Clash of Warlords AAR: Normans v Anglo-Danes

As sunlight streamed over the hill, light glinted off the fast running but shallow river. The Dane Warlord surveyed the scene, knowing that the Normans would most likely cross at the ford in front of him then follow the road to his village. He and his grim faced Hearthguard were not about to let him sack their village. They were all prepared to die to stop the advance..... then the click of hooves and the glint of sunlight on armour. The Knights had arrived on the opposite side of the field.....

This was a four point Saga AAR to really get the feel of the rules. I had just finished 6 points each of Danes and Normans so we chose from what was available:

Anglo-Dane Forces:

Meik the Grim (Warlord)

Hearthguard

Hearthguard

Hearthguard

Hearthguard (Dane axes) 

Norman Forces:

Baron Harry the Youthful (Warlord)

Mounted Knights

Mounted Knights

Mounted Knights

Crossbow Warriors

Deployment:

Normans win the deployment roll but end up putting down their troops before the Anglo-Dane Hearthguard-only warband! Sometimes, it pays to be the best.

The Dead Do Tell Tales.

I picked up Old Glory's "The Slain Casualty Pack SVS-10" to add some flavor to my SAGA battles.  I really like the pack which goes for $25 USD without discounts and you get 20 figures and Shields.  I love the look of casualties on the table it really makes for a great pictures. My idea when I purchased them was to use them as fatigue markers but what I will do next is print them on paper and scatter them as the battle goes.  I do not mind if you do the same as well I have attached pics of them below.  Make your own WWPD pizza markers.

Clash of Warlords AAR: Fast and Furious!

On an ancient battlefield, the forces of Jhon the Dirty and Steveaux the Fluffy face off in a titanic struggle of might vs. tailored pants.  Clash of Warlords was the flavor of this Saga game.  We did a four point battle:

Viking Forces:

Jhon the Dirty

Hearthguard

Hearthguard

Bondi

Levy Archers

Norman Forces:

Steveaux the Finely Groomed

Mounted Knights

Mounted Warriors

Crossbow Warriors

Archer Warriors

The Vikings strategy:  Line up.  In a line.  The Normas hide in woods and generally prance about.

Steveaux, of the ambiguous gender sings and serenades his retinue.  How positively... womanly!

Bannermen! War Banners in Saga

With the release of the Saga Supplement "The Raven's Shadow" last year came a new rule for using War Banners in your Saga faction.

There has been some discussion on their potential use on the battlefield on the WWPD forums recently so I thought now would be a good time to recap on the rules and put forward some of the theories on their use in the game.

Gripping Beast Viking War Banner party...

Comparing cavalry models -Normans v. Strathclyde

A little while back I think I posted that I had chosen to use Wargames Factory (WF) Ancient German Cavalry model to stand-in as mounted Strathclyde Welsh for a new 6 point Saga faction. This meant buying 4 packs of WF horses each with 12 models (plus another model from somewhere for the Warlord!)

A word to the wise - make sure you are happy with the scales of the models involved before buying....

comparing plastic model horses

Saga Warlord Contest Roll of Honour

The Painting Contest is all over so here are all of the entries. A big well done to Joe Moore who takes away the prize for most popular entry. Joe chose a box of the upcoming GB plastic Dark Age Warriors. Good choice, I am tempted myself.

The quality of the entries was very high and a lot of work went into them. Thank you to all for entering your Warlords and to all those who took the time to vote on a favourite. They all looked like winners to me!

Here they are in all their glory..... you magnificent painters....

Joe Moore - winner

joemoore78

Frankish History 101

Frankish History 101

The Franks are an ethnic group from northwestern Europe.  The Frankish kingdoms dominated the history of medieval Europe. In Saga we see the Franks in their Carolingian form, defending the heartlands against the Viking invasions, and their early Capetian form, marking the transition into the French monarchy.


The Merovingian Franks

Merovingian territories. (From Wikipedia.)

The Franks were one of the largest and most successful of the Germanic tribes to settle in Roman territory at the end of Antiquity.  They occupied what is now northern France and eastern Germany, establishing their kingdom there.  Their early king, Clovis, converted to Catholic Christianity, not the Arian Christianity of most other Germanic tribes.  This adroit move gained him the support of the local Roman churches. It also set the stage for the lasting Frankish alliance with the Pope.  The Frankish kingdoms often split and recombined, as kings divided their territory among their sons, and civil war or conquest brought them together again.  Nonetheless, they maintained a common Frankish identity.