Freemont has his petition to return to Washington accepted. It was strongly supported by everyone under his command. He is replaced by Halleck.
Sigel pushes Lyons' weary troops to attack Fayetteville as there is a chance that the defenders can be eliminated completely. The Confederates prefer to keep a force in being, and being cavalry, slip away.
Halleck takes his new command towards Bowling Green, but Buell beats him to it (trains are faster than feet). He attacks Polk, but not until the US Navy has positioned a squadron in Polk's rear. The attack is 1:1 with a -1. The die roll is a 9, but Polk holds his ground, inflicting 5,000 casualties on the Union. Buell shrugs this off. Both sides suffer fatigue.
Still in the West, a small force of 10,000 blue clad infantry heads for the Cumberland Gap. Curtis, who now has 40,000 men, double what he can command, decides to dig in.
A Naval Depot is established at Beaufort where the New Bern garrison has retreated to lick their wounds. At least they are back in supply.
McClellan crosses the Potomac and attacks J E Johnston. McDowell with 30,000 men covers his right flank. A further force of 10,000 men heads down the Shenandoah Valley. The Battle of Manassas Junction pits 40,000 Union Militia against 40,000 Confederate Volunteers. There is a -2 modifier. The die roll is a 6. The Union lose 5,000 men. Both Commanders escape unharmed, there is no fatigue.
Beauregard decides the Union rabble hiding in the swamps outside New Bern are no threat and attempts to force march to New Market. It is a fiasco with the chaotic southern railways and poor terrain causing 5,000 volunteers to sneak off home for Christmas. It only gets worse when it is discovered that the incorrect forms were used to call out the North Carolina Militia. (Whoops, but their absence was probably inconsequential to the battles Beauregard fought. My bad. But it is an important lesson to remember for other states, e.g. Tennessee.)
J E Johnston digs in, but Magruder attacks! It's a 2:3 attack with a +1. The die roll is a 9. Both sides lose 5,000 casualties and gain a fatigue.
Polk abandons his invasion of Kentucky and cuts across the headwaters of the Cumberland where the Yankee gun boats can't reach and heads to Nashville with his 15,000 men. A S Johnston collects his forces in Memphis. S D Lee and 5,000 heavily fatigued and unsupplied cavalry crawl back to Little Rock. It will take some time, but with winter approaching they are safe from the Union.
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