Introduction
I am presenting here eight training drills focusing in on the shieldman and the shieldwall.  Since the shieldman and shieldwall is the most basic part of a fighting unit, it is important that the basic skills are practiced.  Although these are relatively simple drills, the fact that they will not succeed without the efforts of all towards the end goal adds an increase in difficulty.  All of the drills can be done with the whole unit (capital weapons, a commander, etc.).  Ultimately they should be done that way.

They are presented in an order that I consider to be easiest to hardest.  It starts with basic movements, moves through basic shieldwall skills, and ends with a simple yet effective tactical maneuver.  Although even the simplest of these drills seems too basic, it is that fact that everyone assumes everyone else has practiced them and they usually have not.  No one wants to do basic movement (the first drill) but that is the foundation that will allow your unit to succeed using more complicated tactical maneuvers. 

Implementing the Drills
My recommendation for implementing these drills is as follows. 

For those units who have never done drills or any regular regimen of drills.
I recommend starting at the beginning.  Start with only one or two drills at a practice session.  Do these drills for at least a solid 15 minutes up to 30 minutes.  As you add more drills to the practice (yes do not drop the drills, add to them) the beginning drills can be reduced in time to about 15 minutes for each drill.  After a few practice sessions where you have done all of the drills, then you can start reducing the drills at practice.  Eventually down to two drills regularly.

Note:  Yes this may seem excessive in the amount of drills you are doing, but remember you haven't done this before.  And in order to become a successful fighting unit you must practice (drills, not just running mini-melees.  Like you practiced your wrap shot until you got it right, you need to practice fighting together the same way.).

For those units who have done drills before and/or the beginning of a new melee season.
I recommend starting at the beginning.  You can run two to four drills at a practice session until all the drills have been run through.  Then you can reduce the number of drills to two per practice session.  At the beginning the drills should be for 15 to 30 minutes and then reducing the time as the old skills warm back up.

Practice without structure is meaningless.  Lessons learned will not be remembered, unity will not be promoted, and the end goals will be forgotten.  Create yourself a structured practiced and you will create a fun and effective melee unit.  Enjoy.



Movement Drill
Setup
Line up your shieldwall on a reasonably large field in tight formation.  For this drill you will be calling movement for the unit.  Start with simple movements; forward at a walk, stop, double time, slide left/right, etc.  Once these are done while maintaining the line continue with more difficult movements; wheel left/right, refuse flank, slide left/right while at a march, etc.

Goal
The point of this drill is to get the shieldwall to move together and maintain integrity while doing so.  By starting out in tight formation (shields overlapping slightly) they will be able to get a better feel for when the shieldmen on either side of them moves.  No part of the shieldwall should be out of line more than a couple of inches.  The shieldwall should move smoothly between one movement command and another (this will require everyone knowing exactly what commands will be used and what they mean).

Advanced
This really isn't an advanced change, but you can incorporate the whole unit with the shieldwall in the movement drills, so everyone can get a feel for how the unit moves together.

Start moving the shieldmen apart.  When they are not in direct contact with each other it will be a little harder to maintain formation.  Start with a couple of inches and eventually move to a fully open formation by having them one shieldman width apart.

Unity Drill
Setup
Start with a reasonable size shieldwall (probably 3 to 6 shieldmen) in tight formation.  Pick a long strip of land, 50 to 100 feet is good.  Have the shieldwall move down the length of the field and back.  While they are moving down the field have another smaller group face the shieldwall.  This group will stay in front of the shieldwall and, while walking backwards, attack the shieldwall.  The smaller attacking unit should be capital weapon heavy.  The shieldwall will not attack the smaller unit.

Goal
The purpose of this drill is to promote unity.  Either a shieldwall commander or a rear unit commander should call the pace.  The shieldwall will need to stay in formation and in step the entire way.  By focusing on staying alive and staying together the shieldwall can become more in tune with one another and help each other out.  The shieldmen should be helping each other to block incoming attacks, getting a feel for the shieldmen on either side, and being  used to moving effectively with a shieldwall while under attack.

If you can keep the smaller unit in a unit formation, then they will be effectively practicing being a retreating line.

Advanced
Open up the shieldwall.  Move each shieldman apart from each other, starting with a couple of inches and eventually moving them up to a shieldman width away from each other.

Have a unit rear commander (not a line commander) call pace and movement changes (wheel, slide, stop, double time, etc.).  This may require more area to maneuver in. 

You can have a second rank of capital weapons behind the shieldwall.  They would be there to support the shieldwall by helping to block attacks and keep the line straight.

You can replace both the shieldwall and the small unit with full units.  Both can take turns being the unit moving backwards.  That way your entire unit will be practicing unity and being a retreating line.

Note:  A retreating line is a tactical maneuver.  In my opinion there are no units of any size that can effectively do this maneuver. Besides which to make good tactical use of it, you would have to have the support of additional units.


Fill-In Drill
Setup
Start with two ranks of shieldmen facing the same direction and in a shieldwall formation.  The trainer will be facing the two ranks of shieldmen.  The trainer will randomly select a front rank shieldman.  That shieldman is now declared dead and will exit the front line.  A shieldman from the second rank will fill in the front rank gap.  The dead shieldman will cycle back to the second rank. 

