Duration: 59:25

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Lord Ralph Hopton's southern army has managed to outmanoeuvre a large Parliamentarian force in the south east of England led by the Parliamentary general and MP Sir William Waller. Hopton has managed to beat Waller to the key position of New Alresford, blocking the way to Royalist holdouts in the regions of Devon and Cornwall which have supported the king since the rebellion broke out. However, he finds that the Parliamentarians have quietly seized control of the Cheriton woods up on the high ground and that the Parliamentary army is much larger and more formidable than his tired and demoralised army is ready to account for.

Faced with almost certain death at the hands of a massive Parliamentarian cavalry force which is supported by veteran infantry, Hopton turns to his mysterious and grave-faced tactical advisor for a way to snatch victory from defeat. It is agreed that to have any chance at all the woods must be cleared and the infantry must retake and then try to hold the ridge for as long as possible while the still-fearsome Royalist cavalry drive forward on the flanks. Both commanders believe that Parliament's infantry is it's weakest link, but in reality Parliament has always struggled with its cavalry. The overall positioning of the Royalist army is built on sound principles, but even so, can an outnumbered army seize victory despite having completely misunderstood the facts on the ground?

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Spoilers!

This was my third attempt and it caused me to really sit back and think about how I was approaching these historical battles. I was really trying here and I think it showed through in the recording. I misjudged how dangerous the Parliamentarian infantry were and was surprised when the cavalry wound up saving the day, meaning despite my decent tactical manoeuvring this was largely a day won by lucking into the correct tactics. I still have a long way to go before I've mastered this game or even the Civil War armies.