American Civil War Game Club (ACWGC)

Just ran across a possible bug in the Gettysburg module (4.03)...

Initiated melee with one unit of J. Davis's brigade against 1 Union cavalry unit. Davis was with the unit meleeing.

Result of the melee was that the Union cavalry unit was eliminated. Somehow, J Davis was captured during this...

Does that seem logical? Maybe I'm just not thinking carefully, but seems weird that a leader could be captured by a unit that is eliminated during a melee...I mean, if they captured me and then all got killed, I'm going back to my lines.... not being a gentleman and saying, "See y'all later, boys - they got me fair and square! Going to turn myself in!"

_________________
BG David McWaters
ANV
7/2/II Corps
18th Alabama Infantry
Sharpshooters

I think that has been the standard for as long as I have played these games, over 25 years.

The probabilities for leader casualties is listed in parameter data and has nothing to do with the results of the melee.

_________________
MG Mike Mihalik
Forrest's Cavalry Corps
AoWest/CSA

That's very funny.

I agree with Mike's analysis that such a thing has always been a possibility.

Another thing is that officers can be captured by routing units. In one MP game we lost General Longstreet to a small band of crazed Yankees who routed behind our lines. We wiped them out soon afterwards [I think our very next turn] but there was no sign of General Longstreet. He must have wandered through our lines to let the enemy know he was a prisoner of theirs.

_________________
Paul Swanson
Lieutenant-General
First Division
First Corps
Army of Northern Virginia

This outcome is a possibility. As Paul said, the game uses percentages and every combat has an element of chance in it. In any melee (even if you win it), the leader has an X percent chance of being captured, wounded, or killed. Does it make sense if the leader is captured even though the attacked unit surrenders? No. But these games aren't very good in identifying unique situations and adjusting accordingly. They just read from a set script of rules which are unbreakable in the A/I's mind.

Also, if you melee a unit of 5 enemy soldiers or 1,000 enemy soldiers, your leader has the same chance of being a casualty. So never use them in a melee unless the outcome is in doubt. It might be "worth it" to risk them in a high-leverage situation. But if you are doing mop-up operations, leave them behind.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012