Grafted Dark Age Rules Bear Fruit

This week I finally sat down and put my thoughts to paper. These particular thoughts were about Dux Britanniarum. I like the rules and love the period but I have almost wanted to simplify the rules somewhat. Likewise I really enjoy Lion Rampant but have wanted to complicate the rules somewhat to give more command decisions and control.

So ... I did it and managed to hoodwink 3 gentlemen into sharing a game with me.

To my surprise everyone had fun and would play the rules again. A couple of parts to sand smooth but I have a working set of Dark Age rules that work.

Each unit had eight figures or skirmishers with six. In my mind this isn't eight or six people but represents a unit of maybe 50 or 100? I haven't a firm figure in mind.

The game we played was back to my old tricks ... Eric Bloodaxe and his northern warriors battling the men from Wessex under Athelstan. It was the men from Wessex who drove the invaders back to Jorvik with many fewer warriors than they marched south with.

Above, the battlefield while below monks hard at work consecrating a pagan monument. 

The Viking King advances down the flank. 

The shieldwall of the Wessex men. 

The above shows the entire battle from the perspective of Eric Bloodaxe on the Viking far left flank. 

Both armies had selected a flanking attack. The Danes rushed forward while the Saxons held back using the spaces between woods and marshes as defensible areas. 

Above shows the Saxon king rounding the wood and readying his men to charge the Danes flank. 

The Danes advanced toward the Saxons but a marsh cut the field in two. A small amount of shock began to accumulate due to slings and javelins launched from the wood. 

And then the grass miraculously changed colour ... then changed back. 

Above and below the forces of the Saxon king begin to appear around the wood. On their way they chased off the skirmishers who tried to slow their approach. 

The above also shows a possible problem. The Viking unit charged and caught the skirmishers. I ruled that this would halt their movement as they killed the skirmishers. This meant the Vikings were halted but inches from a shieldwall. In the subsequent phase this charged and inflicted many points of shock. I should have let the Viking unit come on straight into the Saxons and just rule the skirmishers had run off. 

On the other side of the battlefield the Viking king urged his warriors to charge the shieldwall. It was only manned by levy fyrdsmen. 

In the centre elite troops from both sides did battle. Shock mounted on the Viking. 

And then the Saxons charged the Viking flank. 

Athelstan's men smashed another Viking unit then began to advance again. 

Morale is lost in my rules for every reverse ... a defeat in combat, more shock than men, nobles wounded or killed and units routed. Makes for a quicker game. 

These couple of images show the hammer swinging onto the anvil. The Saxon flank attack is in position. Also positioned well to cause damage are some skirmishers in the woods and the below images show the shock building on the depleted huscarl unit. It valiantly charged a shieldwall but lost out in the end. 

The enormous hand is pointing to the Viking attack on their left. Finally into position they charged the Saxon fyrd in shieldwall. These held out well but over two turns of combat shock mounted. 

What can men do against such turns of fortune?

The battle nearing the end above. The Vikings were caught and pressured. Warriors started to slip away despite the cries from their jarls. Perhaps only the gods could help but even these stayed silent. 

The Saxon king Athelstan's command resplendent with banners of their victorious god. 

This vicious struggle continued to the end. 

In the final moments the Vikings gained a victory on the left as a fyrd unit broke. However, the other fell back and formed a new shieldwall with the reserve warrior unit. 

As started in the intro, the game had been a success attained through a simple system with lots of flavour from the Dux cards. We started with five cards per side and each noble could purchase a card and/or discard and draw at the end of his activation. This worked well. I added the Bibamus and Portent cards (2 or each) to the deck as well. These supply additional period flavour - I added the rule if you forced an enemy unit to charge then this would count as a Ferocious Charge to offset being able to break up someone's shieldwall. This forced charge may prove to be too powerful but more playtesting is needed. Another thing I need to make clearer is when to allow rallying of shock - especially in a prolonged combat over two turns. 

