GQ3 - ISLAND CRUISER PATROL

With two opposing fleets assembling among the Pacific islands in World War 2, both sides were probing for weaknesses. Neither fleet was yet ready to take on the other, but they were keen to gain moral advantage before the oncoming battle.

Two cruiser forces were on intersecting courses. A British cruiser force was heading east, patrolling a line past which the Fleet Commander did not want the Japanese to go. A Japanese cruiser force was heading roughly south, mapping out possible lines of advance and probing the Allied picket lines.



Imperial Japanese Navy (in squadron order)

• IJN Nachi – Myoko class heavy cruiser – with 5 x twin-barrelled 8” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 5” turrets and 4 sets of quad torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 33 knots.
• IJN Tone - Tone class heavy cruiser – with 4 x twin-barrelled 8” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 5” turrets and 4 sets of triple torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 35 knots.
• IJN Naka – Sendai class light cruiser – with 6 x single-barrelled 5.5” turrets, 2 x twin-barrelled 3” turrets and 4 sets of twin torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 33 knots.
• IJN Sendai – Tenryu class light cruiser – with 3 x single-barrelled and 1 x twin barrelled 5.5” turrets, 1 x centreline single-barrelled 3” turret and 2 sets of triple torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 32 knots.

Royal Navy (in squadron order)

• HMS Suffolk – Kent class heavy cruiser – with 4 x twin-barrelled 8” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 4” turrets and 2 sets of quad torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 32 knots. HMS Achilles – Leander class light cruiser – with 4 x twin-barrelled 6” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 4” turrets and 2 sets of quad torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 32 knots.
• HMS Cornwall – Kent class heavy cruiser – with 4 x twin-barrelled 8” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 4” turrets and 2 sets of quad torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 32 knots.
• HMS Ajax – Leander class heavy cruiser – with 4 x twin-barrelled 6” turrets, 4 x twin-barrelled 4” turrets and 2 sets of quad torpedo tubes. Maximum speed 32 knots.

Turn 5 - Hostilities Commence

It was as the wind eased that the two patrols spotted each other between the islands. The wind eased to half its former speed to the relief of the crews as the ships accelerated to battle speed. The gun directors would also not be affected in their accuracy if the wind stayed at this speed.

In General Quarters III weather changes are tested for at the start of turn 5 and every 5th turn after that.


Turn 6

The heavy cruiser IJN Nachi was the leading Japanese ships. The IJN squadron was pointing directly at HMS Suffolk as she appeared from behind an island, so only the forward two turrets of the Nachi could fire on the British. And only the HMS Suffolk had the Japanese in view at this stage.

The British scored the opening point of the match by knocking out a starboard secondary turret on the Nachi. The Japanese were closing in, with shell splashes not far from the Suffolk.

Both squadrons found the range quickly. With the next salvo, the British knocked out ‘A’ turret on the Nachi. Another shell found the fuel store for the spotter planes. The resultant fireball did some minor damage to the hull and started a small blaze.

Men quickly rushed to action to pour seawater onto the flames. The Japanese fire-fighting crew was effective, bringing the blaze quickly under control.

IJN Nachi’s reply was equally effective, knocking out ‘X’ turret on the Suffolk.

Turn 6: The lead ships spot each other and open fire

Turn 7

The Japanese circled slowly to port. This allowed them to bring more guns to bear on the British, but without turning sharply enough to upset the gun directors. Confident after the first round of firing, HMS Suffolk slowed slightly so that it could fire a few more salvoes before disappearing behind the next island.

HMS Achilles was now out from behind the island and able to join the action. This it did quickly by landing a bulkhead hit on IJN Nachi with its opening salvo. The Japanese appeared to be set for a pounding.

The British split into two groups, each led by a heavy cruiser with a light cruiser following. HMS Cornwall led the 2nd group in a port turn around the nearby island. Although only able to bring its front turrets to bear on the Japanese at this stage, it turned so as to not interfere with the broadsides of the Suffolk and Achilles.

This allowed the Cornwall to come into action a turn earlier than if it had just followed the Achilles. The British commander was confident that the damage already caused to the Nachi and the early introduction of the extra guns may allow him to quickly overwhelm the Japanese force.

Turn 7: Maneouvring so that more ships can trade fire

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

By turning to port, the Nachi was now able to bring more guns to bear, despite a turret being out of action. It switched firing onto the Cornwall as this presented a bigger risk if it continued towards the Japanese light cruisers.

The first two shells to land made a mess of the deck, damaging both sets of torpedo tubes, but to the relief of its captain did not damage the main armament.

