It is the Fort that counts….

 When I first started the project that eventually morphed into The Portable Ironclads Wargame I had always planned to build forts, shore and floating batteries. Aside from the two Jenga block blockhouse style buildings I had built sometime ago I had not, up until now, really made any further progress. Anyways, for reasons that will become obvious in due course, I needed to build something rather more ambitious than my earlier models.

This is still a work in progress but I am rather taken with how it is coming along. So without further ado, here is what will eventually be Fort Squaragon.

Made from two full sized ‘not Jenga blocks’, six three quarter length and a single quarter length (a full sized block is 63mm long, 12mm high and 21mm wide), 10mm by 5mm grey card pieces for the gun carriages and 3mm square wood strips for the battlements. I have yet to add the window shutters, doors and gates, gun barrels and flagstaffs although the latter two will be added last, after the painting.

An unusually tidy work station with the earlier fort alongside the newer and larger version.

To give an idea of the size of this the hexes you see above are four inches across the flat sides. The two interior buildings have yet to fixed in place but I plan to paint these first.

Alongside the fort I am also building a couple of floating batteries so Fort Squaragon (named after a local Native American chieftain) will be well protected from any Union naval activity. That and the torpedo barrage…

In Other News….

Laurel and I headed out to our local boot sale today and whilst for the most part it was fairly low key I was able to score the book you see below for the princely sum of £1.

A nice addition to the Battle of Britain part of my library which has also given me something of dilemma with a part of my collection!

All in all then, not a bad way to spend part of Sunday - and with a roast leg of lamb to look forward to for dinner!

Pictures Telling Stories

Just a brief post for today as a lot is going on. Just three pictures of some of the ACW naval collection, posed for the camera, but why?

A menacing looking Confederate squadron.

A rather more menacing looking Union squadron.

A rather less menacing Union Squadron

A tease? Maybe, but for now that is all there is….

Till the next time that is!

CSS Atlanta: Ready for Action!

 

Finally got the Spar Torpedo fitted. A simple construction although the original had a much more complex system for lowering the spar boom.

First of all, a happy Easter to all! It has been a busy bank holiday weekend as I am also involved in some DIY so gaming related stuff has taken a bit of a back seat. The available ‘me time’ has been spect preparing for the battle to be fought for Developing the Portable IroncladsWargame: The American Civil war. The scenario has been designed and aside from finishing the CSS Atlanta I also have a terrain piece to get ready - this is currently underway and should be finished in a couple of days or so.

For the spar torpedo rig I used two small pieces of MDF, cut from a Warbases dice frame ‘sprue’. these were placed either side of the bow with a length of cocktail stick for the spar. A large dollop of superglue placed between the two pieces of MDF and on the deck itself ensures that the spar is solidly positioned and hopefully table usage proof!

I have spent a lot of time thinking about how to model the spar torpedo - truthfully I have, as usual, overthought the whole thing. The end result was very much from the school of bodgery but it will suffice!

On with the terrain piece….(once the DIY is finished, naturally!).

Not Quite The Battle of the River Plate - 1864 style

Yesterday evening at the club another Portable Ironclads Wargame was fought and as usual, I managed to fail once again in the picture and reporting stakes! The action was based upon the famous WW2 Battle of the River Plate but in this case the Graf Spee was represented by the ironclad CSS Stonewall under the command of Mr Huband. The Union squadron, commanded by Mr Fox, ably assisted by Messrs Kightly and Slater commanded the frigate the USS Wabash and the sloops the USS Watchusett and USS Kearsage. As befitted his seniority, Mr Fox flew his flag in the frigate.

The scenario was a simple one in that the Stonewall had to exit the opposite board edge whilst the Union had to stop her. The action was brief, mainly due to the fact that the Stonewall ‘went for it’ in a big way before finally being stopped in a rather freakish way. As ever, the pictures tell some of the story.

Starting positions. The CSS Stonewall on the left with the USS Wabash bottom right and the USS Watchusett and USS Kearsage top right.

USS Kearsage in the foreground with the USS Watchusett following

CSS Stonewall. I have two of these and they are among the first models I built for this project. They are scheduled to be rebuilt to my current standard and I will make sure that the turret is replaced by a gun house!

