Keep Your Powder Dry

Rules wax and wane in popularity, the release of a new set of rules usually makes the gaming community giddy with excitement and a rush of buying ensues. For King And Parliament is a fairly recent addition to the ECW rules library, and looks like it will be a popular ruleset for quite some time. Another set of 'pike and shot' rules that have grown out of a popular set of ancients/medieval rules - in this case To The Strongest ( henceforth TtS!). The difference between For King And Parliament (FK&P) and those rules that have taken the same path, is that FK&P is not a generic pike and shot rulebook, they are specifically for the ECW. Game mechanisms are quick to learn, and once you are familiar with the rules, gameplay is fast and furious. The rules are very well written, and have clearly had a lot of play testing. The rules are well explained, you don't need an old hand, an explanatory video or a thesaurus to understand them. The rule book is spiral bound, has full c...

Once again, I pen the words 'who'd have thunk it?' KeepYourPowderDry still exists and I still find stuff to write nonsense about. Oh dear, the Saturday boy shows himself up again at the work's bloggiversary 'do', and Derek from accounts looks a bit angry - think HR might need a word... At the risk of sounding like an awards ceremony acceptance speech... Thank you to everyone who has supported the blog via BuyMeACoffee , your support really does help the blog keep existing. Particular thanks, and honorary board memberships go to @BirdyTheolProf and @Clubmen1645. Regular reader numbers have swelled to almost ten (hello everybody), a number that mainstream social influencers can only dream of   scoff at. Page hits don't actually matter, as I wrote 5 years ago. This blog is a receptacle for lots of little bits of paper, hopefully laid out in a slightly more sensible and understandable order; it is primarily for me, if it helps anyone else, even better. But I can...

You've seen the armies of Montrose, the King, clubmen, and Solemn League... so just one army outstanding. That of Parliament. So here they are... the army consists of the following: Regiments of Foot  - 18 units, each 34 men strong Combined Shot  - 3 units, each 24 men strong Regiments of Horse  - 21 units, each 16 men strong (1 unit are cuirassiers) Regiments of Dragoons  - 3 units, each 21 men strong Siege Engineers  - 10 men Assault party  - 6 men, and 4 petard teams Train of Artillery: demi-culverins  - 2, each consisting of a crew of 4 men and a limber Train of Artillery: sakers  - 3, each consisting of a crew of 4 men and a limber Train of Artillery: minions  - 6, each consisting of a crew of 4 men and a limber Baggage Train  - 15 assorted pieces of baggage Command  - 19 individually based 'generals', Essex, Waller, Fairfax and Cromwell are based with an ensign. One chaplain. Any old excuse to post lots of pictures... In ...

Almost three years after the launch of their Kickstarter, I take a closer look at Steel Fist's ever expanding new range of 'true 15mm' ECW figures.  I must point out that it is inevitable that I will hold them up against Peter Pig's offerings for comparison (because my armies are almost exclusively PP). I'll be very honest; my armies are pretty much complete. I'm only really looking for a few extra figures here and there: characters, specialist figures, certainly not in the market for another 100 or so foot or horse. Steel Fist are unlikely to be able to retire on the profits made off my purchases - sorry . Update August 2023: I've just taken delivery of two packs of the new dismounted harquebusiers. They arrived securely packaged in a small box, wrapped in bubble wrap. I am pleased to report that all figures arrived intact (see my comments below). I regularly see advertised new 28mm figures, and look on somewhat jealously at the breadth of inter-range comp...

My original Which Figures posts have grown exponentially, so much so that I decided to revise the information. For the full picture see:- Which Figures?   - the original post, where I ruminate about what I want from figures, and what led me to choose Peter Pig  Which Figures? What is Available   - the state of play with current 'ECW' 15mm figure ranges; a continually updating look at what figures are available, and what is included/missing from ranges. Which Figures? Part 2a: Size Matters: Foot  - I take a look at what is available in 15/18mm and show side by side comparisons  Which Figures? Part 2b: True 15mm/Epic Compatibility: Foot   - a more in depth look at smaller 15mm compatibility Which Figures? Part 3a: Size Matters: Horses   - I take a look at what is available in 15/18mm and show side by side comparisons  Which Figures? Part 3b: True 15mm/Epic Compatibility: Horses  - a more in depth look at smaller 15mm compatibility (th...