                           ACTION STATIONS!
            NAVAL SURFACE COMBAT TACTICAL SIMULATION 1922-1945

Typed and spell checked by SIDEWINDER of LSD. (21-5-91.)
Manual supplied by SCOOTER.
(Taken from the IBM Manual)


I.  INTRODUCTION TO ACTION STATIONS!
'Three small cruisers in line ahead formation steamed in the calm
waters of a South Atlantic sunrise.  The air was clear, and as the
brightness increased it became apparent that it would be day with
limited visibility.
'Smoke! Smoke, bearing green-45!'.
All binoculars on the bridge of the flagship swung about to search
the indicated bearing.
'Can you make it out, Number One?' the Captain asked.
'Sir - yes - I think it is a Pocket Battleship!'
'Very Well, Number One, call away 'ACTION STATIONS!'

ACTION STATIONS! is a tactical-level simulation of naval surface combat
for the period 1922-1945.

ACTION STATIONS! began as a series of mathematical models designed to
simulate individual aspects of naval warfare.  The author, an active duty
naval officer at the time assigned to the Centre For Naval Analysis (a
Federally Funded Research Corporation 'Think Tank'), was interested in
using computer artificial intelligence for tactical decision making.  A
simulation was needed to provide substance to theories.  The World War II
period was selected because of the wealth of unclassified data and combat
experience.

It was evidently early in the project that a very fine-grain, detailed
simulation was required.  More than in land combat, battles at sea can be
greatly influenced by the smallest details.  To simulate the command
process a comprehensive model was developed to encompass the myriad
factors which influence sea battles.

An important research resource was the wargame rules used at the U.S.
Naval War College between 1922 to 1945.  In this period wargaming was a
major component in the education and research conducted at the College.
By using comprehensive rules and 'Fire Effect Tables', the War College
was able to simulate, with considerable accuracy, the combat power of a
warship under varied conditions.

However, without computing power the War College's mathematical models
had
to be simple.  Damage assessment was primitive and deterministic.  Even
so, a single game would require teams of umpires, often over fifteen
full-time professionals.  But in spite of its limitations 'The Game' was
used so extensively and successfully that after World War II it was
remarked that 'only the kamikazi' was a surprise to the professional
naval officers of the era.

ACTION STATIONS! has taken the wargames of the 1930's to their ultimate
expression, incorporating modern computer modelling techniques (similar
to those taught at the Naval Postgraduate School) with an enormous
historical data base.  Naval engagement can now be duplicated with
outstanding fidelity.

ACTION STATIONS! is unique.  Most commercial wargames have been written
by
programmers who concentrate on graphics and flash, and hope that their
simulation is creditable.  In ACTION STATIONS!, mathematical models of
naval combat used by professional Operations Analysts were adapted for a
commercial naval combat simulation.  To ensure state-of-the-art
presentation, programmers and computer scientists (employed by such
companies as Compaq Computer and NASA) joined the project.  As a result,
ACTION STATIONS! is an unbeatable blend of accuracy and playability.

ACTION STATIONS! is easy to play.  It runs from clear, organized menus
which prompt you for orders and screens the response to prevent errors.
Information is easily retrieved from 'status boards' similar to those
used on warships.  The Battle Plot display is easy to use and flexible,
using symbology similar to the US Navy's Tactical Data Systems (NTDS).
The commander can choose to direct each ship individually or to allow
various 'Automatic' computer options to help him fight his force.

Vast care has been taken to screen information - the 'fog of war' is
maintained by only showing information that a commander would reasonably
have in the given battle situation.  Every effort was made to retain the
tension, look, and atmosphere of a warship's combat information centre.

The heart of the simulation is the gunnery, torpedo and damage models.
They are comprehensive and accurate, as you will see when reading through
this manual.  The test of a good simulation is that it reflects reality,
that it rewards proper decisions and penalizes mistakes in an accurate
and realistic (rather than in an arbitrary) manner.  There are few 'fudge
factors' included in this simulation: they are not needed.

The simulation was extensively tested against combat experience.  For
example, the Battle of Denmark Straits was re-enacted by duplicating the
exact track of the ships, the weather, wind, environmental, and gunnery
factors.  The program deterministically scored its first hit on the Hood
within 120 yards of where the hit actually occurred.  Hit rates for the
engagement were duplicated within 10%.  ACTION STATIONS! is accurate.

The replayability in ACTION STATIONS! is enormous.  30 scenarios are
included in the package, representing the majority of World War II
engagements and many hypothetical situations.  The 'Computer Warrior'
opponent is wily and unpredictable enough to allow satisfying play of
each situation, either side, many, many times.  A 'Randomization' routine
allows you to mix up the initial placement of ships in a scenario for a
new look, and a 'Scenario Builder' allows you to set up your own
situations using a library of over 180 ship classes.  Additionally, the
'Scenario Generator' can create an infinite number of computer battles
based on your desires.  This is a game which you will play for YEARS.

For most people, there is a irresistible urge to break open the box and
try to play without slogging through a 160 page manual first.  Do it!
Follow the QUICKSTART guide and you will be blasting away in minutes.
However, eventually, come back to the manual and read it closely.  It is
the only way to get the most appreciation from the simulation.

Do not be intimidated by the size of the manual.  A comprehensive manual
was written so that you could understand WHY as well as HOW, and so that
you could more thoroughly enjoy all the capabilities and features.

Confusion to your enemies!

PART A: HOW TO PLAY ACTION STATIONS!

II. QUICKSTART
This section contains a set of abbreviated instructions for those who
want to begin playing without first reading the entire manual.  So,
assuming that you already understand basic naval terminology (see the
GLOSSARY, Appendix A, and NAVAL BASICS, Appendix B, if you run into any
difficulties), this section will demonstrate:

*  How to load a scenario;
*  Battle Plot symbology;
*  How to enter course and speed orders;
*  How to designate a target and open fire with guns;
*  How to target and fire torpedoes.

We'll walk you through each process in 'see-sailor-do' fashion.  The
example scenario will be the 'Battle of the River Plate', the German
pocket battleship GRAF SPEE v. the British cruisers EXETER, AJAX, and
ACHILLES.

II.1. HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE PROGRAM
*  <RET> will stand for hitting the Return or Enter key.
*  <ESC> will stand for hitting the Escape key.
*  You can move between menus using the arrow keys, or moving the mouse
   until your selection is highlighted.
*  <RET> activates the selection which is highlighted in the menu.
   Clicking the left mouse button is the same as <RET>.
*  If a number input is requested, enter the numbers, then <RET>.
*  <ESC> will cancel the action without entry, and will back you out to
the
   next higher menu.  Clicking the right mouse button is the same as
<ESC>.

For this run-through, 'C:' will show what the computer prints on the
screen.  'P:' will show the player's response.

II.2. LOADING THE PROGRAM AND RECALLING SCENARIO
OK, here we go.  Begin with your normal computer start-up routine until
you receive the DOS prompt.  Insert the BATTLE disk in the appropriate
drive.

P: BATTLE <RET>
C: (Shows opening credits) - PLEASE WAIT.  LOADING...
C: SECURITY CHECK

The program will ask you to enter a specific word from the manual.  This
is the only 'copy protection' included, there to thwart software pirate
who put games on bulletin boards (Who can they mean!!!).  Our apologies
for the inconvenience (I should think so too).

After a satisfactory security check:

C:  INSERT FLEET DISK - PRESS ANY KEY

Remove the BATTLE disk, Insert FLEET DISK: ATLANTIC, and hit <RET>.  The
screen will now show a window with the names of the available scenarios.
Use the mouse or the arrow keys to highlight RVRPLATE.SCN, then press
<RET>.

The response 'INITIALIZING' will blink on the screen.  When the computer
is ready, it will echo the scenario name and the turn number.

C:  RIVER PLATE  TURN:0
RANDOMIZE SHIP POSITION? Y/N

We are just going to hit the basics on this run, so we will be skipping a
lot of options.  Comprehensive explanations are provided later in the
manual.

P:  N
C:  OPPONENT SELECTION
P:  select COMPUTER OPPONENT
C:  COMPUTER COMMANDS WHICH SIDE?
P:  select RED
C:  DO YOU WISH TO CHANGE THE COMPUTER SKILL LEVEL  (Y/N)
P:  N

II.3. THE ACTION MENU
You are now in the ACTION menu.  The bottom display gives time, mission,
and environmental information.

The upper line is a menu of menus.  Use the left and right arrow keys to
select different menus, the up and down arrows to open them.  Use the
up/down arrow until your selection is highlighted, then <RET>.  Note that
each menu and selection has individual letters highlighted.  Hitting that
letter will also activate the selection.

II.4. THE BATTLE PLOT
Select the REPORTS menu.  In that menu, select BATTLE PLOT.

C:  DISPLAY OPTIONS
P:  select SHIP
P:  Select GRAFSPEE
C:  LAST RADIUS (KYDS):25
    ENTER DESIRED RADIUS (5-200):

When you are asked for a numeric input the program prompts you with the
acceptable limits.  Just for experimentation, enter a value outside the
acceptable range:

P:  1
C:  ERROR RADIUS OUT OF RANGE

(ACTION STATIONS! is sailor-proofed - you don't have to worry about
messing things up with a wrong keystroke.)

