In the Year of Three Popes

A Headless Body Production

Location:  Regency at Providence Community Center, Phoenixville, Pa

Event:        Providence Gamer's Game Knight

Players:    Phil Gardocki and Garth Parker, playing the Anglo Irish
                      Steve Turn and Bruce Potter playing Medieval Polish.
                      Jack Seydow (UCMJ article 86)

Game System: L'Art de la Guerre, 200 (ish) points per side.

Scenario non-historic justification, except that 3 Pope part:

It is 1410, and the newly elected Holy Roman Emperor (pro-tem) Sigismund of the House of Luxembourg, in an effort to force Papal Recognition of his crown, has engineered a military response to the growing Western Schism.  Arraigning for transport of  Irish Mercenaries to support the claim of Pope Benedict XIII.

But, his Grace, Pope Gregory XII, was not too be taken taken unawares, and using his solid base of political support in Poland, arraigned for an intercept force to delay or repel the mercenaries.

His Holiness, Pope John XXIII, was not available for comment from his villa in Pisa.

The Forces  
Polish:
Commanders  Vytautas, Dominik and Dominik
      6 Heavy Knights Impetuous (elite)
      4 Followers, Medium Cavalry Crossbow
      4 Lithuanian Light Cavalry Bow
      2 Lithuanian Medium Cavalry
      3 Militia, Heavy Spear-men, Missile Support Pavise 
      2 Medium Swordsmen
      2 Light Infantry Bow

Anglo Irish:
Commanders  Larry, Darryl, and Darryl.
       6 Longbow men (two elite)
       3 Kerns, Light Infantry  Javelin
       5 Galloglaich, Heavy Infantry 2H Sword (elite)
       2 Light Cavalry Javelin

       3 Irish Foot, Javelin men

       2 Medium Knights, Impact (elite)

       2 Heavy Cavalry, Impact

The Board:

The Polish won the initiative and elected to defend in the plains.  When the terrain was done, all that was on the board was 3 fields and a half completed road.

Deployment:

The Irish did not get much benefit with terrain, but they bought 3 fortifications, represented by the stakes. 

Longbow behind obstacles.  Presenting a knightmare for the Polish.

Their deployment was fairly standard, Galloglaich in the center, Irish foot and Longbow on the left.  On the right was all the Irish horse.  The horse should hold their own against a skirmishing force until long enough for the center battle of Galloglaich/Longbow to do their work. 

The Polish forces had the Lithuanians, 4 Medium Cavalry and 4 Light Horse on the right.  Their center battle was their infantry, and they decided to throw their largest battle, in terms of points, on the left with 6 Winged Hussar Heavy Knights, and 2 Medium Cavalry.

However, this was what the Irish Horse was facing.  6 Winged Hussars and 2 Medium Cavalry Crossbow.

Turn 1:
The Irish go first, and only pushed their Light Horse forward in an attempt to draw out and disrupt the line of Winged Hussars.  

The Polish turn was surprising.   The Lithuanians look at the Longbow behind the stakes, the Javelin-men in the fields, and decided to redeploy to the center of the board.  Leaving their Militia and Swordsmen to cover their right flank.

FYI, the Polish Axe-men are being represented by hand-gunners.

The Polish foot approach the field, in a way that their Heavy Foot will not have to enter it.

The Irish left flank has a bit of Light Infantry on Light Infantry action going on.

Turn 2:
The Irish could see the redeployment action going on, but the Polish are mostly mounted, so they they will wait for the Polish to commit before stepping away from their defenses.


This turned out to be a good decision as Darryl, the right hand battle commandeer rolled for his command points:

On the right.

While in the center Larry rolled...

And their other brother general, Darryl, rolled...

Light Cavalry vs Medium Cavalry exchange fire.  Seems totally even as LH starts at a -1 to zero, while the crossbows shoot at a zero to a +1. 

The Polish have not completed their redeployment.  Their General Vytautas calls a halt to the line of Winged Hussars, and moves forward to bolster his Crossbow wielding Medium Cavalry.

Vytautas tries and fails to rally his crossbow cavalry.