CSS Stonewall bearing down on the Union Frigate - who will blink first?

Meanwhile the two sloops (no sign of Julie Waters for readers of a certain vintage!) manoeuvre for position against the oncoming rebel ship. 

It was the USS Wabash and so the CSS Stonewall duly rammed her.

The damage inflicted on the USS Wabash from the ram attack was heavy but not fatal and so both ships pivoted away. Unfortunately for the CSS Stonewall, this left her facing a full broadside at point blank range! Luckily for the rebel ship the gunnery from the Union frigate, no doubt suffering from the after effects of the recent ram attack, was abysmal - the armour of the CSS Stonewall proved to be a tough nut to crack.

Unfortunately this was the last picture I took but the action ended shortly after as the CSS Stonewall succumbed to damage whilst ramming the USS Watchusett. In the rules a ship that damages another from a ram attack has the chance of being ‘attacked’ themselves - the rule represents damage sustained whilst attempting to back away from the target ship. In this case the counter attack was supremely effective - two 6s and a 5 being rolled for 5 points of damage! The CSS Stonewall had already taken damage from gunfire earlier in the action and so the resultant ram attack was enough to sink her. The next move she would have exited the playing area and secured the victory!

The River Plate scenario always plays well in my experience and this was no exception. The firing rules once again demonstrated to my satisfaction the value of armour and just how vulnerable unarmoured ships are. The CSS Stonewall was fortunate to avoid serious damage when at point blank range under the guns of a full broadside from the USS Wabash - the damage rolls were at a net -1 - but her luck turned in spectacular fashion with the final ram attack. The result raised eyebrows and so I have been giving this some additional thought.

At the battle of Hampton Roads the CSS Virginia was nearly lost when she rammed the USS Cumberland. Her ram was stuck fast in the Union ship and was being pulled under when her ram broke off. This was what I had in mind when I allowed for rammed ship, assuming it had suffered damage, to effectively counterattack the ramming ship. I am satisfied with the thought process behind the rule but am mindful that the execution may be seen to be over the top. I have a couple of ideas to try to mitigate this so will see  how they play out before adjusting the rule. Adjusting is the right word for this as a wholesale change of the process is not needed - of that I am certain.

Once again, I would like to extend my thanks to Messrs Huband, Fox, Kightly and Slater for their enthusiastic participation as well as providing me with much to think about. In a good way, naturally!

Endgame in Sight!

Two of the final pieces required for the battle report to be found in Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame: The American Civil War. No prizes for guessing what the Jenga blocks are for. A bonus point if anyone can tell me what needs to be done to the Confederate ironclad - super detailing it or replacing it with a commercially available model as an answer will earn you instant disqualification!

Thanks to a mahoosive amount of work by the Editor-in-Chief, Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame: The American Civil War, is now really close to being ready for publication! I have some pictures to organise and the battle contained therein needs to be fought and written up but once that has done it is off for proofreading. There will then be some tidying up to take care of and then bingo! “Thar she blows!” 

As mentioned previously, this has taken me a lot longer than I originally envisaged to produce and if I am completely honest, it will be with some degree of relief that it gets ‘out there’, so to speak.

For the battle that will feature in the book I have to slightly modify one of the Confederate ships being used and I will also have to complete an item of terrain that will feature. I should also mention that any resemblance to the battle and anything remotely historical will be purely coincidental….

In the words of ‘Ol Blue Eyes….”and now, the end is near….” 

Turtle Ships and Samurai

Between 1592 and 1598, Japan invaded Korea twice, with the ultimate aim of conquering China. The expectation that Korea could be subdued easily en route to China but ultimately this was not the case. The Koreans, assisted by the Chinese, fought the vaunted Samurai armies to a standstill until they finally withdrew in 1598, following the death of the Taiko: Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

The two invasions were marked by unbelievably savage fighting on land - in which the Koreans certainly gave as good they got - and some quite remarkable battles at sea. At it is the war at sea that has formed a new post ACW project for me for which, mercifully, I will not be making the models!

The starter set from MT Miniatures with the list of contents listed on the box.

