David Bickley's Wargames Blog

The occasional ramblings of an average gamer, journeyman painter, indifferent modeller, games designer, sometime writer for Wargames Illustrated and host of games in GHQ.



Thursday, 8 August 2019

Normal Service is resumed...

After an eleven day hiatus it was back to action here in GHQ with Phil mustering in for our prearranged ACW game. As regulars will know my collection is almost exclusively from Dixon Miniatures, in my opinion simply the best range of figures on the market for the genre and a joy to paint. (In fact I've just been given some by Matt while we were visiting him and his family!) The game was a straight encounter battle, with the Union defending their riverside camp from a Reb attack. As ever, I’ll let the pictures give a sense of the game. We played 12 Turns using Black Powder 2 with some amendments from Glory Hallelujah ~

The first Reb attack was on the Union right where a bridge allowed the river to be crossed. I threw the Irish Brigadei forwardn in an attempt to block the thrust aimed at turning my right flank.
On the Union left I threw my second Brigade across the ford to occupy a defensive position along the fence line. I hoped to utilise the farms’ buildings as strongpoints if my remaining brigades failed to march to the sound of the guns!
Useless S Bykleigh leads one of his Brigade’s regiments into position.
The first clash between the Tough Fighters of the Irish Brigade and the Rebs of North Carolina. The fight lasted three indecisive turns!
With both elements Shaken  it was the Irish who gave way! 'Whipped!' they fell back two moves, soon to be joined by a second  regiment from the brigade!
A closer look at the titanic hand to hand combat between the Union's Irish Brigade regiments and the Rebs from North Carolina. Tough Fighters all!



All along their lines in Turn 5 the Rebs are on the march! Bar the regiment closest to the camera who had retired shaken under fire from Union artillery and infantry around the bridge.

Nearest the camera, the Georgia Brigade halts in some Disorder along the fence line. Behind them the Brigade from Virginia and Maryland awaits its orders as Hood's Texas Brigade comes up in support. You can just make out the hasty Union defence along the farm's fence line in the left distance.
The Artillery Battery of the Union's Irish Brigade is forced to withdraw due to failing its Moral check when it reached its Stamina limit. The Irish Bigade is 'Whipped!' and the Union right is in the air.
One Irish unit has yet to fall back across the bridge. Combined with Phil's ongoing Command Roll failures, the Reb attack on the Union's left has stalled, for now at least.

Despite things looking bleak by Turn 6 in fact the Union position is strengthening by the Turn as Brigades in camp form up and march towards the sound of battle.

The Reb attack on their left has achieved its objective in driving off the Irish Brigade and is in position now to support the attack in the centre. At least it would if Phil could pass the Command Rolls for his Brigades in the centre rather than failing time after time!

At the end of Turn 12 the Reb attack has stalled. The second Brigade on their left, made up of regiments from North Carolina and Louisiana, has stalled in an indecisive firefight with the Union troops on their side of the river. The Brigades from Georgia had failed to advance beyond the fence line, leaving the Virginians and Marylanders unable to attack without support. As to Hood's Texans, the less said the better I thnk...

Having felt that I was loosing my grip on the battle after six Turns, it came as very welcome news at the end of Turn 12 to have secured a draw. I shall replay the game later in the month when Matt comes up to go to The Other Partizan with me and see how the battle shapes out in its second incarnation. Meanwhile I have picked up the brushes again and have almost completed a Militia unit for my AWI Colonials.

16 comments:

  1. Good to see acw back on the agenda. Table looks great 😀

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    1. Thanks for that Matt. It remains the one true period for me.

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  2. A shame my two brigades in the centre sat on the fence for the whole encounter, or in this case behind it. The boys jus wernt up to a fight it appears.

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    1. On the whole I think it was just fine they sat there!

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  3. Enjoyed the visuals, especially the super-wide shots .... going back in for another look now :-)

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    1. Discovered the panorama facility on my phone. I'm not really a techno geek as you can tell.

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  4. Great looking game, I really must make time for some ACW this year.

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    1. Indeed you must! Try missing the goldfish games!

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  5. Good to see you back David and enjoying? a battle.Perhaps we will bump into each other at Partizan all being well.

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  6. A great day with a good friend! Hope to see you at Partizan!

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  7. Lovely looking game, Phil's one consolation is that at least he didn't loose!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thank you Iain, but don’t ask him about today’s game.

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  8. Beautifully painted and presented, and best of all Dixon minis

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    1. Thanks for those kind sentiments. Dixon’s just cannot be bettered, can they?

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  9. The troops and table look superb. I'd consider different markers, perhaps. The plastic ones are clear for sure, but to me they clash somewhat with the very natural looking tabletop. merely a thought... I like to use rocks, and assorted farm and woodland animals myself. To each their own, of course!

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    1. As you say, each to their own, so they do just fine for us.

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