FK&P AAR: Plumleigh Common Again
/ Robert AveryAfter a drought of about a month, I managed to play four wargames yesterday (huzzah!) and, incredibly, managed to win them all (huzzah again!).
That was a game of To The Strongest; two games of For King & Parliament; and a game of Art de la Guerre, which I hadn’t actually played before.
There will be After Action Reports for all of them in due course but, for the moment, here’s a catch up report featuring FK&P and another run through of the Plumleigh Common scenario from my forthcoming scenario book.
Dawn over Plumleigh Common
This time I’m playing the Royalists, starting the game on the left. Most of my troop are outside Norchester’s city walls, aiming to disrupt the enemy’s siegeworks; but I have some artillery and a couple of battalia lining the walls (bottom left) ready to punish any Parliamentarians who stray too close.
Going for the Guns
As the cavalry on both sides moved forward, I decided to try something different: rather than accept the straight-up-fight challenge, I decided to slip one of my mounted regiments round the side and go for his siege guns, behind the works.
Same Moment, Different Viewpoint
This move actually came to nothing, but seemed to distract my opponent and knock him off balance.
Tempting the Enemy Horse Forward
I was hoping to take out the enemy horse that overlapped mine with a combination of artillery and musket fire.
Meanwhile...
on the other side of the battlefield, my horsemen had defeated their enemy but pursued the surviving enemy right to the edge of the table.
Fortunately, one of my mounted regiments would return.
Threatening the Flank
And their success (the horse in the previous picture) meant that I could use the other regiments in the brigade to threaten the flanks of the Parliamentarian infantry attacking my men lining the enclosures on the left side of the field.
A Strong Defensive Position
I was pretty confident I could hold the enclosures, especially as both the yellow-coated and green-coated battalia were shot-heavy with plenty of ammunition for those all-important double-fires.
Needing To Win Quickly!
I did need to win on the left quickly, as I was facing a lot of enemy over on my right.
A Closer Look
Too Close
Some enemy Dutch horse came too close to the city walls and were sent packing!
A Win on the Left
And it was indeed on the left that I won the game, advancing out of the enclosures to smash his battered infantry from the field.
Seeing their comrades fleeing, his men on my right lost heart and also retreated.
Victory!