The Tabletop Tuesday Night Historical gamers gathered for their normal Tuesday night event and about 15 players showed up at Phil Gilgor’s Tabletop Hobbies at 78th & Quivera in Lenexa Kans. (K.C.K.). As we gathered for our 6:30-10:30 gaming session we went into the hobby shop to scan the "new stuff" since last week’s gaming and made our purchases as the game-masters set-up the tables! The various games presented were the DBA Campaign game "weekly moves" results, a Fire & Fury American Civil War 15mm game with about 9 players and a couple "corps" on each side, and the game I played in - Mers El Kebir 1940 - WW2 naval action battle between the Brits and the Vichy French off North Africa! Chad Gilbert was running the game using his "Kriegsmarinehalle" rules which we’ve used before for WW2 naval engagements from the North Cape convoys to Med. Sea fights. In this battle the French had been alerted to the Brits approach by Italian sub & air recon so the French were not caught un-prepared! The French plan had sent their 5 small coastal submarines out to the north-west in a "wolf-pack" to scout out the on-coming British fleet and hopefully "reduce the odds" before the main action. The French sent their light ships (DD’s & larger DDL’s) to the west to recon that direction, while the main French battle fleet (2 BC’s & 2 old BB’s) stayed as a "concentrated" force to the middle (of the table) ready to take on all comers! The approaching British fleet had 3 groups of a capital ship (BB or BC) each group supported by 3 DD’s and additional CL, with a 4th group to the rear with the CV Ark Royal escorted by 2 DD’s! The Brits plan was to air-strike the French (in port hopefully) and then advance unto contact to battle the French into submission or destruction. The "game-rules" allowed for "false fleet markers" on the tabletop until actual ship-to-ship sighting and the Brits sent a couple "false fleet markers" around the north edge to try to get the French to spread out their response. These "false markers" worked for about the first two turns of tabletop movement till they were sighted by enemy ships then removed from the tabletop. Turn 1 The British Ark Royal launched the 1st of it’s 4 air groups to attack the French fleet in port before the naval action and also launched "spotter planes" from the 3 battle-group’s capital ships. The air-strike found the harbor empty but on the return flight to the CV they spotted a group of French DDL’s and attacked not wanting to waste the mission - no hits were scored on these fast French ships! The Brits spotter planes found the main French battle group under a cloud at the middle of the table and immediately contacted their British 3 battle-groups. The French had maneuvered in a line which looped back on itself which put 2 of the 4 French capital ships "out of range" for the first turn’s firing! The British 3 battle-groups had placed 2 of their groups with-in range of the older French BB’s and the "naval action" first shots began while the 3rd British battle-group was just over the horizen out of sight. Each British battle-group (BB Valiant & BC Hood) fired at each French old BB (BB Provence & BB Bretagne) while both French fired only at the closest Brit ship (BC Hood) (better tactics by the French here). Also the French used their secondary guns to fire at lighter ships (CL & DD’s) while the Brits secondary guns were either out of range of the French BB’s or had little effect on the BB’s armor!! A hit or two were scored by both sides! Turn 2 The Brits launched the rest of their "air groups" ( 1 fighter, 2 torp.) at the French while the French launched their land-based air groups at the Brits! The "fighter" groups fought each other "in-conclusively" and landed back at base while the Brit. Torp. planes attacked the French old BB’s & the French airplanes (bombers) attacked the Hood. The British got 2 hits (1 each ship) and a critical hit which reduced the speed of one of old BB’s! The French bombers all missed! As the French battle-line tried to reform with-in range to join the gunnery action, the 3rd Brit. Battle group (BB Resolution & 3 DD‘s) came over the horizen with-in range with it’s 15" guns ( all 3 Brit. Capital ships had 15" guns while the French had smaller 13.5’s but more of them)! The French again "concentrated" their fire from 3 of their capital ships on the Hood (closest to them - they were hiting on 5’s & 6’s) while each Brit. Capital ship fired at an individual French capital ship (better tactics - maybe- more later?). The French were also using their secondary gunnery to good effect on the Brits. DD’s with-in range while the French DD’s were yet to reach the action area!! The results of the gunnery were starting to tell on the Hood (the northern-most ship) while suddenly the French subs started showing up with torpedo attacks in this northern area! The Brits attacked the subs but a torpedo did hit the Hood and her speed and gunnery were reduced!! Turn 3 The French continued to attack the Hood with "concentrated" gunnery from their capital ships while the Brits DD’s here spread smokescreens to shield the Hood to give her time to repair some critical hit damage! The Brit’s surviving DD’s here launched torpedo attacks and scored a hit on the BC Strasburg starting a fire below decks - the "brave" French captain refused to flood the magazine ( which would half her gunnery - "let her blow up with honor")! The French old BB Bretagne was heavily damaged with only a few guns