Saturday, December 31, 2022

Happy New Year!

 

Happy New Year to all. 

It was a funny old year. I didn't get much gaming in, real life having too many distractions including catching Covid-19 back in May. This coming year promises to be better. 

I hope to finish the 1906 alternate history pre-Dreadnaught naval campaign, and maybe round out some of my existing collections before embarking on something new (First World War Palestine keeps singing a siren song - Grid Based Wargaming has an excellent campaign running at the moment).

So, take care everybody, look after yourselves, and let's hope this coming year is a bit less mad for us all.


Friday, November 11, 2022

We will remember them

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.


 

Friday, November 4, 2022

Heligoland - After game thoughts

Whilst most games go well, some games just feel... wrong. The Heligoland action is one such. In real life the Royal Navy was reluctant to tackle the island's defences, especially after they were upgraded in 1912. In the game I ran, the navy had far too easy a time of it, and it wasn't merely down to dice rolls. 

I'll revisit the rules and see where they need tweaking. The 28cm howitzers, for instance, should do far more damage.

Wednesday, September 28, 2022

Bombardment of Heligoland ~ Part 2

As the Bombardment Group went about on the next westward leg, matters went from bad to worse with Empress of India. An 11 inch shell screamed in, striking her stern and damaging the rudder flat. Her steering shot, Empress of India began to swerve out of the line to port. 

The damage control party were soon on the scene. EA Bert Hoskins scratched his head as he regarded the steel shard jammed in the rudder trunk. The whistle of the wind and the roar of battle came through the hole in the deck above his head where the enemy shell had entered.

"I dunno, Frank," he shouted to his mate, EA Frank Arkwright. "How should we fix this'n, then?"

"Do wot my Old Man always did when 'e 'ad a problem, mechanical-like," Frank replied in a gentle clatter of dropped aitches. "'It it wiv an 'ammer!"

"Right you are, lad." Bert held out his hand. "Pass me that there sledge'ammer..."

Captain Marsh commanding Empress of India ordered a reduction in speed to take the strain off the rudder while repairs were made. The Empress described one full circle, her two fit consorts passing north of her and Royal Sovereign slowing to pass south. The wounded ship resounded with solid clangs and grunts before finally a cheerful voice came from the confines of the rudder flat. 
 
"Try the bugger now, sir!"
 
The message - suitably bowdlerised - made its way to the bridge. The quartermaster tentatively tried the ships wheel before grinning and nodding to his Captain. "Helm's answering, sir!"

"And at the end of it all we merely exchanged places in the line." Marsh nodded approval. "Tell the engineering lads well done, and they can ask for an extra tot of run when this business is over."

 

To the north the effects of the bombardment were increasing. The island resembled a volcano as shell bursts dotted the once-pristine surface. Two more emplacements erupted in flame and ruin as 13.5 inch shells found their mark. Fires raged in the upper village to lend an awful human tragedy to the scene. The steeple of St. Nikolas' Church rose serenely above it all.


The next salvo destroyed the sole surviving 11 inch gun turret, effectively ending the island's heaviest-hitting artillery. Heligoland's defence now depended on the 28 cm howitzers, which had made a good show at pulverising Royal Sovereign's secondary armament, but had failed to penetrate her main belt and deck armour.

Edwards squinted through his binoculars. "Another hit on the civilian area, sir."

"Bloody hell," Ramsay muttered. "Resolution again?"

"Yes sir, but not to worry." Edwards lowered his binoculars and smiled. "She hit the enemy barracks this time." 

"It seems Captain Cavendish had a word with Thessiger."

"Quite likely, sir."

The Kasern erupts.

Edwards resumed his scan of the island and its environs. Movement in the area of the inner harbour caught his eye and he stiffened. "Sir? Enemy torpedo boats heading toward us, close by the harbour."

Six lean shapes emerged from the haze of drifting smoke, their sights set on the Bombardment Group.

"Hmm." Ramsay studied the oncoming vessels. "I'm surprised they haven't made an appearance before now."

