First AAR and PBEM - North and South.

[fusileer2002]

Hi guys.

Although I've played the game almost to death vs the AI this will be my first venture into PBEM and also the first AAR I've written. I will be taking command of the Confederates, while the Federal troops will be controlled by a buddy of mine know only for now as..."Trouvere" (who should stop reading now if he accidentally finds his way into this thread ) For any periods of low activity I'll condense several turns into one report, but of course when something interesting happens I'll fill you in!

The opening stages - April '61

Fort Sumter bombarded! Federal garrison surrenders!

Lincoln Responds - Volunteers called up and conscription introduced! Southern Papers warn of imminent invasion from 100,000 Federal Troops! Federal Navy threatens to cut off Southern Ports!

First clash of Arms! Opposing militias strive for control of the Harpers Ferry Arsenal!

Well, an interesting start to the conflict! Fort Sumter fell of course to my brave Southern lads. Unfortunately the Winchester militia were beaten back trying to assault Harpers Ferry in Northern virginia. It seems that some of the Federal troops are going to fight back! I'm very concerned that Trouvere has gone all out so early with recruits and conscription. Although it will hit his National Morale a bit hes going to have vast numbers to throw at me in the first stage of the war and may well force me to enforce conscription also. As so few troops are active yet, and the armies still forming on both sides, nothing else of note happened in April.

May '61

Cotton Embargo! Europe now has no choice but to recognise our Sovereignty or watch their economies crumble!

Another quiet month. Both sides are ferrying piecemeal forces into Northern Virginia and drawing up their battlelines while the main armies are forming. I find myself with a bit of spare cash and can afford to call an Embargo on Cotton hoping that Britain and France will realsie how much they need the South. The roll went well and the gamble paid off, +14 points towards Foreign Intervention! Now if I can just stay in Morale and VP I'm off to a good start here.

Bad news down in Texas - the governor, Sam Houston, has declared his loyalty to the North, damn him! While he doesnt take the state with him, it means I'll have to deal with the 2 cavalry regiments he's raised in Dallas. Lucky for me I already had Ben McCulloch enroute there with a force forming to try and grab the Californian gold fields, but if it goes wrong its going to set back my plans for the South West.

Not much recruitment yet, just a few militia to garrison key cities and some artillery. Maps to follow in the next report.

[fusileer2002]

June '61

Davis calls for Volunteers! Patriots flock to defend the South!

Time to call up some manpower. I've waited as long as I dare to try and maximise on the recruitment potential from VP. I'm going to risk leaving conscription until later in the year. This may well be a bad move, but i think i can hold my ground for a while. In any case, I cant afford to raise new units even if i have the manpower sitting there unless i start printing money and I dont want to start that just yet. I will however raise a tax and sell War Bonds to get some cash to pay the bounty money for the new recruits.

Looks like both sides are still rushing troops up. Heres how the east is looking




I've only got a holding force at Manassas until Beauregard arrives with the army. Looks like there may be a face off around Harpers Ferry with both sides building up forces here. Trouveres conscription has really got me scared i must say! I'm going to build a fort in Richmond to protect the capital from a sudden rush and I'm also planning to extensively use cavalry to cut the rails all around Washington. If he can't transport all those raw recruits to the front, he can't attack me

Over in the west



All quiet, as it should be. I'm bringing up some cavalry into Southern Missouri, mainly to stop the Union from grabbing Charleston quickly. Whiting is digging in outside of Nashville with a couple of brigades and some artillery. This will be the starting core of my Western army.

Apart from the Union cavalry popping up in Texas, the west is strangely quiet...

[fusileer2002]

Early July '61

The Virginia Theatre:



Well the armies are mobile now on both sides. My main force is just a few days rail from Manassass now and should get there before McDowell can move against it - if indeed that is the plan. Im also going to try a highly risky move by Johnston and the Army of the Shenandoah towards Harpers Ferry. Although strengths are roughly equal, I'm hoping that my better command structure and good commanders can pull off a victory. Either way, it will be a probing attack - I cant afford to lose too many men to risky ventures.

