ALY MORRISON'S "BUTTERFLY" ADVENTURES IN THE WORLD OF WARGAMES AND TOY SOLDIERS

Thursday, 7 March 2024

From my side of the table… 1672.

Greetings…

A few weeks ago a few of us (Alan, Michael, Nick, John and myself) went round to Rick’s house and wargames palace for a game of Pike and Shot using Nicks fine collection of 1672 Franco-Dutch War toys and the Epic Pike and Shot Rules…

 Various things … both fun and irritating seem to have got in the way of me posting about this fine game… I of course say “ fine game “ because I was on the winning side…for a change 😁.

I did a wonderful flank move… Yup!…. Spent most of the game marching… Which is probably why we were victorious 🤣.

Somewhere in the Netherlands… 


My beautiful brave and glorious flank marchers…


Some villainous types… I painted some of these… And some of the buildings… But I am still going to shoot them if I can 😁.


Some lovely French hikers going for a peaceful walk in the Dutch countryside…Honest.

It would appear that the villainous enemy are also flankers…😳.

They are rather pretty…

Our brave troops show the Dutch how they can lie down and pretend to be dead … Thus distracting them from the fact that I am slowly sneaking around their flank…

It looks like it worked…

The enemy put pressure on our centre…And you can just see our glorious men bracing themselves for the Dutch flanking move ( That sounds like a football term… Or a country dance 😁) 

I honestly can’t remember what they were up to… But it was clearly glorious.

The enemy brace themselves for my (slow🙄) onslaught…


It took a while…But the gun eventually hit something… I think it might have been John.


The action heats up on my flank and despite being well dug in the town’s defenders start to take casualties…

My ability to hit anything hadn’t improved by much…But my saves were well above average.

Meanwhile on the other side of the battlefield ( Under another windmill… It is Holland ) some hot shooting action goes on…


After much hard pounding the defenders eventually have had enough and break…

The Dutch flank attack faltered as did their centre…
It was a pretty close game with the battle lines moving slowly clockwise round the table…

A very enjoyable day indeed…. A big thank you to Rick for hosting the game and Nick for supplying the toys…

All the best.  Aly





40 comments:

  1. Well done Aly. Splendid looking game too.

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    Replies
    1. I will certainly claim the victory… Even though I mostly just marched… fortunately in the right direction.

      All the best. Aly

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  2. While I have absolutely no idea of the history or the mechanics of the period, the aesthetic is amazing!

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    1. You almost have as much knowledge as me then 🤣
      It is indeed very pretty…

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  3. A splendid looking game with beautiful miniatures and terrain.

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    1. It was indeed Peter.
      Rick and Nick certainly put on a good show.

      All the best. Aly

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  4. Outstanding game with great looking figures and amazing terrain. Sounds like a excellent time was had.

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    Replies
    1. It was indeed an excellent use of a day…

      All the best. Aly

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  5. What a superb looking game, the 1672 range of figures is a cracking one and seeing them on the table in all their finery is a wee treat indeed!

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    Replies
    1. It’s a lovely looking period…
      Much prettier than the ECW and the TYW in my humble opinion…
      All the best. Aly

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  6. What a wonderful sight. It's a glorious period indeed for which i should paint more.
    Stephen

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    Replies
    1. It has a touch of class about it doesn’t it.

      All the best. Aly

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  7. Looks a fab game Aly, right up my street! And a win, no less! Very well done Sir!

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    1. Yeah…It certainly ticks all the boxes.
      And yes a victory…. Hurrah!

      All the best. Aly

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  8. A splendid looking game of toy sojers and no mistake. On the victorious side too no less.

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    1. It was indeed…
      I’m surprised I haven’t seen you dip into this stylish period…

      All the best. Aly

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  9. Just had a second and longer look. There is so much to enjoy. What a period for uniforms and flags.
    Stephen

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    1. It is indeed a delightful period for uniforms and flags… A nice mix between 30 Years War and the War of Spanish Succession.

      All the best. Aly

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  10. A fine looking tussle, and you were on the winning team!

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    1. A fine game and an unexpected result…

      All the best. Aly

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  11. That is a stunning looking game Aly - a period I know approximately SFA about, sort of pre WSS I suppose - no doubt the dastardly French were trying to take over the Low Countries...AGAIN!

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    1. I believe it was an argument the French were having with the Dutch over their decision to turn the whole of the Low Countries into a holiday resort for Louis XIV… Well that’s my reading of it.

      All the best. Aly

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  12. Nice pics Aly and good to have a full house and the chance to use the full sized table! Compared to the game round at Alan's it was noticeable that the extra 2 feet did slow down both flank marches and it was only in the last turn or so that either of us (I was the other flank) managed to get stuck in.

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    1. Thank you Rick…
      It was a very enjoyable day…
      I quite enjoyed the extra space on the table… The flank march actually felt like one… A bit frustrating at times but a satisfactory ending…

      All the best. Aly

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  13. That looked a really interesting game - nice to see a table with room to manoeuvre that gets exploited for such. Too many 'big games' seem to have a table so overloaded with troops there's no room to do anything but march straight ahead and start throwing dice.

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    1. It was an interesting and enjoyable game Rob…
      I really liked the extra space which did indeed give room for manoeuvre.

      All the best. Aly

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  14. Fabulous Aly. Delighted to see this as I recognise some units on the game that I painted about 12 years ago and which I know found their way back into Nick's hands when I sold them on. You had command of at least one of those units (The Royal Italien... brown coats and snazy linen flag). Great to see them getting on the table. Best rgds. Phil

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    1. Thank you Phil….
      The Royal Italian are one of my favourite French units… They didn’t let me down.

      All the best. Aly

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  15. Replies
    1. They are indeed lovely toys… My butterfly had a damn good flutter after the game 🦋🦋🦋🤣

      All the best. Aly

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  16. Really lovely looking game there Aly:).

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    1. It was indeed Steve…
      And I was on the winning side for a change…

      All the best. Aly

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  17. Always excellent to see armies of the Sun King's era (pre-1700) on the table!

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    1. It is such a colourful period isn’t it…

      All the best. Aly

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  18. True definition of a great time. Beautiful figures and terrain., Tactical business that turns the flank and the tide of battle. Good game to reminisce on later.

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  19. A beautiful looking game Aly, can I say I do enjoy the Epic Pike and Shotte rules.

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    1. It was indeed a lovely game Robbie
      It was the first time I had played Epic Pike and Shot and I found it very enjoyable…

      All the best. Aly

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