Does anyone have any thoughts about Q ships and/or the German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis? Thought, info, or plans would all be appreciated.
The subject of Q ships (as they were called in WWI) or Kriegsmarine commerce raiders (WWII) comes up from time to time in our Big Gun club (Western Warship Combat Club), but is never resolved in terms of RC warship combat. The only advantage to campaigning a commerce raider are the elements of surprise and stealth. If the crew of a merchant ship sailing on the ocean encountered a commerce raider, but were successfully fooled into believing it was just another merchant ship, then the concept worked beautifully. The merchant ship, with a single stern 3" or 5" gun (if that) could not defend itself, and ordinarily could not run away, either. (The Atlantis, for example, with a top speed of 17.5 knots, was much faster than the average merchant ship.) On the other hand, if the commerce raider encountered an enemy warship, then chances were pretty good that it would be sunk. The big question is: How do you integrate the twin elements of surprise and stealth into regular combat game play? Without them, what you are left with in the Atlantis, at least as far as Big Gun combat is concerned, is a fairly long (around 42"), slow warship with (at least in our case) limited maneuverability, that looks and handles like a merchant ship, and - because of the standard speed rules, is no faster than an unarmed merchant ship in our combat. The only "punch" it would have in Big Gun game play would be twin torpedoes on each side, plus mine laying capability assuming mines are an option.) Interesting subject! Rob
Of course, if you place the Q-ship in the midst of a group of merchants, the fog of battle may allow it to regain some of the element of suprise it loses on it's own.
I can share with you some of the brainstorming we've done, if that would help. Scenario 1) All merchant ships are identical, and all are equipped with guns and torpedo tubes. Some are loaded and armed, some aren't. That's a pretty interesting scenario, because any merchant ship might be capable of offensive operations, and it is not clear whether it's a real cargo-carrying merchant ship until it opens fire. This approach introduces the elements of stealth and uncertainty. Scenario 2) Merchant ships are not identical. Everyone knows which ship is equipped with guns and torpedoes, but only the skipper and combat director know if its weapons are armed. A particular raider or Q ship enters the battle, and does convoy runs, just as though it is an ordinary merchant ship; if it is unarmed, it scores convoy run points for successfully completing its route; if it is armed, it does not score convoy run points. Rob
