They crawled from ruins of Londinium like flies - Dux Britanniarum First game and start of the Campaign

 We finally finished playable armies for Dux Britaniarum. Card driven game from Too Fat Lardies about Saxon conquest of Post Roman Britain. 
It was year  480 after birth of our Lord when times of peace ended to valiant defenders of Caer Llundein. The great city was abandoned many years ago and mostly lay in waste.. Saxon heathens did not dare to settle the fallen city but it provided entry point to the land of the Kingdom...

So happened that that year riders started to plunder the local farms. Saxon Anthus on the head of the horde of warriors rode in early march to ride, burn and plunder. Lonely farm in Verulamium was chosen as target of plundering raid...

Swarm of heathens floods the land

King Althenwald sent his best. Tribunus Avthurius leading spearhead of best Briton warriors, some of the still keeping up old Roman traditions 

Help is on the horizon...

Both forces rushed towards front of the lonely farmstead.

But thanks to great commend Britons were first to form their line blocking Saxon plunderers.

Saxons did not falter and stormed the lines before they were able to form shieldwall...

But thanks to the help of St Alban the martyr were miraculously repelled without causing any harm stronger than light disarray in the British ranks loosing many man themselves. SOme were saing it was the fault of young brutish Saxon leader that in his hubris decided to attack head first into numerary superior Britons line before they could form the shieldwall...

Miraculous repel of Saxon folly by St Alban hand

But easy first victory almost become shameful defeat. Avthur full of fervor decided to charge weakened Saxons after forming the shield line.

Britons failed to break the Saxon line and were open to attack of the whole Saxon warband.
In giant ensuring melee Britons were forced to hastily retreat, miraculously again (thanks to St Alban intervention and strength of the shieldwall with only few casualties). But Heathens forced series of 

Britons hastily marched half of the levy militia guarding the farm and small unit protecting old cairn on the left flank.

Saxons were relentlessly breaking their wolf teeth storming the shieldwall wave after wave.

Till they were not.. As fast as they descended the hills they disappeared into falling dusk... No doubt to return soon... after their wounds licked .. like the wolves they are.

Glorious Briton victory!

With acquired wealth and fame young Avthur managed to secure rank of the Prefects (progress in the campaign)! One of the Levy units remained with his retinue as a new units of Warriors (you start campaign with fixed forces but can get reinforcements (normally no more than two models added to existing unit that constitute new warrior unit after third such upgrade) or upgrade quality of one unit after huge victory (there is also way to gain set units of direct reinforcement butt you have to score huge victory to be able to do this.)

Saxon folly was over optimistic attack on numerically superior force of similar quality that proven very costly and totally ineffective (thanks to St Albans help) and completely abandoning the farm protected by single levy units (Saxons had one elite and one warrior unit not bound into central melee. They decided to commit them to the battle (bloodthirsty beast that they are) instead of easily driving out or plain murdering the levies and starting plundering my shieldwall could do nothing to prevent being threatened by the 3 other Saxon units.

Ranged skirmisher were virtually non effective whole game (Saxon archers killed on of the levies in the village in the last murderous action of the game.

Game was a blast although I've encountered few unclear parts in the rules but the game played very well. Must important was whether Britons get +2 to the result of the battle for successful raid successfully repelling obviously unsuccessful  raid (yes they do!)

I am longing to the second Saxon raid...

Beautiful church of St Alban the next Saxon target is already painted by my Saxon host Antgist!

Saxons bear deep wound and fear his holly power so decided to burn the edifice to him naively believing that his protection will wane..

SOON!

AVitus reinforcements Footsore Late Romans

 Ive finished my first footsore models. I love them although lack of spears forcing me to make them wasn't fun, models are great and helmets beautiful. Shields are dedicated Little Big Men/ Now Victrix

Warlord Epic Micro transfer - are they worth it?

 Short answer is Yes.