"We are down two 6 inch guns, sir. Those howitzers may not be good for penetrating solid armour, but they played havoc with our secondary guns and crews."

"Indeed. Perhaps those fellows yonder relied upon the damage we've suffered to our secondaries being greater than it is. Signal the squadron to be on the watch for torpedoes. Warn our lookouts, too. Beastly things!"

As he turned to give orders for a moment Edwards thought Ramsay referred to Royal Sovereign's stalwart lookouts before realising it was a non-sequitur.

Although Royal Sovereign had lost all but two of her 6 inch guns to enemy fire, her consorts had not suffered anywhere near as much, or at all. As the German torpedo boats closed, so the British gun crews found their marks. The leading boats shuddered and split apart as the heavy projectiles ripped into their fragile hulls.

"Those fellows have plenty of pluck," Ramsay remarked as the surviving two torpedo boats sliced through the falling spray, debris and smoke to zero in on the squadron. Torpedoes shot from their tubes and splashed into the sea. Foaming wakes appeared, heading straight for the Bombardment Group.

An order came from Rear Admiral Crabtree. "Signal - the squadron must turn to comb the torpedo tracks!"

Ramsay gave the order to signal, but he could already see that years of peacetime naval maneuvers had paid off. The squadron's ships were already turning northward to comb the tracks. From his vantage point Ramsay could see trouble ahead. 

"Damn it, Tom, but it's going to be tight."

Even as he spoke a colossal plume of smoke and dirty water rose from Empress of India's stern quarter. The resounding explosion was accompanied by a wave of heat that they felt even on Royal Sovereign's bridge.

Ramsay watched with a sick dread as Empress of India reeled and yawed - before carrying on as before. He breathed a sigh of relief. "I think she's hurt, Tom, but not as bad as I feared."

"Bloody good job, sir. It'd be a shame for the Empress to sink now after all this."

The secondary armament of Resolution and Repulse made short work of the two remaining torpedo boats. 

Ramsay eyed the floating wreckage and the heads of survivors in the water. "Brave fellows. They gave it a damned good try. If we have any boats left, Tom, make sure to ready them for search and rescue once this business is finished."

"Aye aye, sir." Edwards gestured toward the island. "The enemy's fire is definitely slackening. I think we're near victory."

The last emplacement goes up.

A plume of smoke rose into the sky as the last 24 cm gun emplacement took a direct hit. Fire from the island died way altogether. The order to cease fire came from the flag bridge and a shocking silence descended on the scene. 

The Bombardment Squadron approached slowly and cautiously, the lookouts scanning the area with keen attention in case any more torpedo boats were lurking. Some of the island's nearer 4.1 inch guns fired as the squadron came within range, but a few choice shots in reply from the 6 inch guns soon dissuaded them from any more efforts. 

Soon a white flag was seen waving from the church tower. A picket boat emerged from the harbour flying another white flag and made its way toward the waiting ships. Rear Admiral Crabtree strode onto the bridge with the air of a man who saw a knighthood in his near future. 

"Congratulations, sir," Ramsay greeted him with a salute. 

Crabtree responded in kind then rubbed his hands together. "A splendid piece of work, eh, Jeff? Well well. Kindly signal the squadron to heave-to and anchor, then ask Charybdis to come along over here to land her troops. We can sew this business up before teatime, I think."

"Indeed sir."

Ramsay gave his orders then walked out onto the port bridge wing to lean on the rail. The fresh westerly wind failed to carry away the stench of smoke, propellant and, yes, burned human flesh. He looked down on the charnel pit a 28 cm shell had made of the closest 6 inch gun position. A surgeon's mate picked his way carefully over the blood-streaked wreckage in search of survivors as a damage control party got to work clearing debris. Lt. Edwards already had crews making ready to sway out the remaining boats to rescue the enemy torpedo boat survivors.

