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Longshanks
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Update on Moni Kerr v Pat Cleburne as of Jan 15 1862

Sat Aug 18, 2012 6:18 pm

This is a most unusual game. There have been several moves that show the aggressiveness of each player, coupled with their understanding of the limits of the game, and how to bust through them without being "gamey."

We just finished the E Jan 62 turn. But I'm going to back you up to the August turns, which I previously reported on. As you recall, Moni Kerr invaded Kentucky during the month, and occupied the entire state by the end of September. Gen. Cleburne declined to put up too much of a fight there I believe, except for a token defense of Bowling Green, which was the last city to fall. In Virginia, the Rebs went after Alexandria and Washington BOTH in late July. On their return in late August, these were the headlines:

Jackson Shoves Winfield Scott Aside as Rebs Fall Back to Virginny!
Rebel Excursion to Washington Over as Units Fall Back into Starting Positions
Union with Manassas, Alexandria, Harper's Ferry; Rebs with Fredericksburg, Winchester

By October the Union had not only completed its occupation of the Bluegrass State, it continued its Kentucky Campaign by appending an excursion to Huntsville TN (we may consider this a Cumberland Gap effort I suppose). Gen. MoniKerr wrote to Washington (i.e., me):

"My Kentucky plan worked better this time than last. I now have a strong force across the mountains threatening Knoxville, and it is bigger than the last game. That will tie in nicely with a move on Memphis.
I think Pat has hobbled himself somewhat by waiting to draft. When I did that in my CSA game I found I was on heels throughout and I never recovered. With Manassas captured my moral is a nice 83 which means Grant should be able to march to Memphis with little cohesion lost. If the weather holds fair; this will be my third attempt at that move. I think I have a good shot at it this time; capturing Bowling Green and threatening Nashville and Knoxville ought to thin out the defense of Memphis."

Things had settled down in Virginia ... or had they? Suddenly, Beauregard launched an attack on Alexandria, starting from Culpeper, by-passing Manassas via Stafford and hitting the town across from the Union capital. Here are the headlines:

BLOODY ALEXANDRIA! Winfield Scott Defeated by His Student, Beauregard!
Over 10,000 Casualties in Two Battles as Rebs By-Pass Manassas and Take Alexandria on the Potomac!
Polk Retakes Columbus KY - but at Cost!

Here is Gen Cleburne's report to Richmond:

"If I would've waited one more turn, Winfield would have gone home (maybe, not sure if it would've happened at the beginning or end of the turn). Bory has been surprisingly inactive these last few turns though so I had to strike while the iron was hot. Now it's a question of how he reacts. I'm guessing ] McDowell [in Manassas] counterattacks Alexandria. I could rail Bory NW, run south, or stay and fight. What stance to use? Then it's a question of what to do with my 2 Rappahannock divisions. Assume he's leaving Manassas mostly undefended? I'd have to risk a defeat in detail if I attack [note: they were not in the same stack -Longshanks]. What if he attacks my line instead? It's a poker game and I've decided to hedge my bets."

Gen. MK sent this to Washington:
"That hurt. I wonder if he can exploit it? Beauregard's force looks a little weary right now, and Washington is strongly held so I don't imagine there will be an attempt to take it. This is probably the last turn of fair weather until the next year, so I will use it to send Grant on to Memphis. Hopefully he succeeds in the 70% force march and gets there this turn."

This is when many players would have panicked, and pulled out of Manassas to go retake Alexandria. Perhaps Gen. Cleburne was hoping for that, I don't know. But instead, Gen. MoniKerr pulled a stunner:
Grant forced marched in one move from Columbus KY to Memphis TN! He didn't take it, but it was razor close. At the time I thought this was a crazy move: the Union didn't own either Ft. Donelson or Island#10. Surely you need at least one of those to move that deep into Tennessee, with only a Depot in Paducah and many Confederate forces in the vicinity (including Polk). But Grant did take 2 Wagons with him, which promised several turns of food and ammo. Suddenly, the focus was not on Virginia (where movement ceased for a while, with a topsy-turvy Rebel Alexandria and Union Manassas!), but on Memphis and the Union move. Additional forces under Fremont and Halleck initially remained in Kentucky. Here was the war correspondence (via cipher) from Halleck to the President (i.e., a note from Monikerr to me!):

"Grant's timing was perfect. Pat moved his fleet and transports back to Memphis and may have been planning an amphib attack with van Dorn, probably to Cairo. That concentration is now disrupted with van Dorn on the wrong side of the Mississippi. The dilemma with Grant is this; with cohesion so low should I set him to passive and recover (but lose all MC) or should I set him to defend and take a chance that Pat moves his units into Memphis which would initiate a siege, giving Grant a chance to take the town before day one. I think that is a big gamble so maybe I should go for it? Milroy is taking one division and sailing down river for Chattanooga. In the east there is still some fair weather regions for him to exploit. He likes to make dramatic moves so I suspect Beauregard may try for Baltimore or Annapolis. " [Pat wrote me: "I played way too conservative last game, but I think I'm overcompensating this time. Whatever, It's more fun than sitting in trenches. I usually try not to play gamey, but I couldn't help myself this time. It's war dammit! Let's see what happens at Memphis." I might add Pat is not a "gamey" player and neither is MK. Their moves look legitimate to me.] This is about the time that Gen. Cleburne transported Longstreet from the East to the defense of Memphis.

