User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Union Leader Modifications

Fri Jun 29, 2007 5:44 pm

In another thread that was discussing historical entry dates on leaders, I mentioned to Runyan that I would be happy to post my modded Union leaders for all to see/debate/use if they wish from a mod project I did last weekend. I now have the time to do so, and here is the first installment.

Note that my goals in this mod were to increase historical accuracy in the ratings and arrival times of Union leaders. My reference sources for the changes include The Union Army:1861-1865, Organization and Operations, Vol. 1. The Eastern Theater and Vol. 2 The Western Theater, The Historical Times Encyclopedia of the Civil War, The Sword of Lincoln -- The Army of the Potomac, Nothing But Victory -- The Army of the Tennessee, The Civil War -- A Trilogy by Shelby Foote, and Generals in Blue. My research was supplemented by the excellent website at http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/generals.html which has short sketches of all promotions and brigade/divisional/corps/army commands held by each and every general in the Civil War.

Feel free to discuss/debate/disagree with my changes. My goal is for my mod to be an ongoing project that is tweaked and improved until I am satisfied.

The first segment is early Union generals from 61 to early 62. I have created two new pools, mid 62 and mid 63, to better reflect historic arrival times for some leaders. I will post mid-62 to early 64 as I get it typed up later this afternoon. Finally, I will post my changes to some of the prominent generals who appear by event.


61 Main Generals

Erasmus Keyes – Ratings lowered to 2-1-1. Keyes showed poor initiative throughout the war.

Lew Wallace – Remains the Same

61 Division Generals

David Birney – Rose to prominence 8/62. Moved to mid-62 leaders event.

Charles Hamilton – Reduced to 1-star rank, added Hothead trait

Robert Milroy – Reduced to 1-star rank, added Dispirited Leader and Hated Occupant traits. Ratings reduced to 2-1-0, as his combat record was terrible.

James Shields – Ratings reduced to 2-1-1. Dispirited Leader trait added. Shields was repeatedly humiliated by Stonewall Jackson and others. Poor commander.

George Morell – Rose to prominence 5/62. Moved to early 62 Division Generals pool.

George McCall – Ratings improved to 3-1-2. Added Patriot, Training Officer, and Militiaman traits. McCall raised, trained and commanded the AOP’s famous Pennsylvania Reserves division, turning raw militia troops into a crack combat unit that saw extremely heavy action and performed superbly.

Steven Hurlburt – Ratings increased to 3-1-2. Added Slow Mover and Occupier Traits. Created a Hurlburt2 model and made him promotable to 2-star Rank. Hurlburt was a political general who held several corps commands in the Army of the Tennesse and the West. Performed well on the defense on several occasions, but Sherman questioned his initiative at times. Hurlburt was believed to be too comfortable in his duties as an occupier, where allegations of corruption abounded.

William Nelson – Lowered ratings to 2-1-1. Added Hothead trait. Nelson was killed by fellow US general Jefferson C. Davis in a dispute at a Louisville hotel.

Thomas Wood – Rose to prominence 4/62. Moved to Early 62 Division generals pool.

Louis Blenker – Reduced ratings to 2-0-0. Blenker was an incompetent political general placed in command because of his appeal in German-American political circles.

Asboth – Removed from pool. Hungarian-American political general, never held a significant field command.

Charles Griffin – Rose to prominence 10/62. Moved to mid-62 Generals Pool

Andrew Humphreys – Rose to prominence 9/62. Moved to mid-62 Generals Pool

Albion Howe – Rose to prominence 10/62. Moved to mid-62 Generals Pool.

62 Main Generals

Daniel Butterfield – Rose to prominence 9/62. Moved to mid-62 Generals Pool.

William French – Rose to prominence 7/62. Moved to mid-62 Generals Pool.

Thomas Crittenden, Phil Kearny, W.H.L. Wallace, John Parke, James Ricketts, William F. Smith, Israel Richardson, Benjamin Prentiss, Alpheus Williams, Isaac Stevens -- Left all of these generals rated and entering as they do currently.

62 Division Generals (early)

Hiram Berry – Rose to prominence 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

Amiel Whipple – Changed ratings to 2-0-3. Whipple was a brilliant defensive engineer who designed and constructed many of the Washington defenses. Was less than brilliant as a field commander. With his new ratings, players will use him as a garrison commander in DC, which is an appropriate use for his talents.

John Dix – Changed ratings to 1-0-3. Added Militiaman trait. Like Whipple, Dix was another garrison commander who spent the war largely in New Jersey training militia. Dix was sent by Lincoln in July 1863 to quell the NYC draft riots. Not a field commander, players should choose to use Dix in a valuable garrison command.

John Foster – Changed ratings to 3-2-3. Added Entrencher and Patriot traits. Foster was a highly capable commander who served in several theaters of the war.

David Hunter – Ratings kept the same. Added Hated Occupant and Pillager traits. Hunter was amongst the first to lay the hard hand of war on the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, including the burning of the Virginia Military Institute. Despised by Southerners, who rejoiced when Early’s Corps routed him at New Market.

