The waters
around the stationary FSA battleship erupt as huge metal tentacles cause
massive damage to the crew, however, a determined resistance by the doomed
marines fights off the terrifying monstrosity, and the Ika slip back into the
deep. The FSA battleship does not have
long to celebrate though, as a series of well placed shots from a squadron of Tanuki
gunships punch large holes beneath the waterline, and the great ship lists,
then slips beneath the waves.
In the skies
overhead the fierce fire-fight between the Savannah Sky Fortress and Tsukuyomi
War Gyro rages on, until fire from the British shield towers finish the matter
sending the war gyro careening down into the ocean. However, only moments later, precision gunnery
from Epicurus Sky Fortress causes the great American balloons to erupt in a
gigantic ball of flame.
The Olympic
troop transport, that had thus far weathered the invasion safely berthed in at
the port, now determined to go out and face the might of the invaders. Her captain knew it would be a one-way
mission, but the ship bravely cast off and made for the gleaming hull of the
Covenant battleship. Blazing Sun torpedo
bombers swooped on the Olympic, causing damage to the hull, but steeling his
nerve the captain set ordered full speed and the mighty liner crashed headlong
into the Covenant craft, but even with this great sacrifice, his vessel caused
no significant damage, in reply the Aristotle unleashed it’s terrible particle
cannon at point blank range, inflicting massive loss of life on board the liner. Expert fire from the battleships turrets strikes
home, and the one proud liner dips beneath the waves.
Blazing Sun small landing barges disgorge dozens of Ke-Ho small tanks onto the beach, as larger landing craft manouvre to deposit their deadly cargo.
Outside the
city the invaders concentrate their fire on the British bunker complex from
both land and sea squadrons. The Atticus
walkers advance, supported by both Covenant and Prussian bombards, but still
the stubborn gunners in the bunker complex fire on, damaging one of the
walkers, then launching a daring boarding raid against a second, and causing
the walker to come to a shuddering halt.
Overhead freshly refuelled British dive bombers streak down and destroy
the third walker, raising British spirits.
British hopes soar even further when a handful of terrier tanks, all
that remains of the British armoured forces, manage to rupture a vital system
inside the Seydlitz Mobile Airfield, and render the massive Prussian juggernaut
a smoking ruin.
Then, as the
lumbering Epicurus Sky Fortress nears the shore, it’s dive bomber drones strike
the beleaguered bunker complex with a massive concentration of ordinance, reducing
all fighting capabilities in the huge complex.
The Pflicht airships which had been held in reserve now sweep forward
and Prussian storm troopers waste little time in securing the remains of the
complex. The Invaders have claimed their
first objective.
More landing craft arrive and invading forces sweep toward the city.
Now their
attention shifts to the port bunker and landing field. Prussian Dive Bombers who only recently
escaped the inferno aboard the mobile airfield dive down on the landing field
and set it ablaze. The flak towers in
the city send up a fearsome barrage, claiming many of the Prussian pilots. Elsewhere in the city, the flak and shield
towers are being knocked out one by one.
A small landing barge full of small Xenephon walkers is teleported
directly to the docks and the Covenant walkers start destroying the city
defences piece at a time.
Finally
British and American Reinforcements are sighted. The mighty Brunel mobile Airfield advances firing
round after round from its powerful main guns into the Imperium Sky Fortress,
while other British tanks fan out to take the fight to the Prussian
forces. In the city two huge Washington
Class landships move into the city, accompanied by a swarm of small pioneer
tanks.
Prussian reinforcements
also arrive with two Geier Bombers flying forward to support the Prussian
airships. Behind these is a lumbering A9
– V Land Ship and a squadron of A6-V medium tanks.
The arrival
of the British and American reinforcements comes too late for the landing field
however, as more Prussian dive bombers from the Impreium sky fortress strike
home, turning the entire area into a raging conflagration. The Invaders have now achieved 2 of the
objectives. In grim retribution a
wing of American fighters enage the wounded Prussian Sky Fortress sends the
mighty imperium careening to the ground, but it is too little, too late for the
defenders. With the
reinforcements occupying the city with land ships and medium tanks, the
invaders must destroy the bunker which guards the port. It has been badly damaged, and now the entire
might of the invasion fleet opens up on the squat structure.
