They're OUR shoes DAMNIT!!!!!

[Nemo121]

Well this is my first game of the Battleground series in about 4 years. I previously played 2 vs AI games of 1st and 2nd Bull Run and 1 PBEM game of 1st Bull Run. John expressed an interest in playing Gettysburg so I purchased the collected Battleground titles and fired up a game.

Let's take stock of my knowledge of Gettysburg:
1. I'm European and not a particularly avid follower of the ACW.
2. I've read no books on Gettysburg but I did watch a movie starring Tom Berenger about it.
3. I remember that Little Round Top and Big Round Top were important areas but it was 4 turns in before I realised that SHIFT allowed me to see the objectives on-map. First thought - WOW they are WAY behind my lines. The Confederates must have advanced really far in reality.


So, clothed in ignorance and unfettered by any idea of how the real battle went ( Oh, I do know Pickett charged across some open ground and got slaughtere... I had been hoping to face Jackson as he is one of the few Confederate generals I know about but it seems he'd already been shot ( and killed ? ) by the time of Gettysburg ) I expect to fight where the terrain leads me and not where the historical battlelines were. John has already expressed surprise several times at me abandoning various "hills" etc which the Union held in the battle so at least it seems I'm confusing him through my inexperience .

With that said my basic plan is as follows:
1. Hold with Buford's cavalry division two ridge lines north of Gettysburg town.

2. The Confederates seem to be deploying 4 Brigades in two columns. The first column, comprising 2 Bdes arranged with one Bde ( 4 Regiments in line formation ) leading the other by 3 or 4 hexes is making directly for McPherson Farm. My cavalry are deployed in the woods and on the reverse slope of the hill there and are going to try to delay the enemy with their short-range muskets/carbines/whatever as well as one artillery battery sighted to fire on any confederate unit cresting the hilltop.

3. Deploy the 2nd Bde, 1st Division, I Corps to prevent the movement of the the 2nd enemy column ( 2 Bdes deployed in line formation ) from moving directly east of Gettysburg. The 2nd Bde is deployed en masse at "Hagey Farm"???.

4. 1st Bde, 1st Division, I Corps is moving into the woods north of Hagey farm to provide continuity of my front between Buford's cavalry and 2nd Bde, 1st Division at Hagey Farm.


Buford will have to face 2 Bdes by himself - albeit it that 2nd Division, I Corps is tasked with relieving his units in place ASAP - while 1st Division's Bdes will probably end up facing 2 enemy Bdes in the woods north of Hagey Farm ( henceforth known as Hagey Woods ). My plan is to pin them with 1 Bde and then hit them in the flank with the other whichever way they turn. Personally I expect John to try pushing through 1st Bde in order to end up behind Buford's cavalry.

Blue boxes = positions of Union Bdes.
Lines emanating from boxes = fields of fire.

[Nemo121]

Well it seems like the two Confederate Brigades on my right flank wanted to hook around behind Buford as they made their way through the woods towards Seminary Ridge. In doing so they ran right into 1st Bde, 1st Division, I Corps. Co-ordinated assaults by both 1st Bde and 2nd Bde, 1st Division into and through the woods resulted in the routing of 4 enemy Regiments leaving the enemy with just two demi-Brigades in the woods - a force which is substantially outnumbered by my 2 Bdes.
 
Buford's cavalry force in the centre is being methodically reduced by the Confederates but, in so doing, it is buying time and inflicting significant losses on the Confederates. Some 400 Cavalry are encircled by an enemy Bde but 3 enemy Regiments have been routed and only 2 enemy Bdes remain to push down the main road toward Seminary Hill. I have 3 Regiments slowly withdrawing down this road to take up reverse slope positions just north of Seminary Hill - I don't like the casualties his artillery, which currently outnumbers mine significantly, can inflict.
 
In other news I have 1 Infantry Bde making its way through the enemy rear with a view to assaulting into the rear of the enemy Corps when a suitably soft ( unlimbered artillery or supply wagons ) happens past unescorted. I'll show a picture when these forces are fully in place. A second infantry Bde is making for Seminary hill from the north-west with a view to holding the enemy close to the woods they are currently butchering Bufford in.
 
