1643 Game 5 – Upper Thames Valley – English Civil War Campaign

Adam and Chris played the fifth game of Populous, Rich and Rebellious, our four player Campaign using Tilly’s Very Bad Day, and set in the English Civil War.

Summary: After losing a general in the preliminary bombardment, Parliament fought well but could not break the Royalists within the game limit. Royalist victory at the “Battle of Chalgrove Field”.


Strategic Situation

ECW-500 1643 Early Round - Strategic Situation
ECW-500 1643 Early Round – Strategic Situation

Phase 1: Game Set up

The mechanics of Populous, Rich and Rebellious influenced most of the game set up.

1.1. Agree game size

With two players we played a small game, with small armies on a small table.

1.2. Recruit armies

In Populous, Rich and Rebellious, campaign cards influence the orders of battle.

Campaign Cards

ECW-501 Campaign Cards
ECW-501 Campaign Cards

Adam drew four campaign cards. All of them were Parliament cards, so Adam’s Royalists could not benefit from them and they were discarded.

  • [Parliament] Arthur Haselrig – Shot proof armour: Once during the battle one Commander ignores the result of shooting
  • [Parliament] A rousing sermon: Once during the battle restore the resolve of one unit to its original total during the rally phase
  • [Parliament] The Assessment” – Parliament’s excise tax: Before the battle add one Horse unit to the order of battle
  • [Parliament] New Model Army: Before the battle add one Horse unit to the order of battle

Chris got five campaign cards, three of which were Parliament/Beneficial, one detrimental, and one ignored because it was a Royalist card.

  • [Parliament] Wealthy Cavalryman declares for Parliament: Before the battle add one Horse unit to the order of battle
  • [Parliament] The ‘Dog-witch’ must die: Negate Royalist card ‘Sergeant-Major-General Boy’ – Retain until used
  • [Beneficial] Experienced officer: For the entire battle increase one chosen commander’s to hit in melee from 4-6 to 3-6
  • [Detrimental] Dragoons away foraging: Before the battle remove one Dragoon unit from the order of battle
  • [Royalist] “The Contribution” – King’s excise tax: Before the battle add one Horse unit to the order of battle

“The ‘Dog-witch’ must die” card was retained and didn’t have an effect in the game. The Parliamentarians lost their dragoon unit and gained a horse unit.

Orders of Battle

For a small game with a player a side, we started with the small order of battle.

After applying the campaign cards, the Royalists had the standard 14 unit army. Parliament also had 14 units but swapped out their dragoons for more horse.

Small Orders of Battle / 1 player a side

Royalist Order of Battle

  • 3 x Commander
  • 4 x Horse
  • 4 x Pike+Shot
  • 1 x Shot
  • 1 x Dragoon
  • 1 x Cannon
  • 14 units; 54 coins; break point 5

Parliament Order of Battle

  • 3 x Commander
  • 4 x Horse
  • 5 x Pike+Shot
  • 1 x Shot
  • 1 x Cannon
  • 14 units; 54 coins; break point 5

1.3.A. Determine attacker

With the sides balanced in terms of numbers, the strategic attacker (Parliament) was the tactical attacker.

We give the tactical attacker the initiative in Tilly’s Very Bad Day.

1.3.B. Game duration

As the first game in 1643 the battle was fought in Spring, on an overcast day, and started at noon, making a game limit of 8 game turns. The Royalist attackers had to win in 8 turns.

1.4. Place Terrain

Adam drew four Terrain Cards and got a difficult hill on his left but in the Parliamentary deployment zone, a gentle hill near the centre of the battlefield, and rough ground on the right.

ECW-502 Terrain Cards - Initial
ECW-502 Terrain Cards – Initial

Adam opted to rotate the bottom right card so the rough ground was in the centre of his own deployment zone. That sparked some panicked Royalist conversations as I (Steven) asked “Are you sure?” Adam was sure. That was the first time during the game he pointed out that, “I don’t have to defeat the Parliamentarians. All I have to do is, not lose.” He had a defensive strategy.

ECW-503 Terrain Cards - Final
ECW-503 Terrain Cards – Final

1.5. Scouting

We still didn’t do scouting. Next time as it gives dragoons more value.

1.6. Deployment

Chris spread his Parliamentarians across the table. In contrast, Adam concentrated from the rough ground to the left. Adam was intending to play a defensive game and left the Chris’s army come to him.

