The Battle of Althorn Point, Part 2. "A Hard Fighting Affair"

Follows on the Heels of the Battle of Althorn Point, Part 1: Guns Up! Forward the Attack!

Messmer ponders his plans as the morning sun rises

As the other captains made ready for the engagement, Messmer took one last look at the Althorn Point Castle, quickly sketching out in his mind where the shot would fall from the gun emplacements the Armadans had placed high up in the battlements. There would be a lethal zone, to be sure, about a quarter mile out to about five hundred feet from the base of the cliff. The trick will be to move as fast as one can to the base of the target. The Gyrfalcon and the Mantua had some elevation on their turret guns, but the Lion of Cymru II had none-- it was a direct firing ship. But what guns! The Lion boasted heavier armor and heavier calibers than the two newer ships. To Captain Frye, Messmer had given orders to engage the other Ironclad, which was impossible to identify at this range-- perhaps one of those new Brawlers that were all the rage. Flamethrowers will impress anyone, he thought to himself. To Comber was given the task of standing off and shelling the artillery in the Deucalion. For once, I am lucky! thought Messmer to himself. And he was. Comber was reckoned the best man with a mortar in three fleets, and just by chance the Lady Bee had assigned him to this patrol last night. If any man could knock out those gun emplacements, it would be the tall laconic Texan. The only element that remained elusive was the creatures in the protective spheres. Were they armed? What kind of people were these? They moved fast, and that could be a threat. Messmer contemplated positioning sharpshooters on the roofs of all ships, but changed his mind. They were short handed enough without sacrificing another pair of hands for the task of shooting mermaids.

The signalman waved the ready signal on all ships, so the SILENT RUNNING flag was raised, then PROCEED. As the fog lifted along the coast of Lilliput, the four ships maneuvered into attack position.

Messmer winced to himself at the thought of what would happen if something went wrong-- he had never been one of the Queen Bee's favorites, and she had the ear of the Old Man for certain. Messmer was convinced she had been instrumental in putting her favorites forward before himself on several occasions. The Lady Bee (as Fleet Intelligence Officer Bellambi was known throughout the fleet, or alternatively as "Queen Bee") had always been a supporter of the younger officers who had come into the fleet after the transition into the seas around Lilliput. "Blast it, it's not right. I've been with the fleet since before the pact of Cape Wrath. I should be a Captain by now. Well, I'll show them.. I'll show them what a Messmer can do..."

Messmer jerked into awareness when he noticed Macintyre staring at him strangely. Had he said that last bit out loud? He had thought not.

"Yes, Boats?"

"LCDR Comber is waving from the Deucalion, sir.. he's in position to commence firing"

"Signal to commence firing at the prearranged time, and all other boats to follow into the attack."

"Yes SIR!" Macintyre's face split into a tobacco-stained grin. Like many in the Fleet of Wrath Exiles, he was spoiling for a fight after the humiliation of losing a ship to a pack of landsmen.

On the Deaucalion, Comber squinted through the rapidly clearing haze and adjusted the transversing bar on the mortar, just a smidgen to the left. The Mortar locked into fire position with a satisfying RATCHET-CLANK sound. He spat, and called out to his fire team.. "Steady, y'all.. we've not got 'em bracketed, but with this wind, and this shot here (patting the mortar barrel), I'd be plumb surprised if we didn't drop the first one right their heads"

The men grinned, excited. Comber was a popular officer with the men.

The Deucalion commences firing on Althorn Point

In the Lion of Cymru II, an older Lavanco with heavy armor and heavy guns, all was quiet. LCDR (Reserve) Harriet Frye idly worked at a crochet pattern while waiting for the order. She snorted to herself, shook her head and waited for the macho heroics to start.

LCDR (Res) Frye commands the Lion of Cyrmu II

Messmer leaned out turret of the Gyrfalcon and shouted through the speaking trumpet. Guns up! Forward the Attack!.. and the Fleet line was charging in to confront the first incursion in Lilliput space since the fleet had moved into Port Merrimac.

Almost immediately, the mortar began firing, and striking the tower close to where the guns were located. That aspect of the plan went well. The unknowns soon became evident with the quick reaction of the strange sea-creatures in small bubbles.

The Mantua charges between the enemy bubble-folk

ALL of them appeared to have a large direct firing weapon of some sort. They rushed forward swarming over, around and above the attacking ironclads firing up, sideways, down.. and generally being where the guns could not bracket them at all. "How can they fly like that?" Messmer said to himself. Apparently the sharpshooter idea would have been a good one after all, as gradually, like little gnat stings that build up and build up, the boats took more and more damage.

Flying creatures that can fire DOWN, but the Fleet could not fire UP!

The good news was that the guns in the castle were quickly silenced, through a combination of the deadly accurate fire of Comber and the excited spotting of LT Hardesty, who had laid close ashore with his Kotetsu and was firing at the wooden structure with smaller cannon barrels poking out of it.

The fort artillery, now silenced...

