We played our second game using the Gods of War: Togo rules. This time, we included all the special rules and played for points. I set up two fleets, each at 875 points. We followed the second scenario from the main book, a clash of counter-courses.
UMPIRING: Bartek Żynda
1. Forces.
2. The Game.
Before I move on to the game description, I want to mention that while creating fleets for the Spanish, I was 5 points short of the planned total of 875. With those points, I could have added a ship mascot to one of the vessels. Typically, these mascots were animals. Currently, I am painting British units for my Sudanese collection, using a set of plastic figures from Perry Miniatures. Among them, there are two dogs that I initially had no plans to use. However, to ensure they wouldn’t go to waste, I quickly painted them, added bases from Renedra, and now I have mascot tokens for Togo.
Let's get to the game. I added two islands to the scenario, which the captains of both fleets were to place on the table. They positioned the islands more or less in the centre. The Spanish fleet was the first to deploy, and it was divided into two smaller squadrons. The first squadron, under Andi's command, included the ships Pelayo and Infanta Maria Teresa. The second squadron, commanded by me, consisted of Reina Regente and Velasco. The American fleet also had two flotillas. The first flotilla, led by Alasdair, comprised the ships Indiana and Atlanta, while the second, commanded by Jimi, included Cincinnati and Ericsson.
Both fleets set off in their designated directions. While the Spanish kept both squadrons together, the Americans split their forces. Alasdair moved to engage the Spanish, while Jimie began to circle the enemy on a starboard course. USS Indiana was the first to fire her main gun salvo, but the Spanish ships were actually out of range. Meanwhile, the Spanish approached USS Indiana and USS Atlanta, quickly showering them with accurate salvos.
USS Atlanta was the first ship to experience the effects of the concentrated fire. Numerous fires broke out, and although the ship remained afloat, the captain could not withstand the pressure and ultimately surrendered. This marked the first setback for the Americans in the battle. However, they managed to hold their ground, and at that moment, the USS Cincinnati fired a salvo at the Velasco. The shot struck the ammunition chamber, causing the Spanish ship to explode.
The remaining Spanish ships continued to engage the isolated Indiana. Eventually, their numerical superiority became apparent, leading to fires breaking out on USS Indiana that could not be extinguished. This ultimately caused the ammunition chambers to ignite, resulting in a catastrophic explosion of the ship. Meanwhile, the Spanish vessels also suffered damage. The Pelayo developed multiple leaks, the Infanta Maria Teresa caught fire, and only the Reina Regente sustained damage to her rudder, which forced her to move forward. As the situation unfolded, the Spanish ships decided to disengage from the battle and retreat, thus securing their victory. Unfortunately, the fires on the Infanta could not be extinguished, leading to her explosion as well. On the USS Atlanta, however, the crew was able to extinguish all the fires, and she slowly followed the Spanish ships.
The victory was still within the Americans' grasp. All they needed to do was sink the damaged Spanish units. The USS Ericsson turned and began sailing toward the Pelayo. However, it soon came under fire from the main guns of the Reina Regente. The salvo struck the small ship, which could not withstand such a blow and sank. In contrast, the USS Cincinnati manoeuvred poorly and collided with an island. The impact caused numerous leaks, and as the ship attempted to withdraw, the incoming water led to a dangerous list that caused it to roll over and sink. This marked the end of the battle. However, the question remained: could the Pelayo leave the battlefield with six leaks? Fortunately, the ship's mascot proved to be helpful during the assessment, and the Pelayo slowly but surely made its way off the battlefield under its own power.
The game concluded with a decisive victory for the Spanish, with a final score of 60:8. Although we made a few mistakes during the game, they didn't significantly affect the outcome. I decided to expand both flotillas to enhance our options for creating fleets and to enable us to recreate the historical battles of this war.
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| Ships that have sunk in the game. |
3. Links.
SESWC:
FLICKR:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/asienieboje/albums/72177720324773868/