More than a few of my gallant ship's company won't see another teatime, either. Ramsay wiped his hand over his face, feeling suddenly weary. I'll visit the wounded then comes the hardest duty - writing the letters to the bereaved families. He looked over to the island, where fires still burned in the wrecked houses of the village. But before all that it'd be a kindness to help save what we can from the damage we caused those poor civilians.

Royal Sovereign slowed. Up on the forecastle the anchor crew got to work. With a last glance around Ramsay entered the bridge to give orders for firefighting parties to go ashore. 

Monday, September 26, 2022

Bombardment of Heligoland ~ Part 1

"The range has closed to 20,000 yards, sir." The Royal Sovereign's gunnery officer's voice carried down the pipe from the director tower high overhead. 

The dark green hump of Heligoland Island loomed ahead, a thin line of gentle surf showing white along the foot of the russet cliffs. Most of the island appeared to be green and dozing beneath the May sunlight. Thin plumes of smoke from domestic fires rose above the red rooftops of the village at the eastern end. Nothing suggested massed German artillery waited for the British squadron to come into effective range. Nothing suggested the smiling sea to the west had been sown with mines, thus restricting the attacking ships' field of maneuver. 

Rear Admiral Crabtree turned to Captain Ramsay and smiled. "Here we go then, Jeff. We're about to see if the Hero's adage is correct. Is a ship a fool to fight a fort in our modern age?"

Captain Ramsay smiled back. "As much as I respect Lord Nelson, sir, my ship and I are determined to prove him wrong."

"Excellent! That's the spirit. I'll be off to the flag bridge." Crabtree clapped Ramsay on the arm. "Good luck, then, Jeff, and have at 'em!"

Within minutes the Bombardment Group had approached the designated firing area. The signal for a turn to port played out from the semaphore. As the arms swung through the message, distant flashes broke along the green line of the island. Moments later the express-train roar of plunging shells filled the air. Towering plumes of water rose all around the Royal Sovereign.

Lieutenant Tom Edwards, the 2-i-C, glanced at the bridge chronometer then his fob watch. As water fell in torrents upon the deck and superstructure he turned to the duty midshipman standing wide eyed alongside him. "Make a note in the log, Mr. Watson. The enemy opened fire at 12.10 hours precisely..."

Royal Sovereign leads Empress of India, Resolution and Repulse (below, off camera) into action.

The second salvo from the island screamed in. Moments later a cataclysmic explosion shook Royal Sovereign to her core. Edwards saw the thick armour of the after 13.5 inch turret open up like an obscene flower with fire at its heart. When he looked back at the Captain, Ramsay's face wore an expression more suited to a man seeing a kid throwing stones at his conservatory. "Damned annoying, that," Ramsay muttered. "See to it, Tom."

Royal Sovereign's aft turret explodes.

As Edward gave orders to damage control, above his head the calm voice of the gunnery officer gave the word to fire. Royal Sovereign's forward turret guns belched flame and smoke as the wounded ship retaliated. Hits were observed.

Royal Sovereign at 'Windy Corner,' Empress of India following faithfully astern. Smoke pours from the gaping hole in the deck where the after turret stood.

The ships of the Bombardment Group turned in succession, and the guns of Heligoland followed them along, shells raining upon the Royal Sovereign, making her shudder and rattle with every impact. It was not all one-way traffic. As more ships made the turn, so their guns came to bear. Soon, 13.5 inch shells rained down upon the island.

German fire concentrates on Royal Sovereign.

Suddenly a plume of dirty smoke shot into the air above the cliffs facing the squadron. A cheer rose from the embattled Royal Sovereign, sounding thin amidst the cacophony of exploding howitzer shells and thundering guns. "A hit, a hit, a palpable hit!" cried Ramsay, rubbing his hands.

"We'll need a few more of those to finish the business, sir," Edwards remarked.

"They'll get 'em," Ramsay replied.

They both braced themselves as the German gunners' reply slammed into their vessel.

On the island a 13.5 inch shell found a weak spot on the westernmost 11 inch gun turret. Plunging through the armour it exploded deep inside the magazine, blowing the turret off as if it weighed no more than a tin can.

