| Sparker | 20 Mar 2014 2:51 p.m. PST |
Hi Y'all,
Last night the Wollongong Wargamers rehearsed their main game for the University of Wollongong Gamer's Guild 'GongCon' convention next weekend…after much pondering there will be some radical changes, so it should look good and play better – fingers crossed! As ever your faithfull correspondent Kaptain Kobold penned a brief but well illustrated report: link GongCon details: link |
| Wolverine | 20 Mar 2014 7:20 p.m. PST |
Nice table! Olustee is the FLATEST battlefield I've ever visited. |
Ed Mohrmann  | 20 Mar 2014 7:23 p.m. PST |
Olustee should never have happened. The Union commander
exceeded his orders by going too far west of
Jacksonville. According to a couple of officer accounts (Union) some
of the new regiments didn't respond well to their first
combat. How would Black Powder handle that ? An adjust-for-the-
game morale level ? |
| Stavka | 20 Mar 2014 8:53 p.m. PST |
Great looking game, Sparker! I've often thought of playing this battle using Black Powder. There are a number of ways in the rules to handle how new units would respond to "seeing the elephant". One I would consider using is the "freshly raised" rule, in which new units can perform heroically/ creditably/ abysmally on first contact depending on dice roll. |
| Sparker | 20 Mar 2014 10:00 p.m. PST |
Yes interesting question…I wanted to dust off our old 'Rebel Yell' house rule, whereby green units take a break test on the first occasion of being charged. Unit who successfully pass the test are awarded a tiny plastic elephant to show that they have 'Seen the elephant'… The general reaction was that I should 'grow up'! ;-) Because we are playing this to recruit new members we are trying to reduce house rules to the minimum…But we have given raw units lower save values…. |
| epturner | 21 Mar 2014 4:17 a.m. PST |
Actually, I like the little plastic elephant idea. Could be a nice marker. Eric |
| TKindred | 21 Mar 2014 11:02 a.m. PST |
What is fascinating to me about Olustee is how well the confederate command & control functioned. A number of the CS troops were veterans, but all performed very well. The CS commander was able to control his units fire and concentrate with oblique firing solely upon one section of the federal line, then, when it sufficiently damaged that portion, shifted fires again and once more engaged the federals with devastating effect. Olustee also has an instance of a CS brigade forming square when threatened by federal cavalry. It held until the federals used their formed cavalry to mask a battery. When in position, it opened up on the square and forced it to reform. Lots of interesting things about Olustee. It's one of my favorite battles to read about. |
| donlowry | 21 Mar 2014 7:39 p.m. PST |
Olustee is the FLATEST battlefield I've ever visited. Well, if one more glacier melts the whole state of Florida will be under water! |
| vtsaogames | 22 Mar 2014 7:29 a.m. PST |
My reading of Olustee is that perhaps if Seymour hadn't sent his regiments in two by two… |
| HammerHead | 22 Mar 2014 10:11 a.m. PST |
I read that the 54th Massachusetts took part in the battle |
| TKindred | 22 Mar 2014 11:03 a.m. PST |
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| cwbuff | 22 Mar 2014 12:03 p.m. PST |
Good sized reenactment on the actual battlefield each February . |
| HammerHead | 23 Mar 2014 11:44 a.m. PST |
Thank you Tim. A Federal coloured unit is on the paint list |
| TKindred | 23 Mar 2014 12:47 p.m. PST |
There were actually 3 units of USCT troops present. 54th Massachusetts 8th US (colored) Infantry 1st North Carolina (colored) Infantry  |
| HammerHead | 23 Mar 2014 2:36 p.m. PST |
This is why the civil war is so fascinating, just as you think its all been `done` a brief discussion about another battle unearths more interesting facts. I guess a square was not often formed. |
| TKindred | 23 Mar 2014 9:11 p.m. PST |
Units may not have formed square in combat too often, but they DID practice it regularly. An image exists which shoed a brigade out west in 1864 practicing forming a brigade-square with a line of skirmishers thrown out to it's front. Pretty impressive, too. IIRC, the skirmishers were, for the most part, prone. The image is in the series "The Image of War" put out around the time of Ken Burn's series on PBS. |
| Field Marshal | 23 Mar 2014 11:54 p.m. PST |
Nice one….wish i could be there this weekend but off to Melbourne for a weekend paid for by the wifes work! |
| GoodOldRebel | 02 Feb 2015 6:17 a.m. PST |
As good an excuse as any to add a Brigade of U.S.C.T to my collection as any! |
| cw3hamilton | 02 Feb 2015 11:56 a.m. PST |
Hi Sparker, Where is the Florida, Atlantic & Gulf Rail Road? How can the Rebel Rail Road Gun make an appearance later in the game without the FA&GRR? A LT Rambo (no kidding!!!) commanded the 30lbs Parrott mounted on a railroad car. The Regimental Fire & Fury rule book has an Olustee scenario in it. The scenario has a historical description, a complete Order of Battle with unit labels, a reinforcement schedule, an excellent scenario map, terrain rules and victory conditions. I ran it twice at a convention a few years ago and its a balanced scenario but the Union players must give ground toward their reinforcements to survive and win the game. And they should not, squander the repeater armed regiments, save them to form a gun and repeater line late in the game and force the Rebs to attack it. Very nasty! I have photos but I don't know how to share them on TMP. Help! Best, Lowell D. Hamilton |
| capncarp | 02 Feb 2015 9:59 p.m. PST |
"Well, if one more glacier melts the whole state of Florida will be under water!"
That'd be one way of dealing with the fireant problem! Anyone who's been to Olustee battlefield will know what I mean--work parties from the local county prison across the road spends most of the rest of the year on the battlefield in fireant control so's the reenactors and the public can have a relatively bite-free experience. |
