Disaster at Brecher's Bend

Earlier this week Jon and I finally managed to play the ACW game we had been forced to postpone on several occasions: how life can get in the way of gaming sometimes seems unreal! I present a photo montage of the game, played using my own "Bull Run to Gettysburg" rules {published by Wargames Foundry}. I took the role of the Union commander, Jon the Confederates. The Union side must exit the table on their extreme left flank with as many units as possible and seek to deny the Rebels Rawnsley Farm and the camp at Brecher's Bend. For the Confederate forces, occupying the farm, destroying Union units or preventing them crossing the ford, and even taking the enemy camp are all objectives. The game lasts nine turns, with the  Rebs entering the table by the road on the Union's right flank front. The Union forces begin as shown in the first picture ~

 



General Jeremiah Bykleigh oversees the crossing of the river by his leading units ~

Over on the right flank, the early morning mist has shielded the Rebs' advances { The Union measure the distance to the nearest enemy unit and then need to equal or exceed the distance score on a D x 20. It took me three turns, which meant the Rebs were right on me before any units could respond!}

Which meant the Sharpshooters got a really close first shot off ~ a pity they missed!

Driven in by weight of numbers, the Sharpshooters exposed the battery to an oblique assault by the leading Reb units ~

The Union regiment occupying the gardens around Rawnsley Farm was ejected after a vicious fire fight and sent tumbling back in rout ~

Meanwhile, just across the river, the band played on ~

And General Bykleigh and his staff planned their next move, oblivious it seemed to the disaster developing over the river ~

In the meantime, the Rebs had swung around and hit the artillery hard as they struggled to cross the ford in the river ~

Turn 9, and its all up for the Union. While they had scored 28 Victory points, the Rebs had scored 46 and so recorded a resounding though not total victory ~

I think we both enjoyed the game, certainly Jon was smiling at the end! In the circumstances I felt I'd done well to extricate half my Infantry and most of my ammunition and supply train, although I did loose my guns and the second Infantry Brigade. Not seeing the Rebs through the morning mist until Turn 3 proved to be the decisive factor in the game at the end.