But any tweaks appear small at the moment although only one game has been played and this was not a scenario but a straight up fight. More will be needed. Overall, the rules are essentially Dux with changes to formation and movement - I removed the dice for movement and instead went with a 4" move per action - slower for shieldwall. I left that a player could roll 3d6 under certain circumstances but the unit was bound to move the full roll of the dice whether beneficial or not. Also I changed the shieldwall rules to raise the cover level by one - so warriors and levy in shieldwall defend as if in light cover - while elites always count as light cover but rise to heavy cover if in shieldwall. Will need to divide combat dice between different quality units before rolling to hit. 

Command choices make for the best games - or at least that's what our little group currently concurs upon - and this is what I tried to supply.  

Britain of My Mind

I have mulled over this project for some time. Leaping from my Dark Age obsession is the concept of a mythological Britain or rather a mysterious Britain. I image a place with deep forests and isolated tors. A Britain of barrows and standing stones. Bleak and misty ... perhaps an Albion rather than a Britain but still one firmly grounded in the Dark Ages of the 6th-10th centuries.

With this in mind I have modeled a barrow that I am yet to paint. I carved this from hard foam (which I'm experimenting with after years of just sculpting from any old foam that I gained from packaging.) The foam was purchased as I wanted to make some hills for my dark age games, hoping these could also appear in jungle settings.

I carved the foam with a steak knife, sanded the top to make it nicely rounded and smooth, glued it into place with PVA (onto a MDF board) then painted the foam with a watered mixture of a multi purpose filler. Don't know whether to add some additional rubble in the form of sand and pebbles at the base of the stones but I will add a small path of stones leading into the darkened depths.

The barrow is one of the more evocative features of my new setting. I see it filled with latent threat and mystery and evidence of a distant and ancient past. Since these images my daughter and I painted it black and it now awaits dry brushing before I'll flock the top.

It is a perhaps a little large but I had in mind a longship burial. Despite my concerns there is definitely enough room for two or more warriors and champions to fight viciously atop its gentle curve ... perhaps an attempted murder of a king on his way to be crowned or settling a blood feud for a similar act. 

Rabbit Stew

The next of my infrequent reports will be a return to Lion Rampant.

I like to pit the Baltic Pagans against the Northern Crusaders. This is a wonderful period to learn about and play within. Lots of colour and interesting background. The small groups of knights that tried to carve an empire from the thickly wooded lands of the north is very evocative. Just as inspiring is the struggle of the pagans to expel the followers of the grasping god from their homeland. 

This week we did scenario ... ahhh ... ummm ... D or E i think. The one where one side has to march across the table while the other attacks. 

The worshipers of the mighty forest rabbit had over extended themselves whilst raiding and the Brotherhood of the Sword had swooped on their opponents as they returned home. 

The crusaders had to split their forces between the NW and SW corner. With their mounted units they would attempt to catch the pagans in a pincer. All the while their crossbowmen would harry their opponents from the rear. The spearmen pictured above would be tasked with holding their advance for as long as their schiltron formation could manage. 

Here the pagans surged forward. Large units of fierce foot, one bidower and a single unit of heavy foot men-at-arms. The bidowers were thrown forward and to the left of the foot troops in the hope they could shield other units from the crossbowmen's fire. These bidower troops rained turn after turn of arrows down on a variety of crusader troops but were little able to damage more than their skirmisher equals on the other side. 

The much prized crossbowmen whose job it was to scythe down their foes. The pagans lacked the missile troops to respond and their haste to reach the other side motivated them to try and ignore this threat as best they could. These troops would initially prove slow to activate and enter the fray. 

The table - complete with large rectangular snow drifts? (just army lists that I should have removed before the image was snapped.) The road marks the intended passage of the Baltic pagans. The topmost image of the two shows one crusader force which intended to harry the pagans from the rear. It also shows the pagan's plan to throw the bidowers toward the crossbowmen in the hopes their skirmishing would absorb some bolts. 