Now back to the demonstration - hit <RET> to clear the error message,
and:

P:  21

The computer is now displaying the BATTLE PLOT.  The symbology is similar
to those used in the Naval Tactical Data Systems installed on most modern
US warships.  Section VI contains a key to the symbology.  For now the
basics are:

*  X,Y grid (i.e. standard Cartesian coordinate system)
*  Circles are friendly ships
*  Squares are enemy ships
*  The larger the symbol the larger the ship
*  The line coming out of the circle/square is a vector: it points in the
   direction of travel, with the length proportional to the speed of the
   ship
*  Friendly ships are numbered 1 to 49 and coloured yellow
*  Enemy ships are numbered 50 to 99 and coloured red

If you wish to adjust the location of the Plot, it can be scrolled:

*  ARROW KEYS: moves the centre 1000 yards in that direction
*  TAB, SHIFT TAB: moves the centre 5000 yards right or left
*  HOME, END: moves the centre 5000 yards up or down
*  PgUp, PgDn: changes to smaller or larger scale

II.5. CHANGING COURSE AND SPEED
The top line of the Battle Plot reads:

F1: MOVEMENT  F2: GUNDIR  F3: RNG/PNT  F4: SEARCHLIGHT
F5: SMOKE  F6: STATUS  F8: STARSHELL  F9: TORPS

Hitting the indicated function key allows you to access to menus and
routines to give orders and get information directly from the Battle
Plot.  We'll demonstrate the basic functions and leave advanced
capabilities for later.

Let's give the Graf Spee some movement orders:

P: <F1>
C: SHIPS or FORMATIONS
P: select SHIPS

The screen shows the ship's movement information.  The line on top shows
the command options: CHANGE COURSE, CHANGE SPEED, SALVO CHASING.  Let's
change course to 80 degrees(T).

P: select CHANGE COURSE
P: hit <RET> to select the Graf Spee (in multi-ship games all your ships
would be listed in the box).
C: #1 GRAF SPEE - COURSE 130
   DESIRED COURSE;
P: 80 <RET>
C: DIRECTION
P: select PORT

Notice that the display has been updated: rudder is now turned to port,
and the ordered course is now 80.  OK?  Good.  Now select CHANGE SPEED
and walk through the menus to assign the Graf Spee a ordered speed of 26
knots.

To get back to the Battle Plot, hit <ESC> (depending on where you start,
you may have to hit it more than once.)

Notice on the Battle Plot that the Graf Spee now has two vector lines -
one for the current course and speed, and one in a contrasting colour for
the ordered course and speed.  This is a valuable feature in larger
battles to help you keep track of the orders you have issued.

II.6 GUN DIRECTOR CONTROL
From the Battle Plot:

P: <F2>
P: select MANUAL
P: select GRAF SPEE
P: select DIRECTOR ORDERS

You have now displayed the Gun Director status board.  This lists all
your gun directors and gives information on the guns which they control.
Notice all your directors are NOT ASSIGNED and in READY status.

The Graf Spee has eight directors (numbered 1-8).  A standard numbering
convention is used for all ships: directors 1 and 2 are the Main and
Alternate directors for the main battery, 3 to 6 are secondary battery
directors, 7 and 8 tertiary battery directors.  'Local control' directors
9-12 represent the local fire control capability of the gun mounts.
Right now, we want to get the main director on a target:

C: ENTER DIRECTOR TO COMMAND (1-12)
P: 1 <RET>
P: select TRACK/FIRE
P: select the top target on the list (target 'X')
C: MAIN Dir Assigned Target #X
P: <RET>

Looking on the Main Director status line, you can see that Target X bears
6 degrees relative at a range of 20.5 KYards (the glossary explains these
terms).  The director is now locked on target with a fire order.

We could assign other directors of other ships if we wished.  However,

P: <ESC><ESC> and we are in the Battle Plot
P: <ESC> and we are back to the Action Menu.

II.7 EXECUTING A TURN
P: select OPTIONS menu.
P: select NEXT TURN

The computer will execute a 3 minute time period.  When the gunfire phase
is reached a new Battle Plot will be displayed and the program will
pause.  The program has automatically centred the Battle Plot on the
ships which are engaged.  However, if you would like to concentrate on a
particular sector of the action the program will accept screen scrolling
commands.  When you are ready, hit <ESC>.  Gunfire will be exchanged,
with the Battle Plot showing tracers between firing ships and targets,
explosions, and other information.  When finished:

C: PRESS ANY KEY
P: press any key
C: DO YOU WISH TO SEE THE DETAIL REPORT (Y/N)
P: N

and we are back in the Action Menu.

II.8 FIRING TORPEDOES
It's time to try a little 'Torpedo Action - Starboard'.  Go to the Battle
Plot and pick a target, and let's see about putting a few torps in that
fellow.  Got it?

P: <F9>
P: select TFC COMPUTER

Before you launch, you need an idea of where to fire the torpedoes.  We
don't make you guess.  On warships there is a Torpedo Fire Control (TFC)
computer to perform this function.  ACTION STATIONS! includes this
capability, with the accuracies (and errors) inherent to the WWII-era
equipment.  The process you will be required to make replicates the
torpedo firing decisions made by the Torpedo Fire Control Officer.

We'll go through the ship-to-ship mode:

P: select SHIP TARGET
P: select GRAFSPEE
P: select the target ship

The computer will then read out data similar to the following:

C: BEARING 137 / RANGE 19.0
   TARGET COURSE 45 / TARGET SPEED 19
   ACCEPT? (Y/N)

(Your data may be different, depending on the action taken by AutoWarrior
in the previous 3 minute turn.)

P: Y
C: POSSIBLE TORPEDO SETTINGS:
Setting        Speed          Max Range
Low        30         13.7
Medium          40          8.2
High       44          5.5
                      +-----+
SELECT TORPEDO SPEED: | LOW |   MEDIUM   HIGH
                      +-----+
The computer has listed the speed and range settings of the torpedoes
mounted on the Graf Spee.  Since our target is far away (over 19 KYds),
choose the slowest/longest range setting:

P: select LOW

Now the solution comes up - in our example:

C: TORPEDO COURSE        : 101
   TORPEDO RUN TIME      : 21 MIN
   RANGE TO INTERCEPT         : 21 KYds
   TORPEDO SPREAD AT INTERCEPT  : 366 YARDS WITH 1 DEGREE SPREAD
   ANGLE TO TRACK        : 242 DEGREES

The torpedo course is 101 degrees true.  The torpedo will need to run for
21 minutes to reach the intercept point 21 KYds from the launch point.
If you fired a salvo with one degree spread the torpedoes would be 366
yards apart at the point of intercept, with an intercept angle of 242
degrees.

Since the torpedo's maximum range (13.7 KYds) is less than the required
21 Kyds the TFC is flashing a warning.  Normally you would wait for a
closer shot - but since we are just practising, let's go through the
mechanics of launching a spread.  Get back to the Torpedo Menu (remember
how?):

P: <ESC>
P: select LAUNCH
P: select GRAFSPEE

The Torpedo Launch Screen is now displayed.  The screen displays the
torpedo mounts, torpedoes available, and the bearings between which the
mount can fire.  Note the window at the lower right hand corner echoes
the last TFC solution.

To fire, follow the prompts and input the required date on mount to be
fired, number of torpedoes, course, spread angle (spread angle is an
advance topic, covered later), and torpedo speed.  You can use the TFC
data or enter your own estimates.  When you are finished, go back to the
Battle Plot - you will see the Torpedo symbol on the screen on the firing
ship.  When you execute a turn you will see the torpedo salvo speeding
off on an intercept course.

This completes the introductory 'QUICKSTART' session - you can change
course and speed, assign directors to targets and open fire, and launch
torpedoes.  You also see how things are generally done in ACTION
STATIONS!:

- find out what you want to do in the menu;
- enter desired numbers, usually followed by a <RET>;
- if you ever get lost, hitting <RET> will back you out of the process
without doing any mischief.

Congratulations!  You have mastered the basics and are ready to take
command.  Load one of the scenarios and have at it!
Enjoy!
HOWEVER - Naval warfare is a complex subject, with a massive amount of
information, technology and tactics to absorb.  You are now ready to PLAY
the 'game'; read on to learn more about the subtlety of the 'simulation'.

III. STARTING ACTION STATIONS!
III.1. COMPONENTS INVENTORY
Included is the ACTION STATIONS! MANUAL, the BATTLE disk, and three FLEET
disks, a total of 4 disks.

The BATTLE DISK contains the main data files and simulation programs.
The three FLEET DISKS contain the data files for ship classes and many
ready-to-play scenarios.  Also included on the FLEET disks is the BUILD
SCENARIO program which allows you to construct scenarios of your own
design, and the GENERATE SCENARIO program which allows the computer to
automatically construct scenarios to your specifications.  The FLEET disk
cover the Pacific theatre (US and Japanese), the Atlantic (British and
German), and the Mediterranean (Italian, French and Russian).

III.2. BACKING UP YOUR DISKS
It is recommended that you copy the original disks and use the duplicates
for playing.  Save the original manufacturer's disks as a backup.  ACTION
STATIONS! is not copy protected.

Write protect all four disks.  We will discuss later the ability to save
'battles in progress' onto a spare disk.

III.3. HARD DISK INSTALLATION
ACTION STATIONS! can be played using a hard disk.  Simply copy the
contents of the disks into a single directory. (see section XIX.1. with
regards to files DDF and DDFHARD.)  When starting the simulation, begin
from your hard drive prompt in that directory.

