Due to a sudden burst in spammer activity, account creation has been temporarily disabled. Sorry for the inconvenience to any new potential contributors.

From AACWWiki

This article is in need of cleanup, in particular it needs to have its text and content cleaned up with "proper" wiki markup. You can help AACWWiki by editing this article.

This article lacks images. You can help AACWWiki by adding them.

Glossary and abbreviations

• CSA: Confederate States of America, the “Southern” side in the American Civil War
• Element: These are the building blocks of units. They have their own attributes but cannot be manipulated.
• Force: A generic term describing a collection of land or naval unit(s) moving and fighting together. You issue orders to Force’s.
• Independent Stack/Force: Any Stack or unit that is not part of a Corps within an Army.
• NM: National Morale. A measure of your side’s will to fight
• Stack: See Force
• Unit: The smallest Force you can manipulate in the game. Leaders are a special kind of unit.
• USA: United States of America, the “Northern” side in the American Civil War
• VP: Victory Point
• Supply: Both General Supply and Ammunition
• Aide de Camp: A non-Army commander leader in an Army Stack that has a Strategic Rating of 4+
• Symbolic Objective – TBD
• “Large” Force - Consists of 13+ CP worth of units or 13+ units.
• “Small Force” - Consists of 4 or less CP worth of units or 4 units or less.

Shortcut keys

Zooming

Mouse wheel

Zoom in/Zoom out

Click on mouse wheel

Alternate between maximum and minimum zoom levels

End

Same

Page Up

Zoom in

Page Down

Zoom out

Manipulating Stacks

Left-click

Select a stack

Right-click

Unselect (and returns to messages display)

Ctrl+click

Cycle through the various region stacks.

Drag & drop on another region

Move

Drag & drop on same region

Cancel whole move (exception: if Shift is pressed it allows circular trips)

Drag & drop on another force

Either intercept an enemy or merge with a friendly force

Drag & drop on city, port

Enter the structure

Drag & drop on a tab

Merge with this force

Del

Cancel the last leg of the movement path of the selected stack.

C

Center map on selected stack

Shift

When an army stack is selected: See the army command radius.

Shift

When a (non-army) stack is selected: See the nearby regions and nature of the links.

Ctrl

Show number of men

E/R

Cycle through land forces. Simultaneously press Ctrl to skip units who are not moving.

T/Y

Cycle through naval forces. Simultaneously press Ctrl to skip units who are not moving.

S (sentry)

Selected force will be skipped when cycling with keys E/R/T/Y

Ctrl +S

Remove all “sentry” orders

Ctrl + L

Lock/unlock all stacks (prevents a stack drop onto another stack from merging)

Right-click on a tab

Lock/unlock this stack.

A, O, D, P

Change the stack to the corresponding posture

Operational Orders (if applicable)

Shift+T

Enter town upon reaching destination

Shift+F

Build fort

Shift+D

Build depot

Shift+S

Sortie from structure

Shift+M

Force march

Shift+A

Set an ambush

Shift+R

Raze fort

Shift+B

Burn structure (land units)

Shift+B

Bombard (naval units)

Ctrl +C

When several units are selected, combine them (e.g. into a division)

Ctrl +D

Detach the unit if it consists of several units.

Map shortcuts

Keys 1 – 6: Switch map filter

Ledger shortcuts

F1

Force list

F2

Reinforcements (Secretary of War)

F3

Replacements (Secretary of War)

F4

Drafts (Secretary of War)

F5

Financials (Secretary of Treasury)

F6

Industrial (Secretary of Treasury)

F7

Loyalty (Attorney General)

F8

Politics (Secretary of State)

F9

Objectives (Secretary of State)

F10

Scenario background

In the unit panel

Ctrl-click

Select/unselect multiple units

Mouse wheel scroll

Move through the list of units

Select unit(s) then drag & drop on the map

Create a new army/fleet. This is used for disembarking in a coastal region without a friendly port, for example.

Messages Log

Simple-click

Go to region where event occurred (if relevant)

Double-click

Display messages content (if message is red) and opens specific message window

Mouse wheel scroll

To scroll up and down the message list

Windows

Esc

Close the window

Saved Games

When you move the mouse over a saved game on the load game screen, you have the following options:

Home

Back up one turn

Insert

rename it

Delete

delete it

City icons

Below is a general description of some of the icon’s you might encounter when viewing cities on the map. This list is not intended to be comprehensive but is intended to give the player a general idea.

A Depot is located in this city.

General Supply is available in this city.

