Santiago Light an After Action Report

 My visit to USS Olympia rekindled my interest in the Spanish American War, so I now have fleets ordered from Tumbling Dive in 1:2400.  However, this week we had a test game using Broadside and Salvo (B&S) from Long Face Games and my 25 year old 1:1200 scratch builds.  Long story short, it was great fun!  The rules played fast, worked well, gave reasonably historical results and were easy to pick up.

It was aa scaled down version of Santiago.  Two Spanish armoured cruisers and a destroyer group were trying to break out past a dispersed US squadron of two battleships and an armoured cruiser.

Sylvain contemplates his moves as he inspects the US fleet blocking his squadron.

US Admiral Curt

Spanish breakout in the background.  USS Indiana moving to counter.  The green mat to the right side is land.

 

Cristobal Colon followed by Vizcaya

TBDs lead the Spanish line while Indiana steams into close range, New York gets closer and Iowa chugs along in the background.

An attempted torpedo run driven off by quick firers!.

A second attempt foiled!

The Colon begins to suffer from the Indiana's big guns.

Vizcaya tries to run but New York moves to counter while the Colon is crippled.

USS Olympia, A Spanish American War Veteran

Last month I visited Philadelphia for a meeting about professional Actuarial exams.  Unlike W C Fields, I quite like Philly which has a lot of history in its downtown core.  This was my second visit and last time I visited many of the museums relating to 1776 and all that.  This time I used a free afternoon to visit the Independence Sea Port Museum.  The big attraction for me wad the Protected Cruiser USS Olympia, Admiral Dewey's flagship at the Battle of Manilla in 1989

Gloucester Moose and I looking for Nicholas Cage at Idependence Hall. 

USS New Jersey on the Jersey side of the Delaware River

Olympia looking very smart in her white and buff trim.

Aft superstructure and turret.  Five inch guns in the case mates with light Quick firers above and below.

Wardroom with a 6-pounder QF

My wife sews so I took pictures of the vintage singers on board.  

Close up of the breech of a QF gun.

Loved the story of the quaranteened sailors in the main top. 

A five inches.  Love the brass work and the close proximity to the hammocks.

Another shot of New Jersey from on deck.

View from the bridge over the fore turret and f'csle.

The bridge with Binnacle and engine telegraphs/. Would have been very exposed in battle.

Another shot from the bridge forward.  There's a WW2 sub alongside as part of the musum and a couple of tall ships nearby/

1 pounder QF on the upper deck and looking very exposed/

Exiting the ship a shot of the forecastle and for turret.   There's a pair of 8" guns in each of the two turrets plus 5 5" secondaries in the casemates between them.

This view shows the bridge, pilot house and masts.  Not a lot of room for quarantined sailors in the fighting top.

Barquentine Gazela (1901) tied up close by.  I can remember her visiting Halifax during various Tall Ship tours, and she looks great under sail.