Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
wargamingmiscellany.blogspot.com
Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
1–10 of 32 posts
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#2Reading this, and looking at the pictures and discussions about range reminded me of a time years ago (when I was a kid) reading the journal of a WWII combat vessel captain.
He was captain of a large battleship (akin to the Bismarck or Tirpitz) and I guess these ships were mainly used in long range stand off attacks, because he would talk about seeing the muzzle flashes of enemy ships through his telescope, then waiting 30 to 90 seconds to see where the shells would land near/on his ship.
I was always enthralled by the fact that you knew shells were heading your way bringing death and destruction, but you had to wait around a minute to see if they missed you or they impacted your vessel, and in that time, you had to plot an evasive manoeuvre as well as return fire solutions.
The distance and isolation of sea combat somehow makes it more haunting than the land warfare equivalent of an artillery barrage.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#3Reading this, and looking at the pictures and discussions about range reminded me of a time years ago (when I was a kid) reading the journal of a WWII combat vessel captain. He was captain of a large battleship (akin to the Bismarck or Tirpitz) and I guess these ships were mainly used in long range stand off attacks, because he would talk about seeing the muzzle flashes of enemy ships through his telescope, then wait…
When cannons were common on land it was not unussual to see cannonballs bouncing across the field towards you. As they were subsonic, you also could hear them coming.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#4Reading this, and looking at the pictures and discussions about range reminded me of a time years ago (when I was a kid) reading the journal of a WWII combat vessel captain. He was captain of a large battleship (akin to the Bismarck or Tirpitz) and I guess these ships were mainly used in long range stand off attacks, because he would talk about seeing the muzzle flashes of enemy ships through his telescope, then wait…
When cannons were common on land it was not unussual to see cannonballs bouncing across the field towards you. As they were subsonic, you also could hear them coming.
After seeing this video I am not so sure those reports are accurate:
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#5Earlier quoted context omitted.
When cannons were common on land it was not unussual to see cannonballs bouncing across the field towards you. As they were subsonic, you also could hear them coming.
After seeing this video I am not so sure those reports are accurate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL1DkrYL70s
I am thinking @sandworm is talking about the old round iron cannonballs (akin to those fired from pirate ships etc) rather than the more modern explosive projectiles that are shown in your video post.
That also reminds me of another story I read that was penned by a cavalry officer in the 1800's. He said that the only time you could see a cannonball in flight on the battlefield was when it was pretty much heading straight for you.
He recalls an incident once when he met a fellow horseback officer in the middle of a battlefield during a lull in combat, and while talking, the other officer's horse rested its head against his leg. While chatting, he noticed a black blur approaching in the sky out of the corner of his vision and reactively flinched back, and a cannon ball brushed his collar and smashed into the horse's head that was leaning against his leg, instantly killing the poor creature.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#6Earlier quoted context omitted.
When cannons were common on land it was not unussual to see cannonballs bouncing across the field towards you. As they were subsonic, you also could hear them coming.
After seeing this video I am not so sure those reports are accurate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL1DkrYL70s
I meant older cannon than that, but notice that even in that video you can hear the projectile long before impact. Id bet you could see the shell in flight if you were standing right in front of it. A half-second is an eternity on a battlefield.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#7Earlier quoted context omitted.
After seeing this video I am not so sure those reports are accurate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL1DkrYL70s
I am thinking @sandworm is talking about the old round iron cannonballs (akin to those fired from pirate ships etc) rather than the more modern explosive projectiles that are shown in your video post. That also reminds me of another story I read that was penned by a cavalry officer in the 1800's. He said that the only time you could see a cannonball in flight on the battlefield was when it was pretty much heading str…
Ah the classic story of the headless-horse man.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#8I remember being at Gen-Con in the 90's and seeing a game of Harpoon[1] going on. It was pretty amazing seeing all of the ships they were using. Maybe not as impressive as some of the Warhammer setups, but still pretty cool. I remember talking to a few of the folks and they believed it was the best game of this type. Larry Bond was also an author of some note.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#9Interesting how in these early wargames (see also H.G. Wells' "Little Wars" from 1913) firing was simulated by a physical action while in modern games this is generally settled by dice or other random number generator.
Re: Simulating gunfire in naval wargames (2016)
#10I remember being at Gen-Con in the 90's and seeing a game of Harpoon[1] going on. It was pretty amazing seeing all of the ships they were using. Maybe not as impressive as some of the Warhammer setups, but still pretty cool. I remember talking to a few of the folks and they believed it was the best game of this type. Larry Bond was also an author of some note. 1) http://www.larry-bond.com/games.htm
I never played tabletop Harpoon, but the IBM-PC computer game Harpoon was one of my favourites many decades ago. It was a game that highlighted the devastative power of air superiority over pure naval engagements. A squadron of soviet Blackjack bombers armed with Kitchen missiles could take out an entire carrier group or ground base while staying out of reach of carrier based fighters.
Wish there was a version of this game that runs in a browser or on modern tablets.