campaign concluded

This campaign has ended, with the general consensus that it was a Norman victory.

Congratulations to the victor, and thanks to all who took part!

a new map for Autumn 1004

The Welsh, paid off for the year, feast on imported foreign delicacies, like beef. The Normans feast, gloomily, on the turnips thrown at them by the Danes they are besieging (and probably some of the mounts of their deceased LH). The Irish have a quiet dinner of kale, the English a haunch of venison and some good French wine (they still have plenty of silver left), and the Scots their traditional celebratory meal of herring roasted in oats.

Ireland, will you rise from your table to seek trouble, or will you finish your tasty meal (perhaps seasoned up with a wee taste of goat)?

more summer developments and the beginning of Autumn 1004

The Normans decide to try widening their foothold in the North and return to the siege of Denmark. But clearly the Danes have laid in more beer and neeps, as they see off their invading cousins for a season (Normans, please designate an element to be lost).

The English watch events with interest but choose not to venture beyond their dooryards. So cautious are they that when a contingent of Welsh shepherds turn up calling "Gŵyl San Steffan!", the English give them a huge chest full of hacksilver. The shepherds, marvelling, go on their way.

That closes out the summer of 1004. Leaves begin to turn, there's a chill in the air, and


the wind whips up the waves so loud,
the ghost moon sails among the clouds,
turns the spear blades into silver,
on the border.

Autumn, 1004 arrives.

I'll post a new map shortly (we could use one). In the meantime, for your entertainment, some photo recaps of previous battles:

Scotland v. Wales: Autumn 1003. The third meeting between these armies, which show a pronounced pattern.

England v. Wales: Autumn 1003. One of the smallest DBA battles I've ever seen.

Danes v. Normans: Summer 1004. The latest battle in the campaign.

war in the north

The Danes thought they would liberate Norway. The Normans were having none of that! A fleet of transports brought the chivalry of Fecamp, Coutances, and Caen to the fjords, just inj time to face down the cocky Vikings.

Pictures may be found here, but the long and the short of it was 2 Danish Bd and 2 Danish Sp dead, one of them the Danish general. Mighty against England, the Danes proved themselves (again) no match for mounted knights. Two more elements (Ps and Sp) were lost as penalty for losing their (third?) general in combat against the Normans, and the Danes slunk home to lick their wounds.

The Normans pull into a commanding lead, with the Scots a lagging second. The two also have almost the last intact armies, as most others are reduced to 2-3 elements.

The Normans have the next move, with which they can relocate their army from Norway if they choose, but they may not invade again this turn.

recent events in Cumbria

The army of the Duke of Normandy rode north into Cumbria in the spring, determined to batter his arch-rival the King of Scotland into submission. The sun shone on the mail of his knights and glittered on the tips of the spears of his footmen.

Less glittered in the brown and green clad hosts of the Scots, but grim determination was seen in their mien, and a fierce willingness to battle could be seen in their eyes.

So determined was the King of Scots to come to grips with his enemy that, he too, marched from his strongholds and sought out the foe. They found them sooner than they expected, as a trap sprung by the cunning Normans caught the Scots away from their beloved hills and forests, out in the open.

Too pleased with his cleverness, the duke charged forward heedlessly, and many of his knights (2 Kn) were slain in their collision with the Scots spearmen. But once the fighting lines became broken and the melee more general, the weight of the armoured horsemen began to tell, aven as Norman footmen fell beneath Scots swords (1 Sp).

The Scots lost many of their stalwart footmen that day (2 Sp and 1 Ps), but it was the loss of a good half their horse (1 LH) that finally broke their spirit. The remaining Scots broke, falling back beyond the forth and the Tay to Scone, while the Normans settled in to plunder Cumbria (and the Lothians).

4-3 win for the Normans, who now control Cumbria and gain 1 PP for battle and 3 PP for control of Cumbria. Scots retire to Scone.

England's turn.

busyness over the winter

New map for 1004.