III.4. STARTING THE SIMULATION
Perform the normal start-up procedure for your computer using DOS 2.1 or
higher.  If your computer does not automatically do so, ensure you enter
the date and time information.  ACTION STATIONS! uses this information to
initialize the random number generator, so this information will ensure
that each game will have a different universe of results.

When you receive the DOS prompt
A>
The player should place the BATTLE disk in disk drive A.
When ready, enter

BATTLE <RET>

The computer will then begin to read in the ACTION STATIONS! program and
go through the game initialization routine.

III.5. COMMUNICATING WITH THE PROGRAM
We will indicate what is shown on the computer screen with the identifier
'C:' (for Computer).  Your response will be indicated by 'P:' (for
Player).

In those cases where the computer pauses to allow you to read a message,
hitting <RET> or <ESC> will tell the computer to continue.

III.5.A. KEYBOARD
Most communication with the computer is through menu selections.  The
left and right arrow keys will highlight the desired menu.  The down key
will activate the menu window, and the up/down arrow key highlights your
choice,
and <RET> activates your selection.

In most all menu titles and selections there is a single letter
highlighted.  Pressing that letter will activate that selection.

If you have entered a menu by mistake, change your mind, or decide not to
take the action, hit the <ESC> key.  This will cancel the input and/or
back up one level of menu.

III.5.B. MOUSE
To select menu items, scroll the mouse until the desired selection is
highlighted and press the left mouse button <RET>.
To leave a selection press the left mouse button when the cursor is
positioned on anything but a menu item, and <ESC>.

III.6. LOADING A SCENARIO
After the security check is successfully fulfilled a blinking line will
prompt:

C: Insert FLEET DISK and press <RET> to Continue

Remove the program disk from drive and insert the desired FLEET disk.
Hit <RET>.  With Hard Drive, just hit <RET>.

The screen will display a list of the available scenarios.

Highlight your section and press <RET>.  'INITIALIZING' will flash on the
screen as the data is being loaded.

III.6.B. RANDOMIZING INITIAL POSITIONS
After loading the computer will ask

C: RANDOMIZE SHIP POSITION?  Y/N

The scenarios included are based on historical situations.

Initial positions (with a few exceptions) are a 'snapshot' of the
situation before combat commenced.  After you play a scenario once or
twice you will become familiar with the situation and some of the 'fog of
war' and 'surprise factor' will be eliminated.  Randomizing the initial
set-up can restore this uncertainty and renew the freshness of the
scenario - what if the enemy approached from a different area, or with a
different formation?

Games 'in progress' cannot exercise this option.  This way if you are
playing a game with a 'friend' (perhaps by mail), and you have him
trapped. and the game is saved to finish later, he (or she) cannot
'randomize' themselves out of your trap!

First you are asked which side to randomize:

P: Y

C: 1- BLUE FORCE; 2- RED FORCE; 0- EXIT

Only one side can be randomized.  If you really want to randomize both
sides, we'll explain that later.  Exit allows you to skip this option.
Press 1, 2, or 0 ( <RET> is not needed).

There are two ways to randomize the force: first by displacing the entire
force a random distance in a given direction.  The ships' relative
positions and formation remains the same.  It is as if the entire fleet
was picked bodily out of the water and moved to a new location.  This is
called 'RANDOMIZE STARTING LOCATION'.

Second, we can scramble the relative positions of the formations; for
instance, a line of ships which was leading the group may now be on the
flank.  This is called 'RANDOMIZE FORMATION'.

C: RANDOMIZE STARTING LOCATION (Y/N)

If you hit N the program will skip to the RANDOMIZE FORMATION option;
otherwise:

P: Y

C: BIAS: 1- NORTH; 2-S; 3-E; 4-W (0-EXIT)?

You now have the choice of moving the entire force bodily a random
distance (between 0 and 10 thousand yards) either north, south, east, or
west.  Let's randomize the formation to the north:

P: 1

C: BIAS: 1- NORTH; 2-S; 3-E; 4-W (0-EXIT)

The computer will allow you to enter any number of randomizing directions
until you enter '0' or <RET>.  Each of the randomizations is additive, so
you can randomize the position of the fleet a lot or just a little.  You
can centre the randomization process in some particular direction, which
is valuable when you are working with a scenario with a lot of islands or
a coastline, or if you want to start the forces closer together or
further away.

If you do not want to bias the randomization in any particular direction,
just enter counterbalancing randomization directions.  For example, if
you enter a 1,2,3, and 4, then the position will now be located randomly
in a box within 10,000 yards of the original set-up position.

Let's move on to the RANDOMIZE FORMATION part:

P: 0

C: 1- RANDOMIZE: RED FORCE: FORMATION?

If you input '1' the computer will then randomize the relative positions
of the Red side formations within 10,000 yards of their original point.
Individual formations will remain the same, but the relative positions of
formations will change in the group.  For example, consider where there
is a line of destroyers on the flank of the battleship formation.  The
destroyers will stay in a line ahead and on the same course and speed,
but may be moved ahead, behind, or on the other flank of the battleships.

RANDOMIZE FORMATION can only be done once.

For both these options, only units that are already in formations will be
moved.  Units with a maximum speed of less than 3 knots will not be
randomized.  Units like shore batteries, land targets, and anchored
vessels will not be moved if either RANDOMIZE option is exercised.

If, at the end of the randomization process, a ship's position is on
land, the computer will automatically move it to the nearest water.  This
may result in interesting results - for instance, in the Narvik scenario
(which is fought in a narrow Fjord), if you enter a large amount of
randomization, ships may end up entirely outside of the fjord and out of
the battle!  Careful selection of the direction of bias can forestall
this.

Now, we promised earlier to show you how to randomize both sides if you
so choose.  Do the following:

- randomize the Blue force;
- get into the Action Menu.  Prior to executing any moves, save the
scenario at 'turn 0'.
- restart.  Retrieve the scenario you just saved.  Now, randomize the Red
Force.  You're off!

III.7. SELECTING YOUR OPPONENT
The computer will give you the choice of opponent.  By selecting TWO
PLAYER you allow the thrill of battle to be shared by another member of
the human race.  COMPUTER OPPONENT allows a one-player game, unleashing
the ferocity of the AutoWarrior in your (formerly) friendly computer.

Default is COMPUTER OPPONENT.  When the desired selection is highlighted,
<RET>, or hit 'T' (for Two player) or 'C' (for Computer).

III.7.A. TWO PLAYER MODE
This option allows two human players to command.  The computer will ask
for ACCESS CODE NUMBERS from each commander.  Enter a number, followed by
<RET>.  The numbers will NOT be displayed on the screen, for security
purposes.  This access number will control who can retrieve information
and give orders to each force.

If you desire to play a game where you command both sides, just select
the two player mode and enter an easy access number for both sides, such
as '1'.

A game that was begun in the Two Player mode will automatically go into
Two Player mode again.  The same access codes will be required - this way
play-by-mail is possible, or you can store a 'face-to-face' game for
later play with some assurance that your friend will not try a little
midnight espionage.

III.7.B. COMPUTER OPPONENT MODE
Selection of this option activates the 'AutoWarrior', a canny old salt
with a rather ruthless (and sometimes unorthodox) approach to naval
warfare.  More is available on the characteristics of this commander
later in the manual.  You will be asked which side the computer is to
command, and if you wish to adjust the computer's skill level.

The skill level is designed to alter the efficiency and combat
effectiveness of the force commanded by the computer.

There are seven levels (-3 to +3) available.  A skill level of '0' is the
average historical level of an average commander and average force.
Assigning the computer -3 gives it a poor force, and a +3 is the best
force (with the numbers between giving intermediate shades of ability).

The skill rating influences gun and torpedo accuracy, tactics, damage
control skills, sighting and tracking abilities and other capabilities.

This skill level is in addition to other factors - for example, an
Italian force at skill level +2 is about equal to a British force at
skill level 0 (this is based on historical fact).

Games which are played against the Computer Opponent can be saved; when
they are recalled, they can be resumed using either the Two Player or
Computer Opponent modes, and the computer can command either side
regardless of the original command assignments.

At the end of the process the computer will print CALCULATING, load
additional parts of the program, and calculate the initial results of
visual and radar searches.

At this point the loading and initializing procedure is complete and we
can get on with the engagement!

IV. THE ACTION MENU
After the program loads and initializes the ACTION MENU will be
displayed.  This is 'Main Street' - you can get anywhere in the program
from here.  If you get confused about where you are in the program, just
keep hitting <ESC> and eventually you will return to the Action Menu.

Across the top is a menu of menus.  An individual menu can be selected by
using the arrow keys and pressing <RET> or by pressing the highlighted
letter in the menu title.

The bottom section of the Action Menu indicates:
- Side up - Red or Blue force, and the nationality (U.S., Japanese,
British,   German, French or Russian Fleets).
- The name of the battle.
- The mission assigned to the force.
- Details on the current ENVIRONMENTAL conditions.

V. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
V.1. TURN NUMBER
ACTION STATIONS! is a time-step simulation executed in turns representing
3 minutes of action.  The turns are numbered sequentially.  The initial
setups begin with turn 0.

V.2. DAY NUMBER:
All scenarios begin on day 1.  If the battle continues past midnight the
game day will sequence to the next higher number.