At the same time, Gen. Cleburne was telegraphing President Davis: "If he wants to get tricky/gamey, he could sail down the TN river and hit Chattanooga instead. I can't even send ships to stop it. Then it's a question of should I blow Knoxville depot? Chattanooga depot? Both? Neither? I'm gonna leave em up because I don't know what that would do to my supply network and maybe I hold them both."

Good analysis of your enemy, Generals! Not being content with the newspapers focusing on Grant, Bory left Alexandria and went straight for .... Annapolis and Baltimore, just as the Yanks had predicted. At the same time, the Rebs sent Polk into Humboldt to disrupt Yankee supply, just as Halleck moved to Memphis, bringing Grant a third wagon. Milroy, who had taken over the Cumberland Gap offensive, hopped on the river near Knoxville (still held by Sidney Johnston), and used riverine movement to Chattanooga, which he took. Another bold move! [About which, Pat wrote me: "That TN river gambit is really giving me fits. Never thought of it." Same here, Pat!] Now, it being late November 1861, Memphis being threatened and Chattanooga taken, can we not say this is "lightning warfare?"

With Grant's supply line to Paducah intermittent at best, and with Polk hovering to cut off that access permanently, I thought Moni Kerr might pull him back to re-establish the line. Here's what MK told me: "Grant is fine except for some low supply. Polk is in trouble. He gave his 6800 man command a much needed rest but when they woke up there were 17000 fresh Union troops in Humboldt under Gen Fremont and 100% Union MC. And this turn Fremont is actually active :) and Polk won't be able escape on the railroad. Hopefully I can engage him. That doubles Union strength in west Tennessee to 35k against only about 15k Confederates split into 2 groups, Polk and Longstreet. And Lyon is on the way with a few thousand more."

As the year began to wind down, here's what the newspapers reported:

Jackson Takes Winchester, Harper's Ferry ... Sans Depot!
Polk Slowly Retreats from Humboldt in the Face of Superior Union Strength [Fremont]!
Winter Starts to Tell on Troops in the Field and Ships at Sea

The last half of December resulted in these headlines:

Bory Gives Keyes a Severe Bloody Nose at Stafford as Rebs Withdraw to Culpeper!
Polk Reclaims Humboldt! Grant Cut Off!

As you can tell, the excursion to Maryland did not last long. "There and Back - A Rebel's Tale" might have been the title. On the return, Jackson took possession of the Shenandoah, all the way to Harper's where the Yanks had blown the depot. As winter wore on, Bory pulled out of Alexandria, abandoning it completely and falling back to Culpeper. On the way, he met Keyes in Stafford (where both had just moved) and gave him a whipping, resulting in two rebel promotions. The Yanks lost about 4,000, and the Rebs only 500. Pat wrote me: "Finally a good solid win. Seems like it's been awhile since I've had one of those, even if I didn't expect it." MK wrote me: "I forgot to turn off the hold at all costs button. Grant is going to try and push Longstreet out [of Memphis]. Intelligence shows Beauregard's force [recently arrived at Culpeper] to be surprisingly worn out, some divisions showing 30/30, or 22/22. So McDowell is going to tap on the door and see what happens in Culpepper."

And he did. Here's what the newspapers reported:

Jan 2, 1862 - MASSIVE BATTLE AT MEMPHIS! Each Army Lose over 7,000 Casualties as the Dead Pile Up in Mud-filled Trenches! Grant Falls Back to Jackson! [0 NM]
Lyon Claims Humboldt! Union Supply Line to Grant Intact!
Beauregard Yields Culpeper to McDowell's Advance from Manassas as Union Goes on a Winter Offensive in Virginia!
Union's Chattanooga Force Moves into Rome Georgia! Decatur Also Falls to Boys in Blue!
Both Sides Gear Up for a Long War with Drafts, Taxes, and Political Moves!
note from me to the Generals: big moves, big losses - fighting in winter and mud...one might conclude you two don't like each other much ... perhaps the most interesting game of the tournament so far. If you would each be so kind, please send me your plans for 1862. These will be kept in confidence of course until 1863 or the end.

