Into the Storm...

[Desertfox]

Climb Mount Nitakka? ;)

NSN Headquarters

"Admiral the ultimatum ends in a few minutes."

"Very well, no sense giving the Germans the benefit of the doubt, they have acted before, remember the Azores?"

"Sir do we send?"

"Yes, and don't waste time, every minute counts."

A few minutes later, heard over the clear.

THE ZOO IS NOW OPEN REPEAT THE ZOO IS NOW OPEN STOP FEED THE ANIMALS REPEAT FEED THE ANIMALS STOP

OOC One of these days I should sit down and explain my Plans Naming system :P

[Borys]

KuK Kriegsmarine OdeB October 20th

Medittereanean Fleet - Malta and Pola:
LS Jan Sobieski (reduced effectiveness)
LS Frankreich (reduced effectiveness)

KK SMS Dragon 1899
KK SMS Schutze 1899
KK SMS Hajduk 1900
KK SMS Pandur 1900

1st Flottille - Adriatic, 2nd Flottille - Malta;

The big ships alternate between Pola and Malta, training crews and showing the flag, the smaller cruisers and TBs patrol home waters, Strait of Sicily. Will impound any encountered NS merchant.

Atlantische Geschwader - Paranagua/Desterro,
PK SMS Budapest - (reduced effectiveness, limited to 10 knots) - some steaming off Parana coast
KK SMS Drava
KK SMS Sava
KK SMS Vag
KK SMS Maros
The cruisers patrol the Parana-Maio-Alhucema route

The 2nd Minensuchen Skvadron has been ordered to the NOI. They will get there in some 60 days.

Arabische Geschwader - Aden
PK SMS Kronstadt (reduced effectiveness) - semi-mobile coastal defence battery in Aden harbour
5th Halbflottille - Aden local defense
KA SMS Bukovina
KA SMS Erdely 
KA SMS Galizien
KA SMS Kleinpolen

The colonial avisos will patrol Arabian Sea, to Chagos Islands, Dar es Salaam. Normal anti-piracy operations, catching any NS merchants still around, escorting mini-convoys (2-4 merchants) carrying military equipment for Firanj.


Ostasiatische Geschwader - Viraca
SMS kLS Sankt Vaclav
SMS kLS Sankt Sava
6th Halbflottille
8th Halbflottille (ex DKB)
1st  Minensuchen Skvadron – Viraca

Patrolling waters around Viraca, guarding minefields, anti invasion readiness

SMHS Kugelschreiber - in midst of most exciting mission in carreer - is making a full speed run, flat out, white water churning dash (12 knots) from Catanduanes to Canton; left Viraca on 17th afternoon, if not detected will reach Canton on the morning of the 20th;

Kampfgeschwader - moving from Med to Aden, will be ready to sail from Aden on the 28th October
LS SMS Frankreich
PK SMS Inssbruck
RK SMS Uhlan - detached, coaling at Vogeldreck (DKB Chagos Islands)
RK SMS Jaeger
RK SMS Graenzer
RK SMS Hussar

SMHS Xantype and Salome - steaming by Dar es Salaam towards Aden, with AFL Half Brigade

SMHS Elspeth Bathory and Lucrecia Borgia - escorted by 2 cruisers of the Riddermark, are carrying 6230 Swiss POWs to New Switzerland


Donau Flottille - all at Budapest
SMS Afrodite
SMS Hera
S1-S12

[Borys]

Viraca
At noon a runner left the Hafenkommandant's office and hurried to the piers where the torpedo boats were moored. After 30 minutes of whistles, yells, bells and commontion in general, the seven boats which could be made to sail immediately left the port and sailed due south, towards the San Bernardino Strait. All the boats had their decks hidden under sacks and - quel horror! - heaps of loose, shiny Catanduanes coal

[swamphen]

Kriegsmarine OoB 20 October
(Active vessels only)

*Hochseeflotte (Neue Brandenburg, Neue Kiel)
Main force:
SS Kaiser Freidrich III
SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse
KK Vineta
KK Ariadne
KK Heimdall
KK Gazelle
KK Thetis
GTB S90 to S99
TB S86-S89
UB U-1
--These ships are to be assigned to Defense of the Fatherland and to Blockade Duty (as best as possible) of the waters between Brandenburg and Australia.

SK Scharnhorst
--Special Detached Unit. At outbreak of war, attacked Palau. After that...??  8)

GK Blücher
KK Frauenlob
KK Agir
ML Nautilus
--These ships have been assigned to bombard/blockade Port Moresby.

