By

Wes Rogers

This battle took place on turn 3 of a Play-By-Email (PBEM) American Revolution campaign of which I am the referee. The game was played in my basement. The game took about 1.5 hours to play.

The campaign is set in the South, starting in May of 1781, and represents General Greene's attempt to wrest North and South Carolina from the grip of the British, under the command of Earl Cornwallis.

The game covers about six months of time. Each campaign turn represents about two weeks.

The Americans and British are moved strategically by two players in different parts of the country, one in Michigan and one in Oregon. Battles are played by local gamers familiar with the battle rules we use. As far as possible, the same local player always plays the same local commander in the field. The strategic players do not know the identities of the local players. Hopefully they will assess the capabilities of these generals by noting their actions during battles.

Victory is based on holding towns and winning battles. The side with the most victory points (VP) after twelve turns is the winner. A "major" battle has at least 100 figures (2,000 men) on each side. Smaller battles are "minor". Winning a major battle is worth 25 VP. Winning a minor battle is worth 10 VP.

When a hostile forces encounter one another, each side must declare "attack' or "defend". If both sides declare defend, no battle takes place; the two sides are just watching each other. If a force declares attack, then that side must break the enemy's army morale within 24 turns or the it loses the battle. A side declaring defend merely needs to survive for 24 turns to win. An attacking force gets a +1 on its initiative die rolls each turn.

The battle rules used in this campaign are Sons of Liberty. In the rules, one figure represents 20 infantry or 10 cavalry, and one gun model represents 1 gun. Turns are move-countermove and 10-sided dice are used.

This battle took place because General Greene, after advancing to Cross Roads and destroying the British depot located there, decided to entrench and defend against the attack of General O'Hara, who had returned south from Williams. Each side had about 1,500 men and five guns.

A day of battle is 24 turns. A battle lasts either until nightfall or until one side has half its figures dead or routed off the table. At that point its "army morale" breaks and the game ends.

Greene with 1,500 well-trained Continentals faced O'Hara, with 1,500 elite British Highlanders and grenadiers. The Americans did not defend in depth. They were outflanked by a breakthrough move by the Highlanders and suffered a major defeat.

Greene had set an ambush in the woods on his left flank, using the New York Light infantry. But the British, seeing that the fieldworks were too strong to assault frontally, sent the 84th Highlanders into that very woods. A sharp fight ensued, in which the light infantry were badly defeated. They ran back through the woods with the Highlanders in pursuit. This placed the 84th in the left rear of the American position. Greene sent several waves of troops against the sturdy sons of the heather, who manfully repulsed them all. Soon two more elite units had stormed through the woods, and by the seventh turn of the game, the American army morale had broken.

Greene's army retreated in confusion to Camden, losing two light guns along the road. O'Hara prepared to pursue.

C-in-C Major General Nathaniel Greene

Supply Unit - Charlotte

4 Field Guns, 36 gunners D

NY LI 240, B

19th Continentals 240, C

Hall's Delawares 240, C

1st Maryland 300, B

2nd South Carolina 240, E

1st NC 240, D

11th PA 300, D

Losses: 2 guns plus 593 men

Major-General Charles O'Hara

Major Patrick Ferguson

Grenadiers 310 A

84th Highlanders 455-A

71st Highlanders 480-A

26th foot 240-D

30th Foot 120-D

17th Dragoons 55-C (exhausted)

2 Light Guns

3 Field Guns

Gunners 53-C

1 supply unit - Crossroads

1 supply unit - Crossroads

Detachment of the 30th Foot 120-D

Losses: 120 men