A Mediterranean Campaign AAR

[vonfriedman]

In order to understand this AAR you should first consult the thread "A new SAI Campaign" on page 2 of these "Discussions".

You will find there the background and the files needed to play a counterfactual campaign in the Mediterranean, based on the hypothesis of a war between the Franco-British Entente and the Triple Alliance, formed by Germany, Austria and (unlike what happened historically) Italy.

[vonfriedman]

The Triple Alliance to the test of war
August 1Q14 - The very first operation is the urgent dispatch of a convoy of Italian troopships to Libya, threatened by the French forces in Tunisia. To fend off the threat from the British BCs in Malta, the Austrian Admiral Haus sails from Augusta, in Sicily, with his new Tegetthoff class BBs and various DDs, to escort the convoy which, from Naples and through the Strait of Messina, is heading towards Tripoli.
For his part, the Duca degli Abruzzi decides to train his Conte di Cavour class BBs in order to be ready to face the French and to intercept the convoys which are expected to sail from Algiers in the following weeks to transfer to France the bulk of the Armée d'Afrique.
The Duke then puts to sea from Messina with the fast Bs of the Regina Elena class, four CAs, a dozen DDs and the powerful German BC Goeben. He intends to get a favorable position to prevent a raid by naval forces of the Entente based in Bizerte against the Italian merchant traffic in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Simultaneously, two fast Italian CLs are sent from Cagliari to lay a minefield at night, off Algiers.
At nightfall the Austrians sight some old British DDs patrolling off Malta and manage to sink a couple of them. Pursuing the rest the Austrian BBs arrive outside the bay where the British BCs Inflexible and Invincible are anchored (to the player's surprise!). By now darkness has fallen and the Austrian ships have to close the distances. In the short range action that follows all the Austrian BBs suffer serious damage, also caused by the forts that protect the anchorage and furthermore all the torpedoes of the Austrian DDs are neutralized by the anti-torpedo nets of the British ships (this was another surprise for the player!). Admiral Haus then retreats slowly towards Augusta, after having lost a DD. Fortunately, the Italian convoy has already passed the danger zone and later safely arrives in Tripoli.
Meanwhile the Italian CLs, after laying the minefield, head NW of Sardinia, where French ships are reported.
Assuming - as it turns out, rightly - that they are old French Bs based in Toulon, the Duca degli Abruzzi decides to try to engage them in battle.
The commander of the CL Quarto skillfully manages to make himself chased by the French ships while he directs towards the bulk of the Italo-German force that is arriving from the SW.
In the ensuing battle, the balance of forces is decidedly against the French and - moreover - the ships of the Triple Alliance are faster. To top it off, two French CAs blow up. The engagement ends with the almost complete annihilation of the French force, which was engaged in a bombardment mission. At nightfall, while the Duca degli Abruzzi's ships, having almost exhausted their ammunition, enter the port of Cagliari, the damaged DD Borea is surprised by the British BCs departed from Malta, where they had received almost no damage in the previous short battle with the Austrians.
The first turn ends with a clear victory for the Triple Alliance, however all Austrian BBs and Goeben are under repair and will remain there for quite some time.

[vonfriedman]

Victories at sea and repair work

End of August 1Q14 - While Admiral Haus is gnawing at his guts, with his BBs under repair after the unfortunate action near the British base in Malta, the enterprising Rear Admiral Horthy sets sail from Cagliari with the fast CLs Helgoland and Saida. He hopes to intercept a convoy of French troopships along the route between Algiers and Marseilles and to avoid the reaction of its escort.

The 1st Italian BB Division also sets sail from Messina, to rejoin the Duca degli Abruzzi's squadron, which had retreated to Cagliari after last week's battle. CL Bixio is sent to lay a minefield off the coast of Bizerte at night, with the order to then proceed in reconnaissance in case of enemy sightings.

It isn't too long before the Triple Alliance's efficient Sigint reports movements of French battleships between Marseille and Algiers. It is easy to assume that the French have put to sea with a powerful squadron to protect the expected troopships convoy.

Helgoland, Saida and Bixio converge towards the point signaled by Sigint and sight many warships which, apparently, are heading towards France. Meanwhile it started to rain lightly and the Duca degli Abruzzi's squadron (3 BBs, 3 Bs, 4 CAs plus CLs and DDs) is still far away, being more or less off Capo Teulada SW of Sardinia.

