“Burnside Is a Gnome”: Test Your Civil War Memory
“I saw Burnside is a gnome.”
My brother texted me those words after sending me a link to a fantasy, “magick” industrial-era PC game.
Somehow, Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside ended up in the land of Arcanum as a humble gnome, specifically Gnome Male No. 3.
My brother said some of the other character portraits in the game looked vaguely familiar as well. Like me, he spent long hours of his childhood playing Civil War General and Civil War Generals 2, and the faces of those generals are seared into our memories.
The game my brother referred to was Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, released in 2001. I’ll admit I’ve never played it, but as soon as I clicked the link he texted me, I immediately recognized a few Civil War generals among its lineup of characters. Others I had to dwell on for a bit before I had an aha moment.
I have no idea why the creators of the game chose to use portraits of Civil War generals, or why they selected these specific individuals from the thousands they could have chosen. I’d love to know.
This was not the first time I recognized a Civil War general’s likeness under the guise of another identity. For instance, I once encountered Lord Sandy on the label of a bottle of Worcestershire sauce staring back at me in a grocery store. Either whoever designed the label figured most Americans would never recognize Maj. Gen. Franz Sigel, or Sigel reinvented himself as a Worcestershire sauce lord after his ignominious war record.
I spent longer than you need to know trying to identify the Civil War generals on Arcanum’s character list. In some cases, their physical characteristics were altered by removing facial hair or adding bangs or a mullet. You will undoubtedly find some of them humorous, as I did.
I challenge you, Civil War buffs, to nerd out like I did and see how many Civil War generals you can identify. There are at least six that I’m certain about, along with a few others I feel optimistic about. I’m sure there are more.
You might even be able to identify some other historical faces in the lineup.
Bonus points if you can identify Halfling Male No. 3. This one is for my fellow antebellum Army diehards.
Test your Civil War memory and leave your answers in the comments below.
Here’s a link to Arcanum’s character portraits.
I provided an answer key for the ones I’ve identified, so do not scroll any lower if you do not want to spoil the challenge.
SPOILER BELOW THIS LINE
ANSWER KEY
- Magnus Shale Fist: Maj. Gen. Thomas L. Crittenden
- Weldo Rubin: Brig. Gen. Robert O. Tyler
- Human Male No. 4: Maj. Gen. John B. Gordon
- Dwarf Male No. 2: Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard
- Hafling Man No. 2: Brig. Gen. William W. Averell
- Hafling Male No. 3: Brevet Brig. Gen. William Gates
Who else am I missing?
