For all battles, infantry and cavalry units will not be shared between battles for ease of setup and storage. At the beginning of the 16th century the first muskets were introduced; the Spanish were at the forefront of developing the battlefield roles for these new weapons. Muskets had originally been developed as much heavier guns, used mostly on fortified walls; but the Spanish introduced a lighter model that could be fired using a forked musket rest. Pike & Shotte Infantry Regiment Ebrey, Patricia B. (1999), The Cambridge Illustrated History of China, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-43519-6 Needham, Joseph (1980), Science & Civilisation in China, vol.5 pt. 4, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-08573-X

At the 1683 Battle of Vienna, the Imperial Army had set its infantry companies at 61% firearms, 33% pikes, and 6% shieldmen. [25] The English army of the Nine Years War in the 1690s still had 2 muskets for every 1 pike. [26] Meanwhile, by 1687, the French army's ratio was set at 75–80% muskets and 20–25% pikes. [27] Caliver have just released a new set of rules by Chris Swan, contributor to this very periodical. For those that know Mr Swan’s style of gaming, this will be a very interesting read, although – even if you haven’t read his work (and, on that basis, I’ll say ‘why not’ and draw you attention to the piece Das Fahrzeug Kaput Ist in this very issue) – it should still provide some interesting ideas. In 1618–1629, the pike to shot ratio fluctuated between 1 and 2 muskets per pike for various Western European armies. 1631–1632 saw an increased proportion of firearms, with some formations being more than 80% gunmen. The standard in the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Empire in 1641 was 66% muskets and 33% pikes. As pike-on-pike clashes became less common in field battles, so did armor. By 1660 body armor had mostly disappeared in pike and shot formations; the pikes themselves had also shortened, from 18 feet to 13 feet. [23] During the English Civil Wars (1642–1651), both sides preferred 2 guns to 1 pike, though this ratio was flexible. [24]After familiarizing themselves with the basic rules, the players can use several optional rules including advanced road movement, infantry squares, cavalry dismounts and capturing artillery. During the later half of the 16th century in Medieval Japan, pikes used were generally 4.5 to 6.5m (15 to 21ft) long, but sometimes up to 10m (33ft) in length. By this point, pikemen were becoming the main forces in armies. They formed lines, combined with arquebusiers and spearmen. Formations were generally only two or three rows deep.

Schürger, André. The Battle of Lützen: an examination of 17th century military material culture. University of Glasgow, 2015 [1] Urbanski, Tadeusz (1967), Chemistry and Technology of Explosives, vol.III, New York: Pergamon Press .

What’s New In the Musket & Pike Dual Pack?

The post Restoration English Army used pikemen and by 1697 (the last year of the Nine Years' War) English infantry battalions fighting in the Low Countries still had two musketeers to every pikemen and fought in the now traditional style of pikemen five ranks deep in the centre, with six ranks of musketeers on each side. [10] In 1588, the English Trained Bands consisted of 36% arquebusiers, 6% musketeers, 16% bowmen, 26% pikemen, and 16% billmen. [17] Lansdowne MS 56, attributed to Lord Burghley, states that ideally infantry formations should consist of 50% shot, 30% pikes, and 20% billhooks. Partington, J. R. (1999) [1960], A History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, ISBN 0-8018-5954-9– via archive.org

Nolan, Cathal J. (2006), The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000–1650: an Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization, vol.1, A–K, Westport & London: Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-33733-0 Bayonets were attached to muskets in several parts of the world from the late 16th to 17th centuries. [13] [14] [13] The award-winning Musket & Pike Battle Series was launched in 2002 with This Accursed Civil War, and followed with Sweden Fights On within a year. Although we have original copies of both games available at Noble Knight Games, the two titles have been out of print for over a decade. The series has marched on with four more installments after the first two, and has attracted many new players.The great rivals of the Spanish/Habsburg Empire, the Kings of France, had access to a smaller and poorly organized force of pike and shot. The French military establishment showed considerably less interest in shot as a native troop type than did the Spanish until the end of the sixteenth century, and continued to prefer close combat arms, particularly heavy cavalry, as the decisive force in their armies until the French Wars of Religion; this despite the desire of King Francis I to establish his own pike and shot contingents after the Battle of Pavia, in which he was defeated and captured. Francis had declared the establishment of the French "Legions" in the 1530s, large infantry formations of 6,000 men which were roughly composed of 60% pikemen, 30% arquebusiers and 10% Halberdiers. These legions were raised regionally, one in each of Normandy, Languedoc, Champagne and Picardy. Detachments of around 1,000 men could be sent off to separate duty, but in practice the Legions were initially little more than an ill-disciplined rabble and a failure as a battlefield force, and as such were soon relegated to garrison duty until they matured in the seventeenth century. Although very long spears had been used since the dawn of organized warfare (notably illustrated in art showing Sumerian and Minoan warriors and hunters), the earliest recorded use of a pike-like weapon in the tactical method described above involved the Macedonian sarissa, used by the troops of Alexander the Great's father, Philip II of Macedon, and successive dynasties, which dominated warfare for several centuries in many countries. According to John Kersey in 1706, the pike was typically 4.3 to 4.9m (14 to 16ft) in length. [11] End of the pike era [ edit ]