through Amelia Courthouse to

Manassas and cuts the Union LOC.

The Union will most likely only have
a +2 or as high as +4 DRM (with a 3-1
force advantage) while the South
should have a +9 (Johnston, fort,
Union out of supply and two addi-
tional generals) guaranteeing victory
(asterisk results are cancelled in
capitals/resource spaces which both
apply to Richmond). Failure either to
build the AoNV or to cut the Union
LOC is a recipe for early disaster.
Accomplishing one of these tasks
makes Richmond very secure in spite
of the Union advantage.

Another Confederate tactic to

preempt a Union advance building
up the East at the expense of the West
during turn 2 (Summer 1861), and
launching an offensive through the
Shenandoah Valley into Maryland.
This maneuver will threaten to
outflank the AoP and directly attack
Washington. The Union should react
to this forcing the use of a key card
when they are in the shortest supply.
As the old saying goes, the best
defense is a good offense.

This illustrates how the best laid

How aggressive the Union may Conclusion
become in the East depends on how One of the key changes to FOR THE
plans can still go wrong. The key is to many 3 Ops cards he gets.
not panic, and to find ways to get the PEOPLE has been the subtle, but
Confederate player to use up his significant changes to the Eastern
The player sitting at Davis' theater of operations. The alterations
cards doing other things while you desk shouldn't despair.
attempt to recover the situation. bring more of the historical concerns
First, the AoNV should be and options into the game. The
built with J. Johnston in increased opportunities to play on
How to keep the Yankees command. Second, he the flanks of the theater is due to
out of the Old Dominion should interrupt the Union LOC via these changes. I believe the end result
maneuver. Due to LOC constraints, is a better historical simulation
Early in the war, Richmond is
the first Union advance will get him without significant rule additions
vulnerable to capture. If the South
as far as Hanover. One of the critical that slow down play. I hope you like
has sent too many of its reinforce-
map changes in the GMT edition of the improvements.
ments west or left them on coastal
the game now works its wonders.
defense, it could find itself during the
The South should dispatch a corps
Fall 1861 turn on the short end of the
from Richmond which maneuvers
capital sweepstakes. During late
1861, the big Union advantage is its
huge forces. Historically, the only
thing keeping the Union out of
Richmond was McClellan. This is
simulated in the game by the fact that
most decent Union generals have
strategy ratings of 3. Whereas
McClellan is the best army com-
mander for defending Washington,
he is about the worst for threatening
Richmond. What I find most intrigu-
ing about this situation is that the
real history of the war may have been
the least likely outcome, when it
comes to the Eastern theater of
operations. If McDowell had been a
bit luckier at Manassas or if Sherman
had been placed in a higher com-
mand position earlier in the war, who
knows what might have happened!