Union at Fredericksburg

[IeShima]

Any tips?

I know historically that it was a slaughter for the Union, and i really don't want to replay history.

My army has 3 corps, 3 divisions in each.

Each division has three, 2,000 man infantry units, and a 12 gun battery. First corp has a unit of skirmishers in each division as well. I have no cavalry, but can add some as i have 6 empty unit slots.

Best corps is First corps, with all units being three star, except for two brand new skirmisher units. Second and Third corps are a mixture of rookies and veterans.

[Rochefort]

If you're willing to look at ahistorical or gamey strategies, it is possible to just withdraw your Corps from the Heights side of the map and march it to support the attack on their right, which will save you a few thousand men. They'll usually move their defenders to counter you, but a slugfest in the forest and mud flats around Telegraph Hill is still a much better prospect than assaulting the trenches at the heights.

For the main attack, I think it's best to make a line of rifles and cannon pointed at the treeline, but a brigade-length out of range of their position, while you move two divisions through the woods to the far right of the map, sweeping the cavalry hidden there. That way you can start to roll up their flank from cover, while your batteries will be flanking their defenders. They'll often break cover to try to breakout and counterattack, and you can inflict some heavy losses while they're slowed by the same mud that historically doomed the Union.

It will probably take just a little too long for your main force to complete the encirclement and longer to push all the way up the road to the lightly defended final objective, so some sneaky brigades, cavalary or skirmishers will be helpful there.

[CrashToDesktop]

Wait, you're going into Fredricksburg with 4 brigades per division and 3 divisions per corps? I think you're sorely underprepared for that if you put only a couple points into Army Organization. You should be going in with 5 brigades per division and 4 divisions per corps at the very least, otherwise you stand very little chance of doing anything.

[IeShima]

Originally posted by The Soldier:

Wait, you're going into Fredricksburg with 4 brigades per division and 3 divisions per corps? I think you're sorely underprepared for that if you put only a couple points into Army Organization. You should be going in with 5 brigades per division and 4 divisions per corps at the very least, otherwise you stand very little chance of doing anything.

Well it is in MG, so i put most of my career points in training and medicine

[CrashToDesktop]

There's a point where getting a big army size you can deploy the maximum number of units allowed outweighs Training and Medicine. If anything, Politics should be prioritized over those two.

All the corps slots at Fredricksburg allow you to deploy 24 units. You're going in with *half* that. You stand no chance. :P

[IeShima]

Originally posted by The Soldier:

There's a point where getting a big army size you can deploy the maximum number of units allowed outweighs Training and Medicine. If anything, Politics should be prioritized over those two.

All the corps slots at Fredricksburg allow you to deploy 24 units. You're going in with *half* that. You stand no chance. :P

My crack units have fought outnumbered before, and they can do it again.

[Kristoph42]

Good luck Tonyr14226. I hope you can pull it off. As a betting man, I would bet against you. As a fan of the game, I hope you can get the victory. Please post results

[Deletraz]

Attacking Mary Heights you do not replay history :)

So the tips - you do not need charge all their line but break their entrechment line in one point and then outflank the line and it will break very easily. I suggest to sent 4-5 rookies brigades with cheap weapons that will make that initial charge. Use your rifled artillery for counter arty fire.

More problems for me were from left flank. My best brigades go for Mary Heights(I still like play historical as possible) and attack on woods with rest troops ended for me as disastor. There were several napoleons or 24 howitazer battaries in the woods that blasted my incoming troops by canister fire. So again try to outflank that position. You need two cavalery brigades to counter enemy cavalery there .

[POemil]

What I usually do is;

At Marye's heights I focus my attack on the Confederate right, starting with the unit manning the fortification next to the river. Charge them with several units at once and they will break. Once that happens you march several units through this breach and you move up, flanking the next defending unit and so on.
Your first units charging that fortification will be cannon fodder and will take heavy casualties. Give them cheap guns with good melee stats.

Further, on the utter right side of the Confederate line I march a sizeable part of my army through the woods where they have several cavalry units hiding. Using those woods for cover I advance and begin flanking their line like that. This will bring you close to the victory point, and should allow you to capture it when needed.

At the center I refrain from major offensive operations. There are usually not a lot of enemy troops there, and I can often just capture the victory point by sneaking in some skirmishers.

As others have mentioned, your army may not be large enough to achieve victory. But I guess it will depend on what you are facing.
Either way good luck and let us know how it turned out!

[Didz]

As above I avoided a full frontal assault on the heights and moved most of my brigades to the extreme left where they could concentrate on the isolated defences of the Confederate right. A combination of terrain and the configuration of the Confederate defence line means that the brigades defending this section of the heights cannot gain effective support from their own artillery and reserves.

I simply stormed over this section of the defences and then using the heights as protection I deployed across the enemies right flank and rolled up their line from right to left.

The second phase of the battle was a bit messier, but basically I reversed the strategy and advanced through the woods to the rear of the Confederates left flank forcing them to abandon their defences to try and block my advance. As I recall they did this quite effectively and in the end I had to rush a cavalry brigade around their flank to cease the victory point in their rear. but nevertheless I think it was better than trying to attack uphill into their defence line.

[Malkor2]

I have to agree with Soldier here Tony, you don't stand a chance. I did it on BG difficulty with 2 full Corps and a few other units in the 3rd Corps but even with all those units it was a massacre. Prospect Hill is an even greater nightmare than Maryes Heights, simply because your units will be out in the open, marching through swamp while the AI has great cover in the woods. You need a Corps with at least 20 units for Prospect Hill (or Telegraph Road) and Maryes Heights and if you don't have that you have no chance of winning. Winning the Civil War wasn't a question of having better trained troops and lots of veterans, it was a question of having superior numbers. And the same is true for this game. Quantity wins over Quality.

[ComputerCrasherDad]

I took my 3rd Corps and moved it as close as possible to the Telegraph road area (not visible when you first deploy.) Let it sit out while 2nd Corps flanks Confederate right (leave a brigade or two to mess with those nasty Reb Cav units) But when Telegraph road opens up later, you have a Corps to move into the Rebs right flank. Even in Maj Gen, they don't have enough to oppose. And a simple skirmisher can start the contested clock early. I don't even bother with that side while focusing on Maryse Heights.

[WarriorOscarMike]

I had somewhere up to 68,000 troops and 114 guns. I lost a good part of my army. you need more than what you have

[IeShima]

Welp, i have fought the battle thorugh twice, both times a full victory, but i end up with less than 15,000 men out of nearly 60,000.

With the army i have now, i end up getting creamed to such an extent that i can't continue the campaign afterwards.

Third time lucky?

[Magnus]

Dont attack on Mheights, place all your troops in this phase in the south so they reinforce your corps at tele road. Take Prospect hill with your strongest corps by moving it to the southeast corner, form a semicircle and stay in cover. That way you will wear out the brigades protecting PHill with minmal casualties. Take Tele Road with the same strategy, circumvent the defensive line in the south, take the VP and build your own defense before the reinforcements from Mheights arrive. I did it with a 1to4 killratio on legendary, on MG or BG you shouldnt lose more then 8-9k men. If you do, repeat :)