V.3. TIME
The time of day uses the 24 hour military clock.  1:25 PM is indicated as
13:25.

V.4. WIND
Both wind velocity and direction is indicated, velocity in knots and
direction in degrees (true).

V.5. LIGHT CONDITIONS
There are 6 conditions of daylight:
DAWN - from 0530 to 0600
SUNRISE - from 0600 to 0800
DAY - from 0800 to 1600
SUNSET - from 1600 to 1800
TWILIGHT - from 1800 to 1830
NIGHT - from 1830 to 0530

The sun is always considered to rise at 90 degrees true, and set at 270
degrees true.

DAWN, TWILIGHT And NIGHT operate under night rules of visibility.
Starshells, searchlights, flares and shipboard fires will illuminate
vessels.

SUNRISE, DAY and SUNSET operate under the daytime rules of visibility.
Flares, starshells and searchlights are ineffective (and the program will
not allow access to them).

During DAWN and TWILIGHT the sun is considered to be just under the
horizon, and ships may be spotted by silhouette.

During SUNRISE and SUNSET the sun is on or just over the horizon.  During
those periods if the sun is behind the target glare will interfere with
the spotting process and reduce gunnery efficiency.  More on this in the
GUNNERY section.

V.6. SEA STATE AND WAVE DIRECTION
Sea State is a measure of the roughness of the seas.  There are four sea
states, in order of increasing severity:

LIGHT - flat and calm.
MODERATE - waves high enough to begin to interfere with the
manoeuvrability of small vessels; platform steadiness begins to have an
effect on gunnery controlled at local stations.
HEAVY - waves high enough to interfere with the manoeuvrability of even
the largest ship; platform steadiness degrades director-controlled fire.
ROUGH - seas dangerous, having a serious effect on the manoeuvrability of
all ships.  Gunfire very seriously degraded.

The limitation of a ship's speed due to weather is a function of the size
of the ship, the sea state, and the course of the ship with respect to
the wave direction.  This is a complex relationship determined by a
detailed calculation; however, the following table will give you an idea
of the severity of the effect:

MAXIMUM SPEED OF SHIPS IN VARIOUS SEA STATES
SHIP CLASS     SEA STATE:  M      H      R
Battle ship               40-46  30-36  20-26
Cruisers                  34-38  24-28  14-18
Destroyers            30-32  20-22  10-12

The table does not include the effect of heading into the seas, which
could reduce the maximum speed capability by as much as an additional
50%.

Do not be concerned about memorizing this table.  The program
automatically makes the proper calculations and, if the ship's speed is
limited by weather to a speed less than the engineering plant maximum
capability, a message will be printed similar to:

WEATHER LIMITED: MAX SPEED XX

V.7. SQUALLS
Rain and Snow squalls are short and violent storms.  When a squall
appears, visibility is reduced markedly, radar performance drops and
smoke screens will only last for three minutes.

In the Action Menu and Battle Plot you can get one of two messages
relating to squalls: either

SQUALL APPROACHING or 'SQUALL'

Squalls are generally short (15 minutes, although they can last longer or
shorter).

VI.  THE BATTLE PLOT
The Battle Plot is a graphic depiction of the position of all the ships
involved in the action, along with smoke, stack gasses, starshells,
searchlights, torpedoes, and other action.  It is based on the 'Battle
Plot', first used in the latter part of WWII as a part of the Combat
Information Centre concept.

The Battle Plot uses a Cartesian coordinate system (X-Y grid).  North is
to the top of the screen.  Reticle marks are provided for perspective -
the distance between each reticle tic is listed on the top of the display
as the scale.  The basic unit is the KiloYard, often abbreviated as 'K'
or 'KYDS' (1 KiloYard = 1000 yards).

VI.1. DISPLAYING THE BATTLE PLOT
From the Action Menu, select REPORTS, then select BATTLE PLOT.  You have
the following options:

C: CENTRE DISPLAY ON

SHIP; POINT; PREVIOUS POINT

CENTRE ON SHIP allows you to centre the screen on any ship in your force.

CENTRE ON POINT allows you to centre the screen on a grid point.  The
computer will tell you the previous X and Y position of the centre of the
screen and ask for new X-Y coordinates.

PREVIOUS POINT puts up the same plot as the last time the display was
called.

For CENTRE ON SHIP or CENTRE ON POINT the program will ask for the RADIUS
of the display.  This is the distance from the centre of the screen to
the edge.  The minimum radius is 5K, and the maximum radius is 200K.

The Battle Plot will then be displayed.  The centre coordinates and scale
are printed at the top.  You can 'scroll' the Battle Plot to change the
location of the centre or change the scale using the following commands:

- ARROW KEYS moves the centre 1000 yards in that direction.
- TAB and SHIFT TAB moves the centre 5000 yards right/left.
- HOME moves the centre up 5000 yards.
- END moves the centre down 5000 yards.
- PgUp changes to a smaller scale.
- PgDn changes to a larger scale.

VI.2. BATTLE PLOT SYMBOLOGY
The chart screen uses symbology similar to that used by the U.S. Navy's
Naval Tactical Data System (NTDS) to give a clear, understandable display
conveying the maximum amount of clutter.  With a little familiarization
it will become second nature.

The background colour of the plot is blue (during day actions) or black
(during night actions).

A ship's position is marked by a circle (friendly ship) or a square
(enemy ship).  The size of the circle or square is proportional to the
size of the vessel.

A vector line out of the centre of the symbol indicates current course
and speed.  The lines point to the direction of travel, and the length is
proportional to the speed.  A second (red) vector representing ordered
course/speed will appear if a change is ordered or in progress - this
allows you to keep track of the ships to which you have given course and
speed orders.

Friendly ships are labelled with ship numbers between 1 and 49.  Enemy
ships are assigned numbers at random between 50 and 99.  The computer
will assign each enemy ship a target number when it is sighted.  If a
ship disappears from view and later reappears it will be assigned a new
target number.  This helps to preserve the 'fog of war' and prevents ship
identification by memorizing ship numbers.

Friendly ships are yellow.  Enemy ships are coloured red.  There is one
exception to this: during night visibility mode, if a ship is inside a
starshell, flare, or ship's fire loom, it is coloured green (This is
taken from the IBM manual, so the Amiga will more than likely be the
same)

Capsized ships are marked by a filled-in square.

During night actions, ships which have their searchlights on, are in a
searchlight beam, are on fire are circled.

Small arrows mark the position and course of torpedo spreads.  'Friendly'
torpedo spreads are always shown on the screen, while only those 'enemy'
torpedo spreads which your lookouts have sighted are displayed.  Note
that it is nearly impossible to sight torpedo spreads at night or in
heavy or rough seas.

Terrain is indicated by filled-in green circles.  Shallow water is within
500 yards (.5K) of the beach (marked by 3 rings of 'breakers').

Smoke and stack gasses are shown in green.  Starshells and aerial flares
are yellow circles showing the area of the loom. (note: it is an
idiosyncrasy of the graphics package that, if a lot of starshells are
located in a small area, some might not be filled in solid yellow.  These
are still fully-effective starshells.)

The Battle Plot subprogram screens information so only that information
which would be available to that side is displayed.

- enemy ships will not be marked on the chart until they have been
sighted;
- stack gasses will not be visible unless a ship is in position to sight
it;
- enemy-launched torpedoes will only be displayed if sighted by a
lookout.

Some things will be automatically visible to both sides regardless of
range:

- smoke from burning ships, oil slicks, or smoke screens;
- star shells and aerial flares.

VI.3. GIVING ORDERS AND GETTING INFORMATION FROM THE BATTLE PLOT
The top two lines of the Battle Plot is a menu of orders and reports
which are accessible by using FUNCTION keys:

F1 - MOVEMENT: individual ship or formation movement orders
F2 - GUNDIR: gun director orders, gun mount assignments
F3 - RNG/PNT: Range/Bearing information, armour penetration data
F4 - SEARCHLIGHT: searchlight controls
F5 - SMOKE: smoke screen controls
F6 - STATUS: individual ship's status
F7 - TRACERS: display tracers on the Battle Plot
F8 - STARSHELLS: starshell controls
F9 - TORPS: torpedo controls

When the function key is pressed a window will drop down to allow you to
give orders and get information.  When completed, the Battle Plot will be
returned to the screen.

For instructions on the information and orders possible through the
function keys from the Battle Plot, consult:

MOVEMENT:                section VII.
GUN DIRECTOR/MOUNT:           section IX.
RANGE AND PENETRATION, STATUS:          section VIII.
SMOKE:                        section XIII.
SEARCHLIGHTS, STARSHELLS:          section XIV.
TORPEDOES:                    section X.

F7 - TRACERS displays dotted lines between firing ships and targets.
Enemy tracers are in red, friendly are in yellow.  This allows you a
quick check on your fire distribution and how the enemy is targeting your
ships.

<ESC> exits the Battle Plot and returns you to the Action Menu.

VII.  MOVEMENT
VII.1. INDIVIDUAL SHIPS
Individual ship movement orders can be initiated from the Action Menu
('MOVEMENT') or the Battle Plot ('F1').

The DISPLAY provides a summary of the current speed, ordered speed,
rudder status, ordered and current course, and turn delay distance of all
ships in the force.