Once again the CLs of the Triple Alliance manage to be chased by the enemy, which also includes the brand new BBs Jean Bart and Courbet, which were thought to still be in Brest. The reduced sighting distance, due to the rain, mean that the French shells fall uncomfortably close to the CLs, which dart at full speed, covering themselves with smoke screens. Helgoland is seriously damaged and could end badly, but by now the Italian battleships have arrived and a gunfight between parallel lines begins, in a chaos of rain showers, smoke and columns of water raised by the shells.

The French BBs are accompanied by relatively old Bs of the Democratie and Liberté classes, which are easy victims of the 12-inch guns of the Italian BBs. It will eventually turn out that three of them are sunk in this battle. These successes are paid at the price of serious damages to the BB Cesare and minor damages also to the other battleships, which induce the Duca degli Abruzzi to interrupt the action, while the French admiral does the same heading towards Toulon. Some Italian DDs are sunk: a loss that will be felt later, the number of modern DDs being rather limited.

As the convoy's heavy escort has been forced to retreat, the still-effective CLs of the Triple Alliance have an easy time intercepting the convoy and sinking most of its ships. In the evening, while the Duca degli Abruzzi retires to his main bases in Sicily, the CL Bixio, loaded with shipwrecked people rescued from the waves, enters the port of Cagliari.

The day holds further surprises, when Italian torpedo boats patrolling the gulf of Genoa are attacked by light French forces. The old Italian CAs based in La Spezia are activated and manage to put to sea before nightfall. Despite her slow speed Garibaldi manages to sink the CL Cassard, while also an Italian DD and two French DDs are sunk.

The second two-weeks turn ends with another victory for the Triple Alliance, but at this point all the BBs and many Bs of the Triple Alliance are under repair and the Italian shipyards don't shine in their efficiency.

The sovereigns of the Triple Alliance, knowing that the enemy has three times as many active BBs and BCs as their own, are (according to a confidential report) "apoplectic".

[vonfriedman]

The going gets tough

September 1Q14 - Following the news of an imminent enemy operation, not better defined, and as all the BBs of the Triple Alliance are under repair, Admiral Haus decided to set sail with his 3 Radetsky class Bs, 3 CAs and 5 DDs. The Italians can at most add one newly repaired B (Vittorio Emanuele), 4 CAs and some DDs.

These ships, preempting the enemy operation, assemble in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea, while various CLs carry out reconnaissance ahead of them.

While a morning fog reduces visibility, reports begin to arrive that indicate a movement of French warships from Toulon, through the Strait of Bonifacio between Corsica and Sardinia and towards the center of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Admiral Haus expects to meet some French Bs and, at most, one BB and believes that his 4 Bs and 7 CAs are able to sustain the fight, provided they are at a short distance from a base within which to retreat: Palermo.

When the CL Quarto, in the fog, runs into a pair of battleships that quickly reduce her to a sinking wreck, Haus steers at full speed to engage the enemy in combat. Unfortunately he is too hasty and makes a serious mistake in trying to cut the enemy's T heading N. When the fog clears he discovers that he is facing, in W direction, the two French battleships that sank Quarto while in direction N a much more serious threat looms, represented by several enemy battleships. The French have managed to carry out a pincer maneuver, moving undetected from Bizerte with two battleships and descending S from Toulon with the bulk of their forces. Even more bitter news is the presence of the new BBs France and Paris, which the Triple Alliance intelligence service believed were still under construction [The game is played in the "Hard" mode].

In the ensuing battle, in which the Austrian and Italian DDs sacrifice themselves in attempts at torpedoing the enemy BBs, Admiral Haus fails to avoid close quarters action, which costs him the sinking of the B Zrinyi as well as serious damage to all his major units. He is saved from complete destruction by nightfall and the proximity of Palermo, as 4 British BCs are approaching from Malta along with the powerful Bs Agamemnon and Nelson.

The third turn ends with a clear victory of the Entente, which nearly halves the VP advantage previously gained by the Triple Alliance. In the next turn the Triple Alliance will have very few ships available and will have to suffer the enemy initiative, whatever it is.

It goes without saying that the sovereigns are even more apoplectic than before.