The Bombardment Group went about, but the turn and the resulting predictable course served to aid the German gunners. More shells rained down on the flagship, penetrating her hull and creating havoc with the steam lines. As pressure fell and hull damage mounted she found it difficult to maintain speed and station. 

A midshipman ran onto the bridge, eyes shining with excitement, one hand holding a handkerchief to a gory shrapnel wound on his left cheek. He saluted the Captain. "Admiral's compliments, sir, and he requests you signal Empress of India to take the lead."

Ramsay lowered his binoculars long enough to regard the boy. "My compliments to the Admiral, and I shall comply with his wish." 

As the boy ran off, Ramsay gave his 2-i-C a faint smile. "He's half excited, half terrified. The lad reminds me of my own days as a 'Snotty,' Tom, at the bombardment of Alexandria."

"I was at Rugby at the time, sir, but remember reading about it." Edwards nodded in the direction of the flag bridge. "If he survives, at least he'll have a dashing scar with which to impress the girls."

Ramsay chuckled as he raised his binoculars again to study the effects of the bombardment. Moments later he groaned. "Oh Christ. Resolution's hit the village." He grimaced. "We hoped to avoid that. Let's hope the civvies are down deep in their cellars. There may be a few more hits on the town before this is over."

"I'm afraid so, sir." Edwards examined the island through his own binoculars as the next salvo roared away. "Ah, that's better. I believe we hit another of their emplacements, sir."

The din of battle lessened as Royal Sovereign eased out of the line. Edwards suppressed an uncharitable sense of relief as he saw the German defensive fire switch to pummel the Empress of India.

Empress of India takes a battering.

A plume of smoke rose above the island's cliffs. Ramsay frowned. "I think we hit something else over there, but I don't believe it's a gun position. I wonder what the devil it was?"

After a few minutes Edwards smiled. "I believe that last hit was their gunnery control, sir. Their fire is increasingly erratic."

"Good show!" Ramsay replied. 

The next salvo was the most effective to date. Two more emplacements erupted into ruin. 

"Now we're talking!" Ramsay said. "I do believe we've set the gorse and bracken alight, too. That'll also hinder their fire direction."

Moments later his smile turned into a scowl. "Bloody hell, Tom! Resolution's hit the town again - and there's another hit, from Repulse! Who the hell's the gunnery officer aboard Resolution?" 

"Thessiger, sir. George Thessiger. He was in my class at Dartmouth."

"I hope Palmer rakes him over the coals after this is finished," Ramsay fumed.

"Quite, sir..."

* * * *

The concluding part of this action will be posted soon.

Sunday, September 11, 2022

Heligoland Scenario

Set up for the bombardment game. The Royal Navy intends to destroy all the gun positions located to the left of the line lighthouse-church.

This scenario requires a slightly different approach to registering hits. I'll dice as normal for the number of hits on the defences, but only Critical hits count. Due to the island's elevation the bombarding force is unable to get precise fixes on the artillery positions, so the type of Critical hit is then diced for, which will feature Turret, Emplacement, Magazine, Director/Gunnery Control, Fire, and Civilian.

Turret refers to one of the two 21cm/8.2 inch gun turrets. Dice to see 

which one is hit.

Emplacement refers to one of the eight 28 cm/11 inch howitzers. Dice 

to see which one is hit.

Magazine hits indicate a turret or emplacement is destroyed by the 

explosion. Dice to see which one is hit.

Director/Gunnery Control indicates the main fire director is hit and 

the artillery will then devolve to local control, resulting in a -1 on the hit 

dice.

Fire. Undergrowth and/or small buildings have caught light. Depending 

on the wind direction the smoke could interfere with gunnery direction, 

causing a -1 to hit.

Civilian, or Oops... Through some vagary of ballistics a stray shell has 

hit the town. 1d6 score of 1 = St. Nikolas' church. 2 = The kasern 

(barracks) 3 - 6 = Dwellings. 

 

All Duplicate scores have no effect. 



