Borderlands: the Bishop's campaign up the Twizell Valley.

 

The Twizell burn runs westwards from the River Wear at Cestria, cutting a sharp valley.  On the ridge above the west road follows the course of the burn below.  The woods here are often identified as a home to brigands and run-away serfs,  mainly from the local villages.   

The land here is owned by the Earl Bishop, and was intended to be a hunting park however the thick woodlands that lead up onto the fells along the burn and the sharp drops make it impractical for chasing deer.

The valley itself was named the Stella Gill, or "the great wooded ravine," by the Scholar Bishop Gilbert, who fell from his horse during the long cold summer of 1170, chasing a stag up the almost vertical sides of the valley.  Gilbert also named the two mounds rising at the head of the valley on either side of the Twizell burn as the "busties," and the coal mine near Peltun running into the side of these as the Busty seam.

It is 1184, and the Bishop of Cestria has just returned from Glastonbury, where after a "mysterious fire" he has nabbed the bone of St Lancelot, a Relic, and managed to get it past his rival the Prince Bishop in Dyrham.  Upon his return Bishop Conrad was met by Leopold, Chancellor of the See, and informed of the recent depredations by brigands along the Twizell valley. 

At this point in his career Conrad was a young and vigorous man, and he swiftly gathered his retinue after conducting a long, long mass in the newly completed Minster.  

Joined by his ally Richard of Lambtun the Bishop lead his men in a march up through Perkins-ville, the Fell Woods and the New Field on the West road, towards the Bishop's Hunting lodge at the Grange.  Rumour has it that the brigands occupy a camp in the Hett Hill woods and this will be the ultimate target. 

Travellers who have dared this road further westwards towards the mountains have passed through Stanley, an infamous village taking its name from the family of that name, and stories in Cestria claim that the "brigands" are in reality louts from the Stanley family.  This may or may not be true but Bishop Conrad is determined to find out.

Darker stories are told of this Twizell road up to the west. The Ghost of a Saxon Ealdorman's wife, the Grey Lady, is said to place a deathly hand upon the shoulder of men doomed to die in battle.  The woods to the north west of Perkin's farm are the hunting grounds of a huge wolf, that legend claims can only be slain by silver or the prayers of the faithful.  The serfs call the beast "Perkin's curse" but the Norman Sergeant Perkin refuses to speak of it.

Starting Forces

4 x Household Knights including the Lord Bishop who is one of these, two mounted Sergeants.  One of these knights is Richard of Lambtun ranked as a Captain, and onetimeCrusading companion of the Bishop.

5 x Retained soldiers, Sergeant, Perkin, and three Veteran Soldiers, with the John the Fletcher, a retained Sergeant from the Bishop's household.   

7 x Levy =  Spearmen armed from the Cestria Militia, and Samuel the mule wrangler.  A hired hand and wheezy former prison in-mate.  If anyone is potentially in league with the brigands its this idiot yokel Samuel.

Followers D100 roll
1-13 Hired Guide
14-24       Stout Yeoman
25-35       Wily Rogue
36-48       Militia Man
49-56       Former Soldier
57-67       Hopeful Youth
68-73       Deranged Wretch
74-81       Angry Villager
82-89       Outcast Drifter
90-100     Roving Wanderer

The Bishop’s men

Conrad Bishop of Cestria, Earl of the North, of the House of Finchale.
Sir Richard of Lambtun, “Red Dick”

2 other Household Knights, 2 Mounted sergeants
Sergeant Perkin, and four well armed foot sergeants

Old John the Fletcher, Sergeant Bowman,
seven spearmen

Samuel the Mule Wrangler

Possible Encounters/The Brigands

Sir Nigel, The Forsworn Bastard of Stanley, and a retinue of the Stanleys.

Goodman Grope and the men of Beamish.

Master Gimpe the Archer and the men of the Grange.

Verger Kenneth and the men of Peltun.

Father Eadgar of Jarrow, Priest of Peltun Church and holder of the banner of the Holy Trinity.

The Wolf of the Urpeth Woods

The Grey Lady

The Leper Monk of the Hett Hill Woods

Some rules thoughts

I've adjusted the numbers to try an experiment here.  I'm not a fan of Lion Rampant's fixed retinue numbers for this period, but have to acknowledge the mathematical balancing act the rules operate with.  Half strength units use half dice, and more than that casualty numbers are limited by the number of dice that can be rolled.  Trouble is that history seems to disagree.  Medieval armies organised foot soldiers on base ten, if organised to that level at all.  My brigands are going to look all wrong in equal groups of 12.   

For this game then unit numbers will be random, but the maths will work the same.  I'll assume that an foot unit of less than 6 (or 3 foot knights) uses half dice, and that units bigger than 12 figures use no more dice, but gain no more either, being unable to bring the spears to bear or arrows to hit because of jostling.  They will of course have more men to lose.

I'm also binning the 3" exclusion zone around units in favour of a 1" zone, given the limited table size, and the fact that the scale I'm trying for is 1:1, it seems reasonable to give this a go.

Game 1

Top man, Kenneth, Verger of Peltun Church, and the village Priest Eadgar of Jarrow are not happy. Roll on reaction table = very hostile.  The villagers of Peltun are surly and clearly hostile.  They speak an unintelligible local dialect and not good civilised Norman French.  They are flying the banner of the Holy Trinity and have mustered the villagers on the village green.

Part of the problem seems to be Sergeant Perkin, and the mustered peasants are shouting about "Norman wolves."  Top man Kenneth has gathered his allies who are listed on 6 separate (face down) index cards, two of which will appear in the game.

A battle on the Peltun Village Green, what could go wrong

The meeting on the village green.  The Bishop discusses parish matters with the local revolting priest.  That would be an ecumenical matter.

Bored with clerical disputation the Bishop gets stuck in.  Hard hitting!

A proper punch up

And a small group of fanatics appear, just in time to have a go at the Bishop's Sergeants

The veteran sergeants see them off

Brother Thomas gets stuck in.  One for the Lepers. 

But the Stanleys arrive.  A black hearted crew, behind all this bother.

The veteran sergeants throw back the Stanleys and then go after them breaking up the spear wall.

Battered and bruised the Sergeants kill four of their mounted opposition.

I game the pursuit as individuals.  Each knight takes two of the dice and go after the running mob.   Poor Kenneth is down and the Bishop fights Eadgar the priest.

Brother Thomas the Leper takes down two of the running men himself.

A good game, trying out some ideas.  For the Bishop it's on up the valley to deal with the Stanleys. The next game will focus on the Bishop's Hunting lodge at the Grange.  Let's hope Sir Thomas remains in one piece.