The Indefatigable David Manley drafted the rules which come in the starter set as well as being available on Wargames Vault under his Long Face Games label. He has also penned a set designed for large scale actions of the period called “Those Who Seek Death” as well as a couple of scenario PDFs. Aside from the rules, David has also included a potted history of the war as well as descriptions of the main ship types - in short everything one would need to get started in the period.

Game accessories - all laminated but needing to be carefully cut out

The ships that come with the starter set (1:1200th scale white metal) - needless to say I have expanded the choice and number available somewhat!

A painting guide for the Korean ships - note the famous ‘turtle ship’ in the centre….

….and also for the Japanese.

The ‘Imjin War’ and the later ‘Chongyu War’ (essentially the first and second invasion respectively) are not exactly mainstream naval history in the West but a very useful history of the period has been penned by the renowned expert on matters Far Eastern - Stephen Turnbull. By chance I saw a copy of this on ebay for next to nothing and immediately hoovered it up - and am really glad that I did! Although it is not a naval history as such, the exploits of the famous Korean Admiral Yi Sun-sin - celebrated as a national hero in the same way that Nelson is - with his turtle ships against the Japanese invading forces feature throughout. 

A really useful book on the period - as are his other titles, primarily focussed on the Samurai

In a nutshell the Koreans largely dominated the naval scene wherever they found the Japanese ships so on the face of it the conflict would appear to be pretty one-sided. However, whilst the Koreans had stronger ships with better artillery, the Japanese had numbers, lighter and possibly handier ships (although with far fewer guns) and a willingness to get into hand to hand combat wherever possible. It was the outstanding leadership of Admiral Yi that provided the command expertise to the technological edge the Koreans possessed. The Japanese did have a few successes but not against Admiral Yi.

A modern replica of a Korean ‘Geobukseon’ - the ‘Turtle Ship’.

Gaming Thoughts

I must admit that this is not a period of naval warfare I would have considered were it not for David Manley’s rules and the models from MT Miniatures. In fact I would go further and say that I had never even heard of such a conflict other than as a mention in the book Shogun by James Clavell!

Despite the relatively obscure nature of this conflict, at least in the West, there is plenty to get one’s naval teeth into. Much of the combat was fought in sight of land so there is scope for some terrain in the form of fishing villages and small islands etc. The ships are quite simple in terms of design and paint scheme (a BIG advantage for me!) and have a distinctive look about them. There is little rigging to speak of and the ships use both sails and oars for propulsion. There are plenty of exotic weapon types in use and even early mines! Aside from the Koreans and Japanese there is also the Chinese including the inevitable war junk - a model that is useful for all sides.

I like the two differing tactical approaches so you have the ‘stand off and batter using gunfire’ doctrine used by the Koreans as opposed to the faster ‘get up close, board and butcher’ system favoured by the Japanese.

I have fancied tackling something 16th century based from a naval perspective but had never considered this conflict but I reckon it will be a lot of fun in an anarchic sort of way.

The land side of the war could possibly be catered for using Command and Colours: Samurai Battles although there are no rules that I am aware of that cater for the Koreans, or the Chinese for that matter. A trawl through the various facebook groups that cover the Command and Colours series may prove fruitful but that will be for another day.

First things first  though - ACW and DTPIW!

Squared Away

As part of the preparation for DTPIW I spent some time reworking some of the firing arc pictures as I was not really happy with the original versions. They now look like this:

For use with the ‘two square per model’ variant when operating orthagonally.

The same for diagonals

The ‘single square’ variant when operating orthagonally

And the same diagonally.

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed that for the single square option the forward and aft wide arcs (FW and AW) appear to be only covering the area off the bow and stern respectively. This is deliberate but such guns will still be available to use on a broadside if required. There is a rule that covers this and also clarifies the concept of partial grid areas.

I will need to slightly amend the appropriate text to better explain my thinking around this.

In other news, plans are afoot for another action to be fought at the club - this time on the high seas - and every ship present will have a full sailing rig!

We Are Where We Are….Closer!

From a previous action fought on a square grid. The CSS Morgan, covered with hit markers and with the three sinking markers of doom….

