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Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 12:32 am
by 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)

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 12:54 am
by 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.

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 1:29 am
by 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. :P

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 5:33 am
by 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)

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 9:55 am
by 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)

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 8:09 pm
by 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

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 9:32 pm
by 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)

Re: Spiking the Guns....

Posted: Wed May 22, 2013 5:00 am
by 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.