Battle at Northycote Farm

For our most recent encounter here in GHQ, and keeping faith with facilitating the appearance of periods/armies/rules less seen on the tabletop battlefield, I set up a fictional ECW game which I named after a local farm and country park which has core buildings going back to the C17th. Phil provided the farm buildings, PMC Buildings from Caliver Books,  while the rest of the terrain is from my Last Valley collection. My armies are mostly Foundry and Perry Miniatures, though the guns might be from other sources, I forget! We used Pike & Shotte for the rules, though no doubt were playing Black Caesar & Shotte! Whatever, we had a happy two or three hours or so. On now to the usual annotated photomontage to hopefully carry you down into the action ~

The Parliamentary army of Obadiah Bykleigh,  gentleman ~ but military incompetent! His objective, the stores and treasure currently stored at Northycote Farm awaiting collection by the arch Royalist, Sir Marmaduke Robinson.

The Royalist army of Sir Marmaduke Robinson drawn up at the end of Turn 2. You may notice in the distance the Dragoons of the Parliamentary army have reached the hedge line and can threaten any movement on the objective. The first two turns had not been kind to either army, but particularly towards the Royalists.

Obadiah's Dragoons proved the exception to his army's lethargy, reaching the hedge line and effectively stymying the Royalist movement on their objective of recovering the stored supplies and treasure.

While the Dragoons hold off any premature Royalist advance on the farm Obadiah advances Foote and Horse in their support, seeking to take advantage of Royalist lethargy. 

As his Foote deploys into fighting formation the first clash of Parliamentary and Royalist Horse develops on their left flank.

As a second melee of Horse develops on the flank of the first, Royalist Dragoons dismount and advance on the hedge line held by their Parliamentary opposite number.

The two melees of Horse are brutal and conclusive. Sir Mattias Bykleigh's Horse are routed by their Royalist foe while Obadiah Bykleigh's Horse thrash their opponents. The Royalists rally back, threatened by musketeers out of shot, while the Parliamentary Horse sweep onward in support of their Dragoons.

On the opposite flank further elements of Horse are clashing in brutal, swirling combat! The Royalists are lead by their general, a move proving decisive in ensuing combat.

Parliamentary losses are too much to bear, the Horse's morale collapses and they flee. Fortunately their second line is ready to meet the threat!

Spured on by a little know East Anglian by the name of Cromwell Sir Martyn Bowland's Horse charge home against further Royalists! Will his brave leadership prove telling or empty bravado?

Back on the Parliamentary left flank more fighting between both army's Horse continues. The Parliamentary Foote might find life too hot for their liking if their Horse is defeated.

As feared the Parliamentary Horse is defeated by their foe and the remnants flee! Fortunately for the Parliamentary Foote the Royalists are Shaken and so retire fearing a devastating volley from the Parliamentary musketeers!

On the Parliamentary right disaster strikes the Royalist regiments of Horse. In bloody, decisive melees they are shattered by their foe and the remnants sent fleeing from the field! Suddenly the slow moving Royalist Foote finds its flank fatally exposed.

Despite serious losses Cromwell's leadership has proved decisive and the Royalist cause is fatally wounded. Mark my words, we shall hear of this Cromwell fellow again before this sad state of affairs in our divided kingdom is resolved.

The victorious Parliamentary army advances all along its front as the Royalists begin a slow withdrawal.  The supplies and treasure will be removed from Northycote Farm to a safer location in nearby Rushall Hall. The Royalists will rally their forces back in Bushbury and regroup ready for the next phase, whenever that maybe. Cromwell meanwhile moves on to greater things...

A fine game resolved in eight turns and almost exclusively decided by the Horse of both armies, the Foote being hardly engaged and only the Parliamentary gun getting a shot or two off! Command dice were far from kind to the Royalists who fought well despite everything going against them! Dour and dependable, the plodding Parliamentarian army proved the victor.