ACW Battle of Port Republic

It has been awhile since I last hosted a game but that will change on Saturday.  After having visited the battle site of 1862 Battle of Port Republic, I have wanted to recreate it on the gaming table.  My brief tour of the battlefield was recapped in an earlier posting (see: Battle Tour: Port Republic).

As a teaser to Saturday's game, below are a few photos of the game table with the terrain deployed but not the troops.  We'll be using Regimental Fire and Fury to adjudicate the action with Scott commanding the Federals while Kevin commands the rebels.

When I set about researching the map of the battlefield and translating those distances to the table, I was a bit shocked to discover that my 12' x 6' table can only represent a 2 mile by 1 mile rectangle.  Fortunately, most of the relevant parts of the battlefield will be present.

Battlefield looking towards the S.F. Shenandoah

The Federal defensive line was anchored on the right by the Shenandoah and on the left by the Coaling.  With neither flank easily turned, some observed that this field of battle offered the Federals their best defensive position of the entire war. 

Wheat fields looking N-NW 

For the wheat fields, I had to make a trip to the local big-box hardware store to pick up additional door mats.  I had one mat for such purpose but the large areas of the battlefield in ready-to-harvest wheat necessitated three additional mats.  The wheat fields on the table consume over 12 square feet of area. 

Near ground level looking towards Lewiston

The wooded portion of the battlefield with The Coaling in the distance

We will see if Jackson can root the Federals out of their fine defensive positions before Fremont shows up to put an end to their efforts.