Lovell Rousseau – Added Patriot trait. Rousseau played a decisive role in keeping Kentucky in the Union and raised large numbers of pro-Unionist Kentuckians to join the Union Armies.

John McArthur – Changed ratings to 3-2-2. McArthur was a tough and capable division commander in the Army of the Tennessee.

Calvin Pratt – Removed leader from appearing. Pratt commanded a division at Fredericksburg, and resigned in early 1863. Had no significant command impact on the outcome of the war.

Charles Devens – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

John Geary – Rose to prominence in 11/62. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

David Gregg – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

Adolph von Steinwehr – Rose to prominence in 8/62. Moved to Mid 62 Generals Pool.

Richard Johnson – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

James Veatch – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

John Davidson – Left unchanged.

James Negley – Left unchanged.

Robert Ormsby Mitchell – Left unchanged

Joseph J. Reynolds – Left unchanged

John Palmer – Changed to 3-2-2. Made promotable to 2-stars and created Palmer 2 Model. Palmer performed well in command at Stones River, Chickamauga, Chattanooga, and the Atlanta Campaign. Commanded a corps at Chattanooga and on the March to the Sea.

Horatio Van Cleave – Left unchanged

Andrew Jackson Smith – Changed to 4-3-3. Added Pillager, Irregular Fighter, and Strong Morale traits. Made promotable to 2-stars and created ASmith2 model. AJ Smith was a tough regular who was one of the best division commanders for the Union in the Western Theater. His men laid a hard hand on the land, and were known as the ‘gorilla-guerillas’ for their pillaging ways. A favorite of Sherman’s who held several corps and independent commands, Smith also has the distinction of being the only Union commander to ever defeat Nathan Bedford Forrest in battle, at Tupelo in early 1864.

John Caldwell – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

P. Marston – Can find no reference to this leader. Removed and replaced with new leader, Orlando Willcox, who is in the Mid 62 Generals Pool.

Alexander Hays – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

James Barnes – Rose to prominence in 1/63. Moved to Early 63 Generals Pool.

Dixon Miles -- Changed to 2-0-0. Added Dispirited Leader trait. Miles was a disgrace. A drunken coward, he presided over the surrender of the 12,000 man Harpers Ferry garrison in September 1862 without firing a shot, the largest surrender of US forces in the field until the fall of Bataan and Corregidor.

Isaac Rodman – Moved up from 1863 Divisional Generals. Added trait Slow Mover. Rodman was one of the chief culprits of the failure at Burnside’s Bridge, which may have saved Lee’s army at Antietam

jimwinsor
General of the Army
Posts: 631
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 7:07 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 5:59 pm

Just out of curiousity, any opinion on Sigel? I don't see him mentioned...my impression is that he's overrated in the game, and was wondering if your take on him was the same?
[CENTER][SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][/CENTER]
[CENTER][SIZE="1"](Click HERE for AAR)[/size][/CENTER]

jimwinsor
General of the Army
Posts: 631
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 7:07 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 6:02 pm

BTW another dandy source for leader info is Sifakis' "Who Was Who in the Civil War;" it's where I found that CS Hamilton bio I posted in another thread.
[CENTER][SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][/CENTER]

[CENTER][SIZE="1"](Click HERE for AAR)[/size][/CENTER]

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 6:30 pm

I haven't finished the section where Sigel is yet, so that is why you dont see him mentioned in the first list.

I agree that Sigel was terrible and is overrated in the game. He was only in command due to his powerful political appeal in the German American community. His troops loved him, boasting 'I fits mit Sigel' in their broken English, but his was a complete incompetent on the battlefield.

I rate Sigel as 3-0-0. I removed his Training Officer trait and replaced it with Recruiting Officer. He had decent initiative, but it only served to bring him closer to defeat in the field. However, he could be counted upon to increase enlistments in the German immigrant community, hence the recruiting trait.

User avatar
Stonewall
Posts: 267
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2007 4:33 pm
Location: Florida, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 6:46 pm

James Shields – Ratings reduced to 2-1-1. Dispirited Leader trait added. Shields was repeatedly humiliated by Stonewall Jackson and others. Poor commander.


Shields was the sole reason that Jackson's Valley Campaign didn't end in an even more stunning victory. He stopped Jackson cold at Kernstown, routing 1/4 of Jackson's force at the outset of the campaign in March. It was Shields magnificent delaying action that prevented Jackson from getting to Winchester prior to that place being fortified by Banks. If anything, Shields was the one bright spot in in an otherwise bleak spring for Union forces in the Valley. The original game ratings are spot on, IMHO.

William Nelson – Lowered ratings to 2-1-1. Added Hothead trait. Nelson was killed by fellow US general Jefferson C. Davis in a dispute at a Louisville hotel.