[vonfriedman]

Goeben's day

End of September 1Q14 - While in the Italian shipyards work is in full swing - so to speak - Rear Admiral Souchon makes a fuss at the High Command of the Triple Alliance, wanting to set sail with Goeben, just repaired.

In the end it is decided to try again a raid against the French traffic which is supposed to take place between Algiers and Marseilles. An Italian CL with some DDs will carry out the task of scouts, followed at a distance by the German BC. During the night before, a minelayer from La Spezia will lay a minefield off Toulon. With the few ships available, not much more could be done.

The operation proceeds smoothly, but no troop convoys are reported. Instead Sigint announces the presence of various Bs in the area. Souchon decides to attack those ships, relying on Goeben's speed and gunnery. With strong winds and heavy seas, four antiquated French Bs are sighted towards the W. Fire is opened and the slow enemy ships try to close the distances, firing at Goeben with their old 12-inch guns. By keeping a safe distance, Souchon is able to land many hits but Goeben takes some damage and runs out of ammo. The German BC then has to withdraw, but it will later be learned that one of the French Bs sank in a foolish attempt to return to distant Toulon while another B was badly damaged.

Sigint and also the Italian coastguards are in the meantime sending news about movements of enemy warships, which threaten to cut off Goeben's retreat towards her base. However, thanks to a timely speed increase, as night falls all the allied ships happily return to Cagliari.

The turn thus ends with a minor victory for the Triple Alliance, which also had the good fortune to avoid losses of merchant ships during a raid by French battleships in the Tyrrhenian Sea. A threatening sweep of the British BCs from Malta was rendered useless by Souchon's cautious behaviour.

In the coming weeks, some other battleships will leave the repair yards, with the benefit also of the "apoplexy" of the sovereigns.

[vonfriedman]

A day of disappointments

October 1Q14 - Although the high command requests a sweep with six major warships off Libya, the number of modern battleships and heavy cruisers available does not allow for this. The British take advantage of it by conducting a raid from Malta with some cruisers, which intercepts and destroys a small Italian convoy which has sailed from Benghazi.

The Triple Alliance admirals intensify the training of the few ready battleships; moreover a minefield is laid off Bizerta and a raid is carried out S of Marseilles, in search of French merchant ships, with CL Saida and 3 large Austrian DDs.

Unfortunately, due to bad weather and short daylight hours, no French merchantmen are sighted. Rear Admiral Horthy is in a rage and vents his anger with picturesque curses in Hungarian: he has consumed a lot of excellent coal and uselessly worn out his ships.

The turn ends with a minor Entente victory. However, the ratio of available BBs on both sides is approaching unity.



The tough take the field

End October 1Q14 - While the sovereigns of the Triple Alliance stop frowning, with five dreadnoughts ready for action, a very interesting piece of information is transmitted by "Mata Hari" (we'll call her that so as not to reveal this person's true identity, suffice it to say that she is well introduced in the important circles of the Entente).

The enemy intends to carry out a bombardment of the port of Cagliari on a certain date. It is not known with what forces, but everything suggests that the operation will be conducted by the naval squadron based in Bizerte, which is only 125 miles from Cagliari. It will therefore be a matter of one or two BBs and several Bs, even modern ones (Danton class).

Three admirals, who are entrusted with the task of triggering the trap, gather in haste: Haus has Viribus Unitis and St.Istvan ready, the Duke has Leonardo da Vinci and Dante Alighieri, plus three Regina Elena class Bs, and Souchon has Goeben.

Also considering the escort DDs and the CLs needed for reconnaissance, there are very few warships left to escort an important convoy heading from Taranto to Libya. For this purpose, an Italian CA and an Austrian CA just repaired are gathered together. To create a diversion, three Austrian DDs are dispatched to search for French merchant ships SW of Marseilles, while CL Bixio and some DDs patrol off Cagliari.

Early in the morning (it's a day with clear skies), Bixio sights two enemy Bs and several DDs.To the surprise of the admirals of the Triple Alliance, these battleships were the old Massena and Suffren, which, overwhelmed by the fire of five dreadnoughts and three battleships, after a valiant fight disappear into the waves together with the brave DDs which tried to protect them.

