"Favorite Era for Naval Gaming?" Topic

For me it is Great War, although ACW Ironclads come a close second.

I would consider starship combat to count for this poll as it is mostly based on wet navy in space. Starfighters and naval aircraft gamed on their own are more properly aero-space combat, although they do count if used with ships.

Great War for me with Pre-dreadnought a close second.

For me, it would be the age of sail, except that broadsides, short weapon ranges, and small scales can make for fiddly manoeuvring when hexes are not involved.

Pre-Dread. Engagement range was generally less than 4000 yards, usually 2000 yards or less, which means an entire engagement can fit onto a table without using a very large surface scale.

No aircraft to confuse the issue.

Interesting (if not particularly successful) experimentations with ship designs.

Roughly galley through mid 1960's.

Predread, Armada and Napoleonic would be top 3 though.

ACW – little tiny ships, great big ironclads, torpedos, rams, what's not to like?

WW I, pre-Dreadnought and skyship versions of the same

As for scotskane, before the dreaded airplane and submarine.

Starship, WWII, Predread, Naps, WWI, Ancients and Acw pretty much in that order.

In order:
Age-of-Sail, Starship, WWI, Ancients, Ironclads, Predread then WWII.

Ted

WWII, Ironclads, Modern.

Pre-Dreadnought action . . . particularly RJW and "what if".

-- Jeff

Frigate actions in the age of sail, or 1890s-early 1942. Before aircraft carriers became the name of the game.

In order of preference:
Napoleonic
WWII Deep Water
WWII Coastal
American Civil War
All others

ACW & predreads(I go back and forth on #1 & 2). Then Age of Sail and 'proper' dreadnoughts.

War at sea was more fun when the armored warship was king, before air support and (effective) submarines started mucking things up.

Predread and galley. Night actions in early pacific WWII are interesting also.

If there is anything I would love to game, it would be Ironbottom Sound.

Age of Sail and ACW

Well, the only ships I own are WWII – mostly cruisers, destroyers and battlewagons with a few carriers – and a couple of ACW ironclads

That being said, I think the naval period I would most like to game would be Age of Sail

The Great War, AWI/Napoleonic, Star Fleet Battles

Napoleonic Sail, WWII, WWI

Hm, ancient galleys, WWI, WWII, Modern, ACW ironclads…Not necessarily in any order.

WWI
Sailing ships
WWII
ACW
Pre-dreadnaughts

Though all are pretty close.

Age of Sail
Pre-dred

That's it.

John

WWII – especially when played as a mini-campaign
WWI
Napoleonic

WWII – Especially the Guadalcanal battles, surface and carrier.
WWI – Have the complete German battle fleet, working on finishing the English.
Pre-Dreadnought – currently working on the Russian and Japanese fleets.
Napoleonic – Ends up being the poor sister.

Age of Sail (Napoleonic)
Pre-Dreadnaught

Biplanes & Battleships (counterfactual interwar)

Fighting Sail era,mostly.

Around the time of Jenkin's Ear right the way up to Nelson's time.

Spanish American War and early Cold War

Mine would be first off The Russo-Japanese War and WWII.

Captain Gideon

Ancient galleys!
link
Obviously… ;)

WW2 coastal, age of sail and ACW, with a dash of pre-drwadnought thrown in :)

Napoleonic, then WW II, then ancient.

Hi

Pre-nappy galley and roundships.

R

Ancients!

Based on my miniatures collection: ACW naval.

In order of preference:

Pre-Dred,
Ironclad,
WWI
Dutch Wars,
16th,
Ancients,
Classic fighting sail,
WWII

Ironclad/transitional period
Predreadnought
Age of Sail
WW1 (Black Sea, Med/Adriatic)

More or less in that order, though it varies as my enthusiasm waxes and wanes.

Napoleonic
Coastal WWII
Great War

There isn't a period I don't like…but the Age of Sail/Napoleonic are my favorite.

Early and coastal WWII
Submarine warfare
Carrier warfare
Age of Sail

Obviously there is no great fortune to be made selling modern naval rules!
Cheers,
Bertie

I'd have to opt for WW2 naval with WW1 a close second. But I also enjoy Age of Sail and Ancients.

In order of preference:
WWII
WWI
Napoleonic single ship
Modern (probably Falklands)

For the last 2 I've got rules and models, but have never gotten around to gaming with them…

MH

Ancients! Ecnomus all the way, I have Xystons, and many other scales for this era. So many ships and scales, I have almost everything made but Roman Seas which I hope to be able to afford after the holidays.

Those would be followed close by Ironclads although the number of battles are limited historically but the Thoroughbredmodels.com models are by far the best on the market bar none.

A close third would be Age of Sail covering Spanish Armada to AWI and Napoleonics.

VR
James Mattes

I guess being I have 350 Langton Napoleonic ships … I would have too say that period.
WW1 and Ancients are going to be a next project

European ironclads in 1:1000 which I make

Ironclads up to WW I. However, I have been in some great Christians vs Turks in the Med. games.

I bounce back and forth between Pre-Dreadnoughts, ACW, The Great War, and Fantasy. Pretty much Ironclads to WWI or maybe even Plane Orange/Interwar, with some fantasy thrown in.

Walt