Ade Edmondson and the Bad Shepherds live in Dunfermline

Jan & I had excelent evening out to the Carnegie Hall Dunfermline last night. We went to see Ade Edmondson and the Bad Shepherds. They did a fantastic concert with the evening being filled with fun and superb musicanship.Do enjoy the video...

Wargstadt ,early morning...

It is early morning in the back streets of Wargstadt an old man collects his daily bread from the bakers and returns home. He is interrupted from his musings by a small dog who barks a greeting to to him. Around the corner is the Church where the Electors are meeting. As the old man passes by the Electors are hearing Mass prior to the first session. His thoughts briefly alight upon them before returning to matters more mundane...

Meanwhile in the Church the Electors have gathered . For you here is a list of the Fourteen as they are known:

1. Peter von Alderfort - Guild Meister of the Guild of Falconers - a man reputed to be ambitious,wise, generous but an intriguer...



2. Joachim Durkhiemer- Guild Meister of the Guild of Clockwork , Ulhwerkhausen- a man infamous for his cruelty, unreliability and over powering ambition



3. Ulric and Elric von Wargstadt- albino twins and each the Grand Meister of one of the rival shooting fraternities of Wargstadt . Both men are energetic, good tempered and absolutely loyal to any cause they follow-except each other



4. The Slydavian Ambassador to Tradgardland speaks for the Slydavian community of Wasehiem



5. Joseph Wilderludwig- Guild Meister of the Meister Butchers of Wildschwein. The role of Guild Meister is an entirely honory position which is currently held by a member of the Empress of the Imperium's Kitchen Staff. In this case by a vain Chocaltier of unstoppable ambition...



6. The Master of the Horse Ritter von Altdorf



7. The Hereditary Librarian of Oberspange -an Nobel of the Imperium Court ( one who answers only to his title never his name) who is devoted to scholarship and the obtaining rare manuscripts at the expense of everything else...



8. The Count of Unheimlichwald- one who is described in the Wargstadt broadsheets as "Having something of the night about him..." yet presents as happy young man of sunny disposition

There are two External Electors who do not belong to the towns that make up the Disputed Valley. They have travelled far and quickly from their respective homelands to be here for the first session. One is the Tradgardland representative Von Bergmann and the other the Imperium Ambassador . They represent their country's longstanding but rival interests within the Valley.

Mass is now over and the Electors file two by two into the debating chamber ready for the first session. There is much talk of the absence of some of the Fourteen whose will arrive later that day. Until then there is much to talk of and fellow Electors to weigh up, disregard or even listen to.

The Electoral College convenes

"Rumours are currently sweeping the Disputed Valley that the aged Duke Benedict ( long exiled in the East and confined in a tower by his own choice) has finally died. If this correct the small but often over looked Electoral College will be convened in Wargstadt. Upon verification the rusty cogs of the process will set in motion and the good and the great will gather..."

The Rumours have proved to be true and so the members of the Electoral College of the Disputed Valley have gathered. With them they have brought the crowds and their entourages too. An atmosphere of excitement and joy has filled Wargstadt- acrobats,pedlars and street entertainers crowded the marketplace. Tomorrow sees the first session to be held in the Cathedral. The Electors will put forward their candidates,argue against those of the other members and hopefully agree upon two names. This process can take up to a month. Afterwards votes are cast and a new Duke is declared to the crowds assembled.

Fourteen men make up the Electoral College, each with their own agenda, their own masters to please and their own gold with which to bribe opponents. In the next post we shall meet them and hear of their foibles and fancies...

The battle of Wargstadt bridge a solo game battle report...

Today the Duchy is being lashed by gales and rain.My beautiful Beech hedging newly come into leaf and having put on new growth is being absolutely pounded! I was out briefly a.m and dodged the showers long enough to plant out peas,beans and courgettes having built bamboo cane towers for them to grow up.The weather has deteroriated since then.
Before lunch I sorted out some figures for the forthcoming club Dark Age campaign. After lunch I decided to set up an 18th Century game on a 3 by 2 kitchen tile arrangement as you can see. The forces of the Imperium are holding a river crossing and important orchard. The forces of the disputed Valley are attempting to retake the bridge and orchard. The game was played using Joe Saur's Old Wormley Creek Wargames Society 18th Century Charge Variant rules designed for smallish tables. Le t battle commence-

The set up for the game with the forces of the Disputed Valley (under the command of Brigadier and Burgomiester Bertolini) are advancing upon the Imperium troops ensconced around the bridge and orchard...

