Charge! Issues 5-6

Since I’ve only just now started subscribing to Charge!: The Official Newsletter of the Johnny Reb Gaming Society, I’ll be reviewing the first two years of the newsletter two issues at a time in a similar format to my reviews of North & South, Blue & Gray, America’s Civil War, and Civil War Times Illustrated. Back issues of Charge! cost $5.00 plus $1.00 shipping per issue. The newsletter comes spiral-bound (think Kinkos here), and is usually around 20 pages long. Many of the maps and illustrations are in color. Typical articles include scenarios for Johnny Reb, painting figures, creating terrain, special rules for certain out of the ordinary situations, and historical pieces on a unit or battle.

Charge! Issue 5

Page 1
From The Editor’s Desk
Scott Mingus talks about the start of the second year of Charge! Newsletter.
Page 2
Build and Deploy a Miniature Observation Balloon by Wayne R. Terry
Mr. Terry discusses the use of observation balloons in the Civil War, how to build balloons for use in gaming, and rules for balloon usage.
Page 4
More Thoughts on Balloons by Larry Reber
Mr. Reber, who produces model balloons commercially, also offers his thoughts on balloons usage during the Civil War.

Page 5
Balloons in the Gettysburg Campaign by Scott Mingus, Sr.
The editor, Scott Mingus, finishes up the coverage of balloons by offering a short history of balloons during the Gettysburg Campaign.
Page 6
“A Glint of Bayonets”: Larry Brom’s Regimental Level ACW Rules by Clay Cooper
Clay Cooper gives a concise overview of Larry Brom’s Regimental ACW Rules, entitled “A Glint of Bayonets”. Each infantry regiment represents 500 men at a 1:25 ratio. The ground scale is 1 inch equals 22 yards. Cooper concludes that “AGoB offers ACW gamers an excellent easy play option for simulating battles of this period and they have a good period feel to them as well.”
Page 7
Johnny Reb 3 Tactics” Updated From Johnny Reb 2 by Marc Shefelton
Marc takes four tactics from Johnny Reb 2 that didn’t make the Johnny Reb 3 rule book (Advancing in Rushes, Wave Assaults, Charging with Empty Guns, and Merging Units) and converts them for use with Johnny Reb 3.
Page 8
Ask John Hill!
In this section, Johnny Reb creator John Hill responds to gamer questions to clarify rules.
Page 9
Chits, Chits — My Kingdom for Some Chits! by George Anderson
George Anderson offers an After Action Report (AAR) of Paul Stevenson’s Harris Farm scenario, where Union Heavies fought off elements of Ewell’s Corps on May 19, 1864.
Page 11
Fortresses and Ironclads by Bruce Kindig
Bruce covers the introduction of fortresses and ironclads to Johnny Reb 3. Included are some nice charts giving firing stats for Siege Guns, Fortress Guns, and Ships.
Page 13
Hood at Atlanta: Ezra Church by George Anderson
Anderson finishes up his three-part look at scenarios covering the three battles around Atlanta in July 1864. Again the units are almost all rated average. This is a large scenario that probably should only be tried by more experienced gamers. The game is played on a 5×7 foot game board.
Page 17
The Second Assault at Fort Fisher: January 13-15, 1865, North Carolina by David Glenn Jr.
David Glenn, Jr. covers the Second Assault on Fort Fisher in a Johnny Reb 2 scenario. I found this one to be very interesting as Glenn gives detailed instructions on how to build Fort Fisher. He also gives special rules for this assault on a fortification.
Page 22
Finishing Your Terrain Setup by Doug Kline
Doug Kline, owner of Battlefield
Terrain Concepts
, talks about finishing off your terrain so that everything blends in for a quality look on your gaming tabletop.

Charge! Issue 6

Page 1
From The Editor’s Desk by Scott Mingus, Sr.
Scott discusses several of his upcoming projects, including an upcoming book on the Gordon Expedition during the Gettysburg Campaign, and also his Antietam Miniatures scenarios.
Page 2
Hood At Atlanta: The Verdict by George Anderson
George Anderson finishes off his look at Atlanta by taking a look at John Bell Hood’s command performance. Anderson believes Hood performed well, but that some events, commanders, and luck conspired against him.
Page 4
Optional Rules for Supply Wagons by John Hill
Johnny Reb creator John Hill offers optional rules covering Supply Wagons.
Page 5
Lost Victory: Lee and Gordon’s Mill by George Anderson
Prolific scenario writer George Anderson returns with a hypothetical scenario covering a battle just prior to Chickamauga. This one does not appear to be written specifically for Johnny Reb 3, but it seems easy enough to convert.
Page 12
Rally Round the Flag by Scott Monsour
Scott Monsour covers his new regimental level ACW rules set “Rally Round the Flag”. The rules are for use with 15mm and 25mm figures, and uses a basing system similar to Fire and Fury. The rules are available for $20 at www.classicalhack.com.
Page 13
Scratchbuilding a Brick and Masonry Fortress by Burkhard Schulze
Burkhard discusses the materials and methods necessary to construct a Brick and Masonry Fortress such as Fort Sumter. I particularly enjoyed this scenario.
Page 15
Converting JR3 Scenarios to Regimental Fire & Fury by Bill Moreno
Bill provides an easy to use conversion article comparing Johnny Reb 3 and Regimental F&F, and then he puts his conversion to use in converting a JR3 Spring Hill Scenario to regimental F&F.
Page 21
“Working With Foam”: Sculpting Wargaming Terrain Out of Foam by Doug Kline
Doug Kline, owner of Battlefield
Terrain Concepts
, talks about sculpting wargaming terrain out of foam. He creates a model Culp’s Hill of Gettysburg fame to illustrate the process.
Page 24
Cotton Bales in ACW Gaming by Larry Reber
Larry Reber writes a very interesting article describing the use of cotton bales as cover and also as a prize for Union forces to win. Larry also produces cotton bales commercially.
Page 26
The Sutler’s Corner by Scott Mingus
In this installment of The Sutler’s Corner, Scott covers Larry Reber’s cotton bales, available in 15mm, 25mm, 40mm, and 54mm.

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Check out Beyond the Crater: The Petersburg Campaign Online for the latest on the Siege of Petersburg!


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One response to “Charge! Issues 5-6”

  1. Chuck Reber Avatar

    Larry Reber,

    Are you interested in finding your Reber family roots? Please contact me.

    Thank you,

    Chuck Reber

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