The Brazilians Arrive!

Ok, so after not posting on here for a while (and work taking the place of playing Dystopian Wars), I recently decided to sit down and paint a new fleet. I've been looking at another steampunk game called Aeronef, and after looking through the 1/1200 scale models of different fleets, I came across their South American fleets (I have read some SA history so I was pretty excited to see a game that covered SA in the Victorian Era.) and fell in love with the sleek, sexy, Brazilian aeronefs. They look like thin cigar zeppelins with gun decks mounted topside. Painted with gray hulls and white superstructures with banana yellow smokestacks, the fleet looked like a cool enough idea to bring over into DW.


I looked at the DW fluff, and since I like being more original when it comes to what Spartan Games wrote (for example, how they did away with the original Prussian royal family, the Hohenzollerns, and came up with some made up Santa clone named "Grunder" to rule Prussia, or how they made the Meiji emperor disappear and also the name "Japan". :P), so I created an alternate timeline for the canon "Socialist Union of South America" or SUSA, and instead reconstituted the Empire of Brazil under Dom Pedro II. I repainted my FSA airships into Brazilian colors which actually looks really good on them and will give my new fleet a more "tropical" feel.



Here is the first squadron for my "Marinha Imperial Aerea Brasileira" or "Imperial Brazilian Air Navy":

It took three coats of white to paint over the navy blue scheme I originally had for a "Yankee" fleet. I'll be adding more FSA airships to the Brazilian fleet when I get the chance as well as that cool new "Eclipse Company" Spartan Games is releasing this month.

As for background fluff: The Brazilians chafed under the new socialist regime as the young revolutionaries of Rio de Janeiro rebelled in the summer of 1868 and resurrected the old, short-lived Empire of Brazil. Which was swept away in the communist upheavals of the early 1860's. Dom Pedro II, Emperor of Brazil, was welcomed back to Rio from Portuguese exile, and immediately took command of the newly massed air fleet that the Young Brasileiros (as the rebels called themselves) had captured from nearby SUSA airfields. The subsequent "June War of Independence" saw the tanks and airforces of SUSA driven out of most of the inhabited parts of Brazil and into neighboring Argentina, Chile, and Peru. As well as a whole SUSA army bogging down in the wilds of the Amazon, to be bombed to death by a Brazilian aerial scouting flotilla.

The Brazilian armed forces consist almost entirely of air ships and fighter planes. Brazil does maintain a small land army, but the nature of the Amazon prevents large scale armies from crossing it's dense jungles, and so Brazil has come to rely almost entirely on airship patrols for border security. And with a powerful, ever growing air navy, a sea going surface fleet is also rendered somewhat useless, though there is a small flotilla (made of old purchased FSA ships) based at Sao Paulo.

First ever aircraft carriers?! A real American inovation.

The American Civil War was known for a lot of "firsts". First ever truly industrialized war (the Siege of Petersburg, Virginia is considered a prequel to World War I with it's trench warfare and huge amount of siege artillery.), the first mobile war (railroads were all important as many battles centered around crucial railheads), the first time a submarine was used successfully, the first time ironclads were massed produced (the USS Monitor class.), AND the first time aerial reconnaissance was used by a navy. And that's just a few of the many technical and strategic innovations this war is known for. The most interesting of course (especially in relation to steampunk games like Dystopian Wars) is the last named innovation. Both the Confederate and Union navies developed balloon launch craft for use along the major rivers of the war. They worked pretty well too for recon and spying.

Of course, the balloons weren't armed, and they remained tethered to the boats they were launched from, but it was a step in the right direction. The most interesting part about the balloon carrier the Union Navy used (USS George Washington Parke Custis) was that Confederate gunners wouldn't fire on it since the coal barge looked like the Monitor, and they were afraid it would fire back! The CSS Teaser, the Confederate carrier, served as a vital recon unit for rebel troops along the James River, until she was captured by the USS Maratanza, and the USS Monitor jointly. At the time of her capture, Union troops also captured vital intelligence, including Confederate torpedo placements in the river, and plans for the ironclad CSS Richmond.

