Gardenwargaming - Playclicks
English forums => Battles with Playmobil => Topic started by: AndrewL on December 18, 2010, 04:52:45 PM
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Dear All,
What with one thing and another, I've not been very active here for many months, and indeed I haven't had anywhere near the time I would have like for things Playmobil-related. But several months ago, I did manage to fight another battle with my armies of knights, and now I've finally gotten around to sharing the pictures. As before, this is a made-up battle, fought using my own rules (and yes, I will try to write them down eventually!).
The backstory [for which I have shamelessly plundered various bits of English history]: in a kingdom neighbouring the country in which my last battle took place (https://gardenwargaming.playclicks.com/forum/index.php?topic=1395.0), political tensions have escalated to the point of civil war. Old King Henry died slightly more than a year ago, leaving his four-year-old grandson Michael as his only (legitimate) heir. The infant king's father (also called Michael) died two years previously when his ship was lost in a storm. Old King Henry had been going senile even before the death of the elder Michael, and the loss of his son pushed the old king further into a despairing melancholy. After the death of the elder Michael, his widow, Alys, was not able to keep the great peers of the realm from taking more and more power into their own hands. The governance of the kingdom has now largely fallen into the control of the mightiest lords, and the 'king's justice' is now the king's only in name.
The peers of the realm have always been rivals, and the lack of a firm royal grip has meant that their rivalries have spun out of control. Many of the leading nobles have divided into two factions, led by the two most powerful and influential dukes (both of whom have potential -- if distant -- claims to the throne themselves): Alan d'Acard, Duke of Beaumont, and Godfrey fitzWaleran, Duke of Malterre. The two dukes and their factions are now in open conflict. The prize, of course, is control of the child-king Michael, the widowed queen Alys, and the position of sole regent until young Michael comes of age. But who knows if Michael would live long enough if either duke were to take power...
Alan and Godfrey have each assembled armies of their adherents, and have marched along the Great North Road, Alan from the south, Godfrey from the north. Both men are confident, and each seeks to knock out the other in a single blow. Their armies now confront each other along the great road, near the village of Ramspark.
The first photo shows an overview of the field, looking east: you can see the tree- and fence-lined road running north-south, with Alan's army on the right and Godfrey's on the left.
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The next photos show the road and the open fields to the west, looking towards Malterre's lines.
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And here is Alan, the Duke of Beaumont, looking quite splendid in his gold-washed armour, surrounded by his household knights. The second pic is of Beaumont's own troops.
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Here we have Count Chrodegang d'Alcarville, one of Alan's most powerful supporters, and his magenta-clad, bull-badged longbowmen and swordsmen. The next photo shows more of Alan's troops: closet to the camera is Orderic of Woodbridge (the old white unicorn on yellow & black), then the mercenary captain Hubert of Millburg and his crossbowmen [whom you may remember for the 'pivotal' role they played in my last battle], and furthest off, Picot of Flittlowe (white cross and fleur-de-lys on blue).
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And as the Duke of Beaumont's army advances, more of his followers come into view, including Erchengar, baron of Aldcester (the Wolf Clan) and Payne de Saint Ivry (the blue and white quartered with gold fleur-de-lys special knights). [I'll point out the Beaumont's remaining supporters as we go along.] Alan has 204 men in total.
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And here is Alan's opponent: Godfrey fitzWaleran, Duke of Malterre, bearing the blue,yellow and silver crowned lion (Godfrey himself has the yellow shield) and his sizable body of longbowmen, swordsmen and pikemen.
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And here two shots of Godfrey's army in full array: he has a substantial force of horsemen, interspersed with missile troops and backed up with pikemen.
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Here is an overview shot of Beaumont's army as they advance, and a detail shot of Beaumont's own troops.
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Malterre's army moves south toward the enemy... Godfrey, with 236 men, outnumbers his rival.
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An overview of the two armies as they approach each other, and then a view looking north, up the road toward Malterre's oncoming forces.
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And a look down the road from Malterre's side toward the Duke of Beaumont's lines.
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In the centre and on his left, Beaumont's and Count Chrodegang's longbowmen set themselves and loose the first volley of arrows...
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The arrows fall among the oncoming horsemen and crossbowmen, striking down some of the knights of Berengar de Ville St Jean (blue and yellow quarters) and one of Eduard de L'Isle's men (the blue, red and white unicorn). One of the crossbowmen from the city of Granpont (green, purple and yellow) is also hit. [Granpont has long profited from the patronage of the Malterre dukes, and so the city elders have sent a force of crossbowmen under their captain Thierry to support Godfrey.]