The ground
is torn asunder around the bunker, and hit after hit strikes home, but as the
fury of the barrage abates, the bunker remains intact, albeit barely. Then, just as it seems the defenders will
triumph, a single Blazing Sun corvette, all that remains of a full squadron, fires
a salvo that manages to penetrate the last vital bastion of the bunker defences,
and destroys the fortification. The
invaders have triumphed, but only by the slimmest of margins.
Final Victory Points:
Defenders: 2
Invaders: 3
Authors Note: The game was done and everyone seemed happy with the epic, if improbable, outcome. Had we another day, it would have been great to play out the battle through the city between the invading forces and reinforcements, but I think the scenario suceeded in its aims. I asked each of the players to write a small piece reflecting on the game, what worked, what didn't, and their favourite units. Their text is copied below:
Prussian Empire
The Prussian plan was two phased with the first objective to damage then board
the bunker and allow the naval forces to achieve a landing then move on with
remaining forces to the second objective to destroy the airfield while the
landing forces moved into the city. The follow on forces would support the
attack on the airfield, protect the AP in the bunker and provide further AP if
required to re-take the bunker if it was lost.
To achieve this the plan was to push forward on the right flank with the
airfield, Waltz Tanks and Pflichts to get out of the gun arcs of the bunker and
assault it from the side while softening the defences with the Metzgers and
bombards head on to reduce its AA firepower and AP (with lethal strike) if
possible. Once through the gap the forces on the flank would then be used to
attack the airfield.
The battle went more or less as planned. The British Armour and Air Defence
proved to be quite troublesome and dealt a significant amount of damage to the
leading units which meant the bunker was still intact during the landing but it
was eventually destroyed and boarded. Losing the large flyer early on was a
heavy blow. The bombards also struggled in the indirect roll with the guardian
generator proving its worth meaning their fire was ineffective. The
Antarctican forces teleported in were of great help and managed to draw some of
the fire away and without this the British Armour may well have held the line
preventing the destruction of the airfield.
the bunker and allow the naval forces to achieve a landing then move on with
remaining forces to the second objective to destroy the airfield while the
landing forces moved into the city. The follow on forces would support the
attack on the airfield, protect the AP in the bunker and provide further AP if
required to re-take the bunker if it was lost.
To achieve this the plan was to push forward on the right flank with the
airfield, Waltz Tanks and Pflichts to get out of the gun arcs of the bunker and
assault it from the side while softening the defences with the Metzgers and
bombards head on to reduce its AA firepower and AP (with lethal strike) if
possible. Once through the gap the forces on the flank would then be used to
attack the airfield.
The battle went more or less as planned. The British Armour and Air Defence
proved to be quite troublesome and dealt a significant amount of damage to the
leading units which meant the bunker was still intact during the landing but it
was eventually destroyed and boarded. Losing the large flyer early on was a
heavy blow. The bombards also struggled in the indirect roll with the guardian
generator proving its worth meaning their fire was ineffective. The
Antarctican forces teleported in were of great help and managed to draw some of
the fire away and without this the British Armour may well have held the line
preventing the destruction of the airfield.
Most outstanding unit would have to be the mobile airfield. It soaked up a lot
of hits but just kept rolling forward protecting the units behind it. It
provided six valuable tiny flyers and was able to land and launch two flights a
turn with its dual deck which would prove invaluable throughout the battle and
meant that there was enough diver bombers in the air fully fuelled and armed to
support the destruction of the airfield.
There was not a lot of manoeuvre room up front so the forces were pretty much
arranged as best they could. Maybe the Metzgers would have been better in
front of the airfield providing protection to it from the medium tanks.
