1644 Battle Report We played our first game of 1644 using New Model and Late Royalist armies

of 800 points each on a 6 x 4 table of mostly open terrain with a few hedgerows and buildings on the flanks. Each army fielded 3 pike and shot units (2 trained and one elite). The Royalists deployed 4 units of elite cavalry while Parliament fought with 3 units of cavalry (2 elite and 1 trained) plus a unit of elite Dragoons. Each side fielded one heavy gun, while Parliament had a light artillery piece as well. The Royalists deployed their entire cavalry contingent on their right flank, with infantry and artillery in the center, and two units of infantry in a double line defending their left. Parliament split their cavalry between both flanks and deployed their dragoons on the left in the hedgerows in front of their main position. Both artillery pieces occupied the center. Their infantry formed a single line on their left center and a double line on the right of the guns. Both sides began with a general advance and opened with artillery. The Royalist artillery was ineffective, but Parliament combined the fire of both their guns on the Royalist infantry in the center and their fire began to tell once the Royalists closed within effective range. The Royalist cavalry initiated the first charge against Parliaments left flank cavalry. Before the cavalry closed, Parliaments dragoons unleashed a volley that shook their resolve but failed to stop them. The opening round of combat was indecisive. Both sides charged in with additional units, but the result remained in doubt. The Royalists, with the last fresh cavalry unit on that part of the field, charged into the combat and routed Parliaments cavalry from the field. This might have turned the tide of the battle decisively for the Royalists, but half of their cavlary left the field, caught up in the chase. They failed to return and had no further impact on the battle. The remaining Royalist cavalry made short work of the infantry on Parliaments left as well, but once again chased their quarry from the field and were out of the fight. Meanwhile, the infantry on the opposite flank charged into close combat. Once again, the initial round was indecisive. As the melee raged on, Parliaments remaining cavalry deployed on their right and charged in to support their infantry. Parliaments infantry fought on in disorder with diminished effectiveness, but the support of their cavalry was decisive. The Royalist infantry routed through their second line and the victorious Parliament troops crashed into them with abandon, the infantry officers having lost all control and the cavalry catching the spirit of the chase. Both armies had suffered severely, having lost a battle on one flank while gaining victory on the other, and both accepted a drawn battle after a hard days fighting and withdrew to their starting positions.

The Armies

Unit General Scots Regt of Foot Green Regt of Foot Red Regt of Foot Dragoons Regt of Horse Regt of Horse Regt of Horse Field Gun Light Gun

Number 1 12 20 8 24 12 24 10 10 10 10 1 1

1644 New Model Army Weapon CF FF Armour Pistol Armour Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Musket 3 3 Pistol 4 3 Armour Pistol Pistol Field Gun Light Gun 4 4 1 1 3 3 Armour Armour -

Status General Trained Trained Trained Trained Elite Elite Elite Elite Elite Trained Trained Trained

Pts/Model 50 3 4 4 4 5 5 6 7 7 6 40 21

Points 50 36 80 32 96 60 120 60 70 70 60 40 21 795

Unit General Red Regt of Foot Blue Regt of Foot Red Regt of Foot (Blue Color) Regt of Horse Regt of Horse Regt of Horse Regt of Horse Field Gun

Number 1 12 20 8 24 12 24 10 10 10 10 1

1644 Late Royalist Army Weapon CF FF Armour Pistol Armour Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Pike 3 Shot 3 3 Pistol 4 3 Armour Pistol 4 3 Armour Pistol 4 3 Armour Pistol 4 3 Armour Field Gun 1 -

Status General Trained Trained Trained Trained Elite Elite Elite Elite Elite Elite Trained

Pts/Model 50 3 4 4 4 4 4 8 8 8 8 40

Points 50 36 80 32 96 48 96 80 80 80 80 40 798

Army List Notes: 1. The Scots do not belong in a New Model list, but I had to make do with the foot units available for the day. Notes on the Game

First, I should note I am a big fan of Warhammer ECW. The guys I game with at conventions have been wanting to try 1644 since its re-release by Foundry, and this game was our first go at it. Here is an informal list of my initial impressions: The army lists seem simple and similar, but there are subtle differences that may have a great impact on the game. Parliament, for instance, may field a greater proportion of shot to pike in an infantry unit. With no powder rules, I think this is distinct advantage. The Late Royalist list allows all elite status for all cavalry units, but the cost for this is one higher per model than for Parliament (though Parliament is limited to 2 elite for every 5 cavalry units). There is less randomness in casualties, and melees tend to last more than one round when units are fresh. As there is no way out of melee if the winner follows up, melee is very destructive. Units that rout are pretty well finished, but pursuing them often deprives you of the units that won the contest as well (this seems appropriate for the period, especially for Royalist cavalry). The command rules add flavor to the game without being too complex, and solve one of the problems I have with WHECW, which is the lack of rules for disorder. If you dont like losing control of your units, however, you may not care for the results of failed command tests. We all thought this made for a more realistic game. Cavalry combat is spectacular in this game. The ability to charge in with additional units results in wild melees between huge numbers of models, with the last fresh unit to charge in sometimes deciding the combat. Again, this seems realistic for the period. Since units in command states other than normal are almost certain to pursue, its almost a guarantee that some of your cavalry will end up chasing enemy units from the field. We may add a house rule making this more likely for the Royalists, especially early in the war. I thought the Intention/Declaration phases might bog down the game. We found we rarely (if ever) used blank markers, and it is usually intuitive whether a unit is reforming or charging. The option to reform while retreating a full move seems to have great tactical possibilities, and one of the more interesting choices in the game is whether to charge in with a shaken unit or reform and surrender the initiative. 1644 seems to have great potential for tinkering by adding to the list of modifiers for command tests or combat factors. So if you think something is missing, add a +/- modifier on the appropriate table and see how it works.

Overall, this is a fun game with a good balance of realism and fun. Im looking forward to trying out the campaign rules as well, if I can convince my friends to do it. Hope you enjoy the pictures from our game!