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On Beaumont's right, the black-and-forest-green-clad mercenary crossbowmen under Hubert let fly a volley of bolts...
And mercenary longbowmen on Malterre's left, led by John of Priestbury (wearing brown and yellow) reply with a volley of their own.
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The knights of Ville St Jean, a body of Templars under their marshal Thurold of St Claire, and crossbowmen under Fulcher du Vast, sheriff of Middleport (in green, yellow and blue) advance on Malterre's right. Chrodegang's longbowmen facing them shoot another volley of arrows before his swordsmen form a shield-wall to hold off the oncoming charge. The sheriff of Middleport is struck down by one of the arrows, but his men advance, undeterred.
The crossbowmen from Middleport and Granpont fire a largely ineffective volley of bolts, and then the first wave of Malterre's cavalry forces go in...
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The first wave goes in...
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Another supporter of Duke Godfrey, Oliver de Granville (the crimson 'Easter Egg' knights) charges down the great road, then veers off toward Hubert's crossbowmen (instead of charging straight into the waiting line of Orderic of Woodbridge's billmen).
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Knights under Gunfrid de Port (the silver labrys on black and crimson) and knights of the Teutonic order -- led by their vice-marshal Guthmund of Doddendorf -- charge forward on Malterre's left. You can see that some of Hubert's crossbowmen have fallen under the showers of arrows from Priestbury's longbows.
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On the western side, Count Chrodegang's shield-wall holds against the first charge, and the count's men manage to inflict some further casualties among the knights of Ville de St Jean.
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In the centre, Alan of Beaumont's own halberdiers and billmen prepare to receive the oncoming charge of Eduard de L'Isle's unicorn knights...
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And here a picture of Godfrey's of Malterre's view as his first attack goes in, followed by Alan of Beaumont's view from the opposite direction.
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And here the cavalry charge in the centre hits Beaumont's lines...
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On Alan of Beaumont's right, his mercenary crossbowmen manage to hit Gunfrid de Port, but his men, followed by the Teutonic knights, continue their charge towards Hubert's crossbows and the billmen of Picot of Flittlowe.
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The charge on Godfrey's left now hits the opposing line.
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John of Priestbury's longbowmen have suffered in the exchange of volley's with Hubert's crossbowmen, but they are still a force to be reckoned with.
And here a view of the attack on Malterre's left wing, taken from behind the mercenary pikemen under Bartolomeo del Avanti, who are advancing to give support.
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On Duke Godfrey's right wing, a second wave of knights and Templars crash against Chrodegang's shield-wall...
And behind the knights of Ville de St Jean, the men of Asgot de Houghtonville (the green Dragonland clan) wait for their chance to strike...
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In the centre, Duke Alan's own men stand firm against the first charge, and Eduard, baron de L'Isle (with the red and blue plumes on his unicorn crest) is killed by the thrust of a halberd-point along with some of his knights.
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On Alan of Beaumont's right wing, Erchengar of Aldcester's wolf-troops advance to hold the line with Picot's blue-and-white billmen on the far right. Hubert's crossbowmen and pavisiers pull back, lest they be too-easily cut down by the opposing horsemen.
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Having been repulsed in the first instance, de L'Isle's unicorn knights pull back, to let the knights of Reginald de Fer (red and yellow griffin on black) and Richard of Stratton St Jean (sword impaling blue and yellow quarters) have their chance. [As you might guess from the similar blazons, Richard is a cousin of Berengar de Ville St Jean.]
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Malterre's attack on Chrodegang's magenta-clad swordsmen is making little headway...
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Following the initial clash, troops on both sides now redeploy: John of Priestbury's longbowmen move to take up a position straddling the great road, and the green dragon horsemen of Asgot Houghtonville wheel about to move to the centre of the battle -- there is no space among the Templars and knight of Ville St Jean for them to reach Chrodegang's shield-wall.
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Alan of Beaumont's longbowmen move to the flank of their billmen, perhaps hoping to be able to loose another volley of arrows into another of Malterre's cavalry charges.
And Beaumont's mercenary crossbowmen under Hubert take up a position across the road, finding themselves again opposite Priestbury's longbows.
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There is now hard fighting to the east of the great road, and the horsemen of Siward, lord of Stanbricg (yellow lion on red & blue) charge forward to shore up the Beaumont right wing, killing horses out from underneath the knights of Gunfrid de Port. No thought here of capturing horses -- men on both sides will take any advantage they can get...
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The polearm men of Picot of Flittlowe and Orderic of Woodbridge hold the line against Malterre's horsemen...