The bad news was that both the old Lavanco and his modern Kotetsu were taking several hits, with no effective way of returning fire against the bubble creatures. Leaks were sprung in the Gyrfalcon's prow (where she could not fire back in a blind spot) and gradually her nose started to settle in the water. Messmer put what men he could spare on the pumps and stayed with the battle as best he could-- the old Lion of Cymru II was in a bad way, sporting fires forward and aft, as she engaged in a close quarters slugging match with the enemy ironclad. Suddenly, a muffled thump as the Ammo bunker went up. Messmer crossed himself and stared out to see if there were survivors.. sure enough, Frye's crew was jumping out into the shallow waters as the burning ship settled on the sand bar.

The Lion goes up

This is beginning to resemble a fiasco, Messmer thought, as he contemplated a retreat order. Then the excited report came in from Hardesty: "All guns silenced in castle! The enemy ironclad is sinking!" This was hopeful. Messmer stood up to check his pistol and cutlass in preparation for melee ashore. At that moment, Macintyre came belting up the ladder and shouted.. "SIR! WE HAVE TO JUMP FOR IT! THE SEA'S COMING INTO THE BOILE...." And with a loud CRUMMPPP!!!! The forward turret housing shattered in a titanic steam explosion, shredding Macintyre and neatly bisecting Messmer, who departed this life with the startled and slightly pained expression that was his wont.

With the tower tops shattered and guns unseated, the wooden structure in flames and collapsing into the sea, and their sole ironclad now foundering in the shallows, the Armadan shore party did the sensible thing and ran for it. After all, had they not got what they came here for? But that was not to be revealed until another day.

Comber, being the next officer in seniority, aether signaled to the other ships to stand off as he watched the Armadan expedition depart swiftly in small wooden paddle boats. There was no point in a pursuit, he reasoned, as the fleet had achieved their objective; they had spilled Armadan blood, and had sent them running. The Mantua (still relatively untouched) and the Deaucalion sent out boats to retrieve the crew from the other ships and assess the feasibility of raising either the Gyrfalcon or the Lion of Cymru. Comber sighed to himself, pulled out his writing paper and commenced writing the dreaded after action report he would have to submit to Commodore O'Toole. The Old Man would not be happy, that much was for certain.

FINIS

(this portion)

Notes:

The actual, in world Battle of Althorn Point did take place ( Read the QA/AAR here), as what we call a "Scenario or Role play Battle" where both sides make up a plausible story and sketch out the logistics of how a fracas might start. Then the battle sort of unfolds from there, let the chips fall where they may. The actual battle(s) were pretty fast, being concluded in about 40 minutes, so we ran it twice. The first time was a draw, the second time more conclusive, somewhat according to the fictional result you see above. In both instances the tower guns died, but we had better results the second time and I wrote from that result, which seemed more dramatic.

The following roles were played by these people:

LCDR James Messmer: Hotspur Otoole
LCDR Harriet Frye: Nabila Nadir
LCDR Wade Comber: Justinian Huszar
LT Jake Hardesty: MrBunwah Murakami
Expedition Boss Trafalgar: Viv Trafalgar
Dig Boss: Kat Monpark

My personal thank you and commendations to the Armada people, who are a lot of fun to have fun with.

Photographs: Mako Kungfu, Viv Trafalgar, Hotspur Otoole, Nabila Nadir

A Proper Rock.

Lunar's been monkeying a bit with the textures of the Eyrie, and now it would appear to be a proper rock, not an upswelling of a golf course with daisies on it coming out of the ocean. I rather like it. Kind of dark and forboding, don't you think?

The Hunt for Gollum

Sorry this is so big, but you loose something if you resize it. I saw this at a recent science fiction convention, and I loved it. Very reminiscent of a certain P_t_r J_cks_n's film style.

Burning Safari

Burning Safari from acidcore on Vimeo.

The Battle of Tsushima

Since Giant Pre-Dreadnought warships seem to becoming en vogue in Steampunk sims in Second Life, YHN would like to share these wonderful screen shots from the graphical upgrade to an older computer wargame on the last pre-dreadnought battle to take place, Tsushima, between Russia and Japan. See the Russo-Japanese War Society page for more detail on the battle and R-J War. The game is called DISTANT GUNS and more information can be found here. Being something of a fan of the Pre-Dreadnought period, and having just finished a pictorial on Tsushima from Osprey publishing, I can attest that the computer graphics artist, Mr. Norm Koger, got it mostly right. These are lovely pictures.

Pictures Courtesy of a screen shot pack sent to me from Storm Eagle Studios, publisher of DISTANT GUNS!, a computer wargame on the naval phase of the Russo Japanese war.

Guns up, Forward the Attack!

Follows "The Punishment Fleet" approximately 16 hours later

(Part 1 of 2)
On a grey misty morning, a tiny patrol force steered homeward with coal bunkers depleted, and nary a shot fired. Two Kotetsu class ironclads led the way followed by a Lavanco and a Tyran mortar boat. The leader of the patrol was unhappy.

LCDR James Montgomery Messmer, Fleet of Wrath Exiles, stood on top of the forward turret of his Kotetsu class ship, the Gyrfalcon. "Just great", he mused to himself. "Stuck with patrolling vast amounts of nowhere, in search of some Object that is probably a rumor anyway". His bosun, Macintyre, had called him forward to have a look through the glass. "

What is it, Boats?" Messmer snapped.

"People, sir... leastwise, they looks like people, mostly-like.."

