Where do I start????

[Guru80]

Wow, I get so lost in the putting the Union forces together in the early game as reinforcements and units are becoming available. Anyone have any suggestions for the start of the game, how I should arrange my units, what I should be looking to accomplish the first 10 turns or so?

I have literally spent hours playing the first 5-10 turns over and over trying to get a hang of it and I understand much of it but I get so bogged down trying to arrange my manpower into forces and am just never satisfied with it because, honestly, I have no idea what I am doing still

[Rafiki]

My recommendation would be to let the game progress further, and you'll see how your various decisions early on impact your long-term efforts.

No-one expects you to have a full overview in your first games. I know I as sure heck didn't. Some might say I still don't, even

[runyan99]

I have literally spent hours playing the first 5-10 turns over and over trying to get a hang of it and I understand much of it but I get so bogged down trying to arrange my manpower into forces and am just never satisfied with it because, honestly, I have no idea what I am doing still

Well, that's the problem itself. You need to make a plan. You need to decide where to raise armies, and what you intend those armies to do. If you're just raising units and moving them around ad hoc, you're going to end up with nothing but a mess.

If nothing else, let history be your guide.

[Guru80]

That's the problem, I know enough about the history to get myself in trouble. I can tell you about the battles, were they took place and in a lot of instances who was leading them but I don't always know the year, let alone the month, that most took place in.

I am a mess right now, let me tell ya! Next game will be better. I am playing my current game out and, while the military is a big sloppy mess, at least I am finally getting a feel of what it takes and how much is needed in each theater With what started in the East and what I have built there it is just a flood of men...on the west though...umm..nothing at all, lol.

I started this game with NO plan whatsoever, next time will be better. It is getting organazied as I go along though so maybe this current game isn't HOPELESS though definitely desperate.

[Submariner]

For the North, a good general strategy to follow is to form (over time) 4 armies.
1) A smallish Western army based in St Louis to keep order west of the Mississippi. This army can also assist a southward push on the west bank of the Mississippi.
2) A medium size army (3-4 corps) based in Cairo IL. This army should have the objective to capture Ft Donelson, Island 10, and eventually Memphis.
3) A medium size army (3-4 corps) based in Cincinnati OH. This army should push through KY and have Nashville as an initial goal. Later it can move through Chattanooga and on to Atlanta (possibly employing a corps or two from the Cairo/Memphis force). Armies 2 & 3 should coordinate efforts to strike simultaneous.
4) A large army (4-5+ corps) based in Alexandria/Washington DC. This army is needed to check and oppose the large Southern forces in that area. Over time the force can move gradually towards Richmond .. although its capture is not needed to win the war.

Following this stratgey should lead to gradual buildup in northern morale points and a victory in 1863.

[Rafiki]

Provided you are talking about decent-sized, full-fledged corps (with ** commanders), I'd say that it might indeed take some time to gather those kind of forces

[tagwyn]

I am assuming you ran thru the tutorials. If so, try the Shiloh scenario a couple of times and try to apply what you learned in the tutorials. Best, T

[Submariner]

Provided you are talking about decent-sized, full-fledged corps (with ** commanders), I'd say that it might indeed take some time to gather those kind of forces

This is a "grand strategy" that can be used to focus force recruitment, movement, aggregation, and deployment. Enough 2-star generals are available to make it doable to have several corps of 600+ power by the end of 1861. The maneuvers of armies 2 and 3 occur mainly in 1862, which is the key year of the conflict. In 1862 or 1863 its also a possible idea to form another army around DC and use it to capture New Orleans in an amphib landing.

[jhdeerslayer]

This is a "grand strategy" that can be used to focus force recruitment, movement, aggregation, and deployment. Enough 2-star generals are available to make it doable to have several corps of 600+ power by the end of 1861. The maneuvers of armies 2 and 3 occur mainly in 1862, which is the key year of the conflict. In 1862 or 1863 its also a possible idea to form another army around DC and use it to capture New Orleans in an amphib landing.

I find Amphib landings a nightmare in PBEM and easy to get slaughtered. In AI, piece of cake. In fact, as with most games, the whole strategy is different in AI and PBEM's. PBEM CSA players tend to get a little aggressive so early USA strategy seems to focus on that for me anyway.

