2023 a year in Review and looking ahead

 The past year has had a number of shifts take place.

It started off great with a whole weekend of games, the peak being a defend the bridgehead battle:

Defend the bridgehead!

My ACW efforts reached a first battlefield ready condition, Bull Run 1861

the whole 15mm force for both sides in the starting battle
of the American Civil War

 

These troops were then put into action on the tabletop in the Bull Run 1861 battle:

 

 Bull Run 1861

 

Some digital image work was done, in progress towards a potential little game ...

The Alpian Wars moves into a new 'realm'?

 

Still more use of the ACW troops and expanding into the "Operational Level" of battle management.

Operational Level of command

 

The full battle can be tracked here:

Then more ACW potential came to light as the Gettysburg Campaign was put into operation for the first time here, and culminated in a number of battles:

some quick troops were assembled to support the others that already existed, so that we could do some really big battles.

bare metal was brought to full paint quickly
to support the needs for more Union troops on the tabletop

Then the campaign took action and an amazing set of a-historical battles resulted:

UTICA MILLS:

Push on the Potomac:

Cavalry action at Bruceville:

Then Autumn arrived, there were many other things I needed to do and focus on, so games took a back seat, though the itch did get scratched a few more times before the end of the year, most importantly in the Bull Run 1861 game and expo at the local community center.

Victory Without Quarter

SHAKO 2

Bull Run 1861, at the Kelcey Center

I now also have a little painting commission, that will need addressing in the new year, so expect some progress photos of that project in the coming months.

The ACW set has Shiloh on deck, with only the Confederates needing to be painted at the moment, they are all up on the painting shelf, ready to roll after the commissions.

At least three other games days at the local community center are slated, in January, February and March.  So there will be some more tabletop images to come ...

Added on all of this are the continuing home operations, a work prospect that keeps me near my phone and computer most days along with Firefighter duties weekly (& whenever the 'tones' drop) and plans for better marketing of the rescue society needs.

Happy New Year everyone!

Bull Run 2.0 - Operational maneuver and tactical battle

 At long last the many items I have been building for battles have come into use in a single day of action.

I set up the two players with their own map and set of troop markers and 'blanks' for enemy detection marking.

We started the situation as of 15 July 1861, then commenced with deployments.

I added a 'wrinkle' in that naval action could bring in a brigade along the coastline as far inland as the junction of the Occoquan and Bull Run, as well as anywhere on the Virginia coastline.

16 July

 

The Confederate player settled in with a conservative deployment, strictly to gain contact when the Union arrived ... not to engage.  Messages were sent for urgent troops to Richmond and the army of the Shenandoah.

17 July

The Union command went with a fairly basic approach ... advancing with two divisions towards the junction and using the naval action to 'distract' and possibly pull in the rebs ...

18 July

By the 18th of July, the Confederates knew that help was coming and that they only needed a day more delay to have some troops arrive and a further two days to have the big Army of the Shenandoah come to aid the defense ...

19 July

More maneuvers were attempted by the Union, to fully gain the Confederate flank, but reports of railway departures from the south and rumors of other troops coming got the Union commander concerned enough to push for a battle situation.

21 July

By the end of the 21st of July the Union commander knew that he could not wait any longer, settling on an attack in the later morning of the 22nd.

Confederate reinforcements were set to arrive in the afternoon of the 22nd, it would be a close call as to the outcome ...

22 July - day of Battle

Bull Run moving north to south across the field

on a southern hill the larger formation of infantry covered Ball's ford

a northern ford, was overlooked by Cocke's Brigade

Union troops all arrived in columns

they were all on the field in 15 minutes

by 11:30 am the Union troops were maneuvering

An amazing lucky shot from the lone Confederate battery (scoring a 10!) on the column of Sherman, saw the Colonel mortally wounded. (again Sherman would die on the field)

high noon and the commanding general arrives

already the death toll on what would become
'the bloody hill'
had begun

'the bloody hill' filled with Union dead as a second
Confederate charge was successful

the sweep down the hill would destroy Rickett's battery

2:15 pm would see the start of the Army of the Shenandoah
arriving, including a brigade by rail!

after arriving by rail and being ordered to attack
Union Brigade under Franklin, Bartow's Brigade
was utterly shattered in the hand to hand battle

3 pm and the Bull Run was again in no-one's hands

a critical moment for the new commander of
Sherman's Brigade, again a failure

by 3 pm Confederate command was comfortable
that the Union could not win the day ...

Schenk is about to be shanked ...

Union artillery failed to score any hits
(the 1 die roll)

Jackson's Virginians
'stand a wall'
at Ball's ford

final turn as the battle was ended at 3:30 pm

the south hill would collapse as Franklin's command
would flee across Bull Run in panic under the weight
of fire from the rebels

Schenck would also flee across the Bull Run

Sherman's third commander would need to move south
and use the rail trestles to cross the river as the
Confederates controlled the fords ...

That was a great day of game in exploring the 'what if' of the battle of Bull Run 1861.

I have also been busy mustering more forces to get a Shiloh battle put together, though there is a rumor of a Gettysburg battle on the horizon ...

new metal getting ready ...