This relief was short lived, however, when the last shell penetrated the forward magazine. The resulting explosion fatally wounded the British heavy cruiser – knocking it out of the battle and the war with just one salvo.

Sailors swam for the nearby island as it slowly settled below the water. Distracted by the explosion, none of the other ships landed any shells.


Turns 8-9

The repair crew on the Nachi were having trouble stemming the flow of water from the damaged bulkhead, causing it to slow further. HMS Suffolk now had no target as it steamed behind the island off its port beam. With the Ajax avoiding the sinking Cornwall and ships having to swap targets because of them appearing and disappearing between islands, no-one hit with any of their next few salvoes. (In GQ3 we use the optional rule that when you fired at a different target, or no target, last turn, you only use half the number of dice. This simulates time taken up with ranging shots before firing full salvoes at a target.)


Turn 10

The weather was closing in again, with the wind freshening and visibility down to 14,000 yards. The opponents were within this range, so it was not currently a problem for firing. The sailors felt happier as it would make it easier to elude the enemy if that became necessary.

Turn 10: IJN Tone is about to follow IJN Nachi out from behind the island

By the time the crew of the Nachi had finished patching the bulkhead the Japanese ship had taken on a lot of water and was down to half speed.

All the cruisers were now capable of firing at each other. The Achilles joined in by hitting the engine room of the Naka, slowing it to half speed. A shell also penetrated one of the Naka’s magazines, knocking out the main port turret in the process. But quick work by the crew flooded the magazine in time to contain the explosion.

The Nachi only managed to knock out the port torpedo tubes of HMS Suffolk, but the British ship took the hint and swapped its aim to this new threat.

Turn 10: The ill-fated Cornwall is left behind

Turn 11

The repair crew on the Naka got the ship back up to near full speed just as the Achilles exploded the oxygen supply for the starboard torpedo tubes – starting a fierce oxygen-fuelled fire.

The Ajax followed suit, knocking out a set of torpedo tubes on the Tenryu. However, this Japanese light cruiser did not have the long lance torpedoes so he crew did not have a fire to contend with.

With the two Japanese light cruisers entering the narrow strait between two islands, the British light cruisers took the opportunity to both launch torpedoes. Although at medium range for the torpedoes, the Japanese would have restricted manoeuvring room.

The Japanese ships were not living up to their early promise and all missed their targets. But the Suffolk did not make that mistake. Angered by the loss of their sister ship, they quickly homed in on the Nachi; destroying ‘B’ turret, damaging the hull and slamming two shells into the engine room.

The Nachi was now dead in the water unless their crews could make some temporary repairs. Worse was that all power was lost to the main guns, making her a sitting duck.

But the British could not take immediate advantage of this good shooting. They needed to concentrate on the other three Japanese ships because they were currently a bigger threat.

Turn 11: IJN Tone moves to shield the burning Nachi as the Japanese light cruisers head through the strait

Turn 12

Damaged shafts and ruined main bearings greeted the work crew on the port side of the Nachi’s engine room. This side was beyond temporary repair. Another crew were still working on the other side of the engine room to see whether they could get the ship partly underway. With the port side wrecked, the best they could hope for was half speed if they could repair the starboard side.

On the Naka, the fire fighting team was struggling to control the flames fanned by the strengthening wind. The heat was beginning to buckle some of the structural members of the Japanese cruiser.

In the narrow confines of the strait, the two spreads of torpedoes both headed towards the Tenryu. But the captain was experienced at this game and calmly manoeuvred his ship to narrowly avoid both spreads.

The British commander was disappointed, but at least the distraction would make it more difficult for the Japanese gunnery crews on the Tenryu. The British light cruisers were enjoying their gunnery, unlike the other ships.

The Ajax battered the incoming Tenryu by destroying a set of torpedo tubes, knocking out ‘Y’ turret and damaging the hull. Not to be outdone, the Achilles pasted the Naka; knocking ‘A’ turret out of action as well as causing two hull hits and buckling a bulkhead. The Captain slowed the Naka rapidly to reduce the intake of water through the holes in the hull.

Turn 12: The British torpedoes launched the previous turn all narrowly missed the IJN Tenryu

The British Affinity for Engine rooms - Turn 13

Further disappointment greeted the Japanese Captain of the Nachi as the starboard repair crew also discovered critical damage to the engines. The Nachi was not repairable in situ and would need a tow to safety. They only had their secondary armament operable, but it was causing little damage at this stage of the battle.

The crew were silently cheering on the Tone at the same time as cursing the poor shooting from that ship. It was their only hope. They needed to Tone to scare off the British and then tow the Nachi to safety.

