Persei-Aries War Resumes
Russian Heavy Cruiser Strike v. British Defense, Uxbridge Colony / Mu Hercules
FROM: UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL COLONIAL CENTER
04:10 SOL GMT, 19 SEPTEMBER 2521
BREAKAUTH: 181072.18J
CLEARANCE: SECRET (NATIONAL)
**UNITED NATIONS COMMUNIQUE**
With recent defeats at the McClusky-Ramirez gas giant (Alpha Lyra system) and the HH779 comet in the Outer Hebrides (Mu Hercules), the British Empire has again been brought to the brink of defeat in the Third Hercules War. American planetary assault ships are now lurking in the Oort Cloud and outer debris discs of the Mu Hercules system, ready to land battalions of US Marines on British colonies and run up the stars and stripes, while bristling cruiser squadrons of the Holy Russian Empire are making fast Darkstar approaches from the coreward system of Krasnaya Nadhezda (72 Hercules). This is effectively putting the Outer Hebrides colonies in a pincer, with British resources … and time … rapidly running out.
All is not well in the “winning camp,” however. Relations between the Russian and American “allies” of the so-called Coalition of Eagles have reached an ominous chill. Russian naval units seem to always be present for coalition victories, while the burden of defeats are left for the Americans alone to bear. This has resulted in the Holy Russian Empire stacking up as much political capital at the UN negotiating table as the United States, while the Americans are left paying the vast majority of the cost, in naval assets, money, and of course blood. Making matters worse, the naval battlegroups of their Indian Republic allies haven’t shown up much at all.
This has resulted in something of a breakdown of communication and liaison between the American naval command at Port Halsey (Alpha Lyra system) and the Russian Admiralty at Krasnaya Nadhezda (Red Hope, 72 Hercules). Neither of these “allies” much trusts each other, each convinced that the other is trying to “steal” the victor’s spoils from Britain’s inevitable defeat.
Perhaps it was inevitable, therefore, that one side or the other would launch a quick strike at the British first, without consultation or coordination with their allies, in the hopes of scoring the “knockout blow” against the British and claiming final victory entirely for their own flag.
The Russians win this race, lashing into Mu Hercules with a newly-arrived squadron of heavy cruisers, built around three of the new “Wave Two” Slava (Glory) class heavy cruisers. Nicknamed the “Three Sisters,” these cruisers bear the names of the three daughters of Czar Michael I, founder of the Romanov Dynasty. Supported by a Gagargin-class light fleet carrier, this powerful task force sorties into Mu Hercules with orders to smash whatever remains of the weakened Royal Navy, and claim the system (along with final victory) for the Holy Mother Russia.
The British, however, aren’t as powerless as the Russians estimate. Although outnumbered and outgunned, a crash repair and refit program has brought Task Force Agamemnon (Commodore Edward Cavendish) back on line. Alerted by Peregrine¬-class gunboats, Cavendish vectors to the colonized terrestrial planet Uxbridge (about 80% the mass of Earth) to intercept the Russian invader.
HOLY RUSSIAN EMPIRE: @Oriskany
UNITED KINGDOM: @Damon
The Russian strike out of 72 Hercules into Mu Hercules. Note the 24 light-year distance. This means that the Russian cruiser squadron had to set a very high-speed Darkstar Wave to cross this distance in anything shorter than a month. Subsequently, this means their wave wasn’t very accurate and they could drop very close to major astrophysical bodies like planets or colonies. Therefore, a second more accurate “assault wave” was required, by which time Task Force Agamemnon had been mobilized and vectored to intercept. 
Here’s the matchup. Each side has a light fleet carrier (light cruiser) loaded with elite aerospace, with the Russians enjoyed a slight numerical superiority. The real weight advantage, however, is in guns, with three upgraded Slava-class heavy cruisers against just one British heavy cruiser, supported by a light cruiser and a destroyer. The British force is of course much more high-tech, nimble, flexible, and fast ... not to mention upgraded with more accurate and harder-hitting guns. Damon’s been working on this fleet for the better part of a year and a half, after all. But can they really take on a fleet that outweighs them almost two-to-one? 
