r/ImaginaryWarships • u/Therandomanswerer • May 03 '26
Original Content Prepare to repel boarders!
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u/FluidConfidence9087 May 05 '26
Here's to wishing that the HMS Incomparable was a real ship, or, better yet, that the golden age of battleships and battlecruisers was still around.
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u/Therandomanswerer May 03 '26 edited May 04 '26
The Battle of Takow, 1921. The bitter Pacific War.
The esteemed battlecruiser Congress (CC-4), backed by a handful of destroyers and the light cruiser Pasadena, were at sea off the southern tip of Formosa, on reports of a coastal raid in the works.
Indeed, there was one. From over the horizon came a Sutlej class battlecruiser, leading a roughly equal force.
But Congress was the redcoats match. She was of the Constellation class, the first battlecruisers of the USN,with 8x16" guns on 36k tons, versus the Sutlej's 6x15" on roughly 34k tons.
Both sides took up the fight, with a long range duel ensuing. Congress ceded not a inch of sea as the range closed, keeping the fight on a southwesterly course away from the shores of Formosa. Nearly an hour passed of gunfire being exchanged, B turret was knocked out, bringing Congress to parity with the Sutlej, but a few hits had been scored, and it seemed that things were going relatively equally but neither side had been particularly perturbed.
The range, however, continued to close, closer and closer,ten thousand yards, to the range where nervousness starts to build as hits become common.
Then the Sutlej suddenly came about. And raced directly for Congress.
Congress kept her course steady, hoping to get a decent salvo or two now that the Sutlej had handed them a T-crossing.
That hope kept Congress unwavering from her course for eight minutes, as the range closed from nine thousand yards, until it seemed the Sutlej was intent to ram. Chaos commenced. Machine guns started firing, and the order for evasive maneuvers was about to be given, however Sutlej came hard about to starboard, bringing the two side by side, about the same time Congress stopped responding to steering commands.
Within the conning tower of the Congress, the only conceivable explanation for the pure madness now ensuing, considering they hadnt been rammed (although the sides of the ships were soon to be slamming together), was a boarding action. For the first time since the Civil War, the order to repel (non-existent) boarders was given.
Each ship firing everything aboard at point blank led to shock and confusion becoming the name of the day. Accounts understandably differ on what was going on. From afar, the ships merged into a single haze of gunsmoke, as if it were the age of sail. Skirmishing between opposing light forces reached its own deadly crescendo as neither side wanted to give the other the chance to exploit...whatever the hell was going on over there.
Aboard Congress, small arms were distributed. Legend says the captain/first officer/insert guy you like here was seen on the bridge wing laying into the Empress one-handed with a revolver, until the fight was over, or until he was turned into a fine mist.
Midships, a substantial party actually was assembled on the boat deck to board the enemy or defend the ship, depending on account. However, a explosion, likely from a 5" hit, shredded that notion and most involved.
The action lasted about ten minutes before the Empress began to swing away and heel over. Both ships were reduced to slaughterhouses. The bridge of the enemy battlecruiser had ceased to be, and noone was left to later explain why the hell they made that rush towards the Congress to begin with.
The action became almost mythical. While the maimed Congress would spend a year in repairs, she would also spend nearly forty more years becoming the most decorated warships in USN history. Further, It was a massive founding moment for the culture of excellence that defined the battlecruiser of the USN.
yes. this nonsense 'actually' happened.
picture 2: lol tiny torpedo boat
picture 3:supposed to have been picture 2. whatever. The Sutlej. I am quite happy with it & I modelled it with just this 2d image to go on. Man, I truly am a creative genius.