Terrible Swift Sword - Learning SPI's Great Battles of the American ...

oll a die to see if the lower regiment routs
(see changing of rule 14.5 in MOVES 29) .
Finally, do not become so involved in your
strategic defensive that you forget how to attack.
Several counterattacks, especially when
enemy units have been routed, will be most
useful to blunt enemy attacks and enfilade
the rest a f his line.
Instead of a frontal assault, your opponent
may try to attack you on your right,
where you are less well dug in. You will then
have to shift your reserves accordingly, making
sure not to denude your left too much or
overextend your lines. Take the best advantage
you can of terrain and cross fires. And
try as hard as you can to keep the enemy off
the western portion of Map B, where your
line can really be stretched out and where
there are no good defenses facing south.
Also, watch for a good opportunity to counterattack
and cut off the Union advance. His
march so far to his left should have left a few
weak poin ts or gaps along the way.
Your life will be made much more difficult
if the Union commander chooses to
bring in the V and V I Corps in Area 5, or if he
delays their appearance so you do not know
when or where they will come on (make sure
he has committed these orders to writing and
placed them .in a sealed envelope, so he does
not cheat on you). In either case, you will
have to keep troops posted east of Gettysburg
to watch out for the enemy. ~t least,
with these troops not yet on the map, you will
be able to spare some reserves to hold in
waiting on the roads immediately south of
Gettysburg, ready to march at the doublequick
to wherever the V and VJ Corps appear.
If they do come on in Area 5, be sure to
have a brigade or two there to slow them
down while you hurry your reserves to the
front. Then try to contain them - or even
wipe them out, using the strategy outlined
above in reference to the XII Corps.
You will find the situation similar to
that faced by Lee at Chancellorsville. Just
hope that your main line south of Cemetery
Hill will hold better than Early did at Second
Fredericksburg. If you play your cards right,
you may be able to hold off the enemy. If
pressed too hard, it may become necessary to
give up the eastern end of the Baltimore Pike
in order to hold on to Cemetery Hill. Then
you will be very thankful for the trenches dug
there by the Federals on July 1, which will
supply a ready defense against their makers.
And even if you lose Cemetery Hill, try to
keep your main line in order to block the
enemy's line of communications from Cemetery
Hill to Meade, thus depriving him of the
victory points for the hill (rule 28.54). Finally,
if you have managed to hold on to Cemetery
Hill and Area 6, try to prevent the enemy
(especially Farnsworth's cavalry) from
blocking your own communications back to
hex 0632, thus depriving you of the victory
points for exiting troops through Area 6.
Union Strategy for the Second
and Third Days
If the Union player has lost Cemetery
Hill on the first day, he is definitely in a hole,
but he should not despair. The enemy may
have a better position, but you stilI have
superior forces , as long as you do not waste
them. This is the major point to bear in
mind: do not commit your troops unsupported
or too early. And secondly, do not hesitate
to use your artillery shots. All too often
has the Union player lost the game with half
of his ammunition still available.
As discussed previously, it is probably
the best strategy to bring the XII Corps out in
Area 7 late on July I. Then form on the ridge
running southeast from hex C0818 and entrench
a line all the way to the eastern edge of
the map. The III Corps can form on the left,
but be careful not to be caught in a possible
cul-de-sac northwest of the Peach Orchard.
On the morning of July 2, do not get
carried away and attack as soon as the II
Corps and Artillery Reserve arrive. First
form a solid front. Who knows - your opponent
may be foolish enough to attack you.
Your strategy from here depends on whether
you want to bring out the V and/or VI Corps
in Area 7 (behind your lines) or in Area 5
(behind his).
The more conservative player will bring
out the V and VI Corps in Area 7, to join the
rest of the army. It is best in this case to remain
in posifion until all your forces are up,
even if it means delaying your counterattack
until July 3. There will still be plenty of time
then, and you will have the advantage of ha v­
ing more fresh troops than your opponent
has men in total. To repeat what I have stated
be fore, do not commi t your troops piecemeal
a fa McClellan at Antietam. The final push
wiII be costly, and you will need to keep up
constant pressure to force the enemy to
break.
