BATTLE OF COACHING HOUSE CROSSING: PIKEMAN'S LAMENT

The Meanderer's dragoons and trotters facing off against Byron's pikes on the edge of town.

In this post, dear readers, we provide a modest battle report on a recent game of Pikeman's Lament hosted by friend and fellow club-member Ralph.  This was a smallish game intended as another learning affair.  Our group discovered--and had much discussed--Pikeman's Lament during the pandemic.  Given that several of us already had healthy pike and shot/ 17th century collections on hand, we were primed and ready to give PL a go.  With us now emerging from lockdown and doing face to face gaming again (huzzah!), we are moving ahead with those plans. 

 

The premise for this particular game was a fight for control over a small town at an important crossroads. This game also provided a kick start to the in-game careers of the respective player/officers involved.  My PL alter ego, Hauptman Angus Carling-Grolsch (hats off to Ray for the inspiration for the moniker), is a martial adventurer of mixed lineage, with appropriately mixed loyalties, who has an old wound which gives him a head start on honour points but makes him vulnerable to getting clocked by a "lucky blow."  The two sides contesting the town of Coaching House Crossing this day were composed of two companies per side, each led by an officer/player and consisting of 14 points. George and I found ourselves in Catholic pay opposite the (ostensibly) Protestant companies of Byron and host Ralph. Questionable allegiance to respective dogmas aside, our worship of the Thaler and theirs of the Guilder gave us reason enough to shoot at one another.  As an added bit of flavor, there was a notary to the Saxon Elector quartered in one of the town buildings--the officers of the winning side would get to pick buildings to search, with the one finding him gaining extra honour points. In this post, as usual, you may clix pix for BIG PIX.

 

On the Imperial left, George's "dragoon" company consisted of two units of Croats and one of veteran Croats (three "Dragoon" unit types in PL parlance).  He was opposed by Ralph's "shot" company consisting of three shot and one commanded shot units. So this wing presented an interesting experiment in single unit-type companies. Early on, George's veteran croat failed a morale test (his morale check die rolling was atrocious all night), which wrong-footed his maneuvers from then onwards. For his part, Ralph skillfully held off George's flanking attempts, using the range and firepower of his shot to keep the Croats at bay.  His commanded shot unit, however, had taken up an advanced post and found out the hard way what kind of damage the Croats can dish out if within striking distance. 

In contrast to the single unit-type companies of Ralph and George, on the Imperial right, I had put together a mixed company of veteran dragoons, trotters, and two units of commanded shot. I was opposed by Byron's company consisting of a balanced force of two raw pike and two shot units.  Byron's officer had the "Lion of the North" trait, which would have allowed him to re-roll two failed attack dice--which neither of us recalled until after the game (hence the "would have").  We did not play with the random events table (I should add)--we found that the activation tests (along with ending a player's phase when failing) and other variables in the system (like the chance for low morale rolls to cause units to go "poof"--which did happen--and of lucky blows offing officers) provided more than enough variability without adding another layer of foolery. I don't have many pictures of the action (I wound up playing vs picturing), but in summary, my commanded shot skirmished back and forth with Byron's shot units while my dragoons and trotters whittled down Byron's pike with fire. In the mid game, Byron did hit my trotters in melee after one of my early caracole attempts left it standing within striking distance of one of his pike blocks (we both passed morale and bounced).  I have to say that General Dice was with neither of us on this wing, each of us having our share of failed activations and low-result combats. 

 

My Scottish commanded shot skirmishing against Byron's advancing shot. I brought my own figures to the game, which are individually mounted. The rest were from Ralph's superb Thirty Years War collection, which are mounted on unit bases. We found that the mounting conventions were irrelevant to game play.

 

Some of Ralph's splendid figures: Scottish shot (in Protestant pay) making their way into the town. Ralph made good use of the lockdown by producing an extensive set of stunning period buildings and town features (many of them scratch built). The town of Coaching House in this game represents but a few of them.

Having held off George's Croats, Ralph's shot company starts to slide across to put pressure on the Catholic right wing (ie, Moi!).  In the picture can be seen a few of the good burghers of Coaching House who turned out to watch the action (it being a long time since Fasching and there not being much else to do).

 

My dragoons, having received a saddle-emptying "salute" from Ralph's approaching shot, skirmish themselves backwards to shelter in the lee of the building (uncovering the trotters to the enemy line of fire: they don't call 'em "mercenaries" for nothin'). 

 

To complete the story, eventually, Byron sent one of my commanded shot to Valhalla, but in turn had a series of wretched morale checks which saw his pike units, which had been whittled down by fire, rout out of existence--and with them his officer. I was able to then send my trotters forward to follow up with a caracole that took off one of his two remaining shot units, which effectively ended the action (end game pictured above). So, this affair went to the "Catholics"--and I was fortunate enough to have searched out and discovered the Saxon registrar.  We are all looking forward to the next installment in our respective careers.

 

 Thanks to our congenial host, Ralph, and his magnificent terrain and figures, which always make for a quality gaming experience--something to savor even more so as we resume face to face gaming!

 

Excelsior!