THE ALTERNATIVE BATTLE OF WORCESTER, 1651 A LOOK AROUND THE TABLETOP with Andy Fox and Neil Tew One of the stand-out games at this year s Salute show in London was The Alternative Battle of Worcester 1651, presented by The Crewe and Nantwich Wargames Club (C&NWC). This great looking game was justly awarded the coveted Best Painted Army trophy on the day. But, it wasn t just the armies that looked superb, the whole table was a sight to behold and one we thought deserved closer inspection. Our opportunity arose when Warlord Games invited Neil Tew and Andy Fox (from the C&NWC) over to their HQ for a play test game of Warlord s forthcoming Black Powder: Pike and Shot rules. WI tagged along. A full battle report of the day s game will be featured in the new rule book, so we won t go into details on that here, the focus of this article is all about the project. Suffice to say the scenario, The Alternative Battle of Worcester, was played out in a day to a decisive conclusion, with several swings of fortune along the way! Whilst the players rolled dice and manoeuvred Cavaliers and Roundheads around the battlefield we took lots of photos and threw a few questions at andy and Neil. Wargames Illustrated: What started the project? Andy: Specifically a purchase of some hand made wooden city walls by Ian Weekley from an internet-based auction site. These veteran pieces were subsequently reworked and repainted by TM Terrain to great effect. WI: How long did this project take? Andy: From first buying the walls to putting on the demo at Salute 2011 took just over two years. This wasn t the only project we were working on at this time, but it did take the lion s share of blood, sweat and tears. WI: Why choose the English Civil War? Andy: Within the ECW there is such a wide range of potential battles, sieges and raids, the combination of scenarios and armies is vast; and many are easily translated to the wargames board. Also the majority of our group live in south Cheshire, so the battlefield of Nantwich is on our doorstep. Seeing the Sealed Knot re-enactment of the battle of Nantwich for many years really helped bring the period to life and gave us inspiration. Many sections of our board have features and a flavour from the Nantwich battlefield; the smallish fields with densely packed hedges, the church (Acton Church), the narrow lanes, the bridge over the river (Weaver) and the gently rolling terrain. 64
Right: The quiet before the storm; the table before the game in all its glory. Opposite Page: The full table; the Royalists manoeuvre to their start lines, whilst the Covenanters in Worcester nervously await. English civil war 1641-1651 WI: Would you embark on such an ambitious project again? Andy: Yes, in fact we have another project using some, but not all, of the same boards; a different era and feel. Look out for us in two years or so. Salute 2013 is our target date and venue. WI: What fi gures do you use? Andy: Our armies are a mix of figures from Redoubt Enterprises, Bicorne Miniatures, Warlord Games, TAG, Renegade Miniatures and the odd Front Rank figure. We believe the slightly different sizes of figure more accurately represent the natural variations in height of the combatants found in every army. After all not everyone in the pay of the King or the Kirk was exactly 5' 10'' tall. The buildings we use are also a mix of companies, more for a wide range of styles, shapes, sizes etc. giving a varied village-scape. Again, we believe no 17th Century village would have exactly the same buildings. The companies we used are Grand Manner, Ian Weekley, PMC, TM Terrain and TSS terrain. WI: What is your favourite regiment/piece? Andy: For the Royalists it has to be the King s Lifeguard, due to the regiment s colours - fabulous designs! And they are one of out local regiments in Cheshire. For the Scots it s the Duke of Hamilton s Regiment of Foote, because it was the first Scots unit and it s got a fair few conversions in it. WI: Who painted and built what? Neil: Artmaster Studios painted the Royalist army and designed most of the eye candy figure groups, like the bear fight and the bath tub scene. Andy painted the hodden grey mass of Scots Covenanters. The boards themselves were built by TM Terrain, who also supplied plenty of inspiration, invaluable guidance and cunning ideas along the way. WI: But it s all just doll s house wargaming isn t it? Andy: No, we really do play on this table. Admittedly we don t often have the space to get the whole lot out. Wives do tend to get upset with 14ft of wargame board in the way. So more often than not, it s a third of the board in the spare bedroom. This still makes a fantastic game and gives plenty of different scenarios to play out. The next is going to be the scratch defence of a Royalist stronghold, based around the church and manor house, against a Scots battalia. Set in 1644, Northumbria. WI: Why not choose a real battle? Andy: We believe one battle, or section of a battle would be restrictive and would ultimately become stale. How many times can you refight Powick Bridge before you start with the what if? Having scenery inspired by several battlefields allows you to have a pick and mix the best bits. Plus, it reduces the restrictions you may have to the actual units, numbers of men present etc. on a certain day (if reliable data even exists). You get to choose, albeit keeping the feel of a realistic army of the time. WI: What about the feedback? Neil: We ve had mostly very positive feedback from Salute and Partizan. Including winning the best painted army prize at Salute and play testing a game for the forthcoming Warlord Games rules in Nottingham. We hope we ve inspired fellow wargamers to have a go at the ECW. It s great fun! Left: Tom Jones? - You can keep your hat on. A quick bath for a Royalist officer 65
Above: Rick Priestley & Andy Fox contemplate Lord Hopton s Regiment of Foote s fi rst attack on the city walls. Right: Live entertainment for the troops. Below: The interior of the city, ongoing entertainment plus Order Group for the Covenanters. 66
Above: The Royalist reserve; The King s Lifeguard of Foote advance. Left: Rest and Relaxation for some Royalists, courtesy of the oldest profession. Below: Stewart s Regiment of Covenanter foote fire on the Royalist cavalry wing of Prince Rupert. 67
Above: Lord Hopton s Regiment of Foote and the Prince of Wales s Regiment of Horse form up for the assault on Worcester. Right: King Charles and his immediate bodyguard. Below: The main Royalist assault. Prince Rupert s Blew Regiment moves up to support Blackwell s (black standards) and The Earl of Northampton s Regiment (green standards) in attacking the main gate. 68
Above: The Covenanter reserve, Hamilton s Regiment of Foote, await the call for duty. Right: The end of a troublesome rebel! Below: One wing of Covenanter horse advance, subsequently retreating even quicker in the face of Prince Rupert s mailed fi st..net As a bonus for English Civil War wargamers, we have even more photos from this shoot online, along with the alternative history story the guys created as a backdrop to this wonderful project. 69