The top line shows the available options: Change Course, Change Speed,
and Salvo Chasing.  Either use the arrow keys to highlight the desired
choice and hit <RET>, or press the highlighted letter in each option
('C', 'S', or 'L').

For course or speed changes you will be asked to select the ship, and
then to enter the new course or the new speed.  Courses are from 0 to 360
degrees true in increments of 1 degree.  Speed is in knots.

If you are changing course you will be asked for the direction of the
turn.  The selections are:

STBD (starboard, or to landlubbers, right)
PORT (left)
Del STBD (delayed starboard)
Del PORT (delayed port)

Delayed Starboard or Delayed Port gives you the capability to begin the
turn after the ship has travelled an additional distance along the
current course.  This is useful for formation manoeuvring or to unmask
launchers for a torpedo attack.  The program will tell you how far the
ship would travel in the next turn (for example, 'MAX DEL DISTANCE THIS
TURN 2.5K') and ask for the distance to delay before executing the turn.
You may enter any value you desire, even if its greater than the distance
covered in the next move.  The program will simply patiently measure off
that distance and turn at the desired point, no matter how long it takes.

In ACTION STATION! all ships turn to a standard tactical diameter of 2000
yards.  That works out to 1 degree for every 17.5 yards of forward
movement.  Turns may take one or more turns.

Standard acceleration/deceleration rates are 10 knots/3 minute turn.
Ships can move in reverse a speed up to 1/3 their maximum forward speed.
Reverse speeds are ordered by entering a negative number for ordered
speed.  This is a useful capability if you are stuck in a fjord without
enough room to turn around.  Remember, though, that your rudder has the
reverse effect.

VII.1.B. SALVO CHASING
Salvo chasing is a technique of steering the ship on an evasive course to
throw off enemy gunfire accuracy (a full explanation is contained in Part
C).  Salvo chasing is either ON or OFF, as selected using the Salvo
Chasing option.

Salvo chasing is only effective when the ship is going over 5 knots.
Salvo chasing will automatically terminate under that speed.  Base course
will remain the same, but the distance travelled is reduced by 10% due to
the extra drag of the rudder.

VII.2. FORMATION ORDERS
Assigning ships to formations help to maintain better control of your
forces, and allow you to give orders to many ships simultaneously.

The Formations status board informs you of the composition of your
formations.  Each side has seven formations, numbers 1-7 for the Blue
force and 8-14 for the Red force.  A formation can contain a maximum of
eight ships.  The formation display for the Blue force might look like:

  FORM 1     FORM 2     FORM 3     FORM 4     FORM 5     FORM 6     FORM
7
1)  1          4          7          0          0          0          0
2)  2          5          0          0          0          0          0
3)  3          6          0          0          0          0          0

This shows which ships are assigned to each formation, and their order.
For instance, the lead ship (position #1) in formation #2 is ship #4,
followed by ship #5 in the second position and ship #6 in the third
position.

The program screens your input so a ship cannot be in several formations
at once.  Each formation must have a leader assigned to position #1 for
the formation to be active.  A leader cannot be detached from the
formation without dissolving the formation.  Ships must be assigned to
sequential positions - do not skip positions.

To give orders, first select the formation number.  You will then be
given the following menu of options:

1 - INITIALIZE FORMATION
This option allows you to assign ships to formation from scratch.  The
program will ask you to select the lead ship in the formation, the second
ship, the third, etc., up to a maximum total of eight.

2 - ADD UNIT  and  3 - REMOVE UNIT
These options allow you to individually add or detach units from a
formation.  The program will ask for the formation position.

- to add a unit to the formation, pick an empty formation position
(denoted by a '0' in the formation list) and enter that number.
- to detach a unit, pick the unit's formation (note that if the detached
ship was from the middle of the formation that all the following ships
will move up one position).
- to substitute one ship for another, pick the formation position and
select the new ship.  The new ship will assume that position and the old
ship will be dropped from the formation.

Note that formation leaders (the #1 position) can only be changed by
using the 'dissolve formation' and 'initialize formation' option.

4 - TURN SEQUENTIALLY
This option allows you to issue a turn order to all the ships in the
formation.  You will be asked for the new course and the direction of the
turn.  The program will tell the lead ship to turn immediately.

For each following position, the program will measure the distance to the
lead ship and enter a 'delayed turn' order to come to the same course.
Thus, if the ships are in a line ahead formation, each of the ships will
wait until the turn point to turn on the new course, preserving the line
ahead.  If the ships are not in a line ahead (say, in a line abreast or a
line of bearing)( then they will end up in a line of bearing.  And if you
issue this order to a scattered formation, it will remain scattered -
more.

5 - TURN TOGETHER
This option issues a turn order to all ships in the formation.  The ships
will turn immediately and simultaneously to the new course in the
direction specified.

6 - SPEED CHANGE
This option allows you to change the speed of the ships in the formation.
The speed change will will be executed immediately.  If the desired speed
exceeds the maximum capacity of any ship in the formation (due either to
the ship's maximum speed or to weather limitations) then a warning
message will be printed and the ship will be ordered to its maximum
speed.

7 - DISSOLVE FORMATION
This option automatically detaches all ships and deactivates the
formation.

8 - LINE AHEAD
This option is designed to establish and maintain line ahead formations.
When a formation is exercising this option an 'L' will be printed next to
the leader's number on the Formation status board.  The program will
automatically give orders to all ships in position 2 to 8 to assume a
line-ahead formation and follow the lead ship.  Note that if the
formation is not in a straight line ahead when the leader executes a
turn, following ships will 'cut the corner' in order to maintain
formation alignment.  Also, that ships with a delayed turn order in
effect will execute that order prior to falling into formation.

VIII.  REPORTS
The REPORTS menu provides access to large amounts of information in
convenient and functional displays.  The following options are available:
REPORTS, consisting of:
LOOKOUT
FLEET DEPLOYMENT
FLEET READINESS
FLEET BATTERY
CURRENT HITS
BATTLE PLOT
DETAIL REPORTS
SHIP STATUS
RNG/PENETRATION

LOOKOUT and SHIP STATUS are reports from individual ships.
RANGE/PENETRATION is a ship-to-ship display.  The rest are summary
displays with information on the entire force.

VIII.1. SHIP'S STATUS
This display provides individual ship status, damage, and some fire
control summary information.  It contains about everything you could want
to know about that vessel in a condensed display.

VIII.1.A. WEAPON STATUS
The centre and left sections provide weapons information.  Included are
main battery gun mount information and torpedo mount status.

The centre window is of particular importance: it provides information on
main battery gunnery performance for this previous three-minute turn.

The report consists of details on the guns on targets, rounds expended in
the last 3 minutes, and the Gunnery Officer's estimate of the number of
hits he has scored.  The estimate of hits may, of course, not be
perfectly accurate - Gunnery Officers were notorious for overestimating
the number of hits they achieved, while at times shells penetrated so
deeply into the target ship before exploding that there was no indication
to an outside observer that the ship had been hit.

Pressing F1 will provide the Gunnery Officer's report of the factors
which impacted on gunnery accuracy or rate of fire, entitled GUNFIRE
DEGRADATIONS.  There are 31 different factors which can be reported.  A
complete explanation of all gunfire degradation factors is provided
GUNNERY COMBAT, section XX.

VIII.1.B. DAMAGE STATUS
A summary of the number of hits by size of shell hits is given on the
lower right, along with torpedo hits.  Other damage and
engineering/damage control information is grouped in the upper right.
Particular attention should be paid to the LIST figure - over 25 degrees
is usually fatal.  Other systems will display 'damaged' or 'destroyed'
message as appropriate.

VIII.1.C. SETTING BATTLE STATIONS
'Battle Stations', 'General Quarters', 'Action Stations', and 'Condition
I' are all terms describing the maximum state of readiness for battle,
with all stations manned and all hatches and openings shut.  The status
of Battle Stations is indicated in the block labelled 'Bridge Status'.

In most scenarios all ships begin at Battle Stations.  However, in
several the action commences with some or all ships in the force less
than full readiness - a good example is the Savo Island scenario, where
the Japanese surprised and mauled an American force.

You cannot order your ship to go to Battle Stations.  The program will
automatically begin to set Battle Stations after the enemy has been
sighted and a ship has broadcast a warning message.  How quickly a ship
is ready for battle depends on when they know of the enemy's presence and
the crew quality.

When a ship is not at Battle Stations it cannot fire torpedoes or give
director or mount orders.  After Battle Stations are set there is still a
period of 'surprise' where gunnery accuracy is reduced.  It takes 3-30
minutes for a ship to reach full readiness, depending upon the initial
degree of readiness and crew quality.

VIII.2. LOOKOUT/RADAR
This screen reports the enemy ships which have been sighted by the
designated ship.  It includes the enemy target number, classification
information, and visibility information.

The classification of a target progresses from UNKNOWN, to a type
identification (BATTLESHIP, CRUISER, DESTROYER, AUXILIARY, MERCHANT), to
an individual class identification (e.g., FLETCHER class).  This process
will be fairly rapid during daylight, and slower and more uncertain at
night.

The display will also show the means of sighting the enemy.  The 'best'
illumination or sighting means will be given.  The hierarchy of sightings
are:

Best:     ON FIRE
     LIGHT FROM TARGET
     SEARCHLIGHTS
     STAR/FIRE LOOM
     SILHOUETTE STAR/FIRE
     SILHOUETTE DAWN/TWILIGHT
     VISUAL
     RADAR

Worst:    GUN FLASHES

A complete explanation of these is available in the Visibility section of
the manual.

