MeG Players Podcast - Late Crusades Supporting Material

 

In a change of venue the material to go with the Mortem et Gloriam Players Podcast is now being hosted on this blog. So read on for the lists discussed, suggested figure ranges, reading material and more ... 

This edition of the podcast looks at the armies of the Crusaders in Outremer and those of their enemies following the Fourth Crusade which instead of going to the Holy Land captured Constantinople. The topic of what happened to the Byzantines in the wake of the Fourth Crusade was covered in Episode 2 of the podcast - if you missed it, go back and find out what we covered on this interesting, but often neglected period of history.

The latest podcast can be found HERE.

The Lists

Here are the four lists that the guys discuss during the podcast. All come from the Later Crusades list book - which should come as no surprise. The lists were to be drawn up dated after 1204 CE - the fall of Constantinople - on the basis of fighting their historical enemies in themed games.

Note that these lists have not been list checked as they would be before a competition, and so there may be errors in them - so caveat emptor and all that. Click on the images to see a larger picture.

There are also some gratuitous pictures of some of Nik's figures scattered throughout.

Richard produced a Later Crusader list but has an Ayyubid Syrian States ally as a twist. It is roughly based on the Crusader army defeated by an Egyptian Ayyubid/Khwarasmian alliance at La Forbie in 1244 CE.

Ray then entertained us with a no nonsense Later Crusader list from the time of the Fifth Crusade.

Richard then went on with an Ayyubid list.

Lastly, Nik presented a Mamluk list to round off the lists being discussed.

To go with these Maximus sized lists here are the Pacto equivalents for those more interested in the smaller version of MeG. Note that these are a basic straight conversion from the Maximus lists to Pacto and not drawn up to any specific points size; therefore, you may well need to tweak them for use in your games.

Figure Ranges

The period of the Crusades is a popular one and many manufacturers have ranges, however, these usually focus on the period from the First Crusade to the Third Crusade and less so on the later period. As styles of armour, shields, etc. changed over time this means that the figures for the earlier crusades are not entirely suitable for the later period. However, we have had a look around and have the following recommendations for the period we are discussing.

15mm Crusaders

Donningon have a Feudal Europe and Crusades range in their "New Era" section which includes 12th and 13th century types, the latter being the most appropriate of course.

Legio Heroica from Italy have a Feudal range and a Crusades range. The latter is really aimed at the period to the Third Crusade and so for many troops the Feudal will be the more appropriate range.

Essex Miniatures have, of course, figures for the period. Again they have a Crusades range, however, the Feudal and Early Medieval range is a better source of figures for the period we are looking at in this podcast.

Mirliton, another Italian supplier, have a Crusades range that has suitable figures.

Museum Miniatures have a Later Crusades range, although their ranges do tend to use figures from various of their "ranges"; a good choice for the more price conscious.

Khurasan Miniatures from the US have a 13th Century range which is suitable; due to import duties they tend to be a bit more expensive but provide good service.

15mm Muslims

Donnington has an extensive range for the period in the Armies of Islam range their New Era ranges. Nik has a lot of these.

Legio Heroica have a nice range of Muslim Armies for the Holy Land.

Mirliton have a Muslim range to go with their Crusaders.

Essex Miniatures of course have Muslim figures too in their Crusades range.

28mm Crusaders

Crusader Miniatures have a Crusader range - well, they'd have to really.

V&V Miniatures also have a Crusader range suitable for the period we're look at.

Essex Miniatures have some suitable figures in their 28mm ranges.

1st Corps have an Early Medieval & Crusades range.

Magister Militum have a Medieval range with some suitable figures.

28mm Muslims

Gripping Beast have a "Saracen" range that covers Muslim armies.

Essex Miniatures have some suitable figures in their 28mm ranges.

Magister Militum have a Medieval range with some suitable figures for Muslim armies.

Perry Miniatures have a Muslim range for the Crusades period.

Books

Most available books on the Crusades tend to major on the period up to and including the Third Crusade, with the later period of Outremer being sadly neglected with the possible exception of the Seventh Crusade.

A search for books on “Crusades History” on Amazon or similar will bring you up a vast array of choices including classic accounts by such as Steven Runciman and Jonathan Riley-Smith, as well as more recent works by Dan Jones and others.

Out of this mass we are listing here some specific books which are a bit more focused on the period we have looked at or provide relevant background from the earlier period.

Directly relevant to the period covered

“Armies and Enemies of the Crusades” by Ian Heath – old but still has useful information on the period; weaker on the Muslims as information was harder to find on them back in the day.

“Warfare in Latin East 1192-1291: 17 (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series, Series Number 17)” by Christopher Marshall – a useful overview of the period covered.

“The Last Crusade: The Seventh Crusade and the Final Battle for the Holy Land” by W.B. Bartlett 

“Medieval Warfare VIII.6” - the Medieval Warfare magazine did an issue dedicated to Louis IX’s doomed 7th Crusade. Also available in digital form.

Osprey have a number of books relevant to the period:

Knight Hospitaller (1): 1100-1306: Pt.1 (Warrior)

Knight Templar: No. 91 (Warrior)

Templar Knight vs Mamluk Warrior: 1218–50 (Combat)

The Mamluks 1250-1517: No.259 (Men-at-Arms)

Mamluk ‘Askari 1250–1517: 173 (Warrior)

Saladin and the Saracens: Armies of the Middle East, 1100-1300: 171 (Men-at-Arms)

Saracen Faris, 1050-1250 AD (Warrior)

Acre 1291: Bloody sunset of the Crusader states: No.154 (Campaign)

Relevant as background

“Arms & Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Western Europe and the Crusader States” by David Nicolle - a sourcebook of line drawing from historical sources showing what the troops of the period looked like; hundreds and hundreds of illustrations.

“Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia” - the second part of the above.

“The Crusader Armies: 1099-1187” by Steve Tibble - earlier than the period we have covered, however, still relevant as background to what we are discussing.

“The Crusader Strategy: Defending the Holy Land” by Steve Tibble – again, covers the earlier period but does set the context for what we have covered especially the chapters on The Egyptian Strategy and The Frontier Strategy.

“Crusading Warfare 1097-1193 2ed (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: New Series, Series Number 3)” by R.C. Smail – covers the preceding period and is a useful background to what we have covered. Possibly a bit dated in places.

For the more interested and dedicated there is a series of books published by Routledge entitled “Crusade Texts in Translation” – which covers a wide range of crusading activity, not just the Middle East, and accounts from all sides.

Google Images – is also a useful resource for images. 

Other useful links for MeG gaming

Mortem et Gloriam Wargames Page on Facebook

MeG Website - there are ready made lists to download and links to other resources.

MeG Forum - rules questions, discussions, list suggestions, and more ...

MeG YouTube videos - introductory videos from author Simon Hall on how MeG plays.

Society of Ancients - the bi-monthly Slingshot journal is a great publication for the ancient/medieval period.

They also have a forum - useful for asking questions and where you can get info.

Podcast Feedback, Suggestions, etc.

Email us at MortemPod@yahoo.com with any feedback/ideas relating to the Podcast – we are always on the lookout for ideas for content – or questions for the guys to answer in a future episode.