Little Great War - Interlude

Aeryth Chromatica - the main theatres of war.

Before continuing with the campaign narrative methought to say something about the Little Great War as a war games project. I began the war itself over a year ago, but found it extremely difficult for so long to figure out a generating circumstance. Surprisingly, once I set about to write one, it came easily, without having to go into chapter and verse detail. But it took a year to come to that. The hostilities between Ruberia and Azuria were of such long standing as hardly to require a casus belli; and the circumstances of the Kavkaz and Medifluvia campaigns suggested 'unfinished business' that might be taken up at any time.

Wishing to get the thing started I began the 'game' part of the campaign with a series of battles that I would later 'fit' into the narrative. The Azuria-Hellenia naval clash in the Serifos-Snifnos Strait was supposed to occur shortly before the war began, for the reasons narrated in my previous posting and in the account of the battle. That turned out to be rather embarrassing. The thing was based very (very!) loosely upon a clash between the French and Greek navies in 1916. More evenly matched, the discomfiture of the Azurian fleet played bobsy-dye with Azurian strategy in the Mesogesian Sea. 

So also did the story of the beach landing Operation Archduke precede the introductory narrative, as has the associated Battle of the Maunch naval battle that decimated the Azurian Oceanic Fleet. This was by way of beginning the epic in medias res, getting into the action at once, deferring the introductory, generating circumstance, background and back history for later. I discover, however that I have 28 (twenty-eight!) postings labeled Little Great War already. Not quite what I had in mind, and not ideal. However two or three of those talk about other projects and battles as well.

Aithiops Convoy. Ruberian supreb gunnery at the beginning
of the action sealed the fate of the entire convoy.

Just to keep things ticking along, two other naval incidents, quite peripheral to the main theatres of war also appeared in the narrative. One reported upon the Ruberian interception of the Aithiops Convoy, for the loss of both Azurian escorts and the whole convoy of merchant ships. The other referred to the adventures of the Azurian Est Asien Escadron resulting in a naval action off the Isla Sta Maria, in the Halcyon Ocean. This was to be a sort of mini-campaign on the side, the Azurian squadron still having to run the Ruberian naval gauntlet to reach a home port. Of course, it is simply a revisiting of the Coronel/Falkland pair of battles that led to the end of Admiral Graf von Spee's battle squadron. The Battle of Spuneland might or might not happen... 

The Far East Squadron intercepts Amiral de la Spee's
ships before they can exit the Halcyon Ocean...

 

Having published a map of the theatres and produced Army Establishment lists for the belligerent forces (though the Izumrud-Zeleniya list is now out of date) I have a distressing tendency to forget the occasional detail, which can lead to the occasional continuity glitch - such as the commander of the Operation Archduke Beach Landing. I really have to write these things down - or print them off.

Finally, within each of the mapped theatres - Azuria, Northeastern Turcowaz and Medifuvia - the moves are carried out using the card method, very slightly modified for solo play, drawn up in Bob Cordery's Portable Colonial Wargames. Now, this is where my Samba card deck - Samba being a three-deck version of Canasta (the only really worthwhile card game qua card game, but I digress...) - as each of the three decks applies uniquely to one or other theatre. I keep a little paper label for each. How it works was outlined fairly comprehensively in the course of the Kavkaz campaign narrative. Something more will be spoken of in respect of the campaign so far, and the attempted surprise attack by the Izumrud-Zeleniya 2nd Army at Akhaltsikhe.

Battle of Akhaltsikhe - opening moves. GREEN guys are 
Zvezda; TURQUOISE are Strelitz-R.

I have yet to formalise the war at sea, Now, normally, I don't like 'doubling up' on units such that the same figures or models are used as different units in different theatres or fronts. In this instance I have made some minor, and one major, exception. The minor instances have to with the peripheral engagements, such as the respective Far East Naval detachments, and the Aithiops convoy incident. The major is that the Azurian Navy began with identical fleets in the Mesogesean and the Great Western Ocean. However, after the actions against the Hellenic and Ruberian fleets, they are no longer identical. There will still be some doubling up of units, but not all will have to be.

Ruberia might be in a position to send one of its battle squadrons into the Meso; and some sort of strategy will have to be devised in the Karadeniz. Will the mosquito navies of Chervenia and Rhumbarbaria involve themselves? Probably not. But, you never know...

I'm still in two minds whether a separate Turcowaz Medifluvia Command might have to be imagined into existence in addition to the Coastal and Interior armies opposing Izumrud-Zeleniya. That might not be so necessary if a large enough detachment can be sent from the Army of the Interior without compromising the eastern fronts... I'll have to think about that!

To be continued...