Battle of Memphis

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Situation in Virginia

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Situation in East Tennessee

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Situation in West Tennessee

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charlesonmission
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Thu Aug 23, 2012 9:04 pm

Brillant reporting Longshanks!

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Longshanks
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Sun Sep 02, 2012 9:03 pm

Update on Moni Kerr v Pat Cleburne

We just finished the E May 62 turn. The game has turned a bit more conventional since the last update (E Jan 62). That's not to say it's boring! Instead, the weather and arrival of new troops, along with positional exigencies, have caused play to be, ummm, more conventional.
Results of L Jan 62 turn:
Longstreet Smashes Grant at Memphis as Grant's Move to Take City Fails Again!
Sidney Johnston Moves Out of Knoxville, Retakes Decatur and Rome! "He is the Forward Lance of the Confederacy!" praises Davis!
Polk Bloodies Fremont But Fails to Retake Columbus KY! +1 CSA NM
note: foil and riposte! lots of action for a winter turn!

Results of E Feb 62 turn
Nelson Bleeds But Stops Joe Johnston at Bowling Green!
Hooker Takes Ft. Donelson!
Mitchell Takes Columbia, NC!
note: the river fort on the Cumberland falls, opening up Nashville for attack

Results of L Feb 62
Grant (With Hooker, Sherman and Lyon) Surprises Ed Johnson in Nashville, Takes City and Depot! Heavy Rebel Losses! +2 USA NM
Union Occupies Jackson AL
note: game is turning a bit more conventional... not boring though! Nice to see Butler actually doing something! was he the worst general to keep a command the entire war? I think so ....
Comment from Gen. Cleburne: Damn! I'm in a tight spot! [a la George Clooney in O Brother Where Art Thou?] I thought he might go for Nashville, but just hoped it wouldn't happen. I've got to buckle down.
Comment from Gen. Moni Kerr: Apparently Grant is writing a book. The working title is "From Memphis to Nashville; A Yankee soldier's journey to the Grand Ole Opry" Some Union soldiers have been overheard singing a bawdy song with a strange rhythm they call 'rockabilly'. An overheard lyric was:

"There's more things in Tennessee,
Than's dreamed of in your philosophy
Gimme a barnful of cornfed dames
they wiggle a little I burst into flames
Whip that cream baby till the butter comes."

Results of E Mar 62 turn
Boys in Gray Pull out of Shenandoah as Union Moves In!
note: no battles this turn. my sense is you're both gathering your wits and strength for a big turn soon.
Comment from Gen Cleburne: Hrm. What to do, what to do. A plan for 1862? Take back Chattanooga and Culpepper and dig impenetrable lines. Maybe take XXX and/or YYY and get involved in cauldron battles with interior lines. Guard ZZZ. Dare my opponent to AAA. Try to go after XYZ if things turn favorable. No other aggression towards objectives is worth it. (BTW, why isn't Baltimore an objective? Cincy, St Louis, even Indy should be worth
more as well.) [I agree! Baltimore especially!]

Results of L Mar 62
Beauregard Retakes Culpeper! Heintzelman Falls Back to Manassas! +2 CSA NM [Note: Goal achieved!]
Union Occupies Winchester and Harper's Ferry
Union Moves to Link Chattanooga to Nashville by Rail!
Is Joe Johnston Trapped North of the Cumberland in Clarksville?
Comment from Gen Cleburne: Phase 1 complete. Initiate phase 2. Ole Joe Johnston is trapped, at least until the weather improves. It's a productive trapping though. Supply isn't a worry, and he cut off the 2 rail sections north of Nashville and should help tie down forces north and south of the river until he's dealt with. I'm sending my fleet round the bend to mess with his interdiction capabilities as well.
Comment from Gen Moni Kerr: A command mishap caused me to lose in Culpepper. I had a corps commander on the way to take over Heintzleman's command but he targeted Mcdowell instead. No mtsg to help in Culpepper :(

Results of E Apr 62
Grant Stops Smith at Chattanooga on Day One, But Rebs Retake City on Day 2! [+1 USA NM tho!]
Longstreet Takes Back Jackson Alabama!
Many Batteries Fire on Each Side's Navies!
Comment from Gen. Moni Kerr: That was quite a difference in force levels, so for Grant to hold for 2 days is quite impressive. [note: I agree. Grant has now fought in Memphis, Nashville and Chattanooga!]
Comment from Gen Cleburne: Phase 2 complete. Uhh, initiate phase 3? He had pushed me back in places, but I got coiled to strike and he got spread out. Now he's starting to consolidate and I need to get into position to thwart the strike.

