Battle - 1721 - January 12 - Skirmishing at Basseterre

Ships in Action:
ALLIES:

 Captain Virgil Kyle - HMS Pellinore ('Valiant' Third Rate)

-19 other British ships, split up between three groups of colossals and fourth rates, and one group of the remaining two frigates.

ENEMIES:

-French fleet of 18 ships, all heavy frigates.

Action Setup:
Upon arriving in the battle's ready room, everybody diligently went about the normal business of forming up into groups and preparing for battle. In the back of everyone's mind, we knew this battle would be conducted on an unusually tight time schedule, as the battle to defend Santo Domingo from the French was only an hour away. Knowing this, we went into battle, and got to work with the task at hand.

The Action Itself:
Upon entering the battle, we were relieved to see that the French had not matched or exceeded our numbers or firepower, bringing only 18 heavy frigates to defend their port. However, their reason for bringing such a fleet quickly became clear, and for the next hour, they proceeded to feint back and forth, looking for a way to close with and enter our port. However, we managed to counter every play to divide us or bypass our ships, despite our burdensome size, and the French paid a price every time they came too close to our lineships. By the time everyone, French and British, were forced to leave for the next port battle at Santo Domingo, the French were reduced to skirmishing with our undamaged fleet, having lost 5 or 6 ships in the first few tussles.

The Result:
Victory, yet again! Although the French attempted to goad us into doing something rash, they were ultimately the ones who paid the price for their own gambit. Serves them right for not fighting us fair and square!

Lessons Learned:
This battle didn't teach many lessons in the way of battle tactics, other than to once again highlight the importance of mainting group cohesion and discipline when under fire. Although our lines were quite raggedy throughout the battle, we still managed to keep from becoming splintered and disorganized in the wake of the enemy's tactics, and thus avoided giving the French the mistakes they so desperately craved, and needed.

Visuals
The following are pictures from the late battle. Enjoy :)