Friday, September 9, 2022

Queen Elizabeth II, RIP.

Whatever your feelings on the monarchy - and I have a few, pro and con - the passing of the Queen marked the end of an era. She ruled for all my life to date, and the traditions that go with a constitutional monarchy weigh on all British people. It's something people of other countries don't get and never will.

I'm going to avoid the social media outlets of FaceAche and Twitter for a few days. The amount of viciousness unleashed over her passing is positively sickening. 

Hopefully, with luck and a following wind, I'll fight out the fictional attack on Heligoland this weekend. The weather's turned a bit cooler which makes my gaming room more comfortable.

Sunday, August 28, 2022

Gun sites and Splash markers

A little prep work is in order before I play out the Heligoland action.

I decided I didn't have anywhere near enough splash markers, so these are now under weigh. They're fabricated from off cuts of clear plastic stuck in place and made more water-like with copious blobs of hot glue. Markers for the Heligoland artillery emplacements are centre-right. Since this is likely to be a one-off game I'm not bothering with a lot of detail for these.

Along with this I had to buy a new blue sheet for use with naval gaming. I clean forgot to remove the last one before our cat decided to use it to sharpen his claws...


And now for a gamer's dilemma - nothing to do with naval gaming. I've sold a large batch of unwanted miniatures so now I'm contemplating what to buy with this windfall. I should get enough figures to more-or-less finish off my 10mm ECW collection (if a collection can ever be said to be finished...). 

But! As wargamers know, there's always a new period flaunting its gaudy temptations to draw our eye. Peter over at Grid Based Wargaming is running a neat episodic 1917 Middle East campaign. A tough modern Ottoman force, ANZAC troops, Imperial infantry in pith helmets, Lawrence of Arabia, tanks, aircraft, armoured cars. A set of brigade-size rules in the shape of If the Lord Spares Us from Too Fat Lardies. What's not to like? I'm sorely tempted to splash some cash on Pendraken's starter packs for this period and theatre.

Decisions, decisions...

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

“A ship’s a fool to fight a fort.”

So said Admiral Lord Nelson. With the centenary of Trafalgar so fresh in the collective minds of the Royal Navy, the Admiralty is pondering the Hero’s words anew as they contemplate an attack on Heligoland.


After the island was transferred to Germany in 1890, the new owners immediately began work on
fortifications centred around a quartet of 21cm/8.2 inch guns and eight 28cm/11 inch howitzers. These were supplemented by a number of 4.1 inch/105mm guns positioned around the island for close-in defence. Since the main artillery is located two hundred feet above sea level it also has the attribute of increased range and plunging fire.

Twelve heavy artillery pieces on a rock-steady firing platform and plunging fire capability… Quite.

The only bright spot is that this heavy armament won’t be augmented any time soon, as there’s a tug of war between the German navy and the army when it comes to the allocation of artillery. Troops are massing along the Franco-German border, and the French army artillery is superior to that of the German army. There's at least one company of troops in garrison on the island. It's believed their complement of machine guns has been increased.

So it is that the Admiralty ordered up the four Royal Sovereign class battleships Royal Sovereign, Empress of India, Resolution and Repulse. Their 13.5 inch main armament offers a ‘bigger bang for the buck’ when it comes to shore bombardment.

The class has the unfortunate reputation of being unstable in high seas, hence their nickname of the ‘Rolling Ressies.’ Stormy weather in the North Sea precluded any immediate move against Heligoland after the Battle of the Humber for this very reason. Now April has turned into May the weather has settled and the operation is on once more.

The plan is for the Royal Sovereigns to close with the island in the afternoon so the sun will be in the eyes of the defenders. The bombardment group will commence targeting the shore defences while the five London class and four Majestic class battleships stand off as cover in case the German fleet sallies forth from Jade Bay. Under no circumstances are the village or the lighthouse to be targeted. The civilian area is marked by the steeple of St. Nicholas’ church. (The kazern/barracks for the island’s garrison is located too close to the village to be targeted safely and so is, unfortunately, also out of bounds).

