DARKSTAR CAMPAIGN UPDATE: DUCHESS ANNABEL’S WAR IS OVER
British vs. Black Dragon Rebels
Okay, Darkstar fans, I’m happy to say we’ve had another great game this past weekend, where @damon from the community again took his new heavy cruiser HMS Bellapheron (Trafalgar Class) and escort destroyer HMS Essex (Falklands Class) into another battle, perhaps looking for a little redemption after the loss suffered at the hands of my Prussians last weekend (skirmish at Vancouver Station).
So Damon received this briefing from the first officer of Bellerophon’s first officer:
Good afternoon, sir. I have the honour of reporting that both HMS Bellerpheron and HMS Essex have completed shakedown cruises after their refits in Annabel’s Star dry dock.
- We also have orders from the Admiralty (Operations Office, Scorpio / Libra Strategic Command Sector, Commodore Sir David Pellard).
- We are to sortie at once, setting a Darkstar course back to the Gleise 682 (Harwood’s Hope, M3.5 red dwarf) star system, where we recently came up a little short against the Prussians at our orbital facilities at Vancouver Station.
- In the wake of that unfortunate scuffle, the Prussians have of course taken possession of Vancouver Station, and in fact used it to repair KMS Lutzow while we were laid up in drydock ourselves here at Annabel’s Star.
- In addition, the Prussians have also made themselves rather comfortable in the outer orbital zones, setting up automated detector buoys. Clearly they expect us to mount a push back into the system, and intend to be ready.
- Whether at Vancouver Station or in the outer orbital zones, Prussian naval presence in Gliese 682 is unacceptable. The Harwood’s Hope system is an important waypoint along our Empire’s shipping lanes from Annabel’s Star back toward our Core colonies and Earth. Prussian interference along this route cannot be allowed to stand.
- Furthermore, the Prussians’ allies, the Russian/Chinese rebels of the so-called Khitan-Tunguska Free State (the Black Dragons), have been allowed to stage some of their ships in Gliese 682.
- This has our Panasian allies in quite a state, as it puts the Black Dragons (their sworn enemies) just 8 light-years from Ross 154, their largest Core colony in the region.
- Accordingly, we are directed to probe the outer protoplanetary debris rings of Gleise 682, with a view to find and engage the reported Black Dragon battlegroup in the area. It is our hope that a solid enough defeat against these rebels might compel the Prussians to either weaken their defenses of Vancouver Station, pull in additional ships from other hard-pressed sectors throughout the warzone, or even abandon Harwood’s Hope altogether.
- Either way, a stiff blow against the Black Dragon rebels will placate our allies in the Panasian Union and Holy Russian Empire, perhaps enough to compel their help in expanded operations against the Prussian sector headquarters and shipyards at Eisenwolf Colony.
Current situation, Duchess Annabel's War (2519, Scorpio/Libra SCS) - June, 2519 
So here’s the battle area, somewhere in the bottomless abyss of this star system’s outer protoplanetary debris fields (what we would call the “Kuiper Belt” in our home star system). The asteroids and planetismal you’re familiar with. Note the dust clouds. Any ship that has to fire INTO or THROUGH at least one dust cloud hex has to -1 from its target to hit number. Shooting through multiple dust cloud hexes is not cumulative. 
So here’s the set up. Damon has the HMS Bellepheron (nicknamed “Billy Ruffian” as her namesake was at the Battle of Trafalgar – 1805) and escort ship, the Falklands class destroyer HMS Essex. That’s 122 + 50 = 172 points. The Black Dragons have the Russian-built Slava class heavy cruiser KTS Grozhayev (102 points), the Russian-built Sovnya class destroyer KTS Zharino (42 points), and the Panasian built Zhao Ha class missile frigate Khangta (21 points). This puts the Black Dragons 7 points short, so I install the “ECM/Shielding” upgrade on the Zharino (20% of the destroyer’s base cost = 8), to bring their available forces to 173. Then, the Khangta’s scout plane goes on the fritz, and is down for maintenance for this battle, bringing the game to a perfect 172 point balance. Both battlegroups enter the board and opening volleys are exchanged at the absurd distance of 28 hexes = just over 5000 kilometers, the distance between Coleraine and Tehran. 
Damon keeps sidestepping with his two British ships, clearly hoping to outdistance (or at least delay the impact) of my torpedoes, while whittling them down with his scouts. My scouts keep trying to shoot down his, but to no success. Meanwhile, we’re slapping at each other still over very long gunnery distances, where Damon’s ships will have something of an advantage as his guns are more accurate. I’m still trying to close the range, of course, where my larger Russian and Chinese guns (especially the dreaded Russian plasma projectors) will have greater impact. 
Damon keeps playing hard to get. The range is now “down” to 20 hexes, 3600 kilometers. All this time, Damon’s been trying to hit the smallest ship in my fleet, the frigate Khangta. This is to maybe score an “easy” early kill, knocking down my firepower a little before the two sides really come to grips, and reducing the number of torpedoes I can throw at him in one turn. Besides, as Damon learned to his cost last week, once these ships get close, there’s practically no way a heavy cruiser can get frigates or corvettes off her stern. 