The two sides make their initial approach. Both sides hug the planet, adjusting course for gravity which effects the final positions of ships within 10 hexes. They are hoping to get the “gravity gauge,” forcing the put themselves between the planet and the enemy, so the enemy has to turn dangerously TOWARD the planet to engage them. The carriers also launch their aerospace strike groups. The British start out doing well, their faster speeds giving them better initiative results, and allowing them to broadside the larger, slower Russian ships. The flagship Irina Mikhailovnya is heavily battered on her starboard bow, while the Agamemnon is barely scratched. ADVANTAGE: BRITISH
The British abruptly kick their grav-rudders and maneuvering thrusters to starboard, jackknifing AWAY from the oncoming Russians. The reasons are this are two-fold. One, it keeps the range open where less-accurate but heavier Russian guns are at a disadvantage (especially the dreaded Russian plasma projectors) and also perfectly outranges the huge wave of P-500 “Plamya” (Flame) Class III torpedoes they’ve launched (48 warheads in all). A viable tactic, but it doesn’t offer sufficient argument against the sheer weight of the Russian broadside. THREE heavy cruisers are now positioned to fire every gun they have, and even at 2300 kilometers their blistering broadside caves in the port bow of the destroyer HMS Sheffield, including a 10-gw rail gun and 20-kg plasma pulse-spray through the bridge. Commander Bowen survives without serious injury, but Sheffield is crippled and out of the battle. ADVANTAGE: RUSSIANS
The British are finally forced to break away from the planet, giving up the gravity gauge in exchange for crossing the Russian “T” as they start to power up out of Uxbridge’s gravity well. The Russian flagship, Irina Mikhailovnya, rolls on her back to protect her ravaged starboard quarter, but the aerospace strike group of HMS Vindictive has formed up for a powerful strike or aerospace missiles and torpedoes to target this unshielded vulnerability anyway. This strike, combined with the Model 41 gravitic torpedoes launched from the HMS Vindictive (the Sheffield’s warheads have gone dark when the ship lost power), slams into the unshielded port quarter, blowing apart the whole aft third of the ships and leaving her a 160,000 ton derelict careening through space. The Russian aerospace strike, meanwhile, is much less impressive against the more accurate British point-defense systems and tougher ECM / gravitic shielding. The British flagship Agamemnon loses her aft shielding, but remains operational ... for now. ADVANTAGE: BRITISH
The Russians turn hard toward the British, but the Agamemnon (the fastest heavy cruiser in currently in the Darkstar ‘verse) accelerates to 27 kilometers per second and pivots out of the way, along with her escort ship (light cruiser HMS Retribution). The Vindictive powers away from the planet, perhaps hoping to recover her surviving bombers (one has been lost) in peace. But she actually moves too fast, trying to get herself clear of the Russian broadsides. While she succeeds at this, she’s actually moving faster than the hapless bombers trying to land. Meanwhile, the Russian carrier Volkhov recovers her ten Tupolev Tu-97 “Zvesburya” (Star Storm) bombers, the hanger crews feverishly beginning preparations for a second launch and strike. The Russian Mikoyan-Guyevich MiG-103 “Tunguska” fighters, meanwhile, make a nigh-suicidal strafing run on the badly-damaged and unshielded stern of the Agamemnon. Five are shot down, but their gunnery, combined with another smaller wave of P-500s, is enough to knock down the Agamemnon’s engines and leave the British flagship dead in space. ADVANTAGE: RUSSIANS
With the Agamemnon crippled and the Vindictive approaching high-orbit, the light cruiser Retribution is more or less alone in a knife-fight with the TWO Russian heavy cruisers (a 90,000 ton warship against two 160,000 ton warships). However, she’s must faster than her opponents, and able to pivot behind them for a broadside into the damaged fantail of the Anna Mikhailovnya, inflicting such critical damage that the heavy cruiser EXPLODES, instantly killing 447 officers and men (60% of her crew), including her commander, Captain Dmitri K. Krimilov. The blastwave also does serious damage to the Tatiana Mikhailovnya (less than 50 km abeam) and the carrier Volkhov (180km behind). ADVANTAGE: BRITISH. 
