I was quite pleased with the response to Flower of Chivalry at Historicon'93. The players of the Agincourt scenario were enthusiastic, polite, gentlemanly gamers. I found, however, that there was as much pleasant wonder and amazement with my player aids as there was with the rules and miniatures themselves. So in the interests of making Flower of Chivalry a more enjoyable game, as well as spreading good gaming ideas let me outline the use and construction of the three most popular game aids.
Since the cardboard tray was suggested in Napoleon's Battles I have presumed that all miniatures players use some sort of movement tray for their miniatures. Apparently, this is not the case. In Flower of Chivalry a tray easily identifies a units front, sides and rear, as well as facilitating measurement. Finally, it eliminates the arguments as to where a casualty is removed. In Flower of Chivalry a casualty may be removed from anywhere in the unit since the tray still defines the boundaries of the unit.
I use simple Bristol board. I measure the 3" by 2" tray leaving a 1/8" boarder. I then score the fold with a artists razor knife and fold the "lip" of the tray up. A coat of green poster paint stiffens the tray into position.
One of the unique features of Flower of Chivalry is the use of the battlelust scale. However, the tracking of each commander's battlelust can be a tricky matter. Our group tried marking the battlelust with numbered counters (looks terrible on the table) or on a separate piece of paper (players kept losing the paper). In the end we built a block for the command figures to sit upon. The rear face of the 1" by 2" by 2" block is tapered and 15 holes are drilled into the face. These peg holes are labelled -7 to +7 and a push pin keeps track of the commander's battlelust. Made of stained maple these blocks are not only functional, but are also a very attractive mounting for command figures.
The only problem with the command block is that when the armies come to close quarters the large commander blocks get in the way. If the commander is attached, his figure blocks off one whole side of the unit. Further, it is often difficult to tell which units have leaders attached and which do not. An open-faced 1" by l" by 1/2" cube of index card solves the problem. When the commander is attached, the command block is removed from the table and placed near the player so he can continue to track battlelust. The cube with the appropriate coat-of-arms is placed on the unit. The unit's tray then serves as the command block as well. Coloured with felt markers, the cubes add character and flair to the game, as well as marking the leaders' location.