Dux Britanniarum Campaign - August 565 AD

The Scots of Loarn move to intercept their raiding cousin's

This month, August 565 AD, while the Scots of Cenel Loarn were preparing to raid their Pictish neighbours to the east, their cousins from Cenel n'Gabrain launched a raid into the lands of Loarn attacking a village and attempted to loot and pillage all they could find.

We had plumped to play a chosen scenario as both Ian and myself had so far only played a couple of scenario's in the campaign as the random roll's for the both of us meant that we had repeatedly played the same couple of scenario's so far in the campaign. We chose to play the village raid as neither of us had played this scenario yet. The only winning conditions were that the raiders had to find and leave the table with two successful loot rolls to win. Anything else meant the defending Lornian Scots were the winner's.

With all the random throws done the starting positions were that the raiding Gabrain Scots were already in the village and beginning to search for loot with the Skirmishers and Missile troops doing the searching and the Gabrain Lord and his Raider Cavalry and all his Warriors lined up to meet the Loarn Scots as they entered the table at the far corner. The Loarn Scots started with only the Lord Fearadach and his Warband on the table, with the rest of the troops to follow the following turn as they activated.

With the initial set up and things already looking a bit nasty from the outset, both Ian and myself thought things looked a bit like a foregone conclusion withthe raiders looking to get a quick and easy victory once the looting had been successful.

While the raiders searched for loot, Fearadach with nothing to lose, launched himself and his warriors straight at the invaders but came up short from contact.

The Invaders response was predictably a charge one and the Gabrain Scots Warriors charged to meet the oncoming Loarn Warriors and though backed up with a Ferocious charge and a double round of combat failed to break the Loarn Warriors but both ranks had a significant amount of shock inflicted. Then the Gabrain Cavalry and Lorn charged in the flank and again two rounds of combat were fought and due to the horrendous amount of shock inflicted the Loarn Warriors were forced back but managed to drive back the attacking cavalry but the combo of warriors and cavalry proving too much.

By this time however, the rest of the Scots began to make an appearance and began to filter onto the field in support. The Skirmish infantry and cavalry moving round the right flank and began to shoot and inflict shock on the recovering and re-ordering Gabrain Warriors. along with the Bowmen who also added their muscle to the fray and also began to shower the milling warriors.

The Loarn Noble Cavalry came round the narrow left flank and rode to rescue their fellow warriors and rode into their Gabrain counterparts and utterly destroyed them.

This success however was to be short lived as the Gabrain Lord brought back his remaining bounced cavalry and in a couple of rounds of combat destroyed the Loarn Nobles in return. 

The respite that the cavalry duel on the left flank however had given enough time to get the Loran warriors back into the fight and enough shock had been removed to get them to charge again which they did before the Gabrain Warriors could reform due the constant fire from the skirmishers and Bowmen.

This clash was briefer than the first and with only two thirds of the Loarn Warriors entering the fray, they trounced the Gabrain Warriors who with significant shock already ended up with double shock and the warriors broke en masse.

The Gabrain Lord in revenge, charged into the unit of Loarn Warriors who had had no noble attached and so had not recovered any shock and with lots of dice against two, the third group of Lornian Warriors were broken and being next to the table edge from the start ran off the table.

Next the Gabrain Lord charged into the victorious Loarn Warriors who wer moving to pursue the fleeing Gabrain rabble, and with were nasty dice rolls from Ian, and some spectacular dice from me destroyed his charging cavalry and wounded the Lord who broke and fled.

The victorious Loarn Warriors now pursued the fleeing Lord and overwhelmed him and captured the knave for ransome. 

All the while, while the battle was raging to the south of the village, the Gabrain Skirmishers and Bowmen had been ransacking the village to no avail, much to Ian's chagrin. In fact it was almost the last turn of the game before he managed to throw a 6 and sneak off with one paltry loot.

With time running out and all the fighters of Gabrain killed, captured or fleeing the game was declared an overwhelming victory to Cenel Loarn and a much surprising outcome after the initial set up. Just goes to show, in the words of the prophet..."Never give up! Never Surrender!"