ML Albatross
--Doing exactly what it says on the tin...

*Neueguineaflotte (Lae, Rabaul)
SK Kaiser Karl der Grosse
KK Undine
KK Niobe
GTB T104-T108
Kb Tiger
Kb Luchs
FKb Tsetse
FKb Stechmücken
FKb Bremsen
FKb Wollschweber
--Defensive, for now.

*Indischerflotte (Dar-es-Salaam, Mombasa, Goa, Vogeldreck)
PzK Arminius
KK Amazone
KK Medusa
GTB T100, T102, T103, T113, T114
Kb Iltis
Kb Jaguar
--Watching and waiting for any trouble in Ost Afrikan waters

SK Paderborn-Delbrück
GK Roon
GK Yorck
GTB T109
GTB T101
--Special Indian Ocean Attack Fleet...

*Goa Squadron (Goa)
KK Arkona
GTB T115
--D! Fence!   D! Fence!

*Afrikaflotte (Dodoma)
PzK Herta
PzK Freya
TB S80-S81
GKb Delfin
GKb Möwe
GKb Lowe
Gkb Panther
FKb Kocherfligen
FKb Schmetterlinge
FKb Großlibellen
FKb Kleinlibellen
--Keeping a sharp eye on New Zion, just in case they really have sold their souls to the Swiss...


*Atlantikflotte (Pôrto Alegre)
GK Prinz Heinrich
--Nothing to see here, folks.

*Amerikaflotte (Valparaiso)
PzK Friedrich Karl
--Defending the mandate.

PzK Prinz Adalbert
--Defending Easter Island.

*Antarkticflotte (Neue Kiel)
--Administrative command only.

[swamphen]

20 October
0500 Port Moresby Time
Note to the New Swiss Embassy, Neue Brandenburg

"We regret to inform you that at 0600 Hours Port Moresby Time, 20 October, 1907, a state of war will exsist between the forces of the United States of New Switzerland on one side, and the Deutsches Kaiserreich Brandenburg and the Habsburg Empire on the other..."

***

20 October
0600 Port Moresby Time
New Swiss Cable Station (Phoenix-Marshalls-Rabaul-Port Moresby line)
Rabaul, Neue Pommern

The chief of the New Swiss cable station wearily opened the door. The cup of coffee in his hand was substituted for in the "instant alertness" department by the fact that the man who had knocked a moment before was wearing the uniform of a Colonel in the RSD...

"Sorry to interrupt you at this early hour," the man said, "but I am Oberst Klink of the Reichsicherheitsdienst, and I have orders to shut down this station."

"Whaaaat? You can't - " the Swissman's protest was cut off as he noticed the multiple armed Brandenburgers standing behind the Colonel, who were holding their guns ready.

"I'm terribly sorry, but as our nations are now at war, this must be done. And I'm afraid I must also place you and your employees into protective custody as enemy aliens. If you wish to resist, my men I am sure would like you to, as I understand you Swiss are prone to say, make their day."

***

20 October
later that morning
SMS Scharnhorst, ~100nm south of Palau, heading 180, speed 20 knots

"The last of our pursuers are breaking off, Herr Kapitan."

"Sehr gut. Reduce speed to twelve knots once they are over the horizon."

"Aye, Herr Kapitan."

Scharnhorst had successfully completed his mission. His assignment had been to, at the expiry of the ultimatum given by the Twin German Monarchies to the Perfidious Swissmen, destroy the US of NS cable station at Palau, cutting off communications between Phoenix and Australia. The schlachtkreuzer's main battery had proven equal to the task, dispatching the station, the wireless shack, and the island's docks in short order.

Five of the pestiferous Swiss "Turbina" type torpedobooten had set out in pursuit of the marauding German battlecruiser, however Scharnhorst's heavy secondary batteries had quickly cooled their martial ardor. Today, it seemed, was not considered a good day to die by Swiss destroyermen. They had settled for shadowing the German ship south, keeping out of 170mm range at first, then pulling further away after a few 305mm persuasions. Finally the last of them had broken away, and the mighty Scharnhorst was alone on the sea again.

And now, the kapitan smiled, the hunt could commence.

[swamphen]

NOTICE TO MARINERS
EFFECTIVE 20 OCTOBER 1907

Port Moresby is hereby declared to be under an official Blockade. Any vessels attempting to reach the port are subject to inspection and any vessels carrying Contraband are subject to seizure.