To their delight the Tone finally began landing some shells, knocking out a port secondary turret and causing a hull hit. The damage they were taking was distracting the Japanese gunnery teams on the light cruisers. Again they failed to land any penetrating shots.

Unfortunately for them the Ajax and Achilles continued to land shells on their hapless opponents. The Ajax knocked out ‘A’ turret as well as slowing the Tenryu by landing a shell in the engine room. In this battle the British seemed to be specialising in taking out the propulsion systems of their opponents.

Once again the Achilles did even better, with two more shells into the hull of the Naka and another into the engine room. This was more than enough to doom the Naka. With all the holes in its hull, it rapidly went to the bottom.


Turn 14

Close range shooting was now the order of the day for the heavy cruisers still underway. Both landed four shells. The Tone suffered the loss of ‘A’ turret, a damaged bulkhead and two hull hits.

The Suffolk also lost ‘A’ turret plus a set of torpedo tubes. It also had an aircraft fuel fire. But worst of all was a starboard rudder jam, which began turning the British ship into the nearby island. If they did not fix this quickly the remaining British heavy cruiser would soon be aground.

The Achilles now switched to target the Tone, knocking out a secondary turret. HMS Ajax continued on the Tenryu, knocking out ‘X’ turret, causing a hull hit and (you guessed it) an engine room hit. The Tenryu was now stationary in the water and so badly damaged that another hit may finish her off.


Beached As Bro' - Turn 15

To the cheers of the Japanese, the Suffolk turned into the island and came to a shuddering halt. The red faces of the British crew was probably from embarrassment, although they claimed it was from the glow of the fire that was still burning while they had been concentrating on trying to repair the rudder.

The Japanese repair crews were very effective, with the Tenryu repairing part of the engine room and the Tone patching the leaky bulkhead. Undaunted by their rough introduction to island life, the gun crews of HMS Suffolk staved off their brave Japanese opponents by damaging the only gun director on the Tone, smashing their starboard torpedo tubes and starting a fire from exploding oxygen.

The only other ship to be hit was the Tenryu. Just as she made some headway, but a bare 6 knots in these heavy seas, several shells slammed into her from HMS Ajax. The loss of another main turret became irrelevant as unable to take further punishment, the Tenryu disappeared beneath the waves.

Turn 15: HMS Suffolk fails their parking test due to a jammed rudder

Wrap-up

IJN Nachi was permanently dead in the water. Two main turrets had been destroyed and the other three were unable to fire because of the permanent engine room damage. It had taken 5 hull hits out of 8.

The two Japanese light cruisers (IJN Naka and IJN Tenryu) had been sunk. Their 5.5” guns were shown to be no match for the 6” guns of the British light cruisers. By the time they had closed to a range where they could penetrate the British ships, they had been virtually destroyed.

The Japanese hopes rested solely with IJN Tone. This heavy cruiser was now only capable of 16 knots, although this was infinitely faster than the British heavy cruiser could do. Although the Tone still had 3 main guns operational, its accuracy was going to be low. With no gun director it would fire at 2 ranges worse. Like the Suffolk, it was currently on fire.

HMS Cornwall was sunk by a magazine explosion from the first salvo fired at it (Turn 7). This put the British on the back foot early on. However, the British firing improved in accuracy while the Japanese unfortunately wasted their early advantage.

The British used the islands to advantage so that at times they had more shots on the Japanese ships than could be fired back at them. Although HMS Suffolk was wearing the island as a bow decoration it still had two turrets of 8” guns and three secondaries with which to defend itself. But first it had a fire to put out.

HMS Achilles and HMS Ajax were undamaged. Aftermath It was at this stage that we ran out of time. It had been a very close and exciting game. It had swung backwards and forwards between the sides.

The state of play after 15 turns

What may have happened if we had not run out of time? Both British light cruisers were capable of 32 knots; twice the speed of the Tone. So there was no way that the Tone could outrun them unless it damaged both without taking further damage itself.

Both British light cruisers also had their starboard torpedoes available (having used their port torpedoes earlier) and were in a position to fire them at either the Tone or the Nachi next turn if desired. The Tone could probably outrun the torpedoes, but it would force her away from the grounded Suffolk.

The two British light cruisers would try and keep the Tone at 6,000 to 9,000 yards range, given that the Tone had no gun director. That way on average they would get 4.7 damage rolls per turn against only 0.8 damage rolls for the Tone.

If the Suffolk got any shots at the Tone, then the Tone would be in an even worse position. However, if the Tone repaired the gun director, then it would do 2.6 damage rolls on average each turn. This would be better, but the British could still do nearly twice as much damage.