Victory in Texas! Invaders driven back!

Despite being outnumbered, the cavalrymen and rangers under McCulloch showed their mettle, driving a large Union contingent out of Texas completely!



Reinforcements are on their way to follow up the victory. With a bit of luck, the far Southwest may soon fall into my hands.

Next report: I'll cover whats going on in Missouri as forces are now on the move in that area. Also, will Johnstons attack on Harpers Ferry be successful? Stay tuned...

p.s. I'll start taking screenies of the forces involved in the manouvres, showing force compilation etc.

[acme]

good to see a new aar here.
keep up the good work!

[enf91]

Did you read Banks vs Soundoff? You're certainly writing this AAR that way. I hope the rest of the AAR goes the same way, except for the CSA getting kicked out of VA, that is.

[fusileer2002]

Thanks guys, yes i did read the Banks vs Soundoff AAR and really enjoyed it. It was in fact my inspiration for starting this one. Hope I'll be able to keep it entertaining for everyone.

[fusileer2002]

Johnston Repulsed at Harpers Ferry!



Not totally unexpected, and not a disaster. However Johnston is now going to be needed elsewhere. McDowell has advanced and if my scouts are correct his forces are not as strong as mine at Manassass! Its just too tempting a target for Beauregard!



And here is the situation in Missouri



Lyons has pushed my lone brigade out of Rolla and has managed to bottle up a battery and a second brigade which were forming inside the city. Not good news at all! However Price is at hand and if I can link up with the ejected Brigade from Rolla I think i can push Lyons away. How much time I have though is another matter. Further East, Polk arrives in SE Missouri with a strong force to draw off some of the forces massing against Price.

Meanwhile down in Texas, McCulloch and Sibley prepare to march into Arizona. Flushed with success from their victory in Dallas, McCulloch decides to try and catch the Federal forces there off-guard with a lightning fast advance. To this end, he decides to gamble and detaches his infantry, lone battery and supply train and races ahead with a sizeable force of cavalry and rangers. It should take him only 10 days to get there and hopefully the enemy will be unprepared. The second column should arrive 9 days after if all goes to plan, hopefully before any counter attack can be mounted.

[fusileer2002]

Early August

Federal Army Crushed - War Will Be Over By Christmas!

McDowell advanced too far and certain of an easy victory against ragtag Southern militias, allowed himself to be cut off from his line of retreat. Beauregard shadowed him south to Fredericksburg before pouncing on an outnumbered invader. I couldnt have hoped for a better result from the first major clash of the war.



Now I just hope I can move some supporting forces in the for kill and prevent McDowell slipping away. Beauregard is inactive this turn, though he can be forgiven for needing to sort out his army after the chaos of battle. Here's the current Virginia situation:



I'm dispatching Winder with the cavalry from Manassas to block McDowells retreat north. Lets see what happens.

Down in Texas McCullochs plan has gone ahead successfully, managing to bottle up the Federal forces and force a siege. The only drawback is that his siege train with the supplies is going to take longer than expected due to a mix up with the orders and them waiting for a newly arrived battery. It still looks promising though.



Over in Missouri Price decides to try and manouvre Lyons away from Rolla by threatening his supply lines back to St Louis. Polk is also advancing from the south to try and draw the Union troops back



Reinforcements:

2 brigades in Virginia to form the core of a new division.

[pesec]

Good job! Things sure look promising for Confederacy now! 3800 of enemy losses were prisoners!

Why wasn't McDowell able to retreat? Did Beauregard go east from Manassas and then south across the river to Fredericksburg, therefore regaining control of the only province where North had control to retreat into?

McDowell's dash for Fredrieksburg sure looks insane given that he was outnumbered and had only one (easy to cut) line of retreat.

And what are North/South morale values now? He should probably be below 80 now while you should have close to 110. Sure looks like a good time for some conscription

From what I see from the battle report, North only has a battalion (or is it a regiment) of cavalry plus some artillery and supply (IIRC supply units have a lot of "soldiers", but do not fight well at all). Should not pretty much any engagement annihilate remnants of the Army of Potomak? Can't you detatch some active generals from Beauregard's force with a few still-cohesive brigades and have them engage McDowell? At odds you have now, you can afford over-command-limit penalty and poor leaders. Or is that against a house rule?

