The game played Illyrvm v Britain

 I played the game through using One Hour Wargames. It was an enjoyable solo game with some surprises in the shape of some awful shooting ( dice throwing) at times. Not taxing, surprisingly exciting and a fitting first outing for the Illyrvm forces. Here are the pictures of the game ( dice represent the number of casualties a unit has taken, each unit can take fifteen before being removed from play) at the end of each turn-

First turn and an exchange of fire

Further fire fights ensued.

Illyrvm troops move to hand to hand fighting on the left flank and also assault the village.

British troops in the woods on the left flank are eliminated as are the British troops attempting to hold the village.

Overwhelming supremacy on the left flank and the village being now in Illyrvm hands promoted me to declare a victory to the Illyrvm forces. 

I look forward to the next game with these troops being played using the Portable Napoleonic Wargame…

Skirmish rules tweaking

 P was keen to get his newly painted Arab Conquest force on the table and I provided opposition in the form of my Carolingians . DBV says you roll to see who has initiative with the winning side trying to activate each of their units in turn prior to your opponent then doing the same. We decided to try something more random using the Bolt Action dice in a bag, one for each unit on the table in number. Dice were pulled one by one and the player can assign it then to a unit of their choice.

The table set up , terrain added and my forces looked out.

Initial disposition with one of my units having moved up to the stream edge. The Bolt Action dice marks it has activated this turn.

An Arab attempt at out flanking was thwarted by Carolingian skirmishers .

Fierce fighting at the stream edge.

The game further through. P is recovering from surgery  and got fatigued so we stopped early with an honourable draw declared by the umpire. Our addition of the Bolt Action dice ( to see who activated only and not used to mark orders) led to a less predictable, more exciting game. We will certainly do this next time. 

Overcrowded table

 In my enthusiasm to see all the Illyrvm forces on the table for the first time l have set up a wee, if overcrowded table. The British have taken the village of Brudnet and surrounding woods. The Illyrvm forces are charged with retaking the village and securing the bridge nearby. I will play this out over the coming days…

Further charming men etc

 I did paint those aforementioned fellows in the Grey Croatian hussar uniform-

Went to a hot , sunny South Queensferry yesterday. Coffee and middle daughter’s swim.

Returned home to give the grass first cut of the season. Enjoy the sun this weekend as it appears ( here at least) rain and cooler weather are on the way…

This charming man and his friends

 I am a sucker for old school painted miniatures on E bay. I look through the listings and see what were once someone’s pride and joy now being sold for a myriad of reasons. To be frank often because the painter and owner has died. I want to give these charming figures a new home and gaming future. I also want to pay a reasonable price neither too high or too low.

This week l bought these old school napoleonic cavalry. French support and allies for Illyrvm. All I have done is base and paint them, probably l will varnish them or use pva for the same purpose later.

There are one or two left over. I may have a go at painting them in Croatian hussar grey uniforms or not, haven’t decided yet…

Non gaming stuff

 The weekend saw progress in the garden-

My youngest helped out.

Cutting a bush back dramatically allowed access to water butt and far corner.

Sorting out a plastic pot dumping ground has enabled another growing area to be reclaimed.

I was able to repair the broken cold frame with the above. The below is the result.

Seeds were planted and l await the joy of their germination…

Yesterday saw a wee away day. The first day of my new course was postponed so l went off by bus into the city and beyond…

Breakfast at Soderberg at the West End. I then nipped on an X7 for Dunbar, alighting at Haddington.

Coffee , cake and “1942” by Peter Englund in Falko. See more-

https://www.falko.co.uk/about-falko

A bargain buy in the Oxfam shop in Haddington prior to a couple of bus rides home. A grand day out . I managed to nearly complete the weasels, stoats and rats. Their gallant opponents in the shape of Mr Toad and chums will be worked on today…

A stoater of a day

 The sunne has shined here all day. The day began with a trip to the doctor to get some results. Much more positive news than I feared. I can put my recent health scare away for now, thankfully. I went off and browsed the second hand books in Abbot’s House-

I got the above. The books on sale are curated by a bookseller, I forget from where, who leaves his thoughts on the books in post it form, nice.

Later on I began work on these conversions and other an consulted a natural history equivalent of an Osprey Book-

Illyrvm , a Napoleonic imagination

 

Viola. What country, friends, is this? Captain. This is Illyrvm ,lady. From Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare  Stretching from the sea to the mountains Illyrvm has a long history. It forms part of the Western Balkan Peninsula. For our purposes we are interested first and foremost in how it formed a small yet not insignificant part of the Napoleonic French Empire in the Balkans. Threatened by Turks, Montenegrins, Austrians, Russians and British the Illyrvm forces put up a strong, at times, resistance to the invader until all collapsed in 1814. This is the story of some units of the Illyrvm army under French control.

The Illyrvm Chasseur regiments were formed from former Austrian grenz regiments whose homes were in the Military Border ceded to the French in 1809. The 4th Illyrvm Chasseurs are in uniform resulting from trying to dye their brown coats blue, unsuccessfully. The French allowed this to be worn as nothing else was available. The 3rd  Illyrvm Chasseurs took the field in their Austrian white jacket dyed blue.

The Royal Illyrvm Regiment was formed from the former Royal Illyrvm Legion. When conscription proved problematic the Legion’s battalions were merged with others to form The Royal Illyrvm Regiment. Some of this unit were experienced in mountain warfare and could serve as light infantry. The regiment’s Chasseurs  proved particularly effective in battle and defended Zadar from an Austrian siege.

The Illyrvm Provisional Regiments ( 1st, 2nd and 3rd) were formed from units taking high numbers of casualties combined with conscription elements and volunteers. Some of them were involved in the Grande Armee’s invasion of Russia and suffered badly in the subsequent retreat from Moscow. Their numbers were merged , upon their return,with a reinforcements to serve once more in their native land.

The Illyrvm National Guard or Garde Nationale was raised in 1806 to protect their city from the threat, ever present, from Russian and Montenegrin troops. Although it was deemed a privilege and prestigious to serve in the unit, in the eyes of the local population, their martial qualities left much to be desired. It was hard for the officers to stop the National Guard parading with myriad, pistols, daggers and sabres. Money was raised by subscription for poorer recruits to pay for their uniforms. With a great effort the unit was weaned off their quaint weaponry onto French muskets and bayonets .

                                                      The army assembled together on parade.

                              The beautiful cities of Illyrvm as depicted in this famous painting.

         A sixteenth century engraving of Illyrvm showing Venetian trading galleys in the foreground.

It is hoped that l will get a chance to use these troops in action soon and l have found their creation, fluff and painting helpfully diverting as well as fun.

Coming soon…

 The beginning of-

Then in our time-

And 2022-

Now in 2025 -

Paul Wright has kindly sent me the above for my thoughts. I will let you know more about this forthcoming book over the next few days…