Solo Piquet Tutorial Part 6: The Battle of Cross Keys

The battle continues.  11:00 a.m. turn. Start of the new turn.
Confederates have 22 morale chips. Union have 4 morale chips.

A new turn means the deck is re-shuffled, but before I re-shuffle, I add another Dress Lines card into the  Sequence Deck for each unit that the army currently has routing or destroyed.  "Rules as Written" say you remove a card and replace it with a Dress Lines card.  That's too much trouble, so I just add the Dress Lines cards.  The Union have 2 Dress Lines cards added to their deck.  Since the Union has units destroyed and routing, the Major Morale Check card is also shuffled into their deck.  The rules also suggest discarding two Sequence Deck cards because Fremont is Abysmal.  I ignore this also.  Fun.

1st Initiative of the 11:00 a.m. turn.
Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 17 / Confederates 15; Union wins 2 IP.

• Flipped Dress Lines card (1 IP).
• Flipped Move in Difficult Terrain card (0 IP).

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 16 / Confederates 4; Union wins 12 IP.

Bohlen's brigade arrives in march column.

Garibaldi Guard and Bucktails advance.

• Routers routed off the table (11 IP).
• Stahel's brigade made a reserve move (10 IP).  Since they are all in command the entire brigade moved for the cost of 1 unit.  Out of command units have to be paid for separately.
• Bohlen's brigade entered the table on a reserve move (9 IP). 
• Flipped Command Indecision card (0 IP). All current impetus is lost. 

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 12 / Confederates 13; Confederates win 1 IP.

• Flipped Melee Resolution card (0 IP).  No units in contact.

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 7 / Confederates 7; Tied initiative!, turn ends.  Reshuffle Sequence decks, which sucks for the Union since they already endured one of their Command Indecision cards and now the frigging thing goes back into the deck.


1st Initiative of the 11:30 a.m. turn.
Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 2 / Confederates 5; Confederates wins 3 IP.

Elzey's brigade advances off of the dusty road into battle,
flags unfurled and flying.

• Flipped Infantry Move in Open card (2 IP).
• Elzey's brigade moved onto the table as reinforcements. (1 IP). 
• 15th Alabama moved forward (0 IP).

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 19 / Confederates 9; Union wins 10 IP.

• Bought back Opportunity Impetus Chip (9 IP).
• Flipped Command Indecision card (0 IP).  Impetus is wiped out.

Initiative Roll (d20)

Elzey cheers on his Virginians!

Union 3 / Confederates 3; Tied initiative!, turn ends.  Reshuffle Sequence decks.

1st Initiative of the 12:00 p.m. turn.
Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 10 / Confederates 20; Confederates win 10 IP.

General situation at noon.

15th Alabama fires at the limbered Union battery.

• Flipped Artillery Reload card (9 IP).
• Flipped Artillery Move card (8 IP).
• Confederate Virginia battery moves onto the table as a reinforcement (7 IP).
• Flipped Dress Lines card (6 IP).
• Flipped Maneuver card (5 IP).
• Infantry regiment changes facing to create a field of fire for the artillery battery (4 IP).
• Flipped Elite Reload card (3 IP).
• 15th AL fired at limbered Union artillery battery (2 IP).  d12 (Medium range DOWN1, Limbered target UP1) =  d12 vs. d6 defensive die.  "1" results vs. a "6".  No effect. 
• Reloaded 15th AL (1 IP).
• Flipped Move in Difficult Terrain (0 IP).

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 10 / Confederates 16; Confederates win 6 IP.

• 3 of Trimble's regiments moved out of the woods on the Difficult Terrain Move card (3 IP).  They were out of command because they were in the woods, so they have to be paid for separately.
• Elzey's brigade made a reserve move on the Difficult Terrain Move card (2 IP). 
• Elzey's out of command regiment moves in the woods (1 IP).
• Flipped Melee Resolution card (0 IP).  No units in contact.

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 1/ Confederates 9; Confederates win 4 IP (Phase limit).

• Flipped Deployment card (3 IP).
• Reformed 3 Skirmishing regiments from Trimble's brigade into line formation. (0 IP).  They were out of command.

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 17 / Confederates 2; Union win 15 IP.

Firefight between the Virginians and Bucktails

• Flipped Infantry Move in Open card (14 IP).
• Maneuver-moved Stahel's brigade closer to the creek (12 IP).  Maneuver-move with infantry allows you to combine a 45 degree facing change and a half move, but you have to pay an extra IP.
• Bohlen's brigade moved to the right flank (11 IP).
• Flipped Musket Reload card (10 IP).
• 27th PA Bucktails fired at 13th VA (9 IP).  27 PA is Ready (d12/d8/d8).
• 13th VA declares Opportunity Fire.  27 PA has a d12 Fire die (First Fire UP1/Firer in Attack Column DOWN1) = d12 vs. d6 defensive die.  "12" vs. "3".  3 stands lost from 13 VA.  General Elzey marked for risk.  3 morale chips lost (down to 19).  13 VA is trained militia with muskets.  They are found to be Battle Weary (d8/d4/d4).  They must not be used to the grueling pace of war campaigning!  13 VA has shorter range too because they are armed with muskets but facing minie rifles.  d8 Fire die (First Fire UP1/Attack Column Target UP1/Medium Range DOWN1) = d10 vs. d6 defensive die.  "3" vs. "3".  No effect.  Both regiments are unloaded.  
• Union challenged the morale of 13 VA.  d4 morale (Both flanks protected UP1/ 3 stands lost DOWN3/ Initial Strength was Full UP1/ Enemy is Near not Close UP1) = d4 vs. a d10 because 3 stands were lost on the fire.  "2" vs. a "3".  13 VA is disordered.  If they had been double or tripled, they would have routed.  Confederates lost 1 morale chip for the Disorder (down to 18 chips). 