LCDR James Montgomery Messmer, FWE

Most assuredly, there were little grey shapes swarming all over Althorn Point's old abandoned Citadel. The Fleet leadership had petitioned the Autocrat to beef up the defenses and repair some of the interior so that a credible artillery position could be placed there, commanding the southwest corner of Lilliput. The Autocrat had demurred, saying the old citadel had been in his family for generations, and he had no desire to change the look of the old fort. And now, what was this? A work party? Why all the small boats on the beach, then? This looked like a raiding party. "Look, sir! The Grey flag what Commander Bellambi taught us to keep an eye out fer!"



Sure enough, it was the flag flown by the Object, as had been briefed by Fleet Intelligence this morning before they had all set off on the great Goose Chase. This made up Mesmmer's mind instantly. He snapped his telescope shut abruptly and hailed for the signalman: Captains close up, prepare to receive instructions.

The temerity of these ragamuffins. Actually landing on Lilliput! It had been tried before, but never this brazenly.

Messmer slammed his scope shut and set his semaphore man to halt the patrol out of sighting distance, then waved the "Captains aboard" sequence. Shortly thereafter, three rowboats were pulling quickly for the Gyrfalcon. Messmer paced the fantail excitedly waiting for them to arrive. Lieutenant Commander Wade Comber from the mortar ship Deucalion, Lieutenant Commander (reserve) Harriet Frye from the Lion of Cymru II, and younger Lieutenant Jake Hardesty of the Mantua.
Frye shook off Hardesty's attempted gallantry of an offered hand up the side ladder, with a prim sniff. Soon, they were all clustered around Messmer, and he began excitedly.

"Gentlemen! We are in a unique position here this morning. We have identified a smallish landing force ahead of us at Althorn Point. These are not an authorized landing force from Lilliput, they are flying the Grey flag last sighted at the Armada "Object" by Commander Lamunda. Our last orders were given to us by CDR The Lady Bellambi, which were in the nature of a reconnaissance role. We are a small force, this is true, but I propose to engage them in any event. "

Comber, the native Texan, spoke first, his distinctive drawl drawing out the vowels. "Sir, what are their forces? Any 'clads?"
"I can make out one opposition ironclad. There appears to be a sizable force of small sea-creature hominids along with the ironclad, out in the ocean in some sort of protective sphere shapes. Add to that what appear to be two working Dhalgren guns shifted to the tower and a structure they've build with lighter ordinance."

Comber nodded, spitting tobacco juice over the side. "Aye sir, I think we can take 'em"

LCDR Frye spoke up. "I am in the reserve, gentlemen, and perhaps my voice may not carry the same weight as yours..." she began, tenuously..

"Pray speak freely, Frye"

"It's just that we need to respect the spirit, if not the letter, of the orders for scouting that The Lady Bee left us, sir."
"Damnation, Frye.. we are a fighting force. Those people..." Messmer waved airily down the beach in the general direction of Althorn tower at this statement "Those people are violating the prime requirement for our presence here at Port Merrimac! Our standing order of home defense has priority over scouting!"
"Sir? A suggestion?" This from LT Hardesty. "I have some of the Lady Bee's oceanographic measuring apparatus on board the Mantua, you know, for collecting hydrographic samples? Complete with a pigeon coop full of three messenger birds."

"Birds? Why not use the Aethergraph?"

"Sir, wouldn't they be listening? I know I would.. and we don't want to give away the game early do we?"

"Excellent point, Hardesty, here, hand me that foolscap".

It took fifteen minutes of quiet quarterdeck conversation, but they had the workings of a decent battle plan sketched together quickly. The Deucalion to take station about half a kilometer back, on the edge of mortar range. The Mantua to spot for him as forward observer, correcting shots as they fell via semaphore signal, as well as contribute to the assault. Lion II and Gyrfalcon to attack the enemy ironclad as well as shore facilities that could be reached with direct fire weapons. Engage for 15 minutes, withdraw on Messmer's orders or if the Deucalion is taken. The battle plan was hurriedly summarized in a small message form, attached to the leg of a messenger bird, and sent to Port Merrimac.

Slowly, the ironclads moved to take up position on the borders of the Great Dismal Swamp. Messmer nodded to Macintyre, who raised the Red Wrath Battle signal:

"Guns UP! Forward the Attack!"

and the little patrol steamed forward at top speed.

Far in the distance, a far more lighthearted group of spectators were gathering in the surf of Althorn Point.



Expedition Boss Trafalgar waved at the merfolk sporting in the surf, and turned to speak to Dig Boss Montpark. Her carefree grin, worn to keep the mers from getting worried, quickly left her face. "Are you close? We have outstayed our welcome here. The Rats will be upon us soon-- you know this is too close for them to accept our presence lightly"

Montpark adjusted her goggles and put down her pick, to dust off her smock before speaking. "Can ye give me about an hour more? We're that close! I sense a great huge open space beyond where we are now.. "



Trafalgar nodded gravely. "I shall double shot the cannon up here in the tower. I suspect we may have to leave a little artillery here if we need to leave in a hurry. The Mer folk are riding the perimeter, if I can get them to pay attention long enough, and will give us sufficient warning. When that is given, You and the diggers high out of there, finished or nay, and man a gun, d'ye hear me?"

