WW1 Naval Campaign - Heligoland Bight

Well it's time for our second Battle Report from our ongoing WW1 Naval Campaign, check out the latest copy of T'Yarkshire Ferret Newspaper above with all the gossip and tittle tattle around the goings on off the table.

If you missed game one, the link is below -

https://yarkshiregamer.blogspot.com/2019/04/ww1-naval-campaign-war-is-declared.html

As with the first report, the AAR below is how our game developed, the scenarios in the Campaign have a number of tactical events along the way meaning that games can be radically different depending on how those tactical events play out or how the game has been affected by previous Political events.

Game 2 - Heligoland Bight 

3rd British Destroyer Flottila

Following the first act ion, the Chase of the Könign Luise there was a lull of several weeks with no action. The British however noticed during this patrol phase that German Light Forces regularly sailed out in broad day light around Heligoland.

The British planned to push their own light force inside the German patrol line and bring them to Battle.

German Destroyers quickly under heavy fire 

The game starts at 6.00 am, Visiblity is restricted to 7500 yards. The 3rd British Destroyer Flottila consisting of the Light Cruiser Royalist and the Destroyers Liberty, Lydiard, Landrail, Contest, Garland, Spitfire and Sparrowhawk are steaming South with 2 German Torpedo Boats V2 and V4 7,000 yards West of the closest British ship, line astern, sailing South East. (nb.  Some ship names are different to those present in real life, this is because I don't have models of every ship in the Royal Navy in 1914, yet 😉)

HMS Royalist

Unknown by the British Player the powerful German Battlecruiser Sqn the 1st Scouting Group consisting of Seydlitz, Moltke, Goeben, Von der Tann and Blucher is at sea.

06.23 German 3rd Scouting Group consisting of the Light Cruisers Frauenlob, Stettin and Dresden, appear, 7500 yards South of the Southern most ship, sailing North West.

German 3rd Scouting Group

06.30 Additional German Torpedo Boats arrive from the 1st Half Flottila of the 1st TB Flot, 7000 yards from the western most ship sailing East.

Frauenlob scores a direct hit on the Bridge of HMS Royalist but fails to do any damage, the same turn Stettin lands a shell on the Bridge of the Destroyer HMS Contest but again the British escape with no major damage, the tide of the game could have definitely changed at that point.

1st Half Flottila (German)

The British were under a bit of pressure at the point, outnumbered 3 to 1 in Light Cruisers and on par with Destroyer, the initial aggressive tactics of the Royal Navy had got them in a spot of trouble.

So it was a relief when at 06.37 the 1st British Destroyer Flottila led by the Scout Cruiser HMS Active (with Destroyers Attack, Acheron, Hydra, Badger, Ariel and the Yarkshires very own Ferret) arrived 7500 yards to the east of HMS Landrail.

1st British Destroyer Flottila

The following turn (06.45) saw HMS Lydiard in real trouble, she was hit hard by the German Light Cruiser Frauenlob, sustaining a bridge hit and a serious fire.

HMS Lydiard in trouble

It was an action packed phase with the British player chucking torpedoes at the German ships to no avail.

Bags of action

0700 saw the Britsh Light Cruiser Sqn arrive, HMS Southampton, Birmingham, Falmouth, Nottingham, Lowestoft and Gloucester. Six Light Cruisers with six inch guns was making the German Commanders think seriously about their options.

British 1st Light Cruiser Sqn

But for now the action was all down at the other end of the table, HMS Lydiard despite the best efforts of her crew sank due to the cumulative effect of the fires on board. On the same turn HMS Landrail also suffered a bridge hit and fire from an engagement with SMS Dresden.

The end of HMS Landrail

Both sides had become a little more cagey than the initial gung no charge into contact with the initial forces on table. Lots of shell's were being exchanged but the British Destroyers had withdrawn towards the cover of the Light Cruisers, whilst the Germans were no keen to get too close in fear of the approaching 6 inch guns of the Town Class Light Cruisers.

More German Light Cruisers started to arrive but these were some distance away from the action.

The British finally got some decent hits on two German Torpedo Boats who had got themselves a bit isolated. A rudder hit and a couple of fires made things a bit more interesting for V2 and V4.

German Ships taking proper damage at last

But it wasn't all fluttering White Ensigns and renditions of "Rule Britannia" as HMS Landrail also failed to deal with its fire, this time the ship exploded in close proximity to the Light Cruiser HMS Royalist setting a minor fire on the deck off that ship.

HMS Royalist is now alight

By 07.37 it was like the 1812 Overture as explosions were going off all over the table, V2 exploded having failed to put outs it's fire. It was the day for it and the British players were sweating as the Royalist kept failing to put it's own fire out, which for a Light Cruiser should have been straight forward.

The British Light Cruisers were now starting go get the range of the Germans who had been keeping their distance. Information concerning a possible smoke plume seen to the south was despatched to the British player who sent HMS Gloucester to investigate.

V2 sinks 

The Germans lost one of their Destroyers as they withdrew but the decision to pull back had been made, the remaining German Torpedo Boats making smoke to begin to cover the retiring Light Cruisers, the British didn't really push the pursuit and at 08.30 HMS Gloucester spotted the German Battlecruisers in the distance.

And that was the game over the British player realised that his nearest support, a Sqn of aging Armoured Cruisers were no match for the likes of Moltke and withdrew. The Germans who had already started to pull back couldn't take advantage of the potential help from the Battlecruiser Sqn as they were too far away from the British to keep them engaged.

HMS Royalist is saved.

That just left us with the post game phase, Royalist had one chance left to extinguish it's now raging fire, 16 or more on 3d6. Easy 😉

A further German Destroyer V4 sank due to flooding on its way back to port meaning that the losses in the game were even, 2 Destroyers a piece.

Which just leaves me time to show off my new cool dice shaker !

A evenly matched game which ended in a cautious stand off. There are so many variations in the Campaign book that this could have gone a number of ways, even splitting into two seperate battles. In my first grumble about the book, the instructions for this scenario are dreadfully confusing but I managed to get there after reading it hundreds of times.

There will be a short break in the Campaign whilst I catch up on some painting, I didn't notice initially, but Scenario 3 contains some older vessels I don't own. Who needs an excuse to buy more ! I got the missing ships from Tumbling Dice so look out for a review / comparison post on them soon.