BASIC SET UP

Both sides start on relatively equal terms regarding the units to be found on the board. The British commander possesses nineteen combat factors (fourteen 1-7s, British Regular units, three 1-8s, Tory Militia, and two 1-13s, Tory Militia dragoons). The American is at a slight disadvantage with fifteen combat factors (five 1-8s, Continental Army units, more 1-8s designated as Rebel Militia, and one 1-13, a Rebel Militia dragoon counter). Neither opponent, however, finds his forces as readily available as he would prefer.

The British troops are dispersed as garrisons throughout Georgia and South Carolina. There is 1/TM atSavannah, 1/BR atAugusta, I/BR and 1/TMd in the fort at Ninety-Six, 2/BR at Charleston, 1/TM in Georgetown, 6/13R, 1/TM and 1/TMd at Winnsboro, 1/BR at Wilmington, and 3/BR guarding a supply unit and a magazine at Camden.

The American forces are not as widely scattered, and with their high mobility, they can be quickly consolidated. The Patriot commander also has a number of options open to him in the initial placement of his units. He can utilize this opportunity with a little bit of imagination and calculated daring. There are 3/RM at Charlotte, Va., 1/RM at Ramsay's Mills North Carolina, and the rest of the troops are given flexible positions on the frontiers of South Carolina. The main American army, 4/CA and a supply unit, is located within one hex of Cheraw. The exact hex is up to the discretion of the American player. There are also 1/CA and I/RM within two hexes of Thickety Fort, 1/RM within two hexes of Fort Prince George, and 1/RM and 1/RMd limited to the same distance from Georgetown. Finally, the Provincials are given 2/RM to be placed anywhere on the mapboard.

There is one catch to all this which may seriously hinder the American player throughout the game. The 3/RM at Charlotte are not free to move until a CA units begins a movement phase in that hex (AA-22). This means that the American will be forced to detach at least one combat factor of his much needed Continentals to activate units that will not be able to come into the game any earlier than the third turn.

For the Redcoats to win, they have to keep six towns (Savannah, Augusta, Camden, Charlestown, Ninety-Six and Hillsboro) all free of enemy combat units by the end of the game. American victory conditions include the occupation of any of the above towns (with the exception of Hillsboro) with at least one combat unit and free of all British combat units at the conclusion of the last turn. Any other situation is a draw.

The scenario lasts for five month-long turns, from December, 1780 to April, 1781. The first three turns are rain months which means that no unit is permitted to cross class two rivers without the benefit of a permanent ferry. On the fourth turn, both sides receive reinforcements. The British get a supply unit in Wilmington and the Americans receive 2/CA and 1/S on the North Carolina-Virginia border.

BRITISH STRATEGY

The British player moves first, and thus he has a chance to take the initiative in his hands. It is an opportunity he would be foolhardy to pass up. The King's general has it in his power to strike the first blow, and strike he must, since he faces the greater amount of pressure. For a victory, the English commander must keep six towns clear of American units. This necessarily entails the elimination of the bulk of the enemy forces. Such a goal is not an easily attainable one, especially when confronting a capable opponent.

The CAs and RMs can easily outrun the BRs, and you can rest assured that an able adversary will put that superiority to better uses than retreating. Victory for the British is so difficult and so unlikely that any player worth his salt should be more than satisfied with a draw. Yet, even this lower standard demands that the British commander destroy as many American factors as possible and chase the rest into Virginia or the western mountains.

Due to the initial set-up, the British player is tempted to make a number of mistakes early in the game. These promptings must be resisted, for they will certainly lead to fatal results in the long run. As a victory or a draw depends on the occupation of the towns, the English player may decide to keep each of the key locations garrisoned by at least one combat factor throughout the game. That would be a needless waste of manpower.

The King's forces only have to control the tons on the last turn. There is no reason to keep five or six combat factors needlessly tied up for the other four. Garrisoning the towns will also cause the Redcoats to sacrifice their numerical superiority, allowing the Rebels to annihilate their field army and outposts piecemeal. Besides, it is not necessary to have a unit sitting in each town to maintain control. You just have to keep the Provincials out. And that is best accomplished by wrecking or routing the enemy's units.

Camden (L-15) especially seems to cry out for a garrison with its unmovable, inexhaustible magazine. As a base, however, Camden is next to worthless. The magazine can only be used for combat purposes if the Provincials venture to within two hexes of it. You can't expect the enemy to sit on your doorstep and wait to be attacked. No Briton should assume that his opponent would be stupid enough to oblige him in this manner (at least not in the early stages of the game). Then again, the magazine at Camden shouldn't be left unguarded. That would be leaving a valuable, free prize to the Rebels.