[fusileer2002]

Yes thats exactly what happened. I ordered the AotP to intercept McDowell, not expecting him to march further south. So Beauregard promptly marched through the region above Fredericksburg regaining full control of it. I wonder if my opponent had forgotten to move one of the forces in Alexandria south or something? All of the brigades with the AotP are very low on cohesion right now, but I'm going to railroad a fresh brigade in to finish off McDowell.

[Banks6060]

Looks to me like your opponent wasn't properly "gearing up" McDowell's army for war. Perhaps he was unaware that those elements which automatically appear as part of the army must be supplimented with replacements which must be purchased by the player. He might have had a better shot at victory.

[fusileer2002]

Quite possibly. He's fairly new to the game so this will be one of those "in at the deep end" learning experiences. But its my first PBEM too and I've promised not to tryanything too "gamey" (for want of a better word) for our first go. After the games finished I'll let him read through this and hopefully it'll be quite useful to him. In any case, I'm really enjoying this and I find it quite exciting not knowing what to expect from my opponent

[fusileer2002]

Just a few notes while I'm waiting for the next turn. I'm steadily forming the strategy that I'll be using. I'm generally a very defensive player in these sort of things, preferring to make impenetrable lines and strong points. While this works against the AI I doubt it will be good against my opponent here. I'm going to try a defensive strategy of drawing the enemy into my territory before cutting his supply lines, blocking his lines of retreat and then destroying his isolated forces. It'll require some cautious defensive play combined with lightning fast advances. I'll just have to hope my good commanders like Jackson don't fall victim to stray bullets to pull this off.

Out in the West I don't have enough men to really try a crack at taking all of Missouri. I think I'll play a game of cat-and-mouse out there to tie up as many of his units as possible. Unless a good oppurtunity comes along I'm going to try and provoke him into attacking me by manouvering into good positions and threatening supply. I'll need some extra brigades and supply units from Arkansas to assist with this. Recruiting in Missouri now is too much of a gamble with so many Federals prowling around.

Around Tenessee and Mississippi I'll gather forces and wait and see. The longer I hold the two forts on the rivers the better. With luck Kentucky will secede, although I always find it tricky to hold due to its size and there being plenty of avenues of attack.

In the Southwest things are looking up. Though I doubt i'll be able to advance on California until Spring '62, giving Trouvere time to get troops there. I'm actually toying with the idea of building a fort in Arizona if he does. Its an easy way into Texas and unless he commits a lot of men he'd struggle to take it by storm. I wonder how his supplies would hold up in the desert during a long siege. It would also hold up an advance long enough to form a defence force in Texas. Of course this is all just speculation at the moment, and I'd only go ahead if it looked like an invasion was on the way.

I've also had hints and suggestions that coastal operations may soon be undertaken against me. My greatest worry at the moment as that will divert precious troops from the front.

Now I'm thinking that my plan to hold off with conscription has left me a missed oppurtunity. I'f id countered his conscription ASAP then I'd now be getting troops formed up and with his main army defeated I could really hit him hard in Virginia and even into Maryland. Too late to worry now though. Lets see what happens next.

[fusileer2002]

Late August

Well here we are, a turn that promised lots and delivered little for me. McDowell is still trapped with his remaining force around Fredericksburg. The annoying thing is, he was engaged several times during the turn by my forces there in indecisive skirmishing and inflicted more losses on me than he took. Anyway this time Beauregard is active and should finish him off. There are Union troops massing in Alexandria but i dont predict much action in Virginia this turn so I won't bore everyone with a screenshot. Only thing of note is my two cavalry regiments pulling up rails along the line from Harpers Ferry to Grafton.

Bad news in Missouri. Lyons assaulted Rolla and captured the partly formed brigade there. Its a considerable loss for me, but thats not really the thing thats bothering me. Take a look at this.



