[WIP] Ships database for TDW UI - SOAN

[TheDarkWraith]

Originally Posted by Trevally.

Sorry, found the error.

The text I copied from a site had a ";" within it

If you have a fair amount of text maybe I should split the text into paragraphs? Each paragraph could be another entry? Entries could be numbered, i.e.:

AIText1=....
AIText2=...
AIText3=...
...

[TheDarkWraith]

Images can be embedded into the additional info text now:

[TheBeast]

Can the new embedded images be centered or do they have to be aligned left?

[Zedi]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

This is an interesting project. Will it end up being a part of the library, part of the game, or part of the actual recognition manual?

I ask because while I love history as much as anyone, the majority of that information is hindsight, and no WW2 captain had anything like that.

Not meaning to be negative. I'm more curious than critical.

There is 2 project developed here, booth will be part of TDW UI. SOAN is a recon manual that we try to extend it with more detailed info about the ships. This is the hard part because the info should be about the class, not a particular ship from that class. And getting info about the class is harder than getting info about a single ship. Is the main reason why I asked for help, I did not expected to be so hard to gather this data.

Also, we dont stop at 45.. we kinda skip the role play part and the info will not be cut off if is more available. Not sure about this part.. but some ships/class had a very interesting story after the war period so maybe is good to have it included.

The second part is the Library. It will be an application where those who love the ww2 literature can read books about famous ships, captains, tactics etc. It was an old dream of mine.. put on the gramohone, having the engine working in the background then get lazy and have some nice lecture while waiting for a target. There is so many things to read about and most of us dont know a lot of things about the u-boot warfare and how things happened in Atlantic at that time, so now is time to set up a nice Library where anybody can contribute. Also is a way to have a tribute and remind on those who fought and lost lives in ww2.

This is an open project, everybody is welcome to join in. Right now, until the library is done, we work on SOAN. Trevally is working to gather data for the tankers I try to finish the merchants. I thought the merchant fleet will be easy.. NOT. Just gathering data about the C1-B class is a major pita. When the Library application and a template will be done, there will be also a lot of room to contribute with various lecture.. so this will be something in continuous development.

[Trevally.]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

I ask because while I love history as much as anyone, the majority of that information is hindsight, and no WW2 captain had anything like that.

Originally Posted by TheDarkWraith

If you have a fair amount of text maybe I should split the text into paragraphs? Each paragraph could be another entry? Entries could be numbered, i.e.:

AIText1=....
AIText2=...
AIText3=...
...

Originally Posted by Magnum

Also, we dont stop at 45.. we kinda skip the role play part and the info will not be cut off if is more available. Not sure about this part.. but some ships/class had a very interesting story after the war period so maybe is good to have it included.

Hi Steve, yes it does not feel right including post war info. To avoid hindsight knowledge is hard as Magnum has said.

@TDW - I am finding using the pagebreaks ok to manage the text.
However, could this be used as a way to break the info from war years to post war years. ie

AIText1<additional info war years> =(insert war year info here)
Clickable heading in SOAN would be "Additional Info War Years"

AIText2<Post War Info>=(insert post war info here)
Clickable heading in SOAN would be "Post War Info"

AIText3<Actual Ranger "Black Ranger">=(insert actual ship info here)
etc

If we can contro the headings for this info, we can let users know that this info is now outside the game years.

What does everyone think

[Trevally.]

@TDW, Do you have a small update you can send us to add the images

[TheDarkWraith]

Originally Posted by Trevally.

@TDW, Do you have a small update you can send us to add the images

It still needs some work. I saw some problems with formatted text when the images were added.
I have to fly out to Denver today for a week and I'm hoping I get time to work on this while I'm out there.

[Trevally.]

Originally Posted by TheDarkWraith

It still needs some work. I saw some problems with formatted text when the images were added.
I have to fly out to Denver today for a week and I'm hoping I get time to work on this while I'm out there.

Thanks TDW, have a nice trip

[Zedi]

Im not bothering too much right now with details as there is very much data to gather. For example, I had hard time to find any info about the C2-S-B1 class, or the N3SA1. After hours of searching, I found through google a post of Elanaiba here on Cerberus topic with a link to a very cool site full with details and drawings about the merchant fleet. There is a lot of copyright protection pop-up all over, hope is not a problem if I use the data from there.. I see no link about the copyright anywhere in that site, only warnings that copy is now allowed.

