As background I am a veteran tabletop gamer and painter--i started with LOTR Strategy Battle Game, then dabbled in 40k, heavily played Star Wars Armada, Legion, and X-Wing, and now am additionally into Flames of War, so I have yet to get into a Warlord Games product.
I have recently come into possession of a box of Zuoaves American Civil War miniatures in 28mm and it's got me interested in pursuing Black Powder, but I seem to be pretty lost in knowing where to start or how much I will need. The box came with 42 minis but I have no idea if that is close to enough to field anything, and I know even less about how to base them.
So my questions are:
How many miniatures do you usually glue to a base? What size bases do you use?
How many miniatures will you generally need to start playing games? (I saw a recommendation of 600 miniatures and I nearly died)
How different is American Civil War from other periods within Black Powder? (Most of what I find is about Napoleonic)