Post by fastgit on Apr 26, 2011 20:07:07 GMT -5
“Last Ride of the Battlecruisers” (late 1917 – early 1918)
I had the opportunity to take part in a nice little “what if?” scenario a couple of weeks ago: 8 British BCs in a meeting engagement against 7 German BCs and 1 AC. The scenario presupposed that neither Dogger Bank, nor Jutland, occurred…
As such, the Brits fielded 2 squadrons of four ships:
• 1st: Indefatigable, Inflexible, Invincible, and Indomitable
• 2nd: Lion, Princess Royal, Queen Mary, and Tiger
Similarly, the Germans sailed in two squadrons:
• 1st: Von Der Tann, Goeben, Moltke (FF), and Blücher
• 2nd: Derfflinger, Hindenburg, Seydlitz (F), and Lützow
As one of the more experienced players, I was assigned the first division of (older) Germans BCs, the others being assigned randomly. This would play a dramatic role in the eventual outcome, as both experienced players ended up on the same side… but more on that later. Additionally, I would like to take this time to apologize for the lack of photos… we were in the basement (terrible lighting) and I discovered – much to my chagrin – that my old camera was not up to snuff (1:6000 is very small!).
Visibility was limited to 15,000 yards (30”), ultimately benefitting the Germans.
The German squadrons deployed along the south end of the map, bearing due north, in two parallel line ahead formations (roughly 6,000 yards apart). The British BCs deployed along the northern end, but with a southwesterly heading. These two squadrons were operating approximately 7-8,000 yards apart.
Turn 1:
The German squadrons crisply executed a turn to port, the 1st squadron falling in line behind the second as they assumed a north-northwesterly course. The British, on the other hand, charged ahead independently as they attempted to close the range. The lead squadrons (German 2nd & British 1st) exchanged fire ineffectually, however, as each could barely make out their targets through the early morning haze.
Turn 2:
The German squadrons continued ahead, the trailing squadron (#1) pouring on steam in an attempt to close ranks with their newer brethren. The British altered course in an attempt to close the range between friendly units but, due to some miscommunication, further divided their forces: the British 1st squadron charging ahead to closer the range with the German 2nd Squadron and the British 2nd Squadron falling further behind. The leading squadrons once again exchanged fire with the Inflexible drawing first and only blood as she struck the Hindenburg a telling blow, knocking out a secondary battery turret.
Turn 3:
The British 1st Squadron continued to close the range, charging ahead…the epitome of “Jacky” Fisher’s vision, while the 2nd Squadron altered course to engage the trailing German squadron (1st). The German squadrons continued on their north-northwesterly heading, the trailing squadron having closed the gap with the leading squadron to about 4,000 yards.
The lead squadrons (British 1st and German 2nd) had closed to within 20,000 yards by this point and, as a result, each side began to find their range: Indefatigable struck Seydlitz twice, but with negligible results, Inflexible scored another minor hit on Hindenburg, and Invincible knocked out a secondary battery turret on Derfflinger. The Germans, with one notable exception, failed to find their targets: Derfflinger struck true, landing three hits on Invincible that destroyed a secondary battery turret and started a series of fires amidships.
The guns of the British 2nd Squadron similarly roared, but failed to find their mark.
Turn 4:
It was in this turn that the differing design principles of the two nations began to tell…
The lead squadrons continued to close the range, playing into the hands of the shorter-ranged, more heavily-armored Germans. Although each side landed an equivalent number of hits, the guns of Krupp were far more effective. Seydlitz avoided serious damage from two strikes while her shots struck home, knocking out Indefatigable’s bridge and one torpedo mount. Hindenburg received a hit in the bows and began to take on water but, in retaliation, knocked out one of Inflexible’s engine rooms and destroyed a secondary battery turret. While Derfflinger and Lützow escaped major damage, Invincible was not so fortunate: fire from Derfflinger knocked out an engine room, slowing her appreciably.
Von Der Tann and Goeben opened fire on Lion and Princess Royal, the two lead ships in the trailing British squadron. Surprisingly, the British did not follow suit… rather, they concentrated their fire on Von der Tann. This critical error by Princess Royal was to have tragic consequences: Von der Tann steamed unscathed through a storm of shell splashes while Goeben remained unmolested…and his aim was true. Goeben’s first salvo straddled Princess Royal, knocking out her “B” turret, starting a fire which was to prove uncontrollable, and holing her below the waterline!
