We interrupt our normal service...

 

Just a heads up, for the moment. I have been working on a large scale naval wargame with my Mini Chubby Marine naval forces: Battle of Cosro Gulf. Big battle, a kind of 'Leyte Gulf' scenario. Not as big as the real thing - at 90 fighting ships overall, my MCM navies aren't as vast as the Japanese, much less the much vaster American. The forces are also - or began as - fairly evenly matched. And the island group doesn't look much like the Philippines.

Here's what the thing looks like overall.

Part of the Jehoshaphat Island group, looking south to north.

The Allies - Saabia and Kiivar - have determined upon recapturing the island of Cosro, the city of Yelta, in the Jehoshaphat Island group within the Saabian archipelago. The land action for this action is purely incidental, but involves a dawn raid by aircraft from two of the Saabian fleet carriers upon the coastal defences. This, just as two of the three Strike Forces from the Ra'esharn fleet turn up from the west and northwest... 

Looking east to west.
The three naval covering forces: North being the Kiivar
contingent; Eastern and Southern from Saabia.

The third, Strike Force North, will be arriving later in the morning from the northeast. So far the day has been full of incident. The rule set I wrote for the Fourth Wargames Compendium didn't include any kind of time scale. After some thought I am going for 9 turns of daylight, thus:

1. Dawn (about sunrise)
2. Early morning
3. Mid-morning
4. Late morning
5. Midday
6. Early afternoon
7. Mid-afternoon
8. Late afternoon
9. Evening (about sunset)
   

Night will allow forces to regroup (within reason) for action the following day. Had I determined upon this scheme before I began the action, the dice rolls for the arrival of the respective Strike Forces would have brought Strike Forces South and Centre into the area at mid-morning, SF North in the late morning.

The battle is at the moment ongoing, and already there are considerable losses among the major units, and among air crew as well. 

Saabian dawn air attacks upon ground defences opposing 
the beach landings. The naval action begins with four 
bomber squadrons committed to this raid. Later they were 
to mount sorties against the Ra'esharn SF North.

A question: has anyone tried the rule set? It works for me. A few issues cropped up, but were quickly resolved - the main one being the time of day. The set would have to be modified slightly for historical naval units, but that would be easy enough: just count guns. I'd probably give Yamato 36 Flotation points and the USS Iowa class 30, and leave it at that...

To be recounted ... somewhen...