WWI Canvas Eagles (Early War) 1/72 : Stockton Parade Ground Show

Two models fulfilling their "Wargaming Destiny" at Stockton Battleground 2018. Apologies for this delayed posting but other things 'jumped ahead' and I only just found the pictures lurking on my mobile phone. Somewhere on the Eastern Front circa 1915 two new-fangled momoplane scouts approach each other to duel (see below, a Fokker Eindecker EIII versus a Morane-Saulnier N):

The Russian aviator has no qualms over taking on the German over the enemy front lines in his own backyard (see below, Imperial Russian Air Service versus the Imperial German Air Service - no discernible AA as the ground troops stare in wonder at the 'state of the art' flying machines): 

After a few circling moves the two flyer clench their buttocks for a "head-to-head" pass firing their machine guns. The Eindekker EIII with a sophisticated interrupter mechanism in contrast to the (French designed) steel deflector plate in the propeller of the Morane. First blood goes to the Russian as bullets hit the Eindekker from short range and the German pilot fails a spin check (see below, the Russian pilot gasps every time he pulls the machine gun trigger and hears the dreadful "ting" off his own prop but this time he comes away with a 'good result'):

Dropping from level 4 to level 3 the German pilot steels his nerves and corrects his flailing aircraft pulls out of his death dive. The Russian circles on him and dives in for a kill, however both planes occupy the same physical space. A collision check is made and both pilots roll the same number - crunch. Dreaded RED hits are exchanged and both pilots find themselves flying machines held together by will-power and faith rather than engineering. From earnest combat to survival in the space of one move (see below, crunch, even the models don't like it as the Eindekker model is a missing vital tail plane):

Honour satisfied both pilots head home, saluting each other as fellow "Knights of the Sky." (see below, "Until we meet again"):

A nice starter to the show, as the early war planes are put to one side and the SE5a takes to the sky for a duel with a Fokker D.VII.

Dogger Bank Information - WWI Naval "YouTube" Lecture: courtesy of Simulating War forum

Gawd bless those little Internet elves they keep finding gems like this and then posting them to forums like Simulating War:

Thanks must go to Mircea Pauca who pointed this one out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuFgJULHI7g

The slides used to support that lecture:

http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~nm15/MacKayUSNWC.pdf

Have only had a "peak" but like what I saw (the whole lecture is a just over an hour)

Enjoy 

:)

Notes to self: Musings on WWI Naval rules (North Sea) Part #1

Recent sources of Inspiration: Dreadnought Gunnery Book
Michael Brooks

Though please note, my version was the good old fashioned paper edition.

And a long standing favorite:

What I want from a set of naval rules?

• Fast Play
• Historical Accuracy
• No "fiddle and widdle, billimeter twaddle"

Rules that come the closest?

• GQ I and GQ II Rules (over thirty five years old now)
• (Best bit) Gunnery abstraction is excellent
• (Worst) Movement and Command & Control

Thoughts of my own, time to devise "Battle Cruiser Fleet" (BCF) Battles, my Great War Naval Rules for "Battle-cruiser clashes in the North Sea"

BCF Actions in the North Sea (Version 1)

Context of Rules

Mainstay of the naval actions in the North Sea was between the Battle Cruiser Fleet (BCF) and the High Seas Fleet (HSF) Scouting Groups (SG), as running engagements rarely got to the point of battle squadrons of the Grand Fleet (GF) engaging the battle squadrons of the High Seas Fleet (HSF).

Miniatures/Counters: 
Each ship will be represented 1-to-1 on the ‘table-top’, therefore there is a high element count to the game.
(Note: This could mean quite a lot of counters)

Formations:
However the counters are not moved individually (bar ‘exceptional  circumstances’ – i.e. ships being damages and sunk) but moved in squadrons relative to one another. Counters/Ships are held in a fixed position within the formation.

Movement:
Absolute movement is not measured, rather relative movements (sea areas) between squadrons.  The umpire may have to have a form of master map (to be confirmed).

Movement ‘orders’ are maintained as: Close (decrease distance), Maintain and Open (increase distance) and issued to squadrons. The success of the intention is based on simultaneous order declarations.  

Gunnery:
Gunnery is handled as per General Quarters (GQI and GQII) is abstracted into fire-power factors and ‘quartered’ reductions (I like the way the traditional GQ does it) rather than counting turrets and shells.

Command:
Command and Control is based on the relative position to the Flagship. Command “PiPs” are used/spent by the Admiral to control his formations (signalling), messaging (intelligence to GF and HSF admirals and ‘over the horizon’ scouting formations) and gunnery (target priority).  

Individual battle squadrons or formations have their own initiative and morale levels.

Design Goal:
German and British doctrines are different and will be reflected in the orders allowed to be played by the admirals. Note: This is a form of constraint propagation to make the rules specific to North Sea actions (1914-1918 WWI period). The personal and national characteristics of the commanders (Beatty, Jellicoe, Hipper and Scheer) also will effect the 'freedom of movement' to perform certain actions.

I hope the "festive period" turns out to be a fertile period of naval wargaming experimentation. Note I an trying to keep the context of the game scope quite tight to re-fight historical scenarios and the "what-if" permutations.