When H.G. Wells wrote and published The War of the Worlds in 1898, few could have predicted that it would become one of the first novels to spark a genre that remains wildly popular to this day: the alien invasion. With this book, Wells established a trend that continues to thrive in the third decade of the 21st century – and shows no signs of fading. Yet The War of the Worlds was more than just a trendsetter. It also served as a powerful political and social commentary on the turn of the 20th century – on mankind’s faith in its own progress, and on the fragility of that faith.
The novel also stands as one of the earliest and most striking portrayals of modern industrial warfare: merciless, mechanised, and devastating to both civilians and military alike. When reading the chapters depicting the destruction of London, one cannot help but hear ominous echoes of the First and Second World Wars – and of more recent conflicts – with their ruined cities and terrified civilians fleeing in panic, indistinguishable targets to the enemy alongside military infrastructure.
One of the most vivid examples of this writing is the Battle at the Mouth of the River Blackwater. Wells describes thousands of refugees gathered on the beaches, desperately trying to board small boats and escape to the larger vessels anchored nearby. When Martian war machines appear on the horizon, panic erupts, and the race begins – can the ships escape before the Martians strike?
The British Channel Fleet was stationed too far away to respond immediately. The only vessel in a position to act was the HMS Thunderchild – a fictional warship inspired in part by the real-life torpedo ram HMS Polyphemus. Thunderchild launched a daring and sacrificial charge, taking the Martians by surprise and destroying several of their machines before being sunk herself. The dramatic clash remains one of the finest literary depictions of naval combat during wartime.
Thanks to Thunderchild’s heroic sacrifice, most of the civilian transports were able to escape.
Because The War of the Worlds takes place in 1898 – the very same era as Gods of War: Togo – we decided to pay homage to this legendary work by recreating the Battle of Blackwater using our game’s rules.
⚔️ On one side, the Martian forces: three fighting machines arriving in the first wave, followed by three more in the second wave (each entering after a first-wave machine was destroyed). 🚢 On the other side, civilian transport ships, whose mission was to escape by reaching the far edge of the table; HMS Thunderchild, positioned close to the transports; and part of the Channel Fleet, led by two battleships. 🌍 The Earth forces scored points for successful transport escapes and for destroying Martian machines. 🛸 The Martians gained points for destroying transport ships and warships alike.
📸 We invite you to view our photo gallery, where you’ll find a full description of the events of this dramatic battle.
General view of the battlefield – on the left, the British Fleet; in the centre, HMS Thunderchild; on the right, the fleeing transport ships; and on the beach, the terrifying Martian tripods.Tripods on the beach, amidst the ruins of shattered buildings. Their sudden appearance caused panic among the civilians. What had been a calm – even idyllic – scene turned into a nightmarish horror in an instant.The tripods were beautifully painted by Karol Lemański of Ginger Head Workshop.The buoys visible at the top of the photo marked the initial deployment zone for the transport vessels.The transport ships tasked with evacuating civilians were: Arizona, Columbia, Hitachi Maru, Clan MacKay, and Effie M. Morrissey.The Channel Fleet included: HMS Daring, HMS Majestic, HMS Eclipse, a 125-Footer, HMS Jupiter (Majestic-class), and HMS Polyphemus.In the first turn, the Martian tripods were unable to move, but they could already open fire.The Effie M. Morrissey quickly became a primary target. She was hit, set ablaze, but managed to stay afloat. Fortunately, the Martians missed several times with their dreaded Heat-Rays.HMS Thunderchild moved to assist the fleeing civilians – the only vessel of the Channel Fleet close enough to respond.The transport ships attempted to flee to open waters as quickly as possible – but their engines took time to build up speed…Effie M. Morrissey manoeuvred frantically, trying to evade the Heat-Rays. But after a second hit, the beautiful schooner sank beneath the waves.Turn Three.A tripod surged forward, chasing down the SS Clan MacKay.The Martian machine