UI explained

[Johnny Cartland]

It is our temporary UI please forgive its ugliness

Is the range finder currently disabled?

[avec]

Is the range finder currently disabled?

 

I think they removed it since it makes it to easy and it is not natural. You will find something here and there about this issue on the forum.

[Germanico]

The rangefinder will not come back according to the info provided so far. Instead we now have ranging shot (SPACE bar) - firing a single gun to see where you are aiming.

There still are some issues with the system and the mouse is to sensitive atm - but generally it is working (albeit with a steep learning curve for new players).

[Henry d'Esterre Darby]

I'd have to agree, that rangefinder makes it too easy.

[jsalyers]

I see that button 5 is labeled as repair. I press 5 and a sub menu pops up above the initial row. Number 4 appears to be for the pumps. I press number 4 and nothing obvious happens except the sub-menu goes away.

 

How do I conduct repairs?

 

Thanks!

 

J--

[Balck]

That is only for when your pump is damaged (red) in order to plug leaks and pump water from the hull, select survival.  Rudder, magazine, pumps can all be damaged and repair.  Armor and Sails are replenished a certain amount.  

[jsalyers]

Thanks makes more sense now.

 

J--

[Magnum]

Maybe I have a broken keyboard - how do I get "into" firing mode where I can see the little red bar. I seem to be stuck in some odd camera mode where I can't actually feel like I am "on the boat" the mouse just spins to view around and I have to use [ and ] to fire with no aiming.

 

WTF?

[Prater]

Move your mouse so that your screen is facing one of the broadsides or either the bow or stern and right click to enter aiming mode. Right click again to exit.

[PIerrick de Badas]

Maybe I have a broken keyboard - how do I get "into" firing mode where I can see the little red bar. I seem to be stuck in some odd camera mode where I can't actually feel like I am "on the boat" the mouse just spins to view around and I have to use [ and ] to fire with no aiming.

 

WTF?

i think pressing right click switch you in firing mode

[Semni]

A little suggestion here. It'd improve the learning curve a lot if there was some indication of the angle from the horizon that you are elevated at. Perhapse a little indicator giving you increments of 5 10 15 degrees. It helps you keep track of things between ranging shots.

 

It'd even let you estimate range based upon how many degrees tall the mast on an opposing ship is, assuming you know how tall that ship is. Which seems to me like a decent way to let people learn ranging with methods that would be available to your average ship of the time.

 

Here's an example:

[Henry d'Esterre Darby]

No ship of the line had such ranging methods.  The quarterdeck, knowing the approximate dimensions of a vessel, could possibly use a sextant to get a rough idea of range, but the rolling and pitching of the ship wouldn't allow anything like what you're suggesting here.  The gunners had to estimate it, and while later vessels may have had a sight of some sort on the cannon themselves, that sight still was subject to the movement of the ship - it wasn't the gyrostabilized line that we have in game.  In fact, I understand they used to have gradation marks of some sort on the gunnery view, and it made gunnery far too simple and easy, so it was removed.

 

The gunnery is pretty easy right now, it doesn't need to be made any more simple IMO.  

[Thomas Goodman]

I agree with the above (but have only played a few days so feel free to ignore!). I don't see a need to make the sighting any easier in game. The way I think of it is, while they didn't have any ranging tools from a realistic factor, from a realize side of things we would be able to feel the deck moving beneath us which would make guessing the angle of the guns easier than in game. If we had to predict the shots based on how the deck looks on the screen would be annoying. sort of the same argument for why the rigging should be transparent in gun view; in real life they aren't transparent, but I can also just move my head to the side of the damn pulley on the cutter!

[BobW-Bristol-RI-US]

Naval stadimeters weren't invented until the 1890s, but you can create a simple graticule on a post it note which you can simply stick to the side of your screen with precalculated ranges vs. masthead height in degrees.

 

To get there, the stadimeter formula is obtained by high school math:

 

 (1) Divide the masthead height (about 120 ft for smaller brigs, cutters, about 200 ft for first rate)  by the tangent of the angle (1 - 10 degrees) from the visual horizon to the top of the mast... 

 

 (2) This will yield you a top of mast range table, like this:

 

Brigs/Cutters 1st Rates

Top of Mast   120 FT     200 FT

 

Range to ship from horizon to top of mast at:

 

Brigs/Cutters 1st Rates

 - 10 degrees =   225 yds   400 yds

 -   5 degrees =   400 yds   750 yds

 -   4 degrees =   500 yds   950 yds

 -   3 degrees =   750 yds 1300 yds

 -   2 degrees = 1100 yds 1900 yds

 -   1 degree   = 3300 yds 3900 yds

 -   0 degree   = HORIZON

 

The next trick is visually guestimating the height of 1 through about 10 degrees on YOUR display... a little harder, but not too..

 

I found an excel spreadsheet visual calculator through some guy at the Univ. of Toronto (link is  www.psych.utoronto.ca/Fusers/barense/links/ACLab_Visual_Angle_Calculator.xls ),

 that allows you to simply plug in your display size (H vs. W) and resolution (# x # pixels), which will help you convert pixels to degrees, then inches (or millimeters) and then create a little 

post it note graticule with the ranges and tick marks for brigs and 1st rates on the side of your screen at the general (unheeled over) horizon.

