The complex 17th Century

Helion, which publishes Peter Dennis' fantastic Paperboys of which I have far too many, has been inching towards making more of its material available as ebooks. They've finally got around to digitizing their own series of wargaming rules and guides, so I picked up a couple volumes that have interested me since their publication.

Reading ebooks is frustrating when you have a cat and a touchscreen.

Every Bullet Has Its Billet by Barry Hilton (author of Beneath the Lily Banners) is a short but punchy guide to wargaming the late 17th century, including an overview of many different conflicts. This is a period that I know almost nothing about, barring a bit about the Monmouth Rebellion, Glorious Revolution, and Irish-and-Scottish reactions to the latter. (An artifact of having read primarily British sources and listened to almost nothing but traditional folk music in childhood.

Notes and takeaways:

• Learned that the Cameronian regiment descended from Covenanters, and a bit more about their role. Would be a useful "extra" period to use my small ECW and '45 collection in.
• The Turkish-Christian conflict of the late 1600s (of which I only knew of the 1683 siege of Vienna) was one of the great upheavals of history.
• Many of the conflicts are described as "colorful," with a wide variety of antagonists and units even in fairly small conflicts, and diverse scenario opportunities. This is always useful in a setting.
• There was so much international "churn" among mercenaries that Hilton calls it an "ecosystem" of tactical innovation and experience. He seems keen to note that every rule and regulation had its exceptions in part because an officer who had fought the Ottomans might next find himself in Ireland. The same goes for the uniforms; while every veteran unit ends up with a motley of clothing, it sounds like there were fewer rules at this point, where the modern "regiment" was still coalescing. By the end of the period, the "traditional" look was there, but it took a long time.
• On the other hand, like the armies, that allows for plenty of variety in painting and modeling, too. As I use small-scale Paperboys, that may not be all that useful... the many different color schemes means that it's possible to rehome a regiment by simply switching out the command bases.
• The proportion of troop types (generally 3:1 or 4:1 Infantry:Cavalry) is important to get right. With too many infantry, the game is slow and dice-driven (by the infantry shooting), while with more cavalry the game is more fluid. (This might seem obvious, but the point he makes here is that players must watch their flank more when there is a possibility of it being ridden down!) Artillery has little combat effect, but much morale effect.
• The Danish army was incredibly varied in color, particularly the contingents sent to Ireland which had not switched to grey coats yet. I am reminded of Charles Grant Sr's famous Vereinigtestaadt army, composed of whatever colors he fancied, so this could be a fine basis for an Imaginations force.
• French elite troops saw more active service than those of other countries, and there were lots of them, so Guards regiments and the like can form a fair proportion of an army.

A few rules-neutral scenarios are provided; I like the Ride of the Kentish Knock, a small naval scenario from 1652 which I could probably recreate with Junior General Trafalgar rules, and The Bogside, a "stealing supplies" scenario which is presented for Donnybrook but I imagine could work for Sharp Practice or even The Sword and the Flame (hm, British trapped in an outpost and a herd of goats just standing there outside the gate?).

The book concludes with a handful of useful basing, painting and rules tips. Training was at such a low level that only the most basic infantry maneuvers were possible - another reason for having plenty of cavalry to add tactical interest. One curious element of Hilton's games (in particular because I keep a travel journal) is that he tracks every unit in his games, writing down their successes and failures for posterity. A charming addition normally reserved for campaigns, but I can agree that this sort of writing can bind up a lot of memories. Perhaps that's why I started this blog.

Interesting battles I haven't heard about: Bass Rock, Hudson's Bay

Games that sound interesting: Donnybrook, Mad For War, Beneath the Lily Banners (all by Barry Hilton), Free Fast Play Naval Rules for Anglo-Dutch Wars by legio-wargames.com, and Victory Without Quarter (also free) by Quindia Studios.

A fine overview, one that makes me fear getting dragged into another period. He writes, "A last word on collecting either land or naval forces, focus!"