Also those drawing would be perfect for the recon manual, but Im sure there is no way to get them for free.

[Rongel]

Hi Steve, yes it does not feel right including post war info. To avoid hindsight knowledge is hard as Magnum has said.

This is a great project, but I have to say that post war info sounds really anti-immersive, like you are playing some educational submarine game in school. I personally wouldn't want to see any text from the future, outside the game years. In my opinion, the library should stay close to realism, so that we can imagine that the books are physically in the sub.

[mobucks]

Originally Posted by Magnum

Would be nice, but I dont know is this is implemented in the game. I think the crit comes from the torpedoes, not from the ship zones. Wish I have a better answer on this...

I was thinking, if it turns out that say, Tankers, share roughly same critical damage zones, meaning, from tanker to different tanker, critical zones positions do not vary widely, the Zones.CFG could be modified to suit the purpose of adding a "weak spot" visual information.

This is because Zones.CFG handles ship classes and not individual ships.

I was thinking of something along the lines of (dis)allowing certain sections of ship to explode/burst/firework based on that info. Thats something I could mess with. Actual damage and it's application are out of my league unfortunately.

[Trevally.]

SOAN tankers data here (requires UI 6.4.0 test 8):-

http://www.gamefront.com/files/20069...ata+Tankers.7z

Still have to add images and arms data.

@TDW, I am getting clipped text and can't see anything that could cause it. Any suggestions

[Church SUBSIM]

This is an interesting site, more about specific ships, but with some reading may offer insights to the classes:

http://www.worldnavalships.com/forum...x.php/f-2.html

==============

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British..._II_destroyers

Legacy classes

V and W

The V and W class destroyers had been ordered from 1916 onwards in response to increasing German specifications and to provide vessels capable of operating in poor weather with the fleet. By year's end, 25 Vs and 25 Ws had been ordered. Compared with the earlier M and R classes, the Vs and Ws were larger with better freeboard and increased armament, initially four or five four-inch (102 mm) gun mountings and four or six torpedo tubes.
It was learnt that the Germans would mount five inch (127 mm) guns, so the 4.7 inch was adopted for sixteen further ships that were ordered in 1918, the "modified V & Ws".
Although still in service in the 1930s, these were no longer frontline units, but necessity saw thirty-nine adapted for escort duties in World War II.
Town

The fifty Town class destroyers were elderly American destroyers transferred to the Royal Navy and the Canadian and Norwegian navies in an Anglo-American "ships-for-bases" deal that preceded Lend-Lease. They comprised three Caldwells, twenty Clemsons and twenty-seven Wickes, dating from World War I.
Like the Vs and Ws, adaptations were required for escort work. They were unpopular with both officers, who found them relatively unmanoeuvrable, and with crews, whose accommodation was both cramped and damp. Nonetheless, they filled a need at a critical time.
Inter-war classes

From 1930, the Royal Navy commissioned one destroyer flotilla each year, at first with eight ships plus a slightly larger flotilla leader. Additional ships were built as required for sale abroad. The convention was to assign a letter to each class, ships' names starting with that letter, except for the leader.
The HMS Amazon and HMS Ambuscade were launched in 1926 and they were the prototypes for the following nine classes (A to I) launched between 1929 and 1941. The classes J to N, 40 ships launched between 1938 and 1940, were more complex, with heavier armament and expensive to build. The pattern was cut short by the need for numbers of basic ships arising from the hard lessons of war.
The Tribal class destroyers broke with the incremental evolution of the inter-war classes. They were larger ships designed to match the heavier destroyers built by several other navies.
A

The A class was the first full class of the inter-war years and reckoned to be a successful design for theit time. A full flotilla of nine was built for the Royal Navy, between 1928 and 1931, plus two more for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Eight were lost during the war.
They displaced 1,350 tons and they could attain 35 knots. Main armament was four 4.7 inch QF Mark IX guns, in single mounts, and eight 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes. Anti-aircraft weaponry consisted of one of the unsatisfactory 3 inch Mark II 20cwt QF gun and two 2-pounder Mark II pom pom guns. Thirty depth charges were carried.
B

A near copy of the As, the B class nine ship flotilla was built between 1929 and 1931. Five were lost.
They were only slightly larger than the A class, 1360 tons (standard). The original kit of four 4.7 inch and eight 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes was reduced before the start of the war to three and four respectively, to boost anti-submarine (ASW) capability. Anti-aircraft weaponry varied in the class, four Oerlikon 20 mm cannons being installed on some ships.
C & D

