Our Boys in Butternut

[BaronVonJ]

Inspired by the wave of activity here at the Lead Adventure Forum over a fictional 1938 British Civil War, I delved into something I've been toying a with, some ground based skirmishes set in the Crimson Skies universe. Crimson Skies is an aerial combat game with a great background set in the "what if the Great Depression caused the U.S. to break apart?".
Presented is the 13th Missouri State Militia. Unlike the Dixie Regulars clad in traditional gray, the state militia wear uniforms of the old butternut variety, as an homage to the waning days of the Confederacy. The blue shoulder tabs identify them as infantry and they carry a variation of the original Missouri battle flag. This picture was taken while on maneuvers in the Ozarks.
(Yes, the front rankers are blurry, but I'm too lazy to take another).

[dodge]

Those are really good baron, I like the story and the uniform colours


It is a real pain when the camera does that 

dodge

[BaronVonJ]

Next are the regulars in gray w/ helmets and some air and armor support then either those reds from across the Kansas border, or some Fascist Blackshirts from the ISA up north.

[commissarmoody]

NICE! i have been thinking of doing this with crimson skys for awhile now, but you actualy did it. They need a hats off icon.

[Doc Twilight]

BaronVonJ -

Great work!

Strangely, I've been thinking along very similar lines. Perhaps those of like mindedness here could share their thoughts on the American situation circa 38?

Inspired by a very obscure alternate history book entitled, "The Wild Blue and the Grey", I was thinking along the lines of Black Communists in the Deep South (they called themselves 'Socialists' in the book).

-Doc

[commissarmoody]

I think that fallows more along the lines of the Harry Turledove, alternative Civilwar books.
Hey Baron, who are you useing to reprasent the Dixie Regulers?
I am honistly torn on what area I want to do. there all pretty good.

[Phil_McCrackin]

thats AWESOME!

[Cory]

      Doc,

For my group we liked the way the ECW38 stuff draws heavily from the SCW and other interwar conflicts. All too often any envisioning of a 2nd American civil war presents the conflict as a replay of the 1st one, sometimes with the sectional lines redrawn. We wanted something more dynamic and fluid that captured the social rumblings as well as political and cultural divides of the depression era US.

We haven't crafted an in depth background for our games so far but the point of deviation seems to be the Bonus Army showdown in '32. Something goes wrong and the fighting is worse. Communist agitators perhaps, maybe simply more firearms among the marchers - most had sold the ones they brought for food long before reaching Washington DC. The casualties are higher and the military gets permission to go after other bonus marcher armies around the country.

Follow it up with Roosevelt killed or ousted by Henry Ford's coup in '34 and a nation begins to divide. No new deal and a reactionary protection of capital and the economy worsens. With elections approaching coal strikes in the fall threaten the balance. The government has little choice, cave in to the workers or else. Or else is chosen and duplicating the techniques used against the Idaho Wobblies at the turn of the century, miner's families are put into concentration camps and held hostage with no food or shelter unless their husbands and fathers work. Soon such camps for strikers spring up nationwide and the workers strike back as they can. Clandestine guerilla wars spread throughout the Alleghenies and the Rockies. Many local elections are considered rigged and voters are turned away at polling places by workers mobs or company strong men.

That's where we've gone so far.

[Westfalia Chris]

BaronVonJ,

being an avid fan of Crimson Skies since it was released (and playing the PC game every now and then), I am intrigued by this "Reborn Confederacy", and your take on the subject is rather nice indeed! My only nitpick would be the choice of colours being unfortunate, since this "khaki-ish" butternut tone makes it all too obvious that you used Renegade Brits. I think using Confederation grey would make them look more CSA-ish and less British (although I wouldn´t wonder if they bought their uniforms as British Army surplus or something like that! ).

[Doc Twilight]

      Doc,

For my group we liked the way the ECW38 stuff draws heavily from the SCW and other interwar conflicts. All too often any envisioning of a 2nd American civil war presents the conflict as a replay of the 1st one, sometimes with the sectional lines redrawn. We wanted something more dynamic and fluid that captured the social rumblings as well as political and cultural divides of the depression era US.

We haven't crafted an in depth background for our games so far but the point of deviation seems to be the Bonus Army showdown in '32. Something goes wrong and the fighting is worse. Communist agitators perhaps, maybe simply more firearms among the marchers - most had sold the ones they brought for food long before reaching Washington DC. The casualties are higher and the military gets permission to go after other bonus marcher armies around the country.