Work on DTPIW at last has a finishing line in sight! All of the key components are in place and the final touches will follow shortly. There will inevitably be some amendments and tweaks before going to print but the core stuff is all there. It has been a decidedly clunky process getting to where it is now this time around! The Portable Ironclads Wargame is a self-contained book and is structured in a relatively sensible and, dare I say it, logical way. I have tried to do the same with the Developing title but it has in may cases felt like herding cats as ideas have come and gone and add-ons have popped up to muddy the waters (quite appropriately in the case of the Mississippi!).

I think that the key thing for me has been to get clear in my mind exactly what this book is and more importantly, what it is not - and to be honest, this has given me much food for thought.

I can say definitively though, that it is most certainly not a second edition! In many ways it is like a special edition DVD/Blu-ray - you know the ones that include the additional and deleted scenes, ‘bloopers’ and sundry other bits and pieces. 

In many ways this book has been more difficult to get organised than the original, mainly because I have chopped and changed my mind about much of the content - usually with no apparent rhyme or reason. There has also been a veritable smorgasbord of real world stuff to contend with - stuff that puts pushing models ships around and agonising over firing arcs etc into their proper perspective.

Anyway, it is now at last and finally on the right track in terms of what I wanted to do and so I am looking forward to wrapping things up and getting it out there.

In no particular order then, the contents include the following:

Alternative firing methods

Alternative movement and manoeuvring ideas

Alternative initiative ideas

Using a square grid

Using a single hex/square grid

Expanded ACW ship specifications

Expanded bibliography

And of course, a battle report!

This book will not be the end of the Portable Ironclads Wargame, nor will it be the end of my ACW project. I have some more models to build and so my original estimate of ‘around a dozen or so generic models’ will have increased tenfold - at a minimum!

It has been an epic journey so far and one that I have enjoyed far more than I would have ever expected - I have also stuck with it for far longer than I would have expected!

“No Sailor but a Fool attacks a Fortress!….Again!

This rather splendid picture was taken by Mr Fox and shows the situation after the first turn from the Confederate side. Note the floating battery that is the CSS Louisiana in the centre foreground and the looming bulk of the USS Benton heading towards the Fort. 

Yesterday evening saw a largish ACW naval game taking place at the club, using the Portable Ironclads Wargame, a selection on my models and two sides each of two players. First of all a big thank you to Messrs Fox, Huband, Kightly and Slater for taking part - an enjoyable time was had by all and once again, there is no substitute for practical playing experience when designing a set of rules!

The action was a Union attack against a small Confederate fort, protected by minefields (torpedoes in the terminology of the time, as Mr Fox graciously reminded me) and supported by a number of naval vessels.

The Union force, commanded by Mr Huband with Mr Slater as his number two, consisted of the USS Benton (Flag), USS Essex, USS Carondelet, USS Louisville - these are all ironclad gunboats - along with the USS Iosco and USS Metacomet - these are two ‘double-ended’ gunboats. The Confederates, Mr Fox commanding ably assisted by Mr Kightly, fielded the CSS Manassas, CSS Louisiana, CSS Morgan and CSS Gaines. There was also the small fort that went by the name of Fort Unately.

Now I apologise in advance for the somewhat disjointed narrative that follows, I have come to realise that it is far easier to write one when fighting an action solo as there are far fewer distractions to deal with! The rules and QRS worked well although one issue did arise during the action. It was not a huge problem but will require a minor addition. As an aside several situations arose that have given me pause for thought but that will be for another day.

The number of pictures is few and the Union opted to change their initial deployment from that of the picture below - essentially the two central columns swapped sides - so the USS Benton (currently the large vessel at the top of the ‘diamond’ in the bottom left corner - with the USS Essex took over the places currently occupied by the USS Carondelet and the USS Louisville. I forgot to take a picture of the new deployment!

The Action Unfolds

The starting positions from the Union side

The view from the South. The black dots represent potential minefields. The CSS Manassas is at the top of the picture, the CSS Morgan and the CSS Gaines are in line ahead approaching the clear channel that separates the two headland minefields. The looming bulk of the CSS Louisiana sits at anchor to the right of Fort Unately.

