Call to Arms

[Raindem]

I will be playing the Americans and Ian is playing the British. For those not familiar with the scenario, it covers the entire American Revolution from April 1775 through October 1785, in 1 month turns. The map extends from Canada to Florida to the Illinois Territory at 5km. With such a huge map and relatively few units, you can march armies around all day long and not encounter the enemy. I think that scale combination provides a good feeling of fighting in the “wilderness”.

This is a long scenario (129 turns), so I won’t spend too much time on the details of all the little battles and skirmishes. I prefer short updates over large sweeping maps. This scenario simulates 10 years of warfare so I want to keep the updates concise.

Ian and I have a history with this game. He has beaten me twice, once from each side. So hey, at least I know the scenario is balanced! Besides, I’ve always said that I’m better at designing scenarios than playing them.

So, on to the game…

April 1775

The scenario begins with the opening skirmishes at Concord and Lexington having already taken place. The ”call to arms” goes out. The Minutemen spring into action and engage the British outside of Boston. Rhode Island contributes some cannon but the patriots are not strong enough yet to launch any attacks. And with the British seemingly unintersted in charging into the open countryside, a stalemate quickly ensues.

[larryfulkerson]

subscribed.

[MikeJ19]

Have fun and I look forward to seeing the updates

[Raindem]

May 1775

Mostly a turn of manuever. I decided that my initial focus would be on the northern front. If I could capture Ft. Ticonderoga quickly, then an invasion of Canada proper was possible before the British had a chance to fortify it. Quebec and Montreal would then be in reach.

The map below shows my initial moves. Vermont’s “Green Mountain Boys” moved up the east side of Lake Champlaign to capture St. Johns unopposed. A couple battalions from New York’s Tryon County militia circumvented Ft. Ticonderoga to the west and made it back to the lake shore between Ticonderoga and Crown Point. Meanwhile the main force, several militia battalions commanded by Benedict Arnold, moved up from the south.

Elsewhere in colonies, militia are mobilizing at a fast rate and I put them to work securing their home bases. Outside of Boston an artillery duel has flared up. Minutemen were shelled by British warships in Massachussets Bay. In return, redcoats of the 3rd Regiment were hit by cannon fire from the Rhode Island militia. Light casualties on both sides.

Note on unit organization- Most militia in the American Revolution did not have official unit IDs. Nor did they have standardized unit sizes. The unit was generally referred to by the name of its commander (or sometimes by the name of the town/county that formed it). Thus “MD Militia Griffith” is a militia unit from Maryland, commanded by a fellow named Griffith. Some colonies did number their militia, such as “25th CT Militia”. Also note that today, we think of brigades and regiments as being roughly the same size and organized into divisions. But back then, regiments were organized into formations of brigades. The concept of a “division” as used in the 20th century had not yet emerged.

[Raindem]

June 1775

A couple small victories for the patriots. Ticonderoga was surrounded and quickly fell to a coordinated attack by the New York militia. And Portsmouth was captured in a surprise attack by the New Hampshire militia.

General Arnold sent a Penobscot Indian scout into Canada to report on the feasibility of capturing Montreal and/or Quebec. They sent runners back with the following information: “British regulars were spotted moving down the St. Lawrence towards Montreal”. Arnold wisely decided to hold up at Ticonderoga and await further information about British troop movements.

Note on waterways - Navigable rivers were used whenever possible by 18th century armies to move long distances. In WWII a major river was an obstacle. In colonial America it was a highway. Upon encountering such a river, soldiers would fell some trees, build a few rafts, and away they went. This is modeled in the scenario. Major waterways, such as the St. Lawrence River (pictured below) or the Hudson River, use a modified graphic tile from the Suez Canal terrain type. The graphic represents something between a super river and a shallow water hex. Waterways have roads running along their length that represent river movement. In the below screen shot the area between Quebec and Trois Rivieres is the waterway. The bridges along that stretch are forbidden to be blown by House Rule. Once the graphic changes to shallow water the road returns to its normal function. Although the soldiers could have continued rafting into the deeper water, they were just as likely to dismount and follow the shoreline.

[Raindem]

July 1775

Our Indian scouts in Canada were ambushed and killed. I'm not sure if it was by the British or their Indian allies. In any event the decision was made that Arnold and his army would remain encamped at Ticonderoga and proceed no further into Canada. The Green Mountain Boys were accordingly called back from St. Johns. Disobeying orders to avoid the enemy, they tried to capture Crown Point on the way back to Ticonderoga but were repulsed (although they were able to occupy it the following month).

