Ships of the Line

Swift Class Aerial Monitor (200 tons)

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The Swift gunboats are an experimental attempt to increase safety for British shipping in the Oenotrian border regions, especially near the foothills of the Shistomik Mountain range. While it bears a resemblance to the slightly smaller Aphid class, it learns from the lessons taught by previous Martian experience. It has the same armor, allowing it to ignore the effects of the smaller Martian cloudship guns, but in addition, it also armors all its guns, including its complement of four Nordenfelts. This was done to protect the relatively small crew complement from damage that the ship would otherwise ignore. Aphids have a poor reputation for crew safety, sometimes limping home in good condition, but with decimated crews, the open gun mounts making them easy prey to hostile fire. The Swift also uses the new forced draught steam engines, which allow it sufficient speed to evade almost all ramming attempts, as well as being able to pursue and overtake all known vessels in the colonies. Three Hale rocket batteries provide short range firepower, and the 3" HRC's, while small, have a high rate of fire, and are sufficient to wreak havoc on the poorly protected Martian vessels which the Swift was designed to combat.

Critics of the Swift complain that it does not have enough long range weaponry, and its altitude limitations render it vulnerable to attacks by the Martian Fire so common on larger vessels. Also, since it has only one Marine observer, it is especially vulnerable to being boarded. These criticisms are largely ignored at this point, since it is not designed to assault the crag keeps of the High Martians, and its batteries of Nordenfelts should be sufficient to discourage all but the most suicidal of boarding parties. Also, if this should become a problem, the Hale batteries can be easily dismounted, which would provide sufficient room for a temporary complement of six more Marines, quite enough for a vessel of this size.

Impenetrable Class Aerial Monitor (1000 tons)

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The Impenetrable is largest vessel currently under construction at the Syrtis Major shipyards. While not the largest vessel in Martian use, she will be the most heavily armored. In fact, the armor plating of the hull is too complex for the limited facilities on Mars, and the vessel is being shipped piece by piece from Birmingham, and assembled on site. As expected, this is a very costly undertaking, and the Foreign Office has drawn considerable fire from the liberal press for this "escalation of warlike tendencies" and "waste of money". The official rationale for the Impenetrable is that a vessel impervious to Martian weapons will prove the futility of native resistance, and once and for all stop the insurrections and piracy on British shipping that are now a major problem. Indeed, only the heaviest of Martian weapons can penetrate the hide of this vessel, while her complement of weapons is sufficient to destroy many Martian vessels in a single broadside. While not the awesome guns of water-bound ironclads, they are able to penetrate the armor of any foreign naval vessel currently in use. It is exactly these qualities which makes it such a destabilizing influence. Many fear that a vessel impenetrable by Martian weapons will drive the rebellious factions into the arms of some other nation which can supply them with heavier weapons, leading eventually to all-out warfare.

Critics of the design note its lack of heavy armament, altitude restrictions, and small complement of marines, all necessary sacrifices to achieve the extraordinary level of armor on the vessel. To its credit, it has a normal 20 day steaming range, a highly respectable top speed, and sufficient staying power to survive battles against more heavily armed opponents.

On the current construction schedule, observers note that it will be approximately 18 months before the Impenetrable can be launched, not counting delays due to public sentiment, economics, or potential problems with demagnetizing such a large mass of metal to avoid premature liftwood deterioration.

Swiftwing Courier (83 tons) - Screw galley

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Oenotrian factions battling the British are hampered not only by the tenacity of the Colonial army, but also by the age and tradition of their race. Unable or unwilling to change to more modern technologies, they require vastly superior numbers in any sort of military engagement, and still take frightful losses on occasion. However, not all Martians are hidebound by the ancient traditions, and some very few are learning lessons from colonial forces. Some of the first signs of this are shown in the Swiftwing, a ship built solely for high speed transport of cargo or important persons. Some seventy-five percent of the vessel is taken up with slave turncranks, giving the Swiftwing an extraordinary burst speed of 25 knots. This is also partially due to improvements in their airscrews, the design appearing a direct copy of the latest British vessels. The sole armament of the Swiftwing is a stern mounted sweeper, although up to 5 marines or an important personage and their bodyguards can also be carried.

