Lead Legionaries: Kingdom of Gododdin Repels Viking Invasion

The Men of Gododdin - Lord Gwendawg and his Welsh warriors close with Jarl Jimsson and his unit of hearthguard

When word was spread by riders throughout the kingdom of Gododdin, Lord Gwendawg gathered his men - mounted hearthguards, foot warriors, and levy archers. Rumor flew that the Vikings were on the had plundered a monastery and were marching the monks back to their ships to sell overseas as slaves. Riding hard and fast the Welsh warriors caught up with the Vikings of Jarl Jimsson. The Vikings were tossed into confusion, but the jarl quickly reordered his men to face Lord Gwendawg's forces as they deployed.

Jim, left, finished his deployment while Mike Stelzer and his Byzantines faces off against Adrian and his Romano-Brits

This game of Saga was played as part of a game day at a local game store (Guardtower East). Steve Phallen organized it, and eight players showed up from Central Ohio, Springfield, and Dayton. I was matched against one of the Dayton player, Jim, and his borrowed Viking army. Jim suggested we play a game from his friend Adrian's copy of Book of Battles, so we did. I forget the exact scenario name, but it involved four objectives on the battlefield -- two on each side of the table -- that the armies were attempting to hold onto. We received points each turn for being within 2" of them with no enemy within 4". We used monks for the objectives (though they counted as impassable terrain and would remain stationary). Each of us deployed to maximize our chances at holding onto the ones on our side of the board and seizing those on our opponent's.

My mounted hearthguard charge up the hill on the left while my two center units of warriors and Warlord advance

I deployed my large unit of 8 mounted hearthguards on the left, so that they could race across a gentle hill and rescue the monks from the two units of 8 Viking warriors each guarding them. I figured my mounted troops should be up to the challenge, even though they were outnumbered 16 to 12. In the center, I placed my two large units of 12 warriors, supported by my mounted Warlord. Across from them were a unit of 4 berserkers, another unit of 4 Viking hearthguard, and his Warlord. This could be a nearer thing, I thought. On the right, I would have to delay with my unit of 12 Levy archers who marched onto a hill to shoot the enemy, yet still keep men near the objective. Across from them was another unit of 8 Viking warriors. I had five units vs. Jim's six, but most of my units were bigger, which should make them more survivable, I hoped.

Breakthrough! My mounted hearthguard have almost eliminated his first unit of warriors, and ready to charge the other

On my left, the mounted hearthguard of Gododdin raced towards the Vikings and crashed into the first unit. We smashed into them, killing six of them while losing only two. They were driven back to the corner of the battlefield. In the center, Jim advanced his three units, but I felt their attack was somewhat piecemeal. First, his small hearthguard unit tried to charge my archers, but I had saved an "Evade" move on our board and we withdrew before his charge. His berserkers targeted my warrior units, and I crossed my fingers and hoped our numbers could absorb his attack. In the ensuing combat, I lost 7 warriors, but he lost all of his berserkers. His hearthguard were ground down by my combined javelin and bow fire, and by my other warrior unit. Soon, only his Warlord contest the center.

Late stages of the battle - the Viking Jarl nearly surrounded by four units of Welsh

The battle on the left continued to go in my favor. My hearthguard followed up their charge, slamming into the other unit of Viking warriors, killing four of them and driving the rest back into the woods. This left us in control of the objective for the rest of the game. We turned and destroyed the remaining two warriors of the first unit, and tossed javelins at the warriors on the edges of the woods.

Other battles taking place - Roman ballista and infantry target their enemy

Then began the heroics of Jarl Jimsson. Time and again, surrounded and opposed on three sides by larger units, he shrugged off the effects of our javelins and arrows. I wanted to kill his leader, and did manage to get him to two fatigue. However, I could never finish him off, despite numerous flights of arrows and javelins, and even a charge by a warrrior unit. When he brought his fresh unit of warriors from his left to reinforce his center, I sent a "Wild Charge" of javelin-armed warriors to scatter them, slaying most.

Adrian's warlord leads a charge against Brett's Vikings in a second round battle

Essentially down to his virtually surrounded Warlord, Jim conceded the field. Interestingly, this scenario gives zero points for enemy kills. However, I was way ahead in that category, too. It was a smashing victory for the men of Gododdin. I really enjoy playing this Welsh Saga army. It has speed, strong melee ability, and significant missile firepower, as well. It's command and control "board" has a lot of reaction moves which can allow a commander to stay one step ahead of his opponent's maneuvering. In thinking about it more, I may experiment and swap out my 12 Levy archers with 12 javelin-armed ones. It was a fun game, and Jim was a great opponent.

Another second round battle - Steve's Romans face off against Lowell's borrowed Saxon army

Our game lasted about 2 1/2 hours, though, and everyone else had finished and been matched up for a second round by the time we were done. Both of us were fine with playing one game. Jim wanted to shop a bit and I wanted to check out some of the other games. Thanks to Steve for organizing the game day, and providing loaner armies, terrain, dice, and more. The Welsh are my own figures, and several other players brought their own troops, too. Everyone seemed to have a good time. I'm looking forward to playing again soon, and continuing the saga of Lord Gwendawg of Gododdin.