Bozkashi Jones | 22 Aug 2019 7:28 a.m. PST |
I've really got the bug for campaigns now, as I'm currently running a very simple modern naval one and can see how it affects gameplay for the better. So, with that in mind and as I'm planning on buying some Tumbling Dice ships, I wondered if anyone could suggest a manageable and historical 1793-1815 campaign setting? Ideally I'd like both players to have a small squadron which has to service a number of tasks (convoys, raiding, supply, troop transport, etc) – the small squadrons away from Europe would be ideal – a couple of 3rd rates and half a dozen frigates sort of thing. I was thinking of something like the French in the Maldives trying to disrupt British trade, or the Caribbean with the British hoovering up French colonies. I'm quite happy to do the research, but would appreciate some ideas of where to look first – the books I have at the moment detail actions but, with a conflict that lasted over 20 years, there's not much about the extended operations in a specific theatre which might make for a good campaign. Any thoughts gratefully received. Cheers, Nick |
HMS Exeter | 22 Aug 2019 8:18 a.m. PST |
If you're willing to turn back the clock a bit, the Hughes/Suffren naval campaign in Indian waters in 1782 might fit the bill. 4 sharp, but inconclusive actions involving mostly 64 gunners. |
Andrew Walters | 22 Aug 2019 8:25 a.m. PST |
There were a lot of British small vessel squadrons enforcing the blockade of French ports. Some were stationed on a Danish island, I think? Plenty of small ships from Britain raided the coastal shipping, too. Those would be the obvious places. The War of 1812 on the Great Lakes is another possibility, though the number and size of the ships might not be what you're looking for. If you want to get exotic… link |
Bozkashi Jones | 22 Aug 2019 8:59 a.m. PST |
Mauritius! Yes, thanks Andrew! That's what I meant when I said the Maldives, doh! The French kept a squadron there to interfere with the East Indiamen – could be the sort of thing…. The War of 1812 is a great topic, but I might wait to see if Warlord Games bring out anything in 1/700 for the Great Lakes due to the size of the combatants. KP – I'll have a look at the Hughes/Suffren campaign, cheers. |
daveshoe | 22 Aug 2019 9:19 a.m. PST |
Nick, For Hughes/Suffren, you may want to look at the campaign David Manley posted on the Naval Wargames Society page. PDF link Dave |
Andrew Walters | 22 Aug 2019 10:02 a.m. PST |
You should also check out warartisan.com for ships, situations, and other resources. |
21eRegt | 22 Aug 2019 10:50 a.m. PST |
For Napoleonic era operations outside of the main theatres I highly recommend "Dreams of Empire" by Paul Fregosi. Covers all the "side shows" in enough detail to be fodder for scenarios. |
khanscom | 22 Aug 2019 5:50 p.m. PST |
The Courier, Vol. VI, No. 4 had a complete naval campaign-- "To Glory We Steer" by Greg Novak. Set in the period 1812- 15 in the Caribbean; no land operations but I think it wouldn't be too difficult to plug those in. |
Kevin in Albuquerque | 22 Aug 2019 7:21 p.m. PST |
Another suggestion for the Suffren/Hughes India campaign. Also look at Mahan's "influence of Sea Power …" for ideas. |
BrianW | 22 Aug 2019 9:41 p.m. PST |
TooFat Lardies did a campaign based on Mauritius that includes both naval and land warfare. It is for their rules of course, but should be pretty easy to convert. It is in the Christmas 2013 Special, and is called "All at Sea." |
advocate | 23 Aug 2019 12:16 p.m. PST |
For Mauritius, Patrick o'Brian, The Mauritius Command. Yes it's fiction, but a good read and well researched. |
Thresher01 | 23 Aug 2019 10:40 p.m. PST |
Our local club has been running a campaign in the Caribbean. |
Bozkashi Jones | 24 Aug 2019 4:12 a.m. PST |
Thank you gentlemen, thank you Some cracking ideas there – I've downloaded David Manley's Suffren/Hughes campaign, To Glory We Steer (cracking value, bearing in mind the other content of The Courier!) and the TFL Christmas Special so I'll get some ideas, pour over my copy of Woodman and come up with a plan. Best wishes and cheers for all the info. Nick |
AdmiralHawke | 01 Sep 2019 3:33 p.m. PST |
Nick What a great question. To get a historical, or semi-historical campaign with forces of the size you want, you need a theatre that is far enough away from the main fleets that it cannot be immediately reinforced, yet important enough to require one or more ships of the line. That suggests the East Indies, but also possibly Jamaica and St. Domingue, or possibly parts of the Mediterranean. The campaign of Suffren and Hughes, and the similar campaign between Pocock and D'Ache in the Seven Years War are both too large, involving large squadrons of ships of the line. I suggest the various attempts by the French to disrupt British trade in the East Indies during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. The best might be Sercey's campaign from 1796 to 1799, when his large frigate squadron largely failed to achieve anything, despite the British Admiral Rainier being primarily focused on taking the Dutch colonies. Sercey's squadron ran into two British ships of the line, and later failed to attack a British convoy after mistaking East Indiamen for warships. It's well summarized in the Wikipedia article: link The French tried again in 1803 with another squadron under Rear-Admiral Linois at the start of the Napoleonic Wars. The Wikipedia article is again pretty good: link Other ideas would be the French successes in recapturing and resupplying Guadeloupe in 1795; Ganteaume's raid into the Eastern Mediterranean in 1795, pursued by Troubridge; or perhaps Nelson's operations off the Italian coast in 1794 to 1795. I hope that gives you some more ideas. The East Indies campaigns of Sercey and Linois could make for two challenging wargame campaigns. :-) |
whitejamest | 01 Sep 2019 5:08 p.m. PST |
I've often thought about doing a campaign set in the Adriatic from 1807 on. Lots of little islands being fought over, capable forces on both sides stretched thin, intrepid personalities… It's not hard to imagine the Battle of Lissa turning out differently in different players' hands. The book that first got me interested in it was "Stopping Napoleon: War and Intrigue in the Mediterranean" by Tom Pocock – though the subject is more interesting than the writing… |