Fateful Lightning

Fateful Lightning is a detailed simulation of the 1863 battle of Gettysburg - fought by Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of North Virginia, and the Union Army of the Potomac under General George Gordon Meade.

Lee had invaded the north primarily to draw the Union army out of Virginia. He had not planned to fight a battle, but his army was drawn in by a chance encounter that grew as his aggressive commanders marched to the sounds of the guns. Meade, in command for only three days, wished to avoid a battle until he was more sure of himself. Once he realized that his army was committed, he hurried forward, knowing that Lee had to be beaten.

The game features Initiative Rules and a variable number of turns per day keep both players guessing. (Day turns are 3 hours, night turns are 9 hours.) Combat stresses unit morale. All-out charges can clear ground fast, but at the cost of increased casualties. Other features include terrain effects and the full array of defensive works (breastworks, trenches, redoubts), reserves for faster movement, hidden movement, night combat, rain, line of sight, the Fortunes of War - a random set of events triggered by the Combat Results Table, and several Historical Scenarios as well as speculative "Alternative History" variants allowing for almost infinite replayability.