ECW SCENARIOS 5

Caliver Books have just produced a new volume of scenarios aimed at the English Civil War. This book – authored by Bob Giglio – is ECW Gaming Scenarios Volume Five and is aimed at being usable with any suitable period rules system rather than being tailored to a specific set. It’s 86 pages long and is a perfect bound, soft-back A4 book.

It is well illustrated with line drawings and photographs of both original period paintings and models/groups of gaming figures in use, plus lots of maps for the featured scenarios. These maps are drawn in what I would call a‘period style’with a very clear – and quite charming (almost ‘wood cut’) – feel to them, but they work very well. All of the illustrations and maps are in one colour (the entire book is in ‘mono’) and so are very easy to photo copy for a game, which is handy.

The book contains thirteen scenarios: The attack on Wem; the Battles of Lee Bridge; Burton Hill; Evesham; Hambledon Hill; Winwick Pass; Babylon Hill; Piercebridge ; Little Dean ; Caversham Bridge; Grantham (Gonerby Moor); Cropredy Bridge (along with the battle later that day at Cropredy); plus the rearguard action at Chorley and the action near Oddington.

It’s a good read with small, in-context quotes from historical figures of the period and most of the scenarios have both‘after the battle’ paragraphs, optional scenarios and/or additional scenarios that lead off from it. That kind of extra material is helpful and I think it lends itself to a good starting position when a historical background is included, especially if one is new to the genre. Recommended.