The success of the USS George Washington Parke Custis' recon along the Potomac River helped to convince Union commanders of the usefulness of an army balloon corps, and shortly thereafter balloon recon units became widespread among Union (and later Confederate) forces throughout the war. One wonders why a naval balloon corps (or flotilla) wasn't formed for use in Union fleet operations...

CSS Teaser.

USS George Washington Parke Custis.

The Custis balloon platform in Harper's Weekly.

Another pic of the Custis.

                                       A colored lithograph of the same Union balloon carrier.

Model of a rather impressive idea.

Another model.

U.S.S. Columbia sets sail to blockade Charleston.

So I've got pics of my first Union ironclad (Dystopian Wars of course) here to take the fight to the rebels in the South. The U.S.S. Columbia. Incidentally she sailed up Hampton Roads and blew up her first Confederate ironclad of the same class. C.S.S. Virginia. (Literally! The Confederate captain rolled snake eyes on his critical, which means the powder magazine exploded. ^.^)

Columbia with her kinetic generator (love this generator most of all)

 

 

Next: with her rockets (red white and blue theme is mandatory for a Union fleet)

 And finally her shield generator (I used ice blue to represent the energy source)

My Alternate History for America in Dystopian Wars.

Don't get me wrong, I love the World War in the Dystopian universe, but... I still disagree with the South winning the Civil War. So that being said, when I get my Yankee fleet going, I plan on continuing the Civil War until there's a clear Union victory. ;) I have a friend who's a dedicated Southern sympathizer, so there'll be plenty of naval action around the Caribbean and the Atlantic. We both also plan on getting some land and air units in action for a genuine American Civil War Reloaded.

The Timeline:
July, 1863: Lee wins at Gettysburg, with Britannian aid, thus prolonging the conflict. Pennsylvania tank regiments drive back Lee's advance of Philadelphia. Congress panics and prepares to sue for peace, but Lincoln rallies support to fight on with his Gettysburg Address.

February, 1864: Grant appointed commander of the Union Army. Sherman prepares for a major slash and burn offensive through Dixie.

July, 1864: Sherman's landships grind across Georgia, destroying rail lines, airfields, and several Britannian strongpoints. Major Sutherland, the Britannian expeditionary commander is killed in an air battle when his war rotor is sent earthward by Union rocket fire. General Cressbury takes his place as overall commander. Britannian warships sighted off Nantucket Sound by American scoutships. Skirmish with the Canadians to the north.

November, 1864: President Lincoln opens secret diplomatic channels with the Britannian Parliament. Offers minor trading concessions in the Caribbean if they will withdraw from the war. Congress calls up more troops for the Canadian Front.

December, 1864: Christmas Offensive, Canadian tanks roll across the American border, smashing through fortifications and driving the Union armies back towards Philadelphia. Meanwhile Southern troops launch a simultaneous offensive from Tennessee, but are crushed by a well organized Union air counteroffensive, led by General McClellan. Farragut drives the Union fleet toward the Confederate naval base at Havana, in the U.S. Territory of  Cuba.

March, 1865: Lincoln appoints General Sherman as commander of the Western Theater after his successful March to the Sea. General Cressbury's army flees west after Sherman's destructive march, hoping to link up with friendly Confederate forces in Alabama. Stonewall Jackson is run over by a Confederate landship while out scouting ahead of his lines at night with a treadbike squadron. Confederate government calls for a day of mourning.

June, 1865: Union commander Sidney Blakes of the Canadian Front breaks the Canadian army at Sault St. Marie, Michigan, forcing Canada to withdraw it's forces from the war. General Cressbury flees with his troops to Britannian transports in Mobile Bay, Alabama after another devastating air assault by Union airships destroys much of Alabama's landship factories. Cressbury's force is caught and annihilated at sea by a splinter flotilla of Farragut's fleet. Britannian Parliament concludes a swift peace agreement with the North. Confederate government is outraged by the Britannian's withdrawal.

