American Indian Wars actions on the tabletop?

[sjwalker51]

Suggestions, please, for battles/skirmishes that might translate well to the tabletop - anything from c.1850-1890, on the Plains or South West, involving a reasonable number of combatants

There’s the obvious ones (LBH, Rosebud, Fetterman, Big Hole, Wagon Box fight, Adobe Walls, Beecher Island etc) but what else might make a good game?

[FifteensAway]

Well, for large battles, Rosebud is the battle of choice over Little Big Horn for me.  It lasted longer for the main battle (the Reno Hill portion of LBH of course went much longer) and included two different cavalry regiments and two different infantry regiments mule mounted and included Crow and Shoshone allies for the army.  LBH may have lasted in minutes rather than hours for Reno's action down below his namesake Hill and Custer's annihilation (some accounts give it maybe 15 minutes to wipe out Custer's force).  And virtually the same Lakota/Cheyenne as at the LBH eight days later.

And it is my contention that Rosebud and the ammunition expended by the natives saved the 7th from being annihilated completely, not just Custer's battalion.  Some say the natives replenished the ammo on raids and from dead but there just weren't enough dead troopers or time for enough raids to do that in those intervening seven days before the other battle on the eighth day, some replenishment, yes, but not enough - and Custer's men no doubt expended most of their ammo in a desperate if futile bid to survive.

As to smaller actions and skirmishes, there were many - later I'll find my book that lists lots (most?) of the actions and post the title (wife sleeping in area where shelved).  However, recommend you look at the Nez Perce war - it has a number of battles.  Also the Modoc war - with a very different modeling environment for a table top.  You can also do tribe versus tribe skirmishes.  The one to avoid is the circling the wagon trains - more of a Hollywood thing.  One I know less about but the Seminole war is another different environment for modeling.

And, of course, there is the delightful Battle of Whiskey Hills as portrayed in the movie Hallelujah Trail!  No, not historical but where else can you order your troops to "Protect both rears simultaneously" while pointing in two directions at the same time?

And well to remember that Indians did not fight to the last man, they fought either for raids, for honor, or to protect their families.  And minimal casualties was always of critical importance to them.  The closest I've ever heard of them doing anything 'military' was the way the Shoshone 'marched' into Crooks' camp ahead of Rosebud.  But they didn't fight that way.

[Harry Faversham]

I've found the 'Yellow Ribbon' rules work very well. The Redskins fight just as FifteensAway describes. You'll get most frustrated when they've amassed enough honour. As a gamer you want yer underlings to do as you command...
These Red Indians won't!!!
 

[OB]

Crooke's assault on the Cheyenne Camp at the Powder River gives an interesting game.

It was a winter camp with large stacks of firewood from which the startled Cheyenne resisted from cover.

It ended with Court Martials for some of the US Army officers involved.

Most of the Cheyenne got away but they lost almost everything they owned.  A day or so later they got their ponies back.

The whole thing is pretty well documented and worth looking out.

Yellow Ribbon works pretty well for it. 

[Inkpaduta]

The Ute War has a good battle to wargame.  Can't think of the name.
The Apache Wars has numerous skirmishes involved. Not is well covered
are the conflicts fought with Native Americans during the Civil War.

[snitcythedog]

On the skirmish side you could do something from the bone wars.  Both native Americans and other fossil hunters got involved and there were several shootouts and ambushes in the field.  They even destroyed each others finds.  It could easily be set it in the badlands anywhere from Texas to Montana.  As I recall, one of the fossil hunters was called "The man who picks up rocks when running" by one of the tribes. 

[Cory]

Not necessarily on the plains, but all of the tribes involved were part of the Plains culture and figures for one tribe can pass for another for nearly all players.

Battle of Spokane Plains and Battle of Four Lakes from the Couer d'Alene war are good medium sized actions where both sides have options.

White Bird Canyon from the Nez Perce war is also a good battle to game.

The Battle of Belly River between the Blackfoot and Cree tribes is interesting and a little different than what we normally see on the table. Battle River (1865) starts more like a cavalry attack on a settlement but historically went different and can be done well with scenario specific rules. The poorly documented 1840's Camp Creek Battle between the Flathead and Blackfeet has possibilities too.

[FifteensAway]

Appears I was conflating two titles in my memory but if you can find these books they should be helpful, I found them either at used books stores or on-site visitor center stores:

Battles and Skirmishes of the Great Sioux War, 1876-1877, Jerome A. Greene
Fighting Men of the Indian Wars, Bill O'Neal

[Inkpaduta]

A Classic work that will give you many ideas for battles and skirmishes is Robert's Utley's Frontiersmen in Blue. Covers the West from
1848-1865. He then has one on the Army in the West during the Indian Wars 1865-1890.