Thats a big ass force! And its not all his forces in the area. That way outnumbers me. I probably should be conscripting at this point and raising cash to try and match him up, but the forces will take time to organise. So for now, Price will withdraw to Jefferson City and pick up the battery there thats just finished building. Polk will advance once more towards St Louis to try and draw Lyons away from Rolla. This is just a ruse really, I don't have the strength to take the city but I'll see what reaction it gets. My goal now is to hold onto atleast Springfield and Charleston in Missouri so I can recruit as many troops as possible in the state over winter, when it should be safer to do so, incase I get pushed out of Missouri next Spring.

McCullochs men make a breach in Arizona, but the odds arent good enough for an assault. And to make it worse, the roads have turned to mud holding up the artillery and supply train even further.

Reinforcements:

A brigade in Virginia which will complete the new division forming.
A brigade and some militia in Tennessee to strengthen the forces holding the forts.
Some 12lb'ers from Alabama and Louisiana for the above also.
2 cavalry regiments in Arkansas to assist in Missouri.

[fusileer2002]

Update to above:

I've gone for full conscription and sold 8% war bonds to bring in some cash. With the new resources I'll be mobilising a division in Arkansas to help with the situation in Missouri, and a fleet of blockade runners to help with the war effort. I'll save my other recruitment and money spinners til later in the year.

[fusileer2002]

Early September

Johnston Holds the Line! Invaders Repelled!

A small victory at Manassass as Johnston holds against a Union invasion.



Northern Invaders hold their ground!

Despite my best efforts my generals have once again failed to bring McDowell to battle. Him sitting there is annoyingly holding up Beauregards army when it could be better used elsewhere. But the complete destruction of the Union army is too important an oppurtunity to pass up so we'll have another go. Also in Virginia, Union forces converge on Manassass. I hope they'll arrive piecemeal and poorly led so Johnston can fight them off one by one until Beauregard can support him. I've ordered Winder with the cavalry to rejoin Johnston.



Out west the situation looks tricky in Missouri



I cant win anything decisive and I can't combine Polk and Price in their current positions. Nor can either of them stay where they are for long. As Springfield is threatened I'm ordering Price to go secure it for winter. Polk can't really do much, so he's going to content himself with pulling up rails and intercepting the small force of militia to the SW. For any great outcome here I'd need to take Rolla, or atleast destroy the depot there and if it remains as well defended as it is now I can't see that happening anytime soon. So we'll remain mobile and await our oppurtunity.

Other news from around the South:

Construction on a ring of fortifications begins around Richmond. True to form "Granny" Lee has suggested we fortify our capital to prevent it ever quickly falling. But surely our brave boys will never allow the Yankees to get so close!

Reinforcements:
Some cannon for the garrisons of New Orleans and Mobile.

[fusileer2002]

Late September

This turned out to be an incredibly eventful fortnight! There was action on both fronts and out on the waves too.

New Generals take Command
A. S. Johnston, Bragg, Hardee, Van Dorn and Hindman have reported for duty and are awaiting assignments. Stand Watie and his Indian Braves have also decided their best interests lie with the South and have declared against the Union - hurrah!

Joe Johnston, hero of Manassass!

Outnumbered more than 2:1 Johnston once again sends the Union packing from the important railroad and supply junction.



McDowell finally cornered, Northern Army Smashed! On to Washington!

After a month of manouvering, sidestepping and hiding, McDowells army is finally forced into a corner and destroyed.



Eastern Victories Mirrored in the West!

Price engages Sumner around Springfield and throws the Yankees back. It seems Sumner was abandoning the siege of Springfield and perhaps trying to trap Price bewteen himself and Lyons.



Sumner also fought a successful rearguard action when Price followed up his initial victory. Each side took around 250 losses and Sumner retreated again. Even Price had to give the old soldier his begrudging respect for managing to get his badly beaten and outnumbered forces safely off the field.

Polk chases McClernand clean out of Missouri!



Will add more details in later, have just received the next turns orders....