Turn 5:
The lead squadrons – amazingly enough – continued to close the range to within 9,000 yards (despite the British squadron slowing to accommodate Invincible and Inflexible), bringing the opposing battlelines within extreme secondary battery range. German marksmanship continued to tell as the modern battlecruisers began to punish their more elderly British brethren. For a smattering of hits that failed to penetrate their superior armor (and a single strike below the waterline on Seydlitz), Indefatigable suffered multiple strikes that resulted in severe flooding and a noticeable list, Inflexible lost her “A” turret, and Invincible found herself ablaze. Additionally, each of the three British battlecruisers lost another secondary battery turret. Only Indomitable was to escape serious injury.
Although German secondary battery fire proved largely ineffectual at this range, it did manage to cause superficial damage and start fires on Inflexible and Invincible.
Lion and Princess Royal continued to target Von der Tann, this time finding their range and striking the elderly German Battlecruiser three times and starting a blaze that fire control parties struggled to extinguish. This threw off Von der Tann’s aim, momentarily sparing Lion. Princess Royal was not so fortunate, however, as Goeben’s blows continued to rain down: she was struck another three times, resulting in a destroyed secondary battery turret, a fire, and another hole below the waterline. This second such strike resulted in a severe list, further slowing her. Queen Mary’s guns fired for the first time, striking Moltke twice for minimal damage.
Turn 6:
Shackled by two crippled vessels, the leading British squadron realized too late their folly: only now did they attempt to turn away from the Germans and extend an escape. Steering northward, they turned their tails to the German battlecruisers who, correctly divining their impending withdrawal, reversed course, effectively crossing their “T.”
The result was nothing less than catastrophic for the Royal Navy. Seydlitz struck Indefatigable five times, destroying an aft main battery turret, two secondaries, and holing her below the waterline. Hindenburg continued to pound Inflexible, striking her eight times, effectively obliterating fire control, a main battery turret, and starting fires that would prove to be her undoing. Both Inflexible and Indefatigable would succumb to this deluge of fire: Inflexible to fires raging beyond the control of fire control parties and Indefatigable as she developed a severe list, turned turtle, and capsized. Both Invincible and Indomitable received significant hits as well, but nothing akin to the carnage they witnessed on Indefatigable and Inflexible. While Invincible suffered hits to another secondary battery turret that added to the conflagration, Indomitable suffered the destruction of a main battery turret – robbing her of the ability to strike back – and the death of her commanding officer and most of the bridge crew. She would fail her command check and withdraw from the fight, leaving the slowed Invincible to her death.
The lead German battlecruiser continued to burn as Lion and Princess Royal struck Von der Tann three more times, starting additional fires amidships. At this time, Goeben came under fire from the trailing British battlecruisers, Queen Mary (who had inexplicably switched fire from Moltke) and Tiger. Goeben was struck no fewer than five times, but his luck carried the day: not a single round penetrated his armored belt. In exchange, both Lion and Princess Royal were struck four times, starting fires on Lion and pummeling the namesake of the Princess Louise, destroying another secondary battery turret, holing her below the waterline, and starting a serious fire. Moltke fired for the first time in the engagement, missing the Queen Mary entirely.
Turn 7:
Suffering from multiple hits to her engine rooms, and before the German 2nd Squadron could finish her off, the order “Abandon Ship!” was heard on Invincible, followed shortly by the rumble of scuttling charges. Too far from the melee to their east, the Derfflinger, Hindenburg, Seydlitz, and Lützow (none save the Seydlitz with more than superficial damage) watched as the fate of the British 2nd Squadron was decided.
Still burning from earlier exchanges, Von der Tann came under increasingly lethal fire from Lion. Struck four times, Von der Tann staggered out of line, ablaze, bereft of one main battery turret and taking on water. In exchange, Von der Tann savaged Lion, striking her bridge and destroying a main battery turret and forward fire control. Goeben continued to punish Princess Royal, striking her seven times, destroying her remaining engines, starting additional fires, and holing her several times below the waterline. As the smoke cleared, it was obvious that she had fought her last fight: Princess Royal slowly rolled over, taking much of her remaining crew with her. Queen Mary continued to target Goeben, exacting a measure of revenge for her battered sister as she achieved three hits, destroying a main battery turret and starting a fire. Tiger switched back to Moltke and managed two hits, one of which destroyed a main battery turret and started a fire. In return, Moltke missed Queen Mary entirely... again.
The final shots of the engagement were fired by hard-charging Blücher: out of range and struggling to keep pace with the battlecruisers leading his squadron, Blücher finally got his chance as the remaining British battlecruisers turned to disengage. At a range of nearly 11,000 yards, Blücher struck Tiger twice, hobbling her as she sustained damage to her engine rooms and developed a severe list.