If the Tone moved away from the Suffolk, then the Suffolk could just pound away at the Nachi. If the Tone moved closer, then the light cruisers would still try to maintain the ideal range and have the guns of the Suffolk in support. This could raise the British trio to a total of 6.4 damage rolls per turn.

The British were definitely ahead, but repair of the gun director and a round of good shooting for the Japanese might just tip the balance. Both sides were probably frantically calling up air and/or naval support.

At this stage neither side was willing to disengage. If the British light cruisers were able to be driven off without finishing off the Nachi, then the Tone may well destroy the Suffolk and then tow the Nachi away.

If the Tone limped away, then the Nachi would be finished off quickly. The Suffolk would then be towed from the island. If the Tone stayed, chances were that it would be sunk and then the Nachi finished off for a clean sweep by the British.

But the outcome was far from certain, particularly as both heavy cruisers were currently on fire. Leaving it there opens up a number of possibilities for follow-up games continuing from this point, including :-

1. Send in bombers and air cover for both sides, with a variable delay for each side when they come on.
2. Send in reinforcements in the form of other patrols.
3. Send in reinforcements - one side with aircraft and the other with ships.
4. Fight the main battle, feeding in squadrons of ships at a time.

This is the account of a fictitious World War 2 naval battle fought at Nunawading Wargames Association in Melbourne, Australia using General Quarters 3 naval rules. The miniatures are mostly 1:2400 GHQ models.

GQ3 - RESUPPLY AT CAMUGRA ISLAND

World War 2 in the Pacific. Light easterly winds. Visibility 23,000 yards. Hot as Hades.

The British cruiser force steamed north through the islands, hunting for Japanese ships. A coastwatch observer had alerted them to a small Japanese force in the vicinity. The Japanese were aware that the islands were used as a base to refuel and rearm Allied submarines, but the Japanese force did not know exactly where.

RESUPPLY AT CAMUGRA ISLAND

Two submarines were currently undergoing re-supply from a converted freighter, in the shelter of Camugra Island.

A Japanese force cruised south, hunting for any supply ships. They were spotted by one of the submarines and radio contact was made with the British supporting force, warning them of the approaching Japanese ships.

At first the Japanese failed to spot their target, hidden by the shadow of the island. Instead, their rear two ships spotted the lead two ships of the British as they cleared Camugra Island. Both cruiser forces accelerated to battle speed and readied their main guns.

The leading Japanese heavy cruiser, Aoba, was obscured from the British by Camugra Island. Similarly, the British light cruiser HMS Achilles was not yet in the sight of the Furutaka and the Agano.


OPENING SHOTS

The opening shots from both sides missed, but provided useful ranging data. As the ships continued on their nearly parallel, but opposite, courses the British proved quicker at finding their target. With one salvo, HMS Exeter scored two hits on the Furutaka, knocking out 'B' turret and its port secondary turret.

The next salvo was even more accurate, knocking out 'Y' turret, destroying the port torpedo tubes, 2 shells damaging the hull and one shell jamming the rudder. None of the other ships had yet recorded a hit but the Furutaka was nearly impotent, having only 1 main turret left.

The damage control party on the Furutaka had some success though, and quickly repaired the rudder. This was lucky. If the rudder had remained jammed, the Furutaka would have soon run aground on Camugra Island.

TORPEDO AWAY

The Japanese finally had some success, with the Agano hitting the York, causing a hull hit. But the Japanese commander's hope that this would signal a turnaround in the battle was short lived.

The Exeter continued to pound the damaged Furutaka, knocking out 'A' turret, their fire control and causing two bulkhead hits. Water was now pouring into the hull of the Furutaka. Men frantically worked to quell the flow of water.

The HMS York added to the Japanese woes as it knocked out 'A' turret on the Agano. The lead Japanese ship, Aoba, was steaming rapidly around the island.

The Allied subs and freighter were frantically trying to get underway. So far they had not been a target as the Japanese cruisers had been too busy firing back at the British cruisers.

The two submarines finally were closed up and able to slip underwater; to their great relief. Despite the efforts of their crew, the flooding on the Furutaka continued. It slowed as it settled lower in the water, only able to make 5 knots.

The freighter finally had its boilers up to pressure and began moving. This was unfortunate as it actually moved the freighter into the path of several shells, dropping its speed as two shells hit the hull, including one that buckled a bulkhead – causing the water to start rushing in below decks. It was lucky not to have a shell ignite the store of fuel.

The Exeter continued with their accurate fire by again hit the Furutaka; knocking out its last torpedo tubes. With all the manoeuvring going on, none of the other ships hit.

Currently being outnumbered three to one, the light cruiser Agano turned north and fired a torpedo in the hope of hitting, or at least distracting, the British ships.

