AAR Picts Vs Late Romans

It's been three months since my last post and 6 weeks since this game, but better late than never!

Back in early May I ran a game using To The Strongest (TtS) and my Pictish and late Rom an armies.  The scenario was the Broken Ground scenario from this classic with the Picts defending and the Romans attacking.  The Picts held a line of hills and the Romans needed to capture the two passes between the hills, best accomplished by defeating the Pict army.

Can't recall all of what happened, but I do know that.

• It was a close game, with both sides down to their last victory medal and the Romans eking it out after both sides missed opportunities for the kill.
• Stacy and Sylvain took the Late Romans, Curt and I led the Picts.
• The Pictish combination of Spears, skirmishers and mounted troops make for an interesting change from the bog standard war band barbarian hordes.
• We'd played a lot of WFB type armies which don't field many light troops so it was a bit of a learning process.  The one hit units were a challenge to face and field.
• Sylvain tried his usual wide flanking move with cavalry on their right flank (Pictish left flank in the photos), which we managed to mostly counter since he opened a gap from his centre.

The Pict centre

Our camp.  The Pictish stone came from a local "If it's not Scottish it's Craaap" shop. 

Roman flanking attempt finds itself flanked. 

A wider view of the same situation

View from the Pictish right.

First class pointing from Stacy.

The centres close.

Infantry scrum!

Typically confused state late in the day!

I take solace for our loss with the Pictish Warhound.

AHPC XIV Post 12 Pict Chariots and The Library Cart (85 points)

 Second post this week and it includes figures that I've been working on intermittently since December, a unit of 2 Pict chariots.  These are Crusader figures although the chariots themselves are 4Ground mdf kits.

The rider in red is comes from the Irish Warriors pack, note the base under his feet.

Back last summer NorthStar had a sale on these and I picked up 4 blister packs of Celtic chariots.  Although clearly modeled for Caesar's Gallic Wars or the Claudian invasion of Britain, I figured a Celtic chariot is a Celtic chariot.  I tried to stick handle around most of the anachronism with paint work (taking away trousers and adding beards) and subbed in an Irish warrior in one case.  I also made a lot of mistakes early on and got myself tied in knots a couple of times.  Finally after a couple of rebuilds and being put aside for other pieces a number of times, I've got these completed.

  

Next up is a solitary Bad Squiddo figure of Noor Inayat Khan to let me take Sarah's Library Cart to the Biography Section.  Khan was an SOE operative in France during the Second World War who was best known as a radio operator.  She was a very brave woman who deserved a much better fate than being betrayed, tortured and executed.  She would make a fine Biography topic herself, but she happened to be the female figure that I had ready on the day. 

I have acquired a number of Bad Squiddos Women of WW2 range.  I don't plan on doing any gaming with Landgirls, Lumberjills or Spies.  I just like the figures and want to support Annie for developing the range.   They are universally well researched, sculpted and posed and have bags of character.  they are also a joy to paint.  IN this case Door's "briefcase" holds her radio equipment.

I kept the colour scheme to follow the example on the Bad Squiddo web store, because I know that they've done the research.  I am pretty happy with the folds in her outfit but no sure about the skin tones.

Photographic evidence of me taking the Library Cart.

I believe that these chariots don't count as vehicles (I least my Pict general's didn't last year).  The point tally goes like this

• 4 horses and 4 chariot crew in 28mm @ 5 pts/each =40 + chariots = 60
• I female spy in 28mm =5
• Library Cart bonus =20
• Total 65 85

My challenge map now looks like this...

AHPC XIV Post 11 Late Roman Archers and Epic Halberdiers [Gift Shop] (120 points)

 This is the first post from me this week, a unit of 12 formed archers for my Late Romans.  My wife flew off to Phoenix for the week yesterday and I've been left to deal with a blizzard with up to 40cm of snow expected.  So I am left at home with lousy weather, the Briar (national curling championship) on TV and some free time...

Shields are made up, based on pictures in the Notitia Dignitatum

This was not a planned unit, it just kind of happened.  I bought a pack of Victrix Late Roman Archers and Slingers over the summer mostly for the slingers, but also thinking that I could use the bow arms for Pict archers.  It turned out that the 2/3 of the figures are archers with composite bows that look out of place in the hands of Picts.  So there were 24 archers and I felt I needed to do something with them...

These are nice figures and there are lots of variant arms and heads.  I like the variety of loading, shooting and admiring one's last shot poses.  I included an officer and a musician who is likely over armoured but was fun to paint.   