Results of L Apr 62
Longstreet Defends Bolivar Tennessee vs Sumner! +1 CSA NM
Ships Continue to be Bombarded by Land Forces! [many ships on both sides hit by shore bombardment the last two turns!]
Rebs Retake Columbia NC (coast is now unmolested by boys in blue]
Joe Johnston in Gallatin

Results of E May 62
Tennessee Continues to be Center Stage!
Grant Narrowly Defeats Joe J. in Gallatin! Rebs, Badly Outnumbered, Escape to Lebanon!
Semmes Cumberland Fleet Hit by Butler in Nashville but Continues to Pin Union Fleet Upriver!
Union Retreats Before Longstreet at Jackson!
Lexington Missouri Revolts and Raises Confederate Troops! Depot Falls into Rebel Hands!
note: Summertime offensives are a-coming, I expect!

That's all until next time!
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Captain_Orso
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Sun Sep 02, 2012 10:37 pm

Great report LS; I can feel the excitement :w00t: . +1 for O Brother Where Art Thou reference. BTW can I buy that song on iTunes? :thumbsup:

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Longshanks
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Update MoniKerr vs Pat Cleburne

Wed Sep 12, 2012 2:50 am

Whew! These boys fight!

THREE big battles at F'burg in two turns, with one side winning all three fights and gaining 12 NM in the process ... nearly 50,000 casualties in all .... and yet the other side is making gains over most the rest of the map. This game is still in doubt, with about a year of game time to go.

I'm planning on having a detailed report this weekend.

Stay near the campfire for the next big dispatch, keep your head down and powder dry!
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Longshanks
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Fri Sep 21, 2012 1:16 am

Sigh, I'm a bit late with the report. However, four straight days off coming up, so I should get to it then!
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Altaris
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Thu Sep 27, 2012 12:00 am

Longshanks wrote:Sigh, I'm a bit late with the report. However, four straight days off coming up, so I should get to it then!


Does this mean the 4 days off are gone with no update? :(

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Longshanks
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Thu Sep 27, 2012 1:58 am

Don't look at me! ARRGGGHHHHHH! (heh, heh)
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Pat "Stonewall" Cleburne
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Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:42 pm

Heh, I guess I timed my laziness with your time off. I'll try to get back to normal speed at least.

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Longshanks
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Mon Oct 08, 2012 9:47 pm

OK, this update will take us through the end of 1862, from where we left off, in May of '62. During this phase of the war, you will see the Union attempt advances in Virginia and Tennessee, succeeding in one place, but failing in the other. The CSA admits to overbuilding and perhaps overcommitting on one front. But the lead at the end of the year may portend the outcome of the game .....

Results of L May 62
Headlines:
Rosecrans Crushes Longstreet's Attack on Humboldt! +3 USA NM
Porter Beats Semmes on the Cumberland!
Sigel Retakes Lexington MO
Johnston Trapped North of the Cumberland! Can They Escape?

MoniKerr: I didn't expect an attack on Humbolt with all the mud. I thought he might try for Nashville to mount a rescue operation for Johnston. Looks like the end is near for the Confederate river fleet, and maybe Johnston's command as well.

Results of E Jun 62

Headlines:
Johnston Foils Grant at Livingstone TN...Twice...But Kearny's Arrival Turns the Tide Third Time Round! Is Johnston Still Trapped North of the Cumberland?
Ship Battle Continues on Cumberland!
Cleburne was trying to figure out how to escape destruction of Johnston's corps/army which was on the north side of the Cumberland, trying to move South, but somewhat thwarted by the Union gunboats. He wrote: Hrm. New plan, operation Don't Die. Let's see if this will work.
MoniKerr was seeking complete destruction of Rebel warships, and capture of the remaining four transports there.

Results of L Jun 62
Headlines:
Johnston Slips Across Cumberland!
Semmes' Transports Escape from Cumberland!
Island #10 Siege Continues as it Bombards Porter!

Longshanks' note: looks like your Operation Don't Die was a success ... so far!

The crossing of the river worked somehow. The union ships may have chased the transports long enough to allow the crossing. Got this from Gen. Cleburne: Well, I'm across the river. Ruggles is worn out though and can't march anywhere. Hopefully Walker can cover him for a turn. Hopefully they retreat south. Worst case scenario, they retreat back across the river...
The escape was perilous though, as Union troops were pouring into Central Tennessee. MoniKerr: He's not out of the woods, or maybe I should say mud, yet. Pat is unlucky to have mud along his escape route. I'm going to try and get behind him.

