Scourge of War Boards

Well now you guys have got my gears churning. I remember listening to a presentation on Barksdale's charge at a Civil War round table, and he mentioned quite a bit of meleeing. I'll have to see if I can track down that info and I'll report back.

Another place with some hand to hand fighting - The Bloody Lane.

Well now you guys have got my gears churning. I remember listening to a presentation on Barksdale's charge at a Civil War round table, and he mentioned quite a bit of melee.

This is not really a good example, but imagine you are at a football game and a fight breaks out with five-hundred-people involved on each side.

Can you imagine how long it would take to separate those individuals, this would not be over in a matter of minutes, this would stop all forces around this fighting, how can men advance when this is going on.

This is why I say that most of this is made-up-history designed to make the fighting appear more personal and more brutal.

Besides, if it was this much fighting going on, how did the confederate forces march away from Gettysburg with several thousand union prisoners?

These guys were under a whole different type of Honor-System and either tried to flee from advancing units or they surrendered.

davinci

Little Powell wrote:

Another place with some hand to hand fighting - The Bloody Lane.

Not according to the commander of the Irish Brigade. OR chap. 31, pp293. Indeed there was a bayonet charge, but it halted before contact was made and a fire fight ensued.

Scanning through the OR for the Antietam campaign for melees, I found the following:

9/14 South Mtn.
23rd NC pp 1040
12th OH pp 464

9/17 Antietam
5th OH pp 507
51st PA pp 447 Not clear if contact was ever made
11th OH pp472

Again, there were many bayonet charges, but only the above were recorded as having any hand to hand fighting.

Avoiding melee and knowing when to engage in melee are two of the most fun aspects of MP play, regardless of the historical significance. I guess NSD could make melee more deadly and resolve quicker or make the lower morale/experienced regiment retreat before melee, but I kind of like the way it is now from a gaming point of view.

KG_soldier wrote:

but I kind of like the way it is now from a gaming point of view.

You would be right at home on the fields of Cannae.

There aren't that many melee's in our MP games. Usually late when one side is beat down, or sometimes when Seal is frisky.

^^^ I would say that depends! I've had some scenarios where the first engagement turned into a melee fight!!!

Little Powell wrote:

Another place with some hand to hand fighting - The Bloody Lane.

Not according to the commander of the Irish Brigade. OR chap. 31, pp293. Indeed there was a bayonet charge, but it halted before contact was made and a fire fight ensued.

Scanning through the OR for the Antietam campaign for melees, I found the following:

9/14 South Mtn.
23rd NC pp 1040
12th OH pp 464

9/17 Antietam
5th OH pp 507
51st PA pp 447 Not clear if contact was ever made
11th OH pp472

Again, there were many bayonet charges, but only the above were recorded as having any hand to hand fighting.

Alright but I've never been wrong.. Except for one time I thought I was wrong, but it turns out I wasn't wrong, so I was actually wrong about being wrong.

But in all seriousness, we can't possibly say that hand to hand never happened, but I realize that it was rare.

Wheatfield at Gettysburg?? Just about every kind of fighting imaginable happened there.

^^^ I would say that depends! I've had some scenarios where the first engagement turned into a melee fight!!!

That's why I said "usually." And even added the disclaimer "or sometimes when Seal gets frisky."

Marching Through Georgia and Davinci kind of sound like old women to me ...