  

  Here you can see the results of the firefight.
  Both Virginia regiments have been marked with
  stand loss markers.  13 VA is marked disordered and
  Elzey is marked for officer risk.
• Garibaldi Guard regiment fired at 25 VA (8 IP).  They are Ready (d10/d8/d6).  d10 Fire die (First Fire UP1 / Medium Range DOWN1 / Firer in Attack Column DOWN1 / Target has Skirmish Superiority DOWN 1) =  d6 vs. d6 defensive die.  "5" vs. "2".  3 hits = 1 stand loss (3 hits per stand).  Confederates lose 1 morale chip.  Union challenges the morale of 25 VA.  25 VA is found to be Battle Weary (d8/d4/d4).  d4 Morale die (-1 stand lost DOWN1 / Full Initial Strength UP1 / Enemy is Distant (because of the intervening creek) UP2)  = d8 vs. a d6 challenge die (1 stand lost).  "4" vs "4".  Failed, but Confederates burn a morale chip to re-roll their morale die.  The new result is a "7" and the 25 VA passed.  Union lost a morale chip for an unsuccessful challenge, but the Confederates also lost a morale chip for the re-roll.  Current morale chips are: Union 3, Confederates 16.
• Reloaded Bucktails and Garibaldi Guard (6 IP).
• Fired 41 NY at 15th AL (5 IP).  Back to the left flank, 41 NY is Ready (d10/d8/d6).  d10 Fire die (First Fire UP1 / Target Skirmish Superiority DOWN1 / Medium Range DOWN1 / Firer in Attack Column DOWN1 / Firer Uphill UP1 / Extended Line Target DOWN 1) = d6 vs d6 defensive die.  "1" vs. "5".  No effect.
• Reloaded 41 NY (4 IP).
• Bucktails fired again at 13 VA (3 IP).  No First Fire this time, so the fire is d10 vs. d6.  "2" vs. "3".  No effect.
• Flipped Melee Resolution card (2 IP).
• Flipped Elites Reload card (1 IP).
• Reloaded Bucktails regiment (0 IP).  They are elite.

On the western side of the battlefield, things were developing well for Fremont.  Ewell had sent Elzey's brigade of Virginians to that area to protect Trimble's left flank.  Unfortunately, Elzey's troops were apparently Battle Weary militia armed with smoothbore muskets and they were being battered by the more accurate minie rifle fire of the Union regiments opposing them.

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 7 / Confederates 9; Confederates win 2 IP.

• Unlimbered the Virginia artillery battery on the Deployment card (1 IP).  This card was still face up from several Initiatives ago.
• Flipped Melee Resolution card (0 IP).  No units in contact.

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 5 / Confederates 4; Union wins 1 IP.

• Flipped deployment card (0 IP).

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 11 / Confederates 14; Confederates win 1 IP (Phase limit).

• Flipped Heroic Moment card (0 IP).

Initiative Roll (d20)
Union 19 / Confederates 11; Union wins 8 IP.

Union brigades deploy.

• Union unlimbered the West Virginia artillery battery on the previous Deployment card (7 IP).  Thank gawd!  That battery was very vulnerable .
• Deployed Stahel's brigade into Extended Line formation.  Garibaldi's Guard shook out into skirmish formation (6 IP).  
• Deployed Bohlen's brigade into Attack Columns (5 IP).
• Flipped Artillery Move card (4 IP).
• Flipped Move in Difficult Terrain card (3 IP).
• Bohlen's brigade made a reserve move toward the right flank (2 IP).
• Flipped Major Morale Check card (1 IP).  According to the optional Major Morale Check rules, this would be a Leadership test versus a challenge die based on the number of Union units currently routing or destroyed.  This makes the challenge die a d6 (2 units).  Fremont starts as a d20 but he is DOWN2 because he is Abysmal to a d12 (1) and then a d10 (2).  People often forget you start with a d20 for these tests.  So the Major Morale Check will be a Union d10 vs. a d6.  If the d6 is higher, the difference will be the number of free morale challenges the Confederates can attempt on the Union units of their choice.  The result is a "4" vs. "4", so there is no negative result.
• Flipped Dress Lines card (0 IP).

  

  Bohlen's brigade advances in attack column.  They mean
  business!

Final morale chip count is Confederates 16, Union 3.  The play time for the entire game was around an hour and a half.  Typing up the turns takes about four times as long.  I hope people are enjoying the reports.  The quick turn ends during this report just illustrate how unsure players are about how much time they have to accomplish their objectives.  Things are looking better for the Union, but the low morale chip total is a concern.

The battle continues here.