Swiftwings are currently being used as scouts and transports, and sightings have preceded attacks on at least two occasions. While not quite as fast as some British vessels, superior knowledge of terrain and local sympathy have allowed almost all Swiftwings to escape capture by colonial forces. The only one that has been captured so far was also equipped with facilities for mounting a mast and sails, a feature which would greatly extend its cruising range and long-term speed, but expert analysis indicates that the extra weight of rigging would mandate a reduction of the extra crew, removal of the stern gun, or a sacrifice of maximum altitude.

Cleansing Wind (400 tons) - Screw galley

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The Cleansing Wind is another disturbing development of cloudship design, showing that more and more, new ideas are gaining acceptance in the traditional quarters of the Martian military. Others claim it is a sign of covert foreign support, but cooler heads say it seems unlikely the Oenotrian forces are desperate enough to join one set of "Red Devils" to repel another. The expert opinion at this time is that the design is an independent pirate vessel, but there is no proof one way or the other. Both the name and the style of this new ship have caused concern in diplomatic and military circles, although as yet, only one example has been seen.

The Cleansing Wind has almost abandoned the traditional screw galley design and armament in favor of a more modern outlook, and at range can be mistaken for a British vessel. Whether this is by design, or just simple plagiarism has yet to be determined. It does not mount any of the heavy rod or lob guns usually found on the larger screw galleys, and is not equipped with that most traditional of Martian weapons, the ram. Instead, it mounts three heavy guns, two lights and four sweepers, along with a single rack of the deadly Martian Fire. All these weapons are effective against the lighter of Her Majesty's ships, and especially so against civilian shipping. For a Martian vessel, it is singularly well armed, in quantity if not quality, and with a top speed measured at 20 knots, able to maintain distance from most heavy vessels, and close with the relatively slow merchants it may encounter. The size of the vessel is also disturbing. It is not a large vessel in Martian terms, and is seems very likely it was designed to accompany larger vessels or operate with large groups of similar sized ships.

The only sighting of this vessel to date was from H.M.S. Bellerophon, an Aphid class gunboat operating out of Srytis Major. The Cleansing Wind was encountered on a routine patrol, and refused to heave to. After an inconclusive engagement, both vessels turned and delivered point-blank broadsides. Bellerophon, crippled by a magazine explosion, made it home only by jettisoning her coal reserves, while the Cleansing Wind was unable to pursue due to heavy screw damage. However, it was seen to leave the area under its own power before Bellerophon disappeared from sight, and is presumed to be fully repaired by this time.

Scenario - Surprise Encounter

HMS Warrior, a Swift class monitor, was engaged in towing home HMS Firefly, an Aphid class gunboat which had been damaged in a scuffle in the Shistomik lowlands, when they encountered two Oenotrian vessels searching for prey. In hostile territory, with one crippled vessel, Her Majesty's ships decide to flee to friendly territory rather than get into a protracted engagement.

The Martian vessels, surprised by the appearance of the British vessels, nonetheless seized the opportunity, and attempted to cripple or destroy the Red Devils without taking any losses themselves.

Setup - Martians get the Cleansing Wind and a Small Bird screw galley, which they set up anywhere in the three hexes between the crags on the mountain map. One vessel is allowed per hex, and both must be facing along that row of hexes. Cleansing Wind has Canal Martian marines, armed with muskets. Initial altitude is High.

British start with the Warrior, and an Aphid class gunboat. Warrior starts in the hex with "1889" in it, facing NW, and Firefly is in the hex immediately behind it. Initial altitude is Medium. Firefly may start the game towed, in which case the vessels move at speed 4, or may be cut loose, in which case they move separately. The tow line may be cut at the start of any British movement, but the Firefly does not get to move at all on that turn.