VIII.3. FLEET DEPLOYMENT
This provides a single-screen summary of the locations of your units by
grid position.

VIII.4. FLEET READINESS
This provides a single-screen summary of the watertight integrity, number
of shell and torpedo hits, torpedoes available, and main battery mounts
destroyed for all the ships in your force.  You can consult this display
immediately after a turn to get a summary of which ships were hit, and
then go to the individual ship's damage reports for amplification.  If a
ship's damage control capability is eliminated a report will not be
available.

VIII.5. FLEET BATTERY
This screen provides a summary of the status of the Main Directors of
your units - target, bearing and range, tracking or firing, and other
information.  This display is particularly valuable to ensure proper fire
distribution.  If a ship's Main Director has been destroyed a report will
not be available.

VIII.6. CURRENT HITS
This option provides a report on all the gunfire that was exchanged in
the last 3 minutes.  It includes the firing ship, the target, the number
of guns and classification, and an estimate of the number of hits.  The
hit estimate are taken from the lookouts, so this report may vary from
the report from the Gunnery Officer and can also be under- or over-
estimates.

If a ship is hit by Enfilade fire, the number '99' will be printed
instead of the number of guns.

Note - The data for this display IS NOT RECORDED when you exercise the
'Save Game' option - this is to save disk space, because the possible
number of entries is very high.

VIII.7. DETAIL REPORT
This report contains a summary of the action of the previous turn.  It
reports firing and target ships, explosions, torpedo hits, engineering
breakdowns, capsized ships, successful engineering repairs, and other
events.  The Daily Report will be offered for review immediately after
execution of a turn.

The Detail Report might report false torpedo hits.  This reflects the
fact that many more torpedo hits were reported by lookouts during surface
action than ever actually occurred.  Often shell splashes were reported
as torpedo hits (wishful thinking?).  Since this influences the
commander's assessment of how much damage he is inflicting on the enemy
it is included in ACTION STATIONS!

VIII.8. RANGE/PENETRATION
This report provides bearing and range between two ships.  It also
provides information on the armour penetration capabilities of the
spotting ship's guns against the target ship for penetrating vertical and
horizontal armour at the current target angle.  The Armour Penetration
display provides the same type of information used by warship commanding
officers to determine the most effective range at which to engage the
enemy.

For vertical armour (e.g. belt), penetration will occur at distances
closer than the listed range.  For horizontal armour (e.g. deck),
penetration will occur when the range is longer, because the angle of
fall of the shell is steeper and is closer to a 90 degree angle with the
armour, preventing 'glancing blow' hits.

IX.  GUN MOUNTS AND GUN DIRECTORS
Gun directors are designed to track targets and compute the gunfire
solution.  Gun mounts are electrically connected to the directors.  The
director controls the gun mount by transmitting bearing, elevation, and
firing orders.

Some ships have many directors, while other ships (like auxiliaries or
merchants) have none and control their gun locally.

In ACTION STATIONS!, directors are only capable of controlling one type
of gun.  This is not exactly accurate, as some German and U.S. ships had
dual- purpose, dual battery directors.  However, they were few and so
that capability is not included.  MAIN and ALT (alternate) directors
control main battery guns.  SEC (secondary) and ALT SEC (alternate
secondary) directors control secondary battery guns, and TER directors
control tertiary battery guns.

Gun mounts are assigned to directors, the director computes the firing
solution, orders are transmitted to the gun mount, and the mount fires.
This process is duplicated in ACTION STATIONS!

If directors were destroyed the gun mounts had their own rudimentary fire
control equipment.  This capability is duplicated by allowing guns to be
assigned to 'local control directors'.  For the main battery, these
directors are called LOC MAIN A and LOC MAIN B, and for the secondary
battery LOC SEC STBD and LOC SEC PORT.  Tertiary batteries are not
provided with means to fire under local control.

Both gun turrets and directors have arc of train limitations.  The figure
shows the relative bearing train limitations.

GUN DIRECTOR is available from either the Action Menu or the Battle Plot.
When selected you will have two options, either AUTO or MANUAL.

IX.1. AUTO DIRECTOR
The Auto Director allows you to delegate the authority of assigning all
ship's directors to the Fleet Gunnery Officer, a billet filled by the
computer.  The program will assign your directors to targets.  The order
is only good for that turn - it may be selected each turn if you so
desire.  The directors will remain on their assigned targets until they
are either manually or automatically reassigned, they are destroyed, or
they lose sight of the target.

You have the option to have the directors either just track their
targets, or to track and fire.

The 'track' option is most valuable during night actions when you have
not yet been spotted and do not want to reveal your presence by firing.
This allows the directors to track the targets longer, which will
increase their accuracy when they do open fire.

In the 'open fire' option, the directors are instructed to open fire on
targets that are within gun range.  Distribution may be unorthodox - a
battleship's guns will be directed against a destroyer if the opposing
battleship is still out of range.  Destroyers will not be fired upon if
the range is greater than 20K (precious little chance of hitting a DD at
ten miles!).

The Auto Director order will only operate on directors that are
controlling guns.  Alternate directors and local control directors which
are not controlling a battery are left in the 'ready' status.  Directors
in 'illumination' mode will remain in that mode.

The Gunnery Officer tries to match the appropriate size guns to the
target, avoid over-concentrations, and distribute fire as best as
possible.  However, he does not take into account all tactical
considerations.  You may want to go back in the manual mode and review
the assignments and change them as appropriate.  Be careful issuing this
order after you have assigned directors manually, because there is a
possibility that the Gunnery Officer might shift your directors to
different targets.

The Auto Director mode is the same program that the Computer Commander
uses to assign directors to targets.

IX.2. MANUAL CONTROL OF DIRECTORS AND GUN MOUNTS
The Manual option places you in direct command of the Directors and the
Gun Mounts.

IX.2.A. DIRECTOR ORDERS
This display gives a one-screen summary of all the gun directors on the
ship by battery.  It provides information on the gun size of the battery,
number of guns, current assignments of the directors, and target
information.

This display is used to make tracking and targeting assignments.  The
program will walk you through the process of selecting the director to be
commanded, the command option and the target.  One of the options is the
'ILLUMINATION' mode - it is necessary to have a gun director controlling
at least one gun in this mode before you can fire starshells.

IX.2.B. GUN ASSIGNMENT
This display is a summary of the main, secondary, and tertiary gun mounts
on the ship.  It gives the mount number, number of guns, arc of train,
and the director controlling that mount.  Secondary and Tertiary guns are
not given by mount but by battery associated with the standard mount
groups - port, starboard, forward, and aft.

From this display you can assign gun mounts to different directors.  For
instance, say you wanted to assign a main battery mount (#2) to the ALT
(Main Battery Alternate) Director:

C: WHICH MOUNT?
P: 2

C: WHICH DIRECTOR?
P: select ALT

The program will update the screen display, and you can confirm that the
required assignment has been executed.  The computer will not allow you
to 'mismatch', i.e. assign main battery guns to secondary battery
directors, or port side mounts to starboard side directors.

X. TORPEDO STATUS/ORDERS
From the Action Menu under CONTROLS, and from the Battle Plot by using
F9, is TORPEDOES.  When you enter this option, you are given three
choices: TFC COMPUTER, LAUNCH, and RELOAD.

X.1. TFC COMPUTER
'TFC' stands for Torpedo Fire Control.  The TFC Computer calculates the
direction to fire torpedoes based on your inputs or the inputs of your
tracking team.

In ACTION STATIONS! the position of each torpedo is calculated
individually.  The torpedo salvo and all potential targets are calculated
down to 3 seconds of time and less than a yard of accuracy to determine
hits.  Length, beam and target angle are taken into account.  If a
torpedo hits, the location on the hull is determined and damage
calculated accordingly.

The first option is to select either a 'ship' target or an 'area' target.
'Ship' is used when the target ship is visible to the firing ship, and
your tracking team can provide range, bearing, and course and speed
estimates.  'Area' is used when you assume a target is in a particular
location but cannot get an exact bearing and range - for instance, a
target which has just disappeared behind a smoke screen.  Estimate of the
bearing, range, course and speed of the target must be provided based on
examining the Battle Plot, intuition, or astrological forecasts.  Hits
are less likely using the area method unless you are firing at a large
formation.

The inputs required for both options are very similar, so we will just
demonstrate the Ship option in detail:

P: select SHIP
P: select the firing ship
P: select the target ship

C: BEARING 146/RANGE 19.2/TARGET COURSE 45/TARGET SPEED 19
   ACCEPT? (Y/N)

Bearing and range information is accurate within one hundred yards and
half a degree, the approximate accuracy of shipboard instruments of the
era.  Target course and speed estimates are from the crew's tracking
team, and are of various accuracies depending upon crew quality, lighting
conditions, and length of time the target has been tracked.  Speed
estimates are especially critical: for instance, a 1-knot error in target
speed will result in a hundred yard difference in the calculated
intercept point for a 3-minute torpedo run.

If you enter 'Y', you are telling the TFC computer to accept the crew's
estimate.  If you do not approve the estimate press 'N', and you will be
prompted to enter your own data.

