You and your ships have completed two-thirds of the journey. You are the most furthest out of the transport convoys.
You realise that the smart thing would be for the imperial fleet to withdraw. Retreat to its fortified anchorage and live to fight another day. Flee from the oncoming onslaught and leave you and your men to your fate.
It was the logical thing. It was the rational thing. Not much of a fleet-in-being if it was in the bottom of the sea.
It doesn't.
It doesn't turn around and sail back to Scarpa Flow at full speed like it should.
Instead it turns arounds, the many ships form up for a set piece fleet engagement.
Imperial order of battle
1 Battleship
2 Battlecruisers
6 Heavy Cruisers
7 Light Cruisers
9 Destroyers
10 Destroyer escorts
Federation order of battle
5 Battleships
1 Battlecruiser
1 Heavy Cruiser
3 Light Cruisers
17 Destroyers
3 Destroyer Escorts
Hope fills your heart for a moment. Knowing that they're selling their lives to give you a chance. Not writing off you and the thousands of men with you and running.
Filled with resolve the crews prepare to take on the Federation juggernaut.
Imperial Navy
Roll 1d100 = 17
Luck 1d20 = 15
Admiral Spoor 3d6 = 3
Modifiers: -30 Extreme Long Range
Total = 5
Federation Navy
Roll 1d100 = 97
Luck 1d20 = 15
Admiral Greenhill 5d6 = 22
Modifiers: +5 superior equipment, +5 superior training -30 Extreme Long Range -30 Very Dispersed Fleet
Total = 84
That resolve evaporates as the Pride of Nova takes a direct hit from the initial salvo from a range many would consider impossible. It was well over twenty kilometres and quite likely beat many of the previous Federation records. The battlecruiser lists and smoke bellows out from its side but it still tries to line its guns.
The imperial capital ships prepare to respond, lining their main guns south. Crewmen pray and prepare to open fire... but they are interrupted.
A suicidal charge by an unimaginably brave Federation destroyer on Imperial battleline interrupts all preparation. Part of the previous battle, the escort ship had less distance to travel than the oncoming fleet. Filled with only essential crew, it chose to sacrifice itself in a bid to avenge its comrades. With a launcher filled with torpedoes, it weaves through a gap in the imperial escort screen. Shellfire from destroyers and cruisers slowly rip it to shreds. Getting within range of the big ships, the destroyer senses its time is running out and fires its torpedoes without extensive deliberation.
The charge and resulting torpedo spread disrupts the imperial gunline as capital ships scramble to get out of the way. Elodie's Wrath, a very bulky lady, veers out of the way at a stately pace. Fortunately for the Imperials, all the torpedoes miss but the dead destroyer's main objective was achieved. Invaluable time had been wasted in the manoeuvring and crews have to spend more getting the turrets lined up again. Indeed, had the Federation battleships opened fire later when they were at a more optimum range the destroyer would have timed its run better and caused even greater damage.
The responding fire from the Imperial capital ships is desultory and misses pretty much entirely. The crews did not have much practice in extreme long range, record breaking gunnery given the confines of the Gulf. Still, their saving grace is that many of the Federation light ships are extremely spaced out, most are completely out of range. The lighter ships had been dribbling in, now they move to towards the distant battleships to try and support them. Even then, some of the Federal ships from earlier engagement do not join the budding Federal armada, either too damaged or unnerved and remain docked at the ports lining the southern shore.
More salvoes come from the Federation battleships. Nearly all of them miss given the extremely long range. But ominous coloured splashes of water appear around the targeted ships, as tall as multi-storey buildings. There are five different colours; red, blue, green, orange, and black that come from the dye contained in the shells.
Another black coloured salvo nails a heavy cruiser, the fifteen inch shell almost splits the ship in two. Some would say that the bow and stern were physically lifted out of the water by the pure force of the blow.
A green coloured salvo straddles a light cruiser. The sheer power of the near miss's splash almost causes the ship to capsize, causing it to wobble erratically for several moments before it rights itself.
Pure panic has spread among the Imperial Navy ships. Many fire at a much slower rate than they normally would. Chaos reins as some lighter ships break formation and try to flee. The crewmen did not expect such accuracy at such an extreme range. What would happen when the behemoths came closer? Pure and utter carnage.
And then one of the Federation battleships explodes massively amidship.
For a moment the whole battlefield is looking on in pure shock. Its almost silent as most ships stop firing. What happened? Did one of the Imperial capital ships get lucky?
In less than a minute the mighty capital ship keels over and capsizes. Thirteen hundred crewmen go down with her.
After a short period everyone concludes it was a lucky hit on a magazine and the fighting continues.
The battleships and battlecruisers fire their massive multi-tonne shells at each other.
All the shots are misses-
Another explosion rings out at the bow of one of the Federal battleships.
The blast heavily damages the ship and it spins out of formation as it begins to list.
A destroyer and destroyer escort are quickly detached to pick up the crew.
The panic among the Imperials slowly begins to abate. Maybe they could do this? The retreating ships hastily move back into formation.
The naval gunfire continues at a steady pace as the ships try to get a bead on each other. However soon the Imperial capitals cease firing in order to conserve ammunition. Apparently the Imperial Admiral thought there was no point in wasting more shells in a pointless pissing match or in keeping up appearances.
And then, paradoxically, another Federation battleship suffers an explosion amidships. This time it is less serious than the first disastrous time as the explosion strikes one of its main armour belts, mitigating much damage. Still the ship lists in an unsafe manner and soon lifeboats full of crew are abandoning ship.