The Union starboard column with the flagship, the USS Benton, flanked by the USS Metacomet, approach the Rebel fort. The Confederates immediately open fire, with the Metacomet taking damage.

Whilst the Union manoeuvre to engage the fort, the two Confederate gunboats nose cautiously into the channel - into the teeth of the enemy! 

This is where things get a little confusing. Fort Unately and the CSS Morgan - currently surrounded by all four Union ironclads - envelop the Union flagship is a hail of fire and so she settles by the bow (in game turns will sink in four turns as indicated by the markers). The USS Iosco, in a desperate bid to get into action, noses into a minefield.

A closer view of the action. The minefield was determined to contain three devices (Mr Fox rolled a 6) so things were looking pretty dire for the Union ship until he rolled for effect - two 1s and 2! - the Union relief was palpable!) In fairness to Mr Fox his shooting was phenomenal with a veritable deluge of 6s being rolled….

Several things happened at once. The CSS Louisiana pivoted in place to provide fire support but was effectively masked by the two gunboats in the channel. The CSS Manassas cautiously picked her way to the edge of the same channel so as to support her countrymen. Meanwhile the CSS Morgan paid dearly for her temerity as the Union fleet pulverised her into matchwood - she would not go easily though as her sinking roll was - you guessed it - yet another Mr Fox inspired 6!

With the two Confederate gunboats resolutely placed in the channel between the minefields - albeit with one sinking - and with the attack on the fort ignominiously failing, the decision was taken to halt the action. 

The two Confederate ironclads were undamaged, as was the fort, so the tactical victory went to the gentlemen of the South. From a strategic perspective this action, although costing the Union an ironclad, would represent little more than a speed bump as to their progress towards the main Rebel seaport of Static Bay. The ‘death ride’ of the two Confederate gunboats, whilst effective was costly as with the leading ship - the sinking CSS Morgan - and the following CSS Gaines in a decidedly unenviable position, best by avenging Union warships of assorted types. They would be back and in greater numbers meaning that the writing was on the wall for the Confederate fort and the small naval base. As soon as the mortar rafts could be towed into position they should be able to batter the Rebel fort into submission - unimpeded by any meaningful Confederate naval presence.

Or would it?

A Rule Writer’s Thoughts

Hmm. There are a few wrinkles that only practical playing experience can highlight and so it was a valuable exercise for me. There will need to be a minor tweak to the QRS - nothing major - and a couple of additional ideas to play around with to be included in the forthcoming Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame: The American Civil War. 

I have also come to realise that just because I can do something it does not always mean that I should….

As always, many thanks once again to Messrs Fox, Huband, Kightly and Slater for their time and invaluable input.

 

DTPIW: Once More Unto the Breach....And all that!

Not exactly the forces that will be action soon but there are similarities. The Mobile Bay Confederate ships the CSS Tennessee leading followed by the CSS Selma flanked by the CSS Morgan and Gaines.

This coming Wednesday evening will see another run out of The Portable Ironclads Wargame at the club - and it promises to be a doozy! There will some ships in action that have never graced the table top but more importantly, some new players will be taking part for the first time.

It will also be a relatively large action - around a dozen models all told - with a fort and minefields to contend with, at least for the Union that is.

I have also finalised a QRS for use with The Portable Ironclads Wargame which will be road tested as part of the game. I cannot claim that it has been a wholly individual exercise - a number of significant contributions have come from various quarters - as many suggestions have been made in getting it to where it is now. They know who they are and have my grateful thanks.

There will be an after action report but for now it is sufficient to relate that the game is the final act of the trilogy of battles that started with Gridded Naval Wargames by Bob Cordery, set along the 'great father of waters' the mighty Missenhitti river.

Command and Colours: Medieval(?)

The modest selection of titles I own covering much of the material from the base game - note the hardback version of the venerable Armies of the Dark Ages.

It Is fairly safe to say that the majority of readers of this blog will be familiar with the Command and Colours series of games designed by Richard Borg. The Medieval version takes as its starting point the end of the Roman Empire in the West and finished up at the end of the 6th century. I do not consider myself to be well read in the period at all but in my mind calling this period Medieval feels a little off but I am sure that wiser heads than mine can explain the whys and wherefores!

