Persei-Aries War Resumes
Two Catch-up Battle Reports - Kayashenko 14 and Shindo 919
Okay, everyone. I have a lot of catching up to do here to bring the Third Hercules War Community Campaign up to date.
A lot has happened since the last battle report, and these battle reports frankly take too long to do, so I’ll be quickly buzzing through four missing games / battles here to complete the recent campaign timeline.
I’m only doing this now because, as you’ll see, the combined effects of these battles have triggered some major shifts in the Third Hercules War, shifts which directly impact the national strategic standing of several player factions. These players need to know exactly what’s happening in the Third Hercules War.
So first I have a battle between the Russians and the Arab League in August, 2521 (Darkstar Web Game 42). This actually took place BEFORE the most recently posted battle report (Darkstar Web Game 43 – Holy Russian Empire v. Royal Navy at Uxbridge, Outer Hebrides / Mu Hercules system). Once that is presented, we’ll skip past Uxbridge and move to Game 44, US Navy and India against the Japanese at Shindo 919.
There will be more to come after this. When I am fully caught up we’ll see where we stand, what factions are still in, what factions are out, what separate peace treaties have been signed, and whether Third Hercules War is in fact continuing.
But for now . . .
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FROM: UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL COLONIAL CENTER
21:55 SOL GMT, 21 AUGUST 2521
BREAKAUTH: 181072.18J
CLEARANCE: SECRET (NATIONAL)
RUSSIAN COUNTER-RAID ON KAYASHENKO 14 (99 Hercules)
Yet again, the Americans and Russians seem to be checked against the British in the Outer Hebrides (Mu Hercules) system. Despite recent American victories at the McClusky-Ramirez gas giant (Alpha Lyra system) and the HH779 comet in the Outer Hebrides, a bloody British victory against the “Three Princesses” cruiser squadron has frustrated Russian plans to cash in on American momentum in the spinward shoulder of the Hercules Rim. Not only has this allowed the British to yet again step back from the brink of defeat in the Third Hercules War, but also further strained relations between the American and Russian “allies” of the Coalition of Eagles.
Perhaps to show the Americans something of a cold shoulder, the Russians have resolved to “redress their own problems” rather than “help win the Yankees’ war” against the British in the Outer Hebrides. Withdrawing from the spinward sector of the Hercules Rim, they instead launch a strike against the Arab League foothold recently gained among the moons of the Russians’ own Kayashenko gas giant. The largest planet in the “Redemption” UN Mandate in the 99 Hercules system, Kayashenko has at least 60 charted moons, and an Arab League battlegroup lurking among them simply won’t do.
Indeed, several Russian admirals have already contacted friends, both in Krasnaya Nadhezda (Red Hope, 72 Hercules) and Imperial Naval Command in St. Petersburg, demanding to know why Russian cruisers are hammering themselves to ruin to gain an American victory at the Outer Hebrides when an enemy power in fact after has a foothold in Russian space among the moons of Kayashenko.
As for the Arab League, the al-Mutamid battlegroup has hardly paid for their foothold at Kayashenko 14 to give it up to a Russian cruiser raid. While their fleet lacks the strength to mount a “stand or die” defense of the frozen little moon, Captain Rashid al-Magrebi’s orders are to damage the incoming Russian force as badly as possible, mounting a counterstrike to ensure their sortie against Kayashenko 14 does not become a permanent reoccupation.
HOLY RUSSIAN EMPIRE: @Oriskany
ARAB LEAGUE: @Muakhah
RAID VICTORY CONDITIONS (214 points)
The Russians are tired of being bogged down in the grinding (and ultimately fruitless) battles against the British in spinward systems like Mu Hercules and HR6806. With Arab League battlegroups roving in their own coreward backyard, and having outright taken a moon of their Kayashenko gas giant in the 99 Hercules system, the Russians have resolved to get their own affairs sorted, and eject the League from Kayashenko 14. 
Right off the bat, the Russians set a very high approach speed, trying to set up a mass salvo of their P-500 torpedoes, combined with an aerospace strike of Mikoyan-Guyevich MiG-103 “Tunguska” fighters and Tupolev Tu-97 “Zvesburya” (Star Storm) bombers. The League, for their part, keeps their distance, hoping to make the best of their more accurate gunnery, faster and longer-ranged torpedoes, and cover of that planetary rubble field beneath them for protection from Russian massed torpedoes, rail guns, and plasma projectors. 
The range closes to just over 3200 kilometers. The League battlegroup has launched its combined aerospace wing (Mutamid is a “hybrid” carrier / light cruiser and Abu Bashir is a full-on light carrier). The Russians have also launched, their smaller wing having an edge in experience, and forming up with a phalanx of P-500 “Plamya” (Flame) torpedoes. 