ECW-506 Deployment
ECW-506 Deployment
ECW-510 Royalist left
ECW-510 Royalist left
ECW-510 Royalist right
ECW-510 Royalist right

1.7. Bombardment

The big event of the game happened during the bombardment.

ECW-507 Bombardment
ECW-507 Bombardment

Adam scored a hit with his cannon, then killed the general of the Parliamentary left wing.

ECW-508 Bombardment - Parliamentary General becomes casualty
ECW-508 Bombardment – Parliamentary General becomes casualty

That both virtually immobilised the wing and also reduced all of the units by a further one Resolve. Without a general to rally them, they were unlikely to recover.

ECW-509 Parliamentary left wing becomes demoralised
ECW-509 Parliamentary left wing becomes demoralised

Despite that blow, Chris bravely fought on.


Turn 1

Despite rolling a command check to move each unit in his left wing, Chris managed to get all three horse units moving in game turn one.

ECW-512 Unexpectedly the Parliamentary left wing advances
ECW-512 Unexpectedly the Parliamentary left wing advances

Chris also advanced in the centre, across the gentle hill, and on his right.

ECW-513 Parliamentary Movement
ECW-513 Parliamentary Movement

Seeing the disorder in the Parliamentary left wing, Adam changed his plan and advanced.

ECW-515 Royalist movement
ECW-515 Royalist movement

Turn 2

Chris continued to advance in game turn 2. But this time his left wing refused to move.

ECW-517 Parliamentary Movement
ECW-517 Parliamentary Movement
ECW-518 Parliament advances over the gentle hill
ECW-518 Parliament advances over the gentle hill

Adam also continued to advance. He pushed his left wing far forward to engage with the Parliamentary wing opposing.

ECW-519 Royalist movement on left
ECW-519 Royalist movement on left

The Parliament centre also moved, but at an infantry pace. This created an echeloned front.

ECW-521 Royalist movement
ECW-521 Royalist movement

The horse on the left slammed together.

ECW-522 Melee
ECW-522 Melee

The result of melee was balanced, with both sides getting a rally back.

ECW-523 Rally backs
ECW-523 Rally backs

Turn 3

Chris gamely continued to advance on his right and in the centre. One of his horse units from the left wing also advanced.

ECW-525 Parliamentary movement
ECW-525 Parliamentary movement

Adam pulled back his left wing while advancing his centre.

ECW-528 Royalist movement on left
ECW-528 Royalist movement on left

The infantry lines were now getting pretty close.

ECW-529 Infantry lines glare at each other
ECW-529 Infantry lines glare at each other

Turn 4

Again Chris advanced everywhere, including on his left wing. That horse unit really wanted to get revenge for the loss of the general.

ECW-531 Parliamentary movement
ECW-531 Parliamentary movement

Adam also advanced everywhere. In particular he brought his extreme right wing horse out to play.

ECW-533 Royalist movement
ECW-533 Royalist movement

Gunpowder smoke started to roll across the battlefield.

ECW-537 Shooting
ECW-537 Shooting

The charges commenced on the left, with Adam throwing a unit of horse at the Parliamentarian shot.

ECW-538 Charge declaration on left
ECW-538 Charge declaration on left

The shot were driven back.

ECW-541 Rally back on left
ECW-541 Rally back on left

In the centre Chris’s infantry charged.

ECW-539 Charge declaration in centre
ECW-539 Charge declaration in centre

And drove back their Royalist opponents.

ECW-542 Rally back in centre
ECW-542 Rally back in centre

Finally on the right, the opposing horse charged each other. This, again, required a successful command check by Chris’s commander-less horse.

ECW-540 Charge declarations on right
ECW-540 Charge declarations on right

This seemly unbalanced melee resulted in a deadlock.

ECW-543 Deadlock on right
ECW-543 Deadlock on right

Here is a shot of the battlefield at the end of turn 4.

ECW-544 Battlefield
ECW-544 Battlefield

Turn 5

On the left Chris continued his advance.

ECW-546 Parliamentary movement left
ECW-546 Parliamentary movement left

Ditto for the centre. That included turning a unit of pike+shot towards the threat facing the rather immobile left wing.

ECW-548 Parliamentary movement right
ECW-548 Parliamentary movement right

Now the infantry were blazing away at each other in the centre.

ECW-549 Shooting
ECW-549 Shooting

In melee on the left, the Royalists drove a Parliamentary horse back.

ECW-550 Rally back left
ECW-550 Rally back left

Parliament also went back in the centre.

