55 Days at Sea: 1st Scenario: Ship Stats and OOB

Ship statistics and order of battle now, for the first scenario in the 55 Days at Sea Campaign: "Surprise Attack", using Mr Barker's 'Damn Battleships Again' rules.

I thought I would lay out the details of the various contenders here, as well as make some notes on certain points specific to this scenario; I've provided some general statistics that might be useful, and included the ship classification in line with my interpretation of the definitions according to the rules.

First off, the Fleet of the Great Powers, gathered at anchor off the Taku Bar:

Great Britain:

HMS Centurion and Barfleur (Centurion Class)

10,500 tons, Weapons: 4 x 10", 10 x 4.7", 8 x 6pdr, 12 x 3 pdr, Torpedo Tubes: 7 x 18"

Armour: 12' Belt, 2.5" Deck

Speed: 17 knots

Damn Battleships Again Ship Classification: Battleship

Endymion (Edgar Class)

7,700t, 2 x 9.2", 10 x 6", 12 x 6pdr, TT: 2 x 18"

5" Deck

19kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Aurora and Orlando (Orlando Class)

5,600t, 2 x 9.2", 10 x 6", 10 x 3pdr

10' Compound Belt, 3" Deck

16kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Austro-Hungary:

Zenta (Zenta Class)

2,300 tons, 8 x 4.7", 10 x 3pdr, TT: 2 x 17.7"

2" Deck

20kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

United States of America:

Newark (own class)

4, 083t, 12 x 6", 4 x 6pdr

3" Deck

18kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Italy:

Calabria (own class)

2,453t, 4 x 6", 4 x 4.7", 8x 57mm, TT: 2 x 17.7"

2" Deck

17kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Elba (Lombardia or Regions Class)

2,245t, 4 x 6", 6 x 4.7', 10 x 57mm, TT: 2 x 17.7"

2" Deck

18kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Japan:

Kasagi (Chitose Class)

4,760t, 2 x 8", 10 x 4.7", 12 x 12pdr, TT: 4 x 18"

2.5" Deck

22kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Suma (own class)

2,657t, 2 x 6", 6 x 4.7", 10 x 3pdr, TT: 2 x 15"

2" Deck

20kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Germany:

Kaiserin Augusta (own class)

6,218t, 12 x 5.9", 8 x 3.4", TT: 5 x 13.8"

2.75" Deck

21kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Hansa and Hertha (Victoria Luise Class)

5,660t, 2 x 8.2", 8 x 5.9", 10 x 12pdr, TT: 3 x 17.7"

4" Deck

19kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Gefion (own class)

4,275t, 10 x 6", 6 x 4.8", TT: 2 x 17.7"

Armour: unknown

20kt

DBSA Class: 3rd Class Cruiser

Russia:

Rossiya (own class)

12,500t, 4 x 8", 16 x 5.5", 12 x 3pdr, TT: 6 x 18"

10" Belt, 2.5" Deck

19kt

DBSA Class: Battleship

(Given her size, weapon complement, and armour, this seems the best designation under the DBA rules, although she was actually a large armoured cruiser.)

Sissoi Veliki (own class)

9,000t, 4 x 12", 6 x 6", 12 x 57mm, 24 x 37mm, TT: 6 x 18:

16" Belt, 3" Deck

16kt

DBSA Class: Battleship

Gaidamak (Kazarski Class)

400t approx, 6 x 3pdr, 3 x 1pdr, TT: 2 x 15"

Unarmoured

17kt

DBSA Class: Torpedo Boat Destroyer

(DBSA actually calls for TBDs to operate/be depicted in pairs, but as these are historical, named ships, I'm foregoing this rule)

France:

D'Entrecasteaux (own class)

8,114t, 2 x 9.4", 12 x 5.5", 12 x 3pdr, TT: 6 x 18"

2.2" Deck

19kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Descartes, Pascal (Descartes Class)