Montpark nodded, then excused herself to attack the foundation again.

Trafalgar called down to the pitiful handful she had left to crew the tower defense.

"Hey, you lot! We've been here for a full day. We're pressing our luck as it is. Get on your posts and start sighting your cannon. We'll be lucky to withdraw without engaging the Rats in a full up fight"



The mixed crowd grinned jeeringly (the closest one comes to military discipline in Armada Township) and slouched over to their guns.

It was, of course, one of the mers that gave early warning that the patrol was approaching. And by that time, it might well have been too late, as shot and shell were landing in the fort directly.

To be continued in part 2, "A hard fighting affair"

Photographs: Mako Kungfu, Viv Trafalgar, Hotspur Otoole, Nabila Nadir

Killer Bumper Boats for the Kure

YHN held a little soiree at Port Merrimac last evening, in honor of the Relay For Life charity. The event was set up as a CAPTURE THE FLAG GAME using Miss Kandace Commons' simple and elegant capture the flag system. Essentially, CTF enabled boats have a special sensor enabled to allow them to recognize the goal buoys (red and blue).


The venue was Port Merrimac, the Nautical crossroads of the Steamlands


A red team and a blue team were chosen, mostly at random, and stragglers were assigned to different sides as they showed up.



The doughty Red Team lines up, raring to go!


Luminaries from the Red Side included Lady Eva Bellambi, Lady Autopilotpatty Poppy, MrBunwah Murakami and Mr. Exrex Somme.


Mr. TotalLunar Eclipse, of the Blue team, demonstrates how to make a run up the backfield with a stolen red beacon (e.g., "flag").


The action heats up!


Exrex shows the Blue team how to sneak one past the Reds. This can be extra difficult when the opposing side is floating around on tiny boats with ICS Heavy Cannons to sink each other's boats with.


Keeping his eyes on the Prize, Mr. Somme dashes by with a flag beacon..


Both red and blue beacons are in play...

End Game: Red 20, Blue 18

And we raised money for cancer research! Hurrah!

RePost: Developments for Naval Warfare

The boys in the back room, as I call MrBunwah and Justinian, have been working on TWO projects that are near and dear to the heart of YHN.

I've maintained for a long time that ICS powered Shore batteries are a good thing. The boys in the back room have finally packaged three working, robust and deadly shore batteries that have been scripted, tested and should soon be packaged for delivery-- either by Xstreet or at the shop under the sea wall at Port Merrimac.



There's a cannon and a mortar. They blow up when shot. This could be very useful for scenario specific RP battles, or just a different kind of Iron Melee night.

The other item that is imminent, but not ready yet, is the USS/CSS Queen of the West. The Queen is an example of an Ellet Ram ship, and is perhaps the most famous of the Ellet Ram Fleet, in that she was commissioned by the U.S. Army (not Navy, who wanted no part of Ellet Rams), served valiantly in the Riverine warfare in the Western theater, ran aground under bombardment and was captured by Confederates. Thereupon she was patched up and resumed her career as a the ram CSS Queen of the West.

The Historical QotW smashes through an opponent at the Battle of Memphis

YHN tried making a Queen of the West early on, and did not care for the attempt. He has sufficiently bugged Justinian to give it a try and now the work approaches completion. The ICS Queen of the West will be an analogue for her historic counterpart; light in structure, fast, with a huge ram, one medium and two light guns. This will be a ship for the Ram-happy among us.



YHN is greatly pleased that the boys in the backroom are working on revising and rescripting their oldest historical ships, and even adding gems like the Queen to the Civil War line. All hail the Queen.

The Battle of Althorn Point, QA

Technical notes: A full-up RP post will follow in proper RP voice as time allows. This is more of a quick narrative with some observations and QA stuff all sides agreed to later. Thank you for pictures from Nabila Nadir and Viv Trafalgar, I had settings dialed back for less "crashiness".

Summary of RP Narrative:

Dateline Roatan: A small patrol of ironclads, led by the embittered LCDR James Montgomery Messmer, FWE, is returning from long range patrol in the waters near Dismal Swamp. The patrol consists of Two Kotetsu, a Lavanco and a Tyrann Mortar Boat. This was the patrol mentioned at the end of the Punishment Fleet post. Messmer has ordered a return, perhaps earlier than usual, as his coal bunkers are getting low. Ammunition supplies are full. Messmer is a complainer by nature and a bit of a stick, but he is still a professional, and he would not have his patrol endangered by running low on fuel. The patrol discovers a small landing party at Althorn Point flying the flags described flying on "the Object" in Lamunda's report. There are humans about, but also some form of sea creatures, in shiny bubbles of water that are floating .. moving fast.. on the water. The mer people attack viciously upon sight and engage using a very rapidly firing pistol at close range. There are rapid fire guns mounted on the tower as well. Messmer formulates a battle plan on the spot, and it's not bad. Tyrann to hold back and engage the artillery at a distance. Kotetsus and Lavanco forward to engage close. And thus, the battle is joined.

QA NOTES:

I enjoyed playing with the Armada crowd. This is my kind of thing, setting up a scenario and turnign it into a battle. We all had a blast, everyone was very sportsmanlike and nobody had to be "called down" for anything. The perfect battle no matter what the result, in my opinion.

