Airships: Lady on the Run
By Ernie Wheeler
March 2012

The designer of Great War at Sea: Airships provides this new scenario featuring a clash between Britain and America in the Mediterranean.

Airships Scenario 6
Lady on the Run
July 1921

Relations had been strained between Britain and the United States since the American refusal to scale back their capital ship building program of 1916. The British rightly considered that this program could only be directed against themselves or their ally, Japan. Strained relations became frosty when Britain unilaterally declared a moratorium on the repayment of war debts, a necessary step if the Royal Navy was not to be drastically reduced in size. To enforce payment, the president of the United States dramatically and unexpectedly declared war, an act which was ratified by the Senate in an emergency session held the same day. One navy was caught with some of its newest units badly out of position.

The United States Navy had recently taken delivery of U.S.S. Lexington, a fast and powerful but under-armoured battlecruiser constructed under the 1916 program. This ship, with a small escort of equally new and fast light ships, had been sent on a cruise of the Mediterranean to impress smaller European states with the growing power of America and, not coincidentally, to attract orders for American shipyards. The squadron had reached Constantinople the day war was declared. Woefully short of fast scouting assets for the battle fleet, the USN wanted these ships back on the east coast as soon as possible.

The Royal Navy had concentrated its newest and best units in the North Atlantic in anticipation of trouble with America. The Mediterranean Fleet consisted of obsolescent ships which, but for the American challenge, would have been scrapped by 1920. H.M.S. Tiger had been detached to shadow the American battlecruiser, but was not fast enough to catch her. When war was declared, a newer and faster battlecruiser was sent to the Med to deal with U.S.S. Lexington.

Note: This scenario uses the map from Mediterranean and pieces from Sea of Troubles, Plan Gold, Zeppelins and Jutland. Use fleet counters from Sea of Troubles.

Timeframe: 84 Turns
Starting Weather: 1 (Clear)

Central Powers (British) Forces

Valetta (Z30)
Land-based aircraft:
2 x Snp (ST)
2 x Fox (ST)
The Mediterranean Fleet:
BC01 Indomitable (J)
BC02 Inflexible (J)
B01 Lord Nelson (J)
B02 Agamemnon (J)
AC01 Minotaur (J)
AC02 Shannon (J)
CVS05 Pegasus (J)
2 x S320 (J)
DL01 Swift (J)
12 x DD Admiralty (J)

Suda Bay (BB47)
Shadow Force:
BC09 Tiger (J)
4 x DD Admiralty (J)

Straits of Gibralter (Z1)
Reaction Force (Arrives Turn 30):
BC17 Rodney (J)
CL64 Emerald (ST)
CL65 Enterprise (ST)
DL08 Wallace (J)
4 x DD W (J)

Airships

At Valetta (Z30)
SR-1 (Z)

At Barcelona (N10)
Reaction Force (Arrives Turn 14):
R36, R37 (Z)

Submarines

Within 12 Sea Zones of Valetta (Z30)
Flotilla 1: 3 x submarines

Allied Powers (American) Forces

Constantinople (O56)
BC01 Lexington ’16 (PG)
CL04 Omaha (ST)
CL05 Milwaukee (ST)
4 x DD Clemson (ST)
1 x Oiler

Any French Port
1 x Oiler

Any Italian Port
1 x Oiler

Airships

La Spezia (H22) (see Special Rule 4)
Roma

Toulon (J16) (see Special Rule 5)
Dixmude

Special Rules

The scenario is played under Mediterranean rules as modified by the Zeppelins and Airships rules, the Plan Gold rules for aircraft and submarines and the following special rules:

1. Each ship of the British Reaction Force has refueled at Gibralter. Three fuel points (not boxes) have been consumed when the force arrives in sea zone Z1. The airships of the Reaction Force are fully fueled in Barcelona. British forces may use British and Egyptian ports for refuelling. British forces may exit the west map edge to refuel at Gibraltar (three sea zones off the map) and return to play, re-entering the map at sea zone Z1. The British player may use dummy counters in accordance with Airships Rule 3.

2. American fleets may be given Raid missions. American oilers may be given Supply Missions (as set out in the Great War at Sea special rules of Cone of Fire).

3. Nearly Neutral 1: Spain is neutral, but many senior Spanish officers remember the humiliation they suffered at the hands of America 24 years earlier. Britain has been allowed to fly two airships across Spain and to refuel them at Barcelona. British ships and airships may refuel in Spanish ports.

4. Nearly Neutral 2: Italy is neutral, but has warm relations with the United States and wishes the British would leave Mare Nostrum to Italy. Italy has also just sold the airship Roma to the United States Army. Italy permits an American crew to take Roma on test flights between Italian ports or out to sea and Italy will refuel Roma. Italy rejects British protests and maintains that Roma remains Italian property, pending American acceptance of delivery. American ships may refuel in Italian ports.

5. Nearly Neutral 3: France is neutral. However, in view of hostilities between Britain and America, the French government has decided that, as a service to mariners, the new French airship Dixmude will broadcast intelligence of any belligerant ships (British or American) which it observes. The American player may decide the turn on which Dixmude departs Toulon. On that turn and each of the eight subsequent turns, the British player rolls one die. On a roll of “6,” the British player may move Dixmude that turn. On any other result, the American player may move Dixmude that turn. Dixmude may not attack anything. Neither American nor British forces may attack Dixmude. On the 10th and subsequent turns in the air, the American player must move Dixmude back to Toulon by the most direct route possible. After refuelling, Dixmude may sortie again under the same procedure.

6. American and British ships may enter neutral ports, but must leave by the sixth turn in the port; e.g., if a ship enters Cartagena on turn 29, the ship must exit by turn 34 at the latest. Except as specified above, ships and airships may not refuel in neutral ports. Fleet counters are placed on the map when a neutral port is entered and the composition of the fleet must be revealed to the other player. A ship which fails to exit a neutral port by the sixth turn is interned there (the owning player may no longer move the ship).

7. American ships may use the Merchant Location Table to attack British merchant ships on the major sea lane which runs from Port Said to Alexandria to Valetta to sea zone Y1, or on the minor sea lane that runs from Port Said to Cyprus. Each merchant ship sunk scores 1 victory point.

Victory Points

Victory Points are scored as outlined in the Sea of Troubles rules. In addition, the Allied player scores the Victory Point value of any ship that exits the western map edge (sea zones Y1, Z1 or AA1) by the end of the scenario, and either player scores one-half the victory point value of any enemy ship that is interned in a neutral port or that ends the scenario at sea with insufficient fuel to reach a port at which it could refuel.

The player with the most victory points wins. In the event of a tie, the Allied player wins.

Designer’s Notes

The French airship Dixmude was not actually available for operations in July 1921. However, had the French assured the Zeppelin works of future orders, Dixmude likely could have been available by that date. The French neutrality rule gives the American player the benefit of an additional airship for scouting purposes. Of course, the French will be a little whimsical in their pro-American neutrality.

The American player can win on points without exiting Lexington off the western map edge, but his or her next command will be a naval reserve station in Alaska. The Atlantic Fleet really needs these ships.

It is strongly recommended that any tactical battle be resolved using the Dreadnoughts rules. The Excess Damage rule set out in GWAS rule 8.3 is not nearly terrifying enough for the captain of a battlecruiser with a pre-Jutland armour scheme.

Click here to order Airships and try Scenario 6 yourself.