 
So, 4 Enemy Bdes committed vs 2 Infantry Bdes and the Cavalry Division. I have routed half of 3 enemy Bdes and lost half a Bde in so doing. My right flank will stabilise in the woods to the right of Seminary Ridge, my centre will stabilise at or just in front of Seminary Ridge and my left should stabilise somewhere around the road leading into into Seminary Ridge from the north-west.
 
All in all my front is stabilising nicely and the repulse of the enemy forces on my right flank has certainly checked him for some time. Most importantly of all I'm learning the game and can now pull up the labels for place names, have an idea of what the Ms, Cs and Rs for the infantry mean and that's helping too.
 
Question:
Does anyone know if there's any difference in the artillery effectiveness vs infantry and artillery for various types of arty? E.g Are N(apoleon?) guns better vs infantry or arty, are P(arrots?? ) better vs infantry or arty? Or are all gun types the same vs infantry and artillery?

[ichris_slith]

Nemo, The Napoleons are shorter ranged and more effective vs infantry.  The Parrtos are best used at longer range vs artillery but can be effective vs infantry at range as well.  Look at the Weapons Effectivenss Chart in the Scenario Notes Section of the help screen for greater detail.  You guys are off to a good start w/this AAR.  Keep it up.

[ichris_slith]

Nemo,
Watch your right as the day goes on. Rhodes will pile in soon w/five brigades and then Early w/four more even further to you right. Your reinforcing 11th Corps only has six (low quality) brigades and they will not hold.

[Nemo121]

ichris,



Thanks for the info on the guns. I found a chart in the scenario notes which explains a lot --- particularly why my cavalry were so good at close range... I'm re-adjusting my unit placements a bit on the basis of the artillery charts there.





I'd prefer not to receive any specific tips on arriving units etc though if that's OK. Most of the wargames I play I know which units are due to arrive and when etc etc. In this game I really don't have any idea what's arriving when. I do remember that the confederate cavalry didn't show up for Gettysburg because their commander ( Stuart IIRC ) was off being a glory hound but more specific info than that I really don't know... and I like it that way. It is one of the few times when I wargame in which I actually won't have a clue what's coming at me and where and when it is coming.



With that said here's a picture of the situation as it now stands...

1. 3rd Division is hitting the enemy from the left. 1st Bde, 3rd Division is waiting to ambush the inevitable enemy attempt to outflank my left flank. It won't be able to stop them but it doesn't have to, it just has to draw an enemy Bde off and relieve the pressure from my forces in front of Seminary Ridge - killing a few Confederates won't hurt either though . Just off to the top of the picture is a small cavalry unit which is lying in wait for any unescorted artillery or supply unit ---- particularly supply units as those are going to be crucial to a long-term battle.

2nd Bde is using a covered route (which means it won't get spotted ) to hit into the rear flank of the enemy Bde which is destroying my cavalry regiment in the woods. My plan is to let them destroy that cavalry, let them advance a little and then pin them between my forces defending Seminary Ridge and the 2nd Bde hitting them from the rear.


2. 1st and 2nd Bde, 2nd Division are moving up to the reverse slope of the ridge in front of Seminary Ridge. On the way there 2nd Bde, 2nd Division will divert 2 Regiments to wipe out a couple of enemy regiments which have run around my left flank but are completely isolated and cut off from their parent Bdes.


3. Buford's cavalry are going to hold the right-hand side of the ridge in front of Seminary Ridge ( I think that from now on we'll call that Pre-Seminarian Ridge [:D] ) which will also put them into position to fire into the railway channel. --- I am sitting 14 artillery pieces on Seminary Ridge to fire directly down the throat of that channel as I expect that to be one of the Confederate channels of advance.


4. 1st Division will hold the woods on my right flank. 2nd Brigade will refuse my right flank while 1st Bde will focus on holding any attempt to outflank the railway channel by moving through the woods. The 2 rightmost red arrows show the paths I expect the enemy to take once either:
a) I rush out into the open after those suspiciously slowly retreating Confederates or
b) their initial attempt to rush Pre-Seminarian Ridge fails.


The other two red arrows show:
a) the path I expect the Bde in the woods to take once they mop up my cavalry and
b) the path I expect his first attempt to outflank me on the left to take --- as you can see I'm expecting to ambush/hit in the rear both of these efforts.


