Molly Pitcher vs the designer and five-time champ.	Jeff Lange takes on the once- and soon-to-be champ Dale Long.

It was a year that favored British arms. There were 34 matches played resulting in eight American wins, 21 British, four draws and a French win in the 3-player Final.

22 players met in the Mulligan Round thanks in no small part to AGM Rob McCracken who always succeeds in drawing in new players at the demo. The game was the Guilford Courthouse campaign scenario and the Americans picked up four Marginal Victories to the redcoats' five. Two British players managed Substantial Victories; Bruno Sinigaglio over Dan Dolan Sr. and George Young over Dave King.

14 players met in Round 1 on Thursday morning to again contest Guilford Courthouse. Of these, five were back for a second try after Mulligan Round losses. This time the Americans managed one Marginal Victory as Bob Jamelli defeated Grant Wylie. Otherwise, the British were all over it, winning three Marginals, two Substantials, (Dan Dolan Sr over Bill Beswick and Chris Easter over Derek Pulhamus), and a Decisive when Dave Stiffler shattered Paul Martz.

The Monmouth Courthouse "Holding Action" scenario was used for Round 2. 14 players competed in this tight 3.5 turn contest. There were four "draws," in which each player qualified to advance to the next round, and three British victories; one Marginal, one Substantial (by Mark Miklos over Dan Dolan Sr.) and one Decisive (by Bill Watkins over Ric Manns.)

All 11 qualifiers returned for Round 3. Because of the odd number, the only bye of the tournament was granted to the most recent champion present, Mark Miklos. The other ten players squared off in the "Knyphausen's Feint" scenario from Brandywine Creek.

In this scenario Bob Jamelli and Dave Stiffler each achieved American Decisive Victories. The British won two Marginal's and a Substantial by Bruno Sinigaglio. Of note was the match between Dale Long and Jeff Lange Sr. Jeff's Americans were nearly annihilated but held on doggedly to Proctor's Battery with barely enough Army Morale to stay in the fight. On the final half turn, and facing adjudication for elapsed time, Dale made his last attack. Three American units remained in the hex but each had to make a morale check. Had even one succeeded the game would have ended with a Decisive American Victory. Alas, they each failed their morale checks, Jeff was eliminated and Dale advanced.

The stage was set for three semi-final games of Saratoga. Bruno took on John Vasilakos, Dale Long was paired with Dave Stiffler and Mark Miklos danced with Bob Jamelli. All victories were marginal; one American by Dale Long and two British by Mark Miklos and Bruno Sinigaglio which set up a 3-player Final and a reprise of the 2008 Final in which the same three commanders met across the parapets at Savannah.

The three each drew chits and revealed simultaneously for choice of sides. As was the case in 2008, Dale chose France while Bruno and Mark each chose Britain thus forcing a bid. In the first round of bidding Bruno and Mark tied with bids of "3." In the next bid Mark stayed with "3" and Bruno bid "4," earning the right to play the British for a deficit of 4 at-start Army Morale points while Mark was left to play the Americans.

Turns 1-3 were clear weather. Bruno sortied with two stacks of 6 SP to "gather in" his arriving reinforcements and to block the American entry hex.

Turns 4-6 were storms. All regular movement was halved and strategic movement was prohibited thus slowing the French advance to a crawl. Mark held his Americans of the board rather then entering their weak vanguard to face Bruno's arrayed British stacks. A real coup was achieved by the Franco-American Allies on Turn 6, however, when they drew and played "Partisans Intercept British Dispatches." This card takes Col Maitland and 7 SP of arriving British reinforcements out of play. Those forces include two +2 units while Maitland is arguably the best British commander. What's more, it forces a 2-point reduction in British Army Morale. Thus, without a shot fired, the British Army Morale position was 6 points below normal at-start and Bruno was going to have to fight short-handed.

Turn 7 saw heavy rain and a general advance by both Allies, the Americans choosing this turn to enter play en masse. Bruno replied with a general slow withdrawal of his sortied forces back towards the Savannah Defensive Perimeter.

On Turn 8 the weather broke clear and the French played "Gold & Rum" to accelerate the arrival of their first variable reinforcements which, as luck would have it, arrived at Thunderbolt Bluff. By arriving there these units, including the French mortar, already had their movement enhanced. The card play meant that in one turn the mortar was virtually at the front.

The Weather continued clear on Turn 9. The construction of French siege works was delayed, however, because all the previous wet weather left them one hex short of the four-hex distance from Savannah needed to emplace their first construction marker. American units continued to advance and the first British Defensive Artillery Fire in the game caused a disruption to the French Henault Regiment.

Turn 10 was again clear and saw the French dig their first entrenchment. Bruno considered interdicting this dig with an attack since he still had a mobile force outside the Savannah defenses but decided, in the end, to pull his units inside the works. British Defensive Fire disrupted the Auxerrois Regiment while the French mortar eliminated the 1st GA Militia earning Dale the first VP of the game.