Two nine ship flotillas were planned. Only five C class ships were built and all were transferred to the RCN. Two were lost during the war, one accidentally rammed by HMS Calcutta. A third was also accidentally destroyed after the war.
All nine D class ships were commissioned into the Royal Navy. One was later transferred to the RCN. These had a greater ASW capability designed in, at the expense of mine-sweeping. Only two, including the Canadian ship survived the war.
Ships of both flotillas retained all of their four 4.7s, as well as the 3-inch and 'pom pom' anti-aircraft guns. In addition, eight 12.7 mm machine guns were fitted.
E & F

Two nine ship E and F class destroyer flotillas were built. The Es were built between 1931 and 1934 and the Fs one year later. One E class ship was transferred to the RCN and another to the Royal Hellenic Navy (Greece). Three, including the Greek and Canadian ships, survived the war. Two F class ships were transferred to the RCN; five survived the war, one survivor was sold to the Dominican Republic.
These two flotillas were substantially a continuation of the design, maintaining the full 4.7 inch (119 mm) gun and torpedo weaponry, but with variations for secondary armament. The engine room compartmentation was an improvement over the C and D classes.
G & H

Another pair of flotillas, the G and H class destroyers continued the gentle evolution of the design with a revised engine room layout. Only two of nine G class ships survived the early war years and they were transferred to the RCN and the Polish Navy during the war.
Twenty-four Hs were built. In addition to the nine originally ordered for the Royal Navy, two were delivered to the Greek Navy, seven to the Argentines and six more, ordered by Brazil, were bought for British use. One ship was transferred to Canada. Five survived the war. One of the Greek ships was captured by the Germans and used by them in the Mediterranean.
The six requisitioned Brazilian ships are sometimes referred to as the Havant class. The Brazilians subsequently built their own, the Acre class destroyers, based on the H class but with five-inch (127 mm) guns supplied by the United States.
Two of the Hs had a modified bridge arrangement arising from the use of a new and taller gun mounting. The new design became the standard.
I

Nine I class destroyers were ordered for the Royal Navy, plus four more for Turkey. Two of the Turkish ships were bought by the British and two were delivered.
They repeated the preceding G class destroyers, ten torpedo tubes, instead of eight.
J, K and N

The J, K and N class destroyers were a new destroyer design, larger and more powerfully armed than their predecessors. Twenty-four vessels were ordered, in three eight ship flotillas, built between 1937 and 1942.
The standard displacement was increased from around 1350 tons (classes A to I) to around 1700 tons, length by 30 feet (9 m) to more than 355. The engine room layout was made more compact, despite vulnerability to complete engine failure by a single well-placed hit. The basic strength of these ships was derived through longitudinal members instead of the earlier transverse ones. The design was deemed sturdy, compact and successful and provided the basis for the following classes.
The four single 4.7 inch (119 mm) guns were increased to three twin mountings (originally four twins), and two five tube banks of torpedo tubes. The anti-aircraft weaponry wes not significantly improved, however, and this was a serious flaw. In 1940 and 1941, the anti-aircraft establishment was increased in all ships. Their after torpedo tubes were landed and replaced with a single 4 inch (102 mm) gun on a high angle mounting. The ineffective 0.5 inch machine guns were replaced with single 20 mm Oerlikon guns, and another pair were added on the searchlight platform, amidships. Further modifications took place in 1942, upgrading the single Oerlikons and reinstating the aft torpedo tubes. The radar installations were frequently enhanced during the ships' service.
L and M

The new King George V class battleships were faster than their predecessors and needed escorts that could match them, with an adequate margin. The L and M class destroyers were the response, achieving 35 knots. To protect gun crews from the anticipated wetness, the Admiralty specified enclosed gun houses. These were, however, slow to build and so the first four L class, were fitted with twin 4-inch in Mark XVI mountings, as already in use on the Hunt escort destroyers and elsewhere. The remaining Ls and the following Ms (near copies) received the intended twin 4.7 inch (119 mm) guns.
In total, there were eight of each class.
Tribal

The Tribal class destroyers were a one-off class built as a response to the large destroyers of Germany, France and Italy. Two eight ship flotillas were built for the Royal Navy and another for the RCN (four ships completed post-war). Three more Tribals were taken by the RAN.
They were built with four twin 4.7 inch mountings, later reduced to three to accommodate additional AA weaponry.
Foreign-built destroyers

