Kudos to the few individuals who showed up for Bobby Lee in 2003. In the words of fellow GM Mark Guttag, it appears as if the Bobby Lee tournament, starting on Thursday at noon, got "Hammered" ... a not so thinly veiled reference to the other block party event going on at the same time. Still, from a GM's perspective, if you're going to get a small number, at least get a small number divisible by 2, or even better, 4! And that's what we had.

The four players were Damion Mastrangelo, Ted Drozd, Matt Calkins, and first (and probably last) time Bobby Lee GM, Daniel Broh-Kahn. Matt was looking to move up from a sixth place finish in 2002 it wouldn't be hard with only four participants!

For the four played games of Bobby Lee we used the 1861 scenario. At the end of the October 1861 turn, the Victory Track is checked and Tournament Points are awarded per Rule 3.25. Since there were only four of us, we didn't need to worry about tie breakers! The game master had high hopes for a healthy turnout, but it just wasn't to be. Perhaps noon was too early?

The first game was played between Damion Mastrangelo and Matt Calkins. The game opened with the typical Union attack on Harper's Ferry, which significantly weakened both armies. The Rebs eventually had to evacuate toWinchester, foregoing the victory point at Harper's Ferry. However, they were not done! They determined to seize the initiative with a cavalry raid, which succeeded in capturing both York and Lancaster. As a result of the Pennsylvania Offensive, both the Virginia Peninsula and Alexandria were quiet, as the armies built-up.

A Sportsmanship nomination went to Damion in his game against Matt Calkins. Matt's offensive premise was predicated on his interpretation of the rules, which called for victory points through occupation of enemy supply sources, per rule 4.52 However, the official errata states: "Control of enemy supply sources is no longer worth Victory Points. Instead, controlling each enemy supply source reduces the CSA by two RP's and the USA by three RP's as long as control is maintained." Damion allowed the game to continue as planned by Matt, leading to Matt's eventual victory. Well done to both players!

The second game, With Daniel Broh-Kahn squaring off against Ted Drozd, also had the typical Union Harper's Ferry offensive which fizzled out for a lack of militia enthusiasm. The Union then turned their attention on Centreville, with similar results. After a build-up period, and late in the game, the Union went for the jugular at Yorktown, which succeeded, but it was a case of too little, too late.

The consolidation game featured Daniel vs. Damion. It involved the usual subterfuge around between what is now West Virginia and Maryland. The famous gaps, which severely restrict maneuver, call for some sort of novel plan to penetrate the mountains. The Union brought in a massive four-piece army to seize the gaps, resulting in a huge battle which destroyed the two headquarters set up there. That pretty much wiped out any Union offensives for the rest of the game, which ended more or less in a draw. Not a bad result!

In the final, Ted's Union forces faced off against Matt's Confederates. Ted advanced to Winchester with a weakened force, but was met by a more weakened Confederate force. The result was a bloody melee which totally wiped out the Confederates force! This game also featured an interesting battle at the edge of the world, aka Delaware. The gamemaster's ruling determined that edge hexes are playable, as stated in the rules! It was certainly interesting to see Confederates all the way to Delaware. Again, another well played and fairly fought game, which is always refreshing.

So there you have it. Many thanks to all who played, and to those who came by and expressed support or sympathy! Yes, Virginia, it is true that you can play a decent Civil War game in under two hours. In any event, it was a pleasure to run a quick tournament, and the usual post mortems, which this time focused on the occupation of Acquia Landing, are always enjoyable! Perhaps Bobby Lee is just a game whose time has come and gone, or perhaps better scheduling will result in more attendance, if the game is voted back or sponsored next year. Still, it is clear that this game, and block games in general, still have their share of adherents!