The repair parties on the Furutaka successfully stopped the water flooding in the starboard side. But it was to no avail, as enough water had come in through the port side to finally sink the cruiser. The repair team on the freighter started their repair, but were having trouble staunching the inrush of water.

The Exeter and Achilles had by now spotted the heavy cruiser Aoba appearing from behind Camugra Island. They performed a sharp turn to head towards it in an attempt to protect the freighter. With a new target, both these British ships had to fire ranging shots and so did no damage.

The Aoba chose to fire on the nearest British ship, which was now the Achilles. It also missed.

The British commander tasked the York with continuing to hunt the fleeing Agano, but they recorded no hits.

TRADING HITS

The temporary patch was successful in stopping the leak on the freighter, but it could only limp along at about 6 knots.

The Agano and the York were now down to a reasonably close range and both ships traded hits. The York lost one starboard secondary turret and took two shells in the hull – one of which damaged a bulkhead. In return the Agano lost 'B' turret, took several hull hits, lost its starboard secondary turret and badly damaged the fire control systems. They also had a shell cause some damage in the engine room, dropping the ship to half speed.

The Exeter continued its turn towards the south, but unfortunately steamed right into the path of the torpedo previously fired by the Agano. They spotted the torpedo at the last minute and performed some violent evasive manoeuvres. They were successful in avoiding the first three, but just got hit by the fourth. The torpedo caused two hull hits and the subsequent buckling of the deck put 'A' turret out of action.

The Aoba achieved 3 hits on the Achilles - causing a hull hit, knocking out 'X' turret and also destroying its starboard torpedo tubes. But the return fire from both British ships made a mess of the Japanese heavy cruiser. 'B' turret and 'Y' turret were put out of action, leaving only one main turret. The engine room was damaged, dropping its speed. But worst of all, the port torpedo tubes were smashed and the oxygen which fuelled the 'long lance' torpedos started a fire.

THE BATTLE REACHES ITS PEAK

Neither damage control party was having much success. The water continued to leak in on the York and the oxygen fuelled fire raged on the Aoba; doing further damage to both ships. The ships continued to close, but no salvoes were successful.

With most of the oxygen consumed, the fire was finally able to be extinguished on the slowing Aoba by concentrating the repair parties on it.

Unfortunately this meant that the engine room repairs could not be completed. The British were also successful in plugging the leak on the York.

With the Aoba going so slowly, the Exeter and Achilles steamed rapidly to 'cross the T'. The Exeter only landed one 8-inch shell, although this devastated the bridge of the Aoba. But the fire from the Achilles landed a whole salvo, knocking out the last main turret. It also causing more hits on the hull and another engine room hit which made the Aoba dead in the water – a sitting duck with only secondary armament left.

IJN AOBA IN TROUBLE

The damage to the Aoba's engine rooms was so severe that they were not able to repair it quickly. As the Exeter was about to 'cross the T' it launched a torpedo at the sitting duck. With only a short distance to travel, the British torpedo closed rapidly on the stricken Aoba. It hit an already weakened part of the hull, causing severe damage. It was more than enough to sink the stationary Japanese cruiser.

To the north, the York missed the fleeing Japanese light cruiser. The latter obtained a minor consolation prize by knocking out a port secondary turret on the York. This was enough to make the British commander call off the chase and the battle now came to a close.

He had sunk two Japanese heavy cruisers and rescued the freighter. However, all his cruisers and the freighter were damaged. Only the York still had all main turrets in operation.

The final moments of the Aoba as the torpedo from the Exeter hits home

WRAP-UP

The British gunnery was excellent throughout the battle. Being on target early on and knocking out several main turrets made it then very difficult for the Japanese to play catch-up.

The lucky long range hit with the Japanese 'long lance' torpedo could have brought the Japanese back in the game if it had caused more damage and sunk the Exeter. The heavy cruiser Aoba would then have only had the light cruiser Achilles firing at it whilst the Aoba still had all three main turrets in action. This would have given a chance for the heavy cruiser Aoba to sink the light cruiser Achilles before the York could come to its aid (although the Achilles did knock out one of its turrets in that exchange of fire).

However, that may have just opened up an opportunity for one of the Allied submarines to torpedo the Aoba. As it was, with them firing so accurately in that battle, it was a clear victory to the British.

This battle was fought using General Quarters 3. This was the first battle that we used simultaneous movement with written orders, as per the rules. It took a little longer than just moving them without writing orders. However, it was not much extra time and added an element of excitement each turn from trying to second guess your opponent.

Note that the Japanese ships were substitutes for the ones required for the game, so ignore the labels on them. For example, the Kako was used to represent the Aoba.