The various nations rebuilt as follows

Danes: 1 Blade, 1 Spear, 1 Psiloi
Normans: All those lost in the siege of Aalborg
English: 3 Spear
Welsh: 1 Cavalry, 2 Psiloi
Irish: 2 Auxilia
Scots: none

In other news, Wales decided to join the growing empire of the Scots, submitting to what has now (with the exception of Brittany) become the Greater Pan-Celtic Co-Prosperity Sphere.

In further irony, it turns out the the Irish have the first move. Chris?

Wales stays home

After initial thoughts of a foray into the western shires, the Welsh retire to their (few remaining) hills.

The Irish army (namely the general and his 2 I/C) play draughts (they would do nine mens morris, but they don't have enough men!) and so the turn ends.

Winter sets in with a vengeance, bringing ice and snow to many hearths. The Normans retire from their siege of Aalborg, and the Danes raise another toast to the power of walls to repel cavalry.

New forces are built from reserves; unless I've got something wrong, that will amount to:

Danes: 3 elements (giving them 8)
Normans: All those lost in the siege (giving them 12)
English: 3 elements (giving them 3)
Welsh: 3 elements (giving them 6)
Irish: 2 elements (giving them 2)
Scots: none (the Scots are already at 12)

Once players have let me have their recruiting schedule and their army starting locations, I will check to see who has the initiative for 1004.

not so mighty melees

A Korean proverb says, "In the battles of the whales, the shrimp are crushed." Who is crushed when the shrimp battle?

The Angles, restless and feeling as if their untold store of wealth should mean more than it apparently does to their neighbors, decided to take their tiny army and see if they could turn it to some advantage. They marched into the hills of Powys, hoping to administer a kicking to the Welsh while they were prostrate after their defeats at the hands of the Scots.

The Welsh, however, were more than a match for the English, disposing of them in a short battle (OK, what else would the Welsh fight? ;-) The English general was cut down (to size?) in the midst of his host (well, in the middle of a small group of armed men, anyway). The few remaining thegns fled in dismay, some disguising themselves as hermits or beggars or lepers, the rest settling for hiding in an old oak tree until the furious Welsh had passed and then going to hide in a swamp for the rest of their days. England had joined the Norse Irish in the unestimable Club of Not Having Any Army At All.

Wales was then left to consider its options, with the high road to Winchester and London looking very inviting. They had lost Dyfed to the Scots; what if they were to just seize some of the western shires in compensation?

Wales retreats, attacked again!

Having taken their lumps from the Scots, the Welsh fell back to the quiet dales of Powys. Or so they thought.

But the English, who had been silently nursing their grievances after drubbings at the hands of the Danes and Normans, suddenly cast off the garments of woe and leapt into action, charging across the border into Wales! Still nursing the wounds of their last battle, the Welsh were confronted with a new and unexpected (though admittedly tiny) enemy army on another patch of their own soil!

New map below.

Wales burns, Scots feast

The first move of Autumn 1003 was an attack by the Scots on the Welsh army in Dyfed. A full battle report will appear here shortly (with photos, even, one hopes! I know, promised before...), but it ended in another Welsh defeat and another dead Welsh general. The remnants of the Welsh army flee into the mountain fastnesses of Gwynedd (or possibly the quiet valleys of Powys--Mark's choice).

The Danes pass in their turn. Safe behind their ramparts (or so they think), they roast turnips, drink beer, and argue about the offside call in the latest Midtjylland v. Silkeborg match.

summer ends quietly

The Angles, the Welsh, and the armyless Irish all pass.

The autumn of 1003 begins with another Scots turn.

Danes not dead yet, but dedicated defenders

The army of the Normans sailed across summer seas from London to Denmark, hoping for an easy conquest. They were disappointed, as the defiant Danes held forth in their steading at Aalborg. Waving spears, axes, and the occasional mocking turnip at their southern cousins, the men of the northlands jeered at the frustrated horsemen whose valiant steeds gave them no advantage when charging palisades. Many of the lance-bearers perished before their duke called a halt to the escalade.

the Scots on the rampage

The Scots pursue the Welsh to the environs of Dublin. The Welsh, bruised and battered, decline to give battle and retire to their homeland. The Scots trick their way into the city and run riot among the casks of strong brown porter piled on the quayside.

