Rebels and Patriots ACW Zoom game.

[flatpack]

Yesterday we played our third zoom game remotely.
This time we played 28mm ACW, using the Rebels and Patriots rules.
We had two confederate commanders and two union commanders.
Here is the initial layout, with the confederates on the left, and the union troops on the right.

Once again I used coloured markers to “try” to identify each unit.

The main thrust of the game were the confederate troops advancing in the centre of the battlefield, to take on the Union central units.


This was supported on the confederate left wing, by the units marked with the red markers.

Confederate left wing.

These troops would advance, and take on units skirmishes on the union right wing.


This confederate cavalry kept those Union skirmishes at bay, and then swung in to take on the Union cavalry and infantry in the Union centre.




On the opposite wing, the Union left, the Union troops were doing well. Holding off advancing Confederate infantry.


It’s was at this stage, we had a double one rolled by the rear most union infantry section.
The outcome was this unit firing on the rear of the friendly unit in front of it, causing casualties.

Not really normal activity on an ACW battlefield, but it can happen.

As the game developed, the confederate forces took the centre of the battlefield. They had also taken their left wing, and union troops were beginning to fall back on the confederate right, so all in all, a victory for the confederate forces.


Many thanks to Jamie for setting up 6 different zoom meetings, as we only got 40mins per session.
Also thanks to Has.been for planning the game and umpiring.
Glad James could take part in his first zoom game since lockdown began.
Also thanks to Digits, for playing the second confederate player, and many thanks to Ian for his hit and miss internet.

[vodkafan]

It was much fun to take part and it was a good end to a dull lockdown week. The numbered unit markers look nice and clear on the pics but didn't on zoom, maybe could be bigger?
I know that was something that wasted tiny increments of time for you  Bob when you couldn't at first tell which unit the player was referring to.   I would say " The unit that climbed over the wall"  " The one by the fence". " No not that one!"
I started to get better towards the end of my zoom time after I knew the unit numbers.

[has.been]

Whilst not a patch on face to face wargaming ( I don't half miss the  bacon butties & hash browns)
it is still a whole lot better than the alternative, no gaming.
For anyone that is interested each player had 25pts of troops. The Union had numbers (7 units each),
while the Confederates had better troops (5 units each).
I really like Rebels & Patriots, especially its ability to throw a spanner into the plans of the best of us.
Thanks to those already mentioned. I enjoyed it.

[flatpack]

James
People have differing opinions on the numbers on the tokens.
I’ve had people say “take them off, they spoil the game”, and the other side of the coin is your suggestion of making them larger.
From my end as the man on the ground, moving the figures on the table, they help.
I wonder if it’s worth the players making a quick sketch at the start of the game, of their units, and I can call out the numbers and they can write them on the sketch ?
As Pete says, we will never match a face to face game, but we just keep trying ideas to keep us going.

[vodkafan]

James
People have differing opinions on the numbers on the tokens.
I’ve had people say “take them off, they spoil the game”, and the other side of the coin is your suggestion of making them larger.
From my end as the man on the ground, moving the figures on the table, they help.
I wonder if it’s worth the players making a quick sketch at the start of the game, of their units, and I can call out the numbers and they can write them on the sketch ?
As Pete says, we will never match a face to face game, but we just keep trying ideas to keep us going.

Yes a quick sketch for myself would have helped. I must admit I didn't look at the unit roster beforehand, so I should have at least done that to prepare myself. Also each player should try to use concise and accurate language of his intentions, as Peter kept reminding us !

[has.been]

concise and accurate language of his intentions,

Sorry, but Cpt. Nolan didn't specify which valley.

[Digits]

TBH....enjoyed a nice gentle game.  Rules seemed straight forward and with only half a dozenish units each, it wasn’t too difficult remembering which were mine.  Besides, Bob was more than capable of determining which unit we were referencing.   

One useful aspect of on line gaming in teams, you can message your ally to coordinate your attacks etc.....

[vodkafan]

TBH....enjoyed a nice gentle game.  Rules seemed straight forward and with only half a dozenish units each, it wasn’t too difficult remembering which were mine.  Besides, Bob was more than capable of determining which unit we were referencing.   

One useful aspect of on line gaming in teams, you can message your ally to coordinate your attacks etc.....

Welcome back Digits!