Ranges of the Artillery

[Squid_UK]

Can anyone give me ballpark figures for the ranges of the various guns and ammo loadouts?

Also what is the difference between shrapnel and shell ammunition?

Much Obliged

[Garnier]

All the guns have the same ranges (in yards):

Long - 1400
Normal - 800
Best - 400

Canister - 200

In the game, I think the general consensus is that shrapnel is the best ammunition outside canister range.

(As an aside, in GCM, all guns have the same functionality, because normally smooth-bores are almost useless. Different guns will have different reload times and other differences, but the same range and ammo loadout. Once we can mod the game, we can fix the problems and not have to do this.)

[Squid_UK]

Thanks Garnier

So Shrap is best outside canister. How about solid shot for firing on columns or enfilade into troops in line?

[con20or]

Hi Squid,

Theres a major new patch with loads of cool features due out in the near future, and for all we know artillery may be tweaked in it!

[Garnier]

I don't think any of us know if there's any special behavior for certain ammo against certain formations. The only evidence we have is our collection of experiences.

The most important thing for artillery to do damage is to have them higher than their target, and with a clear field of fire. Then it doesn't matter what you're shooting at as long as it is infantry.

[con20or]

isn't their an enfilade mod?

edit - yes there is, here

https://sites.google.com/site/virtualpc ... ects=0&d=1

[Garnier]

Not for MP.

[SouthernSteel]

Yes, to the best of my knowledge, there is no real benefit to using a particular shot type on a particular sort of formation. Solid shot doesn't skip or bounce, so is of no greater use than any other type against troops in column/line. Enfilade fire on troops line may give you a slight advantage, but it's minimal from my experience. Some prefer solid shot for counter-battery, but I have almost zero success with that regardless of shot type.

Then it doesn't matter what you're shooting at as long as it is infantry.

Well well, you're just a regular Henry Ford aren't you?

[Willard]

[quote]Yes, to the best of my knowledge, there is no real benefit to using a particular shot type on a particular sort of formation. Solid shot doesn't skip or bounce, so is of no greater use than any other type against troops in column/line. Enfilade fire on troops line may give you a slight advantage, but it's minimal from my experience. Some prefer solid shot for counter-battery, but I have almost zero success with that regardless of shot type.
quote]

I have not noticed any difference in shot type reference counter-battery fire. There are several other factors that can make difference. First, is if your artillery has the high ground bonus. Second is if your infantry has a defensive bonus such as wooded terrain or behind a wall or fence. IF you have both of those and are targeting artillery out in the open (without those bonuses) you will get some effect both short-term and long-term.

Artillery in counter-battery mode is very very nuanced. You need to get those two bonuses to do some real damage. Additionally you need to need to select the target artillery button to exclusively concentrate your guns on CB fire. If you do that plus targeting batteries, you can have pretty good effects in a relatively short period of time - at least 30 minutes. Gun types do matter as 3inch and 10 pd guns are more effective than 12 pd guns.

Short-term, if you are concentrating on CB fire, your guns will not rack up immediate knock-outs. However sustained CB fire will do several things. First, as you knock out gunners it slows down the ROF. Second, the fatigue will increase on a battery if it is under heavy CB fire. Those two factors will impact the ROF, which will in turn decrease the ability of the enemy battery to cause damage. Once you get to the tipping point of inflicting about 4-5 casualties (in a 15 manned gun), you will see an exponential increase in the effectiveness of CB fire. That, combined with knocking out the first gun, contribute to a snow balling effect in knocking out the rest of the battery.

You will not see great results for the first 30-45 minutes, however after that you can really start causing some serious CB damage provided you can committ all your guns for that period of time. In MP play there is a tendency to rush to engagement and there is a limited opportunity for guns to concentrate on CB fire for an extended period of time - especially in GCM. In the stock game, you can get away with having your 3 inch guns exclusively on CB fire while transitioning first your 12 pd and then your 10 pd guns to targeting infantry.