Field of Glory: Renaissance - ECW

I managed to get along to the local club yesterday and had a chance to try out Field of Glory: Renaissance for the first time.  There is a strong FoG group at the club but this was the first time they had tried out the Renaissance version themselves - they tend to favour the original Ancients/Medieval version.

The game was set in the later part of the English Civil War in the North with  a smaller but more experienced Royalist army facing off against a larger, principally Scots, force.  I ended up on the Royalist side commanding the Cavalry and some infantry on the left.

The game started with the Parliamentarians throwing the cavalry on their left forward and we responded - initially this looked as if it was going to be a foregone conclusion as the Scots significantly outnumbered the Royalists.

 The Parliamentarian Cavalry - Scots Lancers supported by the Eastern Association Horse

The advance on our left flank was accompanied by an artillery bombardment from our heavier pieces (the Scots frame guns being somewhat out of range to respond).  Initially the artillery seemed devastating but then some rule consultation revealed that a crucial roll had been omitted which changed the result somewhat!

Horse faces Horse (looking from the Parliamentary side) 

The centre of the Parliamentarian Foot 

On my flank, the Parliamentary horse and dragoons advanced.  I countered with my smaller dragoon and larger cavalry force.

My Horse and Dragoons advance

I threatened them and their horse split and turned tail whilst their dragoons began to fall back to the uneven ground behind them.

The horse had contacted on our right and a large and prolonged cavalry melee ensued.  Eventually the Scots cracked and our horse broke through into the Eastern Association horse; however, much to the Parliament players' surprise they took broke - albeit causing some serious casualties to the Royalists.

Meanwhile I continued to pursue the horse and dragoons on my flank - getting somewhat frustrated by their dragoons' ability to fire and withdraw without me being able to catch them.  Their commander's superior knowledge of the rules began to show and I got my units into a slightly awkward arrangement given the movement restrictions within the rules.  Fortunately I got some good advice from my side and with some dice luck managed to extricate myself without too much damage being done.

With us advancing on both flanks we moved our foot forward to engage the enemy.  One unit of my horse was being shot up by their dragoons so I advanced mine to support them.  But a straight cavalry melee went my way whilst their foot was being pinned by my other horse and our approaching foot.  The pursuit saw my horse break through and their right flank started to look a little exposed.

On our right flank, the Parliamentary foot had managed to secure their flank before our horse could exploit their advantage and the foot clashed in the centre.  With the greater weight of Scots foot we expected the melee to go their way but a series of unlucky dice rolls (and their poorer quality) saw it  move in our favour.

With their remaining cavalry breaking and taking the adjacent foot unit with them it started a collapse which a last minute win towards our centre (which saw our CinC killed) couldn't counteract.  With my horse now in their rear we secured the victory.