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Hey guys here is a report form my friend Lamont.
We have realized that with the program we can run solo games without minis. This was his first solo game and also a massive playtest of version 2.0. As soon as the program is ready I will run some solo games of my own. I use use my minis to stage "glamour" shoots of the battle. What to you guys think.
Without the space and time limitation very large engagements can be played. I asked about Jutland but that many ships would just crash the program.
Well here is the report.
Death of the Goeben
Admiral Trowbridge stood on the bridge of the armored cruiser Defence. He was determined to snare the Goeben, a big, new, and fast German battlecruiser, before she made for the Dardanelles and safe harbor in a Turkish port. Captain Wray was no Nelson, and the sod could stay in the wardroom eating his kippers for all Trowbridge cared. After all, he had four armored cruisers of various vintage: Black Prince, Warrior, Defence, and Duke of Edinburgh, arrayed in a screen and looking for Goeben and her escort, Miss Breslau, to the west. And the battlecruiser Inflexible was making its way up from the south. Nelson would not have considered a single ship like the Goeben a superior force?
At 1244, funnels were spied on the horizon, and Trowbridge sent wireless signals urging his poachers to spring the trap on the cagey German hare. Cagey and toothy, for 6 minutes later, at 17,000yds, she opened fire on the Defence. Trowbridge ordered full ahead- he would close to a distance where his excellent British guns could damage the Goeben behemoth rather than sit and get pummeled at extreme range. He knew the quality of German gunnery. IF he could just hold her attention as the other cruisers moved in for the kill?.
Goeben was fast- already she was leaving Defence behind as she raced to the NE, running the gauntlet of Warrior and Black Prince still to the north. Defence was lucky- none of Goeben?s salvos scored a hit before she decided to turn her attention to the nearer threat of the Warrior. And Trowbridge knew he had scored some minor damage on Goeben, andnow she was taking long range fire from three British cruisers.
1320 ? the battle is off in the distance as Black Prince and Warrior trade rounds with Goeben; Defence continues to fire, but at extreme range, it is ineffective- just as Goeben was about to make her escape, something happened in Goeben?s engineering- she slowed to 13 kts and smoke was visible on the deck. But Black Prince was also reduced to 17 kts, and still all of Goeben?s guns were firing. Everyone ignored the Breslau.. Another salvo cleared a Goeben director position. Maybe he would be remembered with Nelson?
Fire was clearly growing and receding on the Goeben- she could not get it under control, but it did not affect the guns. As Defence closed on the Goeben from the south, all of a sudden the German cruiser turned her turrets toward Admiral Trowbridge, and inside the space of 6 minutes, he had lost a casemate gun and 2/3 of his speed as a lucky shot hit the rudder- now he was circling to starboard at 6 kts. Hopefully they will not speak of him in the same breath as Nelson. Like a giant swatting at gnats, Goeben now turned her guns upon Warrior, and at 1340, in one salvo, Warrior lost a main gun and her speed was reduced to 17 kts.
Still the Goeben was being pummeled by the combined fire of three British cruisers at medium range. It had to be having some effect- but then the Black Prince miscalculated and slipped into the short range of Goeben?s main guns. At 1352, she went dark- no motion, no gunfire- a black hulk. Who was Nelson and what did he do?
But the Goeben could take no more- she to stopped dead in the water, fire raged on her deck, no more blasts from her guns were seen. Nelson was a rank amateur. Surely Winnie would see that he get a peerage for this.
Breslau ran for the cover of the Dardanelles.
Aftermath:
Germans: Breslau- 29/137 DP; full speed and arms
Goeben- 407/419 DP; fire raging from engineering, lost 3 casemate guns in a single hit, lost the starboard secondary fire director, DIW, about to sink
Brits:
Black Prince- 279/291 DP; lost aft main turret, DIW, about to sink
Warrior- 102/291 DP; lost forward main turret, speed at 17 kts
Defence- 82/305 DP (from only three salvos!); lost one casemate gun; rudder damaged, but control established; speed 6 kts.
Duke of Edinburgh: 0 DP
Inflexible: 0 DP
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