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Author Topic: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game  (Read 3928 times)

Offline Norm

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Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« on: May 07, 2021, 02:11:31 PM »
Trying out a set of fast play ACW rules .... Bonnie Blue Flag, using just a brigade per side as per the intro scenario. The other scenario in the book is Port Republic, which has two brigades per side.

I have blogged an article about mechanics and discuss unit footprint and table size.

Link

http://battlefieldswarriors.blogspot.com/2021/05/bonnie-blue-flag-acw-rules.html


Offline OB

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #1 on: May 07, 2021, 07:44:32 PM »
Another interesting review.  Thanks Norm.

Offline CapnJim

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #2 on: May 07, 2021, 09:04:26 PM »
Yeah, thanks!  I've played them too, and we used 15mm minis with no range modifications. It worked out just fine.



"Remember - Incoming Fire Has the Right-of-Way"

Offline Roo

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #3 on: May 07, 2021, 09:20:15 PM »
Interesting review thanks chap

Offline vtsaogames

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #4 on: May 08, 2021, 12:50:28 PM »
Damn, Norm. You got me. Now I'll have to buy a copy of these rules.
And the glorious general led the advance
With a glorious swish of his sword and his lance
And a glorious clank of his tin-plated pants. - Dr. Seuss


My blog: http://corlearshookfencibles.blogspot.com/

Offline FlyXwire

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #5 on: May 08, 2021, 01:05:24 PM »
Norm,

Thanks for the report on these rules!  These comments strike a common chord with me atm too -

The combat twist that changes process focus from typically the attacker inflicting hits to one where the perspective is shifted to being target centric by having the target unit test for responses to attack is a refreshing take.

I am looking for a set of rules that will allow me to use 1 - 3 brigades per side on a table, for say a total of 8 or so regiments in play, something that will fit in with my 'Pocket Armies' approach and my initial contact with rules have me wanting to explore this further.

Offline vtsaogames

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #6 on: May 09, 2021, 12:58:11 AM »
Damn, Norm. You got me. Now I'll have to buy a copy of these rules.

Edit:
OK, ordered.
Two possibilities: 15mm with 6" frontage, halve all distances. Do this for most games.
15mm with double ranks, 12" frontage, 72 figures per regiment. It would take almost all of my collection to play the first scenario. But it would look good.

Offline Norm

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #7 on: May 09, 2021, 12:48:14 PM »
72 figure regiments would look spectacular. There is a formation in the game called ‘Supported Line’, which takes a 6 base unit and ranks them 3 bases wide by 2 bases deep, compared to standard line, which is just 6 bases wide.

For scenario 1, I used 3 x 50mm bases per unit and kept distances.

Offline olicana

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #8 on: May 14, 2021, 08:18:17 AM »
They are indeed a great set of rules with some novel mechanisms.

As a member of The League of Gentleman Wargamers, which includes both authors, I've played these rules several times and enjoyed the experience every time. The group likes them because they are very quick and easy to pick up, which is very useful for a group that only meets three weekends a year; they provide for fast, interesting play that gets very large 'mini-campaign' games (involving thousands of minis on 400+ square feet of table space, with 12 - 15 players) in the two days of gaming.

I don't have any shots of the ACW games but, we played this Napoleonic game using a variant (pic shows just two of the four tables - This was Dresden 1813), and any set of rules that can easily cope with games this size gets my recommendation:




Offline Redshank

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #9 on: May 14, 2021, 10:33:07 AM »
I like the sound of BBF and would really like to give it a go.

The whole idea of rolling percentiles to see how units deal with being fired on or melee'd seems similar to a set of rules by Donald Featherstone that I picked up last year, as I started to think about getting back into wargaming.

What happened was, I remembered Donald Featherstone's name from his books in my school library, amazon'd him, and came across his book on the American Revolutionary War. It has rules in it that sound a lot like these.

For some reason this approach sounds really appealing compared to Black Powder. But I haven't actually tried either yet so I'll have to see how it goes in play!

Offline olicana

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #10 on: May 14, 2021, 11:00:20 PM »
Dice are percentile but, these rules are not 'Old School': They are 'Modern'.

Kev and Peter are, despite their considerable age (ha, ha, guys), very much 'New Age Gamers', though only Peter sports a 'New Age' beard.

I hope Peter doesn't read this, when it comes to 'New Age' facial hair, he might wish to .....

Kev, on the other hand, will probably be wetting himself.
« Last Edit: May 14, 2021, 11:14:14 PM by olicana »

Offline Norm

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #11 on: May 15, 2021, 04:43:00 AM »
I have played another 2 games since and am increasingly liking the set. Lovely set-up above and interesting to see the 'other end' of the game scale that the rules can cover.

Offline FlyXwire

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #12 on: May 15, 2021, 12:33:24 PM »
I received my copy yesterday from On Military Matters here in the US.

I do have a few questions still after a quick reading (is there an FAQ link I wonder too)? -

In the Under Fire Failure Results Table (the targeted unit's player is testing - correct?)
Under this table are two charts for Infantry reactions, the 1st (for Inf. Stationary or Moving Back), and the 2nd (for Inf. Advancing).  My question - this moving status seems based on the targeted infantry unit, which I'm assuming is the non-firing (non-phasing player).....does this mean that players need to track each units moving action from one phase and/or turn to another (with markers to keep things straight)?

Offline FlyXwire

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #13 on: May 15, 2021, 01:49:13 PM »
Another question?

The rules state that turn initiative determines which side goes first, and then each player will roll for their commanders+mods, with the highest score having the initiative.

Does this mean that the entire side which has the highest scoring commander activates together, or does a single player with the highest scoring commander begin activating his units first, and then the turn sequence phasing back and forth to each player based on their commander initiative rolls?

Tied to this question is the Order Of Battle for the 2nd included scenario Port Republic - which includes T. Jackson on the board in addition to Brig-Gen. Winder (for the Stonewall brigade).  Would commander Jackson be rolling for [side] initiative too, or would only the Brigade Generals be rolling for the initiative of their brigades (to gain initiative for their whole side/or for each Brigade)?

Offline Norm

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Re: Bonnie Blue Flag fast play ACW test game
« Reply #14 on: May 15, 2021, 04:02:28 PM »
I received my copy yesterday from On Military Matters here in the US.

I do have a few questions still after a quick reading (is there an FAQ link I wonder too)? -

In the Under Fire Failure Results Table (the targeted unit's player is testing - correct?)
Under this table are two charts for Infantry reactions, the 1st (for Inf. Stationary or Moving Back), and the 2nd (for Inf. Advancing).  My question - this moving status seems based on the targeted infantry unit, which I'm assuming is the non-firing (non-phasing player).....does this mean that players need to track each units moving action from one phase and/or turn to another (with markers to keep things straight)?

I play that the target unit tests.

I marked units that advanced.

 

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