070 - Kennesaw Mountain (Historical)
Why Should You Play This Scenario?
This is a hard scenario to win. The Federals have a decent advantage in total numbers and forty long turns to make your life hell. You have no reserves and a line stretched for miles.
I mean, you play these historical scenarios to know how it felt to be Johnston, right? Here you go.
Is it as "bad" as all that? I don't think so. But you need a plan going into this which will stop the Yanks, delay them, and hurt them. Let's look at the numbers before we go on.
These numbers EXCLUDE those Federal units that are FIXED during the battle. This includes all of the infantry of Wood's and Johnson's (King's) divisions, and two of Harrow's brigades from his division.
With more men, movable units, and good quality, the Federal infantry is very strong in this scenario.
The Federals also have a large number of small units under 200 men. Chances are they won't be afraid to send them out in all directions to look for your flanks and to force you to spread out to stop them.
Infantry Summary
As much as I want to call this a Draw, I can't. The Federals have a respectable average quality, 18,000 more men, and some repeating rifles in their ranks. They are not the Yanks of 1862.
Advantage
With seven regiments armed with upgraded weapons (actually ALL of them if you include Carbines in that category), the Federal cavalry is an overpowering force if fighting dismounted. Six of their units are over 400 men in size while the Rebels have not a single unit over 400 men.
Cavalry Summary
The Yankees have the advantage here with their superior weaponry and larger units. Thankfully, there are not more of them!
Advantage
The Confederate Army actually has more guns and sections than do the Federals! Thank goodness for that. Guard your guns well as you will need them to stop the Federal attack and support your infantrymen.
Artillery Summary
Any advantage we can get is a positive thing. With more batteries and guns, we have a welcomed advantage at Kennesaw.
Advantage
With more wagons and supplies, this is a Rebel advantage. If you can manage to somehow capture a Union wagon or two with a rogue cavalry unit, you might cripple their offensive.
Advantage
Neither side has very good leadership here at Kennesaw Mountain so this is a draw.
No Advantage
Setup
With the ENTIRE Confederate army occupying one extremely long line, you begin this battle without any reserves. There are also very few roads for either side to use to maneuver around the battlefield. This means it is more likely to be straight forward attack by the Yanks. Your flanks are only protected by cavalry which is a major disadvantage.
The Federals are also setup in a long single line from flank to flank. They have some depth in the center but there are two large divisions FIXED in place there which weakens them significantly in the area opposite Bate and Walker. The right flank has just Cox's XXIII Corps division and nothing else. Their left flank is stronger with a good division of cavalry (FIXED until noon at the earliest) in place to sweep around the Rebel right.
Setup Summary
Both sides have very annoying setups at the start of this. Maneuvering is not quick nor easy for either side. The lack of Confederate reserves is only somewhat negated by the lack of Federal supplies on their flanks. Everything points to this being a straightforward Federal attack - but that's probably the last thing they want to do.
No Advantage
This is a winnable scenario for the Confederates. It just takes some serious skill, some luck, and some patience.
You can't just go into this battle assuming the Federals will follow Sherman's script and hurl themselves against your strongest defenses. While this could happen, it seems unlikely. They are going to want to mass their men and aim at some part of your lines to try and power over them. They will likely also seek to stretch your line to the breaking point by trying to get around both your flanks.
You will need to find a way to counter all of these moves. Remember that they are low on ammunition on their flanks and can't fight forever without being replenished. They also will have a very hard time reinforcing either flank which will make things rougher for them there.
Three Tips
1) Wheeler's Cavalry is Very Important.
The Confederates have cavalry division guarding each flank of the Confederate Army. One division faces a numerically weak and poorly rated division of Schofield's Army. The other is up against a large Union cavalry division which is, thankfully, fixed until noon. The Union cavalry is the greater threat and should be massed against with your own cavalry. This means abandoning your left flank and leaving just enough men to hold back an attack by Schofield until supporting infantry can shift in that direction. Whatever happens, you can't let the enemy cavalry get loose behind your lines.
2) Spread Out!
As mentioned above, you will inevitably need to stretch your line out. Try an every other hex approach to defense or, possibly, every two hex approach to defense if necessary. This will mean a very thin line in some places. But the Yanks are unlikely to attack everywhere at once. If you see a massed attack coming for a certain area then arrange your men as best you can. Otherwise, you have to spread your line out.
3) Modifiers.
The line of embankments wrapping around the map is your greatest asset here. They offer a 50% modifier in both fire combat and melee combat. That means the 400 men you have in a hex defend with the strength of 600! It also means the 400 men firing at them are only firing with the strength of 200. Take advantage of the math. If you factor in additional modifiers like forests, elevations, and breastworks, the percentages grow more favorable. You need to utilize all of these to inflict all the pain you can upon the Federals.
Final Thoughts
I really think this is a challenging scenario for both sides. For the Federals, it will be a nightmare watching your men slam against Confederate defenses without making much headway because of the modifiers. They must mentally stay in the game and not waste men too liberally. For the Rebs, we just need some lucky rolls to go our way and withstand the initial attacks. If we can do that, we have a chance at victory here.