"We are the Flank"
The Big Fight for Little Round Top
Gettysburg

Historical Background and Set Up

by Matt Fritz

Version 2

This is a revised version of a set of rules I wrote three years ago. The original version was published in The Volunteer. The rules were simplified and are now very similar to the rules I use for other battles. I changed the sequence of play to try and make the game faster. It still runs too long, and I have difficulty setting up and finishing the game in two hours.

Historical Background

The Confederate attack on Devil's Den and Little Round Top was the subject of considerable controversy. It began late in the day and was marked by confusion and a general lack of coordination. The terrain was partly responsible for this. Law's Brigade, with belated support from Robertson's Brigade, fought Ward's Brigade in and around Devil's Den. The fighting was fierce. The Confederates eventually drove the Union away but the timely arrival of the 40th NY prevented them from exploiting their success.

Benning's Brigade maneuvered to attack Little Round Top from the flank. By the time they arrived Vincent and Weed had arrived to defend the crucial position. Oates' 15th Alabama was given the difficult task of assaulting up the hill. They ran into Chamberlain's 20th Maine, which was defending the far left flank of the Union army. Several charges were turned back. Finally, with his men low on ammunition, Chamberlain ordered a bayonet charge, which finished off the weary confederates.

The confederate's failure to take Little Round Top set in motion the famous events of the next day. Lee ordered a frontal assault on the Union center. Pickett's charge would go down in history as a bloodbath of legendary proportions. The Union stopped the attack, inflicting horrendous casualties on the confederates.

Battle 1

The confederates launched their attack against the Union lines. Law's Brigade attacked Devil's Den, which was defended by the 1st US Sharpshooters and an artillery battery. The sharpshooters were deadly accurate, picking off the confederates as they formed up for a charge. General Ward personally joined the sharpshooters to urge them on. The first confederate charge looked unstoppable, but the sharpshooters held their ground and sent the rebels into retreat. A second charge carried the position for the confederates and Gen. Ward was taken prisoner. On the right flank the confederates were making a wide flanking maneuver around and over Big Round Top with Gen. Robertson's Texas Brigade and Benning's Georgians. They finally made it to Little Round Top just as the Union reinforcements arrived to defend the hill. Both confederate generals were killed in action leading their men on an assault up the steep slope and the confederate attack faltered. As the sun went down on the second day of Gettysburg the frustrated confederates insisted they could take the position if they had more time, but the Union held the high ground. This battle was a victory for the Union

Battle 2

This time the confederates sent Robertson's brigade against Devil's Den and captured the position with surprising ease. However the rest of the Union line held firm. The confederates advanced rapidly through Devil's Den trying to exploit the Union's open left flank as the Union desperate moved reinforcements onto Little Round Top. The remains of Robertson's brigade, joined by Benning's brigade, splashed across Plum Run for the final assault on Little Round Top. The Union rapidly assembled their reinforcements for a final stand at the summit. The confederates attacked with a fury. Joshua Chamberlain and the 20th Maine blocked their path, but Chamberlain was mortally wounded in hand to hand fighting, and the Southerners advance to the top of the hill. The confederates looked like they were on their way to victory, routing every Union regiment in their path. With time running out we went to "fast forward sudden death overtime" rules to settle the matter. In the nick of time the Union pulled out a victory thanks to the desperate defense of the 6th New Jersey and 40th New York. This battle was a narrow Union victory.

Victory Conditions

The side that controls Little Round Top at the end of the game is the winner.

The Map

The battlefield was 7.5' x 5'. I started by making the map entirely out of felt. Green was used for the main tablecloth, blue for the stream, gray for Devil's Den, and tan/brown/black for the hills. All of this was glued onto the main cloth using spray on adhesive. I outlined the boundaries of the forest with a black magic marker. This was sufficient to run the game, but I also had some hills of the correct size and shape, which I added for effect. When it was time for the game I simple unrolled the map, spread some rocks in Devil's Den and used model railroad trees to line the forest boundaries.

Building the Armies

I mounted three figures per base (commanders mounted individually), but I suggest using just two figures to a base so you don't need as many figures. Five boxes of Imex Union and Confederate Infantry and one box of Imex Union and Confederate Artillery provided all the figures I needed. If you go with two figures per base you'll need three boxes of infantry. The uniforms for the sharpshooters were painted green. The bases were painted green to match the felt on the gaming table. Each base was then given a ID label using computer generated mailing labels. The labels were color coded by regiment using colored pencils. Each regiment includes a figure carrying a flag. My flags came from Warflag (www.warflag.com). The flagstaffs were made from paperclips. Here are some paper soldiers you can print and use.

OOB

Each base represents about 50 men (fudged to make them equal)

Union

All union regiments are 6 bases except the Sharpshooter regiments, which are 4 bases each

Ward's Brigade
3rd ME, 4th ME, 20th IN, 86th NY, 99th PA, 124th NY, 1st US Sharpshooters, 2nd US Sharpshooters,
Smith's 4th NY Battery - 3 gun sections (models)

Enter on Turn 3: 40th NY and 6th NJ

Enter on Turn 4:

Vincent's Brigade
16th MI, 20th ME, 44th NY, 83rd PA

Enter on Turn 5:

Weed's Brigade
91st PA, 140th NY, 146th NY, 155th PA,
Hazlett's Battery D 5th US - 2 gun sections

Confederates

all Confederate regiments are 7 bases except the 15th AL, which has 8 bases

Law's Brigade
4th AL, 15th AL, 44th AL, 47th AL, 48th AL

Robertson's Brigade
1st TX, 3rd AK, 4th TX, 5th TX

Reinforcements Enter Turn 2:

Benning's Brigade
2nd GA, 15th GA, 17th GA, 20th GA

Resources

A search of the library and Magweb.com, turned up some useful resources for wargaming Gettysburg:

"Wargaming Gettysburg with the 6th Grade" by John Stafford, MWAN 101 includes some suggestions and a simple set of rules.
"The Struggle for Little Round Top" by Ken Lewis, Zouave Vol. 2, No. 2 A scenario for "On to Richmond" rules with OOB and map
"Second Day of Battle of Gettysburg" by Lloyd Eaker, Jr., Zouave Vol. 6, No. 4 Another "On to Richmond" scenario with OOB and map
"The Fight for Devil's Den" by Dale Bley, Zouave #50 A scenario for "A Field of Honor" rules with OOB and map

"We are the Flank" The Big Fight for Little Round Top Gettysburg

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