The Anglo-Saxons are the hard-pressed defenders of central England. Beset by raiding enemies on all fronts, the Anglo-Saxons fight mostly defensive battles. Their Battle Board reflects this by making Anglo-Saxons very efficient defenders but mediocre attackers. In general, they prefer larger formations in tight shieldwalls.
Heroes: The Anglo-Saxons have multiple leadership options ranging from the generic Warlord to mighty heroes such as Alfred the Great and Athelstan. I opted to ignore the mounted option for lack of fit with the Anglo-Saxon style.
Hearthguards: The Anglo-Saxon host is given some backbone by two units of Thegns with a war banner. The models are a mix of Gripping Beast metal and plastic. To distinguish them from their wilder neighbours, I went for models with spears, swords and shields. The shields mostly have Christian symbols as by this point Alfred, and later Athelstan, will have nudged the Anglo-Saxons toward that religion.
Warriors: Ceorls are the foundation of the Anglo-Saxon force. The more the merrier, and ideally in larger formations to benefit from the Battle Board bonuses for units above 10 models. I built three points of Ceorls – each following the spear, shield & Christian symbols paradigm – but they are usually fielded as two units of 12 models each.
Levy: The Anglo-Saxons can draft from the Generic Levy pool or use their Geburs with Spears – a formidable choice for an aspiring Anglo-Saxon warlord pressed for coin. I used assorted bucklers to distinguish the Geburs from the Ceorls.
Wargaming Workshop 