My previous Roman archer units had been light infantry and I'd filled my quota under the TtS army lists, hence the formed bowmen unit.  I've given them the title Sagittarii Nerviorum. There are three units listed as Nerviorum under the Dux Britanniarum in the Notitia Dignitatum.  The name comes from the Nervii, a Belgic tribe from Northern Gaul as I continue to try and butter up my Belgic minion.  Other Nervii units served in Northern Gaul, Spain and even as an elite Auxiliary Palatina unit in the Eastern Empire.

The officer and musician come from the Armoured Infantry kit.

No Challenge bonus points, but I will claim the points on the Legions of the Empire Side Duel.

Also counting for the Legions of the Empire Side Duel are these Epic Empire halberdiers.  I am also going claim the the "Gift Shop" bonus points because Curt told me I could when I Voluntold me to paint these.

Curt has been running a Old World themed TtS! Campaign using these Epic scale figures and I've been running the Empire side.  More like the Sacrificial Offering giving my skill at these games.  One thing that I've finally figured out is that the bog standard grunts like these Halberdiers and pretty darn useful (and cheap to boot). 

Curt has a sizeable Empire contingent which looks lovely in a mostly blue and yellow livery.  To mix things up I went for a Crimson and White livery, which I believe means that these lad don't follow any of the Official liveries.  I will note that I've left their based un terraformed as Curt will want to base them according to his own system.

I had more fun painting these than I thought I would once I figured out a system.  By system I mean going with a wash technique and not worrying about the small details.  The flag and a couple of shields are free handed to kinda look like Imperial Eagles if you squint hard and have had enough wine.

Points wise I make it

• 12 archers in 28mm @5 pts each =60
• 36 halberdiers in 10mm @ 1 pt each = 36
• Giftshop bonus =20
• Total 116 points.

This takes me over my 500 point Challenge Target.

Finally since Martijn's been suggesting books, I have a book suggestion for him Buried by Alice Roberts.  it's a survey of archeology over the first 1000 years CE, looking at a number of specific burial sites.  She's got two others in the series dealing with the BCE and medieval eras (just out now in Canada).  The first two have some great history about the archeology in Britain and challenge a lot of ideas.

AHPC XIV Post 10 With View Halloo Pursue the Gnu (70 Points)

 Second post from me today.  First up is a straightforward points grab for the nature shelves in the form of a 28mm Gnu (ok it's a wildebeest but Gnus are way more fun) from Ray Partha. This figure has been kicking around my spares bin for 20+ years and was picked up for a potential Southern African colonial project.

I think this needs a Wild Kingdom vignette with Marlin Perkins safely in the Landrover while his sacrificial offering assistant attempts to hog tie the gnu.  Sadly this was beyond my resources.

While others may look to use the Gnu as the basis for cheap puns, I instead will use it to reference a much higher art form, that of Poetry.  I present Good Gnu (A Vignette in Verse) by P.G Wodehouse.   This poem comes from the story Unpleasantness at Bludleigh Court in which Mr Mulliner's nice Charlotte (an animal loving poet) comes under a blood lust spell while visiting family friends.  She is most put out when Animal-Lovers' Gazette rejects this poem as seen at 18:00 of this clip Wodehouse Playhouse.

When cares attack and life seems black,

How sweet it is to pot a yak,

      Or puncture hares and grizzly bears,

        And others I could mention;

But in my Animals "Who's Who"

No name stands higher than the Gnu;

      And each new gnu that comes in view

        Receives my prompt attention.

 

When Afric's sun is sinking low,

And shadows wander to and fro,

      And everywhere there's in the air

        A hush that's deep and solemn;

Then is the time good men and true

With View Halloo pursue the gnu;

      (The safest spot to put your shot

        is through the spinal column).

 

To take the creature by surprise

We must adopt some rude disguise,

      Although deceit is never sweet,

        And falsehoods don't attract us;

So, as with gun in hand you wait,

Remember to impersonate

      A tuft of grass, a mountain-pass,

        A kopje or a cactus.

 

A brief suspense, and then at last

The waiting's o'er, the vigil past;

      A careful aim. A spurt of flame.

        It's done. You've pulled the trigger,

And one more gnu, so fair and frail,

Has handed in its dinner-pail;

      (The females all are rather small,

        The males are somewhat bigger).

In other gnus, I have another unit of 4 Pict Light Cavalry.  These are 28mm figures kit bashed from three Gripping Beast plastic kits. They are pretty much the same as the last two units that I have previously posted.

Note to self - I need to fix the labels which got lifted up during posing.

I think it's 5 points for the Gnu, 10 each for the cavalry and 20 for the Nature topic for a total of 65 points.

With two rooms ticked off today, my updated may looks like this.

