I have embarked upon writing the sequel to the beloved and widely acclaimed First Bull Run! This story will follow your officer through the Peninsula Campaign of 1862 in the American Civil War. Lead a brigade in combat and in its daily duties. It is a more ambitious project than my first completed story, and I think it will be significantly better in the long run.
Public Demo: 20,000 words
Free Subscribers: 20,000 words
Paid Subscribers: 25,000 words
Your most affectionate and obedient servant,
Dan Rasmussen.
It’s wild that the War really should have ended in summer 1862. McClellan’s plan of campaign was really quite good, if only there had been someone else to actually execute it!
I agree completely. I imagine that will be a continuous point of frustration in the coming months of researching and recreating this campaign. Every time I read about it, I just think “god, we were so close!” Within miles of hitting Richmond with siege guns.
A quick note if you want to have a WIP thread up you need to have a demo posted! I will close the thread for now and you can PM me when you’re ready to post one for the public.
I’m not 100% sure, yet. For one thing, you will eventually be able to import your character if I get them both published. I think I will also add some flavor text in conversations that references exactly how the previous battle went. I’m not sure how much more will affect it yet.
I would happily accept any ideas anyone has to improve the interactivity or continuity.
I also like him without any really good reason to. Of course, he comes off as kind of a jerk in this demo. Based on my research, he just seems like a political climber above all else.
Imo I think if you able to stall the confederacy (best results), you will have an easier time convincing other brigade commanders to follow your tactics/plans and also for your junior commander to less likely questions your order. A higher reputation and bigger chance on career advancement or commendation is also a good idea.
Actually, when I reached the choice of horses, it did prompt me to do some quick research.
Union army guidelines for cavalry horse selection mandated animals be at least 15 hands (60 inches (150 cm)) high, weighing on average around 950 pounds (430 kg), and aged between 4 and 10 years old, and be well-broken to bridle and saddle. Animals were to be dark colors and free from defects such as shallow breathing, deformed hooves, bone and bog spavin, or ringbone. Geldings were preferred for cavalry horses with the purchase of mares strictly prohibited outside absolute military emergency, while stallions’ volatility and aggressiveness made them generally unsuitable for service. In the Confederacy, limited horse numbers did not permit such selectivity in trying to keep their armies horsed.
I didn’t know this.
I’m not sure if wikipedia is the best source of information. Anyway, it’s still fun to be able to pick a type of horse, and rules are made to be broken anyway. Maybe some in-game explanation for why you can pick a stallion?
That’s pretty interesting. also “Choice of horses” sounds like it should be a game haha.
My very cursory research said that the army tended to not use stallions but I have no actual idea. I think this might be small enough that I’ll just go against history haha. I’m guessing if a Colonel wanted a stallion he could probably get away with it anyhow. In the words of Matthew Broderick as Robert Shaw, “Can’t I?! I’m a Colonel, you nasty little cuss!”
If I were to guess, mares were not used because of their breeding potential, since they could be used to replace horses which were crippled or killed in battle.
Did we ride a mare in the first game? I probably didn’t think too much about it. Do you want to change it to a gelding now?
Speaking of which, how is publishing coming along? Any good news?
I’m not sure how it works for non-steam releases, but HG might return the files to you and allow you to make changes at some point of the process. Check with them.
Thanks for playing this public demo! If you would like to read further, or if you are a fan of my work, please consider supporting me on Patreon at https://www. patreon. com/user?u=33617276
Also, consider using the link command to turn the web address into a hyperlink.
Thank you for the advice, I used the link command. As for the mare, I’m not going to worry about it. It’s historical fiction, after all.
Also, I have just put out the latest update to paid subscribers on Patreon. 9800 words. I am writing the introduction of the first romance option in the polite Victorian style of romance. Pretty fun writing something that far off from my usual fare.
A Union major named Sullivan Ballou rode a horse named Jennie into battle at First Bull Run. So your first game is definitely fine as it is.
Wikipedia has a list of senior officers’ horses whose names are known. More of them are clearly masculine than clearly feminine, but it’s safe to assume Black Bess and Nellie Gray were mares. And while the most famous horses of the Civil War, such as Lee’s Traveller and Grant’s Cincinnati, were male, a number of generals had mares as secondary horses, among them Lee’s Lucy Long and Sherman’s Dolly.