Results of E July 62:
This was a big turn, with lots of significant moves that set the scene for the rest of the year. The Union was foiled in Virginia, but made real success in Tennessee, especially on the Mississippi.
Headlines:
16,000 Yankee Casualties at Fredricksburg! Rebs Hang On But Lose 11,000! Smith Defends F'burg as Holmes MTSG Against McDowell and McClellan! +3 CSA NM
Sumner Captures Island #10...But Jackson Takes Fort Monroe! +1 CSA NM
Jackson Takes Hampton on the Way to Ft. Monroe! +2 CSA NM
Longshanks' note: +6 CSA NM, -6 USA NM ... biggest swing of the game I think. Amazingly vicious fighting at F'burg. Sumner's accomplishment is usually 'top billing,' but is dwarfed by Jackson's Peninsular March, which is in turn eclipsed by F'burg. What a turn!
MoniKerr: Once more into the breach at Fredericksburg! But this time on conservative attack not normal. The aim here is to bleed him and if lucky capture the objective. I still have 7 of the original 9 divisions able to fight. What looked like a bad turn really wasn't so bad, aside from the loss of 6 NM. Jackson and 3 divisions are way out of position. Pope can entrench very quickly, so I hope he can block the peninsula while McDowell keeps the pressure on. J E Johnston remains trapped [south of Gallatin] and there is now a second division in the trap with him. The only force capable of breaking the ring is Longstreet and he has supply problems, plus he is protecting Memphis. And the Memphis depot looks bare. So far the casualties are 94000 Union to 80000 CSA. That's an exchange rate I can live with. Gotta keep up the pressure.

Results of L July 62:
Headlines:
Second Attack at F'burg! McDowell Crushed - 13,000 lost vs. 4,600 for Rebs' Smith and Holmes! +6 CSA NM
Forney's Corps Chases Whipple's Corps Out of Roanoke!
Pope's Corps Cuts Peninsula, but Jackson Slips South to Norfolk!
Yanks Press South in Central Tennessee, Led by Grant!
Porter's Fleet Bombarded Steaming Past Memphis!
Joe Johnston Appears to be Surrounded in Carthage!

Longshanks' note: another turn full of action. determined Yanks suffer major defeat at F'burg, but make gains most everywhere else. With about one year to go, this game hangs in the balance with no clear leader. well fought, and pretty exciting to watch.

Gen. Cleburne: Wow. Didn't think he could get to F'burg on day 3. Almost another disaster. Magruder arrived but didn't join the force yet, so he did most of the fighting by himself looks like. Time to go rescue J Joe. I also could've made a serious mistake elsewhere. But we'll have to wait and see.
Gen. MK: Whatever happened to a conservative attack? :( Back to the drawing board...

Results of E Aug 62
Grant, Longstreet Switch Positions! Longstreet to Pulaski, Grant to Humboldt!
Joe Johnston Creeps South!
All Quiet on the Eastern Front!
Longshanks' note to Gen. MK: any particular reason you haven't blown up Island 10 and Fort Donelson?
MK: Forts are depots and harbors so they are useful for resting and recovery. Also forts H & D proved very useful in bombarding his fleet. I'm keeping Island 10 as a fort and filling it with 2 additional coastal batteries to prevent any sneak attack on Cairo or Paducah.
Gen. Cleburne: Still lots of volatility in TN. I have to telegraph one move, but I'm hoping he can't stop it. As for Monroe, I ordered the depot blown last turn but it didn't happen. I honestly don't care about the fort. I'm not going to be sailing past it or anything. I was hoping he would sail out and get wumped. Otherwise it has no value to either of us. It may have scared him into stopping outside of Norfolk/Monroe. I hope he tries to land at Suffolk!

Results of L Aug 62
Grant Stuns Johnston in South Tennessee - But Rebs Escape to Pulaski! +3 USA NM
Porter Turns Stonewall Back at Anderson TN +1 USA NM
Fort Monroe Pounds Farragut!
Longshanks' Note: A Union turn this time ....

Gen Cleburne: I thought he had moved Fitzjohn out of Anderson. Darn mountains... Operation Don't Die has been combined with operation Run Away.

Results of E Sept 62:
Johnston Defeats Grant in a Close-Fought Battle at Pulaski!
Rebs Make Good Their Escape South of the Tennessee River!
Memphis, Chattanooga and Knoxville are Last Rebel Strongholds in Tennessee!
Longshanks' note to Cleburne: nice job. Operations Don't Die and Run Away appear to have succeeded!
Cleburne: I've committed 14 of my 26 divisions to TN. Only 8 front line divisions with 1 reserve division in VA and 3 garrison divisions spread about. I wish I could send Lee to face Grant, but he has to prop up my bad corps commanders in VA. I've never been a fan of the TN first strategy as the Union.