struck the unlucky transport, inflicting severe damage and causing multiple fires – yet the ship pressed on. Her fate, however, seemed sealed…Just then, HMS Thunderchild broke past the transport line and bore down on the stunned Martians. Unfamiliar with this threat, the tripods held their fire. Meanwhile, the rest of the Channel Fleet was approaching rapidly.HMS Thunderchild.HMS Eclipse passed Hitachi Maru and Clan MacKay.Panic aboard the ships led to near disaster – SS Columbia, a great passenger liner, found herself on a collision course with HMS Majestic!The two vessels missed each other by mere inches – a dramatic moment indeed.The two vessels missed each other by mere inches – a dramatic moment indeed.Sadly, just as Clan MacKay seemed to be escaping, another Heat-Ray struck her… Clan MacKay sank…HMS Thunderchild opened fire with devastating effect.A tripod retaliated using its Black Smoke, inflicting only light damage. Thunderchild attempted a ramming manoeuvre, but it failed to connect.Her torpedoes, however, proved far more effective – smashing into one of the Martian machines and sending it to a fiery end. What a magnificent hit!Thunderchild now became the focus of Martian attacks, enduring multiple Heat-Ray strikes that caused fires and damage. But she fought on, returning fire with her remaining guns.HMS Eclipse joined the fray, only to be hit by a Heat-Ray herself, which disabled her rudder.The Martian machine responsible for the damage to Eclipse.A new tripod appeared on the beach – the first of the second wave, replacing a fallen comrade.This machine scored a fatal hit on HMS Thunderchild, sending the brave vessel to the bottom. Just as in Wells’ novel, her sacrifice allowed the transport ships to escape.The British struggled to manoeuvre in the chaos – HMS Polyphemus accidentally rammed a 125-Footer, but luckily caused no serious damage.HMS Daring fired her torpedoes at a tripod……and hit the target!HMS Majestic followed up with heavy gunfire, finishing off the stricken Martian machine in a cloud of smoke and steam.The main phase of the battle began – Channel Fleet vs Martian invaders.HMS Eclipse is sunk.HMS Jupiter opened up with her main and secondary batteries – an epic confrontation of Jupiter vs Mars!But she too was struck by a Heat-Ray.HMS Polyphemus launched a heroic attack – her captain steering directly towards a Martian tripod.The machine hit Polyphemus with a Heat-Ray, inflicting damage.Undeterred, Polyphemus fired her torpedoes at close range – scoring a kill and sending the tripod crashing into the sea!Unfortunately, another Martian machine from the second wave struck back, sinking the heroic Polyphemus.British torpedo boats attempted to ram the tripod – but failed.While the Channel Fleet suffered heavy losses, the remaining transport ships were almost at open sea, beyond the reach of the Martians.The fleet had two battleships and a few torpedo boats left. It seemed they could finish off the last two Martian machines…The Martians concentrated their fire on HMS Jupiter.Fires raged on her decks.Two tripods vs HMS Jupiter.Fires raged on her decks.At last, after suffering hit after hit, HMS Jupiter succumbed – engulfed in flames, she sank beneath the waves.The brave 125-Footers made one last attempt to ram a tripod – they hit their target, but were too damaged to survive the impact and also went down.Only one Martian tripod remained, alone on the battlefield.Her opponent: the still-pristine HMS Majestic.Majestic fired – and missed. The tripod returned fire with a Heat-Ray……scoring a critical hit in her ammunition stores. The battleship exploded in a mighty blast. Now, only one Martian tripod remained – and not a single Royal Navy vessel was left afloat…But the sacrifice of the Channel Fleet was not in vain – three out of five transport ships escaped, including the largest ones. The final score: a draw.
🎲 This dramatic battle at the mouth of the Blackwater was an absolute joy to play. And though HMS Thunderchild did not manage to ram a tripod (she did destroy one with torpedoes!), it was the British torpedo boats that fulfilled that daring task!
🙏 We’d like to extend heartfelt thanks to all players, and to Bolter.pl – our distributor and gaming venue – for hosting this epic scenario.
💡 It’s also worth noting that the real-life inspiration for Thunderchild – HMS Polyphemus – took part in the battle. Her presence served as a symbolic tribute to the legacy of H.G. Wells.
🛒 And finally – yes, you can get the tripods and Thunderchild models here: LINK.
