Bishop Bashing at Dribbly Rump

Back in the day, when I subscribed to Wargames magazines, just occasionally an article would jump out at me.  Richard Clarke's "Bashing the Bishop" was one of these.  I used it for inspiration when collecting my 28mm Feudals, Wargames Foundry figures, and excellent they were.  
I downsized to the 15mm collection for the move to Cyprus, as well as getting copies of the articles I wanted, including Bashing the Bishop.  The 15mm have a huge storage advantage over the weighty 28mm, but I have only really ever used them for Lion Rampant.

Included in the 15mm figures I supplemented my collection with were several packs of Splintered Light Miniatures Robin Hood range.  These include several "Personalities" including... a Bishop.  I mean it was just meant to be.  These are all late twelfth century to early or mid thirteenth.


The "Bashing the Bishop" rules are fun, not meant to be historically accurate, just intended to give a good simple game.  There is a gap in my rules collection for a 10-20 figure s side game and having played a lot of Fistful of Lead recently it is high time I did some medieval skirmishing.


As a solo player I've added some amendments to the rules as written to allow solo play.  I think I need to import some of the Steel,and Steed tournament games mechanics, although keeping the strength idea from Bash the Bishop.

Midshire, the base map

Midshire

The County of Midshire has been the scene of many a battle in the few years I've been recording it's Chronicles.  For these feudal games I`ve retreated from the Wars of the Roses to the Anarchy.  In the 1140's England is in the grip of the Anarchy and Midshire is in a mess.  The Earl has little control and the County's religious well being is firmly in the hands of Phallus de Farthingdale, Baby eating Bishop of Midshire.  A less likely candidate for the Clergy could probably not be found anywhere outside of Rome. 

The Holy Cross of Midshire

Phallus has a "Robust" 4 strength points, and is Both Obese and Without Honour.  It may well be outside of the rules to assign two attributes to a character, but he genuinely had a cocked dice roll 3/7 (photo provided) and I just went with it.  As a fighting Bishop his Excellency wears chain mail and carries a mace to smite the enemies of the church (and that seems to mean just about everyone)  

The Bishop is custodian of the Sacred Hair Piece of St Donald, a holy artifact that has a strange effect when revealed in public, either huge ridicule and laughter or instant chanting of frenzied right wing slogans.

The Bishop's fateful roll

I drew up five other characters that will feature as faction leaders if I use this as a campaign format: 

• Hugh Biggot, Earl of Midshire, 
• Sir Conrad Pyles rebellious knight, 
• Robbing Hood, a woodland outlaw leader, 
• Gary Grasping, a Merchant,
• Amalric de Analle an Abbot and super rich Monk.  

Each character gets a retinue, but this is not a fair game.  Rather than set up a points I will just roll a d6 to determine a rough retinue size 1 being half a dozen, 6 being a couple of dozen. (Increments of 3)  Troop types will be a mix of the types that character could have.  It's a solo fudge but very simple.

Bobby the Hood, woodland outlaw

The Rules Mechanics are also pretty simple...

• Initiative
• Move 
• Fire 
• Fight

Initiative is rolled between the factions.  The faction with Initiative activates a single figure at a time.  The figure may move - or half move and fire - and then fight if in contact.  Combat is differentiated between moved into combat, charged, counter-charged or sustained.  Weapon types make some difference, and generally (most) Knights are stronger than Sergeants who are in turn stronger than peasants.

Each Knight is assigned a "Character" by a dice roll, and a "Strength" roll that is essentially their Hit Points, varying from 6 (a Macho Macho Man,) to 1 (a Weedy Cove)  Attacking figures try to score hits that remove these strength points until the figure is knocked out.  Very similar to the system in Steel and Steed.

Once all figures in the faction have acted the next faction with initiative begins its turn.  It's all a mash up of Bash the Bishop and Steel and Steed.  My handwritten QRS is a work in progress.

The Medieval Character (d10)

1. Stroppy
2. Coward
3. Obese
4. Drunkard
5. Ladies man
6. Immortal
7. Without honour
8. Incontinent
9. Stupidly Chivalrous
10. Insane

Each character type acts and reacts in different ways.  As part of my solo rules the main character figures each roll an objective for the game. 

Objective for the game


1.  Enter and exit the tabletop by opposite short edges or roads do not tarry.
2. Find a random character hidden on table.  (Act as per your Knights Character as objective)
3.  Make your way to a local shrine to offer a prayer or rob the poor-box.
4.  Making money, take a wealthy hostage, rob and loot
5.  Avenge a deeply wounding personal insult 
6.  Find and enemy Knight and seek battle.

