BRF: January 2016 Solo Scenario - For Honour & Glory

January Scenario: For Honour & Glory.

General: Your ship has been ordered to join the squadron under command of ######. You have dispatches for the squadron commander. You have been at sea for 2 weeks. Almost every day your mast head lookout has informed you that there is a strange sail behind you roughly on the same bearing.

Tomorrow you have decided that if the strange sail is still there you will turn to investigate.

Attachment 18540

Ground: 2 playing mats, or similar sized area, joined at the long edges. The wind is from the top left corner and will not change for the duration of the game.

Situation: The strange sail is a friendly merchantman that is now being attacked by another ship and has hove to and is about to be boarded by the enemy.

Decide on the size of the enemy ship: Smaller, Same Size, larger.

The wind has suddenly changed and is now blowing towards you. You have managed to close the range before the wind change. (See diagram for starting positions).

RULES:
1. It takes 4 maneuver cards to heave to, board the merchant, hoist sail and move at top sails on the 5th card. (Both ships).
2. The enemy ship will be minus 3 crew boxes as a prize crew.
3. The enemy ship will not be able to fire any muskets and will fight at 1 less if a boarding action takes place.
4. The enemy and captured merchant must leave the table at point B.
5. Due to a reduced crew the merchant ship can only move at battle sails or top sails.
6. If fired upon by your ship the captured merchant ship will heave to and surrender.
7. If the merchant ship surrenders you must send a prize crew across to recapture. (reduce your crew boxes by 1)
8. You must hove to and launch boats this takes 2 maneuver cards.
9. If you do not launch boats and your ship moves more than 1 ruler away from the merchant ship the enemy prize crew will hoist sail and continue to escape.

Mission:
1. Save the merchantman from being captured/taken/sunk.
2. Sink/Capture/Drive off the enemy ship.

Victory Points:
+1. Recapture The Merchantman and it leaves the table at point A. (Gain a bonus Prize Money of 3)
+1. The enemy ship leaves the table without the Merchant ship. (Off any table edge not necessarily at point B).
+1. Sink or Capture enemy ship if Smaller than your ship.
+2. Sink or Capture enemy ship if Same size as your ship.
+3. Sink or Capture enemy ship if larger than your ship.

SUMMARY
Maneuver Card 1 Enemy ship heaves to.
Maneuver Card 2 Enemy ship launches boats. Enemy Ship increases sail to top sail. Enemy ship moves as per dice roll.

Manuever card 3 Enemy boats move to prize. Enemy ship increases to battle sails. Enemy ship moves as per dice roll.

Maneuver card 4 Prize crew board merchant and take command. Enemy ship may increase to full sail. Enemy ship moves as per dice roll.

Maneuver card 5 Prize crew hoist top sails and moves using Point B as the enemy. Enemy ship moves as per dice roll.

Point B is the 'enemy' ship for the merchantman and the enemy ship if moving towards B. Point B can be 1/2 or a ruler length either side of the corner. I leave the determination to you.

If the merchant leaves the table outside these parameters (1/2 or full ruler length of corner) and you either drive off (ie leaves the table) capture or sink the enemy ship then consider the merchantman recaptured as you can out sail her.

Enemy Ship Actions: Roll 1d6

Odd = Move towards point B.
even = Move towards your ship.

Once your ship fires at the enemy ship or is within 1 ruler the enemy ship will move to attack if not already doing so.

Note: Enemy Ship = Warship not Merchantman.

Neat idea, Neil.

The merchant is about to be boarded. On what turn does that take place, and when do the two ships turn toward "B"?

Nice scenario with a load of potential, including boarding actions and a chase!

How is the movement of the AI ships determined when they're heading to point B?

Well worth a bit of thought.
It is a great start to the year Neil.
Rob.

Added a little clarification to post 1 in a summary at end.

Please any more questions fire away.

Neil

Hi Neil
Being new to both SoG and solo naval war-gaming it would appear to me that the scenario can be played out using the scenario rules as listed above. Is there any need to refer to a separate set of Solo House Rules? If so where do I find them?
Am I at sea with my full fleet as listed when I signed up or only a portion? i.e One ship!
Reg

Reg you have 6 ships to call on for scenarios. In this scenario you need to have 1 friendly, 1 enemy and 1 merchant (you can use any ship for this as it has no combat factor).

You may use the basic/standard/advanced rules from the rule book as you see fit.

Check the Rules sticky and scroll through the posts. I have put links to solo AI movement sheets and others that you may or may not wish to use.

As in any game my rules in the scenario are for guidelines and to answer any questions that may arise.

In other scenarios you may field more ships on your side or balance out the sides with what ship models you have to maintain a balance. You may find other players add ships to a scenario, but again trying to maintain a balance, that is up to them it just means more ships are likely to accrue damage and therefore take longer to repair or may have to fight with some damage not repaired.

Great to see you yesterday Neil, and thanks for the clarification here. just sorry we did not get time for a game.
Rob.

Rob guess what I forgot to bring? Found it in the fridge this morning!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Union Jack

Rob guess what I forgot to bring? Found it in the fridge this morning!