AHPC XIV Post 8 Pict Light Cavalry

I am catching up on some posts from the last two weeks.  February is now over and the end of term is in sight.

Another small post from me as I crawl towards my goal.  It's February, we've had mostly sucky weather recently (grey and sloppy underfoot), I've got a heavy teaching load and a ton of February blahs....   

I've got another unit of 4 Pict Light Cavalry based for my To The Strongest Late Roman Britain project. Figures are mostly a mix of two Gripping Beast plastic kits,  Late Roman Light Cavalry and Dark age Cavalry.  Heads, shields and weapons are from the GB Pict infantry kit and the rolled cloaks came from a Victrix Roman infantry kit.

These were in the queue since last May.  After priming I found that I'd made the Proverbial Porcine Posterior on assembly (I like alliteration a lot!).  Eventually I filled the most glaring errors and decided to ignore the rest.  They look ok when one applies the two foot rule.

Four cavalry in 28mm is 40 points with no bonus rooms.

  

Painting Challange Post 2 Pict Light Cavalry

 For the History section I've got a unit of four Pict Light Cavalry in 28mm, using Gripping Beast plastics.

These are based for my Late Roman Britain project using the To The Strongest ruleset.  There was some whinging from the Snowlord during a recent game that the Picts needed to up their mounted arm and I will endeavour to do this over the Challenge.  

The shields are freehanded.  Way faster, easier and more enjoyable that transfers.

Unlike a lot of Challenge painters I really like painting horses.  I can't be arsed to use oils, so use layers of acrylics with washes.

Lock up your sheep and your daughters!

These use bits from three Gripping Beast box sets.  The horses and torsos are from the Light Cavalry and Dark Age Cavalry sets, while the heads, shields and weapons come from the Pict Warrior sets.  These GB kits are good value for money, and you can mix and match quite easily,  

Four cavalry in 28mm is 40 points plus the History bonus gets me 60 points, and I'm heading out of Section 1 on the ground floor and up the stairs to Section 2.

Late Roman AAR Reinforcements on The Table

Yes this makes too AARs in the space of a week and a half.  This week Curt's been hosting Phil H, a British gamer who's been based in the US for a few years and is now on his way back to Blighty.  Phil wanted to get as many games in as possible, so we've been taking turns to run games.  This Tuesday was my turn and I ran a To the Strongest game featuring my Late Romans vs Barbarian Conspiracy Armies.

I went for a favourite scenario from this well thumbed chestnut from the 1980s

I've played this one many times with many rules and in many eras from Hoplites to Desert Rats.

The Romans had a division isolated commanded by Phil on the ridge line which was rough ground, and I had the bulk of their forces coming from the town.  The Barbarians were led by Curt and Stacy and had a 4:3 overall advantage in points and needed to capture the ridge line.  

It can be a nail biter as the race to get to the ridge first heats up.  The activation system in TtS added to the tension as units (or divisions for that matter) might move one move or two or maybe not move at all.   Early on it looked like the Roman reinforcements had the jump on the Barbarians with a couple of good turns worth of activations.  Meanwhile Phils' defenders had some good rounds of missile fire, disordering Stacy's Irish hordes.  

Stacy's Irish advance on the ridge,

My reinforcements exit the town and hasten for the ridge.

My cavalry looks to be closing the gap fast enough to turn the tide.

However, as is often the case the tides of battle swing from one side's favour to the other and Curt and Stacy started to even out the activation luck.  Stacy did well to push on with all of his Irish to wear down the defenders and his Picts and  Curt 's Attacotti advanced swiftly to threaten the reinforements.

The Picts advance to counter the Roman cavalry.  This was the cavalry's furthest advance as they need to evade back several times.  Note the Pict archers which Stacy cleverly placed in his back rank to fire over the spearmint, and then forgot about.

Meanwhile there's a scrum on the hill.  Phil's auxiliaries had a couple of good turns helped by good saving scores.  But eventually, hits had to strike home.

Roman Cavalry vs Attaccati fanatics,  That's Phil in the background.

By this time the defenders on the hill were broken and the cavalry reinforcements were pulling back.

Around this time Phil and I had a turn of Epic activation fails (significantly right after Stacy left for the evening).  We managed to do enough to get us out of position and not enough to get ourselves re-positioned.

The foot units from the fort did make it up onto the ridge and managed to push bask a unit of Picts, but it was too little too late.   

TtS let us play a game with reasonable sized armies and a fair bit of manoeuvre and play it out to a conclusion in the space of a school night evening.  Plus it seems to give a reasonable result while being fun and fast to play.  I was worried that the random activation system might throw the balance of timing off, but in the end it worked well and added to the drama and tension.