Anyways, before moving on the Crusades expansion (which I why I purchased the base game in the first place and then waited ages for the expansion to be published!) I figures that it would be a good idea to acquaint myself with the wars of the early Byzantines centred on Belisarius of Robert Graves’s Count Belisarius fame - despite the artistic licence!

Starting with the WRG book - and what gamer of the period hasn’t? - I added a few other titles over time to round out my knowledge of the period. With the exception of the Belisarius title all have featured on the blog at some point in the past. The Belisarius title is the latest addition and I am really enjoying reading it.

It is one of those books that is very self contained in that it starts with setting the scene of the period, traces the life of Belisarius and his campaigns, looks at the armies of the period and how they were equipped and fought as well as including maps and brief biographies of the key personalities. It is not a perfect title in that here are a few irritating typos but make no mistake - if you only had one book on the period I would absolutely recommend this one!

At the time of writing I am just getting to the war in Africa against the Vandals after his earlier campaign against the Persians. This is one of the irritating typos - Sasanid rather than Sassanid….

Despite my earlier reservations - mainly because of a lack of knowledge of the period - I am looking forward to enjoying some games set in the 6th century before moving on to the main course of the Crusades - which in my world is firmly in the Medieval timeframe!

For the record I have absolutely no intention of painting armies for this period nor for the Crusades - although the idea of using 3mm has a certain appeal….

Just saying….

DTPIW: A Big Chunk of Progress

Oh no - not another firing arc diagram!

It has been a busy but rewarding day working on Developing the Portable Ironclads Wargame. The final chapters (with the exception of the battle report - which has yet to be organised, let alone fought!) have been sent over to the Editor-in-Chief and for the first time in a while I can sense the finishing line being in sight!

Pictures are being added and once the new text has been incorporated and sent back to me for review - there are a few minor changes here and there - we can think about publishing which, all being well, will be during this half of the year.

The picture you see is a taster of what you can expect - no context though, that will spoil the surprise!

More on Fighters of the Pacific

Looking forward to giving this a spin - there is a solo system included - and am thinking about how best to ‘elevate’ the aircraft counters.

Following on from my earlier post about Fighters of the Pacific, today saw the arrival of the Midway expansion set, all the way from the US of A! I now have both expansions for the game - Coral Sea being the other - which means that some South Pacific carrier air action may well be imminent! There are some kickstarter bits and pieces that would be nice to have but are not really essential and besides, I have to keep myself in check for when the European version is launched later this year.

The Midway set, aside from the usual Wildcat, Dauntless, Devastator and Zero, Kate and Val types, also includes Buffaloes, B26s and Avengers. Both the expansions include a five scenario mini-campaign that features key points of the respective operations.

Nice and compact - it all lives in the base game box - and ready to roll so I reckon I should do something about it over the weekend.

A Mixed Bag of Goodies

Ancient galleys of all shapes and sizes at war over some five centuries. 

The back of the box

With the last flurry of activity in relation to the ongoing ‘churn and burn’ of my collection, I scored three items that have been on the acquisition list for a while. I can honestly say (said no wargamer ever!) that I am now at a convenient break point from all the ‘ducking and diving’ of recent months!

There are a couple of other items I have my eye on that have yet to be released but for now that is it.

First up is a board game I have been casting covetous eyes on for some time. War Galley is a tactical board game representing ancient naval warfare so lots of biremes, triremes and larger types feature with all the usual ‘ancient galley style shenanigans’ one would expect - oar rakes, the ‘Diekplus’, Greeks, Persians, Romans, Egyptians, Carthaginians and a whole pile of scenarios. This copy is unpunched and comes complete with the Salamis expansion set, several scenarios from magazines as well as the counters required to refight the naval battle from the film Ben Hur - “Row well and live!”

I still have all the material for my planned Salamis project - including a whole pile of MDF triremes. I have a feeling that using this board game may make the refight happen sooner rather than later - even if it does not it will still be a whole lot easier to set up.

Sagittarius Rising on the left (a Folio edition) and the outstanding work by Prof. Philip Sabin on ancient battles and how to game them.

