Anglo Irish on a Crusade

A Headless Body Production

Venue:   Walt's house
Event:    Weekend at Walts
Armies: Anglo Irish played by Phil Gardocki
                  Ayyubid Egyptian played by Walt Leech

Game System: L'Art de la Guerre, about 20- points per side.
Theme:   15mm Feudal Era 1000-1299 AD, Lists 134, 148, 151, 172-218 and amended as follows: no elephants, no Heavy Knights, and no foot Knights.

This is the first round of L'Art de la Guerre at Walts house.  This time I'll be facing the Grand Master and host himself.

The Forces:

Anglo Irish: Commanders  Larry, Darryl, and Darryl (all Competent)
       6 Longbowmen (two elite)
       2 Kerns, Light Infantry  Javelin
       4 Galloglaich, Heavy Infantry 2H Sword (all elite)
       2 Light Cavalry, Javelin
       2 Irish Foot, Javelinmen
       2 Anglo Medium Knights, Impact (both elite)
       2 Irish Nobles, Heavy Cavalry
       5 Fortifications

Ayyubid Egyptian: Commanders Saladin (Strategist), along with a pair of unnamed Brilliant and a Competent commanders.
       4 Light Horse bow (elite)
       2 Light Horse Impact
       2 Heavy Cavalry Bow (elite)
       4 Heavy Cavalry Bow
       2 Heavy Cavalry Impact
       4 Heavy Infantry Spear
       2 Bowmen

The Board:
The Egyptians win the initiative roll and elect to attack in the plains.
The Anglo-Irish select the Hill, the Gully, a Plantation and get a Field for free.  The Egyptians selected a Field and the Road.


Deployment:

On the Egyptian Right, 3 Light Horse and 4 Heavy Cavalry.  They are facing a Light Horse and two ambushes in the Gully.

In the way back are 4 Heavy Infantry Spear.  On the Egyptian left are 4 more Heavy Horse supported by 3 Light Horse.

The Anglo-Irish right.  The formation is a bit tighter than last game. 

The big picture.

The Anglo Irish left Battle.  In ambush are a Kern Light Infantry and a Javelinmen.

Turn 1:

The Egyptians certainly know how to attack.  All across the board a general advance.

Slightly leery of the ambushes, the Egyptian Light Horse advances shoots and scores.

The center command of Spearmen, lags behind the horse.

Shots exchanged, but nothing strikes.

The Anglo-Irish see an opportunity on the left and send in Longbow from the center Battle to assist the left.

While the left Battle's Longbow makes a run for the barricades. 

Turn 2:

The Egyptians do their best to run down the Irish Horse.  Their Heavy Cavalry cautiously expose the Irish Javelinmen in the Gully.

The Egyptian Heavy Horse challenge the Longbow to a missile duel.

That is two to two.

This did not go well for the Irish.  The Longbowmen were going to support the left flank battle, now it looks like they are going to be trapped between spear and bow and need rescuing themselves.

At the bottom of the turn, the Longbow rally! They cause more damage on the the Egyptian Heavies.

The Javelinmen in the gully, were shot for one in the Egyptian turn.  Even if the mounted is -2 in the rough, it is unlikely the Javelinmen will stand, and so they decide to leave the position, chucking spears into the Light Horse on the way out.

Turn 3:

Their left side strike force damaged, their center out of position, the Egyptians know their only chance at winning is on their right.  Their Light Horse charges the Irish Light Horse, which flees the field.  Their Heavy Horse charges the Irish Javelinmen, which could not flee because of the Egyptian Light Horse. 

Bad decisions all round, the Irish Javelinmen are destroyed.

Outnumbered 3-1, the Longbow retreat before the Egyptians.

With the advantage of numbers and support, the Egyptian Light Horse presses the attack.  But lose to determined shooting.

Facing withering sheaf after sheaf of arrows, the Egyptians pull back their Heavy Cavalry behind their Light Horse.

The Anglo-Irish commands have enough command points to rally, which they do successfully.  But there is no command points to spare to exploit their advantage.

On the left, the Egyptian Light Horse are blocked by their friends and cannot flee the Irish Nobles.  The Irish General is all in this fight.

And a good thing.  Irish Heavy Horse roll poorly.  Only the General and the armor save them from losing the fight.  The Longbow, however, do well and destroy their opponent.

The Welsh Longbow are safely behind the walls, as the Egyptian archers have to shoot at the Galloglaich instead.

This one is new to me.  The Longbow shot and killed a Light Horse, which routed through the Heavy Horse behind it.  As that unit had two hits, it was destroyed as well.

Two Egyptian Horse may have been destroyed, but three units still need to be rallied.

Turn 4:

The Egyptians keep up the pressure, attacking the Longbow, scoring 2 hits.  Their supporting Light Horse however, was destroyed.

Not much going on in the center.

The Egyptian left is in full retreat.

The Egyptians kill their Longbow.  The Anglo Knights are now threatening to intervene.

At the end of turn 4, the score is 10 -8 in favor of the Anglo-Irish

Turn 5:

Egyptian Heavy Horse charge! Kerns flee!  Knights are impacted!  The results are one Egyptian Horse is damaged, and so are the Knights!

On the bottom of the turn, the Anglo Irish bring in support, and damage the Egyptians. 

Emboldened, the Irish right flank pursues the Egyptian Horse.

3 Galloglaich push forward, the 4th rallies.

The Egyptian Spearmen are finally arriving into the battle field, and immediately take a hit.

Turn 6:

The Irish Nobles destroy the Egyptian Heavy Horse.  The Anglo Knights further damage the Egyptian Horse.  The Egyptian Spearmen, destroy the Kerns that were supporting the Knights.

The Spearmen, despite having 2 hits desperately want to charge the Longbowmen.  Only to find out they lose an IU crossing the walls.

 Impact Heavy Cavalry manage to cull Clan Stanford from the herd.  But still lose before the 2 handed swords.  The score is 15 to 11 in favor of the Anglo-Irish

On the right, another cavalry charge.  The Egyptians heavily damage the Irish Nobles.

But the Irish Nobles on the right score a great win.  Destroying both a Light and Heavy Horse while the Knights avoid being crushed by a flank charge.  Taking Walt to 19 points for a win by the Anglo-Irish.

So what when wrong.