GAME TURN SIX

Turn 6 will cover from 1800-0600, sunset will be 1900 and the Admiral's Dinner is scheduled for 1930. Three topics will come from the Admiral and / or his staff.
SOCIAL: Women's fashions, especially low cut French Gowns and showing their ankles at formal dress balls, simply scandalous. Admiral Medicus is known to be somewhat conservative, Captain Giles indifferent, and Lieutenant Harris in favor of the change.
GRAPEVINE: Lord Rupert? A cavalry officer rarely rises to high command and is surely out of place here on an island, plus his daughter, well enough said...

The question here is Lord Rupert out here as reward or punishment. Is his daughter truly seeing a young lieutenant of unknown family and no status?
PROFESSIONAL: The USS Constitution 44 (55) big frigate, or a small ship of the line. Could she give one of our 64's or 74's a good fight (for purposes of this discussion assume her armament to be 30-24 pdr longs and 24-42 pdr carronades and her Marines to be Rifle Armed)

Lastly any topics the players wish to bring up.As Royal Navy officers they need to show they are well versed, educated and keeping up with current affairs. Each character should introduce one topic for discussion.

Rumors

Leftenant Rhetnug is quite the Lady’s Man

Captain Giles has been considered foe appointment to Commodore

Rear Admiral Medicus will be retiring for health reasons

The HMS Sunnydale 74 is a recent capture from the French

USS Columbia 74 is flagship for a small squadron consisting of a 44 USS Constitution and a 38 USS Constellation as well as several brigs and sloops.

Bermuda’s Harbor defenses have been seriously depleted to beef up several expeditionary forces short on artillery and trained gunners

A Spanish Frigate Maria 40 isid to be in these waters enroute to St Augustine

14th Light Dragoons, 1st Foot Royal Scots, and a large Royal Marine Detachment are awaiting transport for operations on the American East Coast

A fast merchant sloop arriving in midafternoon reports sighting an American Frigate and a smaller vessel approximately 12 hours ago. She also carries some mail and dispatches.

Lastly Coaches for the Lord Rupert's Ball seem to be in short supply and excessively priced

The grapevine also says the Rapide 12 (carries10-9 pdrs and 2-12 pdrs) a French Corvette brought in as prize will be taken into service. She suffered some hull damage and extensive repairs are required to her rigging which the French Crew failed to maintain. To be classed as a sloop she would rate a Commander as Captain.

Fleet Mail

Rear Admiral Medicus

Thank you sir it will be my honor to again serve under your command.

My convalescence went well it was good to be home for and extended period of time.

Like all men of the sea it is even better to know that a stout quarterdeck is awaiting me.

I have enclosed my papers for your revue. I shall be arriving from England aboard the HMS Sunnydale.

Yours truly,

Sir Robert J. Stark Post Captain

Rear Admiral Medicus
Aboard HMS Buffonia 44

Captain Stark,
"Reports of your death have been greatly exaggerated." I would be most pleased to have you return to the squadron under my command. Your return to duty comes at a most opportune time as I will be transferring my flag to the HMS Sunnydale 74 and Captain Giles will be accompanying me as my flag captain. This will create a position for a post captain of your seniority aboard the HMS Buffonia 44.
For the Admiral
Xander Harris
Flag Lieutenant

Shipping News, yet one more convoy

HMS Sparrowhawk 38, escort for a supply convoy and is overcrewed because she is bringing out replacements for the the Bermuda Squadron. Captain His Grace Akron Hurst commanding. In charge of the replacement draft is a new officer Thomas Edward Bryant, Leftenant of His Majesty’s Navy en route to his new assignment. Bryant is 24, has straight black hair cropped short, with a olive complexion from being atsea. He has blue-grey eyes, a small, fairly straight nose and a small, set mouth.He stands 5’10, is broad-shouldered and has a lean fairly muscular body.

HMS Sunnydale 74 nearly becalmed approx 60 miles from Bermuda. At Twilight.
The call went throughout the ship calling for the new watch to turn to and shake a leg. Captain Stark, in the former First Lieutenant’s Cabin, that officer having been bumped to the wardroom, was trying to sleep. He could hear several of the off duty officers on deck above discussing their upcoming landfall at Bermuda, the following morning.

The HMS SUNNYDALE 74 shuddered from stem to stern as a massive hammer blow struck her aft. He heard Captain Summers yell out, “What the devil” Captain Sir Robert Stark rushed out on deck and was greeted with a scene out of Dante’s Inferno. A good size ship had raked her stern from less than 400 yards away. Four of the five ship’s lieutenants and the senior officer of the Royal Marines lay in crumpled heaps. The deck was littered with dead as double shot and grape had ripped through the on-deck watch and the mustered relief-watch. The mizzen mast was shattered held by only a few lines. Stark peered out in the gloom and his blood ran cold. He knew that ship; with black hull and yellow checkered gunports. American Colors and a Commodore’s Broad Pennant; the USS United States 44, was Brock still in command he wondered. His mind went back to another quarterdeck as his own HMS Watcher 32 had engaged the large US Frigate.

Captain Summers staggered on deck blood pouring from a jagged splinter wound to the thigh and collapsed. Only a handful of men were responding. The Fourth Lieutenant a young lad named Nursor, who just received his commission in Portsmout less than a month ago; turned from his dying captain, glanced briefly at the dead senior officers and vomited. Getting control he looked directly at Captain Stark and said, “What do we do sir”

The American had the weather gauge, there was just enough wind to give the agile frigate good maneuverability, while the large ship of the line moved along sluggishly

He could see the other vessel yawing to bring her other freshly loaded broadside into play as the ping of rifle fire ripped through the rigging and picked off several Royal Marines. Just then the mainmast lookout call out, “several sails off the port bow, a frigate and several merchantmen sir.”