Turn 3:
Not a lot going on.  The Irish realize there is a chance to deal a serious blow to the Polish right (nee center) command.  There they have 8 elements to 6 advantage.  But the Polish have 3 Heavy Foot and two Medium Foot 2 Handed Weapons compared to 3 Javelin men and 3 Longbow.  

The Light on Light exchange of missiles result in all the light foot taking a hit, and both are withdrawn for recovery.  The Polish LF will return to the fray, and frankly was decisive.  While the Irish never seemed to muster the command points to work the Kerns back into the line.

Turns 4 and 5:
On the Irish left, the longbow focused their fire on to the Polish right.  Prompting the Polish Axemen to charge the field with a cohesion hit.  The fight was in favor of the Longbow, zero + 1 for support, and the Axemen took a second hit.

The center saw no action except some desultory shots.

On the Irish right, the Irish Light Horse was driven off.  The Polish General shouted, harangued, insulted and even pleaded with his followers, but their single cohesion hit remained.

Turn 6:
The Winged Hussars were still held in check.  The Irish decide to send in their Heavy Cavalry Impact, as the Polish Crossbowmen could no longer evade.

In the center, the Irish main battleline advanced cautiously, under a mild shower of crossbow quarrels.  

The Longbow finish off the Axemen and begin to turn the flank of the Polish Militia.

The Irish Cavalry is Heavy Calvary Impact, Armor.  Vs disorder Medium Cavalry.  +2 to -1, but Vytautas steps for +2 to 0.  and the Polish Followers win the dice roll off!

Turn 7:
It should have gone as this.  The Irish horse should have destroyed the Polish Mounted Crossbow, causing cohesion hits on the Winged Hussars, before being destroyed by the Hussars, buying time and disordering the main Polish battleline.

Instead...

The Irish Heavy Cavalry was destroyed, and the Polish line advanced again.

The final line on the Irish right are a pair of elite Medium Knights.

Turn 8:

The Polish were doing a good job of avoiding unfavorable contact and opted for exchanging missiles with the Longbow.  The Heavy Spear have pavises, and so have a protection of 2, which the Longbow takes back down to a 1.  While the Longbow normally have a protection of 0, but Crossbow takes it to a 1.  Both sides are getting plenty of overlaps with lights and javelin men. 

Turn 9:

Action breaks out on the Irish right flank.  Lithuanians go for the Longbow (left side) while Knight on Knight action is in the center.

With the wind beneath their feet, the Hussars just run over the Irish Knights.

Sorry for the very poor picture here.  The Lithuanians take out the Longbow.  The Galloglaich flank is exposed!

Turn 10:

This was taken from the center of the Anglo-Irish line, pointing to the right flank.  To the upper left we have the Lithuanian General, "Dominik",  rallying a Medium Cavalry.  Nearby is a Lithuanian Light Horse looting the remains of the Irish Knights.  In the lower left "Larry", is rallying the Galloglaich Clan Ramsay.  To their right, is a combat between Clan O'Lyre, a longbow unit and a Winged Hussar.  To the far right is another longbow unit, the last Irish Knights and "Darryl".  The numbers 1 and 2 belong to the Polish Crossbow Cavalry.

Same turn, view to the left.  The Irish main battle line is a disorder mess.  But the nearby Lithuanian command consists of mostly Light Horse and Missile Cavalry, is unwilling to engage.  Off in the distance, is the large infantry scrum.  The Anglo Irish's center command sends in a Galloglaich unit, destroying a Polish Militia unit on contact.  It looks like the left flank is going to be a win for the Irish.

Clan O'Lyre destroys a Winged Hussar.  Clan Ramsay and another Galloglaich are protecting it's flank.

Turn 11, or was it 12?  The game was called on time.  The Anglo-Irish left was going to be a win, but their right was a total loss.  The Anglo-Irish center was in total disarray, but the Polish were not in a good position to capitalize on it.  The number of dead units currently was 8 Anglo-Irish and 5 Polish. 

Neither sides main commands has been seriously engaged, so the Pol's still had 5 Knights, against 5 Galloglaich, both well supported with missile troops, though the Anglo-Irish center command had it's right flank turned, but it would still be several turns before the Polish Knights would be able to prosecute it.  So we called it a draw.  The Holy Roman Emperor and the three popes were going to have to settle their dispute some other way.