[fusileer2002]

Southern morale is soaring now after the victories of the last few turns. Its now up to me to exploit them fully before Winter sets in and more reinforcements turn up. I'm desperately short of cash and it looks like I'm going to have start printing money - especially if I want to risk a Cotton Embargo again (the Morale bonus is nice but its a lot of money to lose).

Heres the Eastern positions:



My cavalry has hopefully been a bit of a pest along his supply line to WV but in all honestly he's get his forces well positioned to repair it all. One regiment is going to try and raid into Maryland but it won't achieve anything more than being a nuisance and (hopefully) distraction. If I'm going to make an advance on Washington though having the rails cut to Harpers Ferry can only be a good thing. And speaking of such a move, Beauregard will move north from Fredericksburg and take up position south of Alexandria. Perhaps it will become viable to attack here next turn.

Jackson is going to take his historical role in the Valley. Although he only has one brigade with him hes going to relieve the siege south of Winchester and secure the Strasbourg Depot. I can't be certain of this, but I think just having Jackson present has deterred my oponent from attacking in the Valley so far Longstreet was most active during the hunt for McDowell it seems and has earned his promotion to 2-stars.

Out West



Although Sumner is now in a rough state, Price is going to remain in place and start digging in for Winter and in case Lyons arrives with that much larger force. I'd love to go chasing Sumner and destroy his little detachment, but I must hold Springfield over Winter if I'm going to stand a chance of retaking Missouri next Spring. However I do have some bands of bushwackers and raiders on hand to go chasing after Sumner - if he's as poorly supplied and badly mauled as i think he is they might have some success.

Polk there has cleared Eastern Missouri but has nothing more to do with the forces available to him, so will withdraw to Charleston to recruit. Perhaps over winter I'll use this as a base to advance on St Louis, which will require me to take Cairo just over the river first. Or atleast block the river crossing there.

News from the rest of the South

McCulloch has finally been joined by the second column in Arizona. They are badly strung out after a long march on terrible roads and are fit for nothing for the moment. The siege will continue.

Kentucky is still sitting on the fence and refusing to help either side. Atleast thats the governor is telling President Davis. I have my suspicions though, and think that Yankee troops may already be preparing to march into its towns and cities, thus infringing the rights of its gallant Southern citizens. I am tempted to enter Kentucky to spare them from this fate, but how would that sway public opinion? For now, I'll just prepare a force ready to react. Some more cavalry I think will be useful.

News from Norfolk - the Confederate navy has made a successful attempt to break out of the Estuary and put to sea! The guns of Fort Monroe took a terrible toll, but no ships were lost in the move. Now Buchanan, with the new Ironclad CSS Virginia and a small supporting flotilla will head down the coast to Wilmington for repairs. The frigates, requiring deeper water, are heading to Charleston for repairs before beginning raiding operations on the Atlantic.

Reinforcements:

Cavalry in Tenessee.
2 brigades of infantry in North Caroline to form a reaction force and to also keep the rails open between Virginia and Tennessee.

[Mickey3D]

McDowell finally cornered, Northern Army Smashed!

Strange that your opponent did not try to escape using river movement down the Rappahannock.

[fusileer2002]

The possibly of that never even occurred to me. I wonder if it did to my opponent? In that situation I most likely would have tried to put McDowell into evade posture and try to sneak away North whilst bringing some forces south to meet up and rescue him. But thanks for the tip, sometimes we overlook the easiest options whilst considering the hardest ones!

[acme]

good work so far!

keep it coming

[fusileer2002]

Early October

Not much to report from last turn. Everything went pretty much as planned without any enemy interference. The bushwackers I sent chasing after Sumners bloddied force in Missouri actually performed well! 150 vs over 2000 and they inflicted 60 losses to their own 30! Sumners force was as I thought mauled and probably low on ammo. This turn I've spotted a lone 10lb'er battery which looked like it was coming to join Sumner's command, so I'll try and grab that with the raiders.

Down in Arizona, its time for an assault!



Shame that McCulloch is inactive so it'll have to be Sibley that leads the assualt on the beleagured defenders. Looking at the unit strengths I wouldn't be surprised if they just surrendered, but I want to bag them before they melt away through starvation.

