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| Norse and Anglo-Danes deployed |
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| Opposite side |
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| Anglo-Danes |
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| Norse |
On Friday afternoon I played a solo, first game of Arrowstorm out in the shed. It was a small game of sixty points a side with the Anglo-Danes taking on the Norse. These Medieval rules by Dan Mersey are similar to his Age of Penda, Dark Age rules, starting out as Scottorum Malleus, a copy of which is included in an Appendix. They are available as a pdf on the Wargames Vault website:
https://www.wargamevault.com/product/454240/Arrowstorm-Battle-Games-in-Medieval-BritainThe army lists for both forces are the same so I gave the Norse four units of Warriors, instead of four units of Spears. Each unit has a Battle Rating which varies between 2 and 5 depending on the quality of the troops. This rating is the number of dice they roll in combat and the number of hits they can take. Special Tactics for the Anglo-Danes and Norse include Extra Attack, Onslaught, Reinforce and Shieldwall. I made an offset grid of dots in five 20cm squares to give a playing area of one metre by one metre. My 28mm forces were in eight figure units (except for skirmishers) with an 80mm frontage but the rules are very flexible with basing, figure and unit sizes.
Each side, starting with the player with the initiative, chooses four tactic tokens in a turn out of a possible twelve, and uses these to activate each unit in an area or grid. Combat is fairly brutal with hits on a 4+, although it is possible to rally casualties, if you have chosen that as a tactic. In my game it was all over fairly quickly with Anglo-Danes launching an Onslaught on their left flank only to be slaughtered there and in the centre. The Norse Huscarls survived and the Anglo-Danes were automatically routed as they had less than three units remaining.
As with any new set of rules there is plenty to ponder and get used to. Quite a bit is abstracted from the nitty gritty of medieval warfare but the focus is on a fun, fast game and the use of historical tactics to defeat your opponent. Other army lists include Anglo-Norman, Feudal English, HYW English, Feudal French, HYW French, Irish, Islemen, Early and Later Welsh.
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| Tokens on the Tactics Chart |
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| Anglo-Danes launch an Onslaught |
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| Norse Huscarls survive in the centre |
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| Anglo-Danes rout |
Looks like a good game, sounds like a historical result,will it replace Dux Bellorum for you or is it an additional game?
ReplyDeleteBest Iain
Thanks Iain it’s Medieval 11th to 14th centuries and very different to Dux Bellorum, I will have to try more games of it.
DeleteNice looking game - I think I need to do some solo gaming too - good to flesh out rules on ones' own time.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dean, yes it’s good for trying out new rules, scenarios or obscure periods nobody else seems interested in.
DeleteI have recently played a few games of Age of Penda and one of Arrowstorm. Both really good rules that give a fast game full of tactical decisions.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear Shaun. I have some Wiglaf Miniatures for Age of Penda and I’m keen to play more Arrowstorm games.
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