I'm working on the campaign system for these games, probably using the Wars of the Roses games in Midshire as a guide, but in the meantime I'm testing using some simple encounter scenarios.

The Bishop's Affair at Dribbly Rump

His Excellency the Bishop is out visiting his flock, touring around his manors in Midshire and extorting more rents and taxes for the peasants.

The Wolf's Head Robbing Hood has heard that the Bishop is out and about, and will soon reach the Manor of Dribbly Rump. The bold outlaw clearly intends to rob the Bishop and most probably the poor-box in St Mellon's Church, again.

The Bishop and his men arrive at the village keen to abduct the Bishop's "niece" Matron Marion, who regularly prays in the church here, although it's actually well known that she avoids him due to his Excellency's huge waistline and depraved appetites.


Co-incidentally three Templar Knights chose today to visit the Shrine at St Mellons.  Let's call them Larry, Moe and Curly.  These gentlemen are excessively Pious, and will take Militant Action against anyone they deem to be acting dishonourably.  That includes English Bishops!

The Bishop's Manor of Dribbly Rump.  It's probably raining.

The Hood rolls 3 (But I don't have 18 Archers ready so I fudge and add three Templar Knights, pretty much far too early for their appearance in England to be credible but I had the figures!)


The Bishop rolls D6 for a result of 2.
Mounted Bishop
4 Mounted Knights
Five foot Sergeants
Two archers 

Robbing Bobby Hood, (Coward) Sergeant and Archer
Drunken Friar Feck, Sergeant 
Big Little Johnny, Sergeant 
Much the Miller's boy Archer 
Scarlet Willy, former Sergeant
Alan O the Pail. Archer 
Two "extras" Archers.

Three Templar Knights, armed to the teeth, but on Foot, Larry Moe and Curly.  These are all Stroppy!

Forces enter on the road an opposing short table edges.  5 reputation points are at stake for the winner of this game, and there are 5 silver hordes on table worth up to £1 each.  That's a lot of Medieval cash!  Cash can only be discovered by capturing a local and extorting the information.  This is one of my solo rules that adds to my fog of War during the game.

The Bishop and his retinue descend on Dribbly Rump.  Taxes and Rents to be collected.

Three Templar Knights the morning after sampling Dribbly Rump's Old Real Ale.  "Where did we leave our horses?"  These guys are ancient Irregular Miniatures and due a repaint.

Robbing Hood leads his men in tights on table.  Friar Feck brings up the rear, drunk.

The Bishop (sporting the family heraldry) solicits donations for the Church Roof from the first peasant he meets, Carpenter.  The Church Militant hit the peasant repeatedly with a big stick.  That would be an ecumenical matter.

The Men in tights, and Matron Marion, turn off road to avoid the Templars.  Hood is playing a clever game.  One of my oldest Solo mechanisms is from role plain games, Friend or Foe. When two characters or groups meet roll a d6. 6 is a great friend (Get a Room) 1 is an instant hatred (Kill, Kill)  Here the Templars ignore the Hood and his crew after rolling 3.

The Bishop meets Grasping Gary, Midshire's answer to Richard Branson.  "A donation for the church roof please, we'll take everything including your shirt"

The Three Templars take offence at the Bishop mugging the poor.  That's their job.  They attack.

Robbing Hood makes his move, shooting down two of the Bishop's retinue.

The battle of the turnip field begins.  The Bishop's retinue Archers return arrows.

This is the Bishop's glorious moment.  He kills a Templar.

The two Templars struggle afoot.

The tables turn however as the Bishop is bashed.  He manages to extricate himself.  One of his retinue Knights intervenes.

Back in the turnip field the Hood has sent in his fighting boys lead by Scarlet Willy and Big Little John.

The Bishop's Foot Sergeants face off against these jumped up peasants. 

The Hood stays well out of reach.

The Sergeants are more than a match for the Scarlet Willy and his boys

And one of the Bishop's Knights appears from the road and attacks the Hood, driving him back into the woods. 

The Hood's men flee.  I decide to save the outlaw gang to fight another day.

The Hood flees with Matron Marion.

Big Little John and Scarlett Willy ( a candidate for the most camp figure I own) flee to rob another day.

And through it all Farmer the. .. Farmer chases his Midshire Whites through the pig field. That's all the excitement a Dribbly Rump peasant can expect.

Game over with the Bishop surviving to collect his rents.  In game terms the mash up of rules worked as the basis for the mechanics, but I need to properly write up my rules or even just the QRS and then play test again... 

Still a work in progress.