This feature is useful if you are anticipating that the enemy will make a
course or speed change - for instance, the target is at the tail end of a
line formation which is in the process of executing a turn.

After course and speed has been entered by either of these methods the
speed and range capabilities of the torpedo are displayed.

After all information has been entered the TFC will give a solution:
course for the torpedo, run time, intercept angle, and range to intercept
point.  The spread figurer gives an indication of how far apart torpedoes
in a salvo would be at the point of intercept if they were launched with
a 1 degree spread between torpedoes.

The TFC computer can also calculate the 'best course to intercept' for
ships.  For example, your destroyers want the course to close at the
fastest rate on a battleline for a torpedo attack.  Instead of using
torpedo speed use the speed of the ship.  Set the ship's course on the
calculated torpedo course, and they will track towards the target on the
best intercept course.

X.2. LAUNCH
The launch option display shows the status of the torpedo launchers on
the ship, number of torpedoes ready to launch, and the arc of the train
of the mount.

The far right column gives the time until the mount is ready to fire.
Each mount can fire only one spread per turn, even if it fires only part
of the torpedoes available.  The mount cannot fire if reloading is in
process.

To the bottom right is an echo of the last TFC solution, giving torpedo
course, torpedo speed, and the distance between torpedoes at intercept if
a 1 degree spread is used.

The program will ask:

- which mount to fire;
- the number of torpedoes to fire;
- the course of the centre torpedo of the spread;
- the spread angle between torpedoes, in degrees and tenths;
- the speed setting.

At the completion the launch screen will be updated.  The appropriate
number of torpedoes will be gone and the mount 'ready in' time set at 3
minutes.  At this point you can either launch additional torpedoes from
other mounts or hit <ESC> to return to the Torpedo Menu.

X.3. RELOAD
When you call for the Reload option, the computer first looks at all of
your ships to see which have mounts which could begin reloading.  A list
of these ships is printed, and you will select the ship.

A summary display lists the torpedo mounts on that ship, along with ready
times and reloads available.  Select the mount and the number of
torpedoes to be reloaded.  You may perform either a full or partial
reload.

XI.1. AIRCRAFT
Since ACTION STATIONS! is primarily concerned with surface-to-surface
combat, the role of the aircraft is limited.  Each side can have a
maximum of two aircraft aloft.  Aircraft are limited to reconnaissance
and gunfire spotting missions.  Aircraft cannot attack or be shot down.

From the Action Menu, select Controls, then select Aircraft.  The display
provides the current status of the aircraft airborne, and list a number
of ships with aircraft yet to be launched.  The options are LAUNCH,
JETTISON, and ORDERS/REPORTS.

XI.1. LAUNCH
The launch option allows you to order aloft any aircraft which you may
have on board ships or shore facilities.  Aircraft launch from ships is a
tricky event.  Most aircraft were stored on the catapult in the full
force of wind and weather; plus, aircraft were such a fire hazard that
they were normally kept in a 'de-fueled' status.  Consequently, aircraft
were OFTEN not able to be launched when the commander wanted them.  In
ACTION STATIONS!, there is a 50% chance that a launch will be
unsuccessful.  Aircraft which are unsuccessful in the launch procedure
are jettisoned.

If a launch is successful the aircraft will circle awaiting commands.
Blue force aircraft are numbered 1 and 2, and Red Force aircraft are
numbered 3 and 4.  Select the position number by using the up and down
arrow keys.  If you assign a newly launched aircraft the number of an
airborne aircraft the airborne aircraft is removed from play.

Aircraft cannot be launched from a ship which is firing.  There is no
provision for aircraft recovery or refuelling.

Aircraft all have a standard endurance of 180 minutes, and a standard
speed of 120 knots.

XI.2. JETTISON
If you have your full complement of aircraft aloft already (or,
alternately, you do not desire to use the smelly, noisy contraptions) you
can use the JETTISON option to throw the crates over the side.  This will
significantly reduce the fire hazard on board the ship.

XI.3. ORDERS/REPORTS
Once aircraft are flying and assigned an aircraft position number, they
can be issued orders.  The following options are available when
ORDERS/REPORTS is called:

MOVEMENT - You move your aircraft by giving them a destination X and Y
position.  The pilot will automatically fly to that location at 120 knots
and then circle until given another destination.

MISSIONS - there are two types of missions available:

SPOT -  the aircraft is assigned as a gunfire spotter for the main
director
        of a ship.  The aircraft must be within 10K of the target.
Aircraft
        spot will significantly increase gunfire accuracy at longer
ranges,
     and is most effective when used with battleships or heavy cruisers.
     Spot missions are not possible under night visibility conditions.

RECON - the aircraft is sent to the destination of your choice to search
     for enemy ships.

Aircraft can be reassigned missions in mid-flight.

RECON REPORTS - if an aircraft on a Recon mission discovers enemy ships
it will send back a sighting report.  The Detail Report will indicate
when a message is received.  The sighting report will give the location,
course, speed, and composition of the enemy force.  The accuracy of the
report is dependant upon how much the pilot had to drink prior to launch.

FLARES - when on night recon missions aircraft will carry 4 strings of
three illumination flares.  These flares can be dropped from the current
position of the aircraft on a radial bearing.  Aerial flares can be
distinguished on the Battle Plot by the pattern of three overlapping
circles of light in a line.

XII. COUNTERFLOODING/FLOOD MAGAZINES
From the Action Menu, select Controls, then Counterflooding.
COUNTERFLOODING allows you to correct list by ordering Damage Control
teams to flood spaces to balance water in damaged compartments.
Selecting FLOOD MAGAZINE allows you to flood magazines and ammunition
handling spaces to prevent ammunition explosions.  A ship loses these
capabilities if all Damage Control teams are eliminated.

XII.1. COUNTERFLOODING TO CORRECT LIST
When this option is called a summery screen is displayed showing the
current list conditions on all your ships and the status of
counterflooding.  'Hit any key' will call the ship selection window, and
the counterflooding orders menu.

Counterflooding to correct list is an important function.  List adversely
effects the accuracy and rapidity of gunfire; and, if the ship lists too
far, it will capsize.  25 degrees of list is normally the maximum range
of stability for most warships.  Most combatants lost during naval
battles capsized before they sank.

Counterflooding has its penalty - after all, you are purposely 'sinking'
your ship.

If counterflooding is in progress and the ship loses all its Damage
Control teams, the flooding will continue until some enterprising seaman
realizes that something is wrong and shuts the valves.

XII.2. FLOOD MAGAZINES
In this option the program will print a summary of all ships that are on
fire, the magazines which are threatened, and the number of rounds of
ammunition contained therein.

If a fire is large or burns long enough the magazine temperature may rise
sufficiently to cause a spontaneous detonation of the powder and the
destruction of the ship.  A magazine which is empty (0 rounds) is not in
danger of exploding.

Commanders can eliminate the possibility of magazine detonation by
flooding the magazine.  A flooded magazine will reduce the watertight
integrity and freeboard of a ship by approximately 10% of the (original)
unflooded watertight integrity, depending upon the size of the magazine.

XIII. NIGHT ACTIONS
Night actions are the 'graduate level' scenarios in ACTION STATIONS!
Ranges tend to be short, torpedoes deadly, and gunfire control
challenging.  Engagements tend to be quick and errors often irrecoverably
fatal.  Proper control of searchlights and starshell fire is the
difference.

XIII.1. SEARCHLIGHTS
All ships come equipped with searchlights with the same characteristics.
The program will allow them to be used only during NIGHT, DAWN, and
TWILIGHT turns.  The maximum searchlight range is 12K.  If the
searchlight do not lock on to a target they will remain on, but not
searching, until ordered off or to commence another search.  Searchlight
orders for the next turn cannot be cancelled or countermanded.
Searchlights will ignore targets already detected by an illumination
quality higher than 'illuminated by searchlight'.

If a searchlight detects a target, it will lock on and continue to
illuminate unless:

- The target goes out of searchlight range; or
- The target sinks; or
- The line of sight to the target is blocked by smoke or terrain; or
- The commander orders the searchlight OFF or to search another area.

Searchlight orders are given from the Battle Plot.  Let's run through the
procedure:

P: F4
P: select the illuminating ship
P: select searchlight ON

Now we are ready to tell the Ensign running the searchlights how wide an
area to search and in what direction:

C: SEARCHLIGHT ORDERS FOR THE NEXT 3 MIN:  WIDTH OF SEARCH (1-79)
DEGREE(S)?
P: 60

C: CENTRE BEARING?
P: 300

You have just ordered a searchlight search 60 degrees wide centred on a
bearing of 300 degrees(T), or, from 270 to 330 degrees(T).

The computer 'immediately' calculates the results of the 3-minute search.
If you want to see if the search was successful, clear the screen (i.e.
go back to the Action Menu) and call up the Battle Plot again - the ship
with the searchlight on will have a white circle around it, and if it has
locked on to a target you will see the 'searchlight beam'.  However,
other ships will not 'see' the results until the turn is executed, so you
will not be able to fire on the target with a ship that had not
previously spotted the target.

XIII.2. STARSHELLS
Now you can go for your Master's in Naval Warfare: starshells.

The prerequisite to firing starshells is that the director controlling
one or more guns is assigned to the ILLUMINATION mode.  The gun mount and
the director must be able to bear in the direction of fire.  The maximum
range is 18K (sector target) or 12K (ship target) or the range of the
gun,
whichever is less.  You can fire at a range as short as 1K, but be
advised, you might be 'showing off' in more ways than one.

