[Defensive Tactics Advice]

Defense is far easier to master than attacking. The key to defense is setting up a proper battle line and moving units from parts of your battle line that are not being attacked to parts that are.

 

A good ideal battle line will have your Brigades 3 Brigades deep as long as you can stretch it in the part that the enemy will mass troops, Staggered and with Artillery placed up close, far behind and on your flanks (side of your battle line). Artillery on the flanks can decimate an enemy Brigade before it ever gets close to your battle line. It is worth it to send a Brigade or Skirmisher to the far flank on a hill and have him guard as many guns as you can place up on that hill that faces your flank and let the guns just annihilate the enemy as they press the attack.

 

The key to defense is the Fallback. What you should do is where the enemy is massing troops you need to bring up Brigades from parts that are not being threatened. Do not place them all in a straight line this is a recipe for disaster. Instead stagger them like I said before. When the enemy attacks the first line wait till the enemy makes contact with your Brigade and they start Hand to Hand. Then have the first line fall back behind the next line. This will allow constant fire from the Brigade behind your front line to keep fire up while your men fall back. This will drain the enemy of Organization and Morale. They will then keep pushing and attack the second line of Brigades. When they begin to Hand to Hand again you fall back behind your next line of Brigades. If you have 3 or 4 lines of Brigades staggered so that they are not side by side but offset a few feet so one brigade further down the line can hit the flank or turn their line as they press the attack. This will drain them faster if you can shoot up their flanks. Also Artillery, Protect them at all cost. Do not put all your guns on the front line. One or two batteries on the front line is all you need for canister shot. If the enemy begins to march around your flank you need to fall back as fast as possible and maneuver your Brigades so you can intercept them.

 

If you follow this strategy do not worry if you lose a VP the enemy will be so tired it will be impossible for them to hold it and when you notice them waiver press the counter attack and do not let up till they are on the run.

 

If you play a strictly defensive game with this strategy on hardest difficulty you will win.

Thanks you! Laid out like that I can definitely see how that would work. I still have some questions though. How do I stop my line from being flanked though? Would I just rely upon interior lines to move brigades if the enemy shifts his attack and rely upon skirmishers and flanking artillery to hold the enemy back until my line infantry arrives? Or do I draw my lines at angles and give up the majority of ground until the enemy is to tired to defend it. 

Also, you mentioned the greater difficulty in attacking, I agree with that prognosis, I've just been obsessing over the defensive lately. I don't suppose I could bother you for some sagely advice for taking the offensive? 

[Defensive Tactics Advice]

It may just be because I'm pretty inexperienced in RTS games, but I just can't seem to defend to my satisfaction. I can do so against the less aggressive AI but the more aggressive AI just masses their troops and walks over me. Sometimes its as if I just don't have enough soldiers to cover all of my weak points. 

I was wondering if anyone could give me some defensive pointers? Its pretty clear that most of the Early Access players are more experienced tacticians then I am so any and all advice would be appreciated .

[Is ammo needed?]

As long as everyone has an option to do so its fine with me but i dont want to be forced.

I think that's a good compromise. If the option is there for other people, more power to them. Personally, I'd want to keep ammo off but I can understand why others would want it. 

[Just purchased Ultimate General: Gettysburg... its a great game!.]

Which side do you prefer the union or confederates ? .

I'm a Union man myself . How about you? Billy Yank or Johnny Reb? 

[COOP multiplayer vs AI]

Co-op would be a fantastic addition. 

[Just purchased Ultimate General: Gettysburg... its a great game!.]

Here here! Great game so far!

[Is ammo needed?]

I think ammo should stay out of it. Speaking as someone new to RTS, its difficult enough just to manage the battle lol. Furthermore, bringing in ammo would act a great deal of micro-management. Given that part of the appeal of UGG is the lack of micro-management I think that adding ammo would be counter-intuitive. 

['Cosmetic' Suggestions]

Oh and clearer indicators for terrain would be great. 

['Cosmetic' Suggestions]

A note on the cavalry. Its also worth noting that American Civil War cavalry was not as effective a fighting force as European Cavalry and was rarely used to cut off a retreating enemy. Cavalry was used to harass the enemy and scout enemy movements. I think for the most part the game nails it on the application of cavalry. As someone else already said, the use of cavalry to cut off the enemy was a Napoleonic thing. 

That being said cavalry often fought dismounted, it would be pretty cool if we got that feature.

[Confederates Still Hugely Overpowered]

@R.E.B. Blunt. Fair enough. I guess I was looking at the defensive action as a simulator rather then game (ie in the actual Civil War the Rebel charge would not have worked). I've had more luck since adopting my strategy to the game, so again, thanks for the advice, albeit bluntly delivered. Though I still think the Union Brigades are under powered. I mean, contrary to popular belief, the Grand Army of the Potomac had more then one effective brigade. I was actually a bit insulted that Adelbert Ames was given a one star rating . 

Though I definitely agree that the Union artillery is excellent. 

Tl;dr I concede to R.E.B. Blunt and JohnnyJingles, though I do hold that offensive tactics were harder to actuate in the actual conflict and defensive tactics were more effective. 
 

[Confederates Still Hugely Overpowered]

The Rebels are still hugely overpowered in the game. I've had whole divisions overrun on high ground with cover and artillery support. Its almost as if all the Rebels have to do to win is charge. The only thing that seems to stop them is canister.

I think giving the Rebels a charging bonus is drastically unfair. It makes defending as the Union impossible.

[Play Battle Mode]

I should add that I really love the base game. I just think this mode would make it easier for people new to RTS like me get used to the mechanics. I've only played a few RTS games and honestly I can only beat the AI at the moment on the easier difficulty settings lol. A Play Battle mode would be fun and helpful for newbies like myself. 

[Play Battle Mode]

Just wondering if there would be a "Play Battle" mode similar to that of NTW added in the final game. Right now the Custom Battle mode only lets you replay scenarios that you have already fought in the campaign which feels a bit paltry. 

Having a mode where you can customize the armies of both sides and pick your map is a great way to experiment with tactics and learn the ins and outs of the game. Its also a great way to play when you don't want the burden of the whole campaign on your shoulders.

I know multiplayer is on the way so I'm hoping that this will include customizable AI opponents and offline functionality. Here's hoping.