Nelson was quite possibly one of the most aggressive Union generals of the entire war. Hothead is justified, but a 2 strategic rating is certainly not. He led Buell's counterattack at Shiloh. He advanced on Corinth with General Halleck. His only black mark is the Battle of Richmond Kentucky when his green militia ran away from Confederate forces under General EK Smith. Smith captured 4000 federals that day. A more appropriate rating would be 4-2-1.

jimwinsor
General of the Army
Posts: 631
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 7:07 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:08 pm

You know, IMO the unfortunate thing about the Recruiting Officer trait is that it works only when the general is garrisoning a large city. Typically in the rear area.

It would be more interesting if the trait worked only if the general was given a field command...the larger the command, the better. That way all these bad generals with the trait would have incentive to be given such commands, despite their ratings, in order to stimulate recruiting...as happened with Banks, McClernand, and as you point out, Sigel, etc...

BTW is the Poor Spy Network trait in the game? I've seen it mentioned in the rules, but I've never actually seen a leader with it....even when they were supposed to have it.
[CENTER][SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][/CENTER]

[CENTER][SIZE="1"](Click HERE for AAR)[/size][/CENTER]

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:38 pm

Part II of my Mod, covering the mid-1862 generals pool until the last batch comes in during early 1864.

Mid-62 Generals Pool (new)

Charles Griffin – Left ratings the same

Andrew Humphreys – Changed ratings to 3-2-3. Created a 2-star promotion model. Humphreys was a fine division commander in the AOP, who also served as chief of staff to Meade. Commanded II Corps after Hancock until CSA surrender. Rated at 4-2-3 at 2-star rank to add chief of staff benefit.

Albion Howe – Left ratings the same

Daniel Butterfield – Left ratings the same

William H. French – Added Slow Mover trait, left other ratings the same.

Adolph von Steinwehr – Changed ratings to 3-1-2

Orlando B. Willcox – Added Willcox as a new Union leader. Ratings are 3-2-3. Made Willcox promotable to 2-star model as well. Performed well in several commands in both Eastern and Western Theaters. Commanded IX Corps in the West.

David Birney – Birney is brought in as a 1 star leader instead of his 2 star rank. Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Birney was a good division commander in the AOP, later rising to command X Corps in the Army of the James before his death from malaria 10/64.

Francis P. Blair – Entry moved up from 1863. Ratings changed to 3-2-2. Added Militiaman and Patriot traits. Blair came from an incredibly powerful political family, and basically exhausted the family fortune raising and training large numbers of troops at his own expense. Blair was also a competent field commander.

Henry J. Hunt – Entry moved up from 1863. Ratings changed to 3-2-4. Added Siege Expert trait. Hunt was the Chief Artillerist of the AOP. In that role, his artillery tactics and massed batteries were absolutely devastating on the defensive at Malvern Hill and Gettysburg. He also performed well on the offense at Antietam and Fredericksburg, where he made those battles ‘artillery hell’ for the Confederates.

Isaac Rodman – Moved up from 1863 Divisional Generals. Added trait Slow Mover. Rodman was one of the chief culprits of the failure at Burnside’s Bridge, which may have saved Lee’s army at Antietam.

1863 Generals Pool

Francis Blair – Rose to prominence 10/62. Moved to mid-1862 generals pool.

David Birney – Rose to prominence 8/62. Moved to mid-1862 generals pool.

Francis Barlow – Left unchanged.

Francis Herron – Left unchanged.

James Wadsworth – Left unchanged

John Newton – Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Newton performed fairly well in command of I Corps after the death of Reynolds and in later commands in the west.


Early 1863 Division Generals

Grenville Dodge – Changed to 3-2-2. Added trait Good Spy Network. Dodge was a competent division and corps commander who always seemed to have good information regarding Confederate movements and intentions.

Robert Schenck – Rose to prominence in 1/62. Moved to Early 62 Generals Pool. Added trait Dispirited Leader. Yet another incompetent Union general early in the war.

Romeyn Ayres – Changed ratings to 3/2/1. Added trait Artillerist.

Samuel Crawford – Changed ratings to 3/2/2. Added trait Militiaman. Crawford succeeded McCall in command of the Pennsylvania Reserves and performed well.

Horatio Wright – Changed ratings to 2/1/2. Added trait slow mover. Created 2-star model and made him promotable. Wright was a slow, cautious commander who did well on the defensive but missed numerous opportunities on the attack a more aggressive commander would have taken advantage of. Commanded the VI Corps after the death of Sedgwick, and arrived barely in time to come to the defense of Washington from Early’s 1864 attack.

E. Food – Could find no record of this general and replaced him with Alfred Terry.

Clarke – Could find no record of this general and deleted him.

B. Hanson – Could find no record of this general and deleted him.

Alfred Terry – New leader. Ratings 3-3-3. Made him promotable to 2-star rank with a new model. Terry commanded a division in coastal operations in the Carolinas, and later rose to command X Corps in the Army of the James. His finest moment was in command of X Corps during the Fort Fisher expedition, where he planned and conducted a superb campaign that led to the fall of this important fortress and the port of Wilmington.