4,000t, 4 x 6.4", 10 x 4", 8 x 3pdr, TT: 2 x 18"

2" Deck

19kt

DBSA Class: 2nd Class Cruiser

Now for the Chinese Navy:

Anchored at the rear of the Great Power's Fleet:

Hai Yung (own class)

2,680t, 3 x 5.9", 8 x 4", TT: 3 x 14"

Armour unknown

19kt

DBSA Class: 3rd Class Cruiser

Flotilla approaching from the South:

Hai Tien (own class, based on Elswick built Argentinian Buenos Aires Class Cruiser)

4,500t, 2 x 8", 10 x 4.7", 16 x 2", TT: 5 x 18"

Armour unknown

24kt

DBSA Class: 1st Class Cruiser

Fei Ting (own class, officially a 'torpedo cruiser')

400t, 2 x 4", 4 x 2", TT: 5 x 18"

Armour unknown

20kt

DBSA Class: 3rd Class Cruiser

Fei Ying (own class)

Tonnage unknown, 2 x 47mm, TT: 3 x 13.7"

Armour unknown

25kt

DBSA Class: Torpedo Boat Destroyer

Kuang Ting (own class, 'torpedo gunboat')

Tonnage unknown, 3 x 5.9", 4 x 47mm, TT: 4 x 18"

Armour unknown

16kt

DBSA Class: 3rd Class Cruiser

The 'surprise package' emerging from the mouth of the Pei Ho river, obscured by the two Kwantung Junks:

Hai Hola, Hai Lung, Hai Nju, Hai Ying (Hai Hola Class)

Tonnage unknown, 6 x 47mm, TT: 2 x 18"

Unarmoured

30kt

DBSA Class: Torpedo Boat Destroyer

The two Kwantung Junks themselves are of course classed as Merchant shipping, although they could reveal themselves as 'Raiders / Armed Merchant Cruisers' in the sense that they mount 6 obsolete muzzle-loading 24pdr guns, and are crewed by fanatical Boxers. An attempt to board and inspect these ships by one of the Great Powers could result in a nasty surprise!

The Time of Day for the start of the scenario is decided at 6 spells before sunrise, therefore dawn.

You might like to depict the Taku Bar itself as a shoal under the rules, this is a hazard to navigation and blocks line of sight for Torpedo Boat Destroyers.

The Russian Rossiya is the Flagship of the Fleet.

The positions of the various ships are as depicted in the Russian diagram on the Taku Bombardment Webpage: (Scroll down...)

http://www.fortunecity.com/olympia/ince/698/rurik/taku.html

The Chinese TBDs and junks approach from the top of the diagram, the Hai Yung is at position in the rear, and she will be joined by the flotilla moving from Wu-Sung after the first few spells of play.

As this is a surprise attack, I would award by default the initiative to the Chinese, and might hamper the Great Powers further by imposing a spell limit before they could either return fire or begin to move; this would obviously depict their unpreparedness and time needed to get up a head of steam.

Furthermore, it would give some advantage to the Chinese, who are, after all, outnumbered 2:1 by more capable ships!

Victory conditions should also reflect the strategic impact of interdicting the landing of troops by the Great Powers, and each loss to them, whether damaged or sunk, should be judged greater than one on the Chinese side, their likely losses being relatively immaterial in the sense of achieving the aim of closing the mouth of the Pei Ho to Western ships.

A further bit of fun might be to introduce a 'Confusion' dice roll, whereby if a ship of a certain nation receives fire from the Chinese in the near vicinity of another, competing nation, then they may mistakenly assume they are under attack by their rival power, and react accordingly.

Candidates for this that spring to mind would be mutually the Russians and Japanese, the Austro-Hungarians and Italians, and the British and the French; if the HMS Centurion receives fire within 5 cable lengths of the D'Entrcasteaux, she might think that it came from the French!

Phew!, quite an exhaustive list of things there, but should shape up into an interesting game....