Guys,

This year, we're doing something different. Rather than doing a specific battle scenario at the annual Neshaminy Event, we are going to conduct a generic scenario for the spectators. This will be a scrïpted scenario to show the use of infantry, artillery and cavalry and hopefully, make better use of the land available.

What do you guys think, good or bad idea?    

Will there be a 15 mile march involved?

[cit]Ken Cornett wrote : Will there be a 15 mile march involved?

[cit]

Ken,

Only if your car breaks down on the way to the event!

I was serious about my question. Given the land available, it makes perfect sense to do a non-specific battle scenario for the spectators. I just question if it will have as much meaning for the spectators and participants.  

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Bill wrote : Guys, This year, we're doing something different. Rather than doing a specific battle scenario at the annual Neshaminy Event, we are going to conduct a generic scenario for the spectators. This will be a scrïpted scenario to show the use of infantry, artillery and cavalry and hopefully, make better use of the land available. What do you guys think, good or bad idea?

Bill

Sometimes it is a good idea to have a non specific scenario.  I think it allows for the soldiers to experience the hectic nature of a battle without knowing who is supposed to win.  
Sometimes the bad part of that is it does allow from some yahoos to do their single man charges which look silly.

As for the spectators, I think if they are able to see a battle that shows plenty of movement and some good fighting they will enjoy it regardles..  

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lhsnj wrote :   Bill Sometimes it is a good idea to have a non specific scenario.  I think it allows for the soldiers to experience the hectic nature of a battle without knowing who is supposed to win.   Sometimes the bad part of that is it does allow from some yahoos to do their single man charges which look silly. As for the spectators, I think if they are able to see a battle that shows plenty of movement and some good fighting they will enjoy it regardles..

Greg,

We weren't planning to have a tactical in front of the spectators. We already do that out in the woods. That's always been the fight for the reenactors.

We were planning to do a scrïpted scenario for the spectators, just like we always do, except it won't be a specific action.

Bill,

I think I told you this the other day on the phone, but I just sent my Serio's back for resoling.  They are only 2 years old with hobnails and they are worn out and cracked.  I sure have given them some hell the past two seasons.

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Bill wrote :   Greg, We weren't planning to have a tactical in front of the spectators. We already do that out in the woods. That's always been the fight for the reenactors. We were planning to do a scrïpted scenario for the spectators, just like we always do, except it won't be a specific action.

Bill

I understand, I talked about a non-specific battle.  It can still be scrïpted.  The Ridley battles are "scrïpted", but most of the boys in our ranks don't know who is going to win, so they fight based on the commands as they filter down.  

My personal opinion is that specific scenarios are lost on the vast majority of the spectators.  The 'prequel' announcements just aren't long enough to impart enough information to really understand what is going on.

But then I don't see how a 'generic' battle is going to be any better or worse from a spectator standpoint.  They still aren't going to 'get it'.

Heck, I'm a private so I just go where the officers tell me to and don't worry about the big picture.

I just wonder how 'realistic' this will be or is it going to be more like when I was a kid out in the woods playing soldier.

It will be an interesting experience if nothing else.

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Bob 125th NYSVI wrote : I just wonder how 'realistic' this will be or is it going to be more like when I was a kid out in the woods playing soldier. It will be an interesting experience if nothing else.

Bob,

The spectator "battle" will still be scrïpted. It just won't be a specific battle. We will try to put together a scenario that allows each of the three branches to participate and maneuver.

You're right. I'm helping to put this all together and it will be an interesting experience.    

Just a thought about the scrïpted battle.  No mind you this is  private's eye view but in last year's scenario we (yankees) came out of the woods and faced the spectators as they were behind the rebs.

It seems to me that they would get a better feel for the eb and flow of the battle if somehow the battlelines were formed perpendicular to the spectators.

Just a thought.

See you (maybe) there.

Bob,

Last year we did a scrïpted scenario of a specific battle, Balls Bluff. The river behind you wasn't the Delaware, it was the Potomac. The river was at the Yank's backs, to their great dismay! It was about the only time I can remember where the spectator area at Neshaminy almost exactly matched the actual battlefield.

On Sunday, we did the Battle of Bolivar Heights. We did the portion of the battle where the Federals were on the Heights and attacked by the Confederates. That wooded area along the river is the highest land on the Spectator area, so you were on roughly the same ground again.

Every other year, since I've been involved, the scenario has moved from left to right across the Spectator area. We wanted to do something different, that was also, more or less, historically correct.  

Understand and know all about last year.  The way the battle was portrayed certainly fit the bill but didn't help the spectators.

Over on the AC forum there is a brief discussion about how to take prisoners, a rarely seen event at reenactments.

I think you should read it and see if you could portray a units surrender and have the oppo force taken them prisoner appropriately.

Just a thought.

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Over on the AC forum there is a brief discussion about how to take prisoners, a rarely seen event at reenactments.

Bob,

I don't know what constitutes "rare," but prisoner scenarios are typically part of several events each year on the EBUFU circuit, and in some cases the primary focus of the event.

Maybe I should have said rarely seen done properly.

More so at an individual than at unit level is where people seem to fall down in doing it right.

Bill,

It would probably be as educational for the reenactors as the public, if done right,and reenactorisms killed...



Pards,

Bill, I think the "generic" scenario has a lot of promise.  Our historic scenarios, even when well-scrïpted, usually involve some serious compromises based on unit size, distances, and time-frame.  At Neshaminy, where you know the ground and have a pretty good idea of who will show up, you have the opportunity to tailor a scenario to show an encounter between two reasonably sized brigades, with attached artillery and cavalry, and thus do a better job than most at addressing the size and time issues.  It may not reflect a specific engagement, but it can show the sort of action that occurred countless times as part of a larger battle.  Go for it.

I will chime in here.  

I say make use of your land and have a go at it..  

In my experiance the spectators are looking for acton,  hearing the sound of battle and smelling the gun powder in the air.

I do some volunteer stuff at Stones River and  we have the same folks come out almost every  Living History demo just to see us do infantry or artillery demos.

regards  

--Last edited by Steven Cone on 2007-04-02 00:29:31 --

We conducted a walk through at the Neshaminy site this past weekend. The two scrïpted scenarios are going to be very loosely based on the battle of Cross Keys, during the Valley Campaign. We are going to do the Federal attack and repluse on Saturday and the Confederate counter attack on Sunday. There will be a major emphasas on skirmishing, especially on Sunday.

The tactical on Saturday will take place right before the scrïpted scenario, while Sunday's tactical will take place in the morning, separate from the spectator scenario.

I sure hope the ground dries up during the coming month!

The Neshaminy web site is www.28thpvi.org  

If Grumpy Dave goes to Neshaminy, you'd best build about 40 pontoon boats to get from the event site to the marina, as you know darn well it is going to rain, rain, rain...

Had to be said.

They're safe.