ACHTUNG MINEN! The approaches to Port Moresby have been mined. Any vessels attempting to enter the port do so at their own risk.

ACHTUNG MINEN! Hobart Strait has been mined. Any vessels attempting to transit the strait do so at their own risk...

[swamphen]

Early events of the Great Swiss War
Extracted from a dissertation by Karin König at the Brandenburg Military Academy, 1914

The Special Indian Ocean Attack Fleet arrived at Keeling Island on the afternoon of the 20th after recoaling in Vögeldreck. The Swiss garrision was aware that the war had begin but had not expected to be attacked, and especially not from the west. Nevertheless they succeeded in warning Phoenix of their situation before their communications were cut by the naval bombardment. Late the next day, under threat from the Brandenburg fleet commander of the use of "Grünerjunge" shells, the Swiss commander decided to avoid further bloodshed and surrendered the island. The ships then put ashore their assigned Sturmtruppen...

The Port Moresby Blockade Force was only partially successful in their assigned mission for the first day of the war. Achieving tactical surprise, the ensuing bombardment of the military facilities at Port Moresby was not as successful as had been hoped. The minelayer Nautilus was also driven off by Swiss light forces before he had succeeded in competely closing the port. Nevertheless the Port Moresby Blockade began...

SMS Albatross suffered the worst luck (for anyone who was not Swiss) of the first day of the war. Assigned to close the vital Hobart Strait to shipping, the ship struck an uncharted reef while the job was only half done. His captain suceeded in unsticking the ship on the ensuing high tide, but with severe damage to the hull the only option was to return home, while radioing (using code) for urgent assistance.

In contrast, the initial voyage of the Scharnhorst was all her captain had hoped it would be...

***

26 October
Catanduanes, Austian Philippines

The Kapitan of SMS Scharnhorst stood tall on the bridge as his ship, now a bloodied veteran of battle, sailed into the Austrian port. The paint was fresh on the silhouette of the Swiss cruiser - Port Blair, her survivors had revealed - that had been added to the superstructure. The pathetic Swiss cruiser hadn't so much as put a splinter aboard Scharnhorst, while the latter had wasted no time in sending the former to serve the fleet of Davy Jones, with less than twelve minutes elapsing between the first salvo of twelve-inch HE and the Swissmen scurring to abandon their ship like the rats that they were. The kapitan hoped the Austrians had a nice prision, with plenty of fellow rats to keep the POWs he'd taken company. By contrast, the attacks on shore facilities along the northern coast of Swiss Neue Guinea had been mere target practice. Quite successful target practice, of course, but hardly a challenge worthy of the mighty Scharnhorst!

Yes, the kapitan thought, his ship and his crew had done well by themselves and their flag. Well enough, he thought, that a full liberty call was called for. The kapitan hoped the Austians had a nice set of waterfront bars...




(NB: Albatross is at 30% with heavy flooding and is very nearly in sinking condition. The remainder of his mineload (50% of it) was scuttled to lighten the ship. They say all of them sunk or were destroyed...)

[Borys]

OOC
Will reply in due time :)
But you know that Viraca, where you are, has grown from several hundered people in 1902 to 50,000 in 1907? This is a BOOMTOWN, man!
Borys

[swamphen]

Hopefully there won't be too many booms in the town caused by Scharnhorst's pack of scurvy dogs.  ;D

[Borys]

The incidence of claps will go up though, hurr-hurr, nudge-nudge ...

[Desertfox]

BOOM town? He, he, he...

[P3D]

lol

[swamphen]

Well it IS a Filipino port...  ;D


(edited condition of Albatross to reflect correct condition - it's 30%, not 70.  :o )

[Desertfox]

With a Swampy built ship inside.

*omminous humm*

The Kapitan of SMS Scharnhorst stood tall on the bridge as his ship, now a bloodied veteran of battle,

Bloodied? C'mon Swampy, that was a 22 year old Protected Cruiser with museum pieces for Guns. Your doing me a favor by ridding me of all the old chaff.  :P

Now if the Captain wants a true duel, a challenge arrives from Constitution and Alliance, Battlecruisers at 30 paces. ;)

[Borys]

28th/29th October

Raid by Swiss SAF produces great display of fireworks, as they manage to set an ammo dump on fire. Night patrols by AFL, police and vigilanttes intensified. New minfield to NE of island laid.