Setups: Armada had a tower to defend. We put up targets to shoot at that were ICS enabled. I'm not sure if that worked or not, the guns should stop firing when the target says "destroyed". As I did get an IM from Viv saying "Guns out" both times, I assume this worked well as a means of counting victory for our side.

Wrath had their Mortar Ship to defend, which didn't go down either time. We improvised a "Forward Observer" as best we could. The other ships did go down, though, far quicker than I would have liked, and part of that is the nature of the mer-weapons. They do fire a tad to quickly and as the firing target is so small and fast moving it's almost impossible to hit them. An ICS ship just can't react quickly enough in Second Life. My suggestion might be to have someone with a mouseviewing ICS gun along to engage mers with. I have also spoken with Jasper about the pistols and Viv about the bubbles.

Communications were by shouting and IM. If we fight another one at Lilliput, I'll attempt to use the state channel if possible, as it's critically important for action to cease when the HOLD!!! order is shouted.

Victory: Outcomes were pretty straightforward. We gave the first battle a draw, as our last vessel other than the mortar went down before HOLD was called, and the second one was a Wrath victory as the tower, a gun, the phalanx, and the other side's ironclad were all dispatched before we lost our third non-mortar ship. All present agreed to these results in good humor.

In sum, The Wraths greatly enjoyed this event and are willing to host more in the future. I am already speaking with Viv about a projected round two and will follow up on it. I wish to thank everyone for showing up and enthusiastically participating in good spirits and sportsmanship. You all make it a pleasure to work on these events.

Hotspur

Proud to roleplay with grownups!

OOCly: That's not the community *I* live in

An out of character moment from "YHN": I was more than a bit floored about the eddying currents in Steelhead this week, which came into focus today in an IM with one of the participants, Dr. Mason. Then I had his blog post pointed out to me.

I rather doubt my comment will be published in the blog itself, given the good Doctor's track record with anything critical-- so here's my version. As the anonymous friend cited in this post, I just want to publicly state I don't support Dr. Mason's views. I was pretty ignorant of the events as described until he relayed them to me today. I reassured Darien that GeeGees squabbling with each other is not a fracas I wish to dip my toe into, and I won't. This post isn't about the GeeGees, its about assuming you represent a community.

I find the bullying, spiteful manner in which this post has been written to not be representative of the general atmosphere of Steelhead City, (where I also live). I like to think we Steelheadites are more welcoming to strangers than the text that is represented there and I would caution the casual reader that our management doesn't kick and ban with the glee that is referred to in "Ignore him...". Please, please, don't assume the Steelhead Community is like this. It's not.

Dare I say it, the very fanbase and associated intellectual property he is 'defending" here might not wish to be associated with these events, but I'm the last guy to ask about it.

Personally, I would not wish to be associated with this kind of intolerance. That is all I have to say on the matter, it's not my dispute (other than this small sliver after the fact).

H.

P.S. Before the outraged emails start, sure, Darien and I are friends. But friends have differences of opinion, too. A real friend points it out.

P.P.S. Text of post on Dr. Mason's blog, as the original has been deleted.

Punishment Fleet

Follows The Court Martial of LCDR Lamunda closely.

The moon shone brightly on the waters of the Blakes Sea as the Retribution Task Force gathered steam. I looked down the hatchway at CDR Bellambi and the duty navigation officer. They seemed worried.

"Everything shipshape, Commander?"

"I'm worried about the wind, sir, it's picking up. We have not way of determining if this will affect the location of the Object."

"We shall do the best we can, Commander, with what we have. It's a miracle we even have a bearing on this Object. You've done a credible job, Commander. I'm giving the order."

I wasn't worried. I was gleeful! We had not seen action of this sort in many a month. I leaned out the control cabin of the borrowed Tyrian and pulled the lanyard on the steam whistle. Once, twice, then two together quickly. MAKE STEAM! Follow in battle line!

Slowly the fleet of somewhat groggy officers (recently toasting Lamunda's success in escaping severe career damage in court martial) brought boilers to the true operational pitch, and formed a long battle line. I wish we had air cover for this mission, but I would not risk one of Jonas' airships for spotting fire with the wind picking up. I would regret leaving him home in a few hours, but at the time I was blisfully ignorant... aye, and perhaps a tad overconfident.

Lavancos trailing, and Kotetsus on flank, with the mortar ships in the center-- always delicate hulls, those.

We picked up steam, and crossed to the East of Althorn Point, dipping our flags to the Autocrat's office as we passed it. I could see his lone figure on the observation deck of his mansion, silently staring out to sea as the Retribution Task Force gradually picked up steam to a level that all ships could maintain at a steady head of steam, with an interception point of 1.5 hours.

I gave the wheel to the helmsmen, and went down to the captain's quarters to use his chart table as a desk. A seaman already had coffee ready. I nodded thanks.

As we steamed south, I pondered a note I noticed in my inbox just as we were walking out the door. A large cream colored note with an odd red wax seal. Not giving it much of a glance, I stuffed it in my jacket as we were running out to board ship.

Well, I had about an hour.