Caution starts to pay off for Captain al-Magrebi. His ships are now snaking dangerous courses amongst the asteroids and planetary mining rubble, using them as partial cover against Russian EPCs and rail guns off the light cruisers Kravachenko and St. Basilov (an old Konstantin class). Their own return fire, meanwhile, inflicts heavy damage against the Kravachenko. Al-Magrebi’s aerospace strategy also pays off when his aerospace strike lands first, the slower Russian strike outranged ... at least for now. But any Russian whip that loses power here will also have its torpedoes “go dark,” thus thinning out that wave of P-500s before it can hit next turn. This is what happens to the Kravachenko, the Kutusov-class light cruiser losing power as Arab League “Demkikham” (Vengeance) bombers and “Mylekinir” (Fire Angel) fighters put enough torpedoes and missiles into her stern to explode her portside engine and power down her starboard engines. The CPK Kravechenko is blown out of the battle, but al-Magrebi is still in real danger of a collision if he’s not deathly careful.
The final result. With the Kravachenko crippled, the Russian aerospace and torpedo strike is badly weakened. Al-Magrebi has also made expert use of those asteroids to shield the engines of some of his ships from Russian ordinance, forcing them to attack port and starboard quarters instead. As it stands, only one of the League Basra-class destroyers is forced to break off (not even crippled) – leaving the League with a clear win here at Kayashenko 14. The League’s foothold around this Russian gas giant is thus secure ... for now. IN fact this was damned near a MAJOR League victory (double campaign points if a battle is won by a margin of 40% or more, Muakhah scored +33%. Needless to say, the Russians have suffered another bloody nose in the Third Hercules War. For his part, Captain Rashid al-Magrebi has fought a careful, measured, and patient battle, and comes damned close to a MAJOR victory for his caliphate. “Major” victories are actually quite rare in Darkstar, I wouldn’t be surprised if al-Magrebi is decorated for this success, or at least vindicated for earlier frustrations.FROM: UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL COLONIAL CENTER
16:30 SOL GMT, 05 OCTOBER 2521
BREAKAUTH: 181072.18J
CLEARANCE: SECRET (NATIONAL)
US / INDIA RAID ON SHINDO 919 (Kyokko Bijin / Zeta Hercules)
Frustration among the American commanders at Port Halsey (Virgo / Alpha Lyra system) is running high. Aboard her flagship, the Gettysburg class heavy cruiser USS Shiloh, Rear-Admiral Virginia Saunders knows that the Russian defeat at Uxbridge (Mu Hercules system) has allowed the Royal Navy to regain its balance . . . yet again. “I would say these Brits are cats with nine lives,” she snarks in a rare wardroom press conference. “Except they used more than nine lives some time ago.”
While resources are gathered for a renewed strike against the re-fortified British, the Americans are determined not to let the Renkei Alliance completely regain their footing (or for morale to drop too low among their own crews). While a direct strike against Mu Hercules is off the table for at least 45 days, a smaller raid can be launched against their Japanese allies in the Zeta Hercules system. This is especially true once American admirals and State Department diplomats exert sufficient pressure on their Indian Republic allies to step up their involvement in the war.
First to arrive is the Maharina class heavy cruiser INS Basukhalji. Once Rear-Admiral Saunders has this ship at her disposal, orders for the Zeta Hercules strike are immediate. Escorted by the USS Princeton and the Marine Corps strike carrier USS Tarawa, this combined battlegroup will smash into the Japanese Kyokko Bijin (Sunrise Beauty) colony at Zeta Hercules. If nothing else, renewed Indian participation in this war will demonstrate fortified unity among the faltering Coalition of Eagles, keep the Japanese from reinforcing the British at Outer Hebrides, and warn the Russians to step back in line with the “Stars and Stripes” winning a victory along the coreward sector of the Hercules Rim.
As for the Japanese, Captain Seizo Yamamoto’s Kama task force detects the incoming strike with plenty of time to deploy against it. The Basukhalji is hardly a petite lady, and the magnitude of the Darkstar wave required for a “fast” 20-light-year jump is hard to miss. Also note that the trajectory of this jump between Port Halsey and Kyokko Bijin takes the Indo-American force right past the British holdings at Mu Hercules. A Griffon-class patrol boat is dispatched in a 12th-magnitutde wave to arrive at Zeta Hercules a full 39 hours ahead of the Indo-American force, providing Yamamoto with still more warning.
Accordingly, the Japanese are able to meet the enemy far out along Kyokko Bijin’s outer debris (Kuiper) belt, the two forces colliding near a desolate proto-comet known only as Shindo 919.
JAPAN: @Rasmus
INDIA / UNITED STATES: @Oriskany
RAID VICTORY CONDITIONS (287 points)
This map is actually a little off, what SHOULD be portrayed is an Indo-American strike zooming out of Port Halsey in the Alpha Lyra (Vega) system. Note how it has to pass RIGHT BY the British at Outer Hebrides (Mu Hercules). Yes, “right by” is a relative term here, remember the SCALE of this map. But superluminal gravimetric (Darkstar) waves of a passing heavy cruiser are enough to set off sensors, and the British can get a fast courier ship to Zeta Hercules with the warning BEFORE the Indians and Americans arrive. 