Ammunition is available in this city

Entrenchment types (various levels)

Entrenchment types with artillery (various levels)

Cosmetic icon for a city without a harbor

Fort types (various levels with and without guns)

Stockade

Factory

Conscripts

Harbor types

Pre-war Fort

Anchorage types

Indian Village

NATO Symbols

Admiral (one or more symbols) Artillery, Coastal Artillery, Field Artillery, Heavy Artillery, Horse Artillery, Light Artillery, Siege Belle Boyd (CSA Spy) Balloons Cavalry Cavalry, Divisional Cavalry, Heavy Cavalry, Light Engineers Flotilla Gatling Guns General (one or more symbols) General/Cavalry Mixed (one or more symbols) General/Infantry Mixed (one or more symbols) Goods Headquarters Headquarters Headquarters Indian Infantry Infantry, Divisional Infantry, Heavy Infantry, Light Ironclad Irregular Marines Medical Militia (various states) Mines Mountain Naval Engineers Partisans Pioneers Pinkerton Agent (USA Spy) Privateer Rangers Riverine Sharpshooters Signal Slaves Steamer Steam Warship Submarine Supply Transport Warship

Special ability icon definition

AACW includes more than 70 special abilities. Hovering your mouse over a Special Ability’s icon will also display a tooltip with useful information. A list is provided below:

Name Picture Description

Militiaman

• Discipline bonus of 1, Cohesion bonus of 10 to all Militia in the Stack.

Cavalryman

• 25% combat bonus for all cavalry units in the Stack if in clear, prairie or desert terrain.

Artillerist

• 20% combat bonus for all artillery units in the Stack.

Defensive Engineer

• 10% defensive fire bonus and 1 extra protection when the Stack is already entrenched.

Entrencher

• 10% defensive fire bonus and 1 extra protection for the unit this element is in, if already entrenched.

Partisan

• 30% combat bonus and 2 extra protection to all Irregular units in the Stack. Applies only in difficult terrain.

Irregular Fighting Skill

• 15% attack and defense bonus to all the units in the Stack when in combat versus Irregulars, Partisans, Indians units (only in difficult terrain).

Indian Fighting skill

• 15% attack and defense bonus to all the units in the Stack when in battle versus Indian units (in all terrains).

Sharpshooter

• This unit possesses Sharpshooters that impede enemy reaction. +1 Initiative bonus in battle to the whole unit.

Fast Mover

• If the commander, 15% move bonus to the whole Stack.

Very Fast Mover

• If the commander, 25% move bonus to the whole Stack.

Very Fast Cavalryman

• If the commander, 25% move bonus to all cavalry in the Stack.

Very Fast Raider

• If the commander, 25% move bonus to all Irregulars in the Stack.

Slow Mover

• If the commander, 25% move penalty to the whole Stack.

Ranger

• 25% move bonus to the whole Stack in wild areas.

Pontoneer

• Provides a 50% speed bonus to the whole Stack when crossing rivers.

Seaman

• If the commander, provides a 25% move bonus to the whole Fleet.

Supply Ranger

• 15% reduction in General Supply consumption to the whole Stack in wild areas.

Master Logistician

• If the commander, 25% reduction on the whole Force General Supply consumption.

Forager

• This element or commander reduces by 25% the chances that a unit pillages a region when foraging (i.e. when General Supply is lacking).

Expert Forager

• This element or commander reduces by 50% the chances that a unit pillages a region when foraging (i.e. when General Supply is lacking).

Siege Expert

• Provides a one point siege bonus to the whole Stack when attacking Forts.

Fort Defender

• Provides a one point siege bonus to the whole Stack when defending in a Fort.

Engineer

• Provides a one point siege bonus to the whole Stack when defending or attacking Forts.

Ambusher

• If the commander, 50% bonus to Irregulars’ chance to ambush in non-clear areas

Surpriser

• If the commander, 20% chance of surprising the enemy (first fire).

Skirmisher

• If the commander, allows an easier retreat in the first two hours of the battle.

Adept Raider

• If the commander, allows a 85% chance of retreat at any round of battle, if overwhelmed. Applies only to stacks needing 4 or fewer command points.

Reckless

• If the commander, will have difficulty retreating on the first two hours of the battle.

Hothead

• If the commander, won't be able to order a retreat during the first two hours of the battle.

Indian-American Commander

• Can lead units of Indian nationality without penalty

Patriot

• Gives a 25% bonus to the raise of Partisans and volunteers in the State where he is present.

Recruiting Officer

• Can muster new Conscripts on a regular basis in cities of Level 5+. Must be in the city to do so.

Training Officer

• If the commander, will train up to two regiments of Conscripts to regular soldier every turn.

Training Master

• Provides 1 experience point every turn to all the troops in the Stack by drilling them.

Master Spy

• If the commander, improves the detection of enemy units (except Irregulars) within the Department.

Poor Spy Network

• If the commander, erroneous reports received which worsen the detection of enemy units (except Irregulars) within the Department.

Indian

• This unit is Indian.

Large Transport

• This unit has a transport capacity of 10.

Medium Transport

• This unit has a transport capacity of 5.

Transport

• This unit has a transport capacity of 3.

Small Transport

• This unit has a transport capacity of 2.

