Hooker has moved the bulk of the Army of the Potomac west and crossed the Rappahannock, dramatically outflanking Lee's position at Fredericksburg. He is now marching to consolidate his scattered corps in the densely wooded terrain near Chancellorsville, probing for signs of the enemy. Lee has finally become aware of the threat and is moving the Army of Northern Virginia to meet it - but right now Hooker has no idea of the strength and position of the Rebels.
This refight begins at 1:00pm on May 1st as the two armies first make contact, using most of the figures we have available – 51 infantry brigades and 24 gun batteries, plus 4 cavalry brigades. Only the Union Corps that were engaged historically are represented - II Corps (Couch), III Corps (Sickles), XI Corps (Howard) and XII Corps (Slocum). Hooker held Meade and Reynolds in reserve and Sedgwick was at Fredericksburg. The Confederate forces consist of I Corps (Lee) and II Corps (Jackson), with a third nominal Corps under Early (for play balance) representing the forces that historically remained at Fredericksburg until May 3rd.
Because Turn 1 is 1:00pm, Turn 14 will be a night turn, and Turn 15 will recommence at 7:00am on May 2nd. The game will continue until there is a clear winner (Turn 40 would be another night turn, but we are unlikely to get that far !) A demoralisation level of 8 applies to both armies.
Let battle commence!
ReplyDeleteYes Matt, finally time to whip Jonny Reb!
DeleteAh, the anticipation builds! I can almost hear the sounds of 'Tenting Tonight' and 'Just Before the Battle, Mother'. You know Ian, I'm a 'Yankee' man myself, but Lee and Jackson were undeniably both bold and brilliant at Chancellorsville. "Like chaff before the wind" says it all really. Are you going to factor in the element of surprise?
ReplyDeleteGood luck, I think you may need it :-)
Lee.
Hi Lee, we're debating the exact nature of the "surprise" element at the moment but Chancellorsville wouldn't be Chancellorsville without it!
ReplyDelete