Follow this 'checklist':

ASSIGN A GUN TO THE DIRECTOR
ASSIGN THE DIRECTOR TO THE ILLUM MODE
ENSURE GUN AND DIRECTOR CAN BEAR ON THE TARGET LINE
ENSURE THE GUN IS IN RANGE

It is not necessary to assign an entire battery to fire starshells,
although you can if you wish.  Only one gun is needed.  Plus, any
director can be used (including LOCAL CONTROL), so it is not a good idea
to use your best directors - save them for tossing 'bricks through the
enemy's bridge windows'.  One of the best solutions is to assign one gun
mount (or a secondary battery) to LOCAL CONTROL, assign that director to
ILLUM mode, then issue the starshell orders.

Directors (and Local Control) can be placed in the ILLUM mode from the
Chart Menu (F2, call up the ship and director, and select
'ILLUMINATION').  This can also be done from the Action Menu.

OK so far?  Good - now let's fire our starshells.

There are two methods of firing starshells.  First, is SECTOR
ILLUMINATION.  You do not have a target, but think that there is
something out there, so you fire a pattern off 'into the brown' and hope
you discover something.

From the Battle Plot, select F8; from the Action Menu, select Controls,
then Starshells.  Select the ship, and the program will confirm that you
have a director-mount combination in ILLUMINATION mode:

C: #4 SEC PORT - STARSHELL COMPUTER * ON

* If you do not have a director in the ILLUM mode, the computer will
print a polite notice asking you to get your act together (which, of
course, will not happen to US) - here goes:

P: select SECTOR

C: BEARINGS?
P: 270

C: RANGE/1 - 18/?
P: 15.4

You now have given orders for a starshell pattern to be fired (over the
next 3 minute turn) at a bearing of 270 degrees(T) at a range of
15.4KYDS.  If you change your mind.  It is possible to change the
parameters of the pattern by repeating the routine, but it is not
possible to cancel the pattern.

With the TARGET option the starshell computer is going to lock on to a
target and fire starshells to illuminate it over the next three minutes.
The firing ship must have the target in sight - in this case, let's
brighten up the life of target #67:

C: #4 SEC PORT - STARSHELL COMPUTER * ON
P: select TARGET ILLUMINATION

P: select the desired target

C: OFFSET: 1-NORTH; 2-S; 3-E; 4-W; 0-NONE

The starshell computer is simplistic - unless told otherwise it would pop
the starshell directly over the target.  However, it is best sometimes to
offset the burst point - in particular, if you want to catch other ships
in the pattern, or to have the star burst a bit over the target to have a
better chance of silhouetting should it manoeuvre.  'OFFSET' allows you
to move the burst point of the starshell 500 yards in the specified
direction, north, south, east, west; or no offset at all.

XIV. EXECUTING THE TURN
When you have completed issuing all orders to your force and are ready to
execute the next turn(s), from the Action Menu select the Options Menu;
you can select either NEXT TURN or MULTIPLE TURNS.

NEXT TURN executes a single 3-minute turn.

MULTIPLE TURN allows the program to sequentially execute more than one
turn. If you do not expect contact with the enemy for several turns, this
option allows you to get up and stretch while the computer sorts
electrons.

You will be asked how many 3-minute turns to execute.  For example,
entering '10' would have the computer execute 10 turns in a row, or 30
minutes of movement.  You will then be asked to select a 'stopping rule',
either 'Stop on Gunfire' or 'Stop on Contact'.  If the selected condition
occurs the program will not execute any additional 3-minute segments and
will shift to the Battle Plot.

There are two stopping rules which are always in effect:

1. If any ship is hit by a torpedo (near misses don't count);
2. If any ship runs aground.

If there is any gunfire during the turn the display will shift to the
Battle Plot.  If there is no gunfire, at the end of the last turn the
program will return to the Battle Plot, centred on your largest
combatant, with Battle Plot radius set at the limit of visibility.

For 2-player games, the Battle Plot display will be from the viewpoint of
the player who last entered orders.

XV. CHANGING PALETTE
Change Palette is under the Option Menu.  Change Palettes gives you the
option to change the colours used on the Battle Plot to suit your own
taste and equipment.  The default value is Palette 2.

XVI. SAVING GAMES
From the Action Menu select the Option Menu, and then select LEAVE/SAVE
GAME.  Following this path you will be given the option to:

END GAME, which puts you back in DOS;
STATISTICS, which will provide you with a statistical summary of the game
results.  After the STATISTICS screen is digested you will be placed back
in DOS.

SAVE GAME

The SAVE GAME option allows you to record the current situation,
including all current and outstanding orders.  After saving the game you
have the option to immediately return to play, or quit and return to DOS.

Allow approximately 65K of disk space to save the larger scenarios.

WARNING - THE PROGRAM DOES NOT TEST FOR SUFFICIENT DISK SPACE.
INSUFFICIENT DISK SPACE ON THE TARGET DISK WILL CAUSE PROGRAM TERMINATION
AND LOSS OF THE SCENARIO.

The program allows you to store scenarios in files numbered 1 through 99.
If you desire, use the DOS 'RENAME' command with the suffix '.SCN' if you
want to better label your files.
(this option is from the IBM Manual, it might be different on the Amiga.)

XVII.  GAME STATISTICS
An optional branch prior to ending the game is the STATISTICS option.  It
is an option from the LEAVE/SAVE GAME menu.

The game statistics display gives a comprehensive breakdown of the number
of hits on both sides, damage inflicted, and classifies each ship's final
status as:

SUNK - a permanent loss.
CRIPPLED - a substantial loss, which at a minimum would take a year or
more of shipyard work to restore to combat readiness.
HEAVILY DAMAGED - combat limited, requiring substantial shipyard-level
repairs.
LIGHTLY DAMAGED - hit but not seriously - field repairs only needed.
UNDAMAGED.
TOTAL POINTS is the total value of all ships on a side multiplied by 3.
DAMAGE POINTS is a total of the cumulative watertight integrity losses
for each ship, weighted for the seriousness of the damage.  Points damage
to ships that are heavily damaged or crippled are multiplied by 2, and
the value of a ship which is sunk is multiplied by 3.

A 'Winner' is not announced for the action, for a very good reason:
victory in a naval battle often has nothing to do with losses, but rather
whether the mission was accomplished.  Losses must be balanced against
the objective - was it worth a battleship to stop that amphibious
invasion, or to get that convoy through?  This will make for a marvellous
post-game discussions with the media, your bartender and/or your
opponent.

PART B: CREATING YOUR OWN SCENARIOS

XVIII. THE BUILD SCENARIO PROGRAM
The Build Scenario program allows you to create your own scenarios from
scratch.  Prior to starting, you should work out the situation and the
setup.  Use a piece of graph paper and lay out the initial positions,
complete with all the ships and islands, initial courses and speeds,
etc., on a X-Y coordinate system.

To begin the Build Scenario program, go through your computer start-up
routine until you have the DOS prompt, then type CSCENE <RET>.

Most of the instructions for the Scenario Builder are on-line.  You can
press F1 and receive context-sensative help.  The program will initially
place you in the main menu.  Press F1, and then use the PgUp and PgDn
keys to review the command key functions.

In the main menu:

FILE allows you to retrieve scenarios for editing or begin creating a new
scenario.
EDITING allows you to edit the scenario currently in memory.  You can
also select SHIP and will be able to review ship files.
VIEW allows you to see summary screens of information on either the
scenario or specific ship files.
SAVE and QUIT are for when you want to save or quit.

When creating or editing a scenario, various screens will give the data
currently in the scenario and ask for your input.  You will be asked:

GENERAL ENVIRONMENTALS
BATTLE NAME
NATIONALITY OF THE BLUE AND RED FORCES
SEA STATE AND WAVE DIRECTION
WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION
DAY AND NIGHT VISIBILITY
SQUALLS - INTERVAL AND DURATION
TERRAIN - up to 10 terrain points can be placed on the BATTLE PLOT.
Each
point is defined by the centre X,Y position, and the radius.     All
terrain
points are circles, but it is allowed to overlap the circles, so almost
any
terrain form is possible.
NUMBER OF BLUE FORCE AND RED FORCE SHIPS - there is a maximum total of 49
ships.  Red force number + Blue force number must = total number of
ships.

After you are satisfied with the data on the screen, go to the last data
field and <RET>. The program will then check your inputs to ensure
everything is correct, and then progress to the next screen.

The program will then go through the process of entering ship data.  It
will repeat the ship data input routine until all the ships (up to the
number of Blue Force and Red Force ships which you specified) have been
entered.  The data needed for each ship is:

SHIP CLASS: here you select the two-letter code for the ship class file.
A listing of the ship classes and their file codes are given in appendix
D.
THE SHIP'S NAME - this cannot be more than 8 characters long.  You may
have to abbreviate.
CURRENT SPEED AND COURSE
X AND Y POSITION
RADAR INSTALLED
AIRCRAFT ON BOARD (if the ship has the capability).  Aircraft must begin
on board on of the ships or land bases.
CREW QUALITY - this is a figure which you can enter to change the
efficiency of the ship - it impacts on gun accuracy, damage control
capability, torpedo reload times and other capabilities.  -3 is a poor
crew, +3 is a top crