Rule The Waves 3 - A Graphical Experiment - Complete

Which of the above cruisers should we move forwards with (reminder - we must build ten): Type-2, Type-3 - Tie, we will build five of each

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New Cruisers
We first design the lighter of the two cruisers, the Type-3. Named the Amiral Cecille, it will functionally be as advertised - a simple cruiser for home and overseas duties where its minimal design will be most useful. Meanwhile, the Davout is significantly larger and more expensive and commensurately more capable. She will be the first true warship to carry a floatplane and while she only has one, she will be a fine test bed to demonstrate the functionality in war time. The first of each class will be laid down in September 1927.

The President requests additional forces be rebased in the Channel and Atlantic ports, concerned about the aggressive moves that Germany - now under the rule of one Walther von Luttzwitz after the death of Kapp - in the area. We move four Super Cruisers and numerous supporting forces through the straits of Gibraltar, ensuring the Germans will absolutely know of the action. Hopefully this will deter any aggressive moves in our direction.

Autocracy continues to burn through the nations of the world, with Japan being the latest to suffer. A massive riot in Tokyo has led to the institution of martial law across the province and, in the wake of troops moving in, the government has been deposed and replaced by a military Junta under General Kazushige Ukagi.
Come December we have laid down the ten required cruisers, four of them the larger Davout-class and six the smaller (and cheaper) Amiral Cecille. has this programme proved ruinously expensive? Not yet. Has it required us to cancel other building plans and programs? Absolutely yes. Nevertheless, the first Colosse-class joins the fleet and during her sea trials is found to exceed her design speed by an entire knot. These fine, fast ships will be some of the most capable cruisers ever built for the Marine Nationale.

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Another New Government
How long has it been since the last election? It cannot have been more than a year, can it? Have we spent so long in the bowels of a ship we can no longer track the days? Nonetheless, the government has once more swung liberal and we will pay the price for it. They remark in a meeting that budgets will be shrinking, and we can do little but smile and nod and stare at the cruisers they demanded we build. At least, and it is a small mercy, this will reduce the tensions in Europe - at least we can hope.

We make several other moves to reduce tensions in Europe and the government, seeing our weakness, wonders if there isn't a war to further safeguard peace in Europe. We jokingly suggest they find a way to ally with the Communards of Russia and much to our chagrin, they actually go and do it. These radical leftists will be the end of us, though perhaps not so much as the radical right in Germany and Italy whom we hold in much greater contempt.

Protecteur arrives with the fleet in July of 1928, her broad flat deck the ideal place to host a commissioning party. She will soon join the carrier division which splits its time between the channel ports and Toulon, and she will be a fine flagship for the group with her larger air group. Hopefully one day we will have the budget to build more. She will be the first ship to carry fighters as well as a Torpedo squadron, with Escadrille 7701 commissioned as the first at-sea air combat unit.

We begin a refit program for older cruisers and other smaller ships, bringing them into line with the modern fleet (though notably not replacing their coal boilers with oil). Unfortunately the Liberte and her sisters are beginning to show their age even more so than they already were. It is unlikely they will survive another refit after thirty years of service and losing the three of them will leave us with only a single operational carrier. As soon as the budget is available we will begin replacing them and these old ladies will finally be allowed to retire.

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It is time to reconsider the standards we have previously set for ourselves in how we conduct our overall goals. Our current technology and current aircraft complement are as follows:
Please select two of the following options to be of the highest priority going forwards:
[ ] Armour, Hull and Ship Design.
[ ] Light Forces, Torpedoes and Submarines.
[ ] Fire Control, Gun Mountings and Projectiles.
[ ] Machinery, Damage Control and Tactics.
[ ] Naval Aviation.
Select a core principal for our future aircraft design:
[ ] Speed
[ ] Range
[ ] Firepower
[ ] Reliability
[ ] Toughness
[ ] Payload
[ ] Agility

Please select two of the following options to be of the highest priority going forwards: Fire Control, Gun Mountings and Projectiles, Naval Aviation.
Select a core principal for our future aircraft design: Reliability

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Precarity
With what remains of our budget with the cruisers under construction, we lay down an update on the Protecteur-class; the Agamemnon. Perhaps there will finally be more than one of these ships laid down at once, once the first of the cruisers are finished in eight months. We bring the second Jeanne d'Arc cruiser in for her refit and plan for a second Agamemnon to be laid down in January 1929.