Special Rules - Firefly has been damaged. The 1 pound HRC and Nordenfelt on the starboard side have been destroyed, and their crews killed. Mark them off. In addition, she is missing one deck crew, one engine crew, and three hull boxes. Due to engine damage, Firefly can only move intermittently. Each turn, right before British movement, roll 1d6. This is the number of MP the Firefly has for that turn. Initially, Warrior may assign some of her crew complement to Firefly, in which case these crew are subtracted from those on the Warrior. If either ship is forced to lose altitude due to damage, the stress will immediately sever the tow line, leaving Firefly immobilized for a turn.

Victory Conditions - Martians get 2 VP for each British ship destroyed or grounded, and 1 VP for each ship de-crewed or de-weaponed. British get 2 VP for each Martian ship destroyed or grounded, and 1 VP for each ship de-crewed or de-weaponed. In addition, the British get 1 VP per ship for exiting Warrior or Firefly off any edge of the NW map quadrant at an average speed greater than any Martian pursuit, at the instant the ship leaves the map. The base average speed of the Firefly is 3.5MP.

Optional Rule - Ballast dumping. British ships may, in an emergency, dump 90% of their coal reserves through chutes in the bottom of the hull. This reduces their cruising range to six strategic hexes, but lightens the ship enough to offset liftwood loss, temporarily erasing the last row of hull damage. This is announced at the start of movement, occurs during combat, and takes effect at the start of the next movement. It is only done when a crash is the inevitable result of severe damage. It also acts as an anti-personnel weapon, doing 1d6-3 "P" hits to anyone beneath the deluge of fist-sized coals, with additional minuses to the roll based on range, as per Martian Fire rules, and +1 per 2 hull sizes (round down) of the jettisoning vessel. Martian screw galleys can do much the same, jettisoning food, water, and dead turncrank slaves, but only get half (round up) a row of hull boxes, and their range is reduced to 4 hexes. This does not do damage to vessels below them. Kites may jettison cargo, gaining half a row of hull boxes for each twenty percent of their loaded mass they discard. Martian jettisoning requires at least one crew per 2 hull sizes to jettison the extra weight in one turn. Otherwise, it takes proportionately longer (round up).

Strategy - Both sides are hampered by altitude limits, and the rocky crags hamper visibility as well as movement. Of the numerous Martian guns, only the heavy and rogue guns can hurt the Warrior, while the Aphid is also vulnerable to these, and especially vulnerable to antipersonnel weapons with her reduced crew. However, the Cleansing Wind should not present her bow to either British ship at any time. Although all three heavy guns can fire into the bow arc, they are the only guns that can do so, and any gun hits will always take out a big gun. The Small Bird is capable of inflicting heavy damage with its rogue gun, and this should be used on the Firefly first, at close range. Already damaged, three hits of any type are likely to be crippling.

The best British course is probably to split up. While in theory, the average speed of Firefly is reduced, the average fleet maneuverability is increased, and Warrior can now take full advantage of her top speed. With starboard guns damaged, the Firefly's best broadside potential is only realized if a course is charted due north, skirting the crags and then going west, while Warrior, with its superior speed, is best served by going west, then north. All in all, the north-then-west option allows a fast exit, while still being able to take advantage of crag cover. The high rate of fire of all the Warrior's guns and rockets is murderous on both the unarmored Martian vessels, but the temptation to deliver a point-blank broadside should be tempered with the knowledge that one good roll from the Martian Fire can utterly destroy either British ship. The British can do a sacrifice play by destroying the Small Bird, and then exiting the Warrior (leaving the Aphid to its fate), but this is a marginal victory, and not very sporting. Likewise, the Martians can destroy the Firefly, and then attempt to exit the map for a victory, but would likely be pursued unless the Warrior was immobilized.

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by Greg Porter, ©1991. This article originally appeared in issues #7 and #8 of The Game Oracle. It is used here with the permission of the author.

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Surprise at Clearwater

Red Captain Ronald Whitfield is a source of constant irritation to the Oenotrian Empire.

