DARKSTAR CAMPAIGN UPDATE: DUCHESS ANNABEL’S WAR IS OVER

The Russians continued to claw their way steadily back into this war with another ferocious battle in the continuing  Duchess Annabel’s War, this time against the “Black Dragon” rebels of the Khitan-Tunguska Free State.

First, a setup of the forces.  The Russians have the Katukov-class light cruiser Lazarev (replaced the Suvorov, exploded in the last game), along with the two destroyers Syekyra and Rusalka.  The Black Dragons have a larger but less elite and upgraded force, including two Xhia class light missile cruisers Zhang Jia and Xin Tian, the destroyer Gorokhov, and two K-56 class torpedo corvettes.

The Zhang Jia is a particularly notorious ship.  Through the course of the recent Xi Scorpio and Scorpion’s Tail Wars against the Japanese and United States, this Black Dragon missile cruiser outright destroyed two light cruisers (the famous flagship IJN Sendai and the USS Milwaukee), exploded a Japanese industrial station (killing hundreds of civilians), and has crippled the famous destroyer USS Oriskany at least three times.  The Zhang Jia’s bridge officers have upgraded starship tactics, the ship itself upgraded with enhanced electronic warfare suite and improved gravitic shielding.  She started as a cheap, ugly, disposal Chinese warship, but since being stolen as part of the Black Dragon revolt, has now become an elite and deadly foe, ship and crew sharpened to a razor’s edge, her black hull figuratively painted in the blood of her enemies, including Russians, Panasians, Japanese, and Americans.

If there was ever a ship in Darkstar to have a price on its head, it’s this one.

So here’s  the general situation.  The Russians have recently crushed out a very narrow, very bloody, and very costly win against the Prussians and Japanese defending the outer protoplanetary debris belt (Kupier Belt) of the Cervantes star system (Mu Ara).  Although they won this fight and defended their star system, the Russians are badly weakened.  The Black Dragons thus hope to take advantage, sneaking the Zhang Jia battlegroup in through the other side of the Cervantes star system and capturing a few Russian installations around gas giant moons and the like.

Below, we see the Black Dragons make their approach.  The red markers are massive “Tsing Tao” torpedo waves, 76 warheads in all.  The two K-56 corvettes and the Gorokhov also launch Russian-made P-500 torpedoes (green 12, 12, and x2 5-torpedo markers)

Then, we see the Russians likewise make their approach.  CL1 = light cruiser Lararev (Captain Pyotr M. Myshaga).  DD1 and DD2 = destroyers Syekyra (Commander Ekaterina A. Duranov) and Rusalka (Commander Alexandr D. Kharechev).

This fight is going to get very close, very fast.  There are no carriers here, and with all Russian and Chinese-built ships on the board, everyone is equipped more or less with short- and mid-range weapons.  Or are they?  The Lazarev battlegroup has been upgraded with enhanced gunnery accuracy, so they’re content to open fire at a longer range.  Here we see the immediate effects, Russian forward batteries (especially the EPCs of the Lazarev) open fire straight away, crippling the Black Dragon torpedo corvette K-221.

Movement on Turn 2.  The first ship to move is the K-221 (CV2 – with the black smoke marker on it).  She’s crippled and will thus continue to move at their last heading and velocity until she hits something or leaves the board.  This is why it’s very important to watch out for moons, planets, and asteroids in this game, especially in scenarios where they are moving or exert gravity effects.

Next, the Lazarev, despite her +2 initiative bonus, still loses and has to move first.  She’s still moving very fast, so with most of her thrust being applied to deceleration, she can only manage one hexside turn.  She cuts in front of these two gas giant moons, coming with 200 km of one of them, hoping to broadside the Black Dragons as they move between the moons.

The Black Dragons, predictably, to not accommodate our dear Captain Myshaga.  They decide not to decelerate, thus rocketing through Myshaga’s planned fire zone, cutting between the two moons and with a turn to port, setup a broadside across Lazarev’s stern at less than 600 km (3 hexes), very short range in this game.

The two Russian destroyers, then decide to keep their speed up as well, cutting all the way around the smaller moon, dropping their own broadsides in turn behind the Black Dragon task force.  Everyone’s torpedoes launched last turn also come in, ready to hit their targets.  Things here are about to get very, very nasty.