English Civil War - 1644

After a gap of many years, we finally dusted off the ECW troops and decided to try 1644 rules by Rick Priestley which have sat on the shelf unused despite our enthusiasm when they were first published.

We decided on a conflict for a village positioned around a vital crossroads - so here goes ...

Royalist Dragoons move up quick on the right of the village

With supporting Foot marching towards the centre

Parliamentary Foot have similar ideas

 Two Royalist regiments reach the first buildings

Whilst a Parliamentary Blue Coat regiment can be seen around the bend to the north as the Royalist Dragoons decide to dismount and enter the barn

 A gun is dragged up in support of the Paliamentary foot

Roundhead horse deploy on their right

As the First cavalry action happens in front and to the right of the Blue Coats

A Royalist gun has deployed and starts firing

Royalist cavalry prepare to charge the Blue Coats

As the Parliamentary musketeers and artillery pound the barn holding the Royalist dragoons

Another Parliamentary regiment flanks the barn

On a roll of a 6 at the beginning of a bound, reinforcements arrive - in this case, more Royalist cavalry

Parliamentary forces push on towards the centre of the village, leaving the artillery to finish off the enemy dragoons

the Royalist cavalry have charged in against the Blue Coats

whilst over on the Royalist right a regiment of White Coats has charged the enemy unit beside the barn

The Cavalry melee over at the back of the village still rages with fresh units joining in

View down the main road during the Parliamentary advance

Royalist red coats attack across the left of the village against Parliamentarian green coats

but the white coat regiment has been beaten back by the Parliamentarians by the barn

and casualties are mounting as morale plunges

Two Royalist foot units are now in action on the left of the village and the Parliamentarians falling back

all the cavalry is getting sucked into the action in the fields north of the village

The King's men seem to have secured left of the village for now

A reinforcing Parliamentary foot unit arrives just as their friends break in the middle of town

a Parliamentary green coat regiment is routing from the Royalists

We finished the game at this point. Overview - cavalry stalemate outside the village, left and centre of village in Royalist hands but Parliament has pushed back the Royalist right.  Pretty much a draw unless fresh forces arrive to tip the balance one way or the other.

So, what did we think of 1644 ?  Not bad but still not the elusive perfect ECW rules we are looking for.  We have a couple of more sets to try out in the future for further comparison. (Fields of Glory Renaissance and Warr Without an Enemie by the Wyre Forest Wargames Club)