Question:
How do I get more supplies??? Do supply wagons replenish or do they disappear once they run out? One of my wagons is down to 4 supply and I'm just wondering what will happen to it when it hits zero. At this rate by Day 3 both sides will be down to bayonets and fists

[veji1]

Nice game, I really loved the Battelground series... Re the battle, beware not to overcomit yourself as the Rebs will get significant reinforcements during day 1 coming from the north (your right) and the west mainly... Hurt him but keep at least one brigade that you can position on your new defensive position on your right flank when pressure will force Wandsworth's division to fall back. And remenber that although Buford's division's sacrifice was worth it to allow you to bring forward troops and stabilise your line, Wadsworth's would be worthless in the face of future Reb reinforcement. you'd be better off preparing to fall back to be able to withstand the terrible day 1 afternoon pressure that will be thrown at you...

[Nemo121]

Well after finding about 2 Confederate divisions popping up in my rear opposed by only 3 Union Bdes and realising that trying to play this one through without knowing what was arriving when and where vs an opponent who did  I conceded the game to John and asked for a rematch - after I've actually researched what I'm facing and from where it'll be coming.
 
We've already started the game but we're only 1 turn in. I've gotten and am going to look at that Gettysburg movie and I think I'll also be hitting Wikipedia tonight . Once we start properly I'll do a turn by turn.

[ichris_slith]

Nemo, If I spolied your game, I am truly sorry.   It was shaping up so nicely.  I look forward to the posts from your next game.  Per supply: There is no way to get fresh supplies that I know of.  Union wagons carry six "refills", Rebel wagons carry eight.  You can capture supplies by meleeing enemy wagons.  When wagons are "empty" they vanish.

[Nemo121]

ichris,
No problems at all. Basically it was foolish to try to play a battle John knew so well without knowing anything much about what I was facing an where it was coming from. So, this time I read the reinforcement schedules a bit and have a better idea of what's aout to hit me.


So, battle 2... Buford's cavalry division were committed to a delaying action. Unfortunately since I didn't realise just how poorly the model actually models cavalry battles all of my strikes occurred far too close to enemy units and my cavalry got surrounded and mostly destroyed. Basically it is my contention that the IGO UGO system gives infantry an unrealistic ability to close on cavalry units in an ahistoric manner. I think there'd be a real opportunity to improve this series by making it WEGO ( a la Combat Mission ). A change which would utterly remove the "ability" of infantry to surround cavalry units after their melee phase.

Anyways, long story short I learnt a bit more about how to handle cavalry but it has cost me the cavalry division. On the plus ide about 20 enemy cannon have been removed from their ORBAT and they spent so long destroying the cavalry that they are now, at 12 noon, only just beginning to advance past Herr Ridge. Since one of the goals of my cavalry was to try to ensure that my infantry would not be closely engaged by 12:20pm - the time I had appointed for my retreat from their delaying positions - at least their secondary objective has been achieved.


I have chosen positions at Cemetery Hill just west of the town and running south through the woods to Oak Hill before heading north-west along the road along which my reinforcing units arrive. I expect to run into enemy units at this position by about 2pm but by that time I expect to have enough infantry and artillery in place to hold and do the Rebels some serious damage.

John has a mania for outflanking - and, to be fair, the game system really seems to reward outflanking and allow it more easily than it seems to have occurred during the real war - and it seems that he is pushing Pender's division down along the pike with Heth's division deployed on the extreme west in an effort to flank my positions from the left while his reinforcing divisions push in through Gettysburg from the right. Cannae indeed [8D]


I've decided to defend outside of Gettysburg as:
a) Conducting a fighting withdrawal under the IGO UGO system is much more difficult than it would be under a WEGO system
b) It maximises the speed with which my reinforcements can enter the battle and lengthens the time it takes his to enter battle
c) It minimises the length of my defensive lines ( and the terrain there is pretty good for a defence with lots of walls and woods to provide good defensive bonuses, which minimises my need to build breastworks and allows me to concentrate my building efforts in the 4 or 5 places they are absolutely crucial.

