War at Sea
Allied Nations
- Australia
- Brazil
- Canada
- France
- Greece
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Poland
- Soviet Union
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Allies stat table
Axis Nations
Neutral Nations/Installations
Sets
- War At Sea
- Task Force
- Flank Speed
- New Starter
- Condition Zebra
- Set V (Fleet Command)
- Surface action
- First Strike (Forumini Expansion Deck A)
- Infamy (Forumini Expansion Deck B)
- Battle Line (Forumini Expansion Deck C)
- All Hands on Deck (Forumini D)
- Action Stations (Forumini E)
- Dead Reckoning (Forumini F)
Unit Card:
Set - Rarity - Number
Surface Action-
History:
From RB's Opening Salvo
By the 1930s, the World War I-vintage minesweepers of Germany’s Kriegsmarine were old and worn out. Accordingly, a new class of large, fast, versatile modern minesweepers was ordered in the years just before the war. Completed in 1938, M1 was lead ship of her class. Well-armed with a pair of 105mm guns and a suite of lighter AA guns, M1 was very active during the invasion of Norway (April 1940) and the campaign that followed; her commander, Hans Bartels, won a Knight’s Cross for her actions. M1 was finally sunk by a British bomber raid in the harbor of Bergen, Norway on 12 January 1945.
While you might think a minesweeper is good only for mine warfare operations, both Axis and Allied fleets found countless uses for these capable little ships. They made for excellent small escorts, and the M1 class in particular was well regarded for its versatility—in fact, the Soviets described M1 and her sisters as small escort destroyers, not minesweepers.
Reviews:
From RB's Opening Salvo
Minesweeping was dangerous duty, and you’ll note that the M1 has no special ability to safely enter minefields—she has to take her chances just like any other ship. However, once there, she can quickly clear a safe path for other ships to follow. (Real minesweeping took hours or days, of course, but it’s a game, after all.) Anyway, while the M1’s primary mission may be minesweeping, she also provides Germany with a cheap, capable escort. A modest ASW value won’t kill many submarines but can certainly contribute to ASW harassment, and Guard the Convoy lets M1 “take the bullet” for a higher-value transport or landing ship if necessary.
So what happens if two M1’s in the same sector Guard each other? We’ll address that in the set 6 FAQ, but here is the upshot: Just as a unit can’t benefit twice from a special ability of the same name, it shouldn’t be penalized twice by a special ability of the same name. Both M1’s can’t affect the same enemy unit at the same time with Guard the Convoy; you have to pick one to guard the other.
Plastic Figure Notes:
Aran55633
I have two, and both are slightly banana shaped.