ECW-551 Rally back centre
ECW-551 Rally back centre

But it was the Royalists who went back on the right.

ECW-552 Rally back right
ECW-552 Rally back right

Turn 6

The only Parliamentary movement in turn 6 was on the cent-right and right. Again his left wing horse had to make a command check to move.

ECW-554 Parliamentary movement
ECW-554 Parliamentary movement

Royalist musketry routed a Parliamentary pike+shot unit. And that killed another general

ECW-556 Royalist foot rout Parliamentary foot and kill general
ECW-556 Royalist foot rout Parliamentary foot and kill general

Adam really lurched into gear now with a lot of movement. He did some clever line replacement in his left wing cavalry, pulling a weakened unit right back to bring a fresh unit forward. He also attacked out of the rough ground in the right-centre.

ECW-557 Royalist Movement
ECW-557 Royalist Movement

There were lots of charges on the right-centre.

ECW-558 Charge declarations right
ECW-558 Charge declarations right

But the only effect was to bounce the charging Royalist infantry.

ECW-561 Rally back right
ECW-561 Rally back right

To the left of the road, however, Royalist horse broke their Parliamentary opponents.

ECW-560 Royalist horse rout Parliamentarians
ECW-560 Royalist horse rout Parliamentarians

Another wide battlefield shot.

ECW-563 Battlefield
ECW-563 Battlefield

Turn 7

Turn 7 saw Chris still advancing.

ECW-565 Parliamentarian movement
ECW-565 Parliamentarian movement

Again there were lots of charges, but this time on the left and in the centre.

ECW-566 Charge declarations
ECW-566 Charge declarations

The Royalists broke the surrounded Parliamentary pike+shot unit.

ECW-568 Royalist foot routs Parliamentarians
ECW-568 Royalist foot routs Parliamentarians

Turn 8

Shooting saw another Parliamentary rout.

ECW-570 Royalist muskets rout Parliamentary foot
ECW-570 Royalist muskets rout Parliamentary foot

But the staunch Parliamentary shot bounced charging Royalist horse.

ECW-571 Parliamentary shot bounce Royalist horse
ECW-571 Parliamentary shot bounce Royalist horse

And round heads bounced more cavaliers near the road.

ECW-572 Parliamentary horse bounce Royalist horse
ECW-572 Parliamentary horse bounce Royalist horse

And on the right the supposedly “demoralised” Parliamentary horse was still fighting gamely and pushed their opponents back.

ECW-573 Parliamentary horse bounce Royalist horse
ECW-573 Parliamentary horse bounce Royalist horse

But that was 8 turns and the game limit. Chris, as the attacker, hadn’t defeated the Royalists so lost. And counting the casualties, Parliament had probably lost in turn 7 by reaching their army breakpoint.

ECW-574 Parliamentary casualties
ECW-574 Parliamentary casualties

Conclusions and Observations

A great little game. The result was determined in the initial bombardment which immobilised Parliament’s left wing. But Chris fought all and made a good game of it.

Chris suggested that perhaps the attackers should get more troops to make it easier to win in the time limit. Although correct, I hope the choice of where to attack in Populous, Rich and Rebellious, which influences the number of campaign cards, means the balance is likely to lie in favour of the attacker. But I’ll watch this and see whether they need more.

Game Year + Round Location Game Size Royalist Parliament
1 1642 Early East Midlands Small Adam
Strategic Defender
Tactical Attacker
Defeat
Chris
Strategic Attacker
Tactical Defender
Victory
2 1642 Early Wales Small Steven
Strategic Attacker
Tactical Attacker
Defeat
Jamie
Strategic Defender
Tactical Defender
Victory
3 1642 Late South-East Small Adam
Strategic Attacker
Tactical Attacker
Victory
Chris
Strategic Defender
Tactical Defender
Defeat
4 1642 Late East Anglia Large Steven
Strategic Defender
Tactical Defender
Victory
Jamie
Strategic Attacker
Tactical Attacker
Defeat
5 1643 Early Upper Thames Valley Small Adam
Strategic Defender
Tactical Defender
Victory
Chris
Strategic Attacker
Tactical Attacker
Defeat

Where to get Tilly’s Very Bad Day and Populous, Rich and Rebellious

Both are available for download as PDFs:

Tilly’s Very Bad Day (PDF)
Populous, Rich and Rebellious – English Civil War Campaign (PDF)

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