GQ3 - AMONGST THE ATOLLS

1944. The Allies are continuing to push back the Japanese forces. But the Japanese Navy is doing all it can to stem the tide. Amongst the atolls of the Pacific Ocean, an small flotilla of Japanese ships is aggressively patrolling in defence of the likely island targets for the next Allied invasion.

A group of British ships are in transit to join an Allied force, which is assembling nearby. As the Japanese round one of the many atolls in the area, the two groups are surprised to see each other. But both are well trained and quickly swing into action.

AMONGST THE ATOLLS

This battle was fought by John and John using the General Quarters 3 (GQ3) rules with the latest amendments and a few minor variations. The game was played on the first meeting of the year on 27th January 2012 at the Mitcham venue of the Nunawading Wargames Association (NWA) in Melbourne, Australia.

The main ship in the Japanese force was the hybrid battleship/carrier Ise. Originally a straight battleship, the rear turrets had been removed and replaced with a flight deck. It was in use as a floatplane carrier. It was still quite potent, since it still carried eight 14-inch guns. The Ise was accompanied by three 8-inch cruisers. All were armed with ten 8-inch guns, arranged as pairs in five turrets.

The Ashigara and the Nachi were Myoko class heavy cruisers. The Mogami was a Mogami class heavy cruiser.

The British force consisted of the battleship King George V which had ten 14-inch guns, unusually arranged in only 3 turrets with four, two and four barrels respectively. Three London class heavy cruisers accompanied the battleship; the London, Devonshire and Sussex.


TURN 1

The British force had the battleship King George V (usually known as the KGV) in the lead as they headed through the atolls. The three London class heavy cruisers followed close behind. The Japanese force appeared in the path of the British ships as the IJN force steamed out from behind one of the many atolls.

The British ships are in the foreground. The Japanese force can just be seen at the top centre of the photo.

The main guns of both sides were well within range. Both sides fired as they saw their opponents, but the surprise told. All the shots missed as the rangefinders and crew sought to accurately locate their enemy.


TURN 2

The Japanese ships were quicker to react. As they increased to battle speed, they were able to manoeuvre so that they brought more guns to bear on the British ships. Unfortunately the Japanese were not able to take advantage of this opportunity as the Ise was masked by its escorting cruisers. None of the shots from the Japanese cruisers hit any of the British ships.

The British cruisers were still finding their range, but the KGV found its target. A salvo straddled the rear of the cruiser Mogami. Amongst the spray of the near misses around the ship, two shells exploded on the rear deck. As the smoke and spray cleared, the commander of the Mogami saw they were minus the use of two rear turrets. First blood to the British.


TURN 3

The Japanese again had the initiative, allowing them to position themselves slightly better than the British. The British turned to starboard, around one of the atolls, to bring all guns to bear.

Although the standard GQ3 rules require the players to write down movement, for friendly games we find it quicker to do the following. We roll for initiative. The player with initiative for the turn can decide whether they move first or their opponent moves first. GQ3 also has simultaneous fire, but we decided to allow the player with initiative to fire first and apply the results before the other player returns fire.

Two shells from the Nachi exploded on the deck of the Sussex, destroying both the port and starboard torpedo tubes. Another shell penetrated the decking, causing damage to a bulkhead. The Captain immediately ordered the damage crews below decks to try and stop the flooding.

The other Japanese ships were firing on new targets, due to one of the atolls changing lines of sight and the Ise no longer being screened by its own heavy cruisers. Some of these shots came close to the British ships, but none did any damage.

We were playing the optional rule where you halve the number of dice rolled if firing on a new target this turn. This simulates that the first few shots will probably be ranging shots, so there will not be as many chances of damage as when a ship is continuing to fire at the same target from the previous turn. This also has the advantage that it stops players swapping targets with a ship every turn just to gain a small advantage.

The Devonshire hit its new target straight away, knocking out the last rear turret on the Mogami. The other British ships all concentrated on the Ise. The KGV missed its new target, but the cruisers damaged the hull and started a fire in the rear hangar of the Ise. To this day the crews of the Devonshire and London both claim they caused these hits. The British overall commander did nothing to help this situation. In his after action report he attributes them to the Devonshire, but later examination of his memoirs passes the honours to the London. Either way, the Japanese main ship was now distracted by the fire starting to burn out of control in her hangar.

The picture shows the Japanese ships in the foreground, with the Mogami heading for cover behind the atoll and the burning Ise bringing up the rear.


