Looking back, looking forward

 A wee review of '22.

I was lucky enough to get to the Ray Harryhausen exhibition in January, turning into big kid whilst taking in the wonderful models and illustrations. 

February saw the sudden passing of my very good friend and fellow member of Oldmeldrum Wargames Club Mike Travis. A sore loss to his family and to our club. We miss you big guy. 

Against Spain was released in February and has been selling slowly but steadily since then.

Some 40mm games set in a fictional offshoot of the Valley.

Restarted the Gordon- Forbes feud.

Met some Wild Geese.. again.....Hi lads!

Changed jobs....thankfully ! 

Got Covid

Gamed Sikh Wars and 16th Century Scotland

Celebrated 30yrs of Marriage

Visited the Royal Armouries

Sold some figures and bought some to game the Indian Mutiny

Had to look for a new home for the club.....and then not had to move!

Had more more 16th C Scottish games with the Oldmeldrum and Banchory guys and collected and painted figures for the Canadian Rebellion and Afghanistan.

Wrote an article on the Marian Civil War with Angus Konstam and had it and another on Corrichie published in Charles Grant's Wargames Annual. Thank you both!

Got some lovely Xmas Loot.....a paddle steamer, a big windmill, the History of Numenor, and 3 cracking books from Leakies in Inverness purchased today - Wheeler's Santiago Campaign 1898, Carrington's Battles and Battle Maps of the American Revolution and Das Deutsche Bundesheer by Eckert and Monten

It has been an odd year - at times disjointed, at others a steady run. I've more or less completed two full painting projects and written another book. Not done much 18thC gaming but have really enjoyed my forays into the 19th and 16th. 

So....looking ahead

Kicking off the new year with game in Forres with Graham H

Publishing Feud 

A new role at work

More Wargames shows!! 

Gaming the Patriots Rebellion, and "The Recent War with Russia" and some "Spanish in the Isles"...more on these latter later in the year. 

Getting back into the swing of a normal and full wargames year, without the disruptions of covid and job hassle.

Turning 50?!

Going back to Memphis and onto Nashville with my lovely wife and her much delayed graduation.

More writing.

Oh and a few other bits and pieces, both planned and fluttery like!

Have a happy Hogmanay when it comes folks......see you in '23.

Wargamers Annual - Wars of Mary Queen of Scots

 

The Wargamers Annual is now available from Caliver Books. As mentioned in previous posts this includes an article by Angus Konstam and myself on the period and figures which can be used as well as an article on the Battle of Corrichie written by me.

More 16thC - Glenlivet

Although not part of my series of Gordon-Forbes feud and outwith the scope of the Marian Civil War we fought the Battle of Glenlivet, 1597 at the club tonight. 

The battle was fought between the Catholic Earl of Huntly and his allies, primarily the Earl of Errol, and an army representing King James VI, led by the young Earl of Argyll. 

Argylls army was made up of levied Campbell foot armed with pike and shot and highland clansmen and was not a well motivated or well led force. The clansmen were the most effective troops but were no great fans of Argyll and his own men couldn't wait to get to get home. 

Huntly and Errol's force was about 50% light horse m the rest was fairly well motivated foot from north east Scotland, mostly Gordon's and their allies but also a battery of 6 guns.

The battle seems to have been an encounter, but Huntly seems to have been aware of Argyll's movements as he was able to deploy his guns in what is not the best terrain for such armaments and use them to effect. 

It was Errol who opened the battle, his horse charging the van of Argyll's force - his hand gunners and archers, at high cost while Huntly deployed to some high ground. Argylls levies were hopeless and the only troops to have much effect were the clansmen, the McLeans in particular. The battle went the rebels way and Argyll was defeated, but it changed little. Huntly had to spend time in exile and Errol's castle of Old Slains was destroyed with gunpowder on order of King James. 