December, 1865: With the Britannian Empire out of the war, Lincoln regroups the northern commands to prepare for a new offensive against the South. Lee's army still at large in the Appalachian Mountains, conducting raids against West Virginia and Ohio. A new front opens in the Western Theater when Confederate agents make offers of independence to rebels in the Mexican Territories in exchange for men and materiel. Former Mexican officers from the old Empire raise regiments and march north to link up with Confederate forces in Texas. Farragut's fleet captures Havana, and sinks the Confederate fleet in harbor. Captain Brigham Young raises the Nauvoo Legion's strength to protect the Mormon state of Deseret. Young appoints a committee to oversee the purchase of Union tanks and landships to add to the Legion.

February, 1866: Operation Chicle is launched by the War Department in Washington. Former Emperor of the Mexicans, Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana is to be released and sent back to Mexico to destabilize the region by playing upon the loyalties of the old guard of the Mexican Army. The plan is discovered by Confederate agents who assassinate Santa Ana in his bed. The rights to Santa Ana's Chicle Gum empire is later sold by his widow to an enterprising New York candy maker.

July, 1866: The combined Mexican-Confederate army overruns Union forces in the West. Sherman is killed in action at Wounded Knee by a Sioux sniper in Confederate service. Lincoln orders Grant to the Mississippi River to build up fortifications. Farragut is ordered to weigh anchor in Cuba and blockade the Mexican coast, Confederate naval resources severely stretched in the Gulf of Mexico.
Mexican troops invade Deseret, only to be driven out by the fanatical Nauvoo Legion. Brigham Young converts the captured Mexican troops to the LDS Church.

December, 1866- January, 1869: Both sides dig in along the Mississippi River and the Kentucky/Tennessee border. Tanks bog down in trench and bunker warfare, airships make daily sorties over the much blasted terrain. Lincoln's Republican successor,William Van Hise is voted in as the next president. Brigham Young dies in 1869, and is succeeded by the Council of Saints. Nauvoo Legion is sent to aid the Union armies along the Mississippi.

January, 1870- Major breakthrough made by Grant with a massive combined air/land thrust to the Confederate center across the Mississippi River, Confederate commander P.G.T. Beauregard is forced to withdraw, while the Mexican General Juan de Poncianado is killed in an air raid on his headquarters in northern Missouri.

American fleet. I love em, but I hate their look.

So I'm REALLY tempted to expand into getting an American fleet started. This is not the first time I've fallen under the spell of the rugged Yankee fighting ships and the spirit with which they were designed. Unfortunately that's the catch... I HATE their design. Their ascetic is ridiculous for a ship of 1870. Warships had lost their side wheels in the late 1860's (which is why I chose the British when the game first came out as they had the most realistic looking ships at the time.). Another hideous feature of the Yanks is their low, squat hulls. Doubtless the designers were thinking of the U.S.S. Monitor when they made the American fleet. Nevertheless, I would've hoped for a more pleasing ship-like ironclad look when the game was released. Of course, on the plus side, they ARE Americans, their ships are fast and maneuverable (you can't beat having a kinetic generator on your battleships now can you?), and they have excellent guns. I can also have a continuing Civil War with my friend who also possesses and American fleet. Especially since I'm a diehard Yankee from the Midwest. I have one American battleship from an impulse purchase months ago. A nice red, white, and blue color scheme, representing diehard Yankee sailors that still disagree with the current Southern dominated American government. Thankfully the fluff writers left good ol' honest Abe Lincoln (one of my favorite presidents) as VP of the F. S. A. That much I am grateful.

Above: FSA dreadnought and escorts. What the designers thought looked best.

Above: An American warship of the 1860's. USS Hartford

Above: What American warships were trending towards from the late 1870's to 1890's

NOTHING LIKE THE FSA BATTLE-FLATBOATS!

