Harald the Barrel Victorious but bloodied...

The Swansong of Harald's campaign against all comers.  This time he was attacking the Bretons, a mixture of Scots and Frank's. 

Harald and the boys line up against the Celtic Fringe.

At a conservative estimate there were 250 figures on each side, and probably nearer 300.

Harald comes on, violently assaulting the centre.

The Frank's charge in their cavalry, unsuccessfully...

That has to hurt

The big brawl for the village

And looking from Harald's side as he assaults

King Pepin deserts Lord Oliver, and joins Lord Roland.  It's not going to go well.

On the far left the Vikings assault the bog

And the Frank's hold that wood.

Harald's right is threatened.

But he turns on the Frank's sweeping away the sink unit.

Meanwhile those Scots struggle.

Until the turn of the battle, Brave Harald falls...

The Frank's have another go, with predictably catastrophic results...

And it's officially declared a massacre for both sides.  The Scots Cavalry undertake a magnificent charge routing a warband.  It seemed to me that the Scots had two units remaining, the Frank's three, plus skirmishers and the Vikings five units.

The Reluctance of Pepin the Fat

From "a concise History of Frankish Viking interaction" by Professor Sir James Coxpole of the University of North Durham:
King Pepin the Fat, interesting bloke, very hungry.  Fought the Vikings of Harald the Black and Egil of the Variable Dice Luck for Normandy.  Pepin's big mistake was calling in Earl Odda of the Saxons as his ally.

The Franks line up, ready to face the Vikings

Across the valley the Vikings appear.   Is it just my imagination or are there a lot of them?

Harald the Barrel, fresh from his success in bullying the British 

King Pepin, accompanied by man with picnic hamper.

Lord Oliver charges home as the Frankish Panzers roll.

Earl Odda leaves half of his army in the village

Count Oliver and his men perish, as Pepin refuses to charge up that hill for the second time.

Earl Odda gets stuck in, with the very centre of his line, leading in person.  He is soon killed and  two thirds of his army run away.

Still looking for my photo of that event,  sadly lost to the memory card of time...

Captain Martel attacks and rolls nine hits with twelve dice.

Martel bursts through and routs the warband opposing him.

Whilst King Pepin refuses to move for the fourth time.

Finally Pepin goes for it on the fifth try, up the hill breaking through the Vikings.  He may be fat, but turns out he is also Mighty.

But he reaches the summit a weakened force.

Captain Namon gets stuck in too, routing and destroying a Viking band.  

With Bishop Turpin killed and their levy all but holding out the Franks survive until pub o' clock.  

Turns out the Franks are rather handy, and well capable of hammering Vikings.
Next week we turn to the Celtic fringe.  How will they fare against the Viking horde?

Egil's Raid on the Welsh...

With the Campaign season drawing to a close, and the long sail home beckoning there was time for a last raid.  Egil decided to pick on the Welsh.  What could go wrong?

The Welsh King decides that he is staying home today.
A magnificently placed palisade

Meanwhile down the road, the forces of barbarism loot and Plunder.

An isolated force of Vikings on the left.  The Welsh bring on their cavalry...

And the Welsh get some reinforcements on table, planning to frustrate the Vikings plan to plunder.

The Welsh King leads a big warband into the bog and gets it into schilltron.  Its proximity will stop the pillage of the village.

The Welsh charge their cavalry in a gamble to knock out the smaller warband.
Having used their skirmishers to annoy and frustrate the Vikings this was a bold or perhaps reckless plan.

Imagining they were Franks, lead by the Paladins of Charlemagne, the Welsh cavalry assault and break the Viking shield wall.  Glorious and a bit mad.

With the Viking's frustrated they withdraw, their only Plunder some pigs.  

And so to the Campaign scores, and it's only loot that concerns us!

Harald 40
Ragnar's 28
Ase  26
Egil 8

The Campaign season closes.

But a last great raid against the Franks is planned... 

Longships: Harald Bashes his Bishop.

A Longship Raid on the Scots... 

"Protect us Lord from the big choppers of the Northmen..."

The sleepy Scots village...  The King in his wooden castle.  What could go wrong?

But that castle is very very well placed...

And here come the Vikings,
rope and pillage, pillage and rope.
Loves rope does Harald.

And the Scots Fortress makes them nervous...

But they get on well with that pillage and Plunder thing...

As you would expect, the Scots sit tight.

But the Vikings of Harald find a gift from God, Roger the Bishop no less...

Plunder and Arson...

Finally the Scots start to appear.  What kept you boys?

The Vikings scarper

And Roger the Bishop discovers the meaning of aptronym.

But still the Scots King sits on his throne.  I don't think he liked the Bishop, so it's win win.