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...which he apparently did in early Feb '61 (Henry and Donaldson). How exactly does one assault a river fort? Do you simply move across a river and assault it? Can you move by river transport and assault it the same turn? I tried moving Grant and his corps down the river to the river "region" adjacent to the fort...next turn, order him to assault...didn't work...suggestions, hints appreciated.

For a stack to attack something in a region, you have to give that stack orders to move into the region in question, i.e. it's not enough to let it wait in the river next to the forts, you have to move it onto the forts.

By order of decreasing preference:
- Move from adjacent land region without crossing a river.
- Move from land region by crossing a river (preferrably a minor river).
- Amphibious assault, e.g. by moving down the river then unloading into the target region.

Move into the fort's region in attack or defensive posture. Use a division with 3 or 4 good artillery batteries. Seige the fort until you create a breach. Then assault. Have supply wagons available for the besiegers, in case the process takes more than two turns.

Jabberwock wrote: Have supply wagons available for the besiegers, in case the process takes more than two turns.

And to benefit from the +10% combat bonus that supply wagons give.

Jabberwock wrote:Move into the fort's region in attack or defensive posture. Use a division with 3 or 4 good artillery batteries. Seige the fort until you create a breach. Then assault. Have supply wagons available for the besiegers, in case the process takes more than two turns.

so i can initiate a seige while in defensive posture? i'm pretty sure i moved them to the adjacent river on first turn, then moved land units from transporting units the next turn onto the fort while in assault mode...grant and his corps were "bounced" to the region just north of the fort...they had plenty of atry and supply wagons...perhaps they didn't like assaulting on the first try...i'll attempt again...thanks for the tips...

i seem to have trouble recreating historical results. grant took the forts in early Feb (6th for fort Henry, 16th for fort Donelson)...perhaps in RL he was seiging for a turn or two...need to look up the battle...

How large is the garrison? I've only played Union twice into '62, but both times a force led by Grant took it immediately by assault. Both times, there was only the standard, small garrison. Maybe it was reinforced?

I'm starting a PBEM as CSA, and defending that place is a high priority. I would love to know what's stopping you, so I can stop my opponent!

Kwik E Mart wrote:so i can initiate a seige while in defensive posture? i'm pretty sure i moved them to the adjacent river on first turn, then moved land units from transporting units the next turn onto the fort while in assault mode..

If you have less than 5% military control of the target region, your forces will automatically be put on offensive (or in this case, perhaps assault) stance.

KillCalvalry wrote:How large is the garrison? I've only played Union twice into '62, but both times a force led by Grant took it immediately by assault. Both times, there was only the standard, small garrison. Maybe it was reinforced?

I'm starting a PBEM as CSA, and defending that place is a high priority. I would love to know what's stopping you, so I can stop my opponent!

only my incompentence appears to be stopping me right now! leure: i don't think it has been reinforced...i'm at work now, but will check if it was still just the original garrison. how large was your force with Grant? it is frustrating to lose a half month because i don't understand the game mechanics well enough to mount a credible assault/seige.

btw, thanks for the 5% control tip, PB...

I'm pretty sure I hit it with a sizable force, at least 2 full divisions with artillery, etc, well over 20K in troops. It was not an army yet, though that action got Grant promoted to 3***, so it was really a win.

The defense of these forts in real life was impossible due to poor construction of both. I would suggest that you try your defense somewhere else. You must have a shell defense because of a lack of units. However, Ft. Donaldson, IMHO, could have been resuced if a competent commander such as Forrest been placed in charge. In fact a sortie conducted by the defenders was nearly successful, and should have been. That was a complete waste of good Rebel Soldiers. Read the narrative in Foote's Book. Tag