Our game got off to a false start as I'd allocated levies to Argyll and they melted away without any effect. So we reset things and tried again with them as light foot. The second game was closer. Errol's horse were in the thick of it, but then the Gordon foot became to close and Argyll fell in action bringing a courage test for his battered army. The results were not good and several units broke and fled and what was left wasn't enough to be in any state to continue the game....victory for Gordon and Errol.

A bad day for Forbes.....Tillyangus and Corgarff

 Today I had a couple of games today with some friends to test scenarios from my next book, Feud, which covers the Gordon - Forbes feud and the Marian Civil War in the North East of Scotland in the 16th century.

Having played out Corrichie and Craibstane previously, Tillyangus and a fictional scenario involving the burning of Corgarff Castle were on the table today. 

We used Lion Rampant 2nd edition with few of the amendments suggested in the Renaissance Rampant mods which were in Wargames Illustrated, written by Oli of the rather excellent Camisado Blog. I am now quite happy that Lion Rampant and not Pikemans Lament make for a better set of rules for this period - perhaps it's the minor changes to second edition or that these skirmishes between rival families are more suited to a medieval style of warfare despite being set in the latter half. of the 1500's

We opened with Tillyangus - here a band of Gordon's led by Adam Gordon, brother of the Earl of Huntly, and on their way to Edinburgh were attacked by the Forbes's under Black Arthur Forbes of Balfour. 

I have a different view of the battle from the presented in Marren's Grampian Battlefields and wrote the scenario based on the points I set out in the book following a visit to the site and a review of the sources, archaeological findings and some practical considerations too! But to the game...

The Gordons came down the road from Auchindoun through Clatt and bumped into the Forbes men. Both sides tried to find an open flank but it was the Gordon hackbutters who caused the damaged to the Forbes foot and softened the way for the Gordon's to drive the Forbes out of their position and back towards their castle of Druminor. The melees were sharp and bloody and Black Arthur fell not far from the Forbes position, instead of during the historical rout, but otherwise the outcome was the same and the Gordon's won the day.

After a spot of lunch and a catch up we played my Corgarff scenario. 

After defeating Forbes again at Aberdeen, Gordon now had control of the North East and set about making sure his enemies were completely subdued. To this end he rode to lonely Corgarff castle, high up on Donside where he found Lady Forbes of Towie and her family. As is told in the traditional Ballad Edom o'Gordon, Lady Forbes did not surrender and barred the tower door against Gordon, (or his henchman Kerr). Frustrated by this, a fire was set and the tower burned down, with the unfortunate Forbes family inside. In the scenario I have Forbes of Towie riding to the rescue with horse and local foot, racing to drive of Gordon and Kerr before it is too late. 

In our game the Forbes's arrived and drove Kerr and his men off,  but Adam Gordon proved more difficult and with his horse cut up first one and then a second unit of his foes, ultimately breaking and routing them from the field. There was to be no rescue this day! It was a close game though and the had the dice gone the other way it would have been Adam Gordon routed, so the scenario was balanced. 

Two good games with John and Eric taking the Forbes's and Bill taking the Gordon's.

I have a few minor tweaks to make to the scenario's as I've written them and then the last few paragraphs to write before proofreading and off to the publisher, ready for printing in the new year. 

16thC Irish Cavalry

These figures from Crusader Minis were inhabiting a drawer and needed to be painted. So out they came last weekend and I finished them off the morning. The flag is a design I found online and dropped into ms paint to remove the white background. No need to be really neat at this scale when it gets reduced down any unevenness is lost. The three horse design are probably a bit pagan, and would bring the local priests displeasure, but it makes a fine flag for cavalry. 

My Renaissance Irish now have 3 units of Kern, 2 gallowglass and 2 each of shot and bows, plus these horse. A nice compact force which I think I will put on the table on Tuesday at the club.  We played lion rampant with the Renaissance mods from WI and once the players got their heads round the differences in initiative and styles of combat, it made for a good game.