Over in the East, Beauregards army is going to attack the Union forces around Alexandria. A successful push here will expose Washington which will lead to either of two things, both good for me:

1 - Trouvere will be forced to rush forces back to hold his capital thus relieving Jackson in the Valley.

2 - He'll leave Washington as it is believing it will withstand a siege, allowing me a crack at it and ending the war! I think this will be his less likely course of action.



Either way, if successful I'll have a good defensive position behind the river.

Reinforcements:

A lot of Militia and a couple of brigades in Missouri to build up Price and Polks forces.

[enf91]

Unit strength for surrender matters only if the defenders include militia. For all other units, discipline is not relative to strength. You have to have a "siege roll value" greater than the defenders' average discipline (if they have no supply wagons) for them to surrender. You'd need lots of artillery and Lee or any other offensive siege engineer to have a shot at overcoming the 6 or 7 average discipline the Union presumably has in Tucson.

[fusileer2002]

Late October

Managed to catch up with and destroy the raiders who were busy destroying the rails between Virginia and Tennessee.



Got a few repairs to do but that should keep the trains moving over Winter now. I'll keep a couple of brigades in this area to guard against further incursions. I've also seen a spot where a depot or two along this track could bu handy for moving supplies, but i'm not sure its necessary. It woild also be a bit vulnerable and I have enough places to guard already.

Hooker Tastes Defeat!

My attack on Alexandria was a success! Although the town remains in Yankee hands, the enemy's main force was forced to retreat across the Potomac into Maryland. Already the southern papers are screaming "On To Washington!".



However this was followed up with a surprising battle. I'm not sure whether this Union force was a late reinforcement or just happened to be travelling through, but a small skirmish ensued.



So another turn with very good results for the South. Everywhere else is pretty quiet, so here's the Virginia positions:



Heintzelman remains in Alexandria. I want to assault the town there am loathe to put Beauregard into assault posture in case Hooker comes back over the river with god-knows-what. Anyway I think i can score a cheap victory here by sitting on the defensive and watching the Union try and get away. Perhaps I am being too cautious but I need to preserve manpower for clearing the Valley - possibly over winter which is never good.

Jackson is again going to race back to Winchester. I left it empty last turn and I now suspect Trouvere will be moving a force in grab it.

J. E. Johnston handed the reins over to Longstreet at Manassass. I cant see Longstreet losing here, being an especially skilled defender, and Johnstons abilities will come in handy in the West.

In Fredericksburg a full division of Virginians is forming. This will bolster my strength considerably.

Other news from the South

Still no declaration from Kentucky. It looks like the damn governors going to welcome the Federals in with open arms. A. S. Johston is poised across the border with 10,000 men ready to ride to the protection of our brothers within the state.

Missouri is shaping up to be a real battleground. Thousands of Missourians have answered the call and taken up arms. In the west Price and Van Dorn have nearly 2 full divisions (including one on its way from Arkansas if the weather permits) and in the east Polk is sitting in Charleston with around 6000 men. Artillery is always in short supply this far west and is the one thing I'm really lacking.

Arizona fell without a fight in the end. The Union forces there must have just faded away due to lack of supply.

Reinforcements: Supply wagon in Missouri (hopefully it will be built in Springfield - fingers crossed)

[fusileer2002]

Early November

Jackson Triumphant again!

Once again Stonewall Jackson shows his quality. After a rapid march back to Winchester he arrives just in time to repel the attack I expected was coming.



I must admit i'm getting lucky here. The Shenandoah Valley is almost surrounded by Union forces now yet Jackson always manages to be in the right place at the right time. It must be terribly fustrating for my Union opponent. Meanwhile, Beauregard catches and crushes a lone Union division, though its not the force I was expecting.



Still, its an excellent result!

Kentucky Joins the Union



Thats not such good news. It means loyalty in each region is going to be swaying away from me. Still, there are plenty of good folk in Kentucky with Southern sympathies, so I'd best get my butt in there and liberate the state from Federal oppression!