Results of L Sept 62
Headlines:
Three Battles Around Madison, TN!
Longstreet Beats Halleck at Madison TN!
Grant and His Corps Return the Favor, But Lose More in the Process!
Blenker Stumbles into Longstreet's Retreated Forces, and Gets Taken! +1 CSA NM
Union Takes Covington TN - Yanks Now Poised to Take on Memphis!
Wallace's Men Move to Rail SW of Ch'ville in Roanoke VA!
Union Invades Texas by Sea!
Cleburne: I'd love to continue the aggression, but alas, I've overbuilt and didn't leave enough reserves. Strictly defense from me until the end of the year. It annoys me that I kept a division in Texas for the whole game and he shows up right after I decide he wasn't coming. The door is still open for him.

Results of E Oct 62
Forney Chases Down, Defeats, Yanks at Rockbridge VA! +1 CSA NM
Forney Pursues, Destroy Wallace's Force at Roanoke! +1 CSA NM
Union Forces from Galveston Bay Take Houston and Galveston!
Kearny Presses into Mississippi, Between Memphis and Corinth!
Union Controls Everything on the North Shore of the Tennessee River!
[Longshanks' note: I haven't been tracking the VPs as I bet you both have, but I will start now, as we begin to enter the last stage of the game. So, current totals as of the end of the E Oct 62 turn: 1456 USA to 1900 CSA The USA now has the lead in vp from cities, but will have to take a lot more to make up 444 vps!]
Cleburne: Texas is done [lost to the Union for good]. Wish I would've waited until spring to send that division off. I formed a rock at Memphis. It's all I could do with my reinforcement situation. Chattanooga-Knoxville line is now unbreakable. He will move west with the Nashville hoards, I just can't really stop him aside from the Memphis Rock. I'll wait until reinforcements arrive in force and watch for mistakes. What is his plan with those 4 divisions in Rockingham? They make me nervous even though I don't see his goal. A wrong move could spell disaster.

Results of L Oct 62
Headlines:
Yanks Continue in Texas, Taking Matagorda!
Results of E Nov 62
Headlines:
Union Takes Corinth and Moves to Cut off Memphis!
[Longshanks note to MK: You're making significant gains, but can you even the score before the game ends?]
MK: It's definitely an uphill climb.
Cleburne: He's cautiously expanding. Hopefully he gets overly bold by the time I get back to full strength. I think I just saw 4 more divisions head NW from Baltimore. You know what that means.

Results of L Nov 62:
Union Fights the Sioux!
Quiet Month as Union Fleet Explores Louisiana Coast!

Results of E Dec 62:
A quiet turn. Lee Moves to Command the West! The year approaches its end! If you would be so kind as to summarize 1862 from your point-of-view, and forward that to me.
Cleburne's Reply:
Manpower is finally restored! I was tempted to start operations this turn, but I'm going to wait and make sure all of my elements are back to at least 75%. It looks like he may be preparing an all out blitz on Memphis. I'm not usually scared when I have [redacted] divisions entrenched to level 6, but he has a LOT of troops and Grant in the area. I still don't see those troops from the eastern theatre [that moved out of Baltimore earlier]. Luckily Lee has arrived to offer telepathic support from 300 miles away. Stonewall will be ready for action next turn as well.

I think there may be something wrong with the way naval attrition is being handled. I think I noticed hits being repaired on my brigs while they were in the [blockade] box earlier. And now his navy sits outside of Memphis all winter and stays in great shape even in frozen weather (though I'm pretty sure the mighty Mississippi shouldn't freeze). I guess I shouldn't complain though. My supply situation is fine even though I'm surrounded and blockaded. If he would've taken Madison [Arkansas] I might have had problems.

1862 went ok with me. I restored decent defensive lines, held onto the coast for the most part, and didn't suffer any really bad defeats. Overbuilding and running out of manpower was scary, but I think I may survive that. Moving away from Texas at the exact wrong time was a bad idea. Other than that, I don't remember any MAJOR mistakes that I've made.

Results of L Dec 62:

another quiet turn. ... we enter Jan 63 from here out .... 14 turns remaining. game ends at the very end of July as you may recall
Cleburne: Hmm. Well Marston found Lee with a few Cavalry. I have to watch to make sure he doesn't reverse east for a blow in desperation time. I'm not sure he knows [redacted] is there. He has to have seen some kind of buildup in that direction though. Hopefully I can [redacted].
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RebelYell
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Wed Oct 10, 2012 2:07 pm

Very well written. :thumbsup:

That move to Chattanooga is the reason i have a house rule against using river movement button at all.. :bonk:

RebelYell
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Thu Oct 11, 2012 8:12 pm

I case someone doesnt look at the PBEM boards, im looking for a Union opponent. :)

charlesonmission
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Fri Oct 12, 2012 1:40 am

Great reporting!

Charles

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Longshanks
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Map Update - Spring 1863

Thu Oct 18, 2012 12:35 am

For you visually oriented students, I am enclosing two maps for the current semi-final game between MoniKerr and PatCleburne, which is at the start of the E April 1893 turn.