I slit the wax seal, and read the message. "To the Commodore of the Fleet of Wrath Exiles, from a leading citizen in the community you refer to as the Object"

That had my attention.

"It has come to my attention that you have visited our fair city at least once in the past few weeks, and might consider doing so again, perhaps this time with a little surprise." I winced, for this was a job I was reserving for Lamunda, but this time with several pounds of dynamite.

"If you attempt incursion to our territory through that avenue of approach, you might find it blocked next time. Or perhaps not, if you will lend an ear to my proposal."

"There is a certain troublesome individual that has blocked certain projects of mine at Armada. You would be doing myself (oh, and Armada) a great service if, somehow, she were to go missing in the attack that surely looms. I would wish to meet with you in advance of this attack to discuss certain matters of mutual benefit to both our communities. Signed..."

And an illegible scrawl followed.

I looked at the sheet, puzzled. What the devil? Still, one should never discard a useful tool. I set that down in my portfolio and went back on deck. The moon was at its height now and the Object, what they called ARMADA, should be hoving into view.. NOW.

Nothing.

I looked around the horizon, first with the naked eye, then with the Night-Glass.

Still Nothing.

"YOUR LADYYYYSHIP!"

CDR Bellambi appeared instantly to my bellow. I was calm.

"Madame, scan the horizon. We are at the coordinates you gave us. Where's the Object?"

For the first time in a long time, she appeared less than certain.

"Commodore, I have no idea. Based upon what we know of projected course, state of the sea, wind and tide, THIS IS WHERE SHE SHOULD BE."

"Hmph. Well, madame, I will not waste precious coal on this fool's errand. We've been humbugged, it seems. Signal Fleet orders. Set course for Port Merrimac, return to base. Leave a Tyran and a few direct fire Ironclads out on long patrol, your choice, and the body of the fleet to return home at once."

"Aye, sir. May I suggest LCDR Messmer on the GYRFALCON, with Comber on the Mortar boat DEAUCALION and maybe some of the youngsters and reservists for seasoning?"

"Aye, he's an aggressive commander, to say the least. If they're out here, he'll find them and return word. See to it."

I leaned out the control window of the Tyrann to get some fresh air. An ironclad can get rather stale after two hours underway at three-quarters turn of the screw.

I looked out at the water, in the general direction of where the Object (Armada, I must learn to call it that) should be. Was it my imagination, or were there lights UNDER the water, flashing back and forth?

I shook my head. Trick of the light, to be sure.

I sighed, gulped my coffee, and returned to the Captain's stateroom, to finish my coffee and ponder this unusual communication I had just received. We would not bombard Armada today. But the day would come, I knew it as sure as I was sitting here.

The Battle of Althorn Point, Parts 1 and 2, follow about 16 hours later

The Court Martial of LCDR Lamunda

Follows "Prepare the Riposte" closely.

The bosun whistle called out the long dolorous note that indicates a summoning into a court martial. LCDR Dorien Lamunda stepped in to the jury rigged courtroom, accompanied by an escort and CAPT Huszar of the BUFFALO. His back was ramrod straight; he strode forward the measured ten paces, removed his sword, and placed it, hilt first, towards the panel of myself, CAPT Somme (Operations) and CDR The Honorable Lady Bellambi (Fleet Intelligence). Boots crashing together, he came to attention as the Lady Bellambi read the charges.

(mouse over embedded slide presentation to see captions)

"MISTER Lamunda, you are hereby under review for the incident on the tenth of the previous month, where the FWES SHANNON, under your command, was lost in the waters south of Port Merrimac, under combat. You understand that it is a procedural matter that all combat losses are placed under senior court martial review, and that the charges (if any are brought) are of a serious and substantive nature?"

Lamunda nodded. I leaned over to Somme, who was taking notes. "Witness indicates affirmative. Proceed, Lady Bellambi"

"Very good. Therefore, you answer the following review at your peril, as an officer and gentleman of the Fleet of Wrath Exiles. Please explain, for starters, the events of 10th of last month, in your own words, with no embellishments."

Lamunda's singsong islands accent rose somewhat as he recounted the events of the sinking of the Shannon. He had admirable poise for this situation, but I have a sense for these things, and I knew he was nervous. As he damned well ought to be.

Lamunda recounted the events as he had witnessed them-- from his perspective. How he had encountered "The Object" (now known to be a pirate's den called "Armada Breakaway") far to the South. How it appeared to be the flotsam of many sea wrecks, and how his first instinct was to lend assistance of a humanitarian nature.

I interjected at that stage. "All very commendable, Mr. Lamunda. Now, pray tell the court.. How far away were you when you hailed the structure?"

"About five cable lengths, sir"

"As close as that, eh? And your narrative states (glancing at Somme to confirm) that you could clearly see figures, quote, "Swarming all over the upper works" of this Object, yes?"

"Correct, sir"

"So you mean to say, you were within hailing range (certainly within speaking-trumpet range) of this Object, and they gave you no response as you approached under flag?"

"Again, Correct, sir"

"Hmmmm.. Did this not give you pause to wonder?"

"Of course, sir. I came to the conclusion they didn't speak our language, sir."

"Quite possibly a conclusion I might have arrived at. OR, perhaps, they wished to stall for time as they were luring you into range, could that be another interpertation?"