Your alternatives once the army is gathered
are two: a frontal assault on the enemy
center and left, or an end run with most of
your army around his right. If you choose a
frontal assault - more direct but definitely
more costly - be certain..to guard your
flanks against enemy counterattacks and enfilading
fire. It would be to your best advantage
to begin with a massive artillery barrage
to destroy all enemy artillery in the area. You
have enough guns and ammunition to do
this, and it is the enemy artillery which will
inflict the most casualties on you as you
reach his lines. The best area to hit is probably
that portion of the enemy line from
south of Power's Hill to the eastern edge of
the map, despite the depth of his lines there.
Constan t pressure will wear the enemy down,
and once you have broken through not only
will Area 6 be liberated, but the approach to
Cemetery Hi'll will be easier.
Your second option after bringing out
the V and VI Corps in Area 7, is the end run
around the Rebel left. Again, wait until you
have all your forces concentrated before you
begin the movement, in order to avoid piecemeal
and unsupported attacks. Attacking the
Rebel right has its advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages are: the enemy will be
weaker and less well dug in on his right; it wiII
be easier to stretch his lines to the breaking
point once you have moved onto Map A,
which is nine hexes wider to the west than
Map C; and the enemy will have no ready defense
line against your attack coming from
the south, since all the ridges on his right run
in a northwest/southeast direction. The disadvantages
of this strategy are less in number,
but should be anticipated in order to
avoid them: beware of spreading your own
line too thin as you advance, allowing the
enemy to cut off and surround your flanking
forces; secondly, even if you carry the enemy
right, you will stilI have to attack Cemetery
Hill from the north or west - and you will
find the enemy defending the hill in the very
trenches you built on the first day of battle.
Here a piece of good timing will be useful.
Enough troops should be left back in your
main line to be able to carry the Rebel center
or left once he denudes or overextends it to
protect his right. Such a well-timed assault
on the enmy left should put the Confederates
on the run and win the game decisively.
Strategy for the Aggressive Union Player
The more adventurous Union player
may not choose to bring out his V and/or VI
Corps in Area 7, but might choose instead to
bring them out in Area 5. Doing this, or even
just delaying their appearance, will keep the
enemy greatly off balance and make the
game much more tense and interesting.
If you plan to bring out both Corps in
Area 5, delay the V Corps until shortly after
1400 on the 2d, so that it will have the VI
Corps right on its heels for support. This delay
will keep the enemy off balance, not
knowing where the V Corps will come out,
and wiII force him to post several brigades
plus heavy reserves near the town of Gettysburg.
This would greatly weaken his front
line no matter which strategy you are using in
that sector. Bringing out just one corps in the
enemy rear will tie down a good number of
his troops far away from the main front. Just
make sure your forces are not decimated as
they appear. Then assume a passive defense,
since your goal is mainly to create confusion
and tie down enemy forces.
Bringing out both the V and VI Corps in
Area 5, however, creates a whole new major
front, as Hooker did in his march to Chanceliorsville.
Do not, in this case, suffer the
fai lure of nerve which afflicted Hooker then
(fortunately the Rebels will have neither
Stonewall Jackson nor sufficient forces to
march around your flank). Your goal with
both Corps will be to push steadily towards
Cemetery Hill, wearing down the enemy and
trying to catch him in a vise between your
V /VI Corps command and the main line centered
at Round Top. Once the enemy has
stripped his front lines to face your force in
his rear, a well-timed assault by your main
line should end the game.
A few final words about tactics in this
section. If the Rebels have the entry to Area 5
blocked, you have the option of forming in
the staging area and fighting your way onto
the map (Case 21.4 in the errata sheet of 13
July 76) or bringing them on still later in Area
5. The latter move is preferable, since it will
be difficult for the Confederate player to
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