One for the East, and then one for the West.

Enjoy!


East, E Apr 1863
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West, E Apr 1863
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Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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Captain_Orso
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Thu Oct 18, 2012 11:18 am

Great report LS :thumbsup: I really enjoyed reading that, it makes me feel like such an amateur seeing all that maneuvering and hearing about all those thoughts :blink:

I wish the illustrations were larger though :crying: I love battle maps :o Ever think about setting up a Photpbucket account. They will allow for 'photos' up to 1MB before reducing their size and my screenshots of 1920x1200 resolution in jpg format are about 0.75MB.

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Longshanks
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Sat Oct 20, 2012 1:23 am

WHat the hecky-durn? Looks like my imageshack page is amiss!

Update: the images didn't show while the Imageshack web page was down for a while. All back to normal (whatever that is!)
Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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Captain_Orso
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Sat Oct 20, 2012 12:13 pm

If find Photobucket much more user friendly at all. I have an Imageshack account too that I don't use anymore for a long time because the interface always seems to be getting in the way all the time.

The down side of Photobucket is that the web-uploader (Flash) is crashing on me all the time for the last month or more when using Firefox 14.0.1. The bulk uploader doesn't seem to have any such problems, but it's a Java Applet and the interface just isn't as user friendly; it doesn't use windows shell context menus and won't re-read a directory after it has started, so that if you move a file that you want to upload after starting the Applet you have to end and then restart the Applet to see the file.

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Longshanks
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Sun Oct 21, 2012 5:13 pm

We now are ready for the E May 63 turn in the last semi-final game between Monikerr (USA) and Pat Cleburne (CSA). Pat has a 198 VP lead, but that lead is slipping nearly every turn as the Yanks capture city after city. However, the game ends in 6 turns... is it enough time to make up the gap against an intact CSA? The winner moves on to take on Seraphim in the Championship Game, as we near the one year anniversary of the start of the tournament!
Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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Longshanks
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Battle of Memphis Decides the Game!

Sat Oct 27, 2012 1:00 pm

MoniKerr (USA) and Pat Cleburne (CSA) ended their semi-final game this week, following the largest battle of their game, at Memphis.

Grant and several corps attack Longstreet plus Johnson's corps in Memphis. The rebs have had supply problems, but are well entrenched. The Yanks have 100,000 men in the vicinity and hope to (I presume) send wave after wave of corps until the rebs surrender due to lack of ammo.

But the best laid plans ........

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Instead, Grant arrives too early, and his headquarters of artillery and officers is decimated, thus ending any chance of MTSG. Grant and others are wounded, and Curtis is killed. The Yanks lose 11,000 captured and over 27,000 casualities.

Newspaper Headlines for mid-May, 1863:
HORRIBLE CARNAGE AT MEMPHIS! +7 CSA NM (note: -8 USA NM, which is unexpected)
May 6, Memphis - Grant loses over 27,000 men! Longstreet loses over 14,000! 31 Union Regiments Destroyed! Confederate Supply Situation Known Only to Them! Samuel Curtis Dies in Battle, Many Others Wounded! Many Promotions and Censures Issued!

Kearny Beats RE Lee Badly in Brandon MS...Twice! What Hath God Wrought?!? +1 USA NM
Yanks Take Jackson MS!
Rosecrans Eliminates Indian Rebels!
Stalemate at Pensacola!


Note: 5 turns remaining!
USA CSA
NM 76 129
VP 2264 2599
City 51/turn 35/turn

So, the battle really was a decisive one, after which MoniKerr resigned, having lost his primary HQ and with only 5 turns left. Although Gen. Cleburne had a lead, there was every reason to believe that the game was going to be decided on the final turn.

Gen. MoniKerr:
"I would have to resign. Grant's HQ was destroyed leaving me with only Fremont. And the vp deficit is too much under those circumstances. Pat deserves the win, he outplayed me. It was close though.
Well fought Pat, and good luck in the finals.
I'm still interested in getting an explanation from Lodilefty. Army stacks are not supposed to be targeted when there are corps in the same region."

Gen. Cleburne:
"It's an unfortunate way to end. I think you may have had me. I was dreading the last few turns.
I'm not sure if it's a bug or not, but it's a reason I never use the army stack without a bit of infantry in it. [referring to the use of Grant's HQ]
I hope I can use the lessons learned in this game to challenge Seraphim. I'm gonna need everything I can get against him."

With the victory, Pat Cleburne moves to the FINAL TOURNAMENT GAME against Seraphim. More on that in another post.

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Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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Gen. Monkey-Bear
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Sun Oct 28, 2012 9:31 pm

Incredible!