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Having failed to break the Duke of Beaumont's line with the first onslaught, Malterre's cavalry pull back to regroup...
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This will give Malterre's own longbows (and the crossbowmen from Middleport and Granpont) a chance to shoot again without risking hitting their own men in the back!
Meanwhile, Godfrey's swordsmen find a gate in the fence along the west side of the great road and begin to march over to support Godfrey's left wing.
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Crossbow bolts and cloth-yard shafts fly up and down the great road...
And Orderic of Woodbridge's billmen now advance to attack the mercenary pikemen under Bartolomeo del Avanti.
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There is heavy fighting to the east of the great road, a wing of the battle that neither duke initially thought would much matter.
The remaining knights of Gunfrid de Port, now all on foot, are under heavy pressure from Siward of Stanbricg's horsemen.
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[And now the chronicler needs to go and make dinner. But worry not, he will return to the tale soon enough... ;)]
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[And now the account resumes... Unfortunately, I think I missed taking photos after one or two turns in the battle, so the narrative jumps here a bit.]
This is an overview shot of the battle as things resume. Godfrey of Malterre's longbowmen in the centre have shot a wild volley of arrows, doing little damage, but his crossbowmen have had better aim. On Malterre's right, the Templars have re-formed and charged again, and Chrodegang d'Alcarville's line is no longer so firm. Asgot Houghtonville's horsemen have charged forward together with Reginald de Fer and Richard of Stratton St Jean, supported by one battalion of Malterre's own pikemen, trying to pin down Alan of Beaumont's archers, but they have been met in the centre by a counter-charge of Payne de St Ivry and some of Beaumont's own household knights. Beaumont's billmen and halberdiers have dropped back, trying to keep a compact formation. Just to the left of the top centre of the photo, Gilbert fitzOsbern (black eagle on red) holds in reserve for the Duke of Beaumont. But Godfrey of Malterre still has his own household knights and another battalion of pikemen.
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Here some more detailed shots of the Templars charging again, this time with infantry belonging to Eustace fitzGiffard, Earl of Newbridge (red griffin with green & yellow lozenges) moving up in support. The repeated assaults are beginning to wear down Chrodegang's men.
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A fierce clash of cavalry has now ensued in the centre of the line, with men and horses of both sides swirling around in a wild melee.
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...
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Here are some of Godfrey's pikemen, pushing forward to support the cavalry...
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Along the great road, John of Priestbury's longbowmen unleash a cloud of arrows...
devastating Hubert and his crossbowmen; Hubert himself is killed, and half of his remaining men are struck down.
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To the east of the road (Godfrey's left flank, Alan's right), both sides are now fully engaged, but neither seems to be able to get the upper hand.
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As casualties mount on both sides, Duke Godfrey's own swordsmen dash forward to attack Orderic of Woodbridge and his men, whose ranks are now quite thinned.
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On the other wing, the men of Rainward fitzMauger, sheriff of Oakford (red cross and silver lozenge on green) move forward to support Chrodegang's increasingly hard-pressed swordsmen. Thinking they were getting the upper hand, this sudden counter-charge halts marshal Thurold's Templars and throws them into momentary confusion.
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And in the centre, following a close-range volley of arrows from some of Chrodegang's archers, the Beaumont billmen and swordsmen charge forward to engage Godfrey's pikemen, striking down the pikemen's banner-bearer and throwing them into confusion.
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As the cavalry battle in the centre continues to churn, Hubert of Millburg's remaining crossbowmen turn tail and run -- with their captain and banner-bearer both cut down by arrows, and nothing but more arrows in the offing, they have no stomach left for the fight.
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To the east of the great road, the battle now stretches in a long and bloody line. Oliver de Granville and all of his knights have fallen at the hands of Beaumont's supporters. At the far edge, Siward's horsemen have nearly flanked vice-marshal Guthmund's Teutonic knights, with Siward himself threatening the Teutonic banner.
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Erchengar moves his wolf-blazoned knights forward to support his infantry, and Gilbert fitzOsbern (the fat one in the sallet) waits for the right moment to strike in support of Duke Alan.
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Seeing their men momentarily falter, Duke Godfrey and marshal Thurold have to urge their men to keep heart and continue to press forward.
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Emboldened by their leaders' exhortations, the Duke of Malterre's men press forward, and the knights of Ville St Jean and de L'Isle charge again as well.
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The Beaumont infantry are now hard-pressed, and to their left, Chrodegang's division is now threatened by the advance of the griffin-badged footmen of the Earl of Newbridge.