Some on the battlefield may have heard a high pitched bout of laughter.
What was causing those explosions? The Imperial crews wondered, they weren't
that good!
Wait a moment, the Imperials realised, none of their capital ships had been firing for the last few minutes!
Soon the answer comes.
Mines.
Someone, some objectively beautiful person had ordered the laying down of new mines.
The Federal escort ships both earlier and now hadn't detected them. They were in a rush to enter the battle. Many of them were still joining the field of battle far behind the battleships. Besides, they know where all the minefields are.
Were.
In the night, a few enterprising Novan minelayers had set up several new fields of mines under cover of darkness. The minefields were placed at the entrance of the strait where it would be very narrow, increasing chances of a hit.
But they weren't any naval mines. They were anti-capital ship mines. The lighter ships had passed over them unmolested as they lay in wait.
Spoor's surprise
Minefield Alpha 1d100 : 13
Minefield Beta 1d100: 25
Minefield Gamma 1d100: 61
Minefield Sigma 1d100: 60
Minefield Epsilon 1d100: 81
Their haste and negligence had cost them dearly as the anti-capital mines took a terrible toll. Hitting half the Federation's deployed capital ships.
The Federation Admiral realises he has made a terrible mistake and ceases his advance, waiting for a group of destroyers to catch up. He had been deceived by the imperial capital ships shellfire. Had they not been firing in their appallingly bad manner earlier he would have realised he was in a minefield immediately and withdrew from the battle entirely. Now it is too late, they are too far in to fall back and must see this through. The Federal fleet still heavily out-masses the Imperial one.
Soon, the Federation fleet moves at a more cautious rate, screening the sea in front of them for mines with escorts. One gets unlucky as it is hit by Elodie's Wrath, pulverising the destroyer. Still, the federal escorts keep their discipline as the battleships continue firing.
Imperial Losses
1 Heavy Cruiser
Federation Losses
3 Battleships
3 Destroyers
1 Destroyer escorts
The Federation fleet moves further into the gulf and gets closer, into a somewhat more favourable firing range.
Imperial Navy
Roll 1d100 = 59
Luck 1d20 = 8
Admiral Spoor 3d6 = 9
Modifiers: -20 Long Range
Total = 56
Federation Navy
Roll 1d100 = 49
Luck 1d20 = 9
Admiral Greenhill 5d6 = 19
Modifiers: +5 superior equipment, +5 superior training -20 Long Range -15 Somewhat Dispersed Fleet
Total = 52
The scattered Federation ships begin to concentrate together and support their battleships, increasing the volume of fire coming down on the Imperial ships. They respond in kind.
The Pride of Nova scores a direct hit on a Federation destroyer, the plunging capital shell smashing straight through the weakly armoured hull of the smaller ship. Leaving a several metre wide hole in its wake.
A battleship with the black shells hits a destroyer that was in the way of a heavy cruiser. The Federation battlecruiser manages a moderate straddle on a light cruiser. The battleship with green shells zeros in on the 2nd Novan Battlecruiser, the Serenitatis, but is foiled by a clever destroyer that deploys its smokescreen to throw the bigger ship off.
Apart from that, neither side inflicts much casualties on each other. The range is still long and pretty much all the shots miss. The Imperial capital ships cease their burst their fire, now apparently running low on ammunition.
Imperial Losses
1 Destroyer
Federation Losses
1 Destroyer
To the surprise of some, more Novan ships exit from Scarpa Flow. Many of them barely have any armour, some aren't even warships at all… It appears someone seriously planned for some contingencies. The welcome reinforcements join the screening escorts though many move in an ungainly manner. As if they are untrained or barely crewed at all.
Imperial Reinforcements
6 Destroyer Escorts
13 Armed Merchantmen
The battle hangs on a knife edge. For the Federation Navy, there is no retreat. The Federal's escort screen is dangerously weak after the heavy losses it took in the early phases of the battle. Had they been present, the battle would be much more in their favour. Still, the Imperials are heavily outmassed and moderately outgunned. The battle soon enters its next phase as both fleets advance further towards each other.
***
"Can we turn around?" is the first thing that comes out of your very dry mouth to the captain, some Pruebian, as the two angry fleets rage at each other in the distance.
"No, it would take too long to u-turn, the ship is cumbersome animal. The radius would be too big and risk us."
"Can we divert to friendly territory to the north?"
"Some of us, but not our convoy," he says reluctantly.
Damn, damn, damn.
Looks like you'll have to try and keep moving forward with your full force.
"Send messages to all ships to keep moving forward to the planned destination. Don't split off."
A couple of the more closer inland ships disobey your orders and make a break for land. There isn't much you can do about them.
You are frustrated by the powerlessness of it all.
You begin to contemplate your life choices.
And stop.
You might have some small measure of control here.
You could still land at the planned sites, which were pre-scouted by spies and confirmed to lack fortifications or any serious military presence. But doing that would take you uncomfortably close to the raging battle that looks to get even fiercer, with only a squadron of escorts protecting you. Or you can divert away from the battle, but doing so would take you closer towards the half million strong Federation army. You'd be taking your chances on encountering any enemy formations and bases. It is a tough choice.
[] Change course
You order the ships turn marginally away from the ongoing battle. It will offer more protection from stragglers but take you away from the planned landing sites which should be pretty much empty.
[] Stick to the same path
You'll risk it. You really don't want to encounter some Federation fortifications by pure chance. The worst case scenario of being attacked while landing is a recipe for disaster.
AN: You were very lucky in the first phase. Had you not been at extreme long range where only the capital ships could fire, you would have been slaughtered.