 

Hope this helps someone out there - I know it's probably horribly crude to the experts, and does not take into account the deck height of the viewing platform (your ship) but I had fun doing it, and it seems to work ok so far as a simple aid.

 

BTW, I didn't calculate any further in depth, as I thought the max range of most of these guns is about 2,000 yds, and max effective for a 12 or 24 pounder was only about 1,200 yds, no?

 

Regards all, Bob W. Bristol RI, US

[Henry d'Esterre Darby]

 

 

 

 

Giving you a Like for awesomeness there Mr. Bristol. A glass of wine with you sir!

[Balck]

 

Naval stadimeters weren't invented until the 1890s, but you can create a simple graticule on a post it note which you can simply stick to the side of your screen with precalculated ranges vs. masthead height in degrees.

 

To get there, the stadimeter formula is obtained by high school math:

 

 (1) Divide the masthead height (about 120 ft for smaller brigs, cutters, about 200 ft for first rate)  by the tangent of the angle (1 - 10 degrees) from the visual horizon to the top of the mast... 

 

 (2) This will yield you a top of mast range table, like this:

 

Brigs/Cutters 1st Rates

Top of Mast   120 FT     200 FT

 

Range to ship from horizon to top of mast at:

 

Brigs/Cutters 1st Rates

 - 10 degrees =   225 yds   400 yds

 -   5 degrees =   400 yds   750 yds

 -   4 degrees =   500 yds   950 yds

 -   3 degrees =   750 yds 1300 yds

 -   2 degrees = 1100 yds 1900 yds

 -   1 degree   = 3300 yds 3900 yds

 -   0 degree   = HORIZON

 

The next trick is visually guestimating the height of 1 through about 10 degrees on YOUR display... a little harder, but not too..

 

I found an excel spreadsheet visual calculator through some guy at the Univ. of Toronto (link is  www.psych.utoronto.ca/Fusers/barense/links/ACLab_Visual_Angle_Calculator.xls ),

 that allows you to simply plug in your display size (H vs. W) and resolution (# x # pixels), which will help you convert pixels to degrees, then inches (or millimeters) and then create a little 

post it note graticule with the ranges and tick marks for brigs and 1st rates on the side of your screen at the general (unheeled over) horizon.

 

Hope this helps someone out there - I know it's probably horribly crude to the experts, and does not take into account the deck height of the viewing platform (your ship) but I had fun doing it, and it seems to work ok so far as a simple aid.

 

BTW, I didn't calculate any further in depth, as I thought the max range of most of these guns is about 2,000 yds, and max effective for a 12 or 24 pounder was only about 1,200 yds, no?

 

Regards all, Bob W. Bristol RI, US

 

The main mast is what I use for aiming though it's more by intuition than mathematics.  Don't have time to whip out ye ol' slide ruler.  Albeit, I've missed broadsides just shy of target this way.  Some might say it keeps things interesting 

 

But a big no to the graduated aiming sight.  Defeats the purpose of having manual gunnery in the first place.

[BobW-Bristol-RI-US]

Related dopey Q... Anyone got any idea what the range is when the ship (player name) ID info first appears above the ship?  Is that at/around max effective range anyway?  If someone knows, share please.  I was just trying to guess at range to run from the big ships anyway. Regards all.

[Robert Danforth]

BobW I like your math, &c., although to be honest you get pretty used to ranges and the like once you've played for a bit. I suspect that, at first, officers had tables and charts, but as they gained veterancy they, to, just went with experience.

[Balck]

Related dopey Q... Anyone got any idea what the range is when the ship (player name) ID info first appears above the ship?  Is that at/around max effective range anyway?  If someone knows, share please.  I was just trying to guess at range to run from the big ships anyway. Regards all.

Depends on your guns but as a rule of thumb, it is easier to aim once the name pops up as it gives you an additional vertical aiming point reference beyond the top of the main mast.  I'm not certain but we may be within the one thousand yard range at that point.  Maybe admin can clarify.

[poppavein]

Targeting the enemy, I see:

27  1

Ports

 

Are these guns?  If so, is the 1 a front gun?

[Balck]

I'm not clear if that's gun ports, guns loaded, or if it depends on which way you're facing them.  Would like to know.

[Robert Danforth]

It's loaded guns, per side. So 27 on the larboard side, 1 on the starboard.

[Henry d'Esterre Darby]

It's loaded guns, per side. So 27 on the larboard side, 1 on the starboard.

This. It can be a handy reference, in reality, we could do without it on enemy vessels.

[Balck]

This. It can be a handy reference, in reality, we could do without it on enemy vessels.

Agreed.  A bit TMI

[Magnum]

This. It can be a handy reference, in reality, we could do without it on enemy vessels.

 

Oh, I don't know - I kind of like to know when that Santissima I am trying to sneak up on is ready to fire - so I can duck!