Talking Bull

To try out Battle Cry (on the day it arrived if you please!) I set up the first scenario in the book - First Bull Run.  Or, as it was presumably called at the time 'Bull Run.'
I used the game's board and terrain features but rather than break out the (20mm-ish) plastic toys which were included with the game, I opted to use my 2mm (Irregular Miniatures) toys.  These are mounted on 3cm frontages so they fitted into the gameboard hexes.  My 2mm armies were intended to serve in a number of 19th Century wars and are painted dark blue (with pale blue flags) and pale grey (purple flags).

The armies deployed for action - Yankees at the top and Rebs below.  The terrain includes a ridgeline in front of the Reb line and a wood on each flank.  There is a smaller hill in front of the Yankee right.

Hunter, the Yankee general prepares to confront the enemy.

Jackson led the Reb centre

Stuart (bottom) leads a flanking cavalry action - the dice indicate that he has just wiped out an enemy infantry unit.  Yee-har!

The 'Hit and Run' card is ideal for cavalry raids.  Stuart was desperate to overrun the Bluebellies' artillery.

A US infantry unit under pressure!  The dice caused another casualty (from the 3 they had left to take) and two retreats.

One of Stuart's cavalry regiments gets blown away by the US artillery.

Just when things were looking good got the Rebs disaster struck!  There lies Jackson like a blob of lead. 

Mid-game overview.  Stuart has eliminated the US guns (left) but the Yanks are advancing rather menacingly in the centre.

Despite some fortification work, the Yanks clear the ridge of defenders.

The game ended with the Yankees in control of the ridgeline but the Rebs clinched a narrow victory by trampling over a couple of units in the right.

So a solo game but despite my pro-Reb bias the Yanks damn nearly won!  That speaks volumes about the quality of the basic game system.  Next time I will try out Bob Cordery's idea for solo games.