Firelock Games and Blood & Pigment will be offering a large selection of events for Blood & Plunder at 2024 Adepticon. In addition to 2 tournaments, organized free play times, and learn-to-play sessions, there will be three major Narrative Scenarios using the multiplayer rules. These are large-scale, spectacle events with 6 players per table can be some of the most memorable experiences available at a convention without the pressure of tournament competition. In this article, we’ll discuss the details of the “Battle of Panama” event for Blood & Plunder.

The Battle of Panama – Time and Place

This will be the last Blood & Plunder narrative event at the con, starting at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 21st. The event will be in the standard Blood & Plunder gaming area in the Hyatt Regency Hotel, 1800 E Golf Rd, Schaumburg, IL 60173. Please note that all historical miniature games are at the secondary location, NOT the main convention center with the vendor hall. Free shuttles are available and run every 15 minutes or so.

Required Experience Level

You will have the most fun if you’ve had a little experience before jumping into a big game like this. But if you’re OK getting “pushed around a little” and learning the rules on the fly, you can participate in these events as learning games. If you haven’t played before or need a loaner list, just mention that when registering for the event below so we can be prepared with a force for you.

Battle of Panama- Scenario Details

In 1671, Henry Morgan led one of the greatest Buccaneer raids of all time, marching his army across the isthmus of Panama and taking the Spanish city of Panama with it’s vast wealth. The march just to get to Panama is an epic story in and of itself (and may be in development as a full campaign for Blood & Plunder), but this scenario will recreate the final military engagement of the campaign: the final desperate battle between Morgan’s Buccaneer Army, spoiling for plunder, and the desperate Spanish defenders, whose army is full of untested and militia and recruits This will be brutal stand-up-and-knock-them-down land scenario with the heaps of plunder going to the victor.

The battle was fought on a mostly open plain with a couple key terrain features. Our scenario will use a lot of open space with a single hill that will prove tactically important, along with small bits of area terrain. But with little cover, muskets will rain death on their enemies! Teams of 3 players will deploy along the long edges of a 4×6′ game board to refight the Battle of Panama.

The Spanish just need to hold their ground and hold back the advance of the heretic buccaneers. But, being Spanish, holding their ground is easier said that done! While the Spanish may outnumber the Buccaneer army, training, superior leadership and superior equipment are all with the English.

Scenario objectives will be fairly simple for quick and decisive convention play. Strike Tests will not knock out players in this scenario, but victory conditions will be evaluated at the end of the allotted time or at the end of turn 6. You can find full details on the scenario here.

Suggested Force Lists for The Battle of Panama

Each side will include 450 points split into three 150 point land forces. At 150 points, you can easily use your force from the Land Tournament event on Thursday. Forces should be either Spanish Militia or a related faction for the Defenders, or one of the Buccaneer factions (English Buccaneers, French Buccaneers, Brethren of the Coast, Morgan’s Buccaneers).

Historical Spanish Forces

The Spanish forces defending Panama were very diverse which can make force building for this event really interesting. We know that the Spanish defenders included:

• Inexperienced Militia
• Seasoned Soldiers
• Cavalry
• Artillery
• Natives and Mistizo Soldiers

From historical records, we know that the center of the Spanish Defense included lots of Natives fighters and several field cannons and we know both flanks included cavalry, specifically lancers on horseback. This is a great chance to use the new Caballeria Lancero models!

Here are 3 historically informed force lists that could be used for the Spanish defenders of Panama:

These lists are intentionally “non optimal” to represent the poor Spanish mash up of troops raise to defend Panama. Historically, the defenders were outnumbered and outclassed. This scenario will be a little more balanced as the Spanish will likely have more models than the attacking Buccaneers.

Historical Buccaneer Forces

Historically, the Buccaneers were organized into several distinct groups. The 300 man vanguard, filled with French marksmen was led by Lawrence Prince with John Morris as second in command. The 600 men in the right wing of the main force was personally led by Henry Morgan. The left wing was led by Colonel Edward Collier and the rearguard was led by Colonel Bledry Morgan.

Buccaneer players should focus on accurate musketry using the Brethren of the Coast, English Buccaneers, French Buccaneers and/or Morgan’s Buccaneers factions (other English or Pirate flavored factions are fine as well if that’s what you want to play!).

Freebooters, Flibustiers, Boucaniers, Forlorn Hope and Les Enfants des Perdus are the most accurate models to bring, but being all high cost, supplementing with English Militia, Kapers, or some type of sailor model armed with muskets would be great to pad out the list. 150 points isn’t a lot to work with for these factions.

Here are some example forces:

The English have to do all the attacking over an open field, so they will get a slight point advantage, getting Henry Morgan for no cost.

Registering for the Battle of Panama Event

You will need to register for the event on the Adepticon website, but we would really appreciate it if you could register here with us as well!

If you provide some details on the force you intend to bring or if you might need a loaner force for the event, we can prepare much more efficiently and help everyone have a great event!

Additional Content Suggestions

• Adepticon 2024 – Blood & Plunder Land Tournament
• Adepticon 2024 – Blood & Plunder Sea Tournament
• Adepticon 2024 – Vane’s Fireship Escape Event
• Adepticon 2024 Info hub