Cotton Embargo continues!

Surely another 6 months without cotton should show Europe how much they need us. I hope so, because I'm really strapped for cash! I'm never sure this option is really worth it, as the $150,000 it costs me can buy a lot of stuff. Ok the morale bonus is nice but 5VP? I know others always use it but i must admit I'm not quite so keen. Still, keeps things interesting!

Ive found a few oppurtunities to attack this turn, so more pics and plans to follow soon.

[fusileer2002]

Well I got the opposing orders file sooner than anticipated and all my attacks went as planned, so i'll skip to the results!

Late November

Alexandria Falls!



Outnumbered, Johnston holds the line! Union attacks are unco-ordinated!





Also in Missouri, Price and Van Dorn successfully drove Lyons back to Jefferson City in one of the largest battles in that side of the state. Losses were just under 1,000 on each side. It looks unlikely that the victory can be followed up as there is a large force in Jefferson and Van Dorns command is in need of rest and reorganisation after the battle.

Army of the Tennessee liberates Kentucky!

A. S. Johnston marched at the head of the Confederate column as it entered Bowling Green. The streets were lined with loyal citizens shouting, cheering and waving Confederate flags. The small local Militia which had been ordered to resist had been brushed aside and its members were now sat under guard, wondering what would happen to them next. Johston wondered how on earth the state had been allowed to side with the North, when the feeling among the ordinary people was so obviously in favour of the South. He was already anticipating his glorious entry into Louisville before the end of December. Two regiments of cavalry had already been sent ahead of the army to secure the railroad lines north and carry out repairs if necessary.

At the same time Bowling Green had been liberated, a Confederate brigade also stormed into Paducah.

Cotton Embargo felt across the Atlantic!

I got a +14 on the roll! This takes my Foreign Intervention up nicely.



Everything else on that Objectives screen is looking nice and after next turn, it should look even better. Heres the Virginia Positions (nothing much of note elsewhere again, though will update you on it shortly).



Although the weather is deteriorating fast, I'm going on the offensive. Longstreet is leaving Manassass and attacking the Federals to his Northwest, between him and Jackson in Winchester. He has 2 Divisions under his command and this should be enough to swat them aside. Beauregard is taking his army into Marlyand! Taking 3 divisions and leaving a large force behind to protect his rear, he's going to clear the Union armies outside of Washington and lay siege to the enemy capital. Once safely in position, this will allow him to assault the city from a safer position in the following turn.

No reinforcements this turn, I'm waiting to see what happens and will be having a big recruitment drive in early December.

[acme]

a bit too risky to move on washinton (crossing river).
u can lose all the advantege u gained so far.
(and if u would succeed with taking washington, ur opponent may leave the game, so no more fun AAR to read...)

anyway wish u luck.

[fusileer2002]

Yes it is a bit risky, but I believe my command structure to be better and my troops have been putting up a fantastic fight everywhere due to the National Morale differences. I guess its easy to imagine something similar was going through Lee's head at Gettysburg, thinking his troops were unbeatable I'm going in with a limited attack to minimise risk and won't be assaulting the city (atleast not this turn). At the moment i dont expect to take the city, but I do believe the move will force his hand to withdraw from Virginia to protect his capital. With the Yanks out of my territory for the winter I can prepare in peace for Spring.

Dont worry about the AAR ending. If this game does finish we'll be playing again, perhaps with the other side. I'm glad you're enjoying reading For the next game, whenever that is, I'll try and persaude Trouvere to write his own AAR if he has time, and perhaps he can pick up some good advice that way, like I have from this. Its amazing that you can still learn something new about a game that you thought you had mastered ages ago - ie; using river movement to escape or simply holding down the shift key to view types of exits from a region.

[pesec]

Risky, but makes sence: likely, your opponent will not expect an attack in such weather. Normally, I would go throuh Montgomery county (to avoid rivercrossing), but that both gives him time and exposes your boys to winter...

[acme]

hey fusileer!

the crowd 'demand' update!
i bet u took washington and ur opponent left the game