So yesterday I spent the whole day downloading updates and patches and yes the latest game: Sea Power.
As every one was talking about the Vietnam era mission (Dong Hoi?) I did that too.
Didn’t have much time but went on full DEFCON 1 on that. Full sensor blasting away, no quarter given, fire for effect.
It’s.
Mother.
Freaking.
GLORIOUS!
The US Navy is a mighty mighty beast! I mean I’m not that surprised - but Holy heck!
No time for pictures yet, no full AAR (I have my kids with me this weekend) but this is a solid contender for real time strategy of the year.
Plus the interface is amazingly intuitive.
Hearing the Mighty Mo call “Greyhound Away!” is pretty cool indeed.
Experienced my first memory leak type issue with it tonight. Made a scenario that pitted two BB groups against eachother in some tight littorals, wanting some WWII radar-directed 16" gunfights, if the Tomahawks and Harpoons didn’t get through CIWS first. Spent two hours getting into a position to come around a corner and smoke the enemy battlegroup, and my framerate went to 1 FPS.
Sooo I’m usually wary of mods that alter the balance of a game like this, but I grabbed one that got rid of all the static display aircraft on the carriers and instead enabled all 4 elevators to be used for carrier ops. This results in much faster launches and near-maximum utilization of the catapults. I could get 23 aircraft launched in just over 7 minutes.
The mod also enables both retrieval and launching of aircraft at the same time, resulting in the front elevators being used to bring aircraft up to the deck and launched off the bow catapults while allowing landings and using an aft elevator to bring planes to below the deck.
I think I spent a bit too much of my free time today to watching carrier ops It does make the carrier ops much more responsive and is available for east and west carriers.
Hang on, say what now? Planes are only in the hanger bay if they’re down for big maintenance items or to repair damage; you can only fit a tiny portion of the air wing there at any given time, and you’re DEFINITELY not fueling and arming planes there, for reasons learned in a couple of different wars.
Also, IIRC the ship can only do about 15 knots tops with the elevators at hangar level.
I figured it’d be unrealistic in one form or another, but there’s no way to prep jets for missions on the deck currently. They all get brought up from the hangar for their mission.
I’m now going to expose my ignorance: I did not realize this was an actual historical scenario, with the ROE in place at the time. I’m sure everyone else did, but I never knew the North Vietnamese actually carried out a strike on the USN and did damage: https://weaponsandwarfare.com/2019/01/15/higbee-attack/
That is a very good campaign, thanks for the recommendation. I glanced at it in the workshop but couldn’t picture the sino-soviet split being healed up enough to go to war together by '85. Actually pretty great scenarios indeed.
I figured it something like that. If I remember correctly, back in Jane’s Fleet Command they just appeared on the flight deck when they spawned. But that was what, 25 years ago?
Oops, so I just played some anti sub scenario and totally forgot about those ASROCs! Instead I used the available Seasprites and launched Mk46 torpedoes from them, plenty…
Excuse my ignorance, but I don’t know ■■■■ about sea warfare. And got a couple questions. Don’t want to go in a long-detailed discussion, just the highlights.
Yes, I watched all the tutorial videos and some player videos. They all explained the mechanics well, but I’m confused more so on when to use certain types of sonar or radar.
Example 1: When doing a sub to sub hunt you have the hull mounted sonar and the towed array. Now I know the game has all passive sonar already on, but which sonar would you use and would you do it by one ping or leave it on when hunting. (Like the Hunt for Red October taught me, lol.)
Example 2: Now I understand you send the EA-6B aircraft out in front of your missile attack to jam the enemy’s radar, but do you do this AFTER you’ve located them with the E-2C plane or your own radar?
And speaking of the E-2C, when you have a carrier group that guy should pretty much be up from the start and the whole time right? You use his radar abilities and leave your ships off? And when would you use your own ships radar? After the E-2C found them to pinpoint?
and finally, Example 3: when you have a carrier group out looking for another carrier group or whatever you’re looking for. You get the E-2C up but when do you send up possible attack/defend airplanes from the carrier? Should you always have a flight up and circling to protect the carrier? And I know to get helicopters up and searching also, but would the protective Battleships and Cruiser have their radar/sonars on or quiet?
If someone feels like enlightening me, otherwise never mind. lol
I read/listened to the Red Storm Rising audio book for so long that I think I know the answer- well one plausible answer.
You never go active sonar while on a hunt. Especially if you use American boats with superior passive Sonar.
In Hunt for Red October it was never used to fire- it was a masquerade to communicate “silently” with the Dallas.
Only time someone in a sub went full active was when they tried to warn other subs of a red boat that snuck among US subs.
I’m no expert but: Yes, up as soon as possible, a spare ready and refuelling planes as well.
Beside that, keep it well away from the carrier group as not to make it obvious where your carrier is and give it ample long range-armed fighter escort.
Again, just IMHO, the answer to first part- Yes
Answer to second part- Only when you know you have been otherwise found and you need your carrier group weapons trained on incoming targets.
Regarding ElecWarfare / EA-6B I literally know nothing, but I would say keep the EW bird ahead but sensibly close to the strike package.
Yes, plus keep Alert 5 fighter ready to be launched too. And if you’re in open war also Alert 10. And Alert 15.
Yes.
No idea, really but I’d guess a number of subs running Anti-Sub screen around (but decently separated from) the fleet. I would guess when a carrier is launching it goes so fast that passive sonar/sensors are almost useless.
The great part of the towed array is that it can hear behind you, and that it can be in a different layer than your own vessel. It is also really great at passive rangefinding due to triangulation. Using active gives your presence and intentions away, so expect to get shot back at.
I don’t think it matters really much how you plan this, I would just make sure that the targets are in the jamming cone when the missiles are inside the WEZ of the defenses.
So ships’ radar can’t see that far due to the radar horizon. Things on or close to the surface are occluded if they are a few dozen miles out. You probably can’t find anything with the ships’ radar until it is already well within AShM range. The E-2C will figure out the exact position of your enemies as it keeps flying and pinging the enemy fleet. There’s no real need to help it with a radar from the ships. I would only turn the ships’ radar on when its position is already compromised.
It does make the carrier ops much more responsive and is available for east and west carriers.
NICE!