Understanding the layout and terrain can be as important to appreciating a battle as reading about it. Putting together a project that appeals to the amateur historian, board wargamer and battlefield tourist looks difficult, because it is. All have differing ideas of what is useful and important, some of which conflict fundamentally. Producing a book that actually has something to offer them all, and in a concise package, is well nigh impossible. Yet The First Battle of Bull Run: Campaign of First Manassas, by veteran game designer John Hill, carries it off with style. The first of CartoGraphic Inc.'s American Civil War Notebook Series, published in 1991, at twenty pages it resembles an abbreviated, unambitious magazine more than anything else at first glance. Most of the text is arranged in short chapters that call to mind the original DataFiles from the 1970's era Strategy & Tactics. There are separate analyses of combat arms. background, and the how and why of how the battle turned out the way it did. There are also regimental level Orders of Battle, with notes on deployment and battlefield performance of the units. The true heart of this book is its statistical and operational maps. These are based on Civil War period maps from the United States Library of Congress, with vivid color and unit symbols (mostly brigades) added. This approach gives an understanding of the terrain impossible from the superficial maps found in most popular histories. Further, the course of the battle is easier to follow on these maps than with text descriptions. The final map, placed on the back cover, is map of the modern day Manassas Battlefield National Park and its environs. This map aids in relating the events of the battle, and where they happened, with modern geography. The most serious battlefield pilgrim will find his way to the most important sites much more clearly, and the "everyman" (or "everywoman") can get to the parking lot and picnic area without getting too badly lost. The quality of the graphics is superb, form both the standpoints of function and aesthetics. Again they bear the influence of wargaming's best artwork, especially that of David Fuller, and not surprisingly are the work of another wargame veteran -- Dana Lombardy. Since a great deal of value is concentrated in the pages of The First Battle of Bull Run, the list of shortcomings is a brief one. The greatest is that the Orders of Battle do not give infantry and cavalry unit strength below the army level. The only muster counts are for each army in toto, with none for lower tier units, even Union divisions (yet the author portrays artillery batteries and even sections) in far greater detail). Adding these would have made the book an indispensable resource to wargame and miniature scenario designers. Furthermore, the Order of Battle should list the full names, and not just the last ones, of the commanders. Even the most historically illiterate reader will recognize the names William Tecumseh Sherman and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, but only the most dedicated will know Louis Blenker, Orlando Bolivar Willcox, Barnard Elliot Bee or Philip St. George Cocke (a Confederate brigade commander, not to be confused with J. E. B. Stuart's father-in-law Philip St. George Cooke, a Virginia cavalry general who fought for the Union). But these are relatively minor failures. The First Battle of Bull Run remains a valuable tool for the history buff and Civil War gamer. The maps alone make it well worth the price. Jim Werbaneth is not only an internationally known wargame designer, but edits the excellent wargaming newsletter Line of Departure. The First Battle of Bull Run: Campaign of First Manassas is available for $4.95 (domestic US price ) from CartoGraphics, Inc. 2729-E Merrilee Drive; Fairfax, VA 22031 (United States of America). Back to Cry Havoc #2 Table of Contents Back to Cry Havoc List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1993 by David W. Tschanz. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com