Current affairs on the board, as we wait for the Danes' move.

I'll post a fuller battle report (with a few pictures, even) later on, but the Battle of the Brans saw the Welsh defeated in a sharp and nearly bloodless action (1G-0). Their army loses two additional elements (Wales, please specify) and falls back on Dublin. Scots gain 3 Prestige and retain Armagh.

The armyless Irish are forced to pass, and we conclude Spring 1003.

Summer 1003 starts with, again, the Scots having the first go.

updating the map

Here's a current map, showing the impending tussle over the heights of Slieve Gullion.

crashing and bashing

It has been pointed out to me that, in the process of losing Armagh, the remaining Irish troops are eliminated. As vassals of the Scots, the Irish retain Armagh, but they will have to rebuild their army.

The Danes having passed, the Normans rode south from York to attack London. The English, perhaps having strayed out in the noonday sun too often, marched out to fight them in the open field. The Normans first stormed the small hillfort that the English had garrisoned and left their baggage in. The Normans slew the guards and looted the baggage, then fought back and forth, eventually killing off enough of the "small men" (skirmishers) that the few remaining English took to their heels. The Normans paraded into London and established their Duke as "King of All Britain". (2BUA-0, 4 Prestige for the Normans, the English lose 3 Sp, 1 Ps total, retain London, but become Norman vassals).

The English pass in their turn; it is now the turn of the Welsh.

1003 dawns bright and cheerful

Well, for some.

All armies are placed (though their locations are not revealed until they move or are encountered by moving armies). All reserves have been replenished.

The honour of first move for Spring 1003 (and for the other two seasons as well) goes to....

The Scots!

end of 1002

This should reflect matters at the end of 1002.

I have arbitrarily deducted 2 Sp from England's active army to represent its last losses that were still unfulfilled.

The Danes may replace three elements.
The Normans may replace their only loss.
The English may replace three elements.
The Welsh may replace five elements.
The Norse Irish may replace two elements.
The Scots may replace all five of their losses.

Please send me your replacements and the starting position of your army for 1003. Once I have all those, I will check to see which player moves first in Spring 1003.

special report from our Scottish correspondent

The Welsh prince, full of bravado, landed at Mann to relieve the besieged Irish populace at Castle Mann. The Scots, seeking retribution for a disastrous Irish invasion of the Strathclyde, had been laying siege for months now.

The Scots elected to attack the Welsh Prince as the tide was out, keeping the Irish army on their boats all day.

King Malcolm III and the Eachernthiergna (Horse Lords) rode from left to right across the front of the pagan enemy encouraging his clansmen and thegn warriors forward from their traditional place of honor on the right of the Scottish line.

A dispatch of Scottish light horse fell to the javelin ambush of the Welsh psiloi, but the ensuing highlander charge drove them to the safety of the hillsides leaving the mounted Prince of Wales to face them in a stand off.

As the Prince of Wales vacillated across the field from the ferocious clansmen, Malcolm III and his horsemen slammed into the ranks of the Welshmen.

Inserting themselves between the water and the Welsh left flank, Malcolm's horsemen and thegns rolled up the befuddled and helpless Welshmen. Ignoring their pitiful cries for mercy, the Christian Scots dispatched thousands of the pagans and the fields of Mann ran red with blood. [Here your editor will interject the observation that, of course, the Welsh are all good Christians too, intent on slaughtering their neighbours to the greater glory of God.] The Welsh prince fled the field, leaving the Gracious Bishop of Villanova de Popecki to negotiate safe conduct for the Welsh camp followers and store of rarebit.

The main Scottish shield wall, watched the battle while eating cheese and drinking wine (again?).

Viewing this from the Castle of Mann, the besieged Irish, out of children to consume, surrendered to the gracious King Malcolm III, whose thegns shared their ales and venison with the wraiths who were once a thriving populace.

Let all take notice, it was the Irish who landed upon the coast of Scotland only a few months before. The gracious King Malcolm III welcomes the crowns of Wales and Ireland to call Him overlord and live full and pleasant lives free from the scourge of conflict and fried Mars bars.

Malcolm III
Rex and Nice Guy