Goal
This is for practicing maintaining shieldwall integrity by filling in the dead shieldmen with reserve shieldmen.  The shieldmen can be in either loose or tight formations, the tighter the formation the harder it is to fill in correctly. This drill can be done at a fairly rapid pace and therefore can be done often without taking up large amounts of practice time.

Advanced

Keep the two ranks in tight formation.

Do this drill while moving forward at a march.

Supply a full shieldwall with the appropriate unit composition behind them (put your unit together as if you were actually going into a melee).  Fill in from the reserve ranks of shieldmen.  This will put a realistic view to the actions.  It will also let the capital weapons know how this should work with them there and how it will affect the fighting dynamic of the unit.

Coverage Drill
Setup
Line up a shieldwall in tight formation.  Additionally you will need 2 or 3 fighters with polearms or great swords.  The shieldwall will remain in a static formation while the capital weapons fighters will attack the shieldwall. 

Goal
The purpose of this is to get the shieldwall members used to helping each other out by helping to block incoming attacks to the shieldmen on either side of them.  In this manner all shieldwall members will in essence have three swords blocking each one of them, except for the end shieldmen, who will have only two.  In this way the shieldwall should stay alive until they are exhausted.  This will help increase the lifespan of a shieldman and therefore the shieldwall.

Advanced
One way of increasing the difficulty is by increasing the number of attackers.

Open the formation up.  Start moving the shieldmen apart, start with a couple of inches and move up to half a shieldman width apart.

You can add rear capital weapons behind the shieldmen and they can help block and attack the attackers.  This will add a little more melee realism to the drill.

Punch Through Drill
Setup
Set two columns of shieldmen next to each other.  They should be touching shields or within an inch or so of touching and facing in the same direction.   They should be at least 4 deep (that would be 8 shieldmen total).  Set another column of shieldmen (those that you have left) opposite of the two columns, about 5 to 8 steps away from the two columns of shieldmen.  The column of shieldmen will to rush forward (as in a charge) and punch through the middle of the two columns of shieldmen, one man at a time.  As soon as a shieldman has made it through the next shieldman is to start.

Goal
The point of this drill is to practice punching through a shieldwall and the back ranks of a shieldwall.  The punching shieldmen should make sure to have proper form and coverage when punching through. You may have the resisting shieldmen try and throw shots as they go through to improve on the reality of the situation. 

The resisting shieldmen are also practicing repelling shieldmen who want to get through their shieldwall.  The punching shieldmen should be at a reasonable distance to simulate current rules for charges (see Marshall's Handbook).

Advanced
A next step to this drill is to add a great weapons fighter behind the punching shieldman, as the shieldman is to create the openings for the other fighters in the unit to follow through.
Also, you may have great weapons fighters in the resisting two columns to simulate the actual back ranks of a melee unit.

Charging Drill
Setup
You will need two shieldwalls for this drill.  Place them facing each other at a reasonable charging distance (anywhere between 5 and 10 large steps).
Charge for Shock - Both units will charge each other, one unit's goal will be to hit the opposing shieldwall and attack and the other unit's goal will be to hit the opposing shieldwall and push them back and hold them without losing shieldwall integrity.
Charge for Division - One unit should be larger than the other.  The smaller unit's goal is to charge the larger unit and try to split the unit by pushing through them.  The smaller unit needs to stay together.  Individual penetration is not the purpose of this drill.
Charge for Penetration - One unit's goal is to hit the opposing line and try to get through anyway they can.  Individual penetration is ok here. 

Goal
The purpose is to practice charging.  Most units do not charge together, or correctly.  Most charges end in confusion, which is detrimental to purpose of charging and the end mission goal.  The two main types of charges, shock and division, are tactically useful in many situations.  These are the most common reasons for charging.  Charging for penetration is useful when your unit is pushed into a bad situation and you need to leave and leave now.

Advanced
Use capital weapons in the second rank to provide support for the shieldwall.

Use two full units to do the drills.

Have the units after charging reform and ready to continue the mission.  Charging is one tool for the unit and being able to quickly reform into a unit after a charge will increase the effectiveness of your unit.

Skirmisher Recovery Drill
Setup
Have your shieldwall in a tight formation and static.  Out in front of the shieldwall (about 10 to 20 feet out) place several skirmishers, facing the same direction as the shieldwall.  The skirmishers will come back to the unit to fit in behind the shieldwall.  The shieldwall will open up, one-man width for the skirmishers to get into the unit.  If the shieldwall is more than 4 men wide then more than one hole may be opened up at a time.  The hole should be opened up at the last minute and closed immediately.  The assumption is that the opponent is on the skirmisher's heels.

Opening a hole - Whoever the skirmisher is heading towards will become the 'door'.  As the skirmisher approaches the 'door' will swing open, by that shieldman turns into the unit 90 degrees from his current position.  This will force him to step into his neighboring shieldman and they will be crowded for a moment.  As soon as the skirmisher has entered the 'door' will close.

Goal
Being able to let additional fighters join the unit instead of dying on the shieldwall, trapped between two shieldwalls.  Or forcing the shieldwall out of position by pushing back on the front shieldmen.

Advanced
Have the whole unit behind the shieldwall.  This will give the unit a feel for doing this.

Do this while the shieldwall is moving at a march.

Rolling a Flank Drill
Setup
Set two shieldwalls facing each other.  The unit that will roll the flank should have a couple of extra