Prologue

Miami Harbor, Federated State of Florida

Jenkins Approached Commander Wales. “Sir, systems nominal, the Portsmouth is running as smooth as the day she completed sea trials.”

Danny nodded. “MacCannon took good care of her, and it seems the shipyard did as well.  I especially like the red paint they added to the turrets, because they didn’t look dangerous enough.  I’m glad he put his trust in me.”

He heard the thunderclap and looked down at his chronograph.  “Ahh, must be time for Miami’s 1100 thunderstorm.”

It was then the Tesla shot struck the rail, causing his hair to stand up.  Sadly, Ensign Jenkins was grasping the rail and this would be his first and only report to his CO.

Prussian Airship SZ8, High Above the Florida Coast

Oberst Ewald Bruning, commanding officer of His Imperial Prussian Majesty’s Luft-Fortress SZ8, removed his brass-framed protective googles as the hum and the brilliant flash from firing the airship’s massive forward Tesla weapon faded. Bringing his scope up to his eye, he was gratified to see that his gunners had succeeded in scoring a hit on the largest of the American warships in the harbor. “A hit!” he proclaimed, as the watch standers in the control gondola let out a short cheer before turning their full attention back to their duties.

Swinging his scope around, Bruning surveyed the scene around and below the SZ8. To port, the lean, lithe shapes of the Speerwurfs that comprised Luft-Escort Squadron 5 were preparing to launch their own attacks. To starboard lay the bulk of the Prussian surface forces committed to this operation, centered around Vizeadmiral Hans Von Koester’s imposing flagship, the heavy battleship SMS Brandenburg.

Koester had always been a very aggressive commander, almost to the point of recklessness. However, he also had a cunning streak and a gift for operational misdirection, which had resulted in the Prussian task force arriving off Florida in apparent total surprise. However, as yet Koester’s surface forces, including the Brandenburg, had not yet joined the fray, though that would soon change as the gap between the coast and the Prussian task force rapidly dwindled. No doubt, the wily Vizeadmiral was prowling the bridge of his flagship like a caged tiger, eager to enter the fray; Brunning had to suppress a smile at that mental image.

Introduction

Matt: Firstly, I want to apologize for the delay.  June has been a packed month for me.  My wife and I have been house hunting and I have been working to complete a certification.  Anyhow, onto game 4!

To be honest, I was not looking forward to this one.  There is a significant points disparity between the armies, and it seemed to me the listening post was 4 free campaign points on top of the other scoring opportunities the Prussians had.  I know Andy had the same feelings about mission 3, so the least I could do is stick it out and do my best to take some of the PE with me.

Andy: Like Matt, I apologize for how long this has taken to get out. After the frustrations of the last couple of scenarios, I wasn’t sure how this one would go exactly. It did seem that, looking at the conditions for victory, that the Prussian fleet had an opportunity to make up a lot of lost ground in this game. With that in mind, I tried to build a list that would provide me with the mobility and firepower I needed to get in close and maximize the amount of campaign points I could earn.

FSA (Matt)

• Group 1:
  • 3x John Henry Robots
• Group 2:
  • 3x Lexington Cruisers (kinetic)
  • 4x Frigates
• Group 3:
  • 1× Independence Battleship
  • 2x Princeton Gunships

PE (Andy)

• Kampfflotte Brandenburg
  • Elbe Fleet Carrier
  • Kaiser Karl Heavy Battleship
• Schnellgescwader Danube
  • Konigsberg Battlecruiser
  • Verstarkug Squadron (1 Gunship, 2 Cruisers)
  • 4x Frigates
• Aerial Support
  • Sky Fortress
  • 4x Speerwurf

Deployment

Andy: Thanks to scenario conditions, my Prussians started with the advantages of the FSA having to deploy first and having initiative on Turn 1. The bulk of my fleet had to drive on to the field, however, though the same was true for the most powerful portions of Matt’s force as well, so I wasn’t too concerned.

Turn 1

Initiative: Andy

Andy: As my forces came on the table, they were largely out of range of the Americans. The fast wing of my fleet, consisting of the Verstarkung squadron, the battlecruiser, and the frigates, were able to destroy the FSA communications tower located on the outskirts of the harbor. This action put the Prussians on the board, since the scenario granted me double campaign points for taking out the comms tower. They also traded some fire with the FSA cruiser squadron, with both sides taking some damage.

Matt: John Henry’s hung out in the clouds waiting for their floating friends to show up.  Andy knocks out the Comms Tower because there is literally nothing else to fire his guns at.

Turn 2

Initiative: Matt

Andy: The battle was fully joined in Turn 2! My main body, including all three of my large models (the carrier, sky fortress, and heavy battleship) all focused their attention on the middle of the board. They succeeded in knocking out all three of the FSA cruisers, all four frigates, and two of the John Henrys. On my right flank, however, the American reinforcements arrived and quickly put down my Battlecruiser.