Overall I expect one enemy thrust to be toward Oak Hill and another to be as far west as possible ( near the Round Top Hills ). Both of these detours will take significant amounts of time and as the enemy cannot possibly begin attacking past Gettysburg much before 2pm I should have to hold these flanking efforts for a much shorter time than if I tried to hold the enemy farther out past Gettysburg. So, overall I'm trying to make the terrain, the reinforcement schedules and length of my lines work for me as well as just trying to fight so far from his reinforcements that I have to hold for the minimum time possible before night falls.

Legend:
Dark Blue lines show the proposed front lines
Light Blue Lines show the paths my delaying forces are taking in order to filter back into my main defensive positions.

[Ashantai]

Good thinking! The more you pull back, the closer to your reserves you will be! You'll also negate his strong flanking movements hopefully, since he won't expect your pull back.

[Valkyrie]

Historically, Buford's division was "shattered" by the first day's battle and played no further role, being relegated to guarding the supply trains. So, I would argue that taking out those 18 guns will probably prove more decisive in the long run. Buford's role was to delay and allow the Union reinforcements to seize and hold the high ground behind Gettysburg. It appears that his actions (and Confederate delays in getting all properly organized for their planned assault) has been successful.

I think the gallant charge to seize those guns was a brillian sacrifice and the Confederate exposure of those batteries without adequate infantry support was the biggest mistake of the game so far.

Now... can the Union hold that "lovely ground" against the Confederate onslaught? Time is passing and the sun is moving downward. One important factor is that BG is very forgiving of evening and night assaults and movement. The HPS Campaign games impose some penalties.

It might be a bit late to agree on a "house rule", but I hope we don't see a lot of unrealistic late night assaults in this AAR.

[Nemo121]

Well I think that the charge to take the guns was a very good sacrifice also ( 500 men for 18 guns ) but sending in the other cavalry regiments in the manner I did was a sign of my inexperience with the movement system. I would have gotten enough out of them by just keeping showing them on the flank as a threat in being. Ah well, c'est la guerre. I have my eyes on Longstreet's entry in 3 hours time. My single remaining cavalry regiment will be waiting for him and will sweep him up when he arrives. Why? Well, John is getting overly secure again and has obviously sent Heth AND Pender's divisions to the west of the Pike leading to Gettysburg leaving only 1 infantry regiment to guard his 30+ artillery pieces ranged against my horse artillery. I want to remind him that he really does need to guard his rear and 1 cavalry regiment taking out a Corps commander should suffice to remind him and suck some troops away from the very front lines.
 
John is still caught up on Herr Ridge and even moving at full speed I calculate that Heth and Pender CANNOT be within 5 hexes ( rifle range ) of my positions along Cemetery Ridge until 2:40 or 3pm at a minimum.  The troops coming in from the east can be in contact with my forces by 2pm but cannot be properly supported until about 3pm also.
 
I believe John still believes that I am trying to set up a defensive position along Seminary Ridge as a sort of delaying action. I've let him see elements of the 2nd and 3rd Divisions filtering into those positions but unbeknownst to him no sooner have they filtered into position in view of his men then they move into woods etc and then retreat back to the reverse slope and make for my position at Cemetery Hill/Ridge at full speed.
 
In total a single infantry regiment and a single horse artillery battery are all that face the Confederate forces north of Gettysburg at 12:40pm and even those are due to retreat at 1pm.

So, overall, so far so good. My infantry are in good shape, my forces have not been heavily engaged, I've established excellent artillery positions which dominate the ground north of Cemetery Ridge and East of Cemetery Hill, have 4 divisions already digging in along this line and have the positions for my reinforcements already picked out. Best of all I think John really thinks I'm going to defend north and east of Gettysburg and this should force him to be a little cautious and buy me even more time to fortify.
 
So, if he hits me at 3pm I should have to only fight for 4 hours before night falls and even though my forces are weaker I fancy their ability to:
a) hold in the centre at Cemetery Hill and
b) fight a stubborn fighting withdrawal to the south and west of Cemetery Hill
 
without breaking if they only have to hold for four hours.

[Ashantai]

Good work. Hopefully for you he closes the trap on empty air!

