PBEM AAR - It Ain't a Lost Cause Yet!

[Gil R.]

Here's how the map looks if one heads south.

I was wrong about that army container in Mobile -- it will be done next turn, whereas I thought it would be ready now.

Of greater immediate importance, that division in Yazoo reclaimed the province for the CSA, and by being stationed there is cutting off all rail supply to the corps besieging Jackson. If I could continue to keep it cut off for 2-3 more turns the corps would be in serious trouble, but I have a hunch that the Union will want to have a say in that.

[Gil R.]

Here's the trans-Mississippi theater.

As I expected, the Union army headed to Little Rock, so it will begin a siege this turn, facing two garrisoning brigades, one of which has Brigade Artillery.

That Partisans unit was completed in Shreveport, but unfortunately it can only move two provinces per turn, so it can't make it to Little Rock. Therefore, I send it to Napoleon, from which it will be in a perfect position either to head to Little Rock or to cross the Mississippi and help out at Jackson.

[Gil R.]

My first move is to send the 4th Corps by rail to Jackson three provinces away. If it gets there this turn -- and there's a good chance it will -- it will arrive as a superior force that outnumbers the enemy by about 30,000 when combined with Jackson's garrison.

I decide to leave that division in Yazoo, so that if the Union corps is defeated it will have to retreat away from the other Union forces (since I'm about to send the 1st Corps to Meridian. Plus, if I send that division to Oxford it would still be cutting rail supplies, but would be in striking distance of the Union army to the north, which could easily crush it.

[Gil R.]

I then try to send the 1st Corps from Huntsville all the way to Meridian, partly by rail and partly by foot (since I have insufficient railroad movement points).

The corps might not make it that far, but if it doesn't it will be in a prime position to strike Jackson next turn. And if the 4th Corps reaches Jackson and drives off the Union corps, if the 1st Corps ends up stopping in Tuscaloosa rather than reaching Meridian it will be able to strike the Union corps next turn.

[Gil R.]

Up north, I decide to use that tiny division in order to try to flip some Union provinces. There is a Union brigade that just appeared in Bowling Green (presumably sent by rail from Maryland rather than freshly created), but it seems almost certain that it's destination is Hatchie, which would permit the larger army to move south and engage my forces.

So, instead of having my division head straight into Bowling Green, possibly encountering that larger division, I send mine by foot into Sparta and then Bowling Green, intending that the detour will let the enemy division pass before my division enters the province and turns it red.

[Gil R.]

Before ending the turn, I purchase a Plantation for Richmond, since Virginia's building slots are almost all filled up. I don't spend my other resources, since at best I could buy a few Minie Rifles for some brigades. But I'm still toying with the idea of buying expensive guns for my ironclads and massacring that Union fleet that's supplying the Union force in Florida, and next turn I'll have enough Guns saved up (120) for the really big Dahlgren gun.

At the end of the turn, I promote Longstreet to 3-stars. He's in the western theater but I need him to take over one of the ANV corps that lost its commander last turn. So, this coming turn I'll have to send him by rail back east ASAP.

[Grotius]

Fun.

A nitpicky point: the emancipation screen mentions a "15% that" CSA states will stand down. Is it intended to read "15% chance that ..."?

Also, I note you've gained battle "experience" a couple times, but the Union hasn't. Is this working as intended?

And, since I'm picking nits: a governor says "he insists [item]." Should this read "he insists on [item]"? It's probably ok as is, but just thought I'd bring it to your attention.

[Gil R.]

Thanks on all three points. Eric can respond regarding the experience points question, and if it's not too late might be able to implement the textual changes.

Regarding experience points, as I recall there is a chance, not a guarantee, that being in a large battle will produce them, but I might be wrong.

[ericbabe]

ORIGINAL: Gil R.
Shenandoah gets 14. Rappahanock is getting none -- I'm not sure why.

The U.S. fort there.

[Hard Sarge]

ORIGINAL: Grotius

Fun.

A nitpicky point: the emancipation screen mentions a "15% that" CSA states will stand down. Is it intended to read "15% chance that ..."?

Also, I note you've gained battle "experience" a couple times, but the Union hasn't. Is this working as intended?

Yes the Union will also gain Exp from battles, depends on the outcome, and better chance if they are the winning side I believe

And, since I'm picking nits: a governor says "he insists [item]." Should this read "he insists on [item]"? It's probably ok as is, but just thought I'd bring it to your attention.

[Gil R.]

ORIGINAL: ericbabe

ORIGINAL: Gil R.
Shenandoah gets 14. Rappahanock is getting none -- I'm not sure why.

The U.S. fort there.

I knew that. Silly me.

[Gil R.]

Twenty-fifth Turn

Some unexpected events just happened, but I think that they put me in an even better position out west. And out east, the only thing happening is that siege in Florida, and I like my odds there too...