This battle (and also the bad habit of shooting at sinking ships) consumes a lot of ammunition. This backfires on the admirals of the Triple Alliance when they sight Bizerte's squadron approaching from the S with BB Courbet in the lead. The action that now takes place between forces less unbalanced than before, does not lead to any important result. Courbet is damaged, but Leonardo da Vinci receives even greater damage. The new Italian dreadnoughts, in fact, are like those boxers with a hard fist but a glass jaw: they have thirteen 12" guns (Courbet can shoot, from one side, with only ten 12") but her armor belt is relatively thin (maximum 9.8 inches). As evening falls, it also begins to rain. The action is interrupted and the retreat towards the bases begins, which the two contenders reach without further surprises. Malta's British BCs - reduced to just two after Admiral von Spee's victory at Coronel forced Invincible and Inflexible to depart for the South Atlantic - arrive too late yet again. They also lose CL Dublin, torpedoed by Kapitänleutnant Hersing's U21.

Since the convoy and its escort have meanwhile reached Tripoli safely and the Austrian DDs have sighted nothing, the narrative could end here, but there is a surprise ending which - fortunately for the Italians - was not too bad a surprise.

In the evening it becomes known that some ships are bombarding installations on the Elba island, in the north of the Tyrrhenian Sea. More precise news do not arrive from the batteries of the island and Admiral Cagni, thinking that they were dealing with a few French warships, decides to set sail from La Spezia with his four old Bs of Regina Margherita and Saint Bon classes, 2 old CAs and a few DDs.

In hindsight it appears that he ran the risk of encountering BB France and a couple of modern Bs, which would probably have torn him to pieces.

The turn ends with a major victory for the Triple Alliance, which can count, at least temporarily, on a substantial parity with the enemy in terms of available dreadnoughts.

[vonfriedman]

A busy day

November 1Q14 - From radio interceptions it is deduced that an important enemy operation, not better defined, is about to begin.

Preempting the enemy, Admiral Haus sets sail with his three BBs and several DDs, moving towards the center of the southern Tyrrhenian Sea. The Italians support him with BB Dante Alighieri, three Bs of the Regina Elena type and CA Pisa plus DDs. Bixio and Dresden sail ahead as scouts.

Earlier in the day reports arrive about enemy battleships off the coast of northern Sicily.

The Triple Alliance squadron reverses course and rushes in that direction. Soon, amid rain showers, a large minelayer is spotted and blown up. Shortly after, the silhouettes of two Danton class Bs and four large CAs appear from E.

The French made the mistake of sending too weak an escort for its own minelaying mission, perhaps assuming that many BBs of the Triple Alliance were still under repair. Targeted by dozens of 12" guns and other guns of all calibres, the French ships are demolished one after the other. Two CAs are blown up, while the ships of the Triple Alliance suffer overall limited damage, despite the relatively short gunfire range. The DDs are singularly ineffective, on both sides, so that none of the few torpedoes find its target. Bixio, which finds herself in the middle of the DDs attacks, is almost immobilized by a shell hit in her boilers.

After this annihilation battle, the BBs head towards Messina, while the three Italian Bs and the CA return to Palermo. Admiral Haus lingers off Messina during the night, to avoid to run aground when entering the port. His BBs are therefore still at sea at dawn the following day, when desperate reports of sightings arrive from various merchant ships in the center of the Tyrrhenian Sea, with requests for help.

The problem arises for the Austrian admiral whether to risk a second battle, most likely with the British naval squadron coming from Malta, with fewer ships than before and moreover with damaged ships and with low ammunition. He recalls having read a confidential report, certainly originating from "Mata Hari", in which it was stated that some US Navy officers, sent as observers aboard British BCs, had spoken on a certain occasion of "suicide magazine practices" which were tolerated in the Royal Navy because they allowed firing at a high rate of fire.

Haus decides: he will engage in battle hoping for that lucky hit that will blow up a large British ship.

Unfortunately the Italian merchantmen sink one after the other before help arrives, but around noon the lookout on Viribus Unitis' crow's nest sights smoke to the NW. The silhouettes of two British BCs soon appear, followed at a distance by Nelson and Agamemnon. The British admiral is very cautious and gunfire is often interrupted while the enemy maneuvers at high speed. In the afternoon, after an inconclusive exchange of gunfire, the contenders separate definitively.

Admiral Haus is a little disappointed, but at least the mail steamer to Palermo is saved. It is also encouraging to know that a minelaying mission off Bizerte took place successfully and that Horthy, with his CLs, finally managed to intercept and destroy a small French convoy, partially equalizing the losses of merchantmen suffered in the Tyrrhenian Sea.

