Angus Konstam's Edinburgh Wargames
The Williamite War in Ireland
The original Old Firm game
This is a period I was talked into gaming by my pal Chris Henry, who has long been fascinated by this little war. It took a visit to the Boyne and Aughrim to settle it, and before you know it I was whistling up my first few figures. The idea was for both of us to build up both sides, but Chris (being a lapsed Catholic) seemed to paint up more Jacobite units than Williamite ones. Needless to say I felt the need to redress the balance, as if push came to shove I'd always side with the Protestants. The First Minister of Scotland might have declared war against sectarianism on the football terraces and the workplace, but he never said anything about the wargame table! I probably won't ever paint up the scuzzy Jacobites - I'll leave that to Chris.
The figures are mainly Dixons (who have a superb range, designed by a young Mark Copplestone), although a few Foundry figures have found their way into both armies. Some day I'd like to expand this period to take in other conflicts, like the Jacobite Rebellion in Scotland, the War of the Grand Alliance in Flanders, and even the Covenanting uprisings in Scotland, but for the moment we'll stick to causing mayhem in the Emerald Isle. However, see below for the latest temptation...
The rules we've been using up to now are Lillibulero, my own version of the much-adapted Wargame Holiday Centre Marlburian Rules. However, the main reason we didn't originally opt for Barry Hilton's nicely produced and much shinier Under the Lilly Banners (based on the same original rules set) is we'd already started building up our armies, and didn't want to rebase anything. Well, that might change. Barry ihas now produced his glossy new edition of Under the Lilly Banners, and he assures me that rebasing isn't necessary. I've therefore been persuaded to abandon my own rules in favour of his new shiny ones - lured by the superb artwork of Clarence Harrison of Quindia Studios! We wargamers are a fickle bunch, even unto ourselves!
Click
on the cover to go to the League's Shop
Barry and the League of Augsburg first put this period on the map with their superb demonstration games, and they've been something of an inspiration to me in getting this project off the ground. Barry's own rules are now available through the League's site.
Then again, I've always been tempted by the Darien Venture, the doomed Scottish attempt to carve out an American colony on the mosquito-infested coast of Panama in the late 1690's. The idea of disease-weakened red-coated Scots fighting it out in the jungles with white coated Spaniards - with both sides supported by native allies - is darned appealing! I could be sucked into the fetid jungles of Central America at a drop of a hat... or does that take us back to pirates again?
For those who prefer their rules free, but without the shiny production values: Lillibulero (Word File)
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