Tiny Transport

• This unit has a transport capacity of 1.

Charismatic

• This leader has a charismatic aura. If the commander, provides +5 maximum Cohesion and a +25% increase in the fatigue recovery rate of units under his command.

Good Army Administrator

• The leader is appreciated by his men and cares about their well-being. If the commander, provides a +15% increase in the fatigue recovery rate of units under his command.

Dispirited Leader

• This commander is absolutely not charismatic in the eyes of his men or is a defeatist. -5 Maximum Cohesion to the Stack if the commander, -25% to the Cohesion recovery rate.

HQ Command

• Because of an efficient command structure, Divisions HQs are able to give +5 Maximum Cohesion and +5% to the Cohesion Recovery Rate, to all divisional elements.

Strong Morale

• This element is either composed of highly motivated, battle-hardened individuals or is a leader capable of inspiring his men. The inspiration provided gives a +5 Maximum Cohesion bonus to all others elements of the unit.

Medical Service

• This element is a Medical Service company, able to provide health care even on the battlefield. Give +15% to the Cohesion Recovery rate of all others elements of the Stack they are in.

Hated Occupier

• This leader will apply Martial Law with extreme severity in any rebellious city he has to pacify.

Occupier

• This leader will not hesitate to proclaim Martial Law in any rebellious city he has to administer.

Good Population Administrator

• If the most senior General in the region, will progressively increase the Loyalty of the population over time. (+1% each turn up to 75%)

Pillager

• If the most senior commander in the region, this leader will let his men burn and pillage the countryside without regards for justice, slaughtering civilians if need be. Only the most loyal and policed regions will be spared by his cruel behaviour.

Strategist

• If the Commander in Chief in the Department, provides +1 Command Point and an additional +1 per ability level, to his Stack and all subordinates Corps.

Good Commander

• If in command provides +1 Command Point per ability level. (If in command of an Army, subordinates Corps also receive this bonus)

Gifted Commander

• This general is gifted for command. +2 Command Points and +1 additional CP per ability level above 1, to any Stack he commands. (If in command of an Army, subordinates Corps also receive this bonus)

Good Subordinates

• This general knows how to pick his subordinates and is able to delegate command at the right moment. +3 Command Points to any stacks he commands. This ability does not improve.

Quickly Angered

• This general is quickly angered and is often having arguments with his subordinates. -4 Command Points to the Stack he commands and to subordinates Corps if any.

Over Cautious

• This commander is far too cautious when it comes to engaging the enemy, resulting in passivity and a lack of reactivity in the Chain of Command of his Army. -4 CP if the commander of the Stack (applied to subordinate Corps if in command of an Army)

Signal

• This signal unit is of great use to an able commander for transmitting orders along the chain of command. +2 Command Points to the Stack it is in. This ability does not improve.

Balloon

• This Balloon unit is of great use to an able commander for spotting the enemy and coordinating movements between his regiments. +1 Command Points to the Stack it is in. This ability does not improve.

Deceiver

• This element or general is adept at establishing dummy positions (Quaker guns and such), camouflaging to the enemy the real strength of his Force. +1 to the Hide Value of the Stack, if entrenched.

Screener

• This element or general is able to screen and mask the progression of the whole Force with the clever use of scouts, use of side-tracks and stealthy march subterfuges. +1 to the Hide Value of the Stack and +25% to the Evasion Value, if the Stack is moving.

Deep Raider

• This element or general is able to mount deep raids which can avoid enemy patrols, with the use of side-tracks and stealthy march subterfuges. +50% to the Evasion Value, if the Stack is moving.

Patroler

• This element or general is proficient in making more effective patrols in the region he is in, by setting an effective network of surveying detachments or establishing signal towers. +1 to Detection Value, +35% to the Patrol Value of the Stack the element is in, if entrenched.

Sea Spotter

• This element or admiral is proficient in surveying the seas and spotting enemy ships. +1 to Detection Value, +35% to the Patrol Value of the Stack the element is in.

Dispersed Move

• This general (if the commander) has the bad habit of letting his troops move in disorder, thus reducing how they can effectively patrol the region, or conceal their approach. -25% to Evasion and Patrol, -1 to hiding Value of the whole Stack, if moving.

Blockade Runner

• If the admiral in command, this leader will be adept at avoiding enemy naval Force’s, if need be. +35% to the Evasion Value of the Fleet. Works only if moving.

Fort Runner

• If the admiral in command, this leader will be adept at running enemy Forts, if need be. +10% to the Evasion Value, -35% to the damage taken from Forts firing on the passing Fleet. Works only if moving.

Sea Raider

• If the admiral in command, this leader will be adept at avoiding enemy naval Force’s, if need be. +25% to the Evasion Value of the Fleet. Works even if not moving.

Emplaced Guns

• These guns are emplaced batteries and can't be moved outside the region.

Pillager

• This element will burn immediately any enemy Depot or stockade captured.