Annual Gaming Event - Day 3 - 1066

Friday dawned a beautifly clear sunny day.

After breakfast we were transported back for the morning to 1066 with a refight of Stamford Bridge.

 

The rules used were “To The Strongest” and there were three Viking players and four Saxons, led by King Harold Godwinson.

The handsome looking Viking fellow above stood defending the bridge overcthe River Derwent with two units while other Viking units were scattered across the land on the other bank of the river.

 

Harold swung off to the left, across the river at a ford while another two Saxon units attacked the Vikings in front of the bridge. One of the Viking units was quickly destroyed, but the other stood on the bridge and resisted all attacks.

 

The most right hand Saxon unit, a cavalry force, crossed the river at a second ford and then swung left to take on the Vikings on the heights beyond.

 

Around the same time the Viking boat guard arrived and headed for the ford that had just been crossed by the Saxon cavalry to try to take the Saxon main force in the flank.

The right centre Saxon command gave up on trying to take out the Vikings on the bridge and turned to face the new threat, driving off the first group of Vikings and crossing the ford.

 

Meanwhile Harold was heavily engaged with his brother Tostig, but struggled to make headway. The fighting here see-sawed, although Harold would finally triumph.

The Saxon cavalry tried to take the heights, but was twice repulsed. Their third attempt, however, was successful.

 

The Vikings on the bridge finally sortied from their position to try to help their reinforcements capture the ford, but these Vikings were destroyed and the Saxons captured the bridge.

 

Meanwhile the rest of the Viking defence collapsed and the game was called a Saxon victory. Here we stopped for lunch.

 

After lunch we were back in England in 1066, but this time in Hastings. Harold had rushed south and now faced William and his Normans.

 

We Saxons stood on Senlac Hill, and I held the left. Charmingly the Normans decided to try to hammer my command and two of their commands made directly for me. To The Strongest is a card based game and the luck of the cards was with me to start with and I knocked back three of the leading Norman cavalry units.

 

The rest of the Norman line held their own, but eventually the ganging up on me took its toll and my command collapsed. The Normans were then able to turn to the next command in line and that too began to crack.

 

In the end we Saxons lost. To the day was rounded out with historical results all around

 

We retired to the deck to demolish a bottle of Calvados, which we did in a short space of time.