HFQ Offical Snippet #18

Why do we suspect that the terminal dashes in several snippet sections all refer to the same moment in time?

phillies wrote:Why do we suspect that the terminal dashes in several snippet sections all refer to the same moment in time?

Because that's RFC's spelling of "Kaboom!!!!"

Laid up after knee surgery and have been enjoying rereading the Safehold series and catching up on the latest release. Thanks for the snippets! Also hope Sharon's feeling much better.

Regards,

ABK

abk wrote:Laid up after knee surgery and have been enjoying rereading the Safehold series and catching up on the latest release. Thanks for the snippets! Also hope Sharon's feeling much better.

Regards,

ABK

Absolutely. We're all holding our breath, we wish Sharon well, and we still don't want any snippets until RFC is good and ready!

Randomiser wrote:

n7axw wrote:In one of the snippets, we have the "cities" class ironclads off the coast of Desnair dealing with the privateer problem. IIRC, that met that Sharpfield was going to have to wait on the next group of ironclads which would make their arrival roughly the same time as the King Haarahlds.

Don

In LaMA a couple of the Rottweiler class ironclad galleons were sent to the Gulf of Mathyas to help stamp out the places where the Desnairans were building schooners, and arrived just as Merlin's "spies" handed over a map of where all the schooners were being built. They had lots of fun...

The new river ironclads will have even more fun, although I can't help but look at the Salthar canal in Silkiah and think of how helpful a dozen or so of them would be in the Gulf of Dohlar... Given how badly the war is going for Desnair, and that Hanth has cut off Somyr and the entire land supply route, there soon won't be any Desnairan forces or supplies flowing through Silkiah - which is likely to keep its head down to avoid having a "Sword of Scheuler" done to it.

On the other hand, should allied forces move in to seize the Salthar canal, there's not much the demilitarized Silkiah could do about it. The Duchy doesn't have an army and wasn't allowed to produce weapons of any kind until recently. It's currently producing about 500 rifles a month, which isn't going to cast fear into any invading force.

Unfortunately, I'd be shocked if the locks on the Salthar canal aren't already rigged with explosives, with standing orders to destroy them if an allied force appears - and the semaphore line most likely runs adjacent to the canal. We have no idea how many locks there are, but the canal is 400 miles long. It might be like the Suez Canal with no locks, since there are no rivers that appear to flow into it, but those will appear if RFC needs them.

If the allies can seize the canal intact, they need to keep the Desnairans from invading in force. The isthmus in the northernmost Desnairan territory of North Watch that borders southern Silkiah is 252 miles wide at its narrowest point, much of which is mountains and impassable. The ICN has already cut off all shipping in the Gulf of Mathyas and cut the road on the east side of the isthmus in six places, and all Desnairan supplies are currently being taken by ship to the western end of the Salthar canal through Hankey Sound. That will end in a few months when the Haarahld VIIs arrive and the ICN sails all the way into the Gulf of Dohlar. Then all Desnairan troops and supplies will have to move by land on the west side of the isthmus, which apparently has an even worse road system than the east side, (if there's one at all) and the map shows the mountains extend clear into the sea at the Silkiahn border, which means that route is impassable. Oops!

After the beheading its nobility just went through when the AoS was destroyed, Desnair may not have the stomach to continue the land war any longer, even if its extreme northern border is invaded.

Basically, Desnair is out of the war once the ICN arrives in the eastern Gulf of Dohlar in August or September. Silkiah could cut a deal or simply revert to its century-long neutrality if the allies seize the canal. Of all the mainland realms, Silkiah is the only one that falls within the EoC's realm of influence due to the Salthar canal, which has tremendous strategic and economic value for an empire that rules the oceans.

Zhanayt is 16 and old enough to betroth to someone for dynastic reasons should the Duke of Silkiah have a son of about that age...

I think Sharpfield has the other two Rotweillers...

Actually a fairly modest blocking force stationed right there in the neck between Howard and Haven would be sufficient to isolate Desnair and South Harchong from the war once Sharpfield gets his reinforcements and is able to move deeply into the Gulf of Dohlar. Then all that would be left to dealing with Desnair is containing the privateer threat.

Don

n7axw wrote:I think Sharpfield has the other two Rotweillers...