[Valkyrie]

Yea, I think you really fooled him with your withdrawal. All this careful planning for his assault and nothing but thin air where he thought your I Corps line would be. [:D]

When the assault finally hits your MLR I think those 18 guns are going to be missed. Can't wait to see how it plays out. What are your plans for XII Corps when it starts to come onto the field? Any thought about using them to hit the Rebel left flank and maybe take out some more artillery if he isn't careful? As unorthadox as this defense is shaping up, such a surprise move wouldn't be totally unexpected. I guess it depends on how well XI Corps can hold when defending behind stone walls. The fear of a massive rout should be your biggest worry. As I recall, aren't most of them D class units? They are pretty fragile.

Fascinating AAR, thanks for sharing. [&o]

[Nemo121]

XII Corps? I'm unfamiliar with them. I have checked the reinforcement queue and a significant number of troops are coming in at 4:20 to reinforce/extend my right flank south past Culp's Hill. I presume that's the XII Corps you mean, yes?

My basic plan is to use one of those divisions to meet the enemy force head on around Wolf's Hill - I am expecting them to be in that area at about 4pm and then use the 2nd division to concentrate on a single enemy Brigade and push on through it with a view to threatening the collapse of the enemy left flank.

The map below shows the position as of 1pm. Heth and Pender have definitely been identified forming up in a series of 2 Bde lines and closing on the positions being held by XI Corp at the extreme left of my line. 1 Division is looking like it will cover the "hinge" of my line both north and west of Gettysburg and 2 further divisions are deployed on the left ( 1 to threaten Culp Hill and the other to move through Wolf Hill ).

In response I am continuing to build fortifications on Cemetery Hill to cover the gap between the walls to the south and west.

I Corps is going to cover from Culp Hill ( 1st division ) right up toward "the hinge " ( 2nd division ) before 3rd division covers the backleg to link up with XI Corps. XI Corps' 3 divisions are going to be deployed as follows:
1 Division at Peach Hill, 1 Division on the hill just east of Peach Hill and 1 division to refuse the left flank of the division at Peach Hill ( I strongly expect John to try to find that flank when he run into the forces on Peach Hill.

I WANT him to try for that flank though and plan to withdraw these forces in towards Cemetery Ridge as that will draw the Confederates around and allow the new arrivals at 5:20pm access to the enemy rear. Overall I plan to use his pressure to help shorten my line and expose one of his divisions to counter-attack.

[Ashantai]

Out of interest, who is that leader all the way at the top there?

[Nemo121]

Ashantai,

That's a "Colonel Anonymous" from one of Buford's Cavalry Brigades. I have the sole surviving cavalry regiment from Buford running around his rear areas also. I had placed it to ambush Longstreet when he appeared but it seems that Longstreet hasn't moved down the road as expected. Therefore I am bringing the Cavalry Regiment down the ain road toward Gettysburg - It appears that the Rebs have 5 divisions in the field but have left a BIG gap between the left and right flank. I don't have the troops to properly exploit it but that won't, necessarily, always be the case.

Currently it looks like Pender has shifted left to take up Heth's position, Heth has shifted even further left and is heading for a position somewhere around the Two Tops and that the division I thought would be used to link the left and right wing has, instead, been committed fully to the left into the position previously occupied by Pender.

On the right it looks like division is going to try to cover Gettysburg and pin my forces at Culp's Hill etc while another division is going to follow two cavalry regiments to Wolf's Hill.... Unfortunately for the Rebels my long-range artillery ( sited on Cemetery Hill and Culp's Hill ) has managed to inflict about 100 casualties, rout 1 unit and disrupt several units in his march columns to the point that his attackers have been forced to deploy off-road and march across country ( with the result that instead of being in the area of Wolf's Hill by 3pm he will be doing well to reach it by 4:20pm, the time at which major Union reinforcements ( 25 regiments worth of troops) arrive in the area which ought to allow me to hold him in and around Sheep's Hill ( as planned ).



So, overall, at 3 o'clock he till hasn't made contact with my left wing, preferring instead to continue his lateral outlflanking move. I'm convinced this is his main effort as I can see some 48 cannon over the entirety of the field. 4 are deployed at Seminary Ridge in the open - I am convinced that these guns and an infantry unit there are designed to convince me that there is a screen of troops and cannon there instead of jut 1 cannon battery and 1 battered infantry regiment. 12 are accompanying the troops to Wolf's Hill - I'm sure there are some more there but I can only see 12. 32 are moving around laterally behind his infantry on my left flank and getting into position to begin hitting Peach Orchard etc.

