A New Campain

bill44

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After playing both sides of the game I'm starting over, as the Russians, and hopefully learning from my mistakes in the first campain.
So, the second battle of this new campain, ( I forgot to record the first, but my Vlad force sank a armed gun boat) takes place between a Russian gun boat, and 3 Japanese destroyers.

Late afternoon, 75 kilometres East of Weihaiwei, the gun boat Mandzhur was heading back to PA, her captian Nicoli Putin was aware of the Japanese DD's in the area, but night was just 2 hours away and that would give him an advantage.
Fate though, was about to deal him and his ship a bad hand, at 14:44, lookouts spotted smoke, not a single smudge, but 3, action stations were sounded, and full speed ordered, it soon became apparant that the Russian gun boat was facing the wolves of the sea, destroyers, her top speed of 13 knots was no match for these nimble little boats, she would have to fight.
The Japanese were off his starboard bow and charging straight at him, he ordered the helm to be put over in a turn to port, he wanted to bring a full broadside to bear as soon as he could, though this would expose his flank to the Japanese shells, however, he hoped that his steel hull could stand up to the the 76mm shells which were the largest mounted on the DD's, and with his ship mounting 2, 203mm, 1, 152mm and 4, 107mm guns, he hoped to damage the DD's quickly.
He opened fire on the lead ship, Ikazuchi, scoring hits within 2 minutes, but the DD's were making 31 knots, and his target was rapidly pulling away, worse the Japanese gunners had found the range and his ship was now taking hits, which were tearing up his ship, the rear starboard boat lay broken in half in it's davits, the deck was torn up with shell splinters, 8 men were dead, with 14 more wounded.
Putin orderd target switched to the rear DD, Akebono, but his gunners shells were landing short, more shells hit the hull, below decks though some did not not penetrate they caused scabbing, sections of the hull on the inside where the shell hit broke away, and travelling at high speed cut men down.
Finally Mandzhur's gunners began hitting Akebono, her speed dropped to 22 knots, as a result of the hull damage, and the damage to her engine room, with only 55 men on board, the mounting casualties, had a telling effect on her performance.
Meanwhile Manddzhur's plight worsend, a shell jammed her rudder to port, and her own casualties now totalled 40 men, 8 weapon mounts damaged and 1 destroyed, port and strboard flooding, and her fires were steadily getting worse.
Still though she fired on Akebono, whose speed was now down to 9 knots, she was in a bad way. With her rudder jammed, Mandzhur was helpless, and her speed was now down to 10 knots, as she circled, inveriably, she would come round on the port side where most of the guns were knocked out, this gave the Japanese gunners a chance to pour shells in to her.
Two more shells slammed in to Akebono, this sealed her fate, water poured in to her hull, there were no enough men left to halt it, her captain ordered her abandoned.
Mandzhur's fate was now also sealed 106 of her crew were dead or wounded, 13 weapon mounts were damaged, her engine room and boilers wrecked.
When the brave ship sank, the battle had lasted just 59 minutes, and 55 seconds, Captian Putin was among the survivors pulled from the chilly water, but died of typhoid fever 4 months later in a POW camp.
 

Tophat

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What happened with this campaign? I need something to help with the wait for Jutland.
 

bill44

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What happened with this campaign? I need something to help with the wait for Jutland.
I'm now over 100 days in to the campaign and have managed in one long night engagement to sink 3 IJN BB's, half of Togo's heavy's gone, though I lost 5 of my PA BB's.
I also had to reinforce my Vlad fleet with extra AC's from PA as the IJN Ac's were causing me problems, but I managed to finish them off.
Now I'm busy sinking as many IJN merchants, andcapturing neautrals as possible.
 

Tophat

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Thanks for the update! I hope to do half as well in my campaign while we wait for Jutland to come out.
Are you having much success with your commerce raiders?
 

bill44

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Yes, now that I have eliminated the IJN AC's and PC's, my Vlad force can operate unmolested, the IJN heavys won't venture in to the seas around the west coast of Japan, I find Ican bag 4 or 5 neautrals and 1 or 2 IJN merchants over a two or three day period.
I also have my PA raiders making runs down the west coast of Korea, I usually run in to the IJN heavys, but am able to out distance them without trouble.
 
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