This was now perhaps the most perilous situation that Baron had been a part of ever since he came to planet 4. He still had Guan Yu and Yue Fei to fight on the front lines, but they had their limits as well, they were not gods compared to the regular soldiers. The fleet of enemy Ironclads twice the number of what they had just given everything to fight off was now right on top of them.

Their land artillery would not be of much use once the two sides’ forces were mixed up with each other for fear of hitting allies. Now, it was rather not very common for sloops of war and ironclads to fight each other up close, normally, these two types of ships would just shoot their weapons at their enemy until one side gave up.

This was where the special dynamic of the simulations became present. Though it was far more traditional to send your best fighters to the front lines, just running away and shooting at your enemies was a far safer bet. Baron, Guan Yu, and Yue Fei all knew in their hearts that this was now their only way to get out of this situation alive. Especially now that Guan Yu had exhausted himself fighting the 5 guards of Wu San Gui. Not only that, they had less than 400 ships left while the enemy still had at least double that, just a bit beaten up.

The only plan that the three of them could rely on now to continue fighting on just a little bit longer was the run and hit tactic that they were all too familiar with. Though it was not the most respected tactic, it was their best chance to win this battle once and for all. All three of them got their people ready, any ironclads that they had not sunk were filled with a minimal amount of personnel that was quickly trained on how to shoot the cannons.

Once they were taught how to do so, they were left alone by their allies, essentially a mission that they would not be able to return from. These ironclads that housed Baron’s men were abandoned to give them the disguise of them being uninhabited. Then, there was still the problem with the ironclads that was already there.

Baron gave the order for all units to fall back while firing everything in their reserve to hopefully stall their enemies just a little while longer. The sloops of war that fighting a head-on battle with the Ironclads were thankfully able to get out of the situation in a quick pace, while Guan Yu and Yue Fei were still in the middle of a sea of enemies. So they had all of their forces attack their way out to the nearest place that had the least amount of enemies. With their excellent skills, this was done with little to no hassle and they were off trying to get to Baron’s position for the final battle.

It was a good thing that Baron had kept another hundred or so sloops just for an occasion like this. These were the last of their reserves and it would signal the end if they were to fall, so Baron personally took to the stage meeting and having Yue Fei accompany him to this entanglement. Guan Yu needed a bit more time to rest so he was relegated to the role of organizing what ships they had left, making sure that they restocked on supplies, and getting primed for one more battle.

Baron and Yue Fei took on a fleet of almost 900 strong with 100 ships that were inferior in every way except for speed and maneuverability. The two sides met for battle and many shots were fired, explosions all over the place, screams of pain, blood, and death. With this fleet of Ironclads focused on him, he signaled for the ironclads that they had taken over and had left behind to start firing. This surprise attack that came from their own ships was something none of the people on board the ironclads thought was possible. It was a good while before the ironclads snapped out of their confusion and initiated an attack on the ships that had fallen to their enemy.

An ambush like this one out in the open was not a very common tactic to use, especially out in the water. This coupled with the fact that there was now no one to control the ironclad fleet, they were starting to slowly lose their advantages one by one. Baron and Yue Fei did not directly engage them, instead, keeping a good distance away so that neither sides’ cannons would be able to hit much, outside of the occasional lucky hit. This made it possible for the land-based defenses to keep on firing, even if it was just for a little while longer. An impact like this had huge benefits for Baron’s side as they were taking minimal losses while the enemy would be taking on losses that would only pile up as time went on.

The ironclads tried to pursue Baron’s small fleet of 100 inferior ships, but every time they moved, Baron would just masterfully guide his small fleet backward, or sideways, just enough so that they would have trouble turning their ships to match what Baron had just accomplished. This kind of tactic lasted for another hour before Guan Yu brought out everyone to Baron’s position, the enemy was now almost at their island, and soon, they would have to go head to head with the Ironclads.

However sturdy the defenses of their enemies’ ships, they would not be able to hold out forever. Plus, they had been constantly bombarded by the land defenses for the past few hours. These enemies of theirs were near their limit, as was Baron’s side. The final battle drew close, and it was still unclear who still held the advantage, the only thing certain was that the next few hours would determine who would come out of this battle victorious.