How long would it take to muster troops, ya think? I'm thinking a day per Battle Size, starting with Clash. This might be reduced by a day (less than 1 day not possible), maybe two with a Critical, with a successful Battle Roll by the Army or Unit commander. This roll could in turn be modified by the loyalty of his vassals. A loyal vassal might add a +5 bonus to Battle, an average vassal would grant 0 bonus, and a disloyal or borderline vassal might grant a -5 modifier. Or perhaps Passions rolls could be used instead...



T.

Look at the map of travel times within Salisbury (p. 64 of the KAP 5.1 rules). The borders of the county are a two-day ride from Sarum. Even if every Salisbury knight were ready to leave immediately, it would be another two days before all could muster at Sarum. Makes the minimum turnaround for a county's entire contingent of knights about four days, and footmen will require longer. Add in the fact that it may require as much as a week to travel to wherever this battle might be taking place, were it outside Salisbury but still within Logres, and you'll see why battles of any size aren't fought at the drop of a hat.

Thanks, UT. Looking at my suggested system, Mearcred Creek is a "Medium" battle. So it would take 4 days to muster. Unless Prince Madoc makes a Battle roll to reduce this by a day. I wasn't figuring travel time to get to the battle, just the muster time alone. The travel time I figure would be a solid two days, with something less than a forced march. So six days from Madoc's arrival in Sarum to finding the Saxon army. The battle would actually take place on the morning of the 7th day.


T.

Keep in mind that Uther intended to attack the Saxons at Easter court, and gave mustering orders then. The army would assemble, move to threaten Saxon-held territories, and have scouts deployed to detect the Saxon advance. Also note that travel times take into account a normal pace, so that troops arrive reasonably fresh for battle. A hurried pace or a forced march might warrant CON rolls to avoid a penalty when the fighting commences. The army commanders' Battle rolls abstract much of the pre-battle maneuvering.

Also note that the larger an army the slower it moves.

Plus of course you have to find the army you intend to fight, then set things up so that they are willing to fight and then have both armies arrive at a suitable venue where the battle can take place.

Regards
Luke