Focusing fire on the bunker could have been left to later and the guardian
generator was a problem so targeting the landship and tanks a bit earlier,
particularly with the bombards and metzger, might have been a better option.
of hits but just kept rolling forward protecting the units behind it. It
provided six valuable tiny flyers and was able to land and launch two flights a
turn with its dual deck which would prove invaluable throughout the battle and
meant that there was enough diver bombers in the air fully fuelled and armed to
support the destruction of the airfield.
There was not a lot of manoeuvre room up front so the forces were pretty much
arranged as best they could. Maybe the Metzgers would have been better in
front of the airfield providing protection to it from the medium tanks.
Focusing fire on the bunker could have been left to later and the guardian
generator was a problem so targeting the landship and tanks a bit earlier,
particularly with the bombards and metzger, might have been a better option.
Covenant of Anarctica
My plan was to join the Japanese/Prussian land invasion from the east,
engage and destroy defending naval forces before bombarding the coast,
put a small diversionary landing force on the west to lock up
defending naval forces, and teleport units as support directly into
battles at key moments.
The teleportation of units directly onto land in aid of the Prussians
seemed to work spectacularly well, with the destruction of the British
land commodore and guardian shield generator. The bombards and
walkers also did some crucial damage to the fortified bunker to the
east, which despite overwhelming force was incredibly resilient.
The diversion did lock up the defending forces, but given the quick
nature of the battle, I'm not sure the defenders really could have
gotten from the western flank to the eastern land front in time to
save that fort anyway. The diversionary force could probably have
been more effective landing themselves and attacking the defenders
quicker. I also underestimated the effect of tiny fliers on attacking
the landing craft of the diversion force, aborting the landing on the
west coast.
engage and destroy defending naval forces before bombarding the coast,
put a small diversionary landing force on the west to lock up
defending naval forces, and teleport units as support directly into
battles at key moments.
The teleportation of units directly onto land in aid of the Prussians
seemed to work spectacularly well, with the destruction of the British
land commodore and guardian shield generator. The bombards and
walkers also did some crucial damage to the fortified bunker to the
east, which despite overwhelming force was incredibly resilient.
The diversion did lock up the defending forces, but given the quick
nature of the battle, I'm not sure the defenders really could have
gotten from the western flank to the eastern land front in time to
save that fort anyway. The diversionary force could probably have
been more effective landing themselves and attacking the defenders
quicker. I also underestimated the effect of tiny fliers on attacking
the landing craft of the diversion force, aborting the landing on the
west coast.
The star of my fleet had to be the Orb, which did allow great
flexibility in landing units and coming to the aid of the otherwise
completely isolated Prussian forces.
Next time I would ignore most of the defence force and perform more
than one landing, accepting more losses at sea. The game is simply
not long enough to land on the eastern edge of the map, and the
deployment area far too tight for one landing zone given the number of
towing craft. Landings must be performed directly at the coastal fort
and near the fortified bunker in the east.
Empire of the Blazing Sun
My
plan: was to try and knock off the centre defences (battleship, gunships,
frigates and destroyers) as quickly as possible and run transports up the left
had edge then kick them towards the centre as the defences were mopped up.
Corvettes were for an initial screen then a wild charge on the battleship to
soften it up for the Ika. The landing platforms were to be towed up using my
fastest mediums (my gunships) who then head toward the centre to bombard land
defences. A battleship was used to tow one large barge and a Covenant battleship
towed another large barge, this still left one under its own power. My carrier
was to hang around centrally and recycle the tiny flyers while the battle gyro
was to lend support against the enemy air power on the Covenant side.
What
happened: traffic congestion in the centre and flank, small landing craft
streaked ahead screened effectively by the corvettes. Behind them towing the
barges did work but activations had to be very carefully planned and executed,
while the advance of the landing craft did remain as fast as we could achieve
the landing beach was too congested to land all craft at the same time, and not
enough space on the beaches or on the sea to move craft more central. This left
my ground forces too far on the flank to have any part in the land battle,
although if the game had of continued then would have been well placed for an
advance on the town. Centre went according to plan other than above, but
defences removed efficiently and with minor losses initially. Sky fortress
recycled torpedo bombers well, but battle gyro could not hit many targets but
did hang on and draw a lot of fire until it went down…. With my navy commodore.
