Persei-Aries War Resumes
British Raid on Sigma Rajdana (British vs. Indians and Russians)
FROM: UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL COLONIAL CENTER
02:00 SOL GMT, 02 JANUARY 2522
BREAKAUTH: 181072.18J
CLEARANCE: SECRET (NATIONAL)
BRITISH RAID ON SIGMA RAJDANA (Bhogavati / HD176051)
The situation is definitely heating up in the ongoing Third Hercules War community campaign. Recent weeks have seen the British Royal Navy continue their wining streak, resurgent in the United Nations “Redemption” Mandate (99 Hercules system). The Holy Russian Empire reels from successive defeats, the Americans all but tossed out of half of the war by a string bitter reversals. Now a threatening new faction has joined the fray in the form of the New Roman Alliance (the combined star navies primarily of Italy, France, and Spain). All across the Hercules Rim, a series of “tipping points” inch precariously closer to several factions, and more than one nation stands upon the cusp of victory, or stares into the abyss of defeat.
Flush with recent “Operation Rodney” victories in the 99 Hercules system, Lord Commodore Edward Cavendish receives orders from Hercules SCS Admiralty (Outer Hebrides / Mu Hercules). With the Americans pacified along the spinward shoulder of the Hercules Rim by the Treaty of Zubrin, the Admiralty has decided to focus attention on their other foe in this region, the Indian Republic.
Based out of the Bhogavati Colonies in the HD176051 system (yellow main sequence / orange dwarf binary), Indian commitment to the Third Hercules War has always been lukewarm at best, with regional governors hoping to provide peripheral support in a presumed American victory and claim a modest share in the spoils, namely a permanent basing and shipping lease in the UN “Redemption” Mandate. But now with the Americans largely called to heel, at least here in the spinward systems of the Hercules Rim . . .
Task Force Agamemnon is thus issued orders to sortie an immediate strike into the Bhogavati Colonies. No Royal Marines or Paras are sent along, it is hoped a sharp, punitive strike will convince the Indian Republic bow out of the war to choose its allies more carefully in the future. Then, with all opponents quelled along the spinward shoulder of the Hercules Rim, the Royal Navy can turn coreward and, together with the Japanese and Arab League, deal with the Russians and Romans once and for all.
The Russians, however, having just lost an ally in the United States (depending on the star system in question, of course), are determined not to lose another. So when Task Force Agamemnon erupts from its Darkstar wave HD176051 and decelerates toward the small outer terrestrial world of Sigma Rajdana, they find not only a pair of Maharani class heavy cruisers waiting for them, but part of the Admiral Lazarev Battlegroup (Captain Pyotr Fedorovich Myshaga) as well.
UNITED KINGDOM: @Damon
RUSSIA / INDIA: @Oriskany
RAID VICTORY CONDITIONS (526 points)
A new year, a new phase of the Third Hercules War. As 2522 dawns, the British are well on their way to turning the spinward shoulder of the Hercules Rim into their backyard. Forbidden by treaty to act against British interests, the Americans at Alpha Lyra are in fact obligated to help defend British holdings in 99 Hercules, HR 6806, and Mu Hercules in a “mutual assistance” clause. This leaves only the Indian Republic in HD176051, a matter that Task Force Agamemnon aims to settle directly. With this spinward flank secured, the Royal Navy hope to turn coreward, linking up with their Japanese allies in Kyokko Bijin and Arab League allies at Khiazan’s Haven against the stubborn Russians at Krasnaya Nadhezda and the newly-belligerent Roman Alliance at Catania. The Indians, for their part, are keen to defend themselves and their early gains in this war, while their allies in the Holy Russian Empire are determined to keep their British opponents in a “two front war.” Either way, Bhogavati must stand.