Here are in the frigid abyss of the Zeta Hercules outer debris (“Kuiper”) belt. The Japanese are mounting a fast but oblique approach. The Americans are happy to oblige, the Tarawa and Princeton easily winning initiative and pointing their bows at the Japanese ships at an angle to allow ALL their torpedoes to come to bear and staying out of the Kama’s withering broadside (nine enormous 18-teravolt electron particle cannons, or EPCs). The Basukhalji threads a dangerous course between the primary bulk of Shindo 919 and some of its orbiting asteroids, hoping to work around to a broadside on the Kama’s stern or port quarter in future turns. For now the Basukhalji takes the worst of Kama’s wrath, while the Indo-Americans try to take the strike frigate IJN Sakito out of the battle for an early advantage.
The Japanese abruptly break formation, their two strike frigates (Sakito and Urakaze) charging straight at the Americans and Indians while Sendai Byo and Kama sidestep to starboard to keep an open broadside range. The Basukhalji trades broadsides with the Kama, actually mauling her port bow very badly, while the Princeton again hammers the hapless Sakito. Perhaps one mistake the Americans make here is concentrating their torpedo and aerospace strike (Marine Corps strike squadron VMF/A-319 - the “Tigersharks”) against the Sendai Byo. 
Turn three, and the Skirmish at Shindo 919 turns into a brawling dogfight. Kama rumbles up, rolling on her back to protect her ravaged port bow. The Basukhalji sees the move coming, and cuts point-blank for a broadside across her stern. Unfortunately, the swift Sendai Byo likewise cuts for a broadside right into the Basukhalji’s damaged port bow (in the same hex, less than 100 kilometers away). Kama’s forward guns hammer the USS Tarawa, which has just landed Marine bombers to rearm for a second strike. Kama’s aft guns tear into Basukhalji’s port quarter. Basukhalji’s broadside erupts into Kama’s stern, detonating at least one engine and forcing the engineer to power down portside reactors, but with starboard reactors she manages to maintain power. Unfortunately for the Basukhalji, the Sendai Byo puts her own broadside into Basukhalji’s port bow, previously mauled from broadside exchanges with the Kama. A slash of x-ray laser carves through the bridge, crippling this ship as well. The Princeton finally manages to cripple the Sakito, while the Marines of VMF/A-319 mount a gunnery strafing attack that soon has the strike frigate Urakaze in trouble as well.
Okay, at the moment, the Americans are losing ... hard. But there is a ray of hope that the USS Princeton can steal back a draw. If she and those Marine fighters can CRIPPLE the Kama (already brutally mauled astern, she’s trailing three kilometers of molten metal and a flaming sheet of escaping atmosphere), AND the Princeton can survive Kama’s return fire, the Americans actually WIN by 2 points (you have to win a Darkstar game by 5%, so this margin is too narrow, it would be called a draw). The Kama maneuvers, the Princeton cuts in behind her. I don’t have the thrust to put a broadside across Kama’s stern at this speed, so I’ll have to do this with forward guns only. American torpedoes are shot down, the fighters go in and do damage, Princeton’s forward guns GET THE JOB DONE, Kama is crippled. Kama’s aft batteries and Sendai’s forward batteries (God, that ship is fast for her size) pound on the Princeton, tearing one laser mount clean out of the hull, setting the forward magazine afire, even damaging the bridge. But the Princeton should still be okay, Rasmus has only hit one critical box of internal structure, so as long as he doesn’t roll a 6 on a d6, Princeton survives and I squeak out a draw. But Rasmus rolls a 6. Now Princeton is crippled as well as the Japanese maintain a minor victory at Shindo 919. 
I like seeing the “new” factions. It is neat seeing the different tactics they should use (or shouldn’t)/
The Indian Navy continues to expand with heavy cruisers and even battleship designs now. The Americans have taken some heavy hits after doing very well for most of the war (they’re having to drop out to a certain extent), the Russians and Indians have to step it up big time if the Coalition of Eagles is going to hold together
Good to see the reports up, even as abbreviated ones they are great to see!
I would say that my Arab victory over the Russians was more due to luck than skill. If I remember right I got a lucky 6 to cripple the Kravachenko early.
Hope to see more battles soon!
Thanks, @muakhah – there was a “6” that really turned it for the Japanese at Shindo 919 as well. The Americans have been on a rough streak lately.
This weekend we have @damon up – not sure what faction.
@rasmus and his Japanese and Russians are still in it.
@gladesrunner has been asking to play.
Who knows, maybe we’ll even get @ceppie in this one of these days. @davehawes might return, @aras , @elessar2590 , who knows?
Yes, I did feel bad about that 6
I guess I can take on @gladesrunner and the corrupts .. sorry corporates some weekend some time soon
Please don’t worry about it, @rasmus. No one should ever feel bad about winning a game of Darkstar, it’s a tough, high skill-cap game that punishes mistakes. So if you come out on top, good on you. What I’m less happy about is the overall trend in these last four games. Sometimes these details only comes out when you’re crushing out 8-hour battle reports … 1) Critical game play mistakes of mine at Battle of Uxbridge (Game 43) 2) The “6” you mention at Shindo 919 … just bad luck for me (Game 44) 3) An outright math mistake that… Read more »
Epic, thanks for all the hard work.
No worries! 😀 You should jump in one of these games one of these days! 😀