I ran my version of the (in)famous Battle of Soggy Bottom twice at Historicon, once on Thursday night, and again the following morning.
Opening moves from the Thursday game.
The rules used were "For King and Parliament", by Simon Miller and Andrew Brentnall. Subtly gridded table (8" boxes this time, much better for this period and 28 mm figures), plying cards for activation and combat, and no dice anywhere!
The cavalry battle develops on the Royalist left.
Developments on the Parliamentary Left.
Mid battle overview.
The opposing Foote regiments close and exchange close range fire!
The Roundhead Foote regiments move out of their defensive positions and carry the fight to the Cavaliers!
The Dragoons had a fairly relaxing day until late in the battle!
Positions near the end of the game.
The village of Soggy Bottom itself, with the Parliamentary Victory Medals; they had six (out of about 25 total) remaining when the Royalists hit zero.
The following (Friday) morning), the troops were reset for the second game.
John Mumby of course minds to find a seat near the only woods on the table...
Early moves on the Parliamentary Left.
Mid game; Danny (red shirty) commanded the Left Wing Royalist cavalry. Despite giving them the advantage in almost every charge, his card turning skill was abysmal, and he lost almost every action. Indeed, his luck was so bad that I actually checked his deck after the game to verify that the card composition (1 - 10 eight times) was correct... and it was!
Things were going very well for the forces of Parliament at this point. Other players included Eric and Doug.
The Roundheads had the advantage on their Left.
The opposing regiments of Foote close to "push of pike". Note the very large numbers of Victory medals remaining for Parliament! At one point I was afraid the battle might be over before they lost a single medal!
Blurry fighting near the Bishop's Copse. Hasselrige's Cuiassiers cheer is "Yay, Armor!"
Hot work for both sides in the center!
The game ends with a solid Roundhead victory. The loss of the Royalist cavalry on their Left early in the game put the infantry of the center in constant danger of being outflanked.
Your games look terrific, Peter!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jon. I was very pleased with how they looked.
DeleteGreat looking table and troops!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Peter. I just forgot that I had already made special "Dash" markers, and wound up using the glass "stones" instead for that.
DeleteSome very good looking games.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Peter; I enjoyed running them!
DeleteThat looks like a great scenario, with a nice amount of clear space for manoeuvre. Terrible luck for the Royalist cavalry and poor Danny's card-turning ability.
ReplyDeleteIt's a great introductory scenario for new players,. as there is a little of almost everything (except Scots!).
ReplyDeleteWonderful looking game Peter. I want to give Simons excellent rules a crack at the club for ECW however there is resistance from the BP "Pike and Shotte" brigade. We will see.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Carlo. At the expense of a bit more complexity, FK&P is an improvement on an already fine set of rules. Many of the changes therein will likely appear in TTS!, 2nd edition.
DeleteGreat looking game! Still coming to terms with to the strongest! I'll hold off on king and parliament for a bit so I don't get too confused!
ReplyDeleteBest Iain
Thanks, Iain. They are similar, but there are some important changes
DeleteBoth games look excellent
ReplyDeleteThank you, Gary!
DeleteWonderful images of a most-impressive game, Peter! Well done and congratulations!
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the kind words, Dean!
DeleteAnother wonderful game Peter. No constant sorrow for those soggy bottom boys!
ReplyDeleteThanks, James. The "Soggy Bottom Boys" reminds me of the clip that accompanied those sent to the Doghouse on TMP. :-)
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