The turn ends with a major victory for the Triple Alliance, which also put the two British BCs out of action for a few weeks. However all the French BBs are active and, on top of that, the brand new and more powerful BB Bretagne is added to the enemy dreadnoughts.

Since only Goeben will be available in the next turn, the sovereigns are again apoplectic.

[vonfriedman]

Much ado about nothing

End November 1Q14 - The cries of Admiral Souchon echo under the frescoed vaults of the building of the Navy Headquarters in Palermo. "Verfluchte Hunde! Verdammte Scheiße!.. etc. etc. " The interpreter struggles to find the corresponding Italian phrases. In the end, the German admiral has the upper hand and Goeben shortly after takes to the sea, looking for an opportunity to repeat the feats of "Goeben's day."

While confusing sighting reports of enemy ships arrive from various locations of the Tyrrhenian Sea, Goeben's cruise goes as far as the Ligurian Sea, but the only prey she picks up are three unfortunate French minesweepers S of Nice. And Souchon has his lucky stars to thank, because he didn't meet BB France and Paris, which in turn carried out an unsuccessful raid in the Tyrrhenian Sea.

The turn ends with a minor victory for the Triple Alliance, because Admiral Horthy has managed to destroy another French convoy and two minelayers have laid a minefield off Bizerta.

[vonfriedman]

The pincer loses a jaw

December 1Q14 - The losses suffered by the merchant fleet have aroused great concern in Italy, for which, in the absence of other objectives (apart from the usual minefields and a convoy to Lybia), it is decided to carry out a protective cruise in the Tyrrhenian Sea with all the available battleships, which are Viribus Unitis and Dante Alighieri, plus Goeben and a couple of Regina Elenas. CLs Bixio, Breslau and some DDs will sail ahead of the main force, while Horthy will repeat his raids in the western Mediterranean, in search of French troopship.

From the very beginning, messages from the Sardinian coastguard begin to arrive which indicate that a French squadron is crossing the Strait of Bonifacio, heading towards the center of the Tyrrhenian Sea. At the same time other ships are reported SE of Sardinia. Evidently the French are trying to repeat the pincer maneuver, which cost Admiral Haus dearly in September.

When calls for help come in from some nearby merchant ships Haus decides to face the pincer jaw coming from Bizerte (or Malta) first, sending Goeben and Bixio ahead, in the hope of rescuing the transports under attack. Unexpectedly, a large minelayer is encountered by Bixio and blown up shortly after. Goeben sights then a Danton-class battleship near a sinking mail steamer. An artillery duel at maximum range begins. The French B is gradually demolished but Goeben's ammunition reserve is drastically reduced.

Apparently the French ships have separated to pursue the merchantmen, for a second Danton is sighted and engaged by the oncoming Haus. This B ends up meeting the same fate as the first, just in time to allow Haus - without Goeben who has run out of ammunition - to deploy his BBs and Bs in a line to face the second, much stronger, jaw of the pincer, which is approaching from N, with two Courbet-class BBs leading.
The overall situation is similar to that of September, but this time the Triple Alliance naval squadron is stronger - and the enemy a bit weaker.
The Duca degli Abruzzi bites the brakes: his faster ships are forced to follow Viribus Unitis, which proceeds at 18 knots with the stokers at their last resort as she tries to head towards Palermo. Suddenly the Duke orders: "Full speed ahead! Admiral Haus may well go to hell, it is not for nothing that I am a member of the royal family!" Gradually, the Italian ships take the lead, escaping the fire of the slow French Bs and concentrating their own fire on the two Courbets.

It's a critical moment and everyone on the bridges of the Triple Alliance battleships is sweating cold, because a lucky hit from the enemy could slow down a ship. Just then Animoso, the only still intact DD of his flotilla, launches a daring torpedo attack, forcing the Courbets to deviate from their course. Animoso then sinks, but the will of the French to continue the battle seems to fail and gradually the guns are silent on both sides. The British ships, which could have greatly strengthened the eastern jaw of the pincer, did not show up. The Entente is perhaps "cordiale", but up to a certain point.

Since Horthy's raid was unsuccessful, while some large Italian transports were sunk instead, the round ends with a moderate victory for the Triple Alliance. Damage received by the dreadnoughts, combined with the bad news from the land warfronts, make the sovereigns of the Triple Alliance more apoplectic than ever.