TURN 4

The Japanese commander again obtained the initiative. The British damage control party was effective. They sealed the leaking bulkhead on the Sussex with a temporary patch, stopping any further damage. Unfortunately the Japanese on the Ise were not able to control the fire at this stage, with burning aviation fuel intensifying the flames. The heat caused further damage to the hull of the Ise.

The Japanese commander felt he was getting the worst of this gunnery exchange at just under 15,000 yards so as the British continued in line, he ordered hard starboard turns for all his ships. The manoeuvre was executed well, but the hard turns put off the gunnery for both sides. The British had expected the Japanese to continue on their initial track, use the atoll as a screen for a short time and then resume firing on the far side. The fire control "computers" had a hard time tracking their targets and some ships had to swap targets.

The Japanese cruisers again screened the Ise. Although this prevented the British from shooting at her, it also meant that the Japanese hybrid battleship could not unleash its power onto the British.

It looked like the Japanese were trying to get close enough to use their impressive 'Long Lance' torpedoes.

The end result of the salvoes provided further honours to the Nachi. It knocked out 'Y' turret on the Devonshire. So far this had been the most potent of the Japanese ships. The British replied, but they suffered the same difficulties in tracking the sharp turning enemy ships. Only the Sussex was successful, causing some hull damage to the Ashigara.


TURN 5

The weather continued unchanged with a strong breeze and clear tropical skies. The British began a gentle turn to port to maintain broadsides onto all the Japanese ships. Again the Japanese commander had the initiative over his enemy. The hard working men on the Ise finally put out the fire as the Japanese ships headed straight down between the atolls. The Japanese commander was pleased to see the British on a closing parallel course that would shortly allow him to fire his torpedoes. It did not appear as if the British commander had realised his enemy's plan at this stage.

With several of the Japanese ships firing on the same targets as last turn and with the ships steaming straight, the gunnery was more telling. The Japanese started well. The ever reliable gun crews on the Nachi continued to pound the Devonshire, with three hull hits and a port secondary turret put out of action. This slowed the British cruiser. The Ashigara missed the London, but the Ise hit the KGV, knocking out a port secondary and causing damage to the British hull. The Mogami, having steamed out from the cover of the nearby atoll, could only wet the Sussex with nearby splashes as it homed in on its new target.

The Japanese commander was pleased, although would have liked to knock out some main turrets rather than secondaries. This feeling continued when the Sussex failed to hit the Ashigara and the Devonshire missed the Mogami.

However, this pleasure was short lived. The London landed shell after shell on the accurate firing Nachi. The first hit damaged the fire control, probably bringing to an end the Nachi's current run of superb shooting. It also lost one forward and one centre main turret, a port secondary turret. In addition was some hull damage and a leaking bulkhead.

The Japanese commander had little time to think about the Nachi, however, when the KGV landed a devastating series of salvoes onto his flagship. The Ise reeled from a massive nine shell hits. It could have been worse, since four of these hits did only minor damage; such as destroying some of the secondary armament. But one shot took out 'A' turret and four shells penetrated the hull; causing water to pour in through several holes. This left the Ise only just afloat. The ship had slowed to a crawl and only one more hit might finish her off.


TURN 6

The British were on a roll and finally wrested initiative from the Japanese, although losing the initiative so far had not caused the British any problems. The Japanese continued straight down the channel between the atolls whilst the British continued their turn, so that the two forces were nearly on parallel, but opposite, courses.

The damage control parties on the Nachi were working hard to repair the bulkhead leak, but water was still pouring in.

The London and Sussex caused no concern for the Japanese, but the Devonshire more than made up for this. A flurry of accurate salvoes plastered the already damaged Mogami. 'Y' turret was blown off its mounting. Torpedo tubes exploded, with the oxygen burning fiercely. As shell after shell slammed into the Japanese cruiser, water poured in through gaping holes and the Mogami was sunk. Sailors leapt into the water as the ship rolled. The hulk floated for a while, creating a risk for the other Japanese ships.

The KGV landed a shell on the Ise, making a mess of the aft flight deck. The Ise replied, but only managed to knock out a port secondary turret on the British battleship. The Mogami missed the Sussex. The up-to-now inaccurate Ashigara finally joined the action by landing shots on the London. The warm-up was the destruction of a port 4-inch battery and the port torpedo tubes. Then the Ashigara rendered the London near useless by destroying 'A' turret, 'B' turret and 'X' turret. With three out of four main turrets gone, the London increased speed to try and put the cover of an atoll between it and the Japanese ships.


TURN 7

The British continued with the initiative. The Ashigara turned towards the British, trying to get to a better range and be close enough for accurate torpedo shots. Using initiative to good effect, the KGV destroyed two main turrets on the Ise before landing the killer blow. As the battered Ise slipped below the waves, the other British heavy cruisers concentrated on the rapidly nearing Ashigara.