The fleet has the usual complement of cruisers and destroyers, among which is HMS Charybdis. This elderly Second-class Protected Cruiser was used for troop transport from 1905 onwards, and performs the role for this mission.

Game Mechanics.

All heavy artillery on Heligoland will range up to 20,000 yards (10 nautical miles). Add one to the firing dice for a totally stable firing platform and there are no penalties for bad weather. Each weapon counts as one calibre larger on the progressive fire table to reflect the effects of plunging fire, so 11 inch guns will count as 12 inch, 8.2 inch as 9.2 inch.

Shore bombardment takes a different approach. All ordinary hits are ignored. Critical hits count, but only Turret, Gunnery Director Centre, Fire and Magazine hits have any effect. A Magazine hit will only destroy the turret it serves. A result of Fire indicates that undergrowth or buildings have been ignited by a shell burst. Depending on the wind direction this will decrease the defending fire factor by one due to smoke obscuring the range finders.

Victory Conditions.

The Royal Navy has to destroy all twelve main artillery positions for victory. Once this has been achieved it’s assumed the smaller vessels will close with the shore to suppress the 105mm guns and provide fire support as Charybdis lands her troops.

The German defenders will achieve victory if two ships of the Bombardment Group are sunk or crippled, at which point the group will withdraw.

With luck and a following wind - and cooler weather - I'll fight out the engagement in the next few days. 

Sunday, July 17, 2022

Battle of the Norwegian Sea ~ Conclusion

0805 hrs: Action became brisk with an increasing exchange of salvos. HMS Hermes suffered the attentions of all three German armoured cruisers as well as SMS Berlin, and succumbed under the weight of gunfire.

0810 hrs: Minutes later Berlin followed her enemy to the bottom as the combined weight of Aboukir's and Euryalus' secondary armament salvos ripped into her hull. The Royal Navy's gunnery from their main armament was poor, with several rounds missing their targets by a wide margin. The light cruisers fared better in spite of the rolling seas, their gun crews managing to compensate and score several telling hits on their opposite numbers.

0815 hrs: The range closes. Highflyer sees an opening and launches two torpedoes on a track timed to hit SMS Prinz Heinrich. German gunnery is good. Euryalus takes heavy cumulative damage and begins to slow.

0820 hrs: Prinz Heinrich fails to spot the torpedo tracks in the turbulent seas and takes a fatal hit astern. The Royal Navy's gunnery improves somewhat and they make better practice on the other two German armoured cruisers.

0825 hrs: It's not all one-way traffic. The surviving German armoured cruisers turn their 15cm secondary armament on Highflyer and she succumbs to heavy cumulative gunfire. Her demise allows Hamburg a chance to forge ahead, making best speed in the rolling waters. Emboldened by her late sister ship's success HMS Hyacinth tries her luck and fires two torpedoes.

0830 hrs: This time the torpedo tracks are sighted. The two German armoured cruisers try a partial turn to starboard in an effort to avoid the attack, keeping in mind they can't deviate too much or they'll be forced into neutral Norwegian waters. One torpedo reaches the end of its run and sinks. The other almost runs out of steam but smashes into Friedrich Karl, inflicting telling damage.

0835 hrs: Random event. A timely squall arrives in just the right place. Kommodore Schafer is mindful of the damage inflicted upon his ships and the fact Hamburg is heading for the North Atlantic with little chance of the enemy stopping her. With the Kaiser's known tenderness toward his fleet's survival Schafer decides to call it a day and head for home. Turning into the squall he manages to break contact with the enemy. The rain front will pass over Hamburg, further obscuring her from pursuit. 

0840 hrs: Rear Admiral Sir James Bryce RN is both frustrated and secretly relieved by the enemy's breaking contact. He has lost two of the Royal Navy's more modern cruisers, the surviving third isn't in a position or condition to pursue the Hamburg, and HMS Euryalus is in a bad way. Should the weather in these high northern latitudes worsen she could be in serious danger of foundering. Sending a complete action report to the Admiralty he too decides to turn for home and orders a course set for Scarpa Flow.