At the start of the war, or afterwards, the Royal Navy acquired vessels designed and built for foreign navies, in foreign shipyards. These were mainly of U.S. origin - the Town class described above, but there were also numbers of French and Dutch destroyers. Ships designed built for foreign navies in Britain are described under the relevant class.
Dutch

The six Dutch ships were old designs of pre-World War I vintage. Most were used as submarine tenders and all were scrapped before the war's end.
French

Six modern French destroyers of the Pomone class and two older Simoun class ships were acquired. One was lost in bad weather in December 1940 and the remainder were returned to France in 1945.
German

One German destroyer, Z38, was ceded to Britain after the end of the war and renamed HMS Nonsuch (D107). It was scrapped in 1949. In general, German designs were intended for short-range duties in the North and Baltic seas and were unsuited to ocean duties by limited range and wetness in heavy seas.
War time designs

Hunt

Main article: Hunt class destroyer
Although the Hunt class destroyers had their origin before war started, experience caused the design to be changed, resulting in four different types.
War Emergency Programme

Main article: War Emergency Programme destroyers
The classes O to Cr met the utilitarian need: smaller ships than their predecessors with reduced main gun firepower but more suitable for convoy escort, anti-submarine warfare and anti-aircraft defence.
O and P

Main article: O and P class destroyer
The O class was the first of the War Emergency Programme destroyers. Preceding classes had been costly in terms of money, time and tonnage. A "basic" pattern was developed to perform with the fleet and to react to the growing threat from air attack. The O and P class destroyers were ordered to meet this brief, some with high-angle (HA) four inch (102 mm) guns to supplement the secondary anti-aircraft Oerlikons.
Q and R

Main article: Q and R class destroyer
The Q class destroyers represented the first "War Standard" destroyer design which continued through succeeding classes.
S and T

Main article: S and T class destroyer
The S class destroyers were a development of the "War Standard" with HA 4.7 inch (119 mm) guns, twin Bofors 40 mm guns (in place of the earlier "pom-poms"), with the Dutch designed Hazemeyer fire control system and increased depth charge capacity.
U and V

Main article: U and V class destroyer
W and Z

Main article: W and Z class destroyer
Two eight ship flotillas (9th and 10th Emergency Flotillas) launched during 1943 and 1944. None were lost.
C

Main article: C class destroyer (1943)

[Zedi]

The escort ships will be the hardest part to cover. And we need to focus on the weaponry mainly on the depth charges. So if you wanna join in, your more than welcome. This is a community mod, so is open to anyone who have passion for ships and history.

Im almost done with the merchants and I have to admit that I had some nice lectures. For example, being a total noob, I did not knew about the raider merchants. Found out about them when I was working on the auxiliary cruisers, in particular on NAMC_Penguin. Very interesting story, also found out few videos about this famous raider ship on YT.

[Church SUBSIM]

This is a very cool project ... and looking forward to your updates on the merchants.

The links in the post above that are for specific ship classes show greater detail as well ... this is the data for the C & D class destroyers. (How accurate it is I am not sure. Seems this specific data is based off a single ship in the class)

General characteristics (as per Lenton[1]) Type: destroyer Displacement: 1,375 tons (1,397 tonnes) standard
1,942 tons (1,974 tonnes) deep Length: 329 feet (100 m) o/a Beam: 33 feet (10.1 m) Draught: 12.5 feet (3.8 m) Propulsion: 3 x Admiralty 3-drum water tube boilers (except Kempenfelt, Yarrow boilers), Parsons geared steam turbines, 36,000 shp on 2 shafts Speed: 35.5 kt Range: 5,500 nmi at 15 knots Complement: 145 (175 in flotilla leader) Armament:

• 4 x QF 4.7 inch (120-mm) Mk. IX L/45 guns, single mounts CP Mk.XIV
• 1 x QF 3-inch (76-mm) 20 cwt Mk.I L/45 anti-aircraft gun AA gun (removed 1936)
• 2 x QF 2 pdr Mk.II L/39 (40 mm) guns, single mounts Mk.II
• 8 (4x2) tubes for 21 in (533 mm) torpedoes
• 3 racks for 6 x depth charges (C)
• 1 rack for 20 x depth charges (D)