Lamunda looked sick. "Yes, Sir"

"And what were CAPT Huszar and the BUFFALO doing at this time? "

"I had command of the patrol sir, and signaled I would approach the Object under a flag of parley, whilst CAPT Huszar would remain 8 more cables outward."

"Out of range of most cannon, very prudent, sir" I snapped.

He continued. "We approached under white flag of parley, not seeing any obvious gunports on the structure. As we rounded the eastern edge of the Object, many gun ports in the oddest locations opened up, revealing guns of assorted calibers and bores. They commenced a steady bombardment of the SHANNON, which had steam up and cannons loaded, so we engaged them back quickly"

"To what effect sir, to what effect? How well did a Wrath Ship of recent design do in this situation?"

He looked downcast.

"Not well, Sir. We managed to stove in the wooden wall of one of the structures, and unseat at least three cannon, and start a fire, but the structure was too large, with two many intersecting fields of fire, and their cannon were too high up for our guns to bear"

"How long were you engaged?"

"It would seem an hour, sir, but we returned fire for ten minutes as we were reversing out of the sort-of harbor they have there."

"That bears up with CAPT Huszar's account. And where was he?"

"Steaming to assist, sir. He had the Object under fire quickly. However, when the giant Fear Engine showed up, we knew both of us were outclassed in gunnery, and we should retreat to keep our ships."

"Did you engage the other ship?"

"It was more a matter of it engaging us, sir. The Shannon had taken many hits already, and when the Fear Engine's shell hit us beat the juncture of turret and frame, that put paid to the structural integrity of the hull. We started to take on water fast, and when seawater poured into the engine room, I knew she was lost."

"Yes, I heard there were some scalding injuries.. how many?

"Two sir"

"Yes, one of them Cadet Asturias, the Autocrat's nephew, I hear?"

Again, he looked miserable.

Somme got him to recount the evacuation of the ship, which was well done, I thought, considering an enemy ironclad was bearing down upon him and the ship was rapidly foundering and in flames.

CAPT Huszar, his usual laconic expression far more worried and animated than usual, gave his testimony, which confirmed Lamunda's words.

CDR Bellambi inquired into the structure, what can be discerned about power sources, forms of motive power, and most especially the caliber, number and range of their weaponry. She took copious notes.

I banged the gavel. "You may retire to outside until called for, MISTER Lamunda."

Lamunda about faced and walked outside with Huszar, his sword still on the table, hilt first.

I turned to confer with the other court martial board members. Somme pointed out the cost of the Shannon, Lamunda's youthful age and less experience than Huszar, questioning his command in this situation. The Lady Bellambi nodded, looking worried. I know she has a soft spot for these younger officers from the post-Middlesea era. Lamunda is particularly popular amongst the younger crowd, being friendly and energetic. It would be a damned shame to ruin him.

"Call them in, Bosun"

The whistle blasted and Lamunda returned under escort, other officers trailing behind.

I rose to my feet to give the verdict.

"MISTER Lamunda. It is the opinion of this court that you did behave recklessly on the day of the tenth of last month, in approaching the so-called Armada Breakaway Object, and did engage the enemy without intelligence as to his strength or intention. As a result of your decisions, a ship was lost, and almost a crew. This IS a matter that the court will take seriously. However, there are mitigating circumstances, humanitarian concerns, and none of the court assembled can clearly state that you did NOT act in accordance to standard orders for patrolling the Blake's Sea. My only fault, and it is a serious one, is that you placed your crew and ship in jeopardy by approaching the object too closely, and falling for what was clearly a ruse. We have lost a ship. You will take this lesson to heart. I am, therefore, docking you a month's pay, less meals and uniform allowance. You will, however, retain your rank and full responsibility of a Commander in the Fleet of Wrath Exiles."

His face lit up, involuntarily.

I reached over, and reversed his sword.

"You are out of uniform, LCDR Lamunda. Your sword is returned to you. Always bear it with honor in service."

Tears welled up in his eyes as he gazed at the hilt reversed. He reached down, and swiftly returned it to its scabbard, and saluted, his voice cracking.

"Th.. Thank you, Sir"

I saluted back. "Excellent effort pulling them off, Dorien. Try not to lose any more ships, lad. Now, off with you! We have a bombardment to plan, GET TO YOUR STATION, sir! We will meet to discuss your assignment shortly."

Lamunda's sad countenance was replaced with a grin as he about faced and marched out with Huszar and some of the other young officers. I studiously avoided noticing the very loud cheering from several young officers congregated outside as they noticed the sword on his belt and epaulets still on his shoulders.

Somme smiled. "You always were a tad soft-hearted, O'Toole. Let's hope you don't have a soft head, too!"

"Oh, he's shaping well. Neat trick to pull the crew off like that, under fire. We'll make something of him, yet!"

CDR the Lady Bellambi nodded. "he is shaping well, as are all of the officers of this generation. We have put down good roots hear in Roatan".

I grinned at her. "We shall allow them exactly two hours to buy Lamunda drinks at the Officer's mess and tell him what a clever fellow he is to escape the Ogre's wrath. After that, it's every captain to his ship and get steam up. We've lost a lot of time on this, and I mean to sail as soon as the tide breaks tonight! Is the Reprisal Fleet ready?"

