Battle of Riga

Why in the world would gamers be more interested in fighting battles in the Baltic instead of the North Sea during The Great War? The North Sea has the Royal Navy standing guard. We even have those awesome American battleships arriving at the end of 1917.  There is Jutland, Dogger Bank and a number of possible battles.

Yet I am more dawn in by the situation faced by the Russians. Supporting the Army as the Germans march east the Russians were facing the bulk of the German High Seas Fleet. For the Russians the great equalizer was the mine and the torpedo.  The Baltic is where the historical actions occurred. These are smaller actions but interesting in the difference in tactics used.

There were a number of battles fought in and near Riga were parts of the German High Seas Fleet engaged the shore batteries and navy of the Russians. Often mines and British submarines held the Germans back. In three occasions the Russians sortied their heavy units with mixed results.

As Tony is building up the German navy it is only fair I build the Russians in 1/6000 scale. The Russians followed the Jeune École school were the emphasis is on the mine, torpedo and fast cruisers. As students their ships more often came from French designs and what student of naval history cannot appreciate those outlandish designs. We will see if I have any luck here defending Mother Russia’s coast.

While waiting for the ships I will be testing out the history as a game using Avalanche Press Jutland. Please follow along on the reports that will appear here. Your comments are welcome.