Missing her portside engines, with maneuvering thruster damage, and half-blinded by sensor damage, the Tatiana Mikhailovnya cannot hope to outmaneuver the Retribution (although she’s heavily damaged herself by this point). A last despairing aerospace strike, including re-launched bombers from the Volkhov, fails to cripple the Retribution, even as all seven remaining Russian MiGs are shot down. The Tatiana’s forward guns maul the port bow of the Retribution, but it’s not enough, especially as the Retribution’s return broadside hammers into the Tatiana. The last Russian heavy cruiser remains operational, but with fires on the bridge, the forward magazine hit, the starboard torpedo array and the forward plasma pulse turret destroyed, she’s at last forced to break off the action. She doesn’t have the thrust to turn around, she can’t turn to starboard toward the Retribution, and she can’t turn to port toward the Vindictive. She therefore must leave (by the rules of the game) and is thus out of the fight as well. VICTORY: BRITISH
The game is called at this point. This has been a brutal, seven-turn “assault rules” game (victory points assessed by what REMAINS on the table, not what is destroyed). The score is displayed. Suffice it to say the British have resolutely defended the planet Uxbridge and its colony (Mu Hercules) system from the Russian “Three Sisters Squadron.”
In winning this battle, the British have stepped away somewhat from their perilous brink of defeat. In the chart below, they had a campaign score of -9, with a defeat threshold of -10. With a +4 win (based on victory margin and scale of the battle) they are at -5 ... still on the back foot, but no longer staring into the abyss. The question is, will they strike first against the enemies threatening either Mu Hercules of Hawking’s Star ... or fortify defense against the next inevitable assault (this time probably from the Americans)?
I know I said I wanted to blow shit up when we planned the game but I didn’t think it would be that literal… That was a big bang.
It was nice to get back into a game, can’t get any face to face games in at the moment, this was a very welcome break.
Well done @damon Still in it to win it!
During this whole quarantine period online game has really been a nice treat.
Thanks very much, @muakhah . Which reminds me, I apologize for missing the battle report on Raid at Kayashenko 14. Please understand these battle reports take almost as long as the game does. This last one at Uxbridge was 1 hour of game prep 5 hours of game play 4 hours of battle report / posting. 10 hours total. The whole damned day. Now while I don’t mind the game AT ALL 😀 … the battle reports can sometimes get a touch much, especially when they don’t seem to draw much focus in the project page from the community at… Read more »
Don’t worry about it. The main thing is the game! I think people read the battle reports. It’s just sometimes we don’t want to leave another comment that is essentially good game good write up. Because they are all good games and well written.
Looking forward to many more of them!
Thanks @muakhah . I agree the games are epic and should go on. It’s the full-scale AARs that are a little tedious, especially the graphics. Maybe I’ll just cut out the “ship trails” which are actually pretty time consuming.
I know YOU GUYS read the AARs, 🙂 but you guys are also in the campaign and in the games and so already know what happened. 😀 The point of the AARs was for others to see what’s going on and perhaps generate interest.
Yep @damon – this is why the USS Liberty aerospace fighter group (VSF-221 “The Dead Rabbits”) detonated those last three missiles hitting the unshielded stern of HMS Agamemnon a few games back. This is what happens. And it wasn’t entirely just a “being a nice guy” move, that blast wave would have destroyed / damaged some of my warships and aerospace craft if memory serves.
But “NPC” Russians? Yeah, blow ’em up. >:D
Explosions are great when you know they aren’t someones favorite ship! Especially since Jim was cool enough to work out different ways for the crews to survive.
Thanks, @gladesrunner – indeed, Darkstar is a lot more survivable than it used to be.
That said, I think just this last weekend saw the closest USS Oriskany has come to actual DEATH in a long, long LONG time. Perhaps ever.