The other two acquisitions are of the book variety. Sagittarius Rising covers the life of Cecil Lewis from 1915 to 1921 as a flyer and trainer of flyers. I read this in paperback a number of years ago so getting a cheap hardback Folio edition was a no brainer. Perfect inspiration for my ‘cardboard aircraft’ WW1 aerial project!

Lost Battles I have owned but but copy went missing some time ago and whilst a paperback edition was published this hardback edition came up at a very good price so again, it was too tempting to turn down. The book is essentially a toolkit to recreate ancient battles using a grid.

What’s not to like?

Very happy with all three of the above and at the time of writing I have one further acquisition that is currently en route from the US of A which will finish a particular project off. 

In the meantime though, back to DTPIW and also the flying bases and cardboard aircraft!

The Second Day of Hampton Roads

Yesterday evening saw Messrs Fox and Huband once again taking command of a selection of ships for a ‘based upon’ Hampton Roads - the second day thereof - game using the Portable Ironclad Wargame. Once again that ‘Will ‘o the wisp of the bounding main!” Aka Mr Fox, assumed command of the Confederates, represented solely by the CSS Virginia. Mr Huband took command of the USS Monitor and the grounded USS Minnesota.

Historically the CSS Virginia sallied forth to finish off the USS Minnesota but was prevented from doing so by the appearance of the USS Monitor.

So much for the history….

In the action that followed - and apologies for the brevity of this report - the CSS Virginia initially largely ignored the USS Monitor and headed straight for the USS Minnesota, firing as she went. Despite the size of the Union vessel she was ‘sunk’ in fairly short order due in part to some ferocious Confederate gunnery (never again will I listen to Mr Fox bemoaning his dice luck!). The USS Monitor eventually got to grips with the Confederate ironclad by the simple expedient of parking herself across the bows of the CSS Virginia and exchanging fire at point blank range to telling effect. It was all the invitation that the CSS Virginia needed though, and so she duly rammed the Union ship - to no effect! However, following the post ram attack optional free turn, the Confederate ship was now facing the right way headed towards home and so with little likelihood of being overhauled by the USS Monitor, we called the action.

The Union ship could have pursued the CSS Virginia but as they both had the same speed (2) the best that they could have done would have been to maintain station. A tactical Confederate victory for sure but the Union blockading squadron would soon be reinforced and the likelihood of a repeat performance would be slim.

The pictures are 

Starting positions. The brown hexes are where the USS Minnesota has run aground

The ironclads approach cautiously 

USS Monitor closes on the CSS Virginia who maintains a damaging fire against the helpless USS Minnesota - however, in her eagerness to tackle the grounded Union vessel she has strayed into range and arc of her broadside.

By this time the damage to the Union frigate was terminal and so the Confederate reversed her course for home - straight into the USS Monitor!

Sadly no picture of the ram attack but the positions above are after it was resolved. Sadly the Confederate gunnery dice did not take to ramming and so no damage was inflicted on the USS Monitor. Once she was underway the CSS Virginia was heading directly back to base. The USS Monitor wisely broke off the action.

Afterthoughts and Observations

From a historical perspective the action felt accurately paced and ‘right’. The USS Minnesota was made short work of, reflecting a similar impact the CSS Virginia had the previous day. USS Monitor was able to ‘run interference’ but by the time she did it was already too late. The two ironclads banged away at each other with limited effect - the USS Monitor definitely came second overall during the exchange - and the ram attack was a disappointing failure. 

The vulnerability of wooden ships when facing ironclads was ably demonstrated, as was the somewhat laborious exchange of fire between the two ironclads. As mentioned, both felt right for the period.

The rules ran well enough although I need to make some markers for various things - fires, floods, sinking etc - and also to further refine the QRS.

Mr Huband came up with a rather nifty flow diagram for firing which I am seriously thinking about incorporating within the QRS at some point.

As a spur of the moment idea I have suggested running the first day of Hampton Roads - pre the USS Monitor - which should be fun (maybe not for the Union though!). Something to think about though.

Once again my thanks to both Mr Fox and Mr Huband for their continued interest and support - it is very much appreciated.