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Pease pudding and Stotties?
Rob.

Pease pudding yes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Union Jack

Pease pudding yes.

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Pease pudding hot
Pease pudding cold
Pease pudding in the pot
Nine days old.

Sorry guys, just could't resist it!
Reg

Pease pudding?

Some of us live on the other side of the pond.

When you come over Eric you can sample pease pudding.

Neil

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 7eat51

Pease pudding?

Some of us live on the other side of the pond.

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You can eat it with Ham, fantastic with ice cream or custard too. But better with a piece of stottie cake.

Stottie cake?

We're looking forward to trying authentic British cuisine, so lead on, Man.

Pease Pudding & Stottie cake are definitely not an after meal conventional pudding. I will leave the rest for your visit and to try some other quaintly Geordie fayre and some traditional English thrown in too.

Geordie fayre? I see we're going to need a culinary dictionary. :wink:

Is there a speciality that you cook, Neil?

Pease pudding and stottie cake. Then on to black and white pudding.

The same black pudding that is called blood pudding in Sweden?

That's nice eating.

and very rich in taste too. White pudding is the same, less the blood, and more herbs.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TexaS

The same black pudding that is called blood pudding in Sweden?

That's nice eating.

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If blood pudding is anything like blood sausage, we're in. We love the stuff.

Love to see you eat a full black pudding sausage Eric.

Ah! The old nursery rhyme.
The Butcher, the Baker, the Blood Pudding Maker.
Rob.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Union Jack

Love to see you eat a full black pudding sausage Eric.

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And may I ask why, good Sir?

Attachment 18698

Black Pudding comes in sticks (sausage shaped)

Attachment 18699

From 2" to 4" diameter, I let you draw your own conclusions Eric.

Hmmm. :hmmm:

I just played the scenario and it was quite an interesting experience: Not a single gun was fired, not one man wounded!

AAR will be ready for uploading the next days.

:question: Very intriguing Richard?
Rob.

Now I must read this one. Hope it played all right Richard?

Yes, the play was fun!
Although the ship commanded by my Captain was the slowest of all three and the dice roll set the mode of the enemy frigate to "coward"... :shock:
I'm curious how playing as the privateer in the February LoM-scenario will be!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bligh

Ah! The old nursery rhyme.
The Butcher, the Baker, the Blood Pudding Maker.
Rob.

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Just seen this.
The version I know is;-
The Butcher , The Baker, The Candle Stick maker. But then we weren't into exotic stuff like Black Pudding, never even heard of it till much, much later in life. In fact I used to think that Saveloy and Pease Pudding was normal; we had shops that sold nothing else, well maybe faggots but I only tried them once and never again, the Faggots that is.
OK that's South London for you in the late 40's, early 50's.

I believe tat your version is a much later sanitized version intended for children of the 20th Century.
Remember that a lot of our so called Nursery Rhymes were not intended for children at the time of origin, but were satirical and often even regarded as traitorous criticisms of the Government's policy, or of people in high places. They were,therefore, more bloodthirsty than you would at first think. Goosey goosey gander for instance is really all about the fall from grace and execution of bishop Laud in the Reign of Charles 1st.
and Mary. Mary quite contrary, a similar censure on the religious activities of Queen Mary Tudor.
I am not suggesting definitely this is the reason for the change in our case because of anything none PC. It may just be because the term had become archaic, but it may be the case.

Here are two alternative explanations for Goose, goosey for instance, showing that the oral tradition also puts its own slant on the poems to fit the circumstances of the day.

Zealous Protestants & Secret Priest Holes Goosey, Goosey Gander is a Rhyme with Historical undertones - an attention grabber for a nursery rhyme which uses alliteration in the lyrics designed to intrigue any child. The 'lady's chamber' was a room that once upon a time a high born lady would have her own chamber, (also referred to as a solar). The origins of the nursery rhyme are believed to date back to the 16th century and refer to necessity for Catholic priests to hide in 'Priest Holes' (very small secret rooms once found in many great houses in England) to avoid persecution from zealous Protestants who were totally against the old Catholic religion. If caught both the priest and members of any family found harbouring them were executed. The moral in Goosey Goosey Gander's lyrics imply that something unpleasant would surely happen to anyone failing to say their prayers correctly - meaning the Protestant Prayers, said in English as opposed to Catholic prayers which were said in Latin! Our grateful thanks go to Stan Evans for the following additional information: "I read that it referred to the post Civil War period (middle 17th century) and Cromwell's soldiers who marched in "goose-step", which gives the title and first line. Also, the version of the rhyme I heard had the third line as, "There I met an old man a-saying of his prayers". This referred to (as you mention) a Catholic, possibly a Priest, praying and the line: "I took him by the left leg and threw him down the stairs" alluded to the nickname "left-footer", that a Catholic is sometimes called in Britain. The overall meaning was that the Roundhead soldiers were searching out Catholics, particularly Priests, hiding in the houses of friends, and when found they were ill-treated".

Rob.