Matt: Initiative when you are outnumbered is a pretty handy thing.  The dice helped me out this turn (probably knew I needed it).  Apparently Jenkins (May he always be remembered) not only completed the systems check, he had also loaded the broadsides with tracer rounds enabling the Portsmouth to double crit the Prussian battlecruiser.  The Princetons finished it off.  Additionally, I was able to sink a Gunship.  Not a bad start if it weren’t for the damage my fleet suffered!

Turn 3

Initiative: Andy

Andy: Miami now lay exposed before my main body, it having swept aside the opposition that was in front of them. The results of the initial attacks were disappointing; apparently, the Prussian gunners were so excited at the prospect of humbling the Americans, their aim suffered! Consequently, I pushed my forces up to get in closer and continue the bombardment of the Florida coast. The American reinforcements were steaming south at speed in an attempt to intercept, and my lighter units suffered as they came under attack.

Matt: Despite Andy’s best efforts, Miami was holding strong taking no damage from about half of his fleet due to a lack of targets.  I managed to knock out a Spearwulf, the Frigates and a Cruiser.

Turn 4

Initiative: Matt

Andy: This was the turn where my heavy units began to take a severe toll on Miami, scoring several direct hits on the city center. I also managed to finish off the last operational American fortifications in the area, and my airpower managed to score a few hits on the remaining FSN surface units in the area.

Matt: At this point it was all about netting what points I could.  My fleet was down to the Portsmouth and 2 limping gunships.  I managed to knock out another Small flyer and that’s about it.  Miami was lit up like a Christmas tree and not in a good way.

Turn 5

Initiative:  Andy

Andy: This turn was all about causing as much damage as possible to American infrastructure in Miami, while fending off the FSN presence. I was able to down one of the FSN gunships in the process.

Matt: A big pile of nothing.  Guns and AA couldn’t land a shot and all I had left is the Portsmouth and 1 of the 2 Gunships.  We called the game at this point.  It was supposed to be random turn length, but we decided that the ability to continue racking up campaign points after turn 5 given fleet disparity was a bit silly.

Result

With a final total of 54 CP for Andy and 16 CP for Matt, this was a Crushing Triumph for the Prussians! While the brave American defenders were able to take a significant toll on the attacking Prussians, Von Koester nonetheless accomplished his primary mission of attacking American soil, resulting in the absolute devastation of Miami.

Post-Battle Thoughts

Andy: This battle obviously went very well for me, but it was my scenario to lose. It almost felt custom-designed to give the Prussians a chance to score a massive amount of CP off the Americans; essentially, the fortifications and the town were “CP Pinatas” that I could repeatedly whack with my Tesla beating stick. As a result of this one game, I was actually able to take a small lead in the campaign overall, after having been behind by a significant margin.

Matt: This scenario ended up netting Andy 54 Campaign points, putting him 4 in ahead of me.  What a painful scenario!  I have a feeling there will be a bit of constructive criticism from Andy and I at the end of the campaign.

Conclusion

The Prussian attack on Miami was a masterpiece of operational planning and brilliant tactical execution. The Prussian forces under Von Koester succeeded in outmaneuvering the Federated States forces in the theater, and struck a grievous blow to American civil and military infrastructure along the Florida coast. However, the attack also had the unintended effect of galvanizing the American war effort; in the weeks and months to come, both Prussian and Blazing Sun forces often heard cries of “Remember Miami!” immediately before facing ferocious attacks from American units.

Epilogue

Prussian Airship SZ8, Off The Florida Coast

Bruning could tell that his officers and men were tired; between the Bahamas operation and the attack on Miami, the crew of the SZ8 had been in continuous operations for nearly four days. Despite their fatigue, though, he was greeted with sharp salutes and crisp greetings of “Herr Oberst!” as he toured his vessel. Clearly, their pride and satisfaction with their martial accomplishments was doing much to offset the draining nature of the last few days.

As he made his way through the corridors, weapons galleries, and engine decks of the titanic craft, Bruning reflected on the day’s events. The operation was a complete success, in that the Prussian forces succeeded beyond even Von Keoster’s demanding expectations in achieving their objectives. And yet, Bruning could not help shake the feeling that the attack on Miami, the first such attack the Prussian Empire had ever made on the American homeland, had done nothing but “stir the hornet’s nest,” as the Americans liked to say. “You are just tired, Ewald,” he told himself, as he arrived at his cabin at last. “You always get apprehensive and a bit pessimistic when you are fatigued.” Despite his state of exhaustion, sleep did not come easily to Ewald Bruning that night…

FSS Portsmouth, Jacksonville Shipyard

The mood on the ship was sullen, a mix of anger and disappointment at their inability to protect Miami and their countrymen.  Wales had spent the last two days locked away in his quarters brooding over the events of the past week.

“Another tasking, another failure.  How did the Prussians get so close to Miami without being seen?  I have no idea how they came upon this technology, but it does not bode well for the Grand Coalition.  I’ve done my damnedest, but I do not know how much more I can do in an official capacity.  It may be time to see a man about a shadowy canine.”

He opened the false compartment of his ’65 Remington Repeater and began writing a ciphered communication to the contact Matthias provided him in the event that “All hell breaks loose.”  If this wasn’t it, he  didn’t know what was…

Gallery