Battle of the River Plate - Naval Thunder

This is one of the scenarios included in the Naval Thunder expansion "Bitter Rivals".  It is one of my personal favorites to use when teaching new players or for just a quick game.

This is a AAR of  a rousing game I played with my two boys.  My eldest son and I took command of the British while my younger son commanded the Admiral Graf Spee.  As with all my WWII games the models are 1/1800 Wizard of the Coast "War at Sea".

Exeter and Graf Spee immediately began exchanging salvos at range. While the Achilles and Ajax rushed to the scene.

British Gunnery was deadly accurate or lucky this day as the Exeter was able to score a critical hit at long range taking out the aft Main turret on the Graf Spee cutting her main guns by 50%.

The Graf Spee still proved a formidable foe even with only 3 x11" guns remaining.  As the distance continued to close Graf Spee pummeled the HMS Exeter while Achilles and Ajax continued to approach unmolested.

The Main and secondary guns of the Graf Spee tore into the Exeter and proved to much for the old cruiser as she was taking on water and developed a severe list.

As the other two Cruisers began to pour a withering fire into Graf Spee it proved too late for Exeter as she slowly rolled over and sank.

Graf Spee immediately turned her secondaries on Achilles scoring multiple hits at short range.

Despite pounding the British cruisers with her own remaining guns the combined fire from both  British ships proved too much and the Graf Spee was soon overwhelmed herself succumbing to the fires started from her earlier exchange with Exeter and the constant barage from Achilles and Ajax.

As the range was now point blank the British cruisers launched a salvo of torpedoes which sent the mighty German raider to the depths of the South Atlantic.

Again this proved a very fun, but short scenario as it was done in under an hour.  Taking out a main turret on the Graf Spee early proved fatal as she was never able to split her fire between the two British forces.

In the end it was a Draw as the Exeter was sunk, but so what the Graf Spee while both the Achilles and Ajax survived the encounter albeit with heavy damage themselves.