ACW rules help

[rumacara]

Hello all

I´m planning on painting 2 forces for the ACW in 20mm wich consists on 5 or 6 regiments of infantry 1 of cavalry and 2 guns per side and i´m after some simple rules to play with.
My ideas are:

regiments of 4 infantry bases with 4 miniatures each (16 figures)
regiments of cavalry with 2 figures per base (8 per unit)
1 battery of artillery with 2 guns and 4 crew each
rules for one brain cell persons (simple as much as possible)
rules with as less markers as possible and without using cards (preferably)

I can expand the size of the units if needed but would like to keep this size for gaming space reasons.
Ideas for both rules and forces are welcome.

Thanks for watching and helping,

Rui

[Roo]

One Hour Wargames- 4 infantry units +2 Veterans or whatever (called Zouaves in the rules to differentiate, this tends to inflame opinion 🤣), 2 cavalry and 2 guns plus a general ( we use them to recover damage points).  There are some nice mods available from greater minds on the web.  Give a good game using the scenarios and really simple and seem to suit your plan.  Go enjoy!

[Old Contemptable]

"Mr. Lincoln's War"

Your basing scheme will fit these rules nicely.

[SJWi]

What about Warlord Games' "Black Powder" v2 of Crusader Publishing's "Rank and File". I don't play them myself  as I game ACW in 6mm, but they have both stood the test of time.  The latter are only $9.99 on Wargames Vault. They are a generic set of horse and musket rules for 1740-1900 but you can then download some ACW specifics. 

[OSHIROmodels]

Fire and Fury might fit the bill for you mate (although it’s been many years since I’ve played it myself).

[Dice Roller]

That basing may work with Fire & Fury, but you will need a lot more bases than that to get a game out of F&F.

I don't know what rules to suggest. I only play brigade Fire & Fury and it's always hit the spot for me.
I do highly recommend it (there's also the regimental version), but you will need more bases than that. If you were willing to expand (and I'd say you'd need to double what you are planning) then you couldn't go far wrong with F&F. It's an older set of rules (90s) but the fact that it's still played should tell you a lot about how good it is. Mind you, compared to other wars, the ACW is pretty straightforward when it comes to troop types and tactics. That's what makes it such a good period for gaming, I reckon.

There's those new Osprey ACW rules. Don't know what they play like but Osprey rules are cheap enough that they are often worth a punt.

[vodkafan]

Matakishi's ACW forces are about that size, you should check out his thread on his ACW project, see what rules he is using? I could be wrong but I think it may be One Hour Wargames as already mentioned.

[OSHIROmodels]

Couldn’t remember how many bases we used in the past for F&F.

Just paint more figures

[armchairgeneral]

If you make your infantry units 12 figures and cavalry 6 then for 5 or 6 units a side, Osprey's Rebels and Patriots rules will work nicely. Simple and easy to pick up.

[vtsaogames]

One brain cell rules? Definitely One Hour Wargames. Since I don't have Confederate Zouaves painted, I use Texans as elite infantry. That might cause some more inflamed opinion. Two or three brain cells? Rebel & Patriots as said above, though it uses 12 and 6 figures per unit.
In both sets of rules you need to track casualties but no other markers.

Followers of OHW and other rules by that author hang out here https://groups.io/g/AMW/topics

OHW has 36 scenarios, none requiring more than 6 units per side. A few of them are distinctly modern, but most will work fine, won't break the bank purchasing terrain. To keep costs down, you might just designate normal infantry as elite with a marker per scenario.

The most units each side needs:
4 infantry
2 elite infantry * can use other infantry, see above
2 artillery
2 cavalry * in the rare case 2 of these are called for, you can substitute an infantry or artillery unit
Die rolls determine what mix is used in any scenario. Some use 4 or even 3 units.

[rumacara]

Thank you all for the help and sugestions.

vtsaogames, i had a pdf of the OHW so i can try those and yes they seem adequade for what i´m after.
I also dont have zouaves but i have texans and other figures i can paint as special units.

armchairgeneral, i have Rebels and Patriots but havent tried yet but i´ve readed the rules and they also seem nice although not exactly what i´m after.

OSHIROmodels,

Just paint more figures

   NO!!!
Jokes appart i´ve tried Fire and Fury some years ago and honestly i didnt liked. I ended up selling the books and 2 15mm armies. Perhaps i may try it again but the person whom i game with isnt the best person to try rules therefore i´m searching for very simple ones.

Do you want me to send you a few more 20mm  

vodkafan, that is a good idea and i will. Thanks for the tip James.

Dice Roller, thank you for your point of view of the F&F rules. Like i mentioned earlier i didnt liked much those rules but then again i only tried once. I may give them a try again.

SJWi, i have the ancients/dark ages version of the crusader rules and i will give them a re-reading again to see if they capture my attention. I think i have the pdf somewhere of the black powder version. Another option is good.

Old Contemptable, now those i havent tried yet. I dont think i have them but will search for some comments and revisions of the rules. Another option to check it.

Roo, You probably are the winner but will check other options before i take the table. I may take some info from several and end up making my own.

[rumacara]

Gentlemen, i found an old box with 5 regiments already based and primed that are diferent in base sizes from what i inicially planned (meaning also that i have a few more figures that i thought) so i will start with those instead.

The miniatures are based in 4cm x 2cm with 3 figures per base and 6 bases per unit.

I´ve been reading Valour and Fortitude from the Perrys and would like to ask if any of you tried those rules and if they fit on this type of bases/units or again if there are simpler rules that fit the bill.
I know that V&F is for brigade sizes and i think i may be abble to complete at least 1 and a half brigades per side meaning 5 regiments per brigade plus the artillery units and cavalry.

Table size unfortunately is 90cm x 150cm so not a adequate one for V&F i think.

Your thoughts and ideas are welcome.

[Roo]

If you fancy trying them just scale the movement and ranges accordingly…the Perry twins gaming rooms are the envy of many (I include myself firmly in that group)…whatever have fun with your figures bud

[Captain Darling]

Rumacara Longstreet fits the size forces you list your OP.

You can download the base rules and game for free so can give it a go at no cost…
https://sammustafa.com/downloads

[carlos marighela]

Can't recall what basing was involved but many years ago, a group of us used to play On To Richmond a bit. Perversely we tended to use it mostly for non ACW encounters. I do reacll it being fairly simple, reasonably fast playing and giving an enjoyable game. Deffo less complex than its near contemporaries like Johnny Reb, FoF etc.