still firing and barely making headway. The French "shifted" their fire to the Brit’s middle battle group (BB Valiant) and got a "critical" fire below decks - "I’m as brave as they are" shouted the captain as he refused to flood the magazine reducing gunnery! The Brits continued to "spread-out" their fire at individual ships (tactics?). Turn 4 The French land-based airplanes attacked the Valiant & Hood - no hits! The British DD’s moved to the middle area to launch torpedo attacks just as the French DDL’s arrived in the middle ground to help shoot them up and lay "smokescreens" shielding some of the French ships from British fire. Damage was telling on the French heavy ships as 2 drew back out of range and the "gunnery" from the remaining 2 was greatly reduced (just count the number of miss "shell-splashes")!! The French were "ahead on victory point" at this time with lots of Brit. DD’s sunk and the Hood "heavily damaged"! French submarines were moving into the battle area and the loss of these DD’s could mean British defeat later! Turn 5 British CV launches an "air-strike" at the BC Strasburg but is turned back by French "fighters" flying "cap" over the battle area ( the French have more fighters than the British in the area)! The French DDL’s are lying smokescreens to protect their capital ships while some DDL’s cross the middle ground to torpedo attack the "heavily damaged" BC Hood at "point-black" range (the Brits move second this turn and a final Brit DD here lays a smokescreen over the Hood‘s position to foil this attack)! The Brit BB Resolution (as yet untouched) fires thru a gap in the smoke at the Provence scoring 2 hits and a critical "steamline" (movement) hit! The French check their "status of their capital ships (BB’s & BC’s) and find they are "all at 50% damage or more" and the French Admiral orders a fleet withdraw north !! The British immediately score a "marginal victory" at this point - the French are retreating "heavily damaged" but we play on - the French were "ahead on points" at this time because the French had not lost any ships and the Brits had lost about 5-6 DD’s! Turn 6 The French fleet is withdrawing north to exit the table-edge and their DDL’s are lying a smokescreen to shield their heavy ships from gunnery fire! The Brits launch 3 air-groups ( 1 fighter, 2 torp.) at the French battle line on the other side of the smoke, the fighters fly cap while the torpedo planes attack the BC Strasburg (2 torpedo hits including a critical steering hit - Strasburg goes dead-in-the-water and cannot turn - who needs to turn if you can’t move!) and the BB Provence (1 torpedo hit heavily damaged!)!! The Brit. BB Valiant has sailed north and just gets gunnery sighting past the smokescreen unto the DIW Strasburg! French submarines torpedo attack the Brit BB Valiant and get 1 hit ( BB Valiant at 50% but still moving/firing). Another French submarine fires 4 torpedoes at the Hood from 1,000 yds. inside the smokescreen protecting the Hood, the captain says "fire", the sub crew waits for the Hood to blow up - Soc-Cre-Bleu - all 4 miss - the whole table breaks out in laughter - it wasn’t possible for the Hood to survive but it did!! Turn 7 The last turn of the game the Brit. BB Resolution (suffered 1 hit till now) fires a full broadside at the BB Bretagne thru a gap in the smoke (3 hits) and the French BB rolls over sunk! As night falls on the battle (10:30PM real time) we all agree it was a fun naval battle! As we pick up the ships and charts we discussed how the battle played out and what effected the battle going the way it did? We agreed that the French had played a fine game with a good plan and great use of "tactics" (using "concentrated" gunfire on each British capital ship as they came with-in range "heavily damaging" that ship each turn)! We also saw their use of their secondary guns on the British DD’s as a good tactic - the British secondary guns rarely had shots at the French light ships and did little damage to the French "heavies"! Also the French drew the British over to the north of the table where they had placed their submarine "wolf-pack" to attack the British! The "turning point" of the game seemed to be when the French Main battle group (BB’s & BC’s) reached the 50% damaged level forcing a "withdraw" and giving the British the "marginal victory" - and a "big part" of them reaching the point was the very successful British carrier "air-strikes" which caused a lot of critical damage at just the right time while the French were less effective with their air power!! The British had "evenly " distributed their gunnery damage over all the French heavy ships causing their "retreat" while the British BB Resolution had taken 1 hit and was fully effective! The BC Hood by the way was down to 10 points left from 360 at start and barely afloat! The French BC Dunkerque was at about 50% effective as the French best ship left! We look forward to the Wetpowder Wargamer’s "American Revolution" game July 10th in Lees Summitt, The Summer Camp Con July 16/17 at Ft. Leavenworth Hunt Lodge, and Tabletop Tuesday’s Historical Gaming nights every Tuesday night 6:30-10-ish! Till next time, good gaming all, Harold Morgan in Gladstone Mo. (N.K.C.Mo.) Back to Table of Contents Penny Whistle # 60 Back to Penny Whistle List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2004 by Lion's Den Publications. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. 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