The first fruits of our refocused research program come to us in November with the development of turbo-electric drives for propelling ships, improved voice radio for signalling and an improvement to gun manufacture that will help to refine our heavy guns and improve their shooting characteristics. The lattermost is interesting as we have previously had an issue with our shells failing to penetrate enemy armour, but an improvement in muzzle velocities will help with that. Sadly our technology sharing agreement with Great Britain comes to an end, but we have seen great gains from it nonetheless.

In April we lay down the third and last (for now) of the Agamemnon-class carriers - the Arromanches - and begin design work on a new class of Super Cruiser to follow on from the already advanced Colosse. This new class, the Vengeur, has updated AA armaments, torpedo protection and engines but is otherwise a functionally identical warship.

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Financially Fine
As if from nowhere, we suddenly have a budget. The cruisers begin to arrive in numbers beginning in May 1929, and we have several months of stocking our coffers before we need to lay down the first Vengeur. We also begin the design of a new 1,700 ton destroyer which will mount three twin, high-angle, dual-purpose, 100mm turrets, a smattering of other AA guns and eight torpedo tubes. She will nonetheless still mount an effective anti-submarine equipment set of the best quality we can currently build and though we will likely not build many they will be ideal division leaders. The first Faulx will be laid down alongside the first Vengeur.

We lead an international force including Soviets and Americans to block a German attempt to occupy Angola, which is ignored by the Kriegsmarine as they force landings and take-over the government. It seems likely that we are going to have to do something about this in the near future.

We manage to garner some information on ships from overseas, gaining a peek into the developments that other nations are making and what they are prioritising. For example, our American once-allies are now building aviation ships equipped with aircraft catapults and deep hangers capable of storing and deploying twenty-four floatplanes. It utilises a sleek cruiser hull in order to maintain a remarkable speed of 29 knots while fitting a light anti-air armament.
The Soviets, meanwhile, have a capable cruiser of their own which could almost pass for a large destroyer were it not for her six 150mm rifles mounted in three twin turrets. She is otherwise equipped with torpedoes, light guns, mines and other equipment.

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Tensions around the world
The belligerence of Germany is raising tensions in France, and heightened concerns are even reaching the papers. Rhetoric about Alsace-Lorraine and the conquest of the colonies is rife in Germany proper, and it may not be long before we no longer have a choice as to whether we go to war or not. Fortunately we have ended up ordering some eleven destroyers as well as the three carriers which will be ready as soon as a year from now. While much can change in that time, we can hope it doesn't change too quickly.

Tensions are also high overseas - A South Korean rebellion has pushed back the Japanese Autocrats and declared freedom from colonial control. Meanwhile, not only are relations between the Spanish and Americans tense, but the Spanish are dealing with a rebellion of their own in Puerto Rico which is likely funded by the Americans.

The arrival of new, purpose-built aircraft carriers means that it is time to say goodbye to the ancient Republique's. First laid down in the late 1890s, Republique has little in the way of war service, but has a prodigious service record as a port guard and training ship. Democratie made her name as a carrier, with her torpedo bombers (5640 Escadrille) scoring multiple hits against German capital ships. Both ships are sold for scrap and their air groups retained on surface bases until their carriers are ready. Liberte will remain as a training carrier but will no longer have a place in the divisional make-up of the fleet.

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The Ministers Reading Habits
Once again we are in a position where the Minister of the Navy has had a good idea. This time he would like four new capital ships to join the fleet, perhaps the most expensive option he could have chosen. Will we receive a budget expansion? Of course. Will it be enough? Unlikely. Nonetheless, we must persevere.

What ships should we build:
[ ] Minimum Cruisers - A class of small, fast capital ships with limited protection that are eminently buildable.
[ ] More Vengeur's - We can simply scrimp and save and increase the two-ship class to a class of six.
[ ] Something Else - make a recommendation based on new ideas or previous options.