Both fleets make their approach along the daylight side of Sigma Rajdana. The Indian heavy cruiser Prajarina streaks in first at very high speed, engines full reverse in as hard a deceleration as her 126,000 tons will allow. Task Force Agamemnon comes in a moment later, Cavendish setting up a skillful standoff starboard broadside that doesn’t expose his ships to Prajarina’s broadside in turn. But he doesn’t entirely pull it off, the heavy cruiser Basukhalji thunders in next with Russians running close abeam, the veteran destroyer Rusalka and the notorious light cruiser Admiral Lazarev. This combined force just manages to get the angle for a broadside on the lead British destroyer, HMS Sheffield, at just under 2000 kilometers. This combined Russo-Indian task force opens fire, leading off with the massed syglex emitters of the Basukhalji and following up with the EPCs of the Admiral Lazarev and rail guns of the Rusalka. The Sheffield is hammered, scorched, and lacerated along her starboard quarter, her engine rooms vented to space, her starboard reactors ejected to prevent catastrophic explosion. Just that fast, the Sheffield has been smacked out of the battle. The British return fire on the Prajarina, slashing open her port bow, damaging (among other systems) her maneuvering thrusters, a CRITICAL system to lose for a heavy cruiser still moving at just over 30 kilometers per second. 
The Indians had a beautiful maneuver planned here, with the mighty Basukhalji and Prajarina scissor-turning into each other to present mutually-supporting broadsides in Hexes 3810 and 3910. But with the Prajarina trailing a sheet of burning atmosphere from the gash where her portside thrusters used to be, she can’t make this turn and continue to decelerate at the same time. The maneuver is thus flawed, the jaws don’t close, and the British seek to exploit the gap between the two behemoths. The Agamemnon, still the fastest heavy cruiser in Known Space, pivots around to rake Basukhalji’s stern. The light cruiser HMS Retribution (sleek, modern, but somewhat vulnerable Relentless-class) hooks the other way to put a broadside into Prajarina’s badly-damaged port bow. Cavendish’s plan here is to try to knock out both Indian heavyweights in one salvo, securing victory before close-range Russian EPCs, rail guns, plasma accelerators, and massed P-500 torpedo strikes can tip the balance. 
Okay, a lot happens here. With the Basukhalji and Prajarina both “helpless” but to hit the Retribution along her port bow with their forward batteries, the Admiral Lazarev and Rusalka cut in to offer close-range broadsides in support. If this combined Russo-Indian barrage can hit the Retribution’s forward magazines or bridge, they’ll knock out the ship and keep the odds even (they’re already assuming the Prajarina will be crippled). Both sides, however, are going to score a lot more damage than they expected. Although the aerospace strike of the carrier HMS Vindictive is largely broken up against the stern of the Basukhlaji (one Supermarine Starfire fighter is shot down), the broadside of HMS Agamemnon positively savages the stern of the Basukhalji. Just as she slings her forward guns at the Retribution and aft guns at the Agamemnon, the Basukhalji has to eject her reactors and she’s left dead in space. The Prajarina cuts loose into the Relentless as well, her syglex emitters and heavy lasers carving horrific wounds down Retribution’s port bow, after guns slicing open Agamemnon’s starboard quarter. Retribution fires her full broadside, smashing into Prajarina’s fatally-damaged port bow, hitting both the magazine and the bridge, wounding her captain and knocking the shop out of the battle. The Admiral Lazarev fires next, her EPCs and plasma emitters burning into the gaping wound already left by the two Indian cruisers, exploding Retribution’s forward magazine, hitting the bridge, crippling the ship, and exacting some measure of revenge for the humiliating loss Myshaga suffered at Kayashenko 12. Suddenly without a target, Rusalka instead turns her turrets against Agamemnon, which has suffered terrible damage to her starboard quarter from the aft guns of Basukhalji and Prajarina. For a razored, terrified, heart-attack moment, Agamemnon’s fate hangs in the balance. If damage control and engineering crews can’t keep her reactors up and engines powered, Agamemnon will plunge into the gravity well of Sigma Rajdana. The lights flicker, the engines stagger, the reactors shudder ... but Agamemnon maintains power and for the moment remains in the fight. 