Long answer

I considered them a gimmick, not because they are small (I use smaller decals on my BallteMechs, but because you need a lot for one base..

But after tests, Yes, They take some work but are totally worth it. effect is great.

I did my own shield on Spanish Celtibres but they were mostly geometric or random and are not perfectly symmetrical but they work ok.. Symbols and pictograms are impossible for me to do in a way that would not make me angry in 20 copies per base.

And those Warlord decals do the job greatly.

Selection is questionable so far, it would be quite easy to make it better but they are great addition and I hope for universal hoplite style decal sheets when they release inevitable Greeks.

Final answer: Needs some work but are almost perfect. Need more difficult art. 9/10

Scrum at Castellum Xardasorum or learning the Lion Rampant again

 First time trying Rampant since covid in 2020... 

One day in northern Galia unit of Limitanei was warned about Goth warband heading to peaceful settlement of Castellum Xardasorum. They stand vigilantly awaiting for mobile army of Comes Mattias  Xardasus

Comes Matias Xardassus followed fast with his comitatus to relieve the village.

But smelly barbarians of Grzulf Desperatus were faster.

With heavy Goth cavalry in the front.

Xardassus rushed his cavalry but the infantry were slow to react.

Gothic heavy infantry stormed otward the village

But wave after wave of smelly furry goths break back from valiant limitanei varriors.

Untill Xardassus himself rode the rest of the goths down with charge of his companions.

Castellu Xardasorum ancient family villa of Xardasus was saved.

And Goths fate hung in the ballance... 

With some troubles (searching for info in 2nd ed rule book is much more difficult that in little blue book of the past. And we played badly because of it - you need to read the rules in full before playing... doh. Despite that game gave very nice flow and intresting results. And I was able to put my late Romans for the first time to the table. Sadly germans were proxied by Vikings with Irish mercenaries but I will work on acquiring more Germanics in the following year.

Next late roman game will be a Dux Britaniarum testing.

Liar of the White Worm in Frostgrave

 Soooo giant worm scenario from Rulebook.. We never played it so it was natural choice and I had worm bought many (like 5?) years ago just for this scenario... SO tit was natural fit for a start of the new campaign... Right?

Sooooooo naturaly it showed up and ate my thief in the second turn,,,

Hugh Grant the Soothsayer with his retinue

his Apprentice not MarrySue (dont get attached to her.. spoilers!)

And on the other worm side loomed evil Baba Jaga the Witch.. She had returned to wreak terror again!
Played by Amanda Donohoe for sure...

Later that turn after some transposing Ive claimed first treasure 

and Immortal Wraith appeared (no magic weapon nor spell on the table) followed by a Imp after my second treasure...

while Worm chomped on some enemy thug

Then Hugh Grant pulled his single useful thing the whole game and Dominated enemy InfantryLady and forcing her to axe enemy Woman at arms and challenge Baba Jaga herself sadly in the face of the She Devil herself she lost her conviction and dispelled my sorcery..!

Rest of the game was split between evading Immortal wraith of Doom...

And getting smacked by Baba Jagas cutthroaty ladies and Worm 

And then Baba Jagas cutthroats killed the worm too (haha.. you should attack them not me stupid invertebrate!!)

Culminating in successful giant axe swing at the old hag which she shrugged off at 1 hitpoint... till Templarette with larger axe surprised my dude from the back.

And then in a giant twist...

Another Immortal Wraith of Doom appeared and ganged up on me...

In a last heroic ditch effort my Infantrywoman was able to fight the wraiths till my band evacuated but what was not captured on the photo sadly.. NotMarry Sue attempted to throw a grenade at them and enemy thieve threatening Hugh Grant and failed blowing up herself to smithereens.. sadly there were nothing left of her and Hugh had to spent whole haul he managed to get for a new Apprentice and missing warriors.

WHAT A BLOODBATH

Liar of the Whith Worm 1/10 dont recommend!
Its a silly place...