'The Land Merrimack'
One of the appealing aspects of gaming the American Civil War is the ingenuity of some of the weapons designed and
developed during the conflict.
The battle of Savage's Station, 29 June 1862, during McClellan's Peninsular campaign, saw the first combat usage of a
railway gun.
Dubbed the 'Land Merrimack', in homage to the Ironclad warship CSS Virginia (constructed on the hull of the frigate USS
Merrimack) it consisted of a 32 pdr Brooke Naval Gun mounted on a flatbed truck and pushed slowly in front of a
locomotive. A primitive gun shield was added constructed from sections of cut railway track.
Peter Pig make an excellent locomotive and flatbed as part of their Western 'Hey You In The Jail' range. I added a naval
gun from Freikorps15, available from Quick Reaction Force, that I had knocking about in my spares box, and crewed it with
some Peter Pig ACW artillerymen and topped it with a 'Stars and Bars' Confederate flag suitable for 1862.
The gun shield was made from cut thin strips of plastic card stuck together and wrapped top and bottom by another plastic
strip. I added wooden sides, made from more plastic card, as more protection for the crewmen.
The 'Land Merrimack' saw action at Savage's Station when using the Richmond and York River Rail Road it fired upon
Federal General William B. Burns brigade of General E.V. Sumner's Corps. However, the gun had a very limited traverse,
and field of fire, and was flanked and fired on by the Union 72nd Pennsylvania.
Under 'They Couldn't Hit an Elephant' rules I suggest that the 'Land Merrimack' can move forward, or backwards, 6", the
same speed as infantry. It fires with a 22.5 degree arc of fire from its frontage with 2 x D6 but cannot fire if it has moved
that turn. If fired at from the front it counts as deployed artillery in redoubts. If fired at from the side it counts as deployed
artillery. Once it has taken two hits the locomotive retreats off table.
It will soon be appearing in anger on my table.
The track by the way is resin from Total System Scenics, also available from Quick Reaction Force.
One of the appealing aspects of gaming the American Civil War is the ingenuity of some of the weapons designed and
developed during the conflict.
The battle of Savage's Station, 29 June 1862, during McClellan's Peninsular campaign, saw the first combat usage of a
railway gun.
Dubbed the 'Land Merrimack', in homage to the Ironclad warship CSS Virginia (constructed on the hull of the frigate USS
Merrimack) it consisted of a 32 pdr Brooke Naval Gun mounted on a flatbed truck and pushed slowly in front of a
locomotive. A primitive gun shield was added constructed from sections of cut railway track.
Peter Pig make an excellent locomotive and flatbed as part of their Western 'Hey You In The Jail' range. I added a naval
gun from Freikorps15, available from Quick Reaction Force, that I had knocking about in my spares box, and crewed it with
some Peter Pig ACW artillerymen and topped it with a 'Stars and Bars' Confederate flag suitable for 1862.
The gun shield was made from cut thin strips of plastic card stuck together and wrapped top and bottom by another plastic
strip. I added wooden sides, made from more plastic card, as more protection for the crewmen.
The 'Land Merrimack' saw action at Savage's Station when using the Richmond and York River Rail Road it fired upon
Federal General William B. Burns brigade of General E.V. Sumner's Corps. However, the gun had a very limited traverse,
and field of fire, and was flanked and fired on by the Union 72nd Pennsylvania.
Under 'They Couldn't Hit an Elephant' rules I suggest that the 'Land Merrimack' can move forward, or backwards, 6", the
same speed as infantry. It fires with a 22.5 degree arc of fire from its frontage with 2 x D6 but cannot fire if it has moved
that turn. If fired at from the front it counts as deployed artillery in redoubts. If fired at from the side it counts as deployed
artillery. Once it has taken two hits the locomotive retreats off table.
It will soon be appearing in anger on my table.
The track by the way is resin from Total System Scenics, also available from Quick Reaction Force.