Epilogue
It was at this point we called the game. Although the German 1st Squadron had taken a pounding, it paled in comparison to the beating sustained by the British battlecruisers. Even so, I’m not at all certain that the remaining “Splendid Cats” couldn’t have soundly thrashed the German 1st Squadron: all save the Blücher had sustained damage to their main armament and two were struggling with fires that refused to be extinguished. Von der Tann was a wreck. And Blücher had been famously lucky in her strike at Tiger (and his apparent invisibility... the British didn't consider the AC to be much of a threat). I hold no illusion of such a repeat. It was the three relatively unscathed “modern” battlecruisers of the Derfflinger-class that forced the timely British withdrawal. And the fact that the British had suffered four battlecruisers lost and two severely damaged at the cost of only one severely and two (maybe three, if you count Seydlitz) heavily damaged German warships. Not anywhere near the exchange the Royal Navy would expect.
So, what happened? A run of bad luck, certainly. The dice favored the Germans all day. In fact, some of the rolls between the embattled leading squadrons were just silly. That was not the complete story, however. Although Beatty was correct at Jutland when he claimed, “There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today,” I feel as though that assessment would be incomplete in this scenario. To put it bluntly, the British Admirals did not fight their ships well. Rather than make use of their range advantage, they charged into “knife-fighting” range and discovered that German 11-inch guns fire damn fast. And although smaller in diameter than their British counterparts, they hit every bit as hard. This mitigated completely the range advantage and played into the strength of the German battlecruisers: superior protection. Finally, whereas the German squadron commanders developed at least a rudimentary strategy for mutually-supportive ship-handling and maintained the greatest speed possible, the British operated completely independently of one another, fighting and dying as individuals, and slowing to accommodate the stricken members of their respective squadrons until it was too late and they found their “T” crossed at least once during the engagement. Finally, at least in the trailing engagement, it became painfully obvious that capital ships need to split their fire. At least half a dozen hits (and probably more; Lion missed in such a way four times in one salvo) missed by only one point…the one point the British suffered as a penalty for multiple main battery splash markers.
Even though the engagement resulted in a one-sided result, a good time was had by all (perhaps a little more so by the Germans)
and everyone enjoyed the ease of play provided by NT:CoD. Two of the five players had some experience, one had seen it played once before, and two had never heard of it... but all were up to speed by the end of the third turn (if not earlier).
All-in-all, a success.
Thanks for reading!
Chris
I had the opportunity to take part in a nice little “what if?” scenario a couple of weeks ago: 8 British BCs in a meeting engagement against 7 German BCs and 1 AC. The scenario presupposed that neither Dogger Bank, nor Jutland, occurred…
As such, the Brits fielded 2 squadrons of four ships:
• 1st: Indefatigable, Inflexible, Invincible, and Indomitable
• 2nd: Lion, Princess Royal, Queen Mary, and Tiger
Similarly, the Germans sailed in two squadrons:
• 1st: Von Der Tann, Goeben, Moltke (FF), and Blücher
• 2nd: Derfflinger, Hindenburg, Seydlitz (F), and Lützow
As one of the more experienced players, I was assigned the first division of (older) Germans BCs, the others being assigned randomly. This would play a dramatic role in the eventual outcome, as both experienced players ended up on the same side… but more on that later. Additionally, I would like to take this time to apologize for the lack of photos… we were in the basement (terrible lighting) and I discovered – much to my chagrin – that my old camera was not up to snuff (1:6000 is very small!).
Visibility was limited to 15,000 yards (30”), ultimately benefitting the Germans.
The German squadrons deployed along the south end of the map, bearing due north, in two parallel line ahead formations (roughly 6,000 yards apart). The British BCs deployed along the northern end, but with a southwesterly heading. These two squadrons were operating approximately 7-8,000 yards apart.
Turn 1:
The German squadrons crisply executed a turn to port, the 1st squadron falling in line behind the second as they assumed a north-northwesterly course. The British, on the other hand, charged ahead independently as they attempted to close the range. The lead squadrons (German 2nd & British 1st) exchanged fire ineffectually, however, as each could barely make out their targets through the early morning haze.
Turn 2:
The German squadrons continued ahead, the trailing squadron (#1) pouring on steam in an attempt to close ranks with their newer brethren. The British altered course in an attempt to close the range between friendly units but, due to some miscommunication, further divided their forces: the British 1st squadron charging ahead to closer the range with the German 2nd Squadron and the British 2nd Squadron falling further behind. The leading squadrons once again exchanged fire with the Inflexible drawing first and only blood as she struck the Hindenburg a telling blow, knocking out a secondary battery turret.