Speed Fry – Reduced ratings to 2-0-0. Worthless political general who performed poorly.

William Sooy Smith – Left as is. Sooy Smith had a decided mixed record, and was thrashed by Bedford Forrest on more than one occasion.

Isaac Rodman – Rose to prominence 8/62. Moved to mid-62 generals pool.

David Stanley – Changed ratings to 3-3-3. Added traits Cavalryman and Slow Mover. Created a 2-star promotion model for him. Stanley was a division commander in the west, chief of cavalry for the Army of the Cumberland, and commanded IV Corps in the latter stages of the war. He generally performed well but was not known for the rapidity of his actions.

John C. Robinson – Changed ratings to 2-2-3. Capable, if less than energetic division commander. Performed particularly well in defensive fights such as Gettysburg.

Jacob Lauman – Left unchanged.

Peter Osterhaus – Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Made him promotable to 2 star rank and created promotion model. Osterhaus was perhaps the best of the German generals in the Union Army, commanding a division under Grant and a Corps in later campaigns.

J. Totten – Could find no record of active field service justifying his inclusion and deleted this general.

John Abercrombie – Changed ratings to 2-0-1. Was unimpressive in a short stint as a divisional commander. Abercrombie later did better as a rear area administrator. He commanded supply depots in Grant’s 1864 campaign.

Silas Casey – Changed ratings to 1-1-1. Added trait Training Officer. Casey commanded a division on the Peninsula, where he did poorly. Made his major contributions late 1862 and 1863, when he wrote extensive volumes on troop training and tactics that were widely employed by both sides. Really should not have a field command.

Benjamin Kelley – Left Unchanged. Kelley largely commanded railroad garrisons along the B and O railroad and did not participate in any major battles.

George Getty – Changed ratings to 3-2-2. One of the better division leaders in the later stages of the 1864-65 campaign against Richmond.

George Cadwalader – Left unchanged. Very little field command experience, mostly a rear area administrator. Perhaps should be left out of this roster.

Hiram Berry – Moved back from early 62 pool, left ratings the same

Calvin Pratt – Moved back from early 62, left ratings the same. Pratt never commanded more than a brigade before he resigned his commission in 4/63. Left him in as a what if/rear area commander.

Charles Devens – Moved back from early 62 pool, left ratings the same.

David Gregg – Moved back from early 62 pool. Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Added Cavalryman trait. Gregg was one of the first Union generals in the East to lead cavalry troops with any degree of success.

Richard Johnson – Moved back from early 62 pool. Left ratings the same.

James Veatch – Moved back from early 62 pool. Left ratings the same.

John Caldwell – Moved back from early 62 pool. Left ratings the same.

Alexander Hays – Moved back from early 62 pool. Left ratings the same.

James Barnes – Moved back from early 62 pool. Left ratings the same.

John Geary – Moved back from early 62 pool. Changed ratings to 3-2-3. Added Strong Morale characteristic. Made Geary promotable to 2 stars and added new 2 star model for him. Geary performed fairly well in divisional command in the AOP. When XII Corps was transferred West in late 1863, Geary provided excellent service as a divisional and later corps commander in the Chattanooga and Atlanta campaigns, and the March to the Sea.

1864 Division Generals

William Emory – Included from inactive files. Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Emory commanded the XIX Corps in the Red River campaign and also during Sheridan’s Valley campaign.

Joseph Mower – New Leader. Ratings are 4-3-3. Mower was the aggressive, hard-fighting commander of the famous ‘Eagle Brigade’ who distinguished himself in virtually all the major western theater actions. He rose to divisional command in 1864, and commanded a division on the March to the Sea.

User avatar
Stonewall
Posts: 267
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2007 4:33 pm
Location: Florida, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:51 pm

Hancock,

As we had mentioned earlier, I've done much the same for the Confederate leaders. I'll post my proposals in a similar thread. Perhaps we can join forces and present a combined leader mod.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 8:12 pm

Stonewall,

Sounds good to me. The finest corps commander in the Army of the Potomac combining with the finest corps commander in the Army of Northern Virginia to create a leader mod. I remember your earlier thread, and went back to it and created those leaders for the CSA with your ratings in order to balance out gameplay somewhat due to the fact the North was getting new and modified leaders.

If you have already added your leaders into the game, the biggest problem in resolving your mod and mine will be the numbers for the models and units, and making the appropriate changes for the aliases. Shouldnt be a big issue, but will require some attention to detail.