The London and Devonshire did little. The secondaries of the KGV swung into action for the first time and landed a shell accurately, but failed to penetrate the heavy armour.

The Sussex made up for this by knocking out 'X' turret, damaging two important bulkheads below decks and starting two oxygen-fuelled infernos from the destruction of two torpedo mounts. One engine was permanently damaged and the other had temporarily ceased revolutions. The Ashigara was now dead in the water.

The dwindling Japanese flotilla caused a bulkhead hit on the London, but only minor damage to the Sussex when one of two shells failed to explode.

The photo was taken after the completion of movement, but before firing. The British are in the foreground, heading to the right. The London has accelerated to hide behind the front right-hand atoll whilst the other British ships have slowed a little to allow further fire onto the Japanese ships. This maneouvre was successful, with the KGV finally sinking the Ise just before it was screened by the atoll. Being dead in the water, the Ashigara made a perfect target for torpedoes, but this was not possible as the Japanese had previously knocked out the port torpedo tubes on all three British cruisers.


TURN 8

The crew of the Ashigara concentrated on the fires and managed to put one out. But the other oxygen-fuelled fire and the damaged bulkheads caused three more hull hits to the stricken ship, leaving it low in the water. Even if the crews were successful next turn, they could only try to put out the remaining fire or repair one of the bulkheads. Thus, the Ashigara was doomed even if the British fired no more shots, as two more hull hits would finish her.

Unfortunately for the Japanese, neither the Nachi nor the Ashigara were in a position to launch their torpedoes. The Ashigara was not facing the right way and it was also blocking any launches from the Nachi. The British steamed on to make their rendevous with their allies, leaving the Nachi to pick up survivors.


WRAP UP

The British were initially concerned as the Japanese had a slight points advantage over them (38 to 36). The Japanese cruisers also have one more twin 8-inch turret than their British counterparts. But the British do have an advantage over the Japanese when firing between 6,000 and 9,000 yards. They are rolling for 1+..3 while the Japanese are only rolling 1+..2. 12-sided dice are used.

Also, 8-inch guns multiply the number of successful hits by 1.5 to determine the number of damage rolls against heavy cruisers. If this results in a total number of damage rolls ending in .5 then a roll is made to determine whether to round up or down.

1+..2 for the Japanese at this range band means that rolling a 1 causes 1 hit, rolling a 10 causes 1 hit and rolling a 2 causes 2 hits. Thus, at this range band, the Japanese cruisers have a 1 in 4 chance of being successful with each roll. If successful, they will cause an average of 1.33 hits. Multiply this by 1.5 gives an average of 2.00 damage rolls against a cruiser for each successful roll. Combining this gives 0.25 x 2.00 = 0.50 damage rolls on average for each dice rolled.

If all three Japanese heavy cruisers were able to fire broadsides with their 5 main turrets, this gives an average amount of damage on the British cruisers of 7.5 damage rolls (calculate by 3 ships x 5 turrets x 0.25 chance of hitting x 2.00 average damage rolls).

1+..3 for the British at this range band means that rolling a 1 causes 1 hit, rolling a 10 causes 1 hit, rolling a 2 causes 2 hits and rolling a 3 causes 3 hits. Thus, at this range band, the British cruisers have a 1 in 3 chance of being successful with each roll. If successful, they will cause an average of 1.75 hits. Multiply this by 1.5 gives an average of 2.625 damage rolls against a cruiser for each successful roll. Combining this gives 0.33 x 2.625 = 0.875 damage rolls on average for each dice rolled.

If all three British heavy cruisers were able to fire broadsides with their 4 main turrets, this gives an average amount of damage on the Japanese cruisers of 10.5 damage rolls (calculate by 3 ships x 4 turrets x 0.33 chance of hitting x 2.625 average damage rolls).

The British were able to use this to good effect, rolling 3's on a number of occasions when the range had closed to just under 9,000 yards. The Japanese were a little unlucky in that many of their shots took out secondary armaments and torpedo tubes rather than main guns of the British vessels.

However, this occurred at times for the British as well. With naval battles, if you are lucky enough to take out some of your enemy's main guns early, then they have a harder time damaging you back.

The Japanese ships at times got in each other's way, reducing the number of guns they could bring to bear. The 'Long Lance' torpedoes are a double edged sword. They have a much longer range than the torpedoes of other nations. But they are fuelled by oxygen, which causes more dangerous fires when an enemy shell destroys one of their torpedo mounts.

General Quarters 3 (GQ3) again played well for us, resulting in a fast paced and interesting game.