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.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
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.
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.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
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.
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.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
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?
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?
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
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.
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.
Friday, July 8, 2011
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?
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?
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
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.
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.
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