Actually a fairly modest blocking force stationed right there in the neck between Howard and Haven would be sufficient to isolate Desnair and South Harchong from the war once Sharpfield gets his reinforcements and is able to move deeply into the Gulf of Dohlar. Then all that would be left to dealing with Desnair is containing the privateer threat.

Don

Agreed. The only major blue-water operations still remaining (that is, of course, if RFC doesn't get creative) are dealing with Thirsk new-model experimental fleet, and sailing a couple of KH cruisers into Zion's waterfront (probably in the hope that Clyntahn will burst a vein). Beyond that, the rest of the naval campaign will be mostly dealing with privateers and interdicting whatever supply efforts the Temple Loyalists try to send overseas. A few Rottweilers, stationed on both sides of the isthmus, wouldn't have to do much beyond baring their fangs and making some growling noises to stop Desnair and Dohlar from getting too adventurous. I understand rottweilers are particularly good at doing both things .

OTOH, if some Temple Loyalist geek (maybe Zhaigwair) manages to make heads or tails of the "steam engine" descriptions, then things could become interesting indeed...

n7axw wrote:I think Sharpfield has the other two Rotweillers...

Actually a fairly modest blocking force stationed right there in the neck between Howard and Haven would be sufficient to isolate Desnair and South Harchong from the war once Sharpfield gets his reinforcements and is able to move deeply into the Gulf of Dohlar. Then all that would be left to dealing with Desnair is containing the privateer threat.

Don

To be exact, the ICN needs control of the Bay of Bess, which would enable them to cut off all access to the Dairnyth - Alyksberg canal, and the Fairmyn river that leads north to Cliff Peak, then to Glacierheart via the Charayn canal and the Daivyn river, and connects as far north as Tarikah.

Controlling access to Hankey Sound and Salthar Bay cuts off the Salthar canal and effectively removes the last route for Desnair to send troops and supplies to Siddarmark.

On the eastern side of the continent, control of the Gulf of Jahras is keeping Desnair largely contained in regards to the privateers it's been building, while the ironclad galleons in Silkiah Bay have cut off eastern access to the Salthar and Silk Town - Thesmar canals. Mission accomplished there.

Of course Gorath and Thirsk's fleet have a date with the Haarahld VIIs, and we need to find out how effective the screw galleys will be against a modern battleship! (I'm worried about mines and spar torpedoes.)

Weird Harold wrote:

phillies wrote:Why do we suspect that the terminal dashes in several snippet sections all refer to the same moment in time?

Because that's RFC's spelling of "Kaboom!!!!"

Or perhaps "A line of bright flashes lit the shallow rise beyond HMS Delthak's bow. The Captain counted off the moments. Twelve seconds later, precisely on time, there came to his ears a staccato rush of sharp reports."

McGuiness wrote:

n7axw wrote:I think Sharpfield has the other two Rotweillers...

Actually a fairly modest blocking force stationed right there in the neck between Howard and Haven would be sufficient to isolate Desnair and South Harchong from the war once Sharpfield gets his reinforcements and is able to move deeply into the Gulf of Dohlar. Then all that would be left to dealing with Desnair is containing the privateer threat.

Don

To be exact, the ICN needs control of the Bay of Bess, which would enable them to cut off all access to the Dairnyth - Alyksberg canal, and the Fairmyn river that leads north to Cliff Peak, then to Glacierheart via the Charayn canal and the Daivyn river, and connects as far north as Tarikah.

Controlling access to Hankey Sound and Salthar Bay cuts off the Salthar canal and effectively removes the last route for Desnair to send troops and supplies to Siddarmark.

On the eastern side of the continent, control of the Gulf of Jahras is keeping Desnair largely contained in regards to the privateers it's been building, while the ironclad galleons in Silkiah Bay have cut off eastern access to the Salthar and Silk Town - Thesmar canals. Mission accomplished there.

Of course Gorath and Thirsk's fleet have a date with the Haarahld VIIs, and we need to find out how effective the screw galleys will be against a modern battleship! (I'm worried about mines and spar torpedoes.)

Agree mostly. My only caveat is to point out that as of the last textev, the privateer threat had not yet been contained.

Don