Regina Elena ready to open fire

[vonfriedman]

A risky operation

End December 1Q14 - The announcement of a further enemy operation causes much discussion among the admirals of the Triple Alliance navies. In fact, only two Austrian BBs are available and some argue that they should not be exposed to risks and instead be trained, to join their companions that will leave the repair yards in two weeks' time.

But the young and ambitious Vice Admiral Thurn und Taxis (Haus is in Vienna to try to reassure the old emperor) thinks otherwise. He points out that vessel movements which have been observed in Gibraltar and also a recent message from Corrispondente Beta (a spy vessel disguised as a Spanish trawler) indicate that it will be a British convoy bound for Malta, which has not received supplies for several months. It will therefore be a question of facing only a few old British Bs, as it is certain that several BCs of the Mediterranean Fleet are still in the South Atlantic.

Without listening to any more protests and doubts, the Austrian admiral sets sail with Tegetthoff and St.Istvan towards the western Mediterranean, being preceded by the faster CLs. At the same time a large minefield is set up off the coast of Bizerte.

His hypothesis turns out to be well founded, because on the evening of the second day Helgoland and Saida sight several British battleships, Duncan or Russell-class, N of the coast of Algeria, sailing due east. In the few hours of light that remain, Thurn und Taxis manages to score a few hits on the enemy ships, which retreat into the darkness.

During the night, despite an extensive patrol, no news of the British Bs arrives (it will later turn out that they have reached Malta sailing along the coastline), so Thurn und Taxis decides to return to base. He is lucky enough to come across an isolated old French B, which is chased and sunk, but in the meantime the damage to St.Istvan increases and more ammo is spent.

Suddenly alarming reports comes from the scouting cruisers, which have sighted a British squadron, with three BCs and many Bs to the East. The Mediterranean Fleet has come out of Malta in force this time and threatens to cut off the retreat of the Austrians. Other worrying news comes from the central Tyrrhenian Sea, where French BBs are reported.

Never like this time does one have the feeling of an enemy dominance in the Mediterranean, despite the sinking of many French Bs in the previous months. However, the long winter nights allows the Austrian admiral to return to base without encountering the enemy.

The turn thus ends with a minor, very narrow victory of the Triple Alliance.

[The endgame was played several times and one time out of three the Austrians had the worst.]

[vonfriedman]

A day to remember

January 1Q15 - Reports pile up on the desk of the Chief of Naval Operations of the Triple Alliance regarding an upcoming enemy initiative, but there isn't much clarification about it. It would seem that "Mata Hari's" sources of information have dried up.

Meanwhile, the first significant reinforcements have arrived: two large minelayers and a pair of light cruisers. Taking advantage of the former it is decided to mine extensively the Strait of Bonifacio between Corsica and Sardinia, where French warships usually transit in their raids in the Tyrrhenian Sea.

With the light forces now available, an extensive reconnaissance between Sicily and Tunisa (Strait of Sicily) is organized, while Viribus Unitis, Tegetthoff, Dante Alighieri, Giulio Cesare, Roma preceded by Goeben and CA Amalfi, plus DDs, gather to support them.

It is the morning of a clear day when Straßburg sights on the horizon, towards S, the silhouettes of four British Invincible or Indefatigable-class BCs, behind which rises a mass of smoke created by several other large ships.

Admiral Haus believes he is perfectly placed to face them, however the fight develops at first in the N direction, forcing Goeben to fight in a rearward position. She will take the opportunity to target the British Bs (two Lord Nelsons and four Duncans), which will lose two of them.

The BCs are a harder nut to crack. Evidently they do not use "suicide magazine practices", as referred to by "Mata Hari", since they take one hit after another without stopping sailing at high speed and firing all their guns. Viribus Unitis receives a hit which drops her speed to 10 knots at first and causes some flooding. She turns out of line and falls behind without contributing further to the battle, while damage also increases on Tegetthoff and the other battleships.

But in the end the effect of the greater number of large caliber guns of the Triple Alliance dreadnoughts is felt (the ratio is about 4:3 even without Viribus Unitis and Goeben). Indefatigable turns out of line and begins limping away towards Bizerta, which however she will not reach by sinking along the way.

Leaving the battered Bs behind, the British BCs head towards Malta, stubbornly pursued by Dante Alighieri and Cesare (Tegetthoff is too damaged and Goeben soon runs out of ammunition). Invincible, much damaged, is finally caught up and sunk in the night.

While the Italian BBs retreat towards Augusta in SE Sicily, after a brief clash with some British DDs, Amalfi is subjected to fire from some large ships, probably CAs, reporting damage. It is most likely Admiral Troubridge's squadron, which usually patrols the Aegean Sea at the entrance to the Adriatic Sea, arriving late to the rescue of the BCs of Malta.

The turn ends with many ships undergoing repairs, but for the first time two enemy dreadnought ships have been sunk.

Mining the Bonifacio's Strait proved to be effective because a French CL sank on that minefield. However one BB and various Bs from Toulon later have wrought havoc among the Italian transports in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Since Horthy managed to intercept a couple of large enemy merchantmen, the balance of the war on traffic waged by surface ships is less negative than usual. What submarines do in this type of warfare remains shrouded in mystery.


Battle of the Strait of Sicily - 1st phase

[vonfriedman]

Also Admiral Haus is "apoplectic"

End January 1Q15 - A meeting of the high command forces Admiral Haus and the Duca degli Abruzzi to be absent. Vice Admiral Thurn und Taxis is strongly advised not to undermine the few efficient battleships at his disposal.

But it's like talking to the wind. Thurn und Taxis does not intend to miss the opportunity to exercise command at sea and seizes the opportunity of an old request of the Austrian Foreign Ministry to make a show of strength in the Aegean Sea. So he set sail with St. Istvan, Leonardo da Vinci, Regina Elena and Vittorio Emanuele. He hopes to meet only a few British CAs there and score an easy victory.

But he has just gathered his forces, when from the naval air base of Alghero, NW of Sardinia, news begins to arrive about French warships in the area.

Thurn und Taxis is uncertain: from the reports it seems to be a few CAs and perhaps a B or two, but this information is notoriously inaccurate. On the other hand, since a bombardment has not started yet, there is enough time to reach the area, where he is almost certain to find the enemy. The cruise in the Aegean, on the other hand, could take place without seeing anyone.

The course is reversed and then changed once more when aerial reconnaissance from Cagliari reports a single BC a short distance away, to the SW. Assuming that she is a French ship bound for Bizerte, Thurn und Taxis heads for that base, and discovers two French BBs raising steam in the roadstead, under the protection of its forts.

In the meantime, night has fallen. The big ships of the Triple Alliance start patrolling offshore, while their DDs attempt a torpedo attack, which fails (two DDs lost). Suddenly, a short distance from Leonardo da Vinci, a French BB appears followed by a B. In the subsequent rapid exchange of gunfire both the Italian BB and the French ships are damaged, the former quite badly. While Leonardo da Vinci slowly retreats towards Cagliari, Thurn und Taxis is obliged escort her.

When day breaks again there is no longer a trace of the enemy. What to do? It is presumed that the French were preparing to carry out one of their sweeps in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The best thing seems to be to get close to a couple of convoys, which are known to be sailing from Genoa to Naples.

This time Thurn und Taxis got it right or almost right, because his CLs, unleashed in reconnaissance, sight a British BC followed by a B. In the few remaining hours of light an artillery duel is engaged, which sees Indomitable collect several hits.

Not being prudent - after what happened to Leonardo da Vinci - to go in search of a night battle, and also because the DDs are low on fuel, Turn und Taxis sets sail for Palermo, where he arrives safely the following morning, but with one BB less, which will be in the shipyard for months, and having lost two DDs, without having sunk any enemy ship.

The only good news comes from Horthy, who once again intercepted and sunk some merchant ships, and also from the Italian convoys, who at least this time suffered no losses.
The turn ends with a minor victory for the Entente. Admiral Haus is apoplectic.

[vonfriedman]

Stories of minefields

February 1Q15 - Reports arrive of a mining operation which the enemy intends to carry out N of Palermo.

In retaliation, it is decided to preempt the enemy and to lay a large minefield N of Bizerta using all ships capable of carrying mines. Everything runs smoothly and Bixio, Marsala, Breslau and Straßburg then proceed to prevent the opponent from carrying out a similar operation.

Warned by the torpedo boats guarding the Strait of Sicily (two of which are sunk) the CLs have no difficulty in intercepting and sinking the French minelayer Proserpine and a DD.