She nodded. "Fully loaded, extra mortar rounds, extra rounds, full coal bunkers, fires banked for quick steaming".

I looked at Somme and Her Ladyship. "Tonight, we will sally forth and give them something to encourage them to ply their trade in other waters."

next: The Punishment Fleet

A Modest Proposal for Sim Owners

One strives for harmony in virtual communities in Second Life, but so rarely gets it. There are many reasons for this. YHN has noticed that all too often the bone of contention is the main chat channel. This can be a controversial tool. Some people expect it to be an outlet for socializing. Others use it to play at roleplaying (and inflict it upon others), while others just wish to get announcements without a lot of fuss and drama-- yet still be part of the same community. All approaches are valid-- and in Second Life, at least, all can be accommodated.

This is just a working idea that YHN was experimenting with the other evening.... Some people don't wish to roleplay 24/7/365 Yet, let's say these hypothetical people wish to stay part of the community, just not deal with constant chat windows full of people flirting, or engaging in mindless chatter, or the latest round of "Let's seek attention". A diplomatic approach is possible-- YHN tested it out some nights ago.

Anyone who joins a community group is automatically assigned to "Everyone" role as a function of SL Groups and they can't get be removed from the Everyone role. Yet an administrator can play with the rights assigned to that role, and set it so everyone CAN'T ACCESS THE MAIN CHAT WINDOW, or have it pop up. Call them the "Silent" role See Figure 1 on the right hand side, top.

What if there was a second role, "The Garrulous" role or "Chatting Citizens" role or whatever, that DID have this function assigned to it. Chat windows would automatically open for them as a regular function. See Figure 2 on the right hand side, bottom. Now here's the kicker.. when citizens join a community they are assigned to both ROLES (above and beyond any special ones they might have other than these). The group member can switch off between "Chatty" and "Silent" mode in the GROUP INFO window. This is accomplished by a right click on your own avatar, selecting groups, selecting the specific group, then group info. There is a small drop down for "Role" on the bottom right. The average user could select "Silent" or "Chatty" accordingly and STILL GET GROUP ANNOUNCEMENTS, without having to mute a lot of people he or she is finding incredibly annoying.


In this fashion, both the people who like to hear themselves (read themselves) talk and the people who cherish the blessed silence will participate in a community at the level they are comfortable with, with a lot less discord and griping. If a citizen wishes to take a little "vacation" from what he or she perceives to be an omnipresent negative, the option to go from being a "Chatty Citizen" to a "Silent Citizen" is held intact. Voila, community harmony is maintained, and one could always switch back later, when feeling less monkish.

Update: Zatzai writes: "Did you test to see if it works? My understanding is people are always given their cumulative group abilities. So if they were in a silent and chatter role, regardless of what tag they wore they would still hear and be able to chat." I did test this, with a volunteer who was kicked out of chat as EVERYONE but could post to chat as the specialized role for chatting. Since I switched him to the specialized role, he was in both groups at the same time. What I didn't test was the option of him switching group roles manually to see if that worked (good catch!). Stay tuned, I'll check this part of the puzzle out.

TANJ: There Ain't No Justice*

The EVE ONLINE CONTEST mentioned earlier in this journal has concluded, and YHN did not win it. This is no great loss, as he had no burning desire for a new Eve Online keychain and a month of free playing time, but because what DID end up winning wasn't as good as the runner up... I rather liked "Divide by Zero." The Care Bears joke was lost on me.

* Post title taken from the excellent Larry Niven's Known Space series, where it is used as an epithet occasionally.

Smallboys Iron Melee: Distinguished Guests

Last night's iron melee was something new under the sun. We chose red and blue teams, as we did two weeks ago, but ran it with one Brawler each as "the big ship" and the rest were Mosquitoes on each side. The Brawlers were targets, for the most part, as they couldn't fire at paddle boats unless at a great distance. They could "Ronson" the little ships, however; Commodore Dagger of the Reds charbroiled my boat with one lucky shot, and I had to finish the round with 98 per cent damage... which was tricky!

Blues continued their winning streak over Reds, taking both rounds. Commodore Peterman (nee' Nadir) of Steelhead helmed the Blues, Commodore Dagger of New Babbage led the Reds.



We're learning the important lessons: support each other, stay moving all the time, go for the biggest threat in a combined attack.



I managed to take out Commodore Dagger in her Brawler, with the combined help of three people attacking her ship and keeping the gun pointing one way while the Brawler got attacked somewhere else. I'm loving the "Swarm of weanies" attack the mosquitoes are capable of.. being so low in the water, they are hard to shoot at. Once hit, they go down like a rock, which makes for a nice balanced ship design. Thank you, Miss Commons, thank you!



We had some distinguished guests upon returning from Battle One-- Blue Linden and Teagan Linden. They took pictures and followed developments at Port Merrimac with interest. I think Blue Linden was pleased that we are making such excellent use of Linden water; he seemed disappointed that we couldn't carry the fight into the Blakes Sea, as we had hoped we might.

In any event, Battles One and Two were excellent fun and just what the doctor ordered after a week's hiatus. Fine smash'em ups indeed.