Let's Play Rule the Waves 3 - An Interactive Let's Play by Shebe Zuu

Hello, I'm Shebe Zuu, and I'd like to share with you all a game I've been anticipating for a long time: Rule the Waves 3. I'm a long time player of the RTW series, but what first got me into the game was Let's Plays on forums like Something Awful, Spacebattles, and our own Sufficient Velocity. I've always thought it might be a fun challenge to do one myself, and to spice things up and force me out of my comfort zone I've decided I'll be relying on you, humble reader(s), to help guide my choices throughout the game. I'll give a further explanation of how exactly this will work later on, but for now there is one very important question before us - which great (or not so great) power shall we attempt to guide to naval greatness?

Rule the Waves 3 has several options for a starting year, 2 of which are new in this game. In order to simplify our choice of nation this is one decision I will be making for us. Seeing as the 1890 start is a new option to the series, that is where we'll be starting - hopefully it'll make this LP at least somewhat of a novel experience compared to those that have come before. Next I'll be listing out our potential nations, ordered by their starting naval budget.

Britain, probably unsurprisingly, begins 1890 with the game's largest naval budget. Unfortunately it is also burdened with a worldwide empire that needs defending, requiring Britain to keep a significant portion of it's fleet active and away from home, which can get expensive in lean times. British dockyards are cutting edge both in their technological prowess and their practical efficiency, but despite this it seems that British ships can sometimes end up with quirks of an... unfortunate nature. Britain is particularly adept in the fields of ship design and radars and electronics, and is highly likely to develop the concepts of an all forward main armament, the flight deck, and improved guidance systems. At the start of the game, Britain can build ships of at most 15,000 tons and the largest guns British arsenals can produce are 13 inches in caliber.

The second largest naval budget in 1890 belongs to France, though it still lags behind Britain significantly. Though France's empire is not so extensive as Britain's, it nonetheless has a number of overseas commitments in Asia, Africa, and even the Caribbean. France also has two coastlines to defend, one in the Atlantic and one in the Mediterranean. Due to the fractious nature of the Third Republic's politics, the government can demand the navy embark on a program of submarine building one year and then decide that the navy must build heavy cruisers instead the year after. Even worse, occasionally a government may come to power that decides portions of the naval budget might be better spent on - gasp - the army. France is highly likely to develop designs for quadruple turrets and hardened AP penetrators. At the start of the game, France can build ships of at most 14,000 tons and the largest guns French arsenals can produce are 13 inches in caliber.

The third largest naval budget in 1890 is Russia, though it may not be able to sustain this for long. The Russian navy must defend two coastlines on opposite ends of the world (The Black Sea is not represented in-game), and despite their reasonable starting position the deep flaws present in the Russian economy and system of governance will only make it's task harder as the game goes on. Russian shipbuilders are not known for the quality of their work, and their production techniques are behind the times. Also behind the times is Russia's education system, which hampers its ability to recruit skilled officers and scientists. Russia is highly likely to develop the concept of active mine warfare. At the start of the game, Russia can build ships of at most 12,000 tons and the largest guns Russian arsenals can produce are 12 inches in caliber.

Italy comes forth from the top in terms of budget, but it too is vulnerable to being eclipsed as time moves forward. Italy is yet a young nation with great ambitions but as yet little to show for them besides some minor colonies in Africa, which is perhaps a blessing in disguise, as it means the Italian navy has no great need to commit itself outside the calm waters of the Mediterranean. Unfortunately Italy's domestic situation is less than ideal - the public is hungry for glory yet quick to punish defeat, making risk-taking even more of a gamble. The still coalescing Italian nation also has yet to wrestle itself into parity with the rest of Europe, lagging in production methods, education, and sound governance. Its government is also less than stable, with similar implications for naval policy. Italy is particularly adept in the field of ship design, and is highly likely to develop concepts for triple turrets, motor torpedo boats, and the Motobomba FFF type torpedo. At the start of the game, Italy can build ships of at most 15,000 tons and the largest guns Italian arsenals can produce are 12 inches in caliber.

Germany places a modest fifth in terms of budget in 1890, but the recently crowned Kaiser Wilhelm II has big plans for the navy, and if he has anything to say about it, the naval budget will not stay this small for long. The Kaiser has similarly big plans for expansion, but at the start of the game Germany only has some scattered colonies in Africa to worry about, along with contesting the Russians in the Baltic. The German economy of the time is rapidly innovating and evolving, providing a solid base for growth and stimulating technological advancement, but the Kaiser's belligerence in pursuit of a German world empire can sometimes lead to him making boasts even the powerful German economy is unable to live up to. Wilhelm's overbearing personality has cultivated something of an opposite effect among his admirals, who fear his wrath should they be seen to fail. Germany is particularly adept in the fields of armor development, subdivision and damage control, AP projectiles, lighter than air aviation, and missile technology. Germany is also particularly to develop concepts for cross-deck fire, the bombentorpedo, and specialized submarine designs. At the start of the game, Germany can build ships of at most 12,000 tons and the largest guns German arsenals can produce are 11 inches in caliber.