Turn 3:
The British 1st Squadron continued to close the range, charging ahead…the epitome of “Jacky” Fisher’s vision, while the 2nd Squadron altered course to engage the trailing German squadron (1st). The German squadrons continued on their north-northwesterly heading, the trailing squadron having closed the gap with the leading squadron to about 4,000 yards.
The lead squadrons (British 1st and German 2nd) had closed to within 20,000 yards by this point and, as a result, each side began to find their range: Indefatigable struck Seydlitz twice, but with negligible results, Inflexible scored another minor hit on Hindenburg, and Invincible knocked out a secondary battery turret on Derfflinger. The Germans, with one notable exception, failed to find their targets: Derfflinger struck true, landing three hits on Invincible that destroyed a secondary battery turret and started a series of fires amidships.
The guns of the British 2nd Squadron similarly roared, but failed to find their mark.
Turn 4:
It was in this turn that the differing design principles of the two nations began to tell…
The lead squadrons continued to close the range, playing into the hands of the shorter-ranged, more heavily-armored Germans. Although each side landed an equivalent number of hits, the guns of Krupp were far more effective. Seydlitz avoided serious damage from two strikes while her shots struck home, knocking out Indefatigable’s bridge and one torpedo mount. Hindenburg received a hit in the bows and began to take on water but, in retaliation, knocked out one of Inflexible’s engine rooms and destroyed a secondary battery turret. While Derfflinger and Lützow escaped major damage, Invincible was not so fortunate: fire from Derfflinger knocked out an engine room, slowing her appreciably.
Von Der Tann and Goeben opened fire on Lion and Princess Royal, the two lead ships in the trailing British squadron. Surprisingly, the British did not follow suit… rather, they concentrated their fire on Von der Tann. This critical error by Princess Royal was to have tragic consequences: Von der Tann steamed unscathed through a storm of shell splashes while Goeben remained unmolested…and his aim was true. Goeben’s first salvo straddled Princess Royal, knocking out her “B” turret, starting a fire which was to prove uncontrollable, and holing her below the waterline!
Turn 5:
The lead squadrons – amazingly enough – continued to close the range to within 9,000 yards (despite the British squadron slowing to accommodate Invincible and Inflexible), bringing the opposing battlelines within extreme secondary battery range. German marksmanship continued to tell as the modern battlecruisers began to punish their more elderly British brethren. For a smattering of hits that failed to penetrate their superior armor (and a single strike below the waterline on Seydlitz), Indefatigable suffered multiple strikes that resulted in severe flooding and a noticeable list, Inflexible lost her “A” turret, and Invincible found herself ablaze. Additionally, each of the three British battlecruisers lost another secondary battery turret. Only Indomitable was to escape serious injury.
Although German secondary battery fire proved largely ineffectual at this range, it did manage to cause superficial damage and start fires on Inflexible and Invincible.
Lion and Princess Royal continued to target Von der Tann, this time finding their range and striking the elderly German Battlecruiser three times and starting a blaze that fire control parties struggled to extinguish. This threw off Von der Tann’s aim, momentarily sparing Lion. Princess Royal was not so fortunate, however, as Goeben’s blows continued to rain down: she was struck another three times, resulting in a destroyed secondary battery turret, a fire, and another hole below the waterline. This second such strike resulted in a severe list, further slowing her. Queen Mary’s guns fired for the first time, striking Moltke twice for minimal damage.
Turn 6:
Shackled by two crippled vessels, the leading British squadron realized too late their folly: only now did they attempt to turn away from the Germans and extend an escape. Steering northward, they turned their tails to the German battlecruisers who, correctly divining their impending withdrawal, reversed course, effectively crossing their “T.”
The result was nothing less than catastrophic for the Royal Navy. Seydlitz struck Indefatigable five times, destroying an aft main battery turret, two secondaries, and holing her below the waterline. Hindenburg continued to pound Inflexible, striking her eight times, effectively obliterating fire control, a main battery turret, and starting fires that would prove to be her undoing. Both Inflexible and Indefatigable would succumb to this deluge of fire: Inflexible to fires raging beyond the control of fire control parties and Indefatigable as she developed a severe list, turned turtle, and capsized. Both Invincible and Indomitable received significant hits as well, but nothing akin to the carnage they witnessed on Indefatigable and Inflexible. While Invincible suffered hits to another secondary battery turret that added to the conflagration, Indomitable suffered the destruction of a main battery turret – robbing her of the ability to strike back – and the death of her commanding officer and most of the bridge crew. She would fail her command check and withdraw from the fight, leaving the slowed Invincible to her death.