The spearmen were pushed forward by their unsympathetic lord.  

The mounted sergeants moved into position. These troops were much maligned on the evening but would prove instrumental to victory. Early activation failure caused them consternation. 

The early turns favoured the pagans. Time and again they managed to motivate their entire army. Fierce foot units streamed toward the centre of the table. The crusaders cursed as the pagans mocked their pale and deceased god who lacked the virility and speed of the forest bunny god. 

Still they surge onward! We shall smash through this Christian rabble to reach home!

The leader - Lord Leopold Swain - famed hater of the forest peoples, pagans, slow witted, withered or lame - sat back in apparent inactivity. This caused the crusaders to fall into internal bickering throughout the evening but may perchance have been a master stroke as they were preserved for devastating actions later. 

It wasn't a bad move as with the wild charge rule such knights can be drawn to their doom in rough terrain by such units as fierce foot. But this was to cause the internal squabbles. 

The pagan march forward continues. The lone spear unit begins to question their resolve. If only our shields will hold ... 

The cavalry are in position but - due to the bickering which rose in intensity and insensibility at this point - no charge occurred. I'm sure this will also be claimed as a master stroke of tactics in the annals of the northern crusades - but at the time the pagans mocked their craven hearts. 

Form up lads, this will sting. 

Several wild charges by the pagans followed into the spear whose schiltron greatly prolonged their lives and ability to absorb damage. Only when they fell to half strength did they shields and resolve falter. 

Only one of the pagan units remained at full strength. Crossbow bolts from behind and the spearmen had taken their toll. Spearmen are fantastic defensive troops who fight better when receiving a charge. The schiltron formation raised their armour to a near impenetrable 4. 

The knights finally came forward just as the spearmen faltered but the first action was by the pagans who issued a challenge. "May the Giant Rabbit kick your nethers," cried Catweasel Hairyknuckles - the leader of the Baltic troops. 

This first challenge was but a draw ... the first indication that the Christ god was stronger in the north than the pagans had hoped. 

This above image shows the perilous situation for the pagans. Now surrounded but only able to forge boldly toward their objective, they were trapped by situation and tactics. Bolts plunged into their buttocks while horse threatened. One unit of fierce foot had been destroyed by fire while 2 others were sapped of their strength by bolts and pointy spears. 

And now the cruel Lord Leopold drove home his advantage and repeatedly charged home. The earth and camera shook as the heavy hooves impacted the earth. The elite pagan troops gradually fell. Now the activations deserted the pagans and the christians held the initiative. 

In desperation - or courageously - another challenge was issued. 

And with three swift but decisive blows Catweasel's skull was cloven in and he twitched upon the ground to the delight of Leopold - oppressor of the weak. 

Now stark horror stalked amongst the ranks of the pagans who knew their might rabbit god had simply sodded off or burrowed deep underground. The other Crusader cavalry unit - after recovering from very hurt feelings - returned to charge into the exposed rear of the weakened fierce foot. 

Between the hammer and the anvil. 

Probably enough said. 

The shaky cam is not only bad photography but also an accurate depiction of the fear in pagan hearts as they ran into the wood. This very unit let fear be their master as they successively failed to activate and annihilate the last of the men-at-arms - avenging their leader. Fierce foot are very poor defenders but able attackers and these were still just above half strength - thus still rolling the maximum number of attack dice. With lower defence values and being at half strength, the men-at-arms may have fallen. 

This marked the final failure of the pagans who had advanced so boldly into the centre of the table ... to be here cut down and have their bodies trampled into the mud by the unyielding hooves of the invader. 

Fortunately, the forest is filled with eager hairy men leering from behind each mighty oak - keen to display the virile virtues of their Forest Rabbit deity and replace the losses suffered on this bleak day in the far north. Both their tunics - and the North - will rise again!