Follow it up with Roosevelt killed or ousted by Henry Ford's coup in '34 and a nation begins to divide. No new deal and a reactionary protection of capital and the economy worsens. With elections approaching coal strikes in the fall threaten the balance. The government has little choice, cave in to the workers or else. Or else is chosen and duplicating the techniques used against the Idaho Wobblies at the turn of the century, miner's families are put into concentration camps and held hostage with no food or shelter unless their husbands and fathers work. Soon such camps for strikers spring up nationwide and the workers strike back as they can. Clandestine guerilla wars spread throughout the Alleghenies and the Rockies. Many local elections are considered rigged and voters are turned away at polling places by workers mobs or company strong men.

That's where we've gone so far.

Baron -

I like the way you're thinking. The ECW38 thing appeals to me for many of the same reasons - particularly drawing upon other world events as a foundation. Of course, it's a little easier to draw upon American geography and history, as opposed to British geography and history, if you're from our side of the pond.

I'd also been thinking along the lines of the Bonus March situation, with the survivors of the Bonus March incidents rallying around the idea of a left wing military state, ala Sparta (a sort of "Service Guarantees Citizenship" concept); the Fascist movement, meanwhile, would be lead by Douglas McArthur. Perhaps he's Ford's choice?

Instead of diving along the traditional North/South Lines, perhaps the country does what it did in Crimson Skies, and a few other sources, splitting into various regions. A Great Lakes Confederation, a CSA type entity in at least part of the South, an independent Texas? Perhaps the Native Americans seize their chance and break away with Oklahoma?

This is all very nascent, but I like where this is headed. And again, glad to see somebody painting up such a creative unit.


-Doc

[Captain Blood]

Nicely painted. Like the vividness of the blue against the butternut 

So this is ACW2 as opposed to ECW3? 

[BaronVonJ]

Hey fellas,
Here's the CS background:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_Skies
My regulars will be in gray, and have helmets. The Confederation of Dixie is closely tied to England so they've got similar uniforms. These are State troops so they have a bit antiquated styles/cut. You can see all the webbing/belting is leftover regulation (gray).
These fellas will probably see some action against those Socialist Reds from across the Kansas border. (will be using Russian equipment), or Fascist Blackshirts from the ISA.
I'm also replicating on a grander scale in 10mm for big battles.

[Bungle]

In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt was reelected President of the United States as the Progressive Party candidate, only to be assassinated before taking office when personally breaking a labor strike at the Chicago Union Stockyards with the Rough Riders. Following this his vice president, Charles Foster Kane takes power, and gradually leads the United States into greater levels of oppression, class division and bureaucratic incompetence and corruption - including an earlier entry into the First World War and the assassination of his rival candidate, Woodrow Wilson, during the 1916 election campaign.

Gradually, by 1917 the United States is unstable politically and socially, with overwhelming civil unrest stemming from the massive (and seemingly pointless) loss of American lives in the mud of the Western Front and the increasing gap between the wealthy 'robber barons' and the poor workers, and the massive corruption and exploitation this has resulted in. The socialist party led by Eugene Debs gains increasing support, and soon the unrest lead to outright civil war.

make it 1922.... before SCW....

Pancho Villa cross border raids... etc

[BaronVonJ]

All great ideas, but I'm sticking to my world with crazy airplanes. The more realistic timelines are too depressing.
-J

[Doc Twilight]

In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt was reelected President of the United States as the Progressive Party candidate, only to be assassinated before taking office when personally breaking a labor strike at the Chicago Union Stockyards with the Rough Riders. Following this his vice president, Charles Foster Kane takes power, and gradually leads the United States into greater levels of oppression, class division and bureaucratic incompetence and corruption - including an earlier entry into the First World War and the assassination of his rival candidate, Woodrow Wilson, during the 1916 election campaign.

Gradually, by 1917 the United States is unstable politically and socially, with overwhelming civil unrest stemming from the massive (and seemingly pointless) loss of American lives in the mud of the Western Front and the increasing gap between the wealthy 'robber barons' and the poor workers, and the massive corruption and exploitation this has resulted in. The socialist party led by Eugene Debs gains increasing support, and soon the unrest lead to outright civil war.

make it 1922.... before SCW....

Pancho Villa cross border raids... etc

Sorry, but Theodore Roosevelt was pro-labor and anti-Corporation. He would never have broken up a strike, let alone used the military to do it. When strikes were violently repressed during his presidency, his usual response was outrage.

He was probably the last true "Lincoln" Republican.

-Doc