A Jolly Jack Tars and Tinmen Variant Company for IHMN by Strawbuk
All rights of the original authors of IHMN fully acknowledged or may I be lashed to a grating.
The RN naval landing party has long been a feature of British colonial expeditions, frequently providing the heavy firepower from dismounted naval pieces, as well the engineering expertise to get those weapons through the most appalling terrain to where they are needed. The navy has been at the forefront of making use of new technology and Captain Horatio Cockburn Saumarez Hobart, (a man with a name to live up to), has been one of the pioneers. Having played a major part in designing the revolutionary submersible the Snark, he turn his mind to the challenge of how to land a force on to a hostile shore in the face of advanced weaponry.
His answer was the MkIII* Plate Hardened Underwater Naval Infiltrator Equipment known by its users as the ‘Phunnie’. This is a suit of modern armour, with some element of power assistance, fitted with a highly modified Patent Breath Preserver and a long rubber hose, and carrying a range of heavy weaponry. Thus Hobart has produced amphibious armoured troops.
Well sort of amphibious; the usual method of deployment is to drop the heavy Phunnie over the side, where it sinks to the hopefully flat seabed and the brave rating then walks ashore. The rubber pipe provides air to the breath preserver with one end secured to a float on the surface. With ever an eye for detail and as a keen birdwatcher, Hobart has modelled a variety of the floats in the shape of range of local birdlife so that they are never ornithologically out of place. However, the effect is somewhat ruined at close range by the occasional rich language echoing up the hose from a disgruntled rating expressing views about where the Navy could stick its ‘Special Service Danger Pay’. Despite these issues often the first thing a hostile force knows of the RNs arrival is a burst of gatling fire from the surf and the appearance of a metal clad figure on the sand.
These marvels are supported by a more conventional force of sailors led by the fearless Petty Officer Cochrane who have access to dismounted gatlings and light naval guns. The force can be deployed from inland and coastal waters from the high speed steam launch HMS African Queen, or from the stealth submersible HMS Snark.
*Records on the outcome of the trials of the MkI and II are still classified…
Stats here
https://www.dropbox.com/s/k5y2a0o420tzx67/RN%20Assault%20Party%20v1%20PA.docx?dl=0
14 November 2007, 11:13:59 AM
