Parliaments Stand - English Civil War Scenario

30th January 1649............King Charles I is led to the scaffold after his trial for crimes against the realm. He is wearing two shirts, to not shiver and appear afraid in public and, curiously, takes great pains to arrange his hair and to ensure others are aware of this tonsorial concern.

A fatalism had been upon him since the verdict and a relative calm as he spoke with both the executioner and the bishop.

After laying on the block and making a sign to the executioner, the deed was done. The executioner raised the kings head to display in front of the assembled crowds

Witnesses described the crowd releasing  "such a groan as I never heard before, and desire I may never hear again", people within the crowd fainting, falling upon each other and a wave of horror rolled over them.

This would not prepare the crowd for what was to happen next.........

The head of the King was replaced on his body, so that it may be sewn on at a later time. What nobody expected was, once the head was set by the neck, for the Kings torso to reach up, grab at the head and settle it firmly upon its neck, then rising from the stage and to begin to angrily address the crowd and denounce the Parliamentarians as heretics, traitors and witches all.

If the crowd had been horrified before, utter chaos erupted at being addressed by the King they had seen executed only moments before, and by being urged by the corpse king to enact justices on his behalf.

A violent wave swept through the city as the King demanded his guard come to him and they felt compelled to follow him.

Royalists split into those driven mad by the witnessed event and those who viewed this as divine evidence of the Kings royal authority and holy mission, making them fanatically gather their armyand their allies and begin to wage ruin on the people around them, before marching on to Parliament behind their Divine King.

The Bishop, having witnessed all of this, calmly followed in the wake, seemingly confident of what he was witnessing unfold.

Then the true devilry began.............as the King walked amongst his guard and took charge of the assault on Parliament, the dead began to claw their way from the surrounding graves and cemeteries, wet corpses rose from the river and picking up dropped pikes, swords and shields and assembling themselves into a fighting force, seemingly at the command of the King and forming his Royal Guard, utterly loyal to one of their own and their crowned King.


The Parliamentary leaders and forces within the locale were massacred. The New Model Army managed to fighting retreat out of the city to join with the surviving leaders to the south west of the City and reinforce, before deciding what to do and consult with the priesthood.

The decision was made to hold where they were, assemble the battle lines and prepare to make a stand against this corpse king, staying within close proximity of the remote wooden church where they had met, so as to remain near hallowed ground, as no dead beast would dare to cross this sanctuary.

As word spread of the Royalist army advance on Parliaments Stand, the locality emptied, other than assembled fanatics, witchfinders and assorted hardline volunteers who hurried to the Parliament lines to bolster and lend support where they could.





Venue: Old Sergeant, Wandsworth
Date/Time: 7th April 2019. 12pm arrive and setup.

Table Size: 8x6

Rules: Pike and Shotte

Deployments:

The terrain is fairly open, with trees, outcrops and some hedgerows in the area. To the more wooded  Southwestern quarter, there is a simple wooden church.

The New Model Army deploy along the Southern end of the table and around the church grounds.

The Royalists and The Dead deploy along the Northern end of the table.

Brigades may be kept in reserve if the CIC wants to, arriving on the table a turn after the GM is notified the reserves will be given the command to arrive.


Parliament Considerations: You must fight, you must attempt to destroy this vile heresy and end this war. You are outnumbered, but your men are veterans and are the New Model Army. You have fought greater forces, but never one like this. Your faith will hold!

Royalist Considerations: Revenge. You will revenge yourself on those who saw fit to kill their King and make an example of them. A new era in the Kingdom beckons.

Wargaming in Film #1 - Callan

Callan, the old spy/hitman telly series got, as all TV series did in the 70s, a big screen version. 

The difference here from our usual fayre is that our hero, Callan - an utter bastard - is also a wargamer. As was Edward Woodward, in fact, as its apparently his table and minis seen on screen in long pornographic shots of table display (his stuff was made by Peter Gilder)

Callan, retired off from black ops and in a crappy accountancy job, drinking too much and wanting an out, gets contacted by the old firm. They've a job for him. He gets back in shape, works out how to do it, then carries out the hit.

The key point for us is that when he makes contact with the hit (the chap works in the same building), the fellow is a wargamer! So they bond over this and the final scenes play out across the games table as they both try and work each other out.

Lots of scenes of Callan pondering how to deal with killing someone he genuinely likes and, well, has a superb games table and could be a regular opponent. This is filmed over scenes of him casting lead......not his own bullets, oh no, but his own miniatures. 

It was 1974 after all and you have to DIY or die then (literally!). Still - Casting whilst reading a history of the American Civil War and surrounded by paints, brushes and glues? They've got the detail of being a gamer down to a tee.

I enjoyed it, but its a cheapo film. Edward Woodward is always good for the money and him playing a cold bastard is always good value. This lead to him becoming the Equalizer later (directly from this role), so yeah - the Equalizer in his early years.

You know what? I think I might watch it again.

Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970)

Best line: YOU DRINK IT!! YOU DRINK THE FILTH!!!


Taste. TASTE! Classic Friday night fare and one of my early Hammers that I remember watching. This and Death Line in quick order, if I remember rightly. Not sure - I was ten, after all.


Have to say, this is probably my favourite of the "in period" Draculas plus its got gothic trappings up the kazoo, lovely autumnal leaves sweeping everywhere, a kind of "coy testing" of the waters for nudity where Hammer are concerned (theres a bit of T&A in this, but they went more full on with Vampire Lovers soon afterwards).


So, Dracs found impaled on a giant cross by Roy Kinnear mugging to camera in horror, following directly and dollying in from the end of Risen From The Grave. We cut to families leaving church in good ol' London and get an introduction to each over the credits rolling - very nicely done.


Later, the three patriarchs gather for their monthly "charity work" in the East End, really a front for whoring, drinking, debauching and generally worshipping at the altar of Dionysus.


The sight of a coked up Peter Sallis being ridden on all fours by a scantily clad whore occurs in this sequence - buyer beware!


A young dandy enters, steals one of the women, ruins the party and then sweeps out. Turns out he's a wrong un who is known in society for his SCANDAL. The old boys decide to join him for a black mass. Enter Roy with Draculas powdered blood, a great ruined church, young heaving bosomed daughters unhappy with home life and we've got ourselves a great recipe.

As Lord Courtley (the dandy) is getting busy with the black mass, imploring the gents to Drink. Drink!!, they chickenshit out, kick the crap out of him, leave him for dead and leg it.


Except, of course, he'd drank the blood..........so who comes back? The Big Man, of course.

Cue Drac lurking about being all predatory, young women under his spell, doom for all and a bloody good time for the viewer




METHOD OF DISPATCH


An odd one, this. Even by Draculas rather low standards. He's spent the whole film lurking in a ruined church, right? Enter young hero, who drapes a table cloth on the altar and puts a cross on it. Drac's riled up and flinging bits of furniture and pipe organ about when he spots the stained glass and susses "hang on? I'm in a fuckin' church?!?!?", falls off balcony and dies, crumbling to dust.


Yeah, not good. Not his worst, but pretty bloody silly all the same.




Never get tired of this one, oh no. Especially the bit when the three gentleman (Three Imposters? They are faking their reasons for being and about after all, and a Machen pun is always worth attempting) are walking up to the churchyard in expectation of a black mass and clutching their pearls.

Filmed in Highgate, I believe.