AmmoSgt
Posts: 1002
Joined: 10/21/2000
From: Redstone Arsenal Al
Status: offline
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My Understanding is that a SPWAW game turn is about 2 minutes give or take some random time .
There were basically two artillery call/ response models in WW2 , with National variances based primarily on Communications ability and Doctrinal priorities.
The US Artillery System developed by General Charles Somerall in the 1930's known usually as TOT or Time on Target and the British STONK system. Both were similar and much faster than what the rest of the world was using giving a rounds on target time of about 2 minutes or less , The US system allowed more batteries to fire and have shells arrive at the same time and was slighty more accurate, The British systemm was just as fast but could not handle as many batteries and usually required some adjustment after intial impact to be as accurate as the US System .. The US had a generious supply of small portable dry cell battery radios and a redundant radio/ landline network that was very relaible and usually working even when other radio nets were down. The Brits had to rely on larger radio sets vehicle mounted using wet cells, and it did not have the redundancy built in. So basically a 1 turn response time.
All other nations basically used the same system that was used in WW1 with the addition of radios to the WW1 land line communications networks .. the actual method of ploting artillery fires was little changed and resulted in about a 10-12 minute response time and National Doctines resulted in a reluctance to call in out of command Artillery , so 4 or 5 turns sounds about right.
Radio net relability differed depending on the use of AM or FM sets on the Artillery net and intial accuracy was greatly dependant on the training and abilities of the Forward observers.
The US trained Platoon leaders as FO's ( as well as Company Commaders and Independant FO's from the Arty Batteries ) and equiped them with portable radios and the US system was easier to implement. The Brits had both Company level commanders and independant FO's and a fairly usable system and had vehicle mounted Radios to support them. Germany had a capability similar to Britian as far as Company level and Independant FO's but had less radio capability insofar as usually vehicle mounted artillery net radios were scarce in non motorized Units. This means that Arty batteries would have to send one or more of their very scarce FO's up to support a unit , and then that battery could not support any other units that did not have an FO from that Battery. The Russian reportedly had a real hard time training enough FO's at the company level , especially early in the war , and had a changing doctrine as the war progressed as to exactly what level of command commanded what Arty , Mostly worked out by 1944 with a very centralized system.
IMHO and given the above info a delay of 1 for the US British and 4 or 5 turns for all others would help with realism . Another improvement that would help would be that Platoon "O" units other then US not be allowed to call Arty other than British and German Motorized Recon, unless it is a platoon weapon. Truth be told Brixa's, Japanese Knee mortars, German and Russian 50mm were basically line of sight high angle direct fire grenade launchers more than they were Mortars ( you can argue the point about the Russian 50mm , but they simply did not have the observer support for true indirect fire on a regular basis). US 60mm Mortars had the sights, the range, the grid maps, the training and the Inf Platoons had the communication and training to actually use them as true indirect fire weapons.
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"For Americans war is almost all of the time a nuisance, and military skill is a luxury like Mah-jongg. But when the issue is brought home to them, war becomes as important, for the necessary periods, as business or sport. And it is hard to decide which
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Historical Arty Delay - 
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