Dunbar or Bust!

Saturday 17th October - FoG Renaissance - I turned up around midday to see Chris and Al still playing the battle of Dunbar.  I took over the English (hiss!  boo!) and developed the cavalry attack on the Scots.  I had to make whatever headway I could as soon as possible.  If I didn't the Scots foot (twice the number I had) would fall upon my pbi.  As it happened we drew stumps at 16:00 when I had just attacked a foot unit in the flank.  There had been much consulting of the rules and head scratching.  Looks like we all need to become a lot more familiar with this particular rule set!

Wednesday 21st October - finished another book:

This volume is all about the slowly developing American colonies - English, Dutch, French, Swedish & Danish.  The period is characterised by religious intolerance (yet again) and empire building.  For those who play "Muskets & Tomahawks" there is a mass of information about real and projected conflicts.  The natives fought for and against various colonial powers sometimes as allies and occassionally as the dominant partner.

It becomes clear that political in-fighting meant that 'paper' strengths did not translate into boots on the ground.  Even if these theoretical numbers were achieved some garrisons were still tiny (and the guns in poor condition).  No surprise then as to how many times forts, outposts and minor colonies changed hands or were destroyed.

This volume does suffer from some rather poor english but does not become unreadable.


I shall take a break from factual books and go back to Star Trek or Star Wars -  just to give my brain a rest.

Sunday 25th October I will be Fiasco (Leeds) as I have voluntered to help out at a demonstration game - more of that next week.

FoG in the New World

Well I finally got around to comparing the two 'New World' Field of Glory supplements.  Initial thoughts are that dates were often hard to find (especially in 'Cities of Gold'). In spite of this I have done my best to make a comparison chart:

 

FoG Americas (& Africa) comparison chart (10.4.14)
	Blood & Gold	Cities of Gold
Olmec	1150 to 400 bc
African, central		1640 to 1699
African Forest, west		1655 to 1699
Amazonian Forest Tribes	1350 to 1500	1494 to 1662
Araucanian, Mapuche or	1461 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Arawak		1494 to 1555
Aztec	1375 to 1500	1494 to 1521
Buccaneer		17thC
Canari	1400 to 1460
Carib		1494 to 1698
Chanca	1000 to 1450
Chichimec	700 to 1500	1494 to 1600
Chimu	850 to 1470
Chinantec	1300 to 1500	1494 to 1530
Dutch or English colonial (American)		1622 – 1698
Eastern Woodland Culture	900 to 1500	1494 to 1698
English or Dutch colonial (American)		1622 – 1698
English West Indies expedition		1654 to 1655
French, colonial		1564 to 1698
Funj or Fur		1504 to 1699
Hatun-Colla	1400 to 1460
Huaxtec		1494 to 1526
Imbangala or Zimba allies		1589 only
Inca	1438 to 1500	1494 to 1572
Mapuche or Araucanian	1461 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Mayan	600 to 1450	1494 to 1697
Mexican, west	100 to 900
Mixtec, Zapotec or	400 to 1500	1494 to 1522
Moche, Mochica or	100 to 700
Mochica or Moche	100 to 700
Mossi		Late 15thC to 1575
Mound-Builder Culture	900 to 1500
Natchez		1494 to 1698
Oromo		1560 to 1699
Otomi		1494 to 1526
Pacific North-West Culture	1100 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Plains Culture	900 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Portuguese, Aviz		1494 to 1580
Pueblo Culture	900 to 1500	1494 to 1692
South-Eastern Woodland Culture	1300 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Spanish, colonial		1526 to 1698
Sudanese, central		1564 to 1596
Sudanese, west		16thC to 17thC
Tarascans	1300 to 1500	1494 to 1533
Teotihuacan	100 to 750
Timucuan	1200 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Tlaxcalan Confederacy	no dates
Tlaxcaltecs		1494 to 1521
Toltec	900 to 1179
Tuareg		1494 to 1698
Tupi	1400 to 1500	1494 to 1698
Zapotec or Mixtec	400 to 1500	1494 to 1522
Zimba allies, Imbangala or		1589 only

I separated Olmec out as it is the only bc army for which there is a list.
18 lists span the 'Ancients' divide - I will look at the differences later.

More Purchases

Been away this weekend at "The Grand Departs", Mytholmroyd, Yorkshire.

True to form my FoG(R) books turned up on Friday  - "Cities of Gold" & "Colonies & Conquests" - so no chance to look at them.  Busy until Wednesday when I hope to give them my attention.

On the way home I called in at the Halifax shop and picked up:

Red Box RB72050 Highland Infantry - Jacobite Rebellion 1745.

Strangely Red Box uses exactly the same image - "The Battle of Culloden (1746) by David Morier" on all three sets - 72049, 72050 & 72051. 

As this makes three boxes in stock it might be  worth my while looking at army lists to see if I can put together a skirmishing force for both sides.  Don't hold your breath though!!!

A New Purchase

I have played FOG(R) a few times but do not own a set of the rules.  So why have I purchased a copy of the above?  The answer, dear reader, lies in 'Steven's Balagan' - or rather his "DBA in the New World".

To avoid too much concentration on Auxilia Steven adapted some of the FOG(R) army lists.  I thought that I would look at all the New World lists (Ancient & Renaissance)..

"This book covers the armies of the Pre-Columbian Americas until shortly before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the early 16th century AD."

The armies covered include:

Central America - Amazonian Forest Tribes (Anti, Chuncho, Muzu, Pausas); Aztec; Canari;  Chanca; Chichimec; Chimu; Chinantec; Hatun-Colla; Inca; Mapuche or Araucanian; Mayan; Mochica; Olmec; Tarascan; Teotihuacan; Tlaxcalan Confederacy; Toltec; Tupi; West Mexican (Ixtan del Rio, Huitzilpa, Teuchitlan, Ameca, El Openo) & Zapotec or Mixtec.

North America - Eastern Woodland Culture (Algonquin, Iroquois); Mound-Builder Culture (eg Natchez); Pacific North-West Culture (Athapascan, Salishan, Tlingit); Plains Culture (Arapaho, Assiniboine, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Comanche, Crow, Gros Ventre, Kiowa, Lakota/Sioux); Pueblo Culture (Hopi, Pecos, Pior, Tano, Tewa, Tiwa, Zuni); South-Eastern Woodland Culture (Biloxi-Souian, Cado, Muskogee, Timucuan) & Timucuan.

Of course I need the following book - "Cities of Gold" and this is on order.  When I have both I will do a proper review.