In the modern day, the US is perhaps the most powerful naval power to have ever existed, but in 1890 America starts the bottom half of our list, at sixth. As the game goes on though the US will rapidly advance in both potential and power, having the strongest economy in the game and the technical prowess to match it, allowing them to eventually eclipse even Britain. Even in 1890 the US must defend a considerable amount of coastline across 2 oceans, along with a number of possessions in the pacific, but it benefits from the fact that these areas are mostly far away from the power centers of Europe, meaning that potential enemies will have trouble mounting operations against them. The US is particularly adept in the field of radar and electronics, and is highly likely to develop designs for superimposed B and X turrets as well as aircraft carrier conversions. At the start of the game the US can build ships of at most 8,000 tons and the largest guns US arsenals can produce are 13 inches in caliber.

Japan's navy is still putting the finishing touches on its modernization in 1890, coming in seventh in spending. Japan itself has only just begun to step out onto the world stage, not yet possessing any territory outside the home islands though the rising power hopes this will change rapidly. At least for now though, it greatly simplifies the navy's strategic situation. Japan's domestic shipyards are still not up to par with European standards, but Japanese planners have come up with a number of avenues to potentially close the gap, from innovative training regimens to carefully crafted plans to ambush enemy fleets at anchor. There are even those who swear that they would gladly face certain death to ensure the final victory of the Empire, though we should hope that such drastic measures never become necessary. Japan is particularly adept in the fields of light forces and torpedo warfare, shipboard aircraft operation, and heavier than air naval aviation, but struggles to keep pace in the field of radar and electronics. Japan is highly likely to develop plans for diving shells, oxygen fueled and lengthened torpedoes, and double torpedo mounts. At the start of the game, Japan can build ships of at most 6,000 tons and the largest guns Japanese arsenals can produce are 10 inches in caliber.

Austria-Hungary has never been much more than a second-rate naval power, and seems likely to stay that way, having the eighth largest budget. All of Austria's coastline lies along the Adriatic sea, meaning that despite their limited budget the Austrian navy can remain highly concentrated against any threats. Perhaps as a result of this Austrian admirals tend to be reluctant to take risks, preferring to stick close to home waters and wait for their enemy to come to them. Austria-Hungary is particularly adept in the field of torpedo technology, and is highly likely to develop designs for triple turrets. At the start of the game Austria can build ships of at most 9,000 tons and the largest guns Austrian arsenals can produce are 11 inches in caliber.

Coming in second to last in our list at ninth, the Spanish navy, much like the rest of the Spanish empire, has seen better days. Already stretched by the need to patrol the Spanish coast in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, the navy is woefully underprepared to defend Spain's few remaining colonies, and already foreign powers look on Cuba and the Philippines with covetous eyes. Spanish dockyards have been unable to keep up with their neighbors and are widely seen as subpar, and Spain's technological development is deeply unremarkable, though its engineers have had some interesting ideas regarding cross-deck fire. At the start of the game, Spain can build ships of at most 7,000 tons and the largest guns Spanish arsenals can produce are 9 inches in caliber.


With the smallest naval budget in the game, the Chinese starting situation in 1890 is, to put it mildly, suboptimal. That is not to say that China has absolutely nothing going for it - it does have one key advantage: location. Far away from any of the major naval powers in Europe, China must hope to rely on that distance in order to maintain any semblance of parity with the colonial powers, and as a result the establishment of any major European naval facilities in east Asia is practically an existential threat. China's problems do not end there, however. The Qing court is hopelessly riven with corruption, siphoning funds which ought to be available for naval use, and this corruption has similarly crippled Qing modernization efforts in other areas, such as education and industrialization. At the start of the game, China can build ships of at most 4,000 tons and the largest guns Chinese arsenals can produce are 8 inches in caliber.

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With the choices laid before you, now is the time to decide - which nation shall we lead in our quest to Rule the Waves?

[] The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
[] The French Third Republic
[] The Russian Empire
[] The Kingdom of Italy
[] The German Empire
[] The United States of America
[] The Empire of Japan
[] The Austro-Hungarian Empire
[] The Kingdom of Spain
[] The Empire of the Great Qing