"This is the day, and this is the time!"

A second Wars of the Roses battle in a week! Paul was finally able to find a slot in his busy schedule for a game after an overlong hiatus. We agreed on a Wars of the Roses battle using Hail CaesarMk2of course, so I rearranged the tabletop battlefield and the forces after the recent tussle with Phil earlier that week. By way of introduction the opening positions of both armies: first the Yorkists under Edward, then the Lancastrians lead by Henry VI ~

The Yorkist Army of Edward, Earl of March.

The Lancastrian Army of Henry VI.

Both armies started out of bow and light artillery range of each other. Light Artillery may only attempt to move once at any point in the game, then becoming fixed in position. Archers are limited to three Turns of shooting, in this way suggesting resupply issues for both sides. The game must be decided in 12 Turns, before 'nightfall'! Now, as is my wont, an annotated photomontage carrying you down into aspects of the tabletop battlefield action ~

A {borrowed} prayer to the 'dice gods' might have been appropriate before today's battle is joined?

"Lord, you know how busy I must be today.

If I forget you, do not you forget me."🎲🎲

The Duke of Buckingham ponders the battle ahead and perhaps offers up his own private prayer.

Edward surveys his army, eager for the day's action to begin, perhaps hoping fortune may favour his cause this day.

Like a tightly coiled spring, the Yorkist host holds itself ready to throw all its might on the Lancastrian foe! Dice permitting of course!

Oxford's Ward looks to advance boldly on the Lancastrian left...but🎲🎲

Henry orders his Main Ward forward to close with the traitorous Edward. In the foreground the Commons attached to Buckingham's Ward nervously loose off their first arrows on the distant Yorkists of Warwick's Ward. 

Warwick's Household MAA clash with the Billmen and MAA of Sir John Savage early in the exchanges.

MAA of Clifford's and the Royal Household clash with the Retinue of Fauconberg and the knights of Edward's Household. Closing Fire has mixed effects on them, with those of Henry falling short of their target!

Warwick orders his Ward forward in a boldly aggressive move, feeling Buckingham's men are of poorer quality and may respond badly to the move.

Both sides are now in bow and light artillery range. Storms of arrows are loosed and shot exchanged, but still they both press on.

In a reverse of fortunes, Edward is wounded badly and lead from the field to seek aid. Will the Yorkists falter or will they double down on the fight?

Disorder is spreading in both armies leading to much confusion of the lines of battle. Henry boldly moves forward into the fray to encourage his men least they faltering.

De La Pole leads his mounted knights and MAA in a wild charge into the Prince of Wales' mounted men. The fight is brisk and bloody, Edward's men break and the Yorkists are in the Lancastrian's rear!

The confusion of a medieval battle and the difficulty of command and control seem evident in this photo!

Warwick's Vanward is making good progress against Buckingham. Events seem at this point to be turning in favour of the Yorkist cause.

On Oxford's flank things are also looking grim for Henry's Lancastrians. Losses are mounting and courage is failing it seems.

As Henry sees the MAA of his Household flee the battlefield he must sense that it will not be his day!

Only Buckingham's Ward is holding its ground against Warwick,  but with Henry's Main Ward and Oxford's Van Ward Broken the Lancastrian army must quit the field while it may. News of the victory will no doubt speed Edward's recovery from his grievous wound to good health.

Edward returns to survey the field and savour his victory! No doubt though that Henry will regroup and once more the clash of steel on steel will rent the air in a future battle.

For now though, peace is once more restored to this corner of the rural idyll of Old Englande, so sheep may safely graze again...

Both armies will move for now into winter quarters: lick their wounds, sharpen their steel, revise their plans and recruit fresh men to their cause. In the meantime games using Hail Caesar Mk2 will be superceded  here in GHQ by a return to Black Powder games in the coming weeks.

It's Tales From GHQ's 14th Blogiversary!

Tales From GHQ is celebrating its 14th Blogiversary today! An appropriate illustration to set the tone ~ a clue, its quite a low one!

All this jollity against a background of what appears, at least to me, a seeming decline in interest in wargames blogs in general. So, I'm especially grateful to the loyal band who follow our doings here in GHQ and then take the time and trouble to comment encouragingly on our efforts. You are appreciated and valued, every one of you! So, by way of reward(?), a picture of 'Ol Useless S Bykleigh {and his drinks cabinet} planning his next move against those persistant and bothersome Rebs in 'The Valley' ~

I'm doubly conscious of those regulars amongst all the visitors to my blog as I've been focused almost exclusively on my Wars of the Roses project for the past four or five months or more. My regular posts must have seemed endlessly repetitive at the very least! In my defence, and by way of explanation, I've largely been driven my my last eye examination in July. I'm told that the cataract in my right eye is maturing and will need surgery in about 12 months or so. Having started the project I'd like to get it done while I can still focus comfortably on the figures and brush point. I've already noticed in the past couple of weeks that its become more difficult to see detail clearly, so I'm pushing on as I can. I have the last Lancastrian retinue finished now along with a further one of MAA, the former which debued in Tuesday's game, and a further Yorkist retinue is now underway. That will leave a base/unit of MAA and it will all be done, for the present at least! After that - well see below?  Speaking of those pesky Rebs, and just to restore the balance, a bonus picture of Jubal E Bykleigh {represented by Matt as I appeared in the mid 1980's} ~

A great deal of water has passed under the bridge since I began this blogging lark fourteen years since. I still enjoy sharing this wonderful hobby with anyone who comes by, but do sometimes reflect that I may be running out of time and of worthwhile things to share. I still think of new projects or additions to existing ones, as we all do of course, but GHQ is stuffed to the rafters with little room for manoeuvre it seems. Perhaps its really time once more to move on some projects which languish unplayed for ages? But then....no, not just yet.