Ever since Ronald Whitfield first became a Red Captain, he and his kite, the Cloud Leopard, has been a source of constant irritation to the merchants of the Oenotrian Empire. To date, the Cloud Leopard has captured a dozen prizes, all Oenotrian, and caused great damage to the sky fleets of the empire. As well, Whitfield's old first mate, Andrew Phillips, soon became a Red Captain in his own right, commanding the Sky Lynx, a small screw galley refitted with a steam engine. By working together, the two Red Captains have been able to defeat more dangerous opponents than ever before.

Before the arrival of the humans on Mars, Martian culture had reached a point of stagnation in which innovation had nearly died out. In the years before the onset of this stagnation, Martian engineers developed a number of interesting and innovative weapons, which have never entered common usage for one reason or another. Two of these items are listed below. Thunderbolt Quick-firing Light Gun The thunderbolt is a variation on the theme of Earth's 15th century Veuglaire, which uses a removable firing chamber. This removable canister allows the Thunderbolt to have a longer barrel than standard light guns, since the weapon need not be muzzle-loaded. The canister is held in place by one or more wedges in primitive models. After firing, the crew loosens and removes the expended cartridge, replaces it with a loaded one, and tightens it in place. This means of loading raises the gun's rate of fire somewhat, although three gunners are required to crew the weapon. The canister must be loaded with powder and shot in conventional fashion, but a number can be prepared ahead of time, at leisure, ensuring a better measured charge than is possible in the heat of battle. The increased rate of fire is achieved at a loss of range, however, because the seal at the breach is usually poor (due to corrosive effects of Martian gunpowder), and considerable pressure is lost, with consequent reduction in range. Despite this, Thunderbolts are still popular with some captains. Thunderbolt Table Weapon Wt Pen Dv ROF Crew Rng Cost Thunderbolt 30 0 1 2 3 1/2 600

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Lob Gun Incendiary Projectile The incendiary round for lob guns is a projectile that combines some of the impact damage of the normal lob gun round with the incendiary traits of Martian liquid fire. In form, the incendiary round consists of approximately a dozen small, stone containers of Martian liquid fire, banded together with iron to form a projectile nearly the same size as a normal lob gun round. The containers are scored to make them fracture upon impact, even with a wooden-hulled ship. The round is loaded into a lob gun in the same manner as a normal lob gun round. When the projectile is fired, one of the stone containers sometimes fractures in flight, which gives the round the appearance of a fireball as it flies through the air. The remaining containers burst and spill liquid fire when the round strikes its target. The fire level suffered by the target is determined by rolling 1D6 and subtracting the range in hexes from the gun to its target. The incendiary round also causes impact damage: A lob gun firing such a round is considered to have a penetration of 1 and a damage value of 3 (rather than the standard values of Pen 2 and DV 4). As well, there is some chance of a loss of trim critical being caused by an incendiary round, but because of the projectile's lighter weight, that chance is not so great as with a normal round. When an incendiary round hits a target from a lob gun, roll 1D6: on a roll of 1-3, a loss of trim critical occurs. Because of the difficulty involved in constructing incendiary projectiles for lob guns, each round is considered to have a cost of £5. Players should be careful to keep track of exactly how many incendiary rounds a ship carries. If a hit occurs on a lob gun magazine containing incendiary projectiles, roll 1D6 for each such projectile to determine the level of fire that breaks out on the ship.

The Oenotrian Empire responded to this increased threat by stepping up efforts to locate and destroy the Cloud Leopard and its companion vessel. With great numbers of Oenotrian warships searching for them, Whitfield and Phillips recently headed north to prey upon High Martian pirates until the ire of the Oenotrians had cooled a bit. Unfortunately for the two Red Captains, a number of Oenotrian warships pursued them all the way to the Meroe Badlands.

A few days before the beginning of the scenario, the Cloud Leopard and the Sky Lynx stumbled upon a pair of Sky Runner class vessels. The Red Captains heavily damaged the two ships, but in the fighting, the Sky Lynx took a boiler hit, and the Sky Runners were able to escape.