So with that said, I sit here watching several old films about American naval history, such as the Yankee Buccaneer, a film about David Farragut, and another film about John Paul Jones, the founder of the U.S. Navy. So, I'm conflicted about investing in  a new fleet and letting my trusty Brits collect dust for a while. I'm half tempted to get and Italian fleet and just pretend they're American just for the better design... Screw it. I'll probably be purchasing my first American fleet for Dystopian Wars this weekend. I have been wanting something American in my collection for a long time. Can't say I'll be getting any carriers for them. Butt ugly! But their dreadnoughts and battleships kick ass though.

The Glorious First of June! Hearts of Oak are our ships, jolly tars are our men...

The other day I celebrated the anniversary of the Third Battle of Ushant (or the Glorious First of June) in grand style, with a massive naval engagement near the Solomon Islands between Her Majesty's 12th Fleet and an Imperial Blazing Sun (I just call them Japanese) fleet. By the way, the Glorious First was commemorated in one of the most inspiring naval anthems ever, Heart of Oak. If you didn't click on the link, shame on you! It's a good song, and very rousing.

Anyway, my 12th fleet entered into the straits around the Solomons after being tipped off by spotters about the approaching Japanese armada ready to take the islands. The Solomons are a vital forward lookout and coaling station for my fleet, and the gateway to Her Majesty's dominions in Australia so I made haste with a full head of steam to the engagement point at the northernmost tip of the archipelago. The Japanese didn't stand a chance, my Hawk scout squadron, and tiny flyers manage to strafe the incoming frigates and cruiser, sinking two cruisers and crippling the third one. Now it was the turn of my own fast arriving cruisers and frigates to get in close and unleash one hellish broadside after another. If you're going to play Britannians, then line of battle formation is highly recommended. That is for you non nautical chaps, all the ships line up one behind the other and follow the leader across the enemy's bow and rake her with shot after shot. Turns the whole battlefield into a shooting gallery. It's also VERY effective with a Britannian fleet. Spartan Games at least got that part right. The Russians play it weird, all the guns on the bow, makes crossing their T Nelson style almost suicidal, which is why I take them broadside on, all their guns count for nothing when lined up abreast at their BOW!

So I maul the Japanese advance squadrons pretty quickly, which leaves the best meat for last, their dreadnought and battleship vs. MY dreadnought (HMS Invincible, which is still, I'm happy to say, invincible.) and battleship (HMS Triumph) AND submarine wolf pack. Gracefully striding into the thick of it, Invincible fired off a thunderous salvo off the port bow into the now retreating Yamato's stern (the Japanese dreadnought). Nearly all 18 shots hit home as her systems failed on an unlucky damage roll, and my subs came in to fire off torpedos into the wounded beast. Another 12 hits which was one short of her critical.

The battleship was run off the table after a couple of well placed critical hits that disabled her so badly, her captain felt it best not to follow the age old Japanese tradition of kamikaze, I mean seppuku, I mean hari kiri, I mean suicide. The Yamato was not so disposed. The Invincible and Triumph had her hemmed into a reef while the subs approached from the stern and sank her with more torpedoes. Thus ended a thundering victory for the Brits on the Glorious First of June.

Notes on Isambard Kingdom Brunel, or size does matter.