But the British can't afford to garrison the town. Those factors are needed where the action will be; chasing down the Americans. In exasperation, the question is now raised: "Well then, what should be done with the bloody magazine?" The answer is relatively simple. just turn the magazine into a supply unit and attach it to a strong field force. This will eliminate a prickly problem. Now the British player will be able to charge after the Rebels hell for leather, without having to worry about the magazine he left behind. It will also make those much needed supplies mobile, thus giving the King's forces a welcome tactical advantage for continual combat phases.

The emphasis on supply mobility should in no way minimize the crucial importance of Camden in the last stages of the game. It is the only town of the key five that can be reached by the 3/RM at Charlotte and the American reinforcements. Camden will probably be the site of a final, grand battle to decide between a draw or the American victory. With these considerations in mind, the British player is free to make his first move. It is the most momentous move of the game. The English must make a wise, initial committment since there is not enough time to alter it. The Redcoat's first move will set the temper of the entire proceedings. The British must seize the initiative at once, striking any American units within range and putting the rabble on the run.

There are at least four stacks of enemy units threatening the British towns (I/RM near Fort Prince George, 1/CA and I/RM around Thickety Fort, 4/CA and I/S hovering near Cheraw, and 1/RM and I/RMd in the vicinity of Georgetown) all of which could be within the movement capacity of the British troops, depending on the abilities of the American Adversary.

Usually, the Redcoats kick off the campaign by rushing the concentration of CAs at Cheraw. Even if the American commander has wisely placed his Continentals in the sheltered hex on the north bank of the Yadkin River, the 3/BR and 1/S from Camden, 1/TM and the 1/TM d from Winnsboro, and the 1/TMd from Fort Ninety Six can reach them and give battle at 3 to 2 odds. The 6/BR from Winnsboro and the converted magazine can be moved into Cheraw itself back up any survivors should the attack fail.

An alert American player can deftly thwart a maneuver of this type by merely placing his two free units with the CAS (reducing the odds to 1 to 1), and then having the whole attack start the game entrenched, it would be quite a risk to launch an attack in this type of situation, even for a lucky roller. In the event of such a contingency, an attack on the Americans near Cheraw would have to be a last, desperate resort. More often than not, however, the Rebel commander is a bit careless in the deployment of his other forces.

If he leaves any of the detachments in the hexes around Fort Prince George, Thickety Fort, or Georgetown in the open, the Royal troops should hit them with everything they've got. These enemy units are all unsupplied, and if the British player can get a supply unit into the fray then the American's combat factors are automatically halved.

The 3/BRs and I/S from Camden along with the 1/TMd from Winnsboro and the 1/TM at Georgetown can usually pounce on the 1/RM and 1/RMd near Georgetown at 5 to 1 odds. The 6/BRs at Winnsboro can probably hit the I/CA and 1/RM in the vicinity of Thickety Fort at 3 to 1 odds. If the Americans are in Thickety Fort itself (L11), the Redcoat can also send his converted magazine into the fray to double the odds. Even if this is not the case, it would be a good idea to move the supply unit there along with the 1/TM as a guard to keep it out of the hands of the Americans at Cheraw. Finally, if the British player is incredibly lucky, he should be able to reach the Fort Prince George 1/RM with the Augusta and Ninety-Six garrisons at 3 to 1 odds.

Now this type of strategy is greatly preferable to charging after the Continentals at Cheraw. The British player can eliminate five enemy combat factors at very good odds instead of risking a third of his army in a lousy I to 1 battle for the same amount. Besides all that, the elimination of grave threats to his western and eastern flanks will allow the English general to focus his full attention on the main American army. That's just good, military, common sense. Even if just one of these minor detachments are within the Britisher's grasp, it would be in his best interests to smash it. He'll have one less headache.

But what if the enemy is not so accommodating, and the British can't reach the flanking parties on the first turn? Then the daredevil may attempt his 1 to 1 fracas at Cheraw or he can opt for a subtler, more agonizing strategy. Instead of chancing everything on the first move, the British player may take a long range gamble by trying to push the Americans back to Charlotte, Virginia. joining the Winnsboro column with the Camden stack and the Ninety-Six 1/TMd, the Redcoats can reach P-17 on the first turn. The Americans on hex P-18 have no other choice than to run. They cannot attempt to slip around the British forces into South Carolina because by crossing the Yadkin River they sacrifice their extra movement factor and will be easily caught on the next turn.

So the American player must pull back, but where will he go? Well, he probably won't move east or else he will be trapped between the Peedee and Cape Fear Rivers. A march west will invite the Redcoats to corner the Rebels against the Blue Ridge Mountains. In all probability, he'll pick up the 1/RM at Ramsay's Mills and then try to activate the 3/RM at Charlotte for a big battle at Camden. The British must press after the Americans.

