I played a Hammer of the Scots rematch with Neil last Wednesday. This time we chose the Bruce scenario and I took the Scots, who start the game heavily outnumbered but with the King already crowned and on the board. This scenario has a very different feel to the Braveheart one - without Edward I's overwintering ability the English effectively have to start again every year, marching a fresh levy back up into Scotland to have another go at penetrating the bottleneck into the highlands. I managed to keep Bruce and Galloway alive for several years and with the help of the Norse the Lowlands were kept in ferment for much of the game. Meanwhile of course I was using the King to clean up the Highlands. There were several big battles with stunning reversals of fortune, but Neil was never really able to halt the slow ratcheting progression of nobles declaring for Scotland. I think I was luckier than Neil with dice and cards, and drawing the Norse early helped a lot too. We got it all finished in 4 hours. First time in a long while that I have won a game of Hammer, and first time ever as the Scots.