Battle for Sark (1899): A Light Steampunk Scenario

 Scenario

This is a steampunk scenario, extrapolated from the Victorian era to 1899.  The German Empire has a fleet of airships used as troop convoys for Sky Marines.  The Kaiser's High Command has decided that taking control of a channel island would offer strategic advantages; both Normandy and Great Britain can be monitored from a channel island.  The island of Sark was chosen.  It is small enough to be easily taken and easily defended yet large enough to serve as an airship base. The resident population of Sark is 150 people who are mostly miners and fishermen.  Sark is not a British possession.  The Channel Islands are independent but enjoy British protection.  They speak their own dialect, neither English nor French. At one time, the island was a useful base for pirates.

The airships are an important technological advance for long-distance travel.  However, Sark can be quickly reached from the British mainland by surface ship.  Also, airships have more limited capacity for freight than larger surface ships. 

The British also have a useful technological innovation.  One of their boffins invented a mortar.   This is like a small cannon that throws an explosive shell in a high ark.  Mortars are surprisingly accurate against infantry positions.

Sub-machine guns (handheld) have come into wide usage in the British army in this alt-history.   The German army developed them but does not issue them to Sky Marines because the airships lack sufficient cargo capacity to carry the extra ammunition required.

In this scenario, the Sky Marines have descended from the airship transports via ropes and have formed up on the eastern beach.  They have no horses and no artillery. British observers detected the German airship convoy en route and dispatched their own infantry by ship. The British and German units arrived at Sark simultaneously.  The British disembarked on the northwest corner of the island.  Both forces will move toward the center.

Order of Battle and Battle Plans

The Sky Marines, dressed in black uniforms, consist of one company, ten units of ten soldiers each.  They have no cavalry and no artillery. The British (brown uniforms) have a short company, six units of ten soldiers each.  Two units are mortar units and two are machine guns. All figures are 1/72 Airfix models.  One figure represents ten soldiers.  Figures are based individually.

The German mission is conquest.  Their objective is to occupy the lighthouse which is located at the highest point on the island.  (In our history, this is a windmill.) The lighthouse can be used to moor the airships and also to allow a wide range of view for incoming threats. However, the structure is small and can only hold two units inside. 

The German force intends to divide into two sections.  One will move to the street and advance toward the center of town. They will occupy the police station, use it as a command post, and take control over the weapons locker.  The other German units will move directly toward the lighthouse. They are unaware of the British force.  

The British units intend to prevent the Germans from achieving their mission.  They will occupy the police station and hold it.  They also will occupy other structures in town and fire on advancing Sky Marines. By adopting a defensive posture they are forcing the Germans to dislodge them. 

The playing field is about 60x40 inches.  The structures are HO scale. 

Rules

One Hour Wargames (Thomas 2014) is the source of the rules. Rifle hits (and mortar hits) are equal to one D6. Machine guns hit D6+2. Cover reduces hits by .5. Units located in buildings may fire in 360 degrees, meaning they can fire in any direction. Each unit can withstand 15 hits.  No event cards were used.

Battle Report

The first picture shows the view from the eastern shore where the Germans have arrived. 

The second picture shows the view from the western shore where the British have arrived.

The Germans begin advancing.  Half of their force moves rapidly up the street.

The other half is moving more slowly across broken terrain toward the lighthouse.

The British reach the police station and occupy it.  They also take possession of the lighthouse.

When the Sky Marines get within range, the two British units in lighthouse fire on them. 

The British units in the  police station caught one German unit in the middle of the street and inflicted some hits.  That unit quickly moved into the storefront on the north side of the street but additional hits took it out of action..  The other German units took cover in the cafe then moved to the next building where they were within range of the police station. 

The five Sky Marines assaulting the lighthouse prevailed over the two British units, despite the latter having the advantage of cover.  The Germans occupied the lighthouse but three of their units were outside the structure. 

The police station is now in a crossfire.  The British were able to destroy some units across the street and some units in the lighthouse, but eventually only one British unit remained in the police station.  The outcome was inevitable at this point. 

Conclusion

This battle was completed in 25 minutes.  Moving into position required several turns.  After the opposing units began exchanging fire, the larger size of the German force overcame their lack of cover.  

The 1/72 figures worked out well for me.  I will admit my bias against them was not justified.  Smaller figures allow for a less crowded field on a small surface. Since they work with HO and OO scale, trains could be added as props.  The reader will note that my battle report does not show any close-up shots of the figures.  This is because they are not painted in detail. One group is black and the other is brown. They are based on small plastic chips covered with sawdust. During game play, fine details are not visible for any figure, at least to my eyes, because of the distance from figure to eye. 

In the future, I will acquire some cavalry units and also artillery in 1/72 scale. The island of Sark might be the site for a battle between more diverse forces. However, I do not think cannon or cavalry can be carried on airships.