The American player can reach Charlotte with his Continentals at the end of the second turn, but he has to begin his third movement phase there or the RM's aren't free to move. The British player can get all his troops from Winnsboro, Camden, Georgetown and Wilmington to Charlotte on his third movement phase (fourteen combat factors, in all, against ten Americans). This will usually produce a 1 to 1 situation with a British advantage in manpower and supplies, Good tactics and a lucky die roll will quickly change the odds to a more favorable ratio, insuring an American defeat.

If the British attack should prove successful, it would be wise to fall back on Hillsboro to intercept the Continental reinforcements and any survivors who may yet dare to challenge an English victory.

The 2/BR at Charleston should follow the main British army as a back-up force and to act as a safety against an American end run into the Carolinas. Ninety-Six can only be abandoned if the Rebels at Thickety Fort and Fort Prince George are destroyed or move north. The fort at Ninety-Six is too valuable to give away. Keep the 1/BR there and move the other I/BR from Augusta into the place as well. The I/TM from Savannah can march to Augusta (F- 12). These units should be sufficient to ward off any attacks and can sally forth to batter the Provincials should they venture close enough. Once the western threat is removed, the garrisons should follow the main army to Charlotte.

In the case of a retreat to Charlotte, the American commander might try to unite his Georgetown and Thickety Fort forces with his main stack. The 1/RMd from Georgetown will get through, but the British commander can intercept the slower moving CA and RMs with his Tory units and a supply train as the BRs press after the Continentals. Or if both flanking columns come within range, the English player can send the Tories after the western detachment and 3 or 4/BR after the eastern group and continue to cover the main enemy stack with the rest of his troops. Another alternative is for the British to split their fourteen factors in half and send each stack against the smaller detachments. The British will destroy three or four sure factors and still have plenty of time to stop an American advance into South Carolina reinforcements and the Charlotte militia included.

Like Cornwallis, the English player must not be afraid to take a chance. The only difference is that his risks should be calculated, not foolhardy. A cautious strategy will only give the American an easy victory. The King's general must exploit his early numerical superiority and the geographical conditions to hound and hit the Americans. The enemy must be destroyed or driven so far north that he will no longer be a threat to the coveted towns. Victory for the British will be difficult, but it is not impossible.

AMERICAN STRATEGY

The American player's strategy is naturally predicated on what his British opponent does. However, his initial deployment on the first turn can give the enemy any number of headaches and may so frustrate the English commander that he will not be able to find a decisive strategy.

As the American forces are slightly outnumbered, each unit must be preserved until the key mount. Therefore, the Rebel player must place his CAs and RMs in protected, inaccessible positions.

The 4/CA at Cheraw should be placed on hex P-18. The 2JRM should also be stacked there. This hex affords the Rebels the protection of the Yadkin River which stops the 6/BR at Winnsboro from reaching them on the first turn. The best odds the Redcoat can get on them is A to 1, and if the American is victorious in any of the rolls the British will have to remove his fast moving Tory units as the first casualties.

The other stacks can be placed completely out Of harm's way for the first turn. The Georgetown group should be located at hex M-21, north of the nearly uncrossable Peedee River. The Thickety Fort detachment is relatively secure in the Blue Ridge Mountains on hex L-9. Only the two TMds can reach the Americans there, and no sane Britisher will risk those irreplacable units at 1 to 1 odds. The 1/RM at Fort Prince George is untouchable at H-6 except for the TMds which could hit it at 2 to 1 odds. But such a sacrifice would be worth diverting those two valuable British pieces from bigger game. And there is always the chance that one or both of the dragoon counters would be eliminated in the action.

In this manner, the Americans pose a four- way threat on the British territory. If the Redcoat chases after one column, the other three can descend on his abandoned or weakly garrisoned towns. if the British scatter after each separate attack, the Rebels can consolidate their fast moving forces and knock off the enemy in piecemeal.

The battalions at Cheraw are necessarily the American's major concern (although the others can be just as important) and should be used carefully. If the main British forces charge after the Continentals, they should not fall back on Charlotte. Only I/CA is required to activate the militia, and it should be sent back to Virginia on the first American movement phase.

The rest of the CAs and RMs should lead the Redcoats a merry chase on a tangent to the northeast or northwest. The American player must be wary of geographical traps. He should also keep out of reach of the enemy, but just barely. One hex will suffice. If the American player gets too far away from the British, he will not be able to slip around them and get back into South Carolina.

And that is the main American strategy. Lead the enemy on, give him the slip and take away one of his towns on the very last turn. Even a mediocre player can draw the British, but a good one can win with a minimum of effort.

In Pursuit of Greene and Lafayette Some Strategic Notes on AH's 1776

Overview
Scenario 3: Greene's Southern Campaign 1780
Scenario 4: Virginia-Yorktown Campaign 1781