On reading the background fluff for Dystopian Wars, one of the things I like about the Britannian faction is that ALL of their machines are designed and built by Brunel Academy of Engineering. A nice homage to one of Britain's greatest engineers. Had such technology existed in 1870, I'm sure Brunel would have built hulking landships because he really did build bigger. Bigger locomotives, broader track guages, bigger steamships. Ever heard of the Great Eastern? A massive side-wheeler passenger ship that was later used to lay the Transatlantic Cable, thus linking the British Empire in a vast telegraphic network, that played a key role in more than one war. The Great Western Railway (funny how he liked the word "Great" attached to everything.) was also his brainchild. Especially in the early years of steam, when he wanted "Broad Guage" track laid everywhere in Britain. He lost that battle unfortunately (7ft. wide rails would have made for a smoother ride, as well as fewer derailments when flying around hairpin turns at 90mph.). Broad guage locomotives have a lower center of gravity and bigger wheels, making for a smoother, more comfortable ride. Which is what Brunel needed for his other hobby of drawing perfect circles freehand.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel was born on April 9th, 1806, during the height of the Napoleonic Wars and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. His father, ironically, was French. In fact, his father was a French engineer. He was born at Portsmouth nevertheless. Apparently, the Force was with him, because he had mad skills in mathematics. Mad skills I don't have, but I'm pretty sure the kind of skills that made Brunel the Victorian Tony Stark. When he got old enough, he went to the Ecole Polytechnique, or School of Polytechnics in France. When he got back, he was so awesome he promptly designed and built single-handed the Thames Tunnel, which tunneled under the Thames. And it wasn't just any tunnel, it was a tunnel big enough to drive a train through. Literally.

Promptly after this Victorian Herculean effort, our super hero went on a spate of bridge building all over Britain. Nine of his bridges remain standing today. The reason more don't is because the British government knocked all the rest down in a mid 1970's spate of Anti-Brunel hatemongering, and Anti-Historical hatemongering in general. (Parliament pretty much destroyed the Royal Navy in the 70's as part of this hatemongering of their own former empire. More on that later. All this "we can't afford a navy". Total bunk!)

After he got tired of bridging every gap England had to offer, Brunel went on to build the Great Western Railway, and several giant steamships. Both of which were wildly successful (if expensive at the outset) endeavors making Brunel almost as rich as Tony Stark. And just as awesome. The GWR was so big it even had it's own steamship (The Great Western), which carried passengers from trains in Bristol, to trains in New York. (Apparently this was one gap Brunel couldn't build a bridge over. Probably due to Parliament's cramping on his awesomeness or something.)

Brunel even designed and built an "atmospheric railway" which was pretty badass at the time because no one else thought of it yet. It's pretty much the steampunk version of the bullet train, except that it's a miles long friggin vacuum tube that sucks trains along it. Unfortunately, it was too awesome for the technology at the time, (leather joints in the sealed vacuum tube needed to be replaced frequently due to rot from water seepage, and plastic/rubber joints hadn't been invented yet.) and the project flopped.

Brunel (who shall hereafter be known as Victorian Tony Stark) died in 1859, from a stroke which he got from extreme workaholic stress, sadly, right after the completion of his greatest work, the Great Eastern.


Famous Quote: "There are two ways of doing things, the Great Western Way, and the Wrong Way.
                                                                                                                                          - I. K. Brunel

So, frankly said, I love how they worked Brunel's name into the Dystopian universe. Just as Queen Victoria makes the best British faction leader in the game, (Unlike the Prussians who have to have a made up Emperor Grunder, who's name sounds like something I just barfed up. Why didn't they stick with Kaiser Wilhelm?! And where's Bismarck?) so Brunel-made products make the Dystopian world a safer, deader, place for Her Majesty's subjects. ;) I think he also designed some bridges that were so awesomely massive, they're still in use today.

Artist's rendering of Brunel's futuristic Atmospheric Railway.

Schematics for Brunel's vacuum train. Totally fuel efficient as it would have been a train without an engine. Well, it did have an engine actually, one at each end of the line sucking it back and forth.

The Great Eastern in a "rough" sea.

The Great Eastern in a "calm" sea. (Looks more like the Titanic with side wheels.)

Brunel from one of my favorite webcomics, "Lovelace and Babbage".

(Note to readers: Charles Babbage designed the world's first programable computer, in the 1820's. Ada, Countess of Lovelace, is considered the world's first computer programmer. She died in 1852. If such a machine had been built, it would have been done by Brunel. Cuz he's awesome like that.)

Brunel and his beloved Great Western Railway.

 

Brunel standing in front of the launching chain for the Great Eastern. (By the way, this is just ONE of the launch chains.)