Irregular Wars Wargaming

My 10mm early Macedonians took to the field again this week for a rematch with Lee's Greeks. The first two games using Dux Bellorum  had seen my Macedonians use their superior numbers to swarm around Lee's hardcore hoplites and collapse his line. Given my total cavalry superiority, I planned on doing the same this time, sweeping around the flanks to strike from behind. Dux Bellorum works so beautifully for these games: skirmishers tend to meet first, then the cavalry get involved, and only later do the bronze-clad beauties (AKA hoplites) get to grips with the situation. That is certainly what happened this time around too.  Unfortunately for the good guys, the Greek peltasts failed to evaporate fast enough when faced by the Macedonian companions and the infantry lines met before my cavalry were ready. That hole in the left hand side of the Macedonian line is what happens when epilektoi hoplites meet Macedonian tribal levies... Better luck next time boys. Despite...

With my love of early Macedonia finding an outlet through Dux Bellorum: Hoplomachia , I wanted - nay, was compelled! - to get some more 10mm Macs. Here is the new tranche of three units. These will allow me to field a full 32 points of troops in Hoplomachia , 85 points worth of troops towards a 100 point L'Art de la Guerre Early Macedonian army, or 328 points in Hail Caesar . More hetairoi! These noble Macedonian horse-barons are Magister Militum Thracian cavalry - some with head swaps to introduce a couple of helmets, some with added broad-brimmed petasoi made of green stuff. My mate Lee very unkindly refers to them as banditos...   More tribal levy! These lovely wee figures are all from the Magister Militum Greek peltasts pack. The best I can say about their performance in battle so far is that it seems historically accurate.

It is probably safe to say that our gaming circle has been somewhat … underwhelmed, by the off the shelf options available for wargaming hoplite battles at the moment. Although the likes of L’Art de La Guerre and distantly related DBX games can be fantastic (and we are big fans of ADG here), its scope is – I feel – a little too broad to capture a sense of hoplite battle. Seeing two long lines of evenly matched, slow moving, robust infantry units plod towards each other is not exactly thrilling. Other rule systems we have played (such as Men of Bronze ) are, conversely, too dynamic. They allow extraordinarily swift movements – hoplite charges outdistance missile range and leave re-deployment so easy as to make the mini-game that is the initial of tactical deployment all but obsolete. Hail Caesar , Sword and Spear and Impetus are not every body’s cup of tea and many unit types just end up a bit vanilla after a round of combat. On the flip slide, more bespoke solution...

I was ambushed by the young lad (age 8) this week asking for a game of 'Knights'. He wanted to get his new posse led by Sir John on the table and have a game. I opted to use standard Song of Blades and Heroes with simple warbands. Sir John and his retinue came in at just under 150 points, so I built an outlaw band the same strength. Sir John's Posse Sir John - Q3 C3; Hero, Heavy Armour, Steadfast Swordsman - Q4 C2; Steadfast Spearman - Q4 C2; Steadfast Crosbowman - Q4 C2; Shooter - Long, Sharpshooter, Steadfast Merry Foresters Robin - Q3 C3; Hero, Good Shot, Shooter - Long, Forester John - Q4 C2; Forester Will - Q4 C2; Forester Much - Q4 C2; Shooter - Medium, Forester To get the game moving quickly, we used a 2' square board and deployed 1x Short in from our chosen table edge. Robin and Much are top right, Will and John bottom right. Sir John is out of shot in the lower left, and his men are spread out to the left - the crossbowman in the middle. ...

My wee lad loves to customise stuff - no idea where he gets that from... When he saw  Sir Guillaume , he asked if he could customise a knight too. So now, hot off the heels of family visits to Trim Castle, the National Heritage Park, and the Rock of Dunamase, I can present his small warband led by Sir John 'of Ireland'.  Sir John himself, armoured with a shield, and armed with a mace and sword. The rear of Sir John showing his coat-of-arms. As you can see, the wee man also customised up a prototype for me so I knew exactly what I was supposed to be painting. Two sergeants: one with spear and shield and the other with sword and shield.  A crossbowman to provide a bit of long range support. I suspect these will mostly be sitting on a shelf, but they will also see service in the new Robin Hood/outlaw game, and perhaps in the odd game of Song of Blades and Heroes as well.  Every boy needs to be taught how to handle himself in a scrap...

To defend all civilised Christians from the outlawry and heresy of the wolfsheads of Sherwood, the Sheriff of Nottingham has invited his distant cousin Sir Guillaume le Fauconnier to come and exploit the local peasantry.  All figures are Fireforge plastics - a mixture of foot knights and foot sergeants from two sprues I picked up. For the games I am intending, the eight men shown here should more than suffice to represent the villains... Sir Guillaume le Fauconnier - a knight Two sergeants with spears and shields.  Two sergeants, one with mace and shield, one armoured with a Dane axe (converted from an axe and a spear). Two crossbowmen, one armoured with a sword. One archer with a hand axe (the bow is borrowed from elsewhere and the quiver made of greenstuff).

As the days lengthened and the snows were just beginning to recede, the hunters of the tribe set out secure the people's survival. A mere 12 bulk worth of meat would see the tribe through - at least for another moon. The hunters had discovered a small heard of mammoths grazing in the tundra. They had prepared a pit (centre right), and then split into two smaller parties. Lee took control of Herc, Bow and Snogg, along with Herc's new hound - Grrr (top left). I controlled Ferg, Tark and Frygga (off screen to lower left). Fergg the fire-king, Frygga with her trusty spear, and Tark the bowman. Rolling for traits, Fergg ended up with big feet. He'd be fine in an icy landscape, but would have trouble moving through thickets. Herc with his club, Grrr, Bow the bowman and Snogg the spearman. Rolling for traits, Herc turned out to be 'enthusiastic' so he would have to roll three dice every time he activated. Unbeknownst to the tribe, a small hunting party of out...