Stones River: Pre-dawn 31st December 1862
Deployment: In this scenario we are fighting with all units south of the Wilkinson turnpike from their historical 6am starting positions. The confederates have massed for a predawn attack on the union right flank. As such the first 2 turns are fought in darkness with only 6 inches of visibility. Union troops must roll on a surprise attack table when they are first charged in melee, which may result in reduced or no defensive fire. The flanking attack is made up of McCown's division in the frontline, with Cleburne's division in support, and Cheatham's enlarged division as the pivot. The union Corp consists of Johnson's division on the far south west flank, Davis holding the middle treeline, and Sheridan extending the line north up to the turnpike. They also have Zahm's cavalry brigade in reserve to the north west.
McCown leads the two brigades on the left, pushing the union clean out of the forest. Cleburne engages in a bloody fight repulsing the union brigade on the right, but in the centre the confederates are sent tumbling back to their start line by the hastily roused federal troops.*
Union Turn 1: Jonhson's division reform spectacularly, facing off against McCown's front whilst a reserve brigade passes its manoeuvre check to rapidly advance onto the flank of the rebel attack!**
Confederate Turn 2: The awakened union troops fiercely pour every rifle round and cannister shot they can out into the darkness, stalling the rebels but leaving almost every brigade in the Corp low on ammunition!
Covered in the blood and brains of his staff officer, McCown leads his men forward in another charge. This time routing a union brigade as they hear the spine chilling rebel yell fall on them from the rear.
Cleburne's men slam forward to close once more, but are driven off by the intense union fusillade. The general himself luckily escaping with bullet holes through his hat and his coat. Meanwhile Cheatham's division dress their lines and slowly advance to the edge of the woods, ready to press the attack at sunrise.
Turn 3: On the left McCown struggles to impose order on his battered men as both brigades fail their manoeuvre checks, leaving them sitting ducks under the union guns. Cleburne rallies his men to attack an isolated union brigade in the southern part of the woods, but they stubbornly cling on. Cheatham masses to attack the northern end and cross the open ground, gallantly weathering cannister fire and forcing the federals to slowly give ground and their guns to abandon the frontline.
Confederate Turn 4: After two hours of hard fighting, fired upon to the front and rear, whittled down to half strength, Johnson's brigade at the end of the line finally break when Cleburne launches yet another assault.
McCown's men remain paralyzed, unable to break out and suffer appalling losses. The divisional guns race round to the west in an attempt to relieve them. Cheatham's division shatter Davis's line in the northern part of the woods, leaving Sheridan at risk of being cut off, whilst a lone brigade works round the Corp's northern flank beyond the turnpike.***
Union Turn 4: Wilder's cavalry dash east along the turnpike to intercept the rebel advance.
Meanwhile Johnson pulls back his brigade on the western flank to escape the confederate battery's outflanking attempt. In the north Sheridan's guns unlimber within cannister range ready to meet the rebel onslaught.
As Johnson retires the brigade he remains conspicuously mounted, and he is felled by a sniper!
Confederate Turn 5: With an almighty rebel yell and their general in the van, Cheatham's division hurl themselves forwards onto the northern end of the union Corp. Neither bullet nor cannister nor yankee bayonets can stop them. Sheridan's division is smashed and the survivors sent tumbling back westwards, opening up a huge hole in the federal line.
On the southern edge of the battle a brigade attempts to relieve the salient alongside General McCown's breakout attempt. But the second line in support is hesitant and the charge bloodily repulsed. Finally the battery's unlimber and deploy on the union flank.
Union Turn 5: A spent brigade wipes out what's left of the rebel salient, but overextend themselves by charging onwards into the main confederate line and are broken in turn.
Johnson's men turn to flank and charge the rebel guns in column! Presented with such a rare exposed target the confederate battery's don't fail to disappoint, and whole regiments are scythed down before the guns limber up and retire in good order ahead of the shattered union brigade.****
On the north flank Wilder's cavalry also throw caution to the wind and charge mounted into the thin grey line! Less dramatically they are soon deterred by the trickle of casualties and horses shot out from under them, swerving away to reform at their starting position.
Some brigades of Sheridan's division cannot be rallied after their beating last turn and quit the field. By 0800 With Johnson dead, Davis isolated, Wilder's counterattack a failure, and nothing to stop Cheatham's division, the rebels have decisively punctured a hole in the union line. Confederates win!
* It's been a while since we've played fire and fury, so made a mistake here in how defending brigades are allocated and in bending back the line of incidental stands to allow the position to be carried.
** We have used 'Stones River' in the 'Great western battles scenario book' as the basis for our scenario. In the aftermath players agreed releasing Baldwin's brigade at 0600 and allowing it to move onto the flank was an unfair advantage for the union.
*** In hindsight as both the union and confederates historically had additional forces deployed north of the turnpike we should have made this the boundary of the battlefield.
**** In all our games of fire and fury we've never seen 50+ fire points in one cannonade! needless to say it was easily withering fire and mediocre rolls in the subsequent melee resulted in merely retiring the guns.
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