Update on the on-going campaign.

An update is necessary,I think,on my on-going campaign-The 2 legions plus auxiliaries and cavalry have been ordered to Brittania,a short voyage from Bononia(Boulogne) to Portus Dubris(Dover) is on the cards,however the man in charge of plotting a course is no other than Captain Morganus!!(sometimes found drunk!)

A "slight" miscalculation sees the fleet landing on Vectis Ins,or,as we know it,the Isle of Wight!!! A hostile reception awaits the Legions,who just narrowly miss being driven back into the sea-they board their ships again( a very loud "SPLASH" is heard as they dump Captain Morganus overboard) and head up the Channel towards Dover. However(there's always an However!) a storm blows up and drives the fleet past Dover and into the North Sea!! Could things get any worse??-you bet!! The storm rages for two days before a likely looking landing place is spotted-the fleet re-assembles and sails quietly into a tranquil looking bay-this is Bodotria Aest,or,as we know it, The Firth of Forth!! An old abandoned Roman Fort is near the beach,so both Legions disembark,via the beach and surrounding hills,to decide what to do! Before any decision can be made,thousands of Votadini warriors can be seen massing on the hills,looking,no doubt,for trouble-you've got to feel sorry for old Crustinuts!!!! 

The fleet sailing into Vectis Ins(Isle of Wight)

The 24th eagerly awaiting dry land and a warm welcome!

Top photo shows the "reception committee" bottom photo shows the warm welcome!!

Beach head established! now it's time to get back onto the ships,and safety(??!!)

The next battle will be the two Legions against the Votadini.

Battle of "Old Farm" 15mm

Today I took up my Romans and Barbarians again to fight this fascinating battle,as part of my on-going campaign.(which is taking more twists and turn than Trump's haircut!!) 

Top photo shows the terrain map and troops-bottom shows the battle plans-due to a very complicated scenario between Crustinuts and Scrotum,they have decared war on each other,and Crustinuts has asked the Germans(who are not to be trusted) to back him up,and Scrotum has offered the Semones their freedom if they back him up!!!

The board before any movement-Crustinuts on the left,Scrotum on the right.

They're off!!-hill A was always going to be the centre of the battle,and it certainly was!! Although hill B and the wooded gap C also saw their fair share of fighting!

Top photo shows the first clash of arms(hill A of course!) bottom shows the Germans arriving on hill B due to their faster movement rate.

Things are really "hotting up" now-the centre is about to ignite,and the Gap C is being contested!(note BLUE pom-poms behind the Legionaries-this denotes that they still have their Pila,I kept forgetting which cohort had thrown them and which hadn't!!!)

Both photo's show the "hard work" going on,on hill A,and the centre being hard fought for!

Both flanks were being won by Scrotum(mainly his auxiliaries and allies!)

Top photo shows the Germans "mixing it" with the Legionaries,this proved to be a one-sided affair,and Adolfus may have to order them to retire(it's good being retired!) bottom photo shows the gap C being won by the Semones infantry and cavalry-hurrah!!

Things are not looking good for Crustinuts-and just look at those Germans run!!

Gap C well under control of the Semones(freedom guaranteed!)-so with both flanks being held by Scrotum's troops,it looks like it's all over for Crustinuts.

The centre,and the second line of Legionaries(c/w pila) is ready to attack-only one thing for Crustinuts to do-call for a halt to hostilities!!!-both sides pull back,and negotiations begin.

Let the negotiations begin!-Whilst the talks were going on,a message from the Emperor(Scrotum's cousin) arrived reprimanding both commanders and as a punishment for tarnishing the name of Rome,they are both being sent to BRITTANIA-a most horrid posting!

The Nothern tribes and Scots are revolting,and need to be taught a lesson,and who better to do that than Crustinuts and Scrotum!(they will be facing chariots,as well as hairy Brits.)

15mm solo ACW game.

I have laid aside my Romans and Barbarians,for a while, and last night I decided I would have an American Civil War game,using my 15mm figures,and as usual it turned out to be a colourful and exciting affair!

This is the playing area-the Confederates were defending their hills/position against a Union attack-both sides were of equal strength.

Top photo shows a detail of the Confederate large hill-the object of the main Union attack. Bottom photo shows the Union in starting positions-after a preliminary bombardment from both sides,the attack was launched..........................

The Union troops are advancing along the whole line,but my "weighted" attack was on my left against the large hill,stoutly defended by infantry and guns-a hard nut to crack!!

