a Carolingian Army for the game, it will almost deffinitly be either a Viking or Saxon army in 15mm as I already have a DBA Viking army. (DBA 1st Ed).