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View Full Version : Torpedo ranges in game


Castout
11-22-08, 10:40 PM
All either in stock or any widely available modded game, many of the torpedoes especially those foreign less well known ones have seemingly very short range or endurance.

Yesterday i bought a book titled 'Submarines in Indonesia' more or less, and I was astounded to find out that the locally designed and built torpedo, the SUT which stands for Surface Underwater Target has a range of 38 km, 18 km of which is wire guided. That seems a little odd when we compare it with the torpedo endurance of the Chinese in DW which is supposed to be a somewhat more advanced country than my own. I haven't checked the SUT endurance in the unspeakable mod though.

Any comment on this?

Molon Labe
11-22-08, 11:06 PM
Whenever you see a range quoted in a source, make sure it has a speed associated with it. If it doesn't, then the number is probably meaningless.

SeaQueen
11-23-08, 09:25 AM
Whenever you see a range quoted in a source, make sure it has a speed associated with it. If it doesn't, then the number is probably meaningless.

Even then many torpedoes change speed. They might search at one speed and then home at another, for example. One of the shortcomings of wargames is that we often use these sorts of numbers are exact measurements when in fact they're just rough estimates used to aid decision making. I think Red Storm Rising used to get around that problem by giving each torpedo so many units of fuel. Whatever... I don't think any of it matters that much.

goldorak
11-23-08, 09:36 AM
Whenever you see a range quoted in a source, make sure it has a speed associated with it. If it doesn't, then the number is probably meaningless.

Even then many torpedoes change speed. They might search at one speed and then home at another, for example. One of the shortcomings of wargames is that we often use these sorts of numbers are exact measurements when in fact they're just rough estimates used to aid decision making. I think Red Storm Rising used to get around that problem by giving each torpedo so many units of fuel. Whatever... I don't think any of it matters that much.

So you exchanged one set of problems for another. :p
In any case if REALISM is your goal then yes it matters how range is computed for weapons (based on speed, manouvering, depth, fuel consumption, etc...)

Neptunus Rex
11-23-08, 10:13 AM
Keep in mind that wire guided torps have two ranges, wire and fuel. I don't know if the database lists both, but generally, the wire will break before the weapon fuel runs out. For all purposes, the wire lenght will be the listed maximum range.

goldorak
11-23-08, 10:20 AM
Ok a stupid question, how resistant is the wire ?

Neptunus Rex
11-23-08, 10:32 AM
Ok a stupid question, how resistant is the wire ?

You can manuever the weapon and own ship without any problems, but if you do a 180 on own ship, the wire may break. Own ships speed can break the wire if going too fast.

Also, closing the muzzle door cuts the wire as well as manual shuting down a weapon.

Molon Labe
11-23-08, 10:42 AM
Whenever you see a range quoted in a source, make sure it has a speed associated with it. If it doesn't, then the number is probably meaningless.
I think Red Storm Rising used to get around that problem by giving each torpedo so many units of fuel. Whatever....

As did LWAMI 4, iirc...

goldorak
11-23-08, 12:28 PM
As did LWAMI 4, iirc...

Lwami 4 ? :hmm:
Where is it, I'm still using Lwami 3.08.

Molon Labe
11-23-08, 12:38 PM
As did LWAMI 4, iirc...
Lwami 4 ? :hmm:
Where is it, I'm still using Lwami 3.08.
search function FTW.

Edit: and you've posted in the LWAMI 4 threads!

SandyCaesar
11-23-08, 01:00 PM
I think he meant where were the files for it, which AFAIK haven't been released yet.

Although, I'm sure ML said that so far he has readied a quick-fix (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=921957&postcount=157) for 3.08 (call it 3.09 or 3.08a?), that can't be called "LWAMI 4" yet. Molon Labe, is there any chance of the public getting those files to tide us over sometime before LWAMI 4 comes out?

goldorak
11-23-08, 01:21 PM
I think he meant where were the files for it, which AFAIK haven't been released yet.

Although, I'm sure ML said that so far he has readied a quick-fix (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=921957&postcount=157) for 3.08 (call it 3.09 or 3.08a?), that can't be called "LWAMI 4" yet. Molon Labe, is there any chance of the public getting those files to tide us over sometime before LWAMI 4 comes out?

Thank you, that was exactly what I was thinking.
I knew that Lwami 4 was a work in progress what with the inclusion of the SCX database and the new weapon model (and the cwis fix), I wasn't sure it was publicly available or not.

Castout
11-23-08, 02:10 PM
Hmm I've also found out today that the newer mark of the SUT has a maximum range of 50 km :o.

The older mark has a wire guided range of only 18 km though. There is no information on the wire length on the newer mark.

Molon Labe
11-23-08, 03:18 PM
I think he meant where were the files for it, which AFAIK haven't been released yet.

Although, I'm sure ML said that so far he has readied a quick-fix (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=921957&postcount=157) for 3.08 (call it 3.09 or 3.08a?), that can't be called "LWAMI 4" yet. Molon Labe, is there any chance of the public getting those files to tide us over sometime before LWAMI 4 comes out?

Yeah, 4 was never released and it's safe to say it never will be, as that was a very LW-driven project and it's way off LW's cost-benefit curve. Oh, and you're confusing the 4 series and the 3 series; 4 never got out of DW 1.03 and is safe to say has been discontinued.

I'm going to put the rest of the response in the linked thread so we don't take this thread too far off-topic.