The raid on Sigma Rajdana has been brutally reduced to just four ships, and the largest of them, HMS Agamemnon, is in real trouble. Although she manages to pull a flaming starboard turn away from the planet and present a broadside to the Russians, she frankly doesn’t have a broadside left. ALL aft guns have been blown clean out of their mounts, leaving only forward EPCs and lasers to fend off these Russian wolves hounding the wounded British bear. It’s not nearly enough, the destroyer Rusalka taking moderate damage as the Rusalka and especially Admiral Lazarev hit the Agamemnon again. This time, the engineers and damage control teams have no miracles left, the Agamemnon is left crippled and adrift . . . but at least she’s in a safe orbital trajectory. Meanwhile, the HMS Vindictive lands her fighters to rearm for another missile strike, her bombers close behind. 
But honestly, this raid is already over. The Russians accelerate to break off the engagement (RAID victory conditions, remember), content in the knowledge that this British task force is NOT the vanguard to an invasion fleet. Vindictive is receiving orders to begin rescue and recovery operations, while the Lazarev task force retains more than enough firepower to ensure continued Indian control of the Sigma Rajdama orbital zone and the Bhogavati colonies in general. The score is displayed, it’s a bitterly-fought but clear Indo-Russian victory. 
The effect of the raid on Sigma Rajdana is immediate and far-reaching. Splitting the victory campaign award for a minor victory in large engagement (4 points) equally between the Russians and the Indians, we see the Indians are now unmistakably ABOVE their campaign victory threshold. In summary, they’re OUT OF THE WAR, as VICTORS. The UN is prepared to mediate negotiations that will guarantee them a world in the 99 Hercules system (UN “Redemption” Mandate) they will PERMANENTLY annex as sovereign territory of the Indian Republic. It’s not a terribly huge win, but note the “4” threshold for the Indian Republic . . . their government never had ambitious or grandiose goals in this war. Remember that HD176051 isn’t even in the Hercules constellation, they’re heading in from the neighboring Lyra strategic command sector (SCS). Their participation in this conflict was understood to be strictly limited from the start, and now that they’ve achieved their modest aims, their naval commanders have cease-fire orders from New Dehli. For the Indian Republic, the Third Hercules War is over. Thus, from a certain point of view, the British loss at Sigma Rajdana has ironically ACHIEVED their strategic goal. The Indians are out of the war, and the Royal Navy now has a free hand to turn against coreward threats like the Holy Russian Empire and the New Roman Alliance. Of course, that’s AFTER they weld Task Force Agamemnon back together, that is. 
Win the battle and lose an ally, a bit of a pyrrhic victory for the Russians perhaps?
The British may be on the back foot after this mission but they only have two major opponents to deal with instead of three.
Agreed, @damon . This battle was pyrrhic all around.
Indians lost two cruisers … yet won the war?
Russians won the battle …. yet lost an ally?
British lost the battle, yet gained their strategic objective by default?
Oh, Darkstar. You mad abomination of a game. 😀
Another gripping read. I must admit a flicker of fear when I read that Agamemnon was nearly crippled facing the planetary body.
@muakhah – I was secretly calculating maneuver, thrust, and velocity to see if Admiral Lazarev could pivot around and dock with the Agamemnon in time.
She’d make a fine addition to the Russian fleet!
She and her crew to be repatriated back to the UK of course … after the war was over.
Beats having a crater named after you on the side of some frozen, nameless planetoid.
Hmm, so taking a prize is a usable tactic, hey?
Good job I didn’t know that when the Americans were in trouble last time…
“Good morning crew, welcome aboard your new ship, the HMS Oriskany”…?
@damon … eh, that wasn’t gonna happen, bro. In that situation we had one out of two possible outcomes…
1) Oriskany makes it and powers off the map (which is what wound up happening anyway), tail between her legs admittedly, but under her own power all the same …
2) Burns to a fiery cinder in the Jovian atmosphere.
And honestly, it’s to save a ship. 🙂
“Daddy, what’s that great swirly spot on the Gas Giant?”
“Oh that’s just Oriskany’s Eye, the biggest storm on the planet.”
“Why is it called that Daddy?”
“Well, once there was this ship…”
Why do I feel the IJN need to get out there more …