Renaissance Galleys, Galleys and Galleons, 1/1200 scale 

After playing Torpedoes and Tides, Nick suggested having a go at Galleys and Galleons, the rules the WW2 Coastal Forces set had been based on. So, we gave it a go. All the ships were Nick’s, save for my donation of three – the two large, magnificent Spanish galleons Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion and the Santa Catalina de Cartagena.I’d bought them off e-bay as 3-D printed ships, and rejigged them slightly, to make them more realistic. I bought them along with the third, a small patache (a pinnace in English), called El Falcon Blanco. They formed the heart of the convoy, carrying much-needed pay and troops to Tunis, which had just been captured from the Ottoman Turks by John of Austria, Without the money, his largely mercenary force would fall apart.The rest of the convoy – seven small Majorcan craft – both sailed and oared – carried supplies, and a few reinforcements. As they approached Cap Farina (now Cap Sidi Ali El Mekki) at the entrance to the Bay of Tunis, Don Albondigas who commanded the convoy from the Concepcion spotted a cluster of Ottoman galleys approaching from the base of the cape.He’s expected that, but not the English galleon which was also heading towards them! That, though, wasn’t the worst of it. From seaward another cluster of galleys appeared out of the haze to the east. The suspected these were also Turkish, but he couldn’t be sure.In fact the galleys to starboard, heading out from the base of the cape were indeed Ottomans, under the command of Uluj Ali. The ones to port, however, were actually rogue Venetian mercenaries, under the command of the duplicitous privateer Werbi Pasha.In this game, played out on a 6×4 foot sea mat, the only terrain was Cape Farina, jutting out onto the table from the Tunisian coast, with a small scatter of islands and shoals off its seaward tip.Don Albondigas’ aim was to shepherd his convoy round the headland, and into the relative safety of the Gulf of Tunis. I played the part of the Spanish commander, while Nick (both Uluj Ali and Capt. Halibut) and Chris (Werbi Pasha) were out to stop me.The first into the fight was Capt. Halibut and his fast English-built galleon White Bear. For him, the goal was to steal some Spanish gold! The small Falcon Blanco increased sail to head the attacker off, but it was Halibut who opened the fight, when his broadside struck a Spanish oared transport.The shot caused an almighty explosion which blew the God’s Grace to smithereens! This wasn’t a great start for poor Don Albondogas! Fortunately, the threat from Werbi Pasha’s mercenaries diminished as they held back – almost as if waiting for the Turks to attack first.By now the convoy was rounding the headland, but the wind kept changing direction, and during the game it  went right around the compass. As a result, while the merchant galleys threaded through the rocks around the cape, the sailing ships weren’t so lucky. One of these small sailing ships ran aground on one of the outer islets, and its crew scrambled ashore. The rest made it, though, despite the attention of the pursuing Ottoman galleys. By now though, the  Turkish and Venetian galley squadrons were busily fighting each other. This effectively let the convoy slip away to safety, albeit with the loss of two small supply ships – a small merchant galley and a small sailing craft.  The two  galleons, though, made it around the headland  with barely a scratch. So, a Spanish victory, as they left the brawling galleys in their wake!

Tags: Galleys and Galleons