Into Quiberon; Attack of the Brie

In the next series of games for my Quiberon bay campaign my orders require H.M Brig of War Fearless to blockade the bay.  It's a big ask for a little under -crewed Brig!  My intended route is: 

1  Les Chats   (19)
2  Les Birdivaux (25)
3  The Northern route (against the current 31)
4  Les Palais (36) looking into the Quiberon anchorage (35)
5  Thread the needle into the Morbian (40 44 49)
6  Looking into the Le Croisic anchorage (53)
7  Past the three rocks (51) Les trois pierrres
8  Run the deep water off Belle Isle with the current (42  38  33  32)
9  Past the Pointe des Poulains, (26) reports that the French have set up a battery.  (This may be a rumour but I have been asked to examine the point)
10 Back around Les Birvidaux (25  30)

By this time I anticipate I will have stirred up a hornets nest of Privateers from Belle Isle, but if not I shall repeat the circuit, back into the bay via Le Palais, and looking into the Quiberon anchorage at 35 again.

That should provide enough waypoints to give Fearless a run for her money: 19, 25, 31, 36,  35,  40, 49, 53, 51, 42, 33, 32, 25, 30, and 35  (15 waypoints in five groups of 3)


I have asked Citeon Quilp to sort out the sightings and encounters for me, from a drawn up list of 17, and adding a few more for me to assign to the waypoints.  For example HMS Stilton could be knocking about in hex 19, or freak waves in hex 36.
I do hope Stilton isn't knocking about.  Her Captain is a proper stinker.

Each waypoint can have up to two sightings..

My apologies for all the French cheese...

Quiberon Bay

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Game One

Morning Watch, moving from point 12 to point 19, Isle de Grois, wind Westerly, the Cats rocks fine off the port bow.

Sighting at Point 19

The Ship Sloop Brie, Commanded by Georges de Meaux, a Nantes Privateer, South East, exiting Quiberon Bay.  She has come about and is on an intercepting course. 

To the east is Les Birdivaux, a shoal with about three feet of white water over it.  It marks the eastern side of the table edge.

Brie is armed with 14 x 6 pdr guns, a heavy Armament for a Privateer, but she has 150 men aboard and can only clear five guns each side as a result.  Georges de Meaux intends to close and board, a Nantes tradition.
Brie is weeded and crank.  She falls off a point to leeward each move.

Has Georges never heard of Carronades?

Sighting at 2NM. Brie comes about and both vessels are on a converging course.  The board is my Cruel Seas mat, and very nice it is too.

I send the gunner and his party to the bow chasers.  Only the port chaser can bear but I fire that big 18pdr.  A hit and then a roll of 12 it's critical!  The Brie loses three rigging boxes and her mast is sprung.  She will now need rigging checks.

Brie returns the fire, with four hits,one crew two hull boxes and one rigging. 

It's good shooting for the overloaded sloop, but the Frenchman fails a rigging check and loses one more.  Brie falls off downwind as the carronade fire from Fearless is about to come into play.

The ancient Gunner's eye is in today.  The carronades score a critical hit.  The Brie's backstay parts and her mast comes down.

That however is the least of Captain Georges problems, as his hull is broken open.  Breaching to the Biscay rollers the Brie sinks by the stern.

Unable to  take 150 Frenchmen aboard the Brig, Captain Farthingdale leaves them to their own boats, as he turns Fearless south and into Quiberon Bay

A victory for the King, A victory for the Navy and more importantly a victory for the papers!

God save King George.