Corvettes and Gunships swept across the table bombing shore as planned, although
the corvettes lasted much longer than I expected and ultimately had the last
laugh with a last desperate salvo…
Stand
out: Corvettes…. These were great, with a squadron of five they packed a
reasonable punch and did damage where ever they went, hard to hit they were
whittled down slowly until the last shot which after 2 battleship salvos and a
gunship salvo, the last surviving corvette destroyed the enemy Bunker and won us
the pivotal 3rd objective. I must say though it was incredibly
satisfying landing the army forces as intended on the beaches via landing
craft!!!
What
I would have done differently: I thought my deployment was on the wrong side of
the board (but didn’t really think of that until the end of day 2), as I was
better equipped to take on the FSA air forces and the Orb could still teleport
from the far side of the board. Hind sight is a wonderful thing; I could have
taken more damage on the landing craft and got them through next to the bunker
objective quicker although with substantial losses, they would have then played
a part in the battle. I’m not convinced on the towing to increase speed as in
the end the extra vessels required clogged up the sea lanes and were restricted
from being as aggressive as they could have been.
Overall
– Fantastic game, had lots of fun and it felt very right, it was my first beach
assault and it sure added to the atmosphere of the game for me!
Federated States of America
- My Plan was: to hold the right edge of the board and
push the attacking ships to the left (further away from the city). I also wanted
to keep some of my airfleet in reserve to support the reinforcements... that
didn't really happen unfortunately!
- What went right: We definitely forced to attackers to
the left... and I was able to screen my torpedo bombers well enough to get three
good attacks in. The Gunboats and the Battleship did their job as well, and
despite all my complaints the FSA battleship was a target/obstacle until turn 5
or 6!
- What went wrong: Apart from my luck deserting
me from round 2 to about turn 7? The ill fated attempt to take the attack to the
Antarctic Capital
ships with the Valley. It was a gamble to storm forward like that, but bad dice
rolls and the lack of activations left my Skyship way too vulnerable to counter
attack!
- Standout Model?: Definitely that wing of tiny flyers. They were my only unit to
activate and in every round survive the entire battle. More over they destroyed
an Antarctic Cruiser, landed and
lauched from the Airfield that was under constant attack, and then in their
fighter role took down the Prussian Sky Carrier! All without a single
loss!
- What I'd do differently? -
Move the Gunships and Battleship closer to the air support. They were too
isolated in the middle and were never going to hold back the horde of landing
ships by themselves epecially with all the extra activations the japanese had.
More over they were way too easily screened by smaller ships, that are just way
too insanely difficult to hit (the corvettes). By being closer to the air fleet
they could have concentrated their fire better and would have (hopefully) given
my air assault more of a chance i.e. more HP damage would have lowered the
Antarctic AA, which in turn would have given the Valley and the Lees' marines
more chance in their assault!
Kindgdom of Britannia
I had planned to use my tanks to hold the Prussians at bay hoping that the Bunker Complex and minefields would slow their advance for long enough to weaken their numbers. Meanwhile my vanguards and destroyers would cause as much damage as possible on the invading forces.
The British tanks performed extremely well and surpassed my expectations. Were it not for the teleportation of the Archimedes walker to take out the Sovereign Land Ship, I think I might have brought another, critical, turn before the Prussians overwhelmed the landing field. The Guardian generator was invaluable, but the standouts were the Merlin interceptors and the terrier tanks. The former delivered a significant morale boost by taking out the Gewitterwolke
Airshipearly on, and ther later had tremendous staying power, literally worrying the massive mobile airfield to death.
At sea my fortunes were considerably worse. Despite thinking this would be an ideal scenario for the vanguard submarines they managed to sink not one enemy model. They rammed landing platforms and barges many times, but always the 6 critical dice failed to equal the DR of the target, much to the amusement of the enemy players.
My hawks were also our only hope for re-taking the bunker complex before the game ended, but alas, I did not realise this until it was too late.
The fortifications performed admirably, and were an excellent mix of extremely difficult to destroy, without being overly powerful.
