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Isles of Smoke Campaign: Pilot Rescue!

Well if it hasn't been a minute! I blinked and suddenly almost half a year had elapsed since I wrote a post on this blog - moving houses, preaching appointments, and general work & home life conspired to keep me away from you all. But no longer!

The below battle is a continuation of my Isles of Smoke campaign - a solo wargaming campaign in a fictional 1950s non-atomic world.

Last time, the MiG-15's of the Sovereignty of Calebernia crossed the proverbial rubicon and fired the opening shots of the campaign, shooting down an F-86 Sabre belong to the Abnegard Commonwealth League. The pilot, one Lt Gunnlauger Mcmorrow, ejected from his craft and splashed down in open water a few miles from the Isles of Smoke, specifically Mollison Island in the Lesser Isles region.

The Abnegarder airbase on the island, ACLAF Mollison, immediately sent out a floatplane escorted by a pair of P-51 Mustang piston fighters (piloted by Mjr Bjorko Ascol and Lt Sven Rigney of the 15th Pursuit Squadron) to rescue Lt McMorrow who sat in a small inflatable raft in the arctic waters, engaged in the hard work of freezing to death. Hearing the sound of nearby aircraft, Lt McMorrow lit his flare and let his presence be known. Alas, although the 15th Pursuit Squadron could now locate him, so could the roving squadrons of Calebernian aircraft that were patrolling ahead of the Sovereignty's carrier group...

So, the scene is set! I played this game a months ago late in the evening, so I don't remember the cut and thrust of the engagement. But, I shall endeavour to paint the broad strokes of the battle for your enjoyment.

The ACLAF's 15th Pursuit Squadron, with attendant floatplane (represented in this instant by a U-17a Cessna prop plane) head out from ACLAF Mollison towards McMorrow's flare (represented by the yelloe counter). In the distance, a pair of Calebernian Cavaliers are also homing in on the shot down pilot's position.

The first tilt! The fighter aircraft blast past each other, neither dealing damage to one another. However, one of the Calebernian pilots is too trigger-happy, finding himself with low ammunition.
The other Calebernian Cavalier is damaged by a parting shot by Mjr Ascol. However, a pair of Calebernian MiG-15s enter the fray, putting the 15th Pursuit Squadron in a very difficult situation. Worse, the floatplane fails to pick up Lt McMorrow on his first pass! Will he get a second?
Lt Rigney damages, and later shoots down, one of the Calebernian MiGs - the first kill of the war! The 15th Pursuit bank round and prepare to chase off the Calebernian fighters as the floatplane makes its second pass...

But too late! The low-ammo Cavalier, with his last burst, flies low and tears the floatplane to shreds with his machineguns. That is another loss for the ACLAF, and a victory for the invading Calebernians!

With their only means of rescuing Lt McMorrow a tangled mass of smoking canvas on the water, the 15th Pursuit Squadron are forced to break from the engagement and return to ACLAF Mollison. The shivering Abnegarder Lieutenant watches his would-be saviours head overland and retreat from view, and then, at the sound of a klaxon behind him, turns to see the Calebernian aircraft carrier, the HSS Nuckelavee, hove into view out of the mist...

And that's game! I'll have to see what happens next - a land invasion of Mollison Island? A naval engagement? Who knows? All that can be said for sure is that Lt McMorrow's capture by the Sovereignty will likely result in information regarding Abnegard's troop strengths and dispositions in the Lesser Isles being made known. That, and, that I won't be able to play another game for a little while as I am fixing up our new house, and laying some flooring and moving around furniture for a little gaming shed of my very own!

God bless, and see you all again soon (not in six months, I promise!)
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