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On the other wing, the mercenary captain Bartolomeo has his pikemen close ranks, trying to mitigate the losses his company has suffered. And in short succession, the Teutonic knights' vice-marshal and banner-bearer are struck down by Siward of Stanbricg's and his men, only for Siward himself to be felled a moment later
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The Teutonic knights are nearly overwhelmed..
But Malterre's swordsmen have nearly wiped out the men of Woodbridge, including lord Orderic himself!
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The rival dukes catch sight of each other across the wild melee...
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Two overhead shots of the battle at its height...
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Under the pressure of repeated cavalry charges and then the attack of the Earl of Newbridge's infantry, Chrodegang's division begins to crumble and his men turn to flee...
On the other wing, Picot of Flittlowe's men also lose heart and seek to escape the carnage...
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Now Alan of Beaumont has to try to rally his forces, as confusion spreads through his line like wildfire...
But panic spreads through Malterre's lines as well, and some of his men begin to flee...
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Marshal Thurold of the Templars has been struck down, and (despite the Rule forbidding it) his remaining men turn to run, as do the knights of the late Eduard de L'Isle.
Berengar de Ville St Jean tries to rally his men...
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The battle is becoming increasingly chaotic...
And now Erchengar and his knights pounce on Godfrey of Malterre's unsuspecting swordsmen.
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Chrodegang tries to rally his men, but to no avail. He chooses to flee with his men, rather than stay and likely die. Better to live to fight another day...
But while the magenta-clad men run, the sheriff of Oakford's men push forward, advancing their green and crimson banner against the fleeing Templars and the Earl of Newbridge's griffin.
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Asgot de Houghtonville's 'green dragons' have panicked, leaving Payne de St Ivry's knights bearing the quarters-and-lily to turn on Godfrey's pikemen. Sensing his chance, Gilbert fitzOsbern throws his men into the fray as well.
Now it is Malterre's pikemen who are increasingly beleaguered by Duke Alan's billmen.
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Picot manages to rally his men and re-form them, but on the opposite side, captain Bartolomeo himself is attacked while trying to stop his men from fleeing.
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Erchengar's wolf-badged knights are wreaking havoc among Malterre's swordsmen...
Adding to the heaps of men and horses already strewn across the field.
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The lines of battle in the centre of the field have nearly disintegrated...
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The chaos of battle...
Note in the second shot Godfrey of Malterre near the top-left centre, frantically trying to regain control of his troops.
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But the contagion of fear has now spread throughout Godfrey's army, and mass flight begins...
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Mercenary captain Bartolomeo succeeds in bringing his pikemen back under control, so they can withdraw rather than run.
And the crossbowmen of Middleport, despite losing their sheriff early in the battle, manage to maintain their discipline and cohesion in the rout.
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And while the Earl of Newbridge's men fall back in good order...
Godfrey's attempts to re-establish any control of what is now a mob bent on nothing but escape fail utterly.
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Some of the duke of Beaumont's men make a half-hearted effort to harry their fleeing opponents, but given how many men they have lost, they are in no shape for pursuit.
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The battle now won, Duke Alan and his supporters ride to meet each other.
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The process of picking up the pieces begins...
And there are a lot of pieces to pick up.
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Camp followers and local civilians come to tend the wounded of both sides, and wounded knights still lying on the field are taken into custody. Whether for ransom or revenge remains to be seen...
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Horses that ran loose having lost their riders are brought back under control. They will fetch a tidy price for someone...
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Some civilians come to help tend to the wounded and start the grim task of gathering the dead for burial...
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But others are interested only in plunder, and have no qualms finishing off wounded men who try to resist.
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Beaumont's men gather their opponents' banners as trophies...
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Of the men of Woodbridge, only their banner-bearer can still walk, and even he carries wounds. His lord lies on the field, stricken but still alive.
Many others are not so lucky.
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With little quarter asked or given, casualties were high...
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And despite the cost in blood and lives, nothing has been decided. Duke Alan holds the field, and Godfrey of Malterre's army has fled. But Alan has himself lost many men, and his strongest ally Count Chrodegang deserted the field. Though dispersed, Malterre's forces are far from destroyed. Rather than the single, decisive blow for which both dukes -- indeed, the whole kingdom -- had hoped, this battle looks to be only the first in what could be a long civil war.
Finis.
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Phew. That was just as 'epic' as the last one.
For those of you interested in statistics, the duke of Beaumont's forces lost 78 men killed or seriously wounded, not including those men who fled the field.
