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This game is showing importance of supplies as it really was important in ACW. When you read any book on strategy or any ACW memoairs you will see they are mentioning supply all the time.

When planing to attack a city, let say Manassass, always do it in 3 to 4 steps.
I send cavalry first. First goal is to see how strong is the enemy. Second, very important goal is to cut off RR's leading to town I am about to attack so they can't get reinforcements with haste.
Third goal is to place you cavalry in such a way so that targeted town doesn't receive any supplies.
Then you attack with your main body.

This is one of the many reasons I love this game. It is accurate and can't be replayed historicaly with all important segments such as supply, cavalry raids and such.

Just my two cents

Use Grant's strategy and attack multiple locations in same theatre in the same time. This way AI or your opponent won't get any chance to reinforce. Tie them down and hit hard.

Use rivers. Block enemy movements either to stop raids or to cut enemy from their supplies. Use river for deep cavalry raids.
Good thing to do is to build depots in cities on the river with two river transports insted of using supply wagons that cost much more.
Also build a seizable fleet to assoult forts.

Naval strategy
First consolidate your ships in blockade boxes and try to reach 20 or 25%.
While doing this try to hold on Ft. Pickens so your ships can resupply there. Good thing would be to send one or two naval engineers to speed up the process. Before you build blockade squadrons send few marines or sailors on transports and conquer cities without protection. This way you will have less ports for blockade.

Supply depots
As mentioned before, use transports to build depots. Cheaper then wagons.
Don't forget to build supply depots in areas like Arkansas or West Virginia where you could have supply problems.

Build up
Recruit new units during the last months of winter so you have eneough time to redeploy them and form divisions with first months of the spring. Don't start too early as you will pay for them and they will just sit beeing unable to move in winter.

Militia
Don't forget to protect your cities. Against AI one militia is enough. In more important cities place one arty as well.

Army organization

I usually put 4 artillery into each division, depending on what is available. I try to put one ortwo cavalry into one division in each corps to act as scouts.

A sharpshooter and a marine or sailor in each division is an effective combination.

One medical and engineer per corps is also good. I give the worst division leader all the support units. If you give the army commander an ADC, then put a signal and balloon into a corps' support division you can add an extra division to that corps with no command penalty.

Basicaly same as Jabberworck

"ACW stragtegy 101" is a wiki article begging to be written

Rafiki wrote:"ACW stragtegy 101" is a wiki article begging to be written

Great I can be of help to you. Just wanted to show people that don't yet own this game how realistic it is.
I also hope this few tips will help players that already own the game to understand it even better.

Godspeed

These strategy tips are great for someone relatively new like myself. Destroying rr links on cities I'm about to assault - an obvious idea but one that I'd not thought of. Thanks

Rafiki wrote:"ACW stragtegy 101" is a wiki article begging to be written

I think ACW Operations 101 is a pre-req.

Rafiki wrote:"ACW stragtegy 101" is a wiki article begging to be written

Other operations / strategy articles begging to be written:

Operational Tips & Tricks
Command: Army, Corps, Divisions, Detached, Independent, Assigning Generals, Division limits
General's abilities effects
Force Composition
Army & Corps: maneuvers, flanking, marching-to-the-sound ...
Postures
Sieges
Entrenchments
Forts (pre-existing): what, where, when, why
Forts (built): what, where, when, why
Operational Intelligence: 2-1-1* scouts vs. Cavalry vs. Brigs & Gunboats vs. Pinkerton & Boyd
Military Control
Early vs. Late troops operations.
Frontage
By Rail & River
Support Units: what, where, why, when
Cavalry: Integrated Brigade vs. Independent vs. Divisional vs. Corps, roles
Artillery: Integrated Brigade, Divisional, comparisons

Strategic Operations
Logistics: attached vs. detached supply, building depots, depot's effects, interdiction, economic development
Strategic Dimensions 6-9: Understanding Terrain & Weather
Naval: Blockade & Economics, Amphibious operations (composition, scale, objectives), Shore Bombardment, Force Interdiction, Pure Naval Ops, Supply.
Raiding: Scale, Units, Defending, Shallow vs. Deep, Supporting
Dealing with events: Onward to Richmond, General Orders, Souix Uprising, etc.
Garrisons: what, where, why, when

Strategy
Regional 1861: East (Virginia), West (Kentucky), Trans-Mississippi (Missouri), Coast & River
Regional 1862-1863: East (Virginia & NC), West (Tennessee), Trans-Mississippi (Arkansas), Amphibious Penetrations
Pushing the envelope: non-historical strategies & operations
USA vs. CSA: strategic & operational contrasts
Scenario comparisons
Drafts: when, why, side-effects
Financials: when, why, side-effects
Economics: when, where, why, side-effects
Loyalty: martial law and habeus corpus
Replacements: what, when, where, why
Reinforcements: what, where, when why
The Home Front: Morale and VP
Foreign Intervention
Exploits

Meta Strategy
Planning: Objectives, Assessment, Adjustment
Human opponents vs. Athena
Assessing your PBEM opponent: Proactive vs. Reactive, Macro vs. Micro, Chaotic vs. Methodical, Aggressive vs. Defensive, Speed vs. Power, Fun vs. Serious
PBEM propaganda and intelligence gathering
Forii: what to post? A research & propaganda tool.

marecone wrote:Army organization

I usually put 4 artillery into each division, depending on what is available. I try to put one ortwo cavalry into one division in each corps to act as scouts.

A sharpshooter and a marine or sailor in each division is an effective combination.

One medical and engineer per corps is also good. I give the worst division leader all the support units. If you give the army commander an ADC, then put a signal and balloon into a corps' support division you can add an extra division to that corps with no command penalty.

Basicaly same as Jabberworck

Minor upgrade from Hobb's AACW Quick Reference Guide: Sailors and marines work at the stack level. There are only 3 unit level abilities: Entrencher, Sharpshooter and Strong Morale.