Stockbridge Indian scouts also reported a British force that had been put ashore at Amboy, New Jersey. At first glance, the landing appeared to be too far south to be headed to New York. The closest town of importance was Princeton. If that was captured it would also put Philadelphia in danger. And the colonials were very weak in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

[Raindem]

August 1775

Not too much going on this turn. Britain continued their buildup in New Jersey. Indian scouts have identified three foot regiments, supported by a couple naval squadrons off shore. Still not sure which way this force was going to march.

With the capture of Ticonderoga, many British cannon fell into friendly hands. Those were transported down to Boston where the patriots, reinforced by additional militia, started to increase pressure on the British troops guarding the approaches. The goal was not to capture Boston, nor was it even to inflict casualties. The goal was to make enough of a demonstration to cause the British to get nervous about becoming heavily involved somewhere else. American forces were mobilizing at a faster rate than the British, and I wanted to buy some time by making them overly cautious. In real life the Americans captured Boston around this time, not long after the battle of Bunker Hill. Of course, with the advantage of hindsight the TOAW British player does not usually let their forces get into such a weak position.

[sPzAbt653]

Nice work getting your custom unit icons to work within the restrictions of TOAW IV.

[Cfant]

Can you show your losses and your reinforcement-rate? Thanks for this unusual aar!

[Raindem]

The musket squads are what the continental units use for their main foot soldier. The militia squads are used, of course, by the militia. They do not get a specific rate of replacements. The pool is stocked with the disbanded remains of militia units whose term of enlistment is up.

[Cfant]

Cool. Is it allowed to blow bridges?

[Raindem]

Bridges that run across a river can be blown. Bridges that run along side a river cannot as per house rule. They are considered part of the waterway.

When I do the next revision I plan to modify the road tiles so you won't even see the waterway roads (or possibly make the roads look like rivers. Haven't decided the best way to go yet).

[Raindem]

September 1775

General Howe has taken command of the British force in New Jersey, so something must be in the works. My defensive preparations were as follows: The militia and continental troops from New York were to defend Long Island and the lower Hudson valley. Freshly recruited militia from Vermont took up blocking positions along the west coast of the Upper Bay. Troops from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and as far south as Virginia would form a line between General Howe and Philadelphia (which, if I had to guess, was going to be his objective). Unfortunately, New Jersey could only contribute two militia and a light dragoon to its own defense.

[Raindem]

October 1775

Very quiet turn. The campaigning season is nearly over so if the British wanted to start anything in New Jersey it would probably have to wait for the spring. It takes awhile to assemble an army in this scenario and even longer to get them ready for a campaign, due to the low supply rates. No Blitzkrieg here!

[Raindem]

November 1775

The only action this turn was a British probing attack out from their Amboy bridgehead. Still trying to get my defenses organized.

The EEV is still at 0 but should soon start to move up (I mean EVV. It used to be called the Event Engine Variable. I don’t know why they changed the acronym. I’ll never get used to it). The EVV determines when France and Spain enter the war on the side of the Americans. Starting around this time a certain number of points are automatically added each turn. Points are also added or subtracted for certain events on the battlefield. The better the Americans do, the sooner the French will join them. This was reflected in historical planning. The Continental Congress and General Washington often made decisions for the PR effect it would have upon the French. The patriots didn’t have to kowtow to the Spanish as much. Spain and France had a treaty and Spain would do whatever France did.

[Raindem]

December 1775

The first winter of the war has arrived and things are quite settled. Winters during the Revolution were especially harsh on the Americans, who could barely equip an army in good weather. Accordingly, there are additional supply and pestilence penalties for the Americans during winter months. Also, the scenario employs a Cease Fire each January, to reflect the period doctrine of suspending major campaigning activity during that time. There are some penalties for the British too during winter, but not as many. They usually just stayed indoors.

As the first year of the revolution ends, here’s a couple wide angle screenshots of the entire theater. I’ve added the names of the commanders so it’s easier to connect the action with locations on the map.

[Raindem]

Here's a shot of the southern colonies.

[cathar1244]

Curious as to which sources were used to determine the degree of forestation shown on the map.

Cheers

[Raindem]

I don't recall specifically, but there are many out there. Some hand drawn Revolutionary battle maps show specific groupings of trees here and there.

Modern surveys will show a forestation pattern much different from the 1700s. Modern forests are larger and tend to be more channeled by human development. We know that colonial America was heavily wooded with lots of marshland, but the vegetation would have been more spread out and random than what you see today.

[cathar1244]

Thanks Raindem. I've looked for Civil War-era forestation maps of N America before, and was only partially successful.

Cheers