By the way, your points on Shields and Nelson are well taken. I will make the appropriate changes to the ratings as you suggested.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 8:34 pm

Stonewall,

In incorporating your CSA Leaders into my mod, I also reordered the arrival for some of the CSA generals to align better with the dates to which they arose to historical prominence. Here is how I have it set up:

61 Generals Pool

John Floyd
Bushrod Johnson
Ben McCulloch
Charles Winder
Felix Zollicoffer
Gustavas Smith

61 Division Generals

Dan Ruggles
WHC Whiting
Shanks Evans

62 Generals Pool

Robert Hoke
DR Jones
John McCown
William Taliaferro
Jones Withers
Porter Alexander
Edward Johnson
JG Walker

Early 62 Division Leaders

J. Forney
WHF Lee
J. Mouton
J. Major
Raleigh Colston
George Doles
J. Cantey
Josiah Tatnall
William Pendleton

Mid 62 Division Leaders

Maxcey Gregg
William Starke
Turner Ashby
Alexander Lawton
John Imboden
William Barksdale
George Anderson

63 Generals Pool

Robert Ransom
Carter Stevenson
Isaac Trimble

Early 63 Divisional Generals

J. Clark
O. Wilcox (is this a duplicate of Union Orlando B. Willcox that should be removed???)
Y. Humes
T. Church
Prince de Polecat
H. Bee
William Bowen (new)
Johnston Pettigrew

64 Generals

William Bate
William Walker
Cadmus Wilcox
Charles Field
Joseph Kershaw

64 Division Generals

S. French
W. Martin
J. Kelley
M. Parsons
Micah Jenkins
Lewis Armistead

Note that this was just a quick play balance fix for me. I dont have the knowledge base to really go in depth on the Confederates, so any suggestions, improvements, and information you have will be welcome.

Also, havent done it yet, but I want to add in States Rights Gist for the South. The guy's name just said it all about his commitment to the cause. One of the six CSA generals whose lives were wasted by Hood at Franklin. If you have never been there to visit the battlefield, I would recommend it. A small scale place, I had a great, almost individual tour with an interpreter there in the early 90s. I hope development has not overtaken the area.

User avatar
will b
Conscript
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:58 pm
Location: Outer Banks, NC

Fri Jun 29, 2007 8:43 pm

Looks like it will be a great mod.

I'm looking foward to the finished project. :niark:

JB Hood
Corporal
Posts: 46
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:26 pm

Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:10 pm

Winfield S. Hancock wrote:Stonewall,

In incorporating your CSA Leaders into my mod, I also reordered the arrival for some of the CSA generals to align better with the dates to which they arose to historical prominence. Here is how I have it set up:

61 Generals Pool

John Floyd
Bushrod Johnson
Ben McCulloch
Charles Winder
Felix Zollicoffer
Gustavas Smith

61 Division Generals

Dan Ruggles
WHC Whiting
Shanks Evans

62 Generals Pool

Robert Hoke
DR Jones
John McCown
William Taliaferro
Jones Withers
Porter Alexander
Edward Johnson
JG Walker

Early 62 Division Leaders

J. Forney
WHF Lee
J. Mouton
J. Major
Raleigh Colston
George Doles
J. Cantey
Josiah Tatnall
William Pendleton

Mid 62 Division Leaders

Maxcey Gregg
William Starke
Turner Ashby
Alexander Lawton
John Imboden
William Barksdale
George Anderson

63 Generals Pool

Robert Ransom
Carter Stevenson
Isaac Trimble

Early 63 Divisional Generals

J. Clark
O. Wilcox (is this a duplicate of Union Orlando B. Willcox that should be removed???)
Y. Humes
T. Church
Prince de Polecat
H. Bee
William Bowen (new)
Johnston Pettigrew

64 Generals

William Bate
William Walker
Cadmus Wilcox
Charles Field
Joseph Kershaw

64 Division Generals

S. French
W. Martin
J. Kelley
M. Parsons
Micah Jenkins
Lewis Armistead

Note that this was just a quick play balance fix for me. I dont have the knowledge base to really go in depth on the Confederates, so any suggestions, improvements, and information you have will be welcome.

Also, havent done it yet, but I want to add in States Rights Gist for the South. The guy's name just said it all about his commitment to the cause. One of the six CSA generals whose lives were wasted by Hood at Franklin. If you have never been there to visit the battlefield, I would recommend it. A small scale place, I had a great, almost individual tour with an interpreter there in the early 90s. I hope development has not overtaken the area.


well, i don´t think that barksdale, gregg or armistead (if they would have survived) would ever got promoted to division command.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:13 pm

Finally, in part III, here are my changes to the main Union Leaders.

Note also that given the increased number of leaders, I modded the number of allowable Union divisions upwards to 72 and the Confederates upwards to 36.


Changes to the Main Leaders

Franz Sigel – Changed ratings to 3-0-0. Removed Training Officer Trait, added Recruiting Officer Trait. Sigel was quite incompetent, but Lincoln had to keep him in command due to his overwhelming popularity in the German community.

Nathaniel P. Banks – Changed ratings to 2-0-0. Increased his political value to 25. Banks demonstrated complete incompetence in every command he held during the war. His strong influence in politics kept him in field commands far longer than he should have been.

Henry W. Halleck – Added the Overcautious trait. Besides being a slow mover, his caution affected his field commanders as well. At one point, Halleck order Grant to halt his advance on Forts Henry and Donelson, but luckily for the Union, the order did not reach Grant in time.