* * * *

And so the Battle of the Norwegian Sea ends in a tactical German defeat but a minor strategic victory. Schafer succeeded in getting at least one light cruiser into the North Atlantic. SMS Hamburg will commence a guerre de course against British and French merchant shipping as soon as she's refueled and repaired battle damage off Iceland.

Thursday, July 14, 2022

Norwegian Sea ~ Game set-up

I clean forgot to post the weather and general conditions for the Norwegian Sea encounter, so here's the bumf now.

Participants.

Royal Navy:

Light Cruisers Highflyer, Hyacinth, Hermes.

Armoured Cruisers Aboukir (Flag), Euryalus.

German Navy: Armoured Cruisers Friedrich Karl, Prinz Adalbert (Flag), Prinz Heinrich.

Light Cruisers Berlin, Hamburg.


Weather: Overcast, rain/sleet squalls, heavy 3m swell. Wind: South Easterly, Force 6 (strong breeze).

0800 hrs. The respective squadrons sight each other at 13,000 yards moving away to the Southwest not long after daybreak as the light increases to dispel some of the gloom.

Both sides’ destroyers are reduced to half speed as sea conditions become too rough for the smaller ships to handle. Signals from the respective flags order the flotillas to stand off and await further orders. Due to the swell the light cruisers’ main armament and the secondary armament of the armoured cruisers are also affected by sea conditions, the latter because the low-sited casemates of the secondary weapons are frequently washed by the high seas.

(In game terms the light cruisers' main armament and the armoured cruisers' secondary armament suffer a -1 to their gunnery dice roll)

On sighting the enemy, Kommodore Shaffer orders an increase in speed to place his squadron well ahead of the enemy. The light cruisers Berlin and Hamburg are ordered to go to full speed commensurate with sea conditions. There’s every chance they will be able to avoid combat altogether and break out into the North Atlantic.

On HMS Hermes’ sighting report, Rear Admiral Sir James Bryce orders the squadron to turn 1800 to starboard and increase speed in an attempt to intercept the German squadron. The light cruisers Hermes and Highflyer are in the best position to manoeuvre independently and bring their enemy counterparts into action, and are so ordered. Hyacinth is to remain with the armoured cruisers and provide support as needed.

With luck and a following wind I'll play out more of the tabletop encounter over the next few days.

Sunday, July 10, 2022

Battle of the Norwegian Sea ~ Part 1

Having a permanent wargames table is a blessing, until the Cat Decides It Makes a Good Napping Post...

The range closes to a little over 12,000 yards (six nautical miles)

SMS Hamburg and Prinz Heinrich score hits on HMS Hermes. Royal Navy return fire is ineffective.

I can haz Hamburg? The Household's Hairiest Member is unimpressed when he's prevented from snacking on the models and decides to snooze to show his indifference instead.

Play will resume when the pitch is cleared...

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

Squalls ahead! ~ A modelling side project

A while back I came across a tutorial on making rain squalls for naval gaming. The idea struck me as a good one so I save the instructions and finally put them into practice. 

Begin with an off cut of expanded polystyrene packing material. Hack it into an irregular shape.

Tease out cotton wool and apply all over the top and sides using a hot glue gun. Yes, it melts the polystyrene a little, but it won't show.

The covered result.

Spray a basic grey...

Cut out long rectangles of clear plastic. I use packaging material. Use a chunk of foam rubber to apply streaks of grey craft paint mixed with Quick Shine/Future/Klear floor polish to one side, working from one edge and lifting the rubber near the other side to get a falling rain effect. Use hot glue to stick it to the underside of the cloud. I used two lengths of plastic to get an overlap to simulate a heavier burst of rainfall.

The finished result...

Royal Navy armoured cruisers Euryalus and Aboukir push on across the North Sea in the teeth of oncoming squalls.

These should work fine for most common naval gaming scales.

 

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