Battle of the Sea of Japan

Our first 1:2400 pre-dreadnought game (see previous post) saw the Russian Pacific Squadron be partially successful in evacuating the threatened Port Arthur and sailing to Vladivostok.  There they joined the Vladivostok based Independent Cruiser Squadron.  After making repairs to the damage suffered by the battleships in the Yellow Sea action, the Russian squadron, now under the command of Vice Admiral Skirdlov sailed forth to do battle with the Japanese.  Knowing that the Baltic Fleet was sending reinforcements, Skirdlov hoped to catch the Japanese separated and defeat them in detail making the task of the Baltic reinforcements that much easier.

Russian Pacific Squadron:

1st Sub-Division, Battle Division (VAdm Skirdlov [Electric Ed]):  battleships Tsesarevich (flag), Retvizan, and Pobieda
2nd Sub-Division, Battle Division (RAdm Vitgeft [Sean Campbell]):  battleships Peresviet (flag) and Sevastopol, armored cruiser Bayan
Independent Cruiser Squadron (RAdm Baron Shtakelberg [Col Campbell]):  armored cruisers Rossiya (flag), Gromoboi, and Rurik, protected cruiser Bogatyr

The Japanese fleet had suffered severe damage to its armored cruiser component (1 sunk and 5 badly damaged, out of 9 total) so their repair work was concentrated on getting the four battleships back into combat condition.  Admiral Togo kept his battleships and Vice Admiral Kamimura's remaining armored cruisers together, leaving his protected cruisers to patrol the shipping lanes and the various choke points around the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan.

Japanese Battle Squadron


1st Division (Adm Togo [Jay, Lord Sterling]):  battleships Mikasa (flag), Fuji, Skikashima, and Asahi
2nd Division (VAdm Kamimura [Kansas Bill]):  armored cruisers Izumo (flag), Azuma, Tokiwa, and Iwate

The Russian and Japanese squadrons sighted each other through the mid-morning sea mists and begin to close into fighting range.  Please click on each picture for (hopefully) a larger image.

Photo by Col Campbell

The Russian 1^st Battle Sub-Division comes under fire with all Japanese shells falling on the IRN Tsesarevich, the squadron flagship.  The lead battleship of the 2^nd Battle Sub-Division is just entering the picture.

[For a description of the shell splash markers, see Splash Markers posting on ColCampbell's Shipyard blog.]

Photo by Col Campbell

 The Japanese 2^nd Battle Division, all armored cruisers, comes under return fire from the Russian battleships, two of whom concentrate in the IJN Izumo, the division flagship.

Photo by Col Campbell

 The IJN Izumo is soon set on fire and suffers a bridge hit, forcing her to continue straight ahead for two turns.  But the efficient Japanese damage control parties soon have the fires under control.

Photo by Electric Ed

 The Russian battleline continues to slowly close with the Japanese; the 1^st Sub-Division in the foreground and the 2^nd Sub-Division in the background.  Note single size of the "splashes".  Firing is at long range and being done by only the main guns.

Photo by Col Campbell

 Meanwhile, the Russian 2^nd Battle Sub-Division turns to port into a line abreast formation.  But the Japanese battleships concentrate all their fire on IRN Peresviet, sub-division flagship.  Asked after the battle why he made such an unusual maneuver, RAdm Vitgeft said that he was attempting to get around behind the Japanese battleships.  The large and small splash markers mean that the range has fallen enough that the secondary batteries can now engage.

Photo by Col Campbell

But soon the IRN Peresviet is set on fire and begins to sink.  RAdm Vitgeft transfers to the IRN Sevastopol to continue the fight.  Unfortunately, he waited too long and the Japanese battleships sailed away from him.

Photo by Col Campbell

In the distance, the IRN Pobieda receives fire from a Japanese battleship and an armored cruiser and is set afire.  In the foreground the IRN Rossiya, flagship of the Vladivostok Independent Cruiser Division receives fire from three (!!) Japanese battleships and is also set afire.

Photo by Electric Ed

The IRN Pobieda suffers 2 fire hits from the Japanese in one turn.  The rules state that when the critical hit die is a 1 and is from a Japanese hit, then both a regular fire and a "raging fire" are started.  He had been targeted by two different Japanese ships, which both started fires.

Photo by Col Campbell

With the IRN Pobieda aflame and slowly sinking, the Japanese armored cruisers and battleships turn their gunfire against his division mates, IRN Retvizan and IRN Tsesarevich.

Photo by Col Campbell

But the Japanese return to the IRN Pobieda and start more fires, fully engulfing him and soon forcing him from the line.  His division mates also receive their share of Japanese fire.

Photo by Col Campbell

But the Japanese ships aren’t totally immune.  The armored cruiser IJN Izumo has turned away from the fight with very heavy damage, drawing long-range fire from the IRN Bayan, which is steaming as fast as he can to overtake the Japanese fleet.  The IJN Izumo eventually surrenders due to IRN Bayan's shellfire.  The other Japanese three armored cruisers and the four battleships are all under fire from the remaining Russian battleships and cruisers.

Photo by Col Campbell

 The IRN Pobieda has turned away from the fight.  The fires are too much for him and he sinks, the second Russian ship to be sunk.