Turn one and the Disputed Valley troops came under fire from Grenzers who fired successfully from their positions- three sixes thrown!

Turn two saw a general advance from both armies and the Disputed Valley forces at the bridge deployed into line. Yet another unsuccessful firing from the artillery piece- far more training required in the Disputed Valley I fear!

Turn three see withering fire from the Imperium at the front of the picture and at the back too. Disputed Valley musketry is poor- terrible dice throwing by me again!

Turn four seeing the decimation of the Disputed Valley troops especially the Slydavians and an end to the game is in sight...

An attempt by the gallant Syldavians to rescue their colours was a partial success...

The final turn saw an attempt of the disputed valley forces to leave the field in some order. The grenadiers held off the cavalry whilst others marched off and attempted to take the cannon ( which had missed everytime it fired during the game) with them too. Note the Colours at the top of the picture being rescued from the field also.

It was a fun solo game ( the first I have played in absolute ages) which was set up in the landing at the top of the stairs. Today is a Monday holiday for me but Jan is in work,Freya at school, Anna at home revising having had a Physics exam this morning and Zoe studying hard for her next exam tomorrow! I must set up another game very soon...

Weekend solo gaming plans...

Weekend at last! Off for three days- Monday is Victoria Day (a public holiday in Edinburgh to celebrate her visit to the City many moons ago) and the schools are therefore closed!
I found this drawing in my Dodopad this week which I had forgotten about since I did in in Jan/Feb of this year. It depicts my plan for a small battlefield based upon floor tiles left over from the kitchen renovation. I hope to set it up this weekend and have a couple of solo games- one at least set in the disputed valley. I hope you have a great weekend whatever you are doing. Special best wishes to Paul of FLW fame who has a spiffing outdoor game/playtest this weekend- may the sun shine on your efforts sir!

The Wargstadt Jaegers- a disputed valley unit...

The town of Wargstadt fields a unit of jaegers. They march behind the town banner which depicts a large black hound who,it is said, still haunts the town square at night - 400 years after it single handedly defeated the leader of a pack of invading wolves on the feast of S. Stephen. The black hound ( who remains nameless in the sources) died in the attack ,but by killing the leader the thirty other wolves were routed and the town saved...

The unit is made up of two shooting fraternities whose rivalry is the stuff of legend. The Warg fraternity favours the rifled musket and the Stadt fraternity an early ,yet deadly, air rifle. Each year they compete along with all comers from the valley in the annual shooting contest. In times of war the two rival fraternites put differences aside and fight in a single unit under the town banner in their distinctive fraternity uniforms- the Warg in purple and the Stadt in green. Any invaders of the valley will find these light infantry a force to be reckoned with...

The Militia of Uhwerkhausen- a disputed valley unit...

The Milita of Uhwerkhausen on parade. They are accompanied by the Town banners depicting the fabled unicorn seen by S. Ulrich in the 14th century. They have the privilege of marching through the town on the Saint's feast day and end their march at the "Unicorn at bay" inn where they are provided with complimentary ale and local cheese.

Along with the musket armed members of the militia you can see the unit's cannon served by the local brewer and his sons. The powder comes from the powder mill at Wargstadt and is exchanged in kind for diverse clockwork automata .Regular gun drill takes place outside the brewery where passers by offer encouragement verbal and otherwise.

On the right flank can be seen the elite of the militia namely the Grenadiers.The role of Grenadier is hereditary and has been in the town bell ringer's family for generations. It is said their deafness caused by the Cathedral bells is an advantage when dealing with the noise emanating from the grenades as they explode They still drill with the grenades which have gone out of service in most of the rest of the Valley. With a slow match wrapped around their hands and a satchel filled with grenades they are formidable especially in the storming of buildings and fortifications ...