Most of the drinking water on both Red Captains' ships went to replace that lost from the Sky Lynx's boiler. With the crews on short water rations, Whitfield and Phillips decided to set a course for the city of Mylarkt to replenish water and pick up other supplies.

While heading for Mylarkt, however, the Red Captains discovered an abandoned High Martian kraag and stopped to explore it. Upon entering the kraag, they found a spring at its bottom. With the Cloud Leopard keeping watch overhead, the Sky Lynx set down and replenished its water supply. Then, the two ships switched places, and the Sky Lynx kept watch. While the Cloud Leopard was thus occupied, a violent sandstorm swept through the region. Unable to climb above the turbulence, the Sky Lynx was forced to set down as well. Once the storm passed, the two vessels prepared to get under way, but a trio of Oenotrian warships had followed close on the heels of the storm. Spotting the two ships on the ground, the Oenotrians closed in for the kill. At this point the scenario begins.

The Red Captains' Vessels

The Cloud Leopard is simply a Swiftwood-class kite that has been refitted with British weaponry. The Sky Lynx was originally built in a Martian yard, but was later refitted with a British steam engine and weapons.

The Cloud Leopard has Crack crews on its four-inch long gun and the spar-mounted six-pounders. Its other gun crews are Trained. The Sky Lynx has Crack crews on all of its guns. Marines on both vessels have modern rifles and are Trained.

Both ships have a number of smoke screens and spike droppers, as indicated in their respective ship record forms.

The Oenotrian Vessels

The three Life's Ends in this scenario are new designs, not encountered by the Red Captains before. One of these vessels is equipped with Thunderbolts and has exchanged its forward heavy gun for a rouge gun.

Each of the three ships has one Crack, two Trained, and one Green gun crew (to be distributed, as the Martian player desires). The marines on all three ships carry muskets and are Trained.

Setup

Ship record forms for all ships in this scenario are included with this article, as is a map of the terrain over which the battle takes place. To play this scenario, you will need to reproduce this map on a two-inch hex grid (if this is not practical, the Kraag Barovaar map from Sky Galleons of Mars may be substituted in which case the starting points will have to be changed). The Cloud Leopard begins at Low altitude at point 4. The Sky Lynx begins on the surface (one step below Very Low altitude) at point 5.

Martian 1 begins at point 1, at Medium to High altitude. Martians number 2 and 3 enter the map at points 2 and 3 respectively, during the Martian player's movement phase of the second game turn. They also begin at Medium to High altitude.

Victory Conditions

The Oenotrians get 1 victory point for driving the Sky Lynx from the map, 2 points for destroying the vessel and 4 points for capturing it. They get 2 victory points for driving the Cloud Leopard away, 3 points for destroying it, and 6 points for capturing it.

The Red Captains get no points for driving an Oenotrian vessel off the map, but they get 1 point for each ship they destroy and 2 points of each one they capture.

Model Conversions

You can easily make specific models for the ships in this scenario using the standard Sky Galleons of Mars sprues.

Extra sprues of these ships were available from GDW in the packages of Martian Cloudships and Aerial Gunboats.

To make a Life's End, simply replace the forecastle of a large screw galley model with the forecastle of a small kite model, then carve or sand off the lob gun mount.

The Sky Lynx can be built from the hull of a small kite and the tail of an Aphid. Remove the fore gun from the kite and glue the tail of the Aphid in its place to create a quarterdeck. Finally, fill in the mast hole and sand it smooth.

The Cloud Leopard is built as if it were a Swiftwood, following the instructions included with Martian Cloudships. Paint the ships to your individual taste, and enjoy the game.

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by Bret Foland and Lester W. Smith, ©1990; the article originally appeared in Challenge, #40 & #41, GDW's magazine of science fiction gaming. It is used here with the permission of Mr. Smith.