Things finally get serious on Turn 4. The Grozhayev blows an initiative roll, and I try to turn to starboard in an attempt to present a possible broadside at the British. This allows Damon to accelerate (the Trafalgar class is actually pretty fast for a heavy cruiser) and turn to port, cutting a broadside across Grozhayev’s stern. I hope to either (a) mitigate the damage by responding with closer broadsides of my frigate and destroyer, or (b) offer up the smaller ships as bait to save my heavy cruiser. Damon “takes the bait,” and but both his ships into a punishing broadside into the Khangta and Zharino. The Khangta (being a frigate) is much more fragile and takes more damage, but believe it or not - it’s the Zharino that loses power and is now burning and adrift in space. 
Again the Grozhayev loses initiative. This isn’t just bad dice, the Billy Ruffian has a better chance here due to her higher thrust (surplus power / mass ratio). Anyway, I cut toward the Bellopheron, hoping to avoid another broadside across my stern, or at the very least, close the range where my big Russian flamethrowers will burn the Billy Ruffian into the “Beefsteak Ruffian.” Well, I get one of my wishes. We are now in the same hex (less than 100 kilometers apart). Now I can only fire my aft guns, and Damon can fire ALL of his guns. Also, he’s shooting into my stern, I’m shooting into his starboard bow. So does the Khangta. The Essex wasn’t no part of this apocalyptic shooting match, and can’t turn away in time, so instead has to power FORWARD in the hopes that distance and dust clouds will keep her safe from Grozhayev;s forward guns (you know, the ones that CAN’T shoot at Beefsteak Ruffian). 
Well, believe it or not we both survived that, although Grozhayev is realty in trouble here. AGAIN I lose initiative, so instead I now cut with my stern to an asteroid in the hopes of covering my damaged fantail. Nope, not if the Bellopheron feels lucky enough to survive ANOTHER point-blank plasma projector barbeque! “I like my British . . . extra crispy!”
Trying my damnedest to shake the Broiled Ruffian off my ass, I accelerate the Grozhayev three more KPS and then have just enough thrust to pull a fishhook 180-degree turn, hoping to keep my stern out to deep space. Now finally this is a move the Bellopheron cannot match (she’s lost maneuvering thrusters and three sensors by this point. But I have NO AFT SHIELDS, one more volley on the stern and I’ve had it. The only way Bellopheron can do this is to scream straight at me, then, as she’s passing AGAIN in the same hex, put her aft guns into my stern. This finally does it, not QUITE doing enough damage to the Grozhayev to explode her reactors (for the Bruised Ruffian, that would be VERY bad at this point). Meanwhile, the Essex, which has been more or less circling the cruisers, pinging in with long-ranged fire while trying to slow down and not fly off the map, scores a broadside into the reeling wreck of the little Khangta, finally crippling here as well. 
What a British victory. Both the Bellopheron and Essex are still operational (although VERY worse for wear), while the whole Black Dragon task force has been crippled. All three Black Dragon ships will make their recovery checks, however, perhaps proof of just how serious the Prussians are about keeping them as allies. This will mean the Prussians are evacuating the Harwood’s Hope system, however (last week’s minor British defeat vs today’s major British victory = a net British minor victory), so the Prussians will but their losses and help their allies limp back to Eisenwolf Colony. Meanwhile, here is the WRS of the “Battered Ruffian.” It’s a good thing the Grozhayev finally went dark when she did, Damon’s flagship looks like she needs another refit in dry dock! Indeed, what the Trafalgar class’ design “spends” in speed and technology, the Slava class spends in armor and shielding. Like most Russian ships, she’s more than a little sturdy. 
Meanwhile, the Khangta. I can’t believe this ship made her Warship Recovery Check, it has been a while since I’ve seen a frigate take this much damage and actually survive. Indeed, that battle went through Turn 7, pretty unusual for a Darkstar game. This was definitely a nasty one, where both sides were playing for keeps and no one’s ships wanted to give up the fight. Congrats to Damon on a well-fought victory! 
I really enjoyed this game. The mechanics of the rules are starting to flow as I get the hang of them and I’m getting a feel for the tactics, this really is a game that will reward planning and anticipating the enemies moves and punish the hell out of you if you mess up. Although I do want to acknowledge the generous way Jim helped me work out the manoeuvre that put me across the stern of the Grozhayev for the first close range volley, very sporting. But the Grozhayev was a tough bitch to bring down, if I’d left… Read more »
excellent stuff, really enjoyed it, especially as “we” won. Looking forward to the next episode.
Indeed @gremlin, there was a rousing chorus of Rule Britannia from all decks after the Captain announced the victory, and then a polite round of applause for the chaps batting for the other team, we are British after all.
Thanks @gremlin and @damon . 😀 Don’t sing “Rule Britannia” too loudly, Damon. The Broiled Ruffian might shake apart, given the state she was in after that battle. 😀 Yeah, remembering that either the Khangta or Grozhayev with 30kg Plasma projectors, which do 5 points of “liquid” beam damage at point blank range with a single hit, and given that the Battered Ruffian’s bridge is now completely unarmored and unshielded, one more even semi-lucky hit (and with no shields, EVERYTHING would hit), could easily had fried the bridge, crippling the ship instantly and potentially killed Damon’s “character.” Then there are… Read more »