Top photo shows the "intense" situation developing against the "Reb" large hill-bottom photo shows the Union troops getting to within the famous Rebel charge(and yell!) range.

The famous charge was met with, and matched by, Union grit and determination ,leading to a complete failure!!!-but that's not all-on the other side of the battlefield,the Confederates are also losing casualties,and unit after unit decided to go home!!!

Both photo's show the sorry state of the Confederate army,although one or two units did stay to fight to the bitter end!

One final photo showing the Union troops victorious(happy and glorious!)

These solo games are getting better and better-I tend to favour one side,make a plan,and stick to it-but of course the dice to tend to play a role as well(yeah,a big role!!) which makes the whole experience unpredictable and exciting.

I have ordered 12 Celtic/British chariots from Lancashire Games (they have an "offer" on at the moment!) to broaden my campaign,and will give a painting up-date when they arrive and I start to paint them!!

Battle of the German Camp.15mm.

My 15mm campaign is turning out to be a real life-saver during this terrible period.

I am keeping a "journal/diary of the numerous events that are taking place(political and military)  and my mind is full of ideas that will take me well into the new year! Today's battle/game is the culmination of  Roman auxiliaries taking advantage of the newly arrived German tribes-too complicated to go into in this blog, suffice to say that both sides were to blame for the following action!!

After a minor fight got out of hand,both sets of auxiliary infantry and cavalry went back to their camps,armed themselves, and set out to teach the Germans a lesson! This photo shows the auxiliaries leaving their camps and the Germans attempting to mass together to meet them!

Top photo shows the Germans massing to face the oncoming tide of Roman aux. troops.Bottom photo shows the Suebi facing the aux. from the 24th legion,whilst in the background the "other" Germans are facing the 23rd.

Both sides are approaching each other-very evenly matched-this will be bloody!!

CRUNCH!-the Suebi against the Batavians,Tungrians and Britons of the 24th Legion!-The German cavalry have flung their javelins and are "mixing it" with the Roman cavalry,they then retired(it's good being retired!) to refresh and do the same thing over and over again!

The 23rd Spanish aux. and the "other" Germans are manoeuvering into position-you can see three cohorts trying to out-flank the Germans-in the left hand corner you can see the cavalry getting stuck in!

Top photo shows the mounting casualties(red pom-poms) mainly on the Romans!-bottom photo shows the "other" flank have clashed, and the Romans are also suffering-the German cavalry on both flanks have been caught,and are fighting for their little lead lives!!!

Both these photo's show that the Germans are now taking horrendous casualties and are on the point of breaking on both flanks-can they hold on?????

NO!! this photo shows the Romans chasing the Germans from the field,and back to their camp!

One final shot from the rear of the 23rd(Spanish)  position-look at those Germans run!!

Crustinuts and Adolfus(the German commander) have just returned from hunting and are horrified at what has happened-Adolfus cries "TREACHERY" and Crustinuts knows he must show strength,so he orders DECIMATION!!!-Arsolius agrees,Scrotum does not agree,and defies his Commander! This can only mean one thing-Civil War in the heart of Gaul!!!

Scrotum marches his Legion away to look for a suitable camping site,and Crustinuts and Arsolius make their plan to bring this upstart back into line-watch this space!!

Welcome reinforcements 15mm.

My second (24th) Legion has been 5 cohorts of Auxiliary infantry short-this has been rectified by ordering and painting some delightful German spearmen,armed in traditional manner,but employed by Rome.

 All 48 figures being painted on a factory-line basis-quite a chore,but worth it in the end!

Figures are from Warrior Miniatures,I only needed 40 figs. but they come in packs of 12,so had 8 spare figs.which are now the personal bodyguard of "Scrotum"

Two shots of finished figures on their movement bases,waiting to be flocked.

Top photo shows the whole of the Auxilia Brittanica,which now has the new recruits from Batavia and Tungria(Rhine Delta) in its ranks.

Scrotum's 23rd Legion c/w auxiliaries and cavalry-a formidable sight!

Now that I have two full Legions,with Auxiliaries,cavalry,archers and ballista,I think I will give it a rest,and call a halt to my painting and concentrate on the Campaign(oh yeah???)

The German tribes are posing as "friends of Rome" to Crustinuts,saying that they wiped out the Parisii because they had heard that they were going to amalgamate with the Semones against the Legions!!-as these new recruits are German too,I hope that there will be no friction between them and the German tribes,because this could cause trouble!!!!!