[OL-FB4] Battle for the Southern Isle

[Franco Clarke]

The island rumbled with activity as the three Corrington warships converged on the island. Erwin rushed to the wheel as Stingray erupted into action.

'Keep the guns in, but have them fully, ready to fire with standard shot, fire on my command'

Erwin moved Stingray to a position in the centre of the lagoon, blocking the wider entrance.  Now they would wait, let the enemy make the first move, and be ready when they did.

The Corrington captain in command of the small flotilla examined the island from his telescope. It did indeed follow the depiction on the map, the lagoon, and the two entrance ways. He spotted something on the cliffs overlooking the main entry way to the lagoon, and on closer inspection it appeared to be a cannon battery emplaced up high.

He lowered his telescope and smiled, silly Oleons, they thought they could gain an advantage from his delay. Unfortunately for them, there were two entrances to the lagoon, and this fault in their deployment would be exploited fully.

'Roll the guns up to the prow, and set the sails for a slow attack, we shall knock them out from afar'

He signalled the second raider to follow suit, and to move all marines and crew to the front of the ship, to maximize forward firepower. They signalled back, concerned that this would leave their flanks open to attack. His smiled widened. The rocks will protect his flanks from the enemy even if they tried to outflank him.

He directed his ship towards the narrow pass, carefully avoiding the talon-like rocks that emerged from the frothing seas. The guns were now in position, so he began his attack. The cannon weren't in optimal range yet, so he opted to hold fire for the time being. 

The two raiders sailed into the passage, dwarfed by the huge mountain on one side, and the cliff on the other.

Erwin began to sweat, they had done what he feared they would, and gone through the smaller passage. Unless they made a navigational error and smashed into a rock, they would have two raiders firing onto Stingray. He guided Stingray away from the advancing Corries, hoping to lure them further out, and perhaps level the playing field a bit.

The master gunner approached him at the wheel.

'Sir they enemy are in range, would you like us to open fire?'

Erwin snapped out a response, 'No half out ammunition is up with the land battery, we can't afford to waste shots now'

The gunner took up the telescope and watched over the stern of Stingray.

'Closing to firing range, surely we must engage now?'

Erwin replied sharply once more, 'We can't risk it, hold fire a little longer they're almost in position'

 

The Captain of the Merchant Raider grinned, they had progressed well through the passage, and the Oleon's hadn't even opened fire yet. They must have moved all their guns ashore, and this ship was helpless before them.

'We will close with them, they are no danger to us'

The two Merchant Raiders bracketed the Oleon ship as the ground ever closer through the narrow ravine.

One of the gun crew ran aft to the Captain.

'Sir the target is in our kill zone, may we open fire'

The Captain grinned, he had them now.

'Open fire, we will crush these fools'

The first volley smashed into the waters around Stingray, soaking the decks and spilling through the hatches. The master gunner approached Erwin and shouted wildly.

'They've ranged in on us, we won't last five seconds under this attack, they'll surely hit their next volley, we must open fire now!'

Erwin angrily replied, 'Get below and prepare the men. But do NOT fire until my command, they are right where I want them'

As the man scampered to the gun deck Erwin turned his attention to the encroaching Raiders, sailing through the narrowest part of the passage. Just where he wanted them to be, now he could spring into action.

He hauled on the wheel pulling Stingray broadside on to the enemy. He was now a more threatening target, so they would probably press the attack.

The next volley smashed into Stingray, flattening some the railing and tearing up the planking.

He ducked as the main spar splinted and cracked, tearing the mainsail. He was badly damaged, now they would close in and finish him off.

Reaching into the pocket of his blue coat, he grabbed the shard of mirrored glass he had got from one of the crew and flashed at the cliff above the attacking warships. It was time for Private Collins to join the battle.

 

Private Collins saw a flash of light from the deck of Stingray. Flash, flash, flash flash. Yes that was his signal, he turned to the waiting men.

'Gun crews, ready the guns and fire at the enemy warships beneath us!'

As the crew uncovered the cannon from beneath piles of palm leaves and rolled them forward Private Collins peered over the cliff. Indeed the Corries had fallen for their deception, and avoided the dummy battery they had created over the other entrance. Erwin had predicted that the Corries would not take up an attack against such odds and had had him position the guns on the cliff overlooking the ravine.

The cannon burst into action and shots smashed into the stern of the far Merchant Raider. Its commander and wheel were destroyed at once, and it veered off the right, smashing into the mountain. Its back end swung out, as another volley smashed into it setting it alight. It pushed further into the mountain side and dislodged a tumbling pile of rocks which crushed both ship and crew.

