American Civil War :Operation Game :Union Assault: The Preamble

The year is 1864. The conflict in both theatres has become a war of attrition. Casualties in both the Union North and Confederate South are horrific. Once proud battalions have been destroyed, rebuilt and destroyed again. The Great Snake ,the Union strangle hold on the Confederate South, has begun to starve the Confederacy of food, ammunition and support. British intervention has become a distant dream but still blockade runners sneak through the Union Naval picket lines, bringing much needed supplies  and carrying away the American Cotton that European factories crave.

In this fictional campaign the Federal forces have dispatched a force to eliminate the coastal city of New Orleans and cut off yet another Confederate supply line and vital rail network linking the port to the rest of the Confederacy.  Between them and victory stands a Confederate army and city defence force intent on turning back the Federal advance.


The Forces

Confederates

The New Orleans Defence Force: This will be commanded by Russ

The Louisiana Department of the Interior: This will be commanded by Ian

If a third player is available for the CSA a theatre commander will be appointed.


Union 

Two Army Wings: Commanded by everyone else.




Victory Point are awarded as per normal operational games. in addition, in the event of a Union victory the  Commander who enters New Orleans first will be declared the overall winner and can run for president unless he required support from the other wing commander to win in which case the Union C-in-C is declared the overall winner.


Terrain

Some small changes to the normal operation game.

There will be extra fences on the tables. Wooden fences are a linear obstacle slowing movement and effecting close combat. However they give no cover benefit against musket or artillery fire with the exception that a unit holding a linear obstacle can ignore any fall back effect on the fire table (NOT routing, the casualties or the disrupted effects).

Stone Walls  : Partial cover, 50% of unit must be behind it.counts as linear obstacle.

Hasty Barricades: Hasty defences are limited in availability. They may placed during a brigades movement phase. They require a full movement to complete and the unit cannot fire in the advancing fire phase. A unit that is fired upon during the defensive fire phase immediately after building the hasty defence counts as being a unit fired upon whilst changing formation. (So don't leave it to the last minute) They then follow the same rules as a stone wall. Partial Cover, linear.

Woods: Partial cover, counts as broken ground, visibility 2inches, NOT a linear obstacle. Artillery NOT allowed in woods.

Small buildings and towns: Partial cover, NOT a linear obstacle. Random nature of farm buildings and town blocks reduces unit cohesion. Units forced to retreat from a building sector will fall back the required distance from the rear edge of the buildings base.

Entrenchment and block house: Full cover, block house and its surrounding entrenchments ARE a linear obstacle

Fortifications

No pic yet because they still haven't arrived in the post. If they do they will be Fortified,Linear and obvious.

Random Morale.
Some units have random morale. These units will be considered experienced until such time as they are hit by musket or artillery fire at which point a D10 is rolled. On a 1-5 they are GREEN, 6-8 Experienced ,9 Veteran and 0 Crack.

Fortress Guns (FG's) cannot be moved once placed. Are positioned at the start of game and are visible to Union players. Northern sympathisers have reported their positions. FGs in the operational game can only fire in the defensive fire phase. They cannot run out of ammunition as they are supplied from the city armoury.