George H. Thomas – Added Slow Move trait and Gifted Commander to his 3 star rank. Thomas was an outstanding commander, but did come close to being removed from command by Grant for his failure to aggressively pursue the remnants of Hood’s army after the Battle of Nashville.

Don Carlos Buell – Reduced his ratings to 2-1-1

Jefferson C. Davis – Added the Quickly Angered trait, in honor of his murder of fellow USA General William Nelson in an argument.

William B. Franklin – Reduced his ratings to 2-1-1. Added the Slow Move trait. Franklin’s lack of aggressiveness at South Mountain gave Lee two precious extra days to concentrate his scattered forces. A crony of McClellan’s, Franklin’s desultory performance as a multi-corps commander at Fredericksburg worsened that fiasco.

William Rosecrans – Kept his ratings as is. Added the Slow Move, Good Army Administrator, and Training Officer traits. Rosecrans is a tough one to figure out. He trained and transformed the Army of the Cumberland into a top fighting force, a welcome improvement from the incompetent Buell. However, it was extremely slow and methodical in his preparations, and nearly lost the army at Chickamauga Creek.

George Sykes – Changed ratings to 2-1-3. Sykes was a rock in defense, but earned his nickname ‘Tardy George’ on the offense quite well.

Darius Couch – Added the trait Quickly Angered. A competent commander, Couch was no fan of Fighting Joe Hooker, and nearly exploded over his performance at Chancellorsville. After that battle, he resigned his command of II Corps and went on to command rear area departments in Pennsylvania, where his combative nature towards other generals was not an issue.

Abner Doubleday – Changed ratings to 3-2-2. Added the Slow Mover trait. Doubleday was a competent if somewhat slow division commander who feuded with George Meade after Gettysburg.

John A. Logan – Added the Patriot and Charismatic traits. Logan, initially believed to be a southern sympathizer, turned out to be an ardent champion of the Union cause and the most competent political general of the war. The annals of the Army of the Tennessee are full of examples of Logan’s stirring oratory rallying his men as he led from the front.

Oliver O. Howard – Added the trait Poor Spy Network to his 2 star rank. Completely surprised by Stonewall Jackson at Chancellorsville, his XI Corps was routed.

Daniel Sickles – Added the trait Quickly Angered. The fiery politician from New York nearly destroyed the III Corps at Gettysburg because he thought he knew better than Meade what ground to occupy.

Winfield Scott Hancock – Added the traits Charismatic and Strong Morale to all three of his ranks. Hancock was said to have possessed such an air of command around him that at Gettysburg, he could have been wearing civilian clothes and men still would have looked to him for direction. The high morale he instilled in the Second Corps, first as division commander and then as corps commander, made it the premier fighting force in the Army of the Potomac.

John Gibbon – Added the Master Driller and Militiaman traits. The man who gave the Iron Brigade its identity was also a fine division commander in II Corps.

jimwinsor
General of the Army
Posts: 631
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 7:07 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 9:20 pm

I think the Overcautious trait has been officially removed from the game; the coding may still be there, but I think the intent is leaders no longer be given it (low initiative is deemed to encompass overcautiousness now).
[CENTER][SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][/CENTER]

[CENTER][SIZE="1"](Click HERE for AAR)[/size][/CENTER]

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:08 pm

Finally, some changes to leaders who arrive with the Army of Northeastern Virginia.

Irvin McDowell – Added Dispirited Leader trait. His poor job of rallying the broken Union forces after Bull Run was a primary factor in the McClellan being summoned east. During the Second Bull Run campaign, he wore an odd-looking straw hat which his men thought was some kind of signal to the enemy, leading them to believe he was purposely leading them to their doom.

Theodore Runyon – Changed to 2-0-0. Left the army after a dismal performance at First Bull Run.

Daniel Tyler – Changed to 2-1-1. Started out as an aide to the incompetent Patterson. Did not distinguish himself at Bull Run. Stayed in the Army until 1864 in a series of minor commands, was sick for extended periods of time. Accomplished little.

User avatar
caranorn
Posts: 1365
Joined: Thu Aug 10, 2006 10:20 pm
Location: Luxembourg

Fri Jun 29, 2007 10:11 pm

I disagree about Sigel, he was a well trained officer, much of his criticism after Wilson's Creek doesn't seem to be substantiated (his troops seem to have routed when they came under fire from a "concealed" battery (only a single officer in his entire command complained against him with the rest of the Army, that officer unfortunately was not actively engaged in that battle), not all that clear whether the split command was his idea or Lyon's...) so as a 1* at least he should remain average, maybe give him the "militia" rating as he led a rather rough bunch of troops. As 2* it might be justified to drop his ratings, but even then 3-0-0 seems too low, maybe just drop one of his ratings based on his conduct out East (he was not bad at Pea Ridge either though he seems to have been less active then he proclaimed himself).

Note, Sigel was not a purely political nomination, he had both training and experience in Europe.
Marc aka Caran...

