Spiking the Guns....

[Jack ONeill]

All,

This issue has kinda been on my mind for a while now.

The question is - How can we "spike" the guns we capture, rather than either trying to haul them away, OR defend what we've taken. There must be a way to set this up in the game. I'm figuring we use the "Delete" key and the destroyed gun graphic shows up.

I do realize that Batteries, especially during Napoleonic times, sometimes changed hands several times in a really hard-fought battle. I remember reading about Marshal Ney at Waterloo - after the umpteenth time his Cavalry had driven the British gunners from their pieces, he was seen beating a cannon with his sword in frustration as no-one had brought any implements to spike the over-run Guns. As the Cavalry tide receeded, the gunners ran back out from the squares and opened fire on the retiring horsemen.

Shouldn't we be able to do that? (Spike the Guns, I mean. LOL!)

Anyway, something to think about.

"Molon Labe"

Jack B)

[Marching Thru Georgia]

I fully agree. I doubt there were many captured guns hauled off the field with the battle swirling around them. I wonder if deleting the 'Captured Class' entries in Unitglobal would cause them to disappear.

[RebBugler]

I'm figuring we use the "Delete" key and the destroyed gun graphic shows up

Ha, good luck with that one Jack... :whistle:

Just gotta set the OOB up with Battery Battalion Commanders, Division level. Then captured guns will surrender and disappear. Sorry, no gun carcasses.

[Jack ONeill]

MTG,

Good idea. I'll try it and report back.

RB,

You never know. It could be something simple. No-one has asked about this before.

"Molon Labe"

Jack B)

[Jack ONeill]

All,

So far, can't do it. Tried swapping out the captured class unit with a Gun_Broken graphic but the game defaults to a graphic from the same side. Tried leaving the captured class empty but again the game defaults to an enemy gun and crew. Theres gotta be something...

"Molon Labe"

Jack B)

[Jim]

This feature has not been included because in the battles we have done, there was no spiking of guns. So it would have been historically incorrect to have this feature available for those battles.

-Jim

[Jack ONeill]

Jim,

Understood. However, during the ACW, (and during other periods of History), there are numerous references to Guns being spiked, (or otherwise disposed of, ie: buried, etc.), in order for them not to fall into enemy hands. Many times this was done before a strongpoint was about to be overrun or during a retreat where the horseteams were unable to continue drawing the Guns. From the beginnings of organized, (re: Government-run), Artillery units, the Gunners were issued with large nails, (hence the term "Spike"), in order to disable either their own or the enemies Artillery. During an assault on a fortified position, the storming troops were often accomanied by Artillerymen in order to do just that, spike the enemies guns. Sometimes, the storming parties were issued the nails from the Gunners to do the job.

So, given there were no spiking of guns during these battles, (completely understandable, btw), is there a way to be able to do it during a Sandbox game?
I am SO tired of storming a Gunline, carrying the position, then having to deal with captured artillery swanning around, especially given the possibility of its imminent re-capture.

Thoughts?

"Molon Labe"

Jack B)

[Marching Thru Georgia]

Jim Wrote:

This feature has not been included because in the battles we have done, there was no spiking of guns. So it would have been historically incorrect to have this feature available for those battles.

It is also historically incorrect to have men try to move them off the field while the battle raged around them.