 

The Captain of the surviving Merchant raider watched in horror as his comrade was smashed by the hidden cannons, and then the fall of rubble.  He turned forward to see that the Oleon warship had turned toward him and was on an attack path. They had laid a trap, and he had fallen for it completely.

'Helmsman get us out of here at once!'

He might have to retreat, but he would return and take the island then.

The helmsman shouted in a panicked voice, 'Sir where to we retreat too, that wreck blocks our path!'

Now the captain was panicking. He couldn't escape, the cannon battery and wreck behind blocked his route. But then he noticed that the ship that was attacking now was riding much higher in the water than it had when they were chasing all that time ago. They had unloaded their guns ashore, and were no threat what so ever.

'Helmsman calm down, we must proceed on attack pattern, target that Oleon warship. We will blast out of this trap'

The ship changed course as another volley from the battery on the cliff smashed into stern of the raider. The captain was thrown down, and a section of the railing was destroyed. The captain stood up to find the helmsman had been incapacitated by a large splinter lodged in his skull. Stepping forward, the captain shoved the corpse away from the wheel and held onto it.

The forward guns fired, impacted on the prow of the warship as it sped nearer. The captain had to admit that his opponent's plan had been a good one, but it was no match for the strength and determination of Corrington's navy.

Then he spotted a movement on the side of the approaching warship, as the cannon flaps lifted up and long barrels poked through. The captain's eyes widened with fear as he realised his misjudgement.

 

Erwin held the course and watched the Merchant raider draw closer. Another volley from Collins on the hill did more damage to their opponent.  Erwin called forward to the gun deck.

'Enemy ship is approaching on the starboard side, range approximately 40 studs, fire when you have a clear shot.'

Stingray was almost level with the enemy ship now, and another volley smashed into the rear, blowing away what remained of the command deck. Then the gunners were ready and Stingray's guns roared. The power of the shots at close range was more than the ruined Merchant Raider could take, and it splintered and cracked as it sank below the surface of the lagoon. The gun crew emerged from below decks, cheering, and Erwin breathed out a sigh of relief for they had managed to defeat the two Merchant Raiders against the odds.

 

I hope you enjoyed this rather long battle, I experimented with showing the story from two sides, what do you think? To finish of with, here is a build of Collin's Gun battery emplaced on the cliff over the narrow passageway.

In the end I didn't use this model in any of the photos, but I thought I'd post it anyway.

Finally this story has been in the back of my head almost since the start of BOBS, and it was satisfying to finally complete it. Below is the sketch which inspired the whole thing.

[Maxim I]

Wow, a truly amazing sketch you made!!!

Congratz into turning it into bricks as well

[Franco Clarke]

On 07/12/2016 at 1:06 PM, Maxim I said:

Wow, a truly amazing sketch you made!!!

Congratz into turning it into bricks as well

Thanks, I am glad you thought it was good, it has been sitting in my head for quite a while, and I'm really pleased to create it in reality.

[Bregir]

Great follow-up on the last instalment, Franco. Erwin surely is a tactical mastermind! As always, I like how you illustrate your story with some very dramatic photos.

I am still concerned that you seem to have a private war with us in Corrington, and hope some day we will all agree about our diplomatic relations... Or perhaps Corrington should take the consequences and declare war, since you keep attacking our vessels!?

[Franco Clarke]

Thank you very much, perhaps if you prefer, you could see my tales as being merely that, stories conceived by someone with an overactive imagination? Or perhaps you are just trying to cover up Corrington's secret plan to control the oceans? Anyway, at least this time I didn't shoot first, so it wasn't our fault! 

[SilentWolf]

You do a good job at the active battles and I feel you are getting even better. I enjoy reading your stories and the dual perspective of this one is a nice touchange. For the build, I really like the concealed battery. Your pictures make it look like it is concealed. Great job overall!

[Capt Wolf]

Your battle stories are always entertaining, and this one is no exception. And it's just fun seeing those old Imperial Flagships out on the "sea"! I really like the photos where you have a strong foreground element, like the first photo through the foliage, and the fourth photo from behind the cannons. Well done!

[Franco Clarke]

On 12/12/2016 at 5:26 AM, SilentWolf said:

You do a good job at the active battles and I feel you are getting even better.

Thank you, it's good that you like battles, because I have quite a few more planned for next year! 

22 hours ago, Capt Wolf said:

 it's just fun seeing those old Imperial Flagships out on the "sea"! I really like the photos where you have a strong foreground element, like the first photo through the foliage, and the fourth photo from behind the cannons. Well done!

Thank you, the Imperial flagship is my favourite among the official Imperial ships, which is why I use it in my stories. Thanks for the feedback on the photos, I will see what I can do in future stories.