So, he really is concentrating his arty here and so I think his strike on my left has to be the main attack. I've responded to this by sending Doubleday's division to back up the two XI Corps divisions holding the hills at Peach Orchard and just east of it and am trying to free 2nd Division I Corps up for quick transfer here also. I don't plan to fight and hold forever but just delay him a bit and then try to pull back in as good order as possible until my line describes a massive inverted U shape with Cemetery Ridge being the bow of the U and my line through Culp's Hill and Sheep Hill being one leg and my line on the left being the 2nd leg of the U. I will then await the arrival of another Corps directly behind the enemy at Peach Orchard and apply pressure on them from two directions during the course of the end of Day 1.

[Ashantai]

He'd better hurry up...or his attack will be coming at dusk or night! Which is both good and bad for you, I guess.

[Nemo121]

Well, it is now 1540hrs and since things are beginning to come to a head I thought I'd post an update.


1. The 2 cavalry regiments are through Wolf Hill but John has left too much of a gap between them and the follow-on infantry and I am inserting one of Wadsworth's infantry Brigades into that gap with a view to ambushing the enemy force when it moves through Wolf Hill, delaying it and giving me time to bring up the division of reinforcements I get at 1620hrs.

2. The division due at 16:40hrs is going to have to go to my left flank to help stabilise that.

3. The third division comes in west of the Two Tops and comprises 17 Regiments.


So, overall its still a case of holding until such time as I can add two divisions to the left flank and 1 to the right ( to hold Sheep/Wolf's Hill ).


So, what's up with the left flank? Well,my line running from Culp Hill through Cemetery Hill and along Cemetery Ridge to the Angle is held by 3 divisions. Another 3 divisions are committed to holding against what appears to be a 3 Divisional Rebel assault on my extreme left. John seems to have eschewed the expected pinning attacks and, instead, focussed on throwing 1 division at my extreme right and 3 at my extreme left.

1 division appears to be coming at Peach Orchard from Warfield Ridge ( I think that's the division which is trying to fully get around my flank and hit Peach Orchard from its rear flank).

1 Division is coming at Peach Orchard from the front and the 3rd division is coming through MacMillan Woods toward the little hill just east of Peach Orchard.

While the extent of the flanking attack and the lack of pinning attacks is a surprise the fact that Peach Orchard was going to be hit by an unresistible assault isn't. As a result I never put any artillery at Peach Orchard, instead I concentrated 22 guns on the hill east of Peach Orchard ( Let's call it Apple Orchard Hill for clarity ) with another 16 focussed on creating flanking fire from The Angle into the flanks of any frontal assault on Apple Orchard Hill. This leaves a total of 18 guns to cover the middle and right of my position - and over the last hour or so those guns have caused close to 200 casualties with the cavalry regiment behind enemy lines adding another 100 Rebel casualties to that total.

With two enemy divisions about to hit Peach Hill and that hill being held only by 1 Division of XI Corps infantry it is amply evident that this enemy flanking attack needs to hit thin air again. So, the XI Corps division is moving southward to refuse the flank while Doubleday's 3rd Division, I Corps moves in to hold the hinge between Apple Hill and Steinwehr's Division.

It will take the enemy AT LEAST 1 hour to reach my new line ( 1640 ) which means that he has only 1 hour to break my line before the reinforcements coming in at 1720 can hit him from behind.

All in all I've really followed the strategy of trying to frighten John into moving so slowly that he could only threaten positions I was willing to cede such that by the time that he hits terrain I truly have to hold it is John's troops who are in trouble and not mine. I'm sure he'll be euphoric at my supposed abandonment of the Two Tops but, really, by 1800hrs there will be 3 Rebel Divisions facing 5 Union Divisions in this area.


Where's the schwerpunkt? Apple Hill. 1 x XI Corps division backed by 22 cannon on the hill and 16 covering the frontal approaches and right flank from The Angle MUST hold that hill or my line will collapse en masse. I think I've loaded it with enough cannon that it should hold but only time will tell.

[Ashantai]

The battle lines are drawn!