Clear conditions didn't last long as Turns 11 & 12 were again heavy rain. On Turn 11 Bruno played "Severe Weather" which delayed the last of the French reinforcements by a turn. The French completed their first hex of entrenchment, began to dig three more, and commenced the Siege & Bombardment phase with the result that zealous French gun crews caused a breach in the British perimeter. During their return fire, the British picked up spent French shot and fired it back. This result gave Bruno a +1 DRM to his upcoming Defensive Fire which offset the -1 DRM for heavy rain that turn. That fire caused a disruption to the 1st SC Regiment. Meanwhile, all remaining American Continentals, organized as two stacks under Col Laurens, got lost while maneuvering in the Yamacraw Swamp.

As heavy rain continued to fall on Turn 12, the French bombardment resulted in a second breach! The British, for their part, also achieved a breach on the French entrenchments. Due to the weather, however, no more French entrenchments were either completed or begun for the remainder of the game.

Col Laurens managed to exit the swamp with one of his stacks but the other remained lost! The general French advance now brought them to within three hexes of the British perimeter. The breach in the French entrenchment was repaired by card play and British defensive Fire disrupted the French Reserve Bn.

On Turn 13 a gale struck! Essentially the turn was skipped but French units did creep closer without risk because Defensive Fire was prohibited by gale conditions.

Following the gale, Turn 14 was mandated as heavy rain. The last American Continentals finally emerged from the swamp and all American units were in position to envelope the Spring Hill Redoubt. With their assault now looming the Allies played two cards in succession, both of which removed more troops from the British force pool. "Spanish Atrocities in Florida" caused the King's FL Rangers to leave the game. "Loyalist Slave Holders Resent Arming Slaves" caused the GA Volunteers to leave and the SC Royalist Infantry to flip to their reduced side, further weakening the already stretched British prior to the Allied assault. These adjustments included another loss of British Army Morale leaving them with 11 points (on the cusp of fatigued) while American Morale was at 17 and French at 18.

At the end of their half turn the Allies declared their assault, moving the turn marker to the Tactical Turn Track and initiating a back-to-back turn. The heavy rain would continue throughout the assault permanently reducing British Defensive Fire by -1 DRM.

The Americans attacked the Spring Hill Redoubt while the French attacked along a line of four hexes on their front. British Defensive Fire achieved a retreat on Dillon's Irish, a disruption on the French Grenadier Volunteers, and a step loss on the SC/GA Light Corp. The Americans eliminated the British Grenadiers and Captain Tawes and gained momentum in the fighting around Spring Hill. Several other British units retreated but the redoubt remained in British hands, though now surrounded on four sides.

The French eliminated the British naval infantry, reduced 1st de Lancy and also gained momentum. The Allies now held three momentum chits, including the one with which they started the game. The British played the "Sniper" card against one of the French leaders during the attack without effect.

As Bruno organized his counterattack and announced his battles the Allies played "Chaos on the Battlefield" hoping to disrupt British attacks. Bruno trumped this, however, by playing "Local Superiority." During his ensuing unimpeded counterattack the British disrupted the 2nd Charlestown Bn but lost 1st de Lancy and the 4th Royal Americans while counterattacking the French.

The Allies won the Initiative on Turn 2 of the tactical phase and closed in for the kill. British Defensive Fire disrupted the 2nd SC Regiment and retreated Twigg's and Harden's militias and on the French front, disrupted the Colonial Regulars from Martinique and eliminated the French Grenadier Bn. By taking the initiative, however, the Allied back-to-back move caught five British batteries uncovered and the Americans and French now overran them. This action pushed British Army Morale down to 3 in the Wavering category.

Dale and Mark agreed to roll a "priority die" to determine the order of their remaining attacks since VPs would be counted, and a winner determined, the moment British morale fell to 0. Mark's Americans won three such priority rolls in a row including one that had to be re-rolled three times to break a tie.

In these attacks the Americans captured the Loyal Savannah Militia but the British steadfastly held on to the Spring Hill Redoubt, and its VP, with a single artillery battery accompanied by the British army commander Prevost.

Once the attacks passed over to Dale he swiftly delivered the coup de grace, eliminating 2nd de Lancy, the 1st SC Royalist infantry and the 2nd GA Militia driving British Morale to 0 and ending the game.

Dale's French finished first with 11 VPs and an Army Morale of 20, to Mark's 5 American VPs and an Army Morale of 19 and Bruno's 2 British VPs and an Army Morale of 0.

The GM awarded an embroidered fleece blanket with the "Battle of Savannah" and the flags of the three nations to Dale for finishing first and The Life and Times of General Francis Marion to Bruno.

I guess this is the place where they play the revolutionary War series games or else the Tea Party is holding a meeting.	The finalists wage their three-cornered war. You know the AC works when the guy from Alaska wears his coat in August.