2015 Solo Campaign Mission 10 - Becalmed by ShadowDragon

[ShadowDragon]

Becalmed

My version of the 2015 Campaign scenario, Becalmed, by Union Jack:

https://sailsofglory.org/showthread....on-10-Becalmed

Note: The scenario calls for frigates but I used a couple of 64 SoL since I wanted to use ships in my collection that I hadn’t yet played.

It had been a long and dull trip for Captain Horatio Attenbridge - packet ships to Bermuda Station and then on to Halifax to take temporary command of HMS Africa. Africa had seen service in the American war but was decommissioned afterwards. Now she was re-commissioned under Captain Home with the intention of joining the West Indies fleet, but Home was suffering from a prolonged illness and Horatio had been sent to bring the Africa to the West Indies. The Admiralty needed every ship to match the build up of the French and Spanish fleets…and, of course, to protect the all important West Indies trade.

But damnation, as the Africa made for a gap between two headlands, the wind had died completely. Horatio could see a catspaw on the waters mid-way in the gap. So, in the hopes of that might mean at least a bit of wind, the ship’s boats had been lowered to tow the Africa for the what Horatio hoped wasn’t a mirage of wind.




The Africa wasn’t the only ship becalmed. She had company – a French ship-of-the-line, an Artesian class ship. The Frenchman was on the other side of the gap in the path of the Africa’s intended heading; or, rather, heading if there was any blasted wind. The enemy ship was also being towed by its boats for the very location Horatio had hoped to find even a breath of wind.

Both ships were 64s but the Africa had the edge in weight of shot and burden but the Artesian-class ship would have a slight edge in manoeuvrability which could be a deciding factor in the current situation.




Rather than try to beat the Frenchman to the catspaw, Horatio had his boats turn the Africa so that more of her guns might bear on their opponent. Both ships fired off partial broadsides with their forward batteries. The French had aimed high, damaging some of the Africa’s rigging – pretty useless thought Horatio. The Africa on the other hand had made good use of it’s heavier weight of shot inflicting a great deal of damage on the hull of the lighter Artesian-class ship.




As the Frenchman was winning the race to the catspaw, Horatio was urging his sailors in the ship’s boats on in the hope that the Africa could make full use of it’s firepower superiority. The next broadside was a full one – the Artesian-class ship was taking great damage. The return fire was only a partial broadside – again aimed high. A few of the Africa’s sailors who were aloft were carried away by the enemy’s cannonballs.




Another exchange of fire with similar results.




With the heavy damage suffered by the French ship, Horatio saw a chance that the Africa could make for the catspaw. Both ships exchange fire but with little damage done.




There was a slight movement in the sails of the French ship. She had found some wind. “Blasted”, Horatio muttered.




The Africa was close enough that Horatio could make out that the French ship was the Protée. With the wind, the Protée was in a position to continue on its mission while the Africa remained becalmed. That could be disastrous not only with the Protée completing its mission, there might be a French squadron nearby that could be warned by the Protée and sent to intercept the Africa, but the wind was fickle and veered 180 degrees. The Protée had two choices - to tack across the wind and potentially be at the mercy of the Africa while doing so or to bear off which would mean coming around the Africa. The Protée's capitaine chose the latter course as that would allow him to use the Protée's manoeuvrability.




The two ships were close enough for the marines to exchange musket fire.




If the Protée could break free of the Africa it might yet complete its mission, but more musketry and another round of broadsides saw the Protée holed below the waterline.




With the wind the Protée had some advantage. It could retreat away from the Africa but perhaps the French captaine wanted to regain some honour after the beating the Africa had inflicted on his ship. He manoeuvred the Protée into a position to deliver a stern rake on the Africa as it passed leeward of the Africa.




Horatio saw the danger and had ordered the boats to two the Africa counter-clockwise and away from the catspaw to avoid the stern rake. That manoeuvre combined with the French sailors not sufficiently backing sails saw the Africa in a position to deliver a partial broadside with its stern battery in response to a full, but depleted, broadside from the Protée.




The Protée's failed attempt at a stern rake left the ship turned closer to the Africa. There was naught left but honour as it would take too long for the Protée to bear off and retreat back whence it came.




Realizing that the Protée situation its captaine brought what remained of its full broadside to bear on the becalmed Africa. The Africa could only respond with its forward battery but that was enough. The Protée and its crew had done all that could be asked of them. The captaine ordered its colours struck.





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