A couple of unrelated questions

[generalvikus]

A few questions I haven't seen addressed specifically in the manual or Frederick's Tidbits that I'd like to have answers for: 

Does the strategic region effect weather in battles? I have always assumed that it does, but I can't be sure and the answer has a big effect on ship design. 

Does the base capacity of allies count towards your base capacity in a region?

Does FS status affect crew skill? For some reason it seems to me that FS ships are stuck on 'fair', even when I make sure to switch them from reserve to active status and then to FS rather than straight from reserve to FS - I haven't tested this extensively though, so I can't be sure of anything. 

Regarding torpedoes:

1. Does the difference in speed between the attacker and target effect torpedo usage?
2. What exactly does 'no solution' mean? Can it be solved by giving the attacker more time to line up its shot, or does it reflect only the positions of the attacker and the target, thus requiring a re-position to take the shot? 
3. How does 'friendly ship in the line of fire' work, and, more to the point, why does this message occur when there is no friendly ship in the torpedo's way? 

[aeson]

Does the base capacity of allies count towards your base capacity in a region?

Yes. Specifically, each allied possession in a sea zone gives you half of its base capacity, rounding down before the base capacities are summed up to generate the total base capacity in a region.

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It's from a post-game save and using a modded map file, but it should be the same in the base game.

2. What exactly does 'no solution' mean? Can it be solved by giving the attacker more time to line up its shot, or does it reflect only the positions of the attacker and the target, thus requiring a re-position to take the shot?

I don't know about within the game specifically, but I'd think that it could be either; it takes some time to generate a firing solution, and there are situations where there is no possible firing solution which results in any reasonable probability of scoring a hit on the target.

Does FS status affect crew skill? For some reason it seems to me that FS ships are stuck on 'fair', even when I make sure to switch them from reserve to active status and then to FS rather than straight from reserve to FS - I haven't tested this extensively though, so I can't be sure of anything.

It is also my impression that FS ships take longer to go from 'Fair' to 'Good' crew status than do AF ships, though I likewise have not attempted to confirm that.

1. Does the difference in speed between the attacker and target effect torpedo usage?

The faster the attacker is relative to its target, the more rapidly it can attain a good launching position and the less time the target has to respond with evasive maneuvers and interdiction fire before a torpedo can be in the water. The relative velocities of the attacker and the target also influence firing solutions to some extent, but probably not by much as a torpedo should lose most or all of the momentum inherited from the launch vessel soon after entering the water, at least in directions normal to the torpedo's longitudinal axis.

3. How does 'friendly ship in the line of fire' work, and, more to the point, why does this message occur when there is no friendly ship in the torpedo's way?

My assumption would be that whatever algorithm determines if there is a friendly ship in the line of fire makes a prediction of where your ships will be for some time into the future, most likely assuming that ships maintain their current course and speed (possibly factoring in turns, if ships are currently turning to a new bearing). Even the best torpedoes in the game only make 38 knots on the high-speed setting, and at 38 knots it takes about a minute to travel 1300 yards - and you can only use the high-speed setting against nearby targets (those within 5000 yards, for the torpedoes capable of 38 knots; less for slower torpedoes); at 27 knots (the low-speed setting for many late-game torpedoes and approximately the high-speed setting for some early-game torpedoes) it'll take over a minute to traverse just 1000 yards.

There might not be any ships in your torpedo's path now, but where will your ships be in four or five minutes' time when the torpedo is halfway to its target?

[generalvikus]

aeson

Thanks as always for the informative reply.

[rimbecano]

Oct 19, 2018 23:40:23 GMT -6 generalvikus said:

2. What exactly does 'no solution' mean? Can it be solved by giving the attacker more time to line up its shot, or does it reflect only the positions of the attacker and the target, thus requiring a re-position to take the shot? 

No solution basically means that the target is out of range. It may currently be within the blue torpedo range circle for the launching ship, but because the target is moving, the distance the torpedo will have to travel is farther than its range. The range at which you can actually hit a target is shorter if it's moving away from you and longer if it's moving towards you (though I don't know if the game actually allows you to fire from outside of the blue circle even if the target is coming straight at you).

[director]

I suspect that your opponent's selection of 'night fighting' training affects the weather you get, but all I have is anecdotal evidence for that.

For torpedoes, what seems to matter most is whether the launching ship is ahead of the target's beam. In other words, is the target moving toward you, parallel to you or away from you. If parallel or moving away, torpedoes will have to go very fast to reach where the target would be when they arrive, and much better if his closing speed is added to your torpedo speed. Apologies if that's not clear.

[generalvikus]

Thanks guys. So does anybody know about the weather?

[noshurviverse]

I think it does, when I recently ran through a Russian campaign, I experienced alot of stormy weather in the Baltic. Some of the only times I've encountered damaged ships sinking due to taking on non-battle-damage related water.