The lead German battlecruiser continued to burn as Lion and Princess Royal struck Von der Tann three more times, starting additional fires amidships. At this time, Goeben came under fire from the trailing British battlecruisers, Queen Mary (who had inexplicably switched fire from Moltke) and Tiger. Goeben was struck no fewer than five times, but his luck carried the day: not a single round penetrated his armored belt. In exchange, both Lion and Princess Royal were struck four times, starting fires on Lion and pummeling the namesake of the Princess Louise, destroying another secondary battery turret, holing her below the waterline, and starting a serious fire. Moltke fired for the first time in the engagement, missing the Queen Mary entirely.
Turn 7:
Suffering from multiple hits to her engine rooms, and before the German 2nd Squadron could finish her off, the order “Abandon Ship!” was heard on Invincible, followed shortly by the rumble of scuttling charges. Too far from the melee to their east, the Derfflinger, Hindenburg, Seydlitz, and Lützow (none save the Seydlitz with more than superficial damage) watched as the fate of the British 2nd Squadron was decided.
Still burning from earlier exchanges, Von der Tann came under increasingly lethal fire from Lion. Struck four times, Von der Tann staggered out of line, ablaze, bereft of one main battery turret and taking on water. In exchange, Von der Tann savaged Lion, striking her bridge and destroying a main battery turret and forward fire control. Goeben continued to punish Princess Royal, striking her seven times, destroying her remaining engines, starting additional fires, and holing her several times below the waterline. As the smoke cleared, it was obvious that she had fought her last fight: Princess Royal slowly rolled over, taking much of her remaining crew with her. Queen Mary continued to target Goeben, exacting a measure of revenge for her battered sister as she achieved three hits, destroying a main battery turret and starting a fire. Tiger switched back to Moltke and managed two hits, one of which destroyed a main battery turret and started a fire. In return, Moltke missed Queen Mary entirely... again.
The final shots of the engagement were fired by hard-charging Blücher: out of range and struggling to keep pace with the battlecruisers leading his squadron, Blücher finally got his chance as the remaining British battlecruisers turned to disengage. At a range of nearly 11,000 yards, Blücher struck Tiger twice, hobbling her as she sustained damage to her engine rooms and developed a severe list.
Epilogue
It was at this point we called the game. Although the German 1st Squadron had taken a pounding, it paled in comparison to the beating sustained by the British battlecruisers. Even so, I’m not at all certain that the remaining “Splendid Cats” couldn’t have soundly thrashed the German 1st Squadron: all save the Blücher had sustained damage to their main armament and two were struggling with fires that refused to be extinguished. Von der Tann was a wreck. And Blücher had been famously lucky in her strike at Tiger (and his apparent invisibility... the British didn't consider the AC to be much of a threat). I hold no illusion of such a repeat. It was the three relatively unscathed “modern” battlecruisers of the Derfflinger-class that forced the timely British withdrawal. And the fact that the British had suffered four battlecruisers lost and two severely damaged at the cost of only one severely and two (maybe three, if you count Seydlitz) heavily damaged German warships. Not anywhere near the exchange the Royal Navy would expect.
So, what happened? A run of bad luck, certainly. The dice favored the Germans all day. In fact, some of the rolls between the embattled leading squadrons were just silly. That was not the complete story, however. Although Beatty was correct at Jutland when he claimed, “There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today,” I feel as though that assessment would be incomplete in this scenario. To put it bluntly, the British Admirals did not fight their ships well. Rather than make use of their range advantage, they charged into “knife-fighting” range and discovered that German 11-inch guns fire damn fast. And although smaller in diameter than their British counterparts, they hit every bit as hard. This mitigated completely the range advantage and played into the strength of the German battlecruisers: superior protection. Finally, whereas the German squadron commanders developed at least a rudimentary strategy for mutually-supportive ship-handling and maintained the greatest speed possible, the British operated completely independently of one another, fighting and dying as individuals, and slowing to accommodate the stricken members of their respective squadrons until it was too late and they found their “T” crossed at least once during the engagement. Finally, at least in the trailing engagement, it became painfully obvious that capital ships need to split their fire. At least half a dozen hits (and probably more; Lion missed in such a way four times in one salvo) missed by only one point…the one point the British suffered as a penalty for multiple main battery splash markers.
Even though the engagement resulted in a one-sided result, a good time was had by all (perhaps a little more so by the Germans)
and everyone enjoyed the ease of play provided by NT:CoD. Two of the five players had some experience, one had seen it played once before, and two had never heard of it... but all were up to speed by the end of the third turn (if not earlier).All-in-all, a success.
Thanks for reading!
Chris