The rest of the day is spent patrolling the convoy routes of both friend and foe. Along the latter Horthy's CLs pick up good prey. At nightfall, while Breslau and Straßburg return to Palermo, they come across a procession of French DDs and boldly engage them in close combat, sinking three of them, with damage to a CL, but without receiving any hits from the various torpedoes launched. They had almost blatant luck, especially since, a few minutes earlier, they would have met France and Courbet, instead of the DDs.

The turn ends with a victory for the Triple Alliance, also due to the successful arrival of a fast convoy from Taranto to Tripoli. Another good news is the arrival of the new BB Prinz Eugen and a couple of DDs. This arrival equalizes the sending of the powerful BC Princess Royal to Malta.

[Historically Prinz Eugen was ready before St.Istvan - this error is already corrected in the files of the campaign in the thread A new SAI campaign.]

[vonfriedman]

All Quiet on the Mediterranean Front

End February 1Q15 - With Admiral Haus again in command, caution prevails and instead of putting to sea to carry out a sweep west of the Strait of Sicily, as was suggested by the High Command, all the dreadnoughts remain in port, while Prinz Eugen is completing training. All but one: Goeben. Also this time Rear Admiral Souchon insisted on weighing anchor together with Breslau, on the basis of a vague report of enemy CLs south of Sicily, which he supposed were headed to carry out a raid against the Italian convoys in the Tyrrhenian Sea.

"The man can't sit still for a minute" grumbles Haus.

"He will end up finding a submarine on his way and then we will laugh, or rather instead: we will cry" adds his Chief of staff.

Hours pass without apparently anything happening. In the meantime, the minelayers are busy in the Strait of Bonifacio where a minefield is laid and Rear Admiral Horthy is as always on the hunt for enemy merchant ships. And this time he will be more successful than usual.

A few days later, interesting news arrives. A French BB was sighted right in the area of the expected sweep. She would have been quite easy prey for the six battleships available for such a sweep, also because (so the informants say) she was sailing almost alone.

The turn ends with a half draw. But the hours of light are increasing, the number of battleships available is also increasing. The next few weeks will hopefully be more action-packed.


  
SMS Helgoland after setting sail from Cagliari

[vonfriedman]

A little "big day"

March 1Q15 - Thanks to Admiral Haus' caution, when yet another warning of an unspecified enemy operation arrives, five BBs, a BC, two Bs and a CA are available.

Viribus Unitis has just completed repair in Cagliari, so the assembly point is fixed SE of Sardinia. The joining of forces has not yet taken place, when warships coming from S are sighted.

It is a BB Courbet-class and a B Danton-class, which (it will be known later) were to join a stronger naval squadron from Toulon. Unfortunately for them, they instead encounter the battleships of the Triple Alliance, which in a battle of pursuit sink them one after the other. However, Dante Alighieri is damaged to the point of having to retreat towards Cagliari. As she proceeds slowly, on the opposite course Viribus Unitis is sailing at full speed to participate in the battle.

After the battle, a staff meeting is held in the admiral's cabin, to review reports of enemy movements. The situation is confusing. Horthy, while patrolling the route between Algiers and Marseilles in search of merchantmen, has came across a squadron of French CAs, from which he escaped with difficulty. The coastguards of Sicily have repeatedly reported enemy vessels SW of the island.

It is decided to sail towards the center of the Tyrrhenian Sea to protect the Italian convoys in that area, while Rear Admiral Millo's CLs will seek contact with the ships reported near Sicily. After some time Bixio, with clear weather, sights two British Bs and other warships heading north.

Haus is perfectly placed to intercept them and a few hours later old Ocean and Albion and two old CAs are sunk at the cost of Helgoland, which is torpedoed during too close an action against British DDs. Rear-Admiral Horthy is fished out dripping with fury as well as water.

With ammunition running out, all the battleships return to Palermo in the late evening, just in time to avoid a very unpleasant encounter with three French BBs arriving from Toulon or with the rest of the Mediterranean Fleet, which was also approaching.

The turn ends with a major victory for the Triple Alliance, which at this point would have accumulated the VPs needed to close the game, if the ratio of dreadnought numbers were not still in favor of the Entente. In the same turn a troopships convoy from Naples has arrived safely in Tripoli.