Photo by Col Campbell

 But not the last.  The IRN Rossiya has been set ablaze by shellfire from the Japanese battleships.  He has turned away and is endeavoring to reach Vladivostok.  But the fires also prove too much for his crew and he sinks, taking many of them to a watery grave.

Photo by Col Campbell

With the IRN Rossiya out of the fight, RAdm Baron Shtakelberg transfers to his next cruiser, IRN Gromoboi, who immediately draws the Japanese battleship fire and is set ablaze.  He won’t last long either.

Photo by Col Campbell

 Finally the Russian battleships score some telling hits, setting two of the Japanese armored cruisers (background) afire and forcing them to turn away from the fight.  But it is too little, too late, as the Japanese battleships (foreground) turn to close the range even though they continue to draw fire from the remaining Russian ships.

Photo by Jim Pitts

 A closer look at the Japanese armored cruisers, as the IJN Azuma and Tokiwa have turned away and the IJN Iwate attempts to cover their retreat.

Photo by Col Campbell

 As darkness begins to fall, the IRN Tsesarevich is targeted by the IJN Iwate (#8) and the IRN Retvizan by the IJN Mikasa (#1).

So, who won.  I think it is fairly obvious with the sinking of two battleships and two armored cruisers that the Russian Pacific Squadron were the losers.  Although they forced the surrender of the Japanese armored cruiser Izumo, they couldn't board her.  She was later recovered by the Japanese fleet (and her captain committed seppuku).  The Russians retreated back to Vladivostok while the Japanese continued their blockade of the Russian port.  Can the Baltic Fleet's reinforcements, now called the 2nd Pacific Squadron, turn the tables on the victorious Japanese?  Tune in later next year for what may be the final climactic battle.

Note:  All ships are from Panzerschiffe Miniatures.  The flame markers are from Litko Game Accessories.

The 1904 Russo-Japanese War Fleets

I've been working diligently painting and basing 1:2400 scale ships for my November 6 naval game.  You can see pictures of all the combatants at my ColCampbell's Shipyard blog's October postings.

Japanese battleships

Russian battleships

Please stop by for a look and then join us at Fondren Presbyterian Church (map link) on Saturday, November 6, for the action.

Play Test of Sides of Steel Rules

On Monday, February 15, several Jackson gamers were introduced to the pre-dreadnought naval rules, Sides of Steel.  They were developed by Ben King and are marketed by Cotton Jim's Flags (LINK).  I bought them at Historicon a number of years ago.

This game pitted a small squadron of four Japanese battleships against a slightly larger squadron of four Russian battleships and  three cruisers.  The cruisers were not a real factor as they tried a complicated end run to get behind the Japanese but were never able to catch up to them.  The action was confined to the four battleships on each side.

 

The Russian cruiser flotilla

 

One of the two Japanese battleship divisions

 

The Russian battleline, led by the four battleships and trailed by the three cruisers

 

The Russian cruisers start their turn to try and get behind the Japanese.  Their commander, Senior Captain Yakov Alexandrovitch Pavlov (AKA Jim Pitts) thought that this would give the Russians an advantage.  Unfortunately his cruisers just weren't fast enough to make up the distance and could never catch the Japanese battleships.

 

Clay James, one of the Japanese battleship division commanders, calculates the range to the Russian battleships.

 

One of Phil Young's Russian battleships is heavily damaged and limps out of line.  Ed Sansing's rear division has to maneuver around the crippled ship.  Sean Pitts' lead division of Japanese battleships is closing the range to Phil's leading battleship.

 

But it doesn't do Sean any good as his lead battleship is pounded by the Russians and, mortally wounded, begins to sink.  With this loss and other damage inflicted on them, the Japanese squadron turned into the rising darkness and escapes from its Russian tormenters.

The rules are fairly easy to understand as long as the gamers don't have to worry about too many ships under their command.  We decided that for beginners with these rules (which is what we are), two ships is enough.  So when I run a game sometime later in the year using these rules, all the players will control a division of two ships.

The models are from Panzerschiffe (LINK) and represent ships actually present at the famous Battle of Tsushima (May 27-28, 1905).

Sides of Steel Pre-Dreadnought Game, Feb. 15, 2010

On President's Day, five of us gathered at my church so that I could introduce and playtest the pre-dreadnought naval rules, Sides of Steel.  We pitted 4 Japanese battleships against 4 Russian battleships and 3 cruisers.

 

The Russian squadron led by 4 battleships and trailed by 3 cruisers maneuvers against the smaller Japanese squadron.

More pictures and some commentary will be posted shortly.

Renaissance Naval Game, 01/30/2010

On Saturday, January 30, 2010, the Jackson Gamers gathered at the Fellowship Hall of Fondren Presbyterian Church for a Renaissance naval battle that pitted a Spanish and Kings of Malta fleet trying to escort some desperately needed supply ships to Malta.  A squadron of galleys from the Barbary Coast was determined to stop them.

The Spanish and Maltese were led by Travis Melton and Phil Young (Spanish) and Sean Pitts (Malta), while the Barbary pirates were led by Bill Hamilton, Clay James, and Ed Sansing. Jim Pitts was the game master.

Stay tuned to find out who won and a lot more pictures.