[Guru80]

Ok, I am fairing OK..managed to take Rolla and a couple of undefended towns out West while moving some forces in (Dallas and a couple indian towns). I have a somewhat put together rag tag military. I am finally getting a hang of it and getting ready for a mini offensive about 10 turns in. We will see.

btw, with this game I am not going historical at all in terms of battles. I want to get a feel of how things work, what works well together, what doesn't and all kinds of other crazy stuff just to get a feel for the game.

[D_K]

guru....if you havent seen themn yet ...you will probably soon see lots of cavalry and indian raiders...be sure to build a few cavalry divisions in each theatre to handle all their backstabbing, also make sure you get militia in all your towns near the boarder. they will be destroying rail lines. not a major issue as long as you keep on top of it.

[Rafiki]

What I do to handle raiders is to make sure to garrison cities within reach of the frontlines with a militia or two, and have some stacks (one per state or so) with 2-3 cavalry to hunt down infiltrators. Divisions with cavalry (guessing they have a sizable number of elements) seems a bit overkill?

[bloodybucket]

Make a simple plan based on

Situation

Mission

Execution

Administration/Logistics

Command/Signals


It's the old USMC five paragraph order, of course, but you can really use it when facing any wargame situation. Your Union campaign order might run:

Situation - Enemy forces have superior leadership, inferior naval strength. Our production capacity promises to give us a substantial advantage as time goes on.

Mission - Defeat the CSA forces by engaging in a holding action while our strength gathers, then moving over to the offensive as superior land and amphibious forces become available.

Execution - Raise a strong army in Maryland to defend the capitol. Secondary armies will be raised to control Missouri, Kentucky and provide for an eventual two-army offensive in the East. Chip away at Confederate port capacity with amphibious landings.

Administration/Logistics - Build a dispersed militia and cavalry force to discourage enemy raids. Build enough naval transport for amphibious ops early on. Build and position logistical centers early on for supporting later offensive operations.

Command/Signals - Check plan each turn to maintain direction. Ensure that good leaders are available in the West early on where offensive action is more likely

That's just quick and dirty off the top of my pointy head. It could be much more detailed, or even written once for each theater. You could also use something as simple as what I've written for providing the broad framework for your decisions each turn. You could revise the order each year, every three or four months, or when you feel like you should.

The SMEAC system won't guarantee a good plan, but it will force you to come up with a plan, and that's a good start. I find it more fun to come up with my own crazy ideas than try to emulate winning strategies that have been proved by other (better) players.

You could base your plan on avoiding the disaster that befell you in a prior effort. You could imagine a bold strategy, like taking Richmond early, and try to plan for that...or come up with a list of regional objectives, and SMEAC each one.

SMEAC orders can also provide the basis for a good After Action Report, or notes that will help you evolve a strategy for the next session.

If you spend a portion of an hour doing this before you launch in to a game that will take many hours to play, you might find yourself more "involved" in the game, at least I do.

[D_K]

Divisions with cavalry (guessing they have a sizable number of elements) seems a bit overkill?

Might seem that way but i like having a couple around with 5 or so elements. plus some smaller groups as well. Bigger force seems to re-capture places and repair rail heads quicker. some time it seems single forces take more time. That being said single forces are better for trapping confederate cavs. I like a combo of both so far.

Of course .... if you need more divisions on the line, guess you dont want to use that strategy. in my current game , i am doing good with about 3 cavalry divisions.

[Rafiki]

I'm used to playing against the AI, so I usually see single-element raiders that fairly easily handled by 2-unit cavalry hunter-stacks. Are you seeing larger raider-stacks, since you want 5 elements to recapture cities and such?

I tend to use militia to repair rails, sparing the cavalry for other tasks or to let the "preposition" in wait of new raiders.

[Guru80]

Thanks everyone, tons and great advice here and I appreciate it and am incorporating it into my current game. Next game is bound to be more organized.

As for leaders, damn the Union has a ton of terrible leadership to start! I guess I should probably just ship a few 1 stars West to help allievate the penatly for not having a commander?

[Rafiki]

Yup, the sooner the better