Looking forward is really the only way I've found, both in hobby terms and in wider life in general. To that end I took a deep dive into the old Lead Pimple yesterday to see what was available for post festive painting. It's all contained for now in one 4L RUB as the figures are still in bags: so, several units of Punic Wars vintage suitable for both armies from Aventine Miniatures and similarly several Austrian FRW units from Eureka Miniatures via Aly Morrison's fine gift. All need cleaning up and spray undercoating before the Brush of Doom can get to work on them, but that's for another day as yet. I think though I may just order up a few more Dixon Miniatures ACW figures to add in a bit more variety to my schedule. And why not? Anyway, enough for now, back to the Painting desk I go! Thanks for dropping by!

The Battle of Whitehouse's Cross

 This week sees not one, but two Wars of the Roses battles fought across our tabletop battlefield here in GHQ: the Battle of Whitehouse Cross firstly, against Phil, is the focus of this blog entry. The scene before the onset of hostilities ~

The Yorkist faction, commanded by Phil as Edward, drawn up ready for battle and their destiny ~

The Lancastrian faction, lead by myself as Henry VI, ready to give their all for the one true king ~

The game opened by the Yorkists winning the initiative, though from their subsequent timid advance you might not have noticed ~

Full of vim after triumphing in Game #2 Henry VI urges the Lancastrians forward. Largely it should be noted to negate the long range fire of the Yorkists' bowmen!

The are keeping their cohesion as they advanced on a broad front, though suffering some losses to the storm of Yorkist arrows!

Well, that didn't last long: Disorder and Retreat in Good Order/Disordered rather spoiling their developing attack!

Warwick finally urges his Ward forward, while wondering why Edward's Ward is falling back! Reaction to losses from Lancastrian fire sees one retinue Shaken. Not looking an auspicious start!

Edward's Light Artillery is suffering losses and Disorder! His Ward withdrawing might have been a poor decision on reflection!

Mind, in the Lancastrian lines Giffard's Retinue have Retired in Good Order twice now, leaving an inviting gap for Norfolk to exploit perhaps?

Warwick's bold attack gets off to a slow start. One Shaken retinue holds back apprehensively! 

Seeing Warwick's confusion and Edward's hesitancy Henry sends two retinues boldly forward in an attack, which falls just short!

It's not all joy for Henry though. In the centre losses are accruing and Orders being misinterpreted or ignored!!!🎲🎲🎲

Giffard's Household have had another loss of martial spirit and Retired in Good Order, again. Somehow my first painted unit lacks a warlike spirit!!!!

Mind, the Burgundian mercenaries facing them couldn't hit a barn door at close quarters!

By now fighting has intensified in the centre. Both factions' losses are accumulating and Disorder is spreading to more units.

Clifford's MAA are routed by Edward's knights and flee for their lives, disrupting the Lancastrian centre!

Wenlock leads his Household to rescue the situation while Buckingham's bold cry of  "Follow Me!" leads his knights and mounted MAA to smash into Warwick's Shaken retinue! In the ensuing carnage Warwick escapes with his life, but not his honour!

Buckingham's men sweep forward and smash into Warwick's second retinue!

Men and horses are blown and the fighting settles into an inconclusive impasse. Edward is holding firm against Wenlock, whose men are Disordered and Shaken, but holding on!

At this point you might be wondering about the far flank {commanded by Oxford for the Prince of Wales}. Well, mercenary Scots and Burgundians are showing little enthusiasm for the fray.  Perhaps their pay has been delayed, or even appropriated?

But then, the Burgundians finally get their act together with crossbows and handgonnes finally finding their target. It's all too much for Black George and his laddies, they break and flee the field!

But back in the centre and on the nearest flank the Yorkists are crumbling  under sustained pressure and with mounting losses. Warwick's Ward is irretrievably Broken and Edward is hard pressed.

The Yorkist centre reaches crisis point and Edward quits the field leaving Henry battered, bruised, but victorious! Edward has lost not only his and Warwick's Wards, but also all of his light artillery! A comprehensive defeat denying his pretentions to the throne of England!

All over in 9 Turns in a little over two hours play. Hail Ceasar Mk2 delivers what we desire in games nowadays, unpredictability being foremost for both of us. We are still thinking through the suggested rules in the dedicated supplement, some are finding more alignment with our approach than others so far. After today's game with Paul though the collection will go into storage for a while, nothing further having been planned here in GHQ then until mid December. Hopefully this will give me painting time enough to progress the final Yorkist Retinue and Lancastrian base of MAA to completion, at least for this year!

Sir Thomas Fynderne's Bills

Just in time for last Thursday's action here on the tabletop battlefield in GHQ I had completed the Billmen of Sir Thomas Fynderne, who can now march to join their fellow Lancastrians in the mixed retinue I have been working on recently. These are mostly from Perry Miniatures European Armies range and fight under a banner by Freezywater Publications ~

Here they are drawn up in the last Lancastrian retinue on the tabletop battlefield in GHQ ready for whatever the 'dice of war" may throw at them!

They were joined under the Brush of Doom now by a base of MAA to add weight to the Yorkist faction. There both figured in the  two games played here in GHQ over the past week, as we made the most of friends' availability before the Festive Season descends on us all! With the latter very much in mind it will be touch and go whether I can finish the remaining retinue and base of MAA in time! Wish me luck please!