Following the disastrous Battle of Fredericksburg, the Army of the Potomac's morale sinks to its lowest point ever. Burnside, witnessing the wretched state his men are in, tries to rectify the situation by sending his men on another campaign in the midst of winter. However, his men are caught in a freezing cold storm that turns the roads to mud. Unable to power through this deluge, Burnside recalls his men in disgrace. Realizing there is nothing more he can do, Burnside forces Lincoln to accept his resignation from army command and is replaced by the one man he despises, Joseph Hooker. Hooker, seeing how horribly Burnside let the condition of the army fall, jumps into action to get it back into fighting shape. While the Federals are working on themselves, Lee begins planning his next invasion into the north, but before he can advance north into Maryland, he'll need food, more food than his supply lines can bring. Forcing Lee to look for untouched places across the commonwealth to procure his much-needed resources.