I finally have just enough Vikings and Saxons to put on a battle between 2 persons of Medium Social Standing in Two Hour Wargames Captains and Kings. So without further ado, let's introduce the two sides. First is Egbert's retinue. All the figures are Wargames Factory.
And now, Ase's retinue. The hirdsmen and thralls are Wargames Factory. The Freemen are Gripping Beast Dark Age Warrior plastics, and the berserkers are Old Glory, Hasslefree, and Wargames Factory.
Egbert was anxious to get at the Vikings, so he moved forward quickly. The Vikings proved no pikers, and ran at the Saxons, breaking their formation. They were unable to close, and the beserkers ended up short of the bows, who sent arrows their way.
As the archers' fire was having a bad effect on the beserkers, Egbert moved his troops behind them. The beserkers lost one figure to the arrows, but 2 more fled. Some berserkers.
The archers ran to the left flank of Egbert's retinue, knowing they were no match for anyone with a shield and melee weapon. Egbert charged the remaining two berserkers, and slew them, though he lost a man in the process.
The Saxon Weak Fyrd charged the Viking Freeman, probably not a wise decision, but they are Ferocious. The Saxons lose a figure, and 2 more run away. The Vikings, of course, lost a single figure.
The Saxon Quality Fyrd charge the Viking Thralls, and lose 2 to the Viking 1. Things are not going so well for the Saxons.
The Viking Thrall continue their melee with the Saxon Quality Fyrd, and come off best again, with 3 Saxon casualties to their one. The Viking Freemen continue the carnage on the Weak Fyrd. Ase finally gets his hirdsmen into the Saxon thegns. The Saxons lose two to one, but one of theirs is Egbert himself, wounded and out of the battle, regardless of what it says in the picture below. This brings all advance from the Saxons to a halt, but none break.
The Saxon Weak Fyrd are destroyed, but the Viking Freemen turn tail and run.
The Viking hirdsmen and Saxon Thegns continue their fight with equal casualties. The Quality Fyrd fare poorly against the Viking Thralls.
The Quality Fyrd and the Viking Thralls continue to trade blows with equal effect. The Saxon bows move to the Viking right flank.
The Thralls wipe out the Quality Fyrd, but the Saxon bows now have no reason not to shoot at the Thralls, and kill 2. The rest run!
In what was the center, the hirdsmen continue to deal damage to the thegns, but their nerve also breaks, and the remaining Vikings run!
The Saxons win the day with 2 thegns and 8 bowmen.
In Conclusion:
I gave the berserkers Rep 5 AC 2, Ferocious.
I forgot to roll for Egbert. He was wounded and not killed. If a melee unit causes an enemy unit to run, they pursue. In both cases here, the Viking units destroyed the units, and had to take the in melee test. Both were below half, and both failed by 1d6 and routed.The Saxon thegns could have pursued the Vikings, but with only 2 figures against 5, it wouldn't have been wise.
A work about the figures. I've been building Wargames Factory for a while. I like the separate arms and weapons. The Gripping Beast Dark Age Warriors are ok. They only have 5 different figures, two of whom seem to be hunched over with appendix attacks. You must carefully consider what heads you put on those figures, or the shields will come nowhere near the figure's left hand, and will have to be glued to the beard and skirt of the figure. The GB figures are a little crude, with only pouches on one figure. The shields are not to the standard of most others, having no fasteners to hold the edge binding on. There are heat cracks, quite small, on the backs of some. There are no helmeted heads, and only one head with a fur-lined cap. There are none of the Phrygian caps, though they are shown on the box art.
The Wargames Factory spears are weak. I am now using plastic broomstraws in their place. They must be superguled in. Solvent glues won't work. All things said, I far prefer them over the Gripping Dark Age Warriors. Gripping Beast Thegns are fine, and of a higher quality.