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HMS Viper

The HMS Viper is a conversion of a typical Oenotrian Small Bird class screw galley, after her captured and return to Syrtis Major as a prize. The Viper received a re-fit in the British yard there. During the refit, the Royal Navy's yardmaster added a small surplus boiler, replacing the turn crank and flywheel, and updated the weapons compliment with modern ordinance, including a 1 pounder pom pom gun in a bow tower mount.

Technical Specifications 

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Armor: 0
Hull: 2
Speed: 3
Altitude: High
Tonnage:
Price:
Crew: 3 + 3 + 22
 Bridge: C,H,T,S,O
 Deck: 2
 Maneuver: 2
 Gunners: 9
 Marines: 1 + 9
Armament:
 3 9pdr (aft)
 2 1pdr HRC (bow)
 1 1pdr pom-pom (bow tower)
 1 tether mine

Scenario

After receiving her commissioning pennant, the Viper's first action was defending a British convoy from an Oenotrian raider:

June, 1889

Lt Cdr Mitchell's first priority is to make sure that the merchant vessels he is escorting successfully reach the city of Haatt. However, he has been schooled in the Royal Navy tradition of Nelson, and the opportunity to engage the enemy can not be passed upon.

In a high risk, high reward scenario, Mitchell decides to risk splitting his convoy and engaging the Oenotrian's on his own, knowing that should he fail to stop the Oenotrian the convoy maybe lost.

Setup

Use either board, ignoring terrain, the encounter takes place over the dry sea bed between Syrtis Major and Haatt.

The Oenotrian enters from the Northeast corner of the board. The British enter from the Southwest corner of the board.  The convoy is off the south edge of the board.

Oenotrian Squadron

1 Endtime (screw galley)

British Squadron

1 HMS Viper (converted Small Bird screw galley)

Game Length

10 turns

Special Rules

The HMS Viper is undermanned and has no marines aboard (they planned to pick up the Marines in Haatt).

Victory Conditions

The British must capture, destroy, drive off, disable, or otherwise prevent the Oenotrian from exiting the Southern edge of the game board.  If the British ship is captured, disabled, or destroyed the Oenotrian player automatically wins.

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The stats for the HMS Viper and scenario details are ©2014 by Joseph Boeke, and based on Matthew V. Jessick's battle report: A Naval Report

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A Naval Report

To:	Flag Officer Commanding, RN Aerial Forces, Mars
Copy to:	Cdr. H. Villard Commander, RN Light Aerial Forces, Mars
From:	Lt Cdr Mitchell, RNVR, Commanding HMS Viper

Please inform their Lordships:

On June 17, 1889, the recently converted 200 ton prize HMS Viper left Syrtis Major, escorting 3 merchant vessels, pursuant to our orders. We steamed first toward Haatt where, due to the limited number of Royal Marines available, I would request a platoon of the Australian Mounted Infantry, with whom we had worked before, to assist in the defense of our vital convoy and fill out our complement of 29 officers and men.

On June 18, 1889, 10 miles SW of Haatt, while proceeding NE toward the city, we were intercepted by the RN Auxiliary vessel HMAS Swift, sailing out of Haatt. The Swift joined our stately procession toward the city. Immediately thereafter, at 1500 hours local time, another aerial vessel was sighted approaching us, also from the direction of the city. The vessel was large, 500 tons, and of the Oenotrian Endtime-class. The Swift was ordered to break from our track and circle downwind, escorting the convoy into Haatt while we dealt with the Endtime. As the wind was blowing strongly, the merchant kites would have no trouble outrunning the enemy vessel. The Endtime-class can make 15 knots, while the kites were making 35 knots in the near gale force winds. It was a great day to be flying. The Viper closed on the Endtime at 15 knots indicated airspeed and 30 knots closure. The Oenotrian could not escape us - we expected an easy victory. The battle turned out to be a very near thing, however.