The duke of Malterre's army had 111 men killed or seriously wounded, and only about a quarter of his army managed to leave the field in good order. Thurold of St Claire (Templar marshal), Eduard de L'Isle and Reginald de Fer were all killed. Richard of Stratton St Jean, Guthmund of Doddendorf (vice-marshal of the Teutonic knights), Gunfrid de Port, Fulcher, sheriff of Middleport, and Oliver de Granville were all wounded and captured on the field. The Teutonic knights and the affinities of Reginald, Richard, Gunfrid and Oliver were wiped out. Yikes.
Hope you like this one.
Now I need to go to bed...
Cheers,
AndrewL
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That was a splendid, exciting, epic battle, Andrew! :) I enjoyed it just as much, if not more, than your most excellent last one. Thank you for photographing and narrating it for us. I really like the aftermath with the clergy and civilians on the field. The entire event looks spectacular and is very historically accurate. Will the two dukes meet again?
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That was a splendid, exciting, epic battle, Andrew! :) I enjoyed it just as much, if not more, than your most excellent last one. Thank you for photographing and narrating it for us. I really like the aftermath with the clergy and civilians on the field. The entire event looks spectacular and is very historically accurate. Will the two dukes meet again?
Hi Justindo,
Many thanks -- glad you enjoyed it ;)
Will they meet again? Hmmm... Perhaps eventually, but in the near future it seems unlikely.
The room where I fought this last battle has had to be reorganised, giving rather less floor space on which to deploy lots of troops. And the reason for that reorganisation is that my wife and I are expecting a baby in February :o ;D, so I doubt I'm going to have a great deal of spare time to be wargaming with Playmobil!
Cheers,
AndrewL
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Epic indeed! :o :o :o
That was a magnificent story Andrew! ;D
I thought Duke Alan was sure to have lost when there were mass routs on both wings of his army...
He was lucky there were several more important routs on his enemies' side. :)
Congratz on your baby Andrew. :)
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Congratulations, Andrew! :)
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Epic indeed! :o :o :o
That was a magnificent story Andrew! ;D
I thought Duke Alan was sure to have lost when there were mass routs on both wings of his army...
He was lucky there were several more important routs on his enemies' side. :)
Congratz on your baby Andrew. :)
Hi WoT,
Many thanks -- glad you liked it ;D
At the height of the battle, both armies wound up having to check morale -- Alan of Beaumont's rolls of the dice were luckier than Godfrey of Malterre's! Truth be told, I wasn't entirely happy with the verisimilitude: it seemed slightly incongruous that an army (Malterre's) that had just succeeded in driving off substantial portions of the opposing side (Beaumont's) would then themselves start to panic and run. But I guess if Beaumont's remaining forces did manage to hold firm and even counter-attack, that could cause Malterre's men to have second thoughts. And maybe Malterre's men didn't really have their hearts in it to begin with.
Anyway, confusion and defeat being snatched from the jaws of victory were far from uneard-of on medieval battlefields!
And thank you very much for your good wishes on the baby -- much appreciated ;).
Cheers,
AndrewL
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Congratulations, Andrew! :)
Cheers!
Still feeling a mix of :o and ;D, but lots more of the ;D.
AndrewL
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Epic indeed!
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Your medievel battles are amazing and i have seen every pic in them!
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Andrew
I meant to say this quite some time ago:
What a totally Awesome epic you created there! ;D
Wow! You have quite a collection of Playmobil guys there.
Did you every get around to posting your rules for this battle?
I am also an avid Wargamer. But I have really come to like pushing Playmobil guys around a table.
David D.
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Hi David,
Many thanks!
I'm afraid I haven't posted the rules, no :(.
In my own defense, I plead moving house (twice -- one time that fell through, one time that worked), lots of pressure at work (not least having the possibility of my wife and I both losing ours jobs), and a now seven-month-old baby. Time for doing anything Playmobil related has been pretty much non-existant for the past several months.
But things are calming down (slightly), so I will try to find some time in the next couple of months. Sorry I can't say anything more definite than that...
Cheers,
AndrewL
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Good defense! :o
I hope everything turns out well! :-\
I'll be praying for you. :)
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Andrew
Not a problem! I feel your pain, as they say...
LIFE......It Happens![/b]
My wife and I are both in the Information Technology field so I know what you are going through.
I just started a new job last year, after working at my last job for 20 years.
That is why I keep a low profile and do not post much. Someday I will even have an Avatar! :P
Glad to hear you have a little one! That means, in a few years you will have someone to wargame against! :D
Hang in there, and all the best!
Davd D