User avatar
McNaughton
Posts: 2766
Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2007 8:47 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:32 pm

I have a request. I have always found Hooker to be somewhat under-rated as Divisional/Corps commander when compared to other contemporary Union leaders (Meade for example). While Hooker truely goofed during Chancellorsville, he was seen (as corps and division commander) as the final Union counterpart to Lee's aggressiveness. Meade, for example, is a substantially better Divisional and Corps commander than Hooker was. While as a Divisional and Corps Commander, prior to and after his assignment as Army commander, Hooker performed better than Meade.

Currently, the differences are between Divisional/Corps variations...

Meade
5-4-4
Entrencher
Gifted Commander


Hooker
4-4-2
Good Army Administrator

Based purely on stats, Meade is the more aggressive and capable Division/Corps commander. While good, and aggressive, I don't think he gained the same reputation, or was as 'aggressive' as Hooker. Also, Meade has two Abilities to Hooker's one. The only thing going for Hooker is that he arrives earlier.

Hooker is a conundrum. A spectacular planner, was solely rated in his performance during the Chancellorsville engagement as an army commander. He lost his nerve, possibly due to the fact he was sober for such a prolonged period of time (swore off drinking when took command of the army).

From what I gathered of Meade, he was chosen because he was a 'safe' choice. More aggressive than McClellan, more competent than Burnside, and more balanced than Hooker. In comparision, Meade is a 'superior' general, based on statistics, while Hooker is very good, but pales in comparison.

For Hooker's Army persona, possibly adding 'Fast Mover' as a trait (due to his ability to out-manoever Lee), or some representation of his actual good command of the army prior to, and post battle (he effectively manoevered the Army at the initial stages of the Gettysburg campaign, credit given to Meade but was actually Hooker).

Hooker - Divisional/Corps
5**-4-2
Good Army Administrator

Hooker - Army
4**-4*-0*
Good Army Administrator
Fast Mover***
Overcautious

*I kept offensive rating the same, and lowered defensive, since during Chancellorsville he was defending. During subsequent offensive battles (Lookout Mountain, for example) he was just as an effective attacker as he was prior to his debacle as commander of the Army of the Potomac.

**I raised his strategic ability due to his fairly good strategic command of his divisional forces (such as his relationship with Meade), yet lowered it due to friction he encountered as army commander with his Corps commanders.

***I included Fast Mover as he was able to out-manoever Lee, which means his army got to where it needed to be faster.

--SUMMARY--

As an army commander, Hooker should be a risk. If caught in a defensive battle, his command should suffer (new zero, possibly one value), but, if he manages to retain his aggressiveness and attacks his forces should be successful (as in retaining his 4 for attack).

User avatar
McNaughton
Posts: 2766
Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2007 8:47 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:34 pm

caranorn wrote:I disagree about Sigel, he was a well trained officer, much of his criticism after Wilson's Creek doesn't seem to be substantiated (his troops seem to have routed when they came under fire from a "concealed" battery (only a single officer in his entire command complained against him with the rest of the Army, that officer unfortunately was not actively engaged in that battle), not all that clear whether the split command was his idea or Lyon's...) so as a 1* at least he should remain average, maybe give him the "militia" rating as he led a rather rough bunch of troops. As 2* it might be justified to drop his ratings, but even then 3-0-0 seems too low, maybe just drop one of his ratings based on his conduct out East (he was not bad at Pea Ridge either though he seems to have been less active then he proclaimed himself).

Note, Sigel was not a purely political nomination, he had both training and experience in Europe.


Maybe Siegel should have a Brigadier Persona, and a Major/Lieutenant General Persona. While average as a Brigadier, he should be rated fairly low as a Major General (and higher command).

User avatar
McNaughton
Posts: 2766
Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2007 8:47 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:39 pm

A request, would it be possible for all generals to have their first name written in whole instead of initials? This will make the list of commanders a bit more uniform, since most retain their first name written in whole (a lot have an initial for their middle name as well).

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 12:13 am

Caranorn -- Not sure about Sigel yet. I am thinking about your case for him.

McNaughton -- I like what you did with Hooker. Like Rosecrans, he is a tough one to properly define in a few numbers. I am going to implement your suggestions as to Hooker at both ranks. I am going to go with 4-4-1 at army command level for him -- I think he would have some ability in defense. A good chief of staff (which Hooker had in Butterfield, will help offset some of the CP loss for overcautious as well)

I plan on posting a zip file with all the above changes in a few minutes for whomever is interested in giving it a try.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 12:24 am

OK, attached are the game files for version 1.05d which encompass all of the changes above. I have tested them with 1.05d and the game successfully loads and plays correctly.