Altaris
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Mon Oct 29, 2012 12:36 am

And my prediction comes true - Seraphim vs Cleburne, FTW! Ought to be an entertaining slugfest!

charlesonmission
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Tue Oct 30, 2012 3:59 pm

I'm having a flashback to my time against Seraphim. Sending 120,000 boys in Blue or so against Atlanta, and that still wasn't enough..

Question - why didn't Grant have divisions with him in his Army command. Yes, it is ahistorical, but the game mechanics allow for it and seem to demand it.

Charles

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Longshanks
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Tue Oct 30, 2012 8:46 pm

It's not a question I can answer directly - we'd have to have MoniKerr do that. It seems to me that Gen. MK was counting on corps to MTSG and that Grant's Army HQ role was limited to supply army-level artillery, rather than entering combat directly.
Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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moni kerr
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Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:40 pm

Longshanks wrote:It's not a question I can answer directly - we'd have to have MoniKerr do that. It seems to me that Gen. MK was counting on corps to MTSG and that Grant's Army HQ role was limited to supply army-level artillery, rather than entering combat directly.

Yes, that's what I do with my Army stacks once corps become active. As I understand it, Army stacks fire but don't attract enemy fire so long as there are subordinate corps in the same region. It has worked like this in past games; I don't understand what happened here.

Maybe I'm wrong about Army stacks not being targeted. If so I will have to change my Army organization.

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Captain_Orso
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Wed Oct 31, 2012 2:04 pm

I would love to see the army and corp stacks involved in that battle in detail :blink: Boy that's scarry, right on time for Halloween ;)

The rule says "a lone Army HQ stack will not initiate combat", it does not say that an Army HQ stack will not fight. One thing that might have happened would be if one of the defender stacks were in Offensive Posture it would not wait for other attacking stacks to enter the region and join up with the 'attacking' Army HQ stack.

But the more plausible explanation is that the battle simply went through all the Union's support units until the HQ unit itself was included in the frontage. You can also see that the Union lost 5 batteries and 2 pioneer elements already to ranged fire. That means that already during Ranged File the Union couldn't fill the gaps in the line with artillery as Frontage starts with only artillery on the battle line and support units only fill in the gaps once available batteries have been used up. Since it's clear terrain and Early May it might be fair or muddy, but a ***Grant with an Offensive Rating of 6 can add up to +450(!!) to the frontage will have been immense on the Union side. Imagine having nearly all your batteries on the front line in such an exchange. Ranged casualties are pretty close to equal, the Union taking around 350 hits, CS around 340; yes I counted all those little men in the Ranged Casualties row :bonk: But with a huge front line you will need a huge amount of artillery to fill the line and still have reserves to fill the gaps when batteries fall out. And dang! look at the trench effectiveness of the CS; it's 649!!

I don't know what kind of attack was ordered, but although a probe attack would have probably resulted in about the same ranged losses it would have saved the Union from those assault loses, unless they were being counter-attacked, which would mean that they were in retreat already anyway, but subsequent battles, even in the same turn might have seen the Union's overwhelming odds in artillery start to turn the tables.

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Longshanks
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First Report on Championship Game

Tue Nov 13, 2012 10:26 pm

Dear grognards all,

As you know by now we have at last reached the final game of this nearly year-long tournament. For the Union we have Pat Cleburne, who comes to the game via the "one loss" bracket. His only loss was in a game to the winner of the "zero losses" bracket, Seraphim who will be playing the Confederates. In the prior game, the roles were reversed, so this will be a true test match. That earlier game (reported in this thread) went down to the final turn when Gen. Cleburne went hell-bent-for-leather against the Union capital.

In this game we started with 1.16, but upgraded to 1.17 Qwikfix2 after the E July 61 turn.

The players have committed to presenting their 1861 strategies to you at a later date, so as not to affect the current game of course. So, look for them in a few weeks.

We're waiting on the E Aug 61 turn resolution. So far, the moves are pretty "normal" (whatever that is). No big surprises, or "oh no he dint!" moves. Here's a couple of pics to whet your appetite.

Situation in the East, Late June 1861:
Image

Battle of Springfield, June 28, 1861:
Image
Two Rules: 1. The Tournament Director is always right. 2. When the Tournament Director is wrong, see Rule 1.

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Altaris
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Wed Nov 14, 2012 4:01 am

This is the Ultimate Showdown... of Ultimate Destiny! Good Guys, Bad Guys, and Explosions, as far as the eye can see! And only one can survive, oh who will it be?? This is the Ultimate Showdown... of Ultimate Destiny!

Good luck to you both!

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Captain_Orso
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Sat Nov 17, 2012 8:45 pm

Good luck gentlemen.

This is going to be fun Image

Altaris
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Thu Jan 03, 2013 5:08 am

Any update on the progress of this game?

Altaris
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Fri Jan 11, 2013 3:44 am

Bump...?

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