First, the Event Report shows that the siege in Florida caused major damage to the invaders in the first round, and minimal damage to the defenders. (I guess that Brigade Artillery one of the garrison units is sporting must have made a difference.)

Over in Jackson, an encirclement siege has begun, which means fewer casualties on both sides. I'd rather that the enemy try a different siege, since it would use up their lives and supplies more quickly. But I'm fine with this -- Jackson won't fall. Not this year, at least.

[Gil R.]

Next, there were several encounters in both theaters. Out east, the Union jumped on that tiny division in Shenandoah, and the ANV wasn't able to reinforce. So, the Shenandoah is now Union territory. I'll have to take it back in the coming turns -- before winter sets in and gives the Union a chance to build a fort there -- and this should be easier than that battle in Cumberland because the Union won't have a fort there giving a defense bonus, and I'll be able to send my army in by rail so that there's no chance of fatigue.

That tiny division that I had sent into Bowling Green to make it CSA territory ended up running into that division that started the turn in Bowling Green, even though I had tried to detour around it. The lone brigade in that division took some casualties, but no major harm done to the overall war effort.

Then comes the much more significant event: on its way to relieve Jackson, while passing through Oxford the 4th Corps encountered the Union army that had been in Arkansas, and an unexpected battle occurred. The CSA won it, but took significant casualties and used up most of its supplies (as will be seen below). The defeated Union army retreated into Yazoo, where it so happened that I had stationed the 4th Division in a previous turn. The Union won that battle -- how could it not, outnumbering the division by roughly 4-to-1? -- and the division retreated to Jackson, where it found the Union corps waiting for it. All told, what had been a very good division lost 3000 men and one of my best Legendary Units, Extra Billy Smith's Boys, surrendered.

The only positive to trouncing of the 4th Division is that it forced both Union forces to use up more of their supplies -- and I've now got their supplies cut off and have raiders nipping at them too.

[Gil R.]

But wait, it gets better. At the very end of last turn, I had promoted Longstreet to 3-star general with the intention of sending him out to Virginia this coming turn. Well, he died in that big battle in Oxford, so once again I'll have to promote a 3-star general, and none of my other options will be as good.

The only positive about losing Longstreet is that in promoting him I got to boost one governor's Attitude, and now that he's dead I'll get to promote another general and achieve the same result with another (or the same) governor. This might not be such a bad strategy, come to think of it...

Some good news: my reinforcements are up thanks to the new camp, and the Plantation in Milledgeville will let me build more research institutions there this winter.

And then some bad news: unrest has spread from Yazoo into Natchez, and I have some pretty important buildings there that risk being destroyed (see below).

But then some excellent news: the governor of North Carolina is giving a boost to British diplomacy, which might give me the edge I need in getting the British to favor me enough that I can obtain some Enfields or Whitworths from them.

Regarding governors, in two turns something very interesting will happen, there will be gubernatorial elections on both sides, and many of the current governors could be thrown out of office. In general, it is the governors on the side that is losing who will be tossed out by a dissatisfied public, and as of this turn it's looking like Lincoln might have to deal with a few more governors who don't approve of the way he's handling the war.

[Gil R.]

I mentioned the danger that unrest poses to Natchez. That city has an Engineering School and a Camp, both of great importance. Not to mention the Capitol that permits income to be raised in the province, and one of my Mints. Below I'll show one approach that I take to trying to quell the unrest.

On the left, you can see that this most recent battle gained me further Experience.

[Gil R.]

In the aftermath of the ANV's loss of 15,000 men, I had set the whole army as well as the division in Abingdon to "Normal" supply level and set the western forces not to receive any supplies, in order to steer reinforcements into the ANV and reinflate it quickly. As can be seen here, this approach is working, and all 5500 reinforcements went to Virginia.

[Gil R.]

Here's how Virginia looks now that the Union has taken Shenandoah. Fortunately, my rail-lines are not fully cut, since Virginia is connected by rail to the west through Atlanta. But that's a major detour for my forces to take when heading east or west, so I'll need to get rid of the Union's army soon. Somehow.

[Gil R.]

Here's the siege in Florida.

[Gil R.]

The Union is sending that fleet that had transported the amphibious force to Florida over into the Gulf of Mexico, no doubt so that it can provide sea supply to those forces. If I can destroy that fleet, the invading forces will likely be destroyed through unit attrition. So, I decide to do something that is almost certain to catch the Union offguard: I purchase the most powerful naval artillery that is available to the CSA at the start of the war, and assign it to my ironclads. My guess is that the Union hasn't bothered to invest in superior weapons for its ships, knowing that the CSA is an insignificant threat to those ships. We'll see about that.

[Gil R.]

I then take my fleet of ironclads and other ships and send it after the Union fleet, setting mine on "Intercept." The Union's other fleet is still off the coast of Virginia, meaning that it will be too far away to attack my fleet, and by the time it's in southern waters I should be able to get my fleet safely into Mobile Bay or another southern port.