To use the files, do the following:

1. Backup your current game files in the aliases, events, models, and units folder.

2. Copy and paste the USA Leaders, CSA Leaders, April 1861 Campaign, and Various Events files into the ACW/Events Folder. Answer yes to overwrite files (once you have made your backup)

3. Copy and paste the mdl_alias and uni_alias files into the ACW/Aliases folder.

4. Got to the ACW/GameData folder and delete your current Models and Units folders (after backing up elsewhere first of course). Then copy the Models and Units folders from the Mod into the ACW/GameData folder

5. Launch AACW and enjoy the mod!!!

Any and all feedback is welcome.
Attachments
Working Modded Files for 1.05d.zip
(1.6 MiB) Downloaded 254 times

User avatar
will b
Conscript
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:58 pm
Location: Outer Banks, NC

Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:05 am

Hancock,

L.Blenker is showing up twice with the '61 Division Commanders.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:10 am

Yes, I just noticed that myself. Let me take a look and see if I can figure out what the problem is.
"Wars are not all evil; they are part of the grand machinery by which this world is governed, thunderstorms which purify the political atmosphere, test the manhood of a people, and prove whether they are worthy to take rank with others engaged in the same task by different methods" -- William T. Sherman addressing the Grand Army of the Republic in 1883

Second in War, Second in Peace, First in the Hearts of His Countrymen -- General Winfield Scott Hancock, USA

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:16 am

I must admit I have no idea why Blenker shows up twice. I just checked the USA Leader event files and he is only in there one time, so the explanation as to why the worthless buffoon cloned himself is beyond me.

If anyone else gets this result as well and has some idea as to what my be causing it, let me know. Perhaps it is a bug, as the event files look right to me.
"Wars are not all evil; they are part of the grand machinery by which this world is governed, thunderstorms which purify the political atmosphere, test the manhood of a people, and prove whether they are worthy to take rank with others engaged in the same task by different methods" -- William T. Sherman addressing the Grand Army of the Republic in 1883



Second in War, Second in Peace, First in the Hearts of His Countrymen -- General Winfield Scott Hancock, USA

User avatar
Stonewall
Posts: 267
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2007 4:33 pm
Location: Florida, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:31 am

Check your alias file for the cloning leader. I'll bet Blenker is there twice in place of someone who is not showing up at all. I had this problem a while back and the solution was in the alias files.

Or, you've accidentally used blenker's alias in two leader's .mdl files.

User avatar
will b
Conscript
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat Apr 21, 2007 7:58 pm
Location: Outer Banks, NC

Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:51 am

Take D.Miles out of the 61 Division Commanders in the USA Leaders File.

After I did that there's only 1 Blenker and Miles will appear in Early May commanding the 5th Division.

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 2:28 am

Yes, that fixed the problem.
"Wars are not all evil; they are part of the grand machinery by which this world is governed, thunderstorms which purify the political atmosphere, test the manhood of a people, and prove whether they are worthy to take rank with others engaged in the same task by different methods" -- William T. Sherman addressing the Grand Army of the Republic in 1883



Second in War, Second in Peace, First in the Hearts of His Countrymen -- General Winfield Scott Hancock, USA

tagwyn
AGEod Guard of Honor
Posts: 1220
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 4:09 pm

Sat Jun 30, 2007 4:12 am

Stonewall: Don't let this mod "dis" Barksdale!! His Mississipi troops came closest to breaking thru at Gettysburg and prompted Union officers to call for concentrated fire on him! His men loved him and would follow him into Hell (not necessary!)

User avatar
Winfield S. Hancock
Captain
Posts: 176
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 10:14 pm
Location: Lovettsville, VA, USA

Sat Jun 30, 2007 2:01 pm

New mod version uploaded correcting two errors:

Fixed problem involving creation of two Louis Blenkers

Removed duplicate CSA General Charles Field
Attachments
Working Modded Files for 1.05d.zip
(1.6 MiB) Downloaded 278 times
"Wars are not all evil; they are part of the grand machinery by which this world is governed, thunderstorms which purify the political atmosphere, test the manhood of a people, and prove whether they are worthy to take rank with others engaged in the same task by different methods" -- William T. Sherman addressing the Grand Army of the Republic in 1883



Second in War, Second in Peace, First in the Hearts of His Countrymen -- General Winfield Scott Hancock, USA

PDH
Conscript
Posts: 13
Joined: Sat May 26, 2007 3:16 pm

Sat Jun 30, 2007 3:13 pm

Not a critique, but an observation.

Perhaps the hardest thing to do properly is model the statistics of leaders - especially in a (still) emotional context like the US Civil War. I personally have seen Buell rated highly in some games (and his contemporaries rated him so), and others rate him more in line with aspects of his performance and so he ends up very low.

Longstreet and Jackson are a case in point. Who was the better corp commander, who was better overall? Emotion plays a part, as does the ability to rationalize aspects of their performances. Should Jackson be "dinged" for his Seven Days seemingly sleeping on the job? Should Longstreet be lowered for his independant campaigns without mitigating factors being viewed? Much of the end results with these two are based on the romanticism post-war rather than a complete picture.

Not, of course, that the game designers or modders would ever fall into that trap. :)

Return to “AGEod's American Civil War”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 29 guests