As we entered gun range, 1200 yards, the Endtime fired its lob gun. We were holding our fire until optimum range (about 400 yards for our three gun battery of bow mounted quick firing guns), for maximum effect. Unfortunately, the massive stone projectile stuck the Viper hard. This was an incredible piece of luck for the Oenotrians. The thing hit aft. Luckily for us it was abaft the boiler. The ship pitched, nose up, and rolled sharply to the left. The helmsman caught her smartly, leveling her off laterally. This proved a great help to Petty Officer George Hitsman, our trimsman, as he struggled to regain trim control of the Viper. We passed through the horizontal at a large and growing pitching rate. Petty officer Hitsman regained control expertly, leveling the Viper out at high altitude - making our total altitude loss only about 600 feet. Many a ship our size would have crashed after taking such a hit from the massive Martian lob gun - our survival is due only to the expert skill of our fine trimsman.

It took us a minute or so to get ourselves straightened out and back aboard the ship (Several men were left dangling over the side, saved only by their safety lines; they had to be retrieved). This delay in our opening fire, caused by the precipitous drop and the loss of trim, gave the Oenotrians the opportunity to damage us severely with impunity. The enemy captain extended us no mercy, attacking viciously with a close range barrage from his two heavy guns, and his bow swivel-mounted rod gun. All of the weapons struck us, damaging the hull and causing several casualties. He then rammed us! Again, Petty Officer Hitsman again proved his skill by maintaining trim through an incredible impact. Our helmsman steered skillfully to minimize the impact, saving us further hull damage. With the Endtime two and a half times our weight, however, the shock was still extremely dangerous. Our nine-pounder battery aft fired on the enemy as he passed to our rear, the gunners having managed to return to their posts. Finally we could hit back! And strike we did, sending two of our three nine pounder starshell rounds into the enemy; starting an immediate fire (the reason for firing the special ammo).

I ordered hard right rudder and full ahead flank in order to bring our bow mounted rapid fire battery of two one pound Hotchkiss Rotating Cannon and an experimental one pound "Pom-Pom" gun to bear. The sluggish acceleration, which answered this order, was a great disappointment. The stone, whilst not smashing our hull to bits or bursting our boiler, had, however, seriously damaged our screw and steam drive system. Our maximum speed was a mere 6 knots. Now we were the caught, unable to escape while the Endtime pounded us into the ground from his superior altitude. I ordered a change to standard high explosive ammo for the nine pounders, as our lower altitude made the chance of giving him fires from the starshell rounds very unlikely.

All the rest of the battle, the Oenotrian captain used his altitude advantage to pour a withering rifle fire onto our decks, wounding man after man (they were using fine German Mausers, we later found). Once we got our bows on him, however, the tide of the battle turned. Our rapid-fire guns proved their worth, making continuous hits into and through their unarmored hull for the remainder of the action. Our furious fusillade had an immediate effect, causing a noticeable slackening in his rate of fire, and causing sufficient hull damage to bring him down to our altitude. Unfortunately, this just allowed him to ram us again! With our ship moving only slightly faster than a baby carriage, we braced for the impact. The hull splintering crash infuriated us. Again somehow, Petty Officer Hitsman maintained our trim through the terrible battering. We immediately slipped to low altitude, with over half our liftwood vanes jammed and otherwise damaged. Unfortunately, the Endtime barely missed colliding with the tether mine we had been patiently towing behind us during the engagement.

The bow battery scored multiple hits, but the enemy's fire continued to damage our hull. We were barely able to maintain very low altitude at this point. As one more unlucky hit could have sent us crashing to the Martian sand below, I ordered the ship to land. We would crouch there, and pound him on the way in. With luck, we might still damage him enough to drive him off before he finished us. We continued long range nine pounder fire as our tormentor turned back toward us. Unfortunately, firing up about 1200 feet made it very difficult to hit. At fifteen knots and low altitude, he made his last pass. Our nine pounders did telling damage. Only the murderous rifle fire was still emanating from the heavily damaged enemy ship now (after the battle, we surmised that all his guns were knocked out of action at this point). Yet still he closed on our crippled ship. We were all but shot down, we could barely rise the 20 feet needed to keep all three of our aft battery guns bearing as he came around, our propeller shaft vibrating wildly with each turn of the damaged screw. Our guns fired madly. I ordered the ship down again as his heavy guns came into range. If he did hit us, at least we wouldn't die from gravity.

A group of Royal Navy officers in Syrtis Major including 
Lt Cdr Mitchell (fourth from left, with hand in pocket).

The nine pounders aft went silent as he crossed above their training limits. Again the Oenotrian's damnable luck held as he avoided our tether mine one more time (the hope we placed in that silly tether mine shows our desperation). He was heavily damaged. We knew that once our formidable forward battery came to bear, we would shoot him into the sand. Yet still he came. Then in one flashing second of realization I knew what the fiendish Oenotrian captain had planned for us; why he had driven his badly damaged ship over ours, risking certain death after passing us if his plan failed. He had somehow brought two of the five hundred-pound stone lob gun shells to the sides of his ship. As he passed overhead, his crew rolled them through the bulwarks and onto us! They had to roll them off both sides almost simultaneously - a single seconds delay on one side would have tipped the ship too far to recover in the altitude they had left to lose. Their incredible gamble worked. They continued on, with nothing but a slight lateral rocking to mark their captain's diabolic audacity.

That my report is being read today, rather than his, is due only to the incredible luck of the Viper. Somehow, perhaps due to his having to dodge the tether mine, those vicious stones he dropped on our helpless, grounded ship missed. I will never forget the sight of those huge stones tumbling toward us. As he passed forward, the ship was totally silent - except for the rattle of the dirt raining down over everything. Even the wounded were shocked into silence. The stones had straddled us. They had seemed close enough to touch as they hurtled past the rails.

Realizing that his guns must have been silenced to try something so incredibly foolhardy, I ordered the ship up and around to follow as best we could. It was not necessary. The Oenotrian ship, burning fiercly, crashed after the fifth or sixth hit from the forward battery.

As we passed over the crash site at our shaky six knots we heard him still firing! This enemy ship was unbelievable. After the lob gun hit, the repeated ramming, the murderous rifle fire, and dropping the huge stones on us, we had shot him down. Yet still they fought on! At this point, I am sure many of my crew were as worried as I was. What manner of enemy was this madman? What would it take to make him strike? The aft battery continued rapid fire as we staggered around. When the ship came into view, I knew then what had happened. Our light guns had started a fire that was now raging out of control. The flames were roaring at least fifty feet high. I rang the cease fire alarm immediately. We all watched in horror, (well tempered with relief) as the last of his magazines blew. It was the magazine explosions that we had heard as we passed ahead of the crash site. We landed to give what aid we could to the shocked survivors.

Seventeen were taken aboard, half of them severely wounded. Alas, the enemy captain was not among the survivors. Even though he had caused the death of two of my men, and wounded eight more of our understrength nineteen man complement, coming closer to ending my career than any other enemy I had ever encountered, I was saddened by his death. He had fought with incredible bravery, incredible tenacity, incredible cunning, and incredible skill. He had, with little more than luck and courage, turned a battle that should have been suicide for him into a near victory.

Some will criticize my words of praise to a hated enemy. I reject that criticism. I respect this captain as my foe. What glory is there in defeating an unskilled enemy? Yesterday, many of my newly commissioned ship's crew were strangers to each other. Today, we have gone through the fire together. Tomorrow, we will fight as one. We now know what our ship can do. We can face the best the enemy has to offer, and emerge victorious - for we did so today.

Lt. Colin Mitchell, RNVR,
Commanding HMS Viper
Haatt

About the Author

Matthew V. Jessick is a former aerospace engineer. Currently, he works at Motorsport Simulations (Motorsims) as a vehicle dynamics engineer. He resides in Texas.

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This article originally appeared in issue #3 of GDW's "in-house" Space: 1889 'zine, the Ether Society Newsletter, ©1990. The article is used here with the permission of Mr. Jessick.

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