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Thread: Mission 5: Balloon Challenge (Central Powers - Blackronin)

  1. #1

    Default Mission 5: Balloon Challenge (Central Powers - Blackronin)

    "Ltn. Joachim, please do sit down. Your excellent work today saved a lot of German soldiers from the British shells!" "Thank you, Herr Hauptmann Gabriel. But I was very lucky with this." "As you keep telling me... But alas, luck or no luck, you've made an excellent job. Let's start by the beginning, shall we?" "Very well. I scrambled with the rest of the squadron to take down the observation balloon that was being used to give coordinates to the British artillery." "And was it well protected?" "Well, yes. But..."



    "But?" "I went against in a low flight so that they would pull it down before I arrived. The rest of the Eagles engaged the fighters that were over the trenches and I slipped below them. I expected a lot of fire coming from the trenches, but as I reached them I received only half heartily rifle fire."



    "And the balloon was still up?" "No planes in the sky and the balloon growing in the distance like a behemoth waiting for me." "Joachim. Please! No poetry!" "Ah, yes! I dived against the trenches firing mainly to maintained them down while I passed over."



    "Nicely done Joachim. And you slipped through the trenches?" "It was better than that, Herr Hauptmann. I kept firing and I must have hit some kind of explosive, because an explosion shook the trench and I saw some soldiers running away from it."



    "You were lucky!" "Has I have told you previously." "Go on." "Having cleaned the trench, and seeing no enemy plane, I decided the clean some of the machine-gun emplacements so that I could concentrate in the balloon without taking damage."



    "The gunner fired at me, but too low. I fired back making some visible damage."



    "I see. You were flying low?" "Oh. Two hundred feet above ground... At that moment, one of the Camels disengaged from the dogfight and came to take me down.





    "And you engage it?" "Oh no. I was here for the balloon, not the Camel. I kept firing on the gun nest. If I could silence it, I would have space to maneuver and fire against the balloon without being shot at constantly. So I silenced it diving at the gun nest."



    "And the camel?" "He was coming for me full speed."



    "I fired a long shot against the balloon but doing little damage."



    "The second gun nest start firing at me so I banked into its direction and I let loose a stream of bullets that luckily silenced it. But in exchange I received damage from the gun nest and from the Camel that passed below the balloon and hit me hard."



    "But now you had space to maneuver..." "Indeed. I moved away from the balloon crossing near the Camel."



    "We both went for an Immelmann at the same time." "At such low altitude? Dangerous..."




    "Indeed. But I came back better. I had the possibility to fire against the balloon or against the Camel. he couldn't fire at me." "what was your choice?" "Mmmm... The balloon. But I made no damage... The sun in my eyes, I think..." "Right... And then?"



    "I moved away to gain enough distance to fire again." "And the Camel?" "He also circled left to gain airspeed and enough distance."



    "I made another Immelmann and returned firing against the balloon. I hit it but doing little damage as many of the explosive bullets didn't exploded." "That's a problem." "Yes..."



    "But when I approached my Albatros enough to the balloon I set it on fire."



    "That's half the work done in those balloons..." "Indeed, Herr Hauptmann. That gave me a little respite, so I fired against the returning Camel."



    "And you damaged it?" "Not only I didn't hit the Camel as my weapons jammed on me..." "Tough luck..." "Hmmm.... I think it was because I was against the sun..." "Again?" "Well... I pushed the engine to move away while I tried franticly to unjam them..."



    "And were you able to do so?" "I was trying, one eye on the machine guns, one eye on the Camel that was going for an Immelmann, and one eye on the balloon that was burning in all its glory." "Joachim..." "For a moment there, time stopped. I could see the observer, that had jumped from the balloon as I fired the first time, touching the ground. I could see the tongues of yellow-reddish fire sprouting from the balloon. I could see the Camel's pilot..." "Joachim. That is very nice and all, but keep on with the report!" "Well... The fire was damaging the balloon..."



    "I finally was able to unjam the guns and I fired again against the balloon that, for my initial dismay had stop burning. The Camel was coming for me again."



    "Then it happened!" "What?" "The Camel came for me, firing but missing me. I fired against the balloon and it exploded. I saw the camel being pushed by the blast but without damage and the remains of the balloon fell to the ground like a big burning blanket... Oh!"





    "Oh?!" "The Camel was having troubles with his guns. And now I had to decide." "To go or to engage the Camel?" "Yes, Herr Hauptmann." "And what did you decided?"



    "Well. The Camel was still fresh. I was already damaged." "That was never a great problem to you..." "And my comrades were in a dogfight to give me cover. There was no reason to stay. My job was done." "Excellent choice Joachim. How did you evade the Camel?" "he was stil turning wide to unjam his weapons. I crossed No-man's Land and joined the Eagles and we went home." "Very well. Will you join me on a drink? Congratulations for your first balloon."



    "Thank you Herr Hauptmann." "Is your plane very damaged?" "Nothing that can't be fixed..."





    Final Notes

    Mission Result: Central Powers Victory. The British balloon is no more.

    Casualties and Damage:

    Balloon destroyed.
    Enemy Sopwith Camel with no damage at all

    Central Powers victories:
    Ltn. Joachim Marseille - 1 Kills (Has now 6 kills. 5 planes and 1 balloon.)
    Ace Ability: Always Coming Home.

    Final thoughts:
    It took me a while to play this Mission. But the difference between the balloon card and the miniature was immense.
    Have you noticed that this was an entirely paper models mission?

  2. #2

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    Congrats Joaquim - great mission !

  3. #3

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    A paper model mission! Oh yeah! Boom, you made it! Quim. Great "poetic" style AAR like usual. Bravo for the story and the outcome. My report is at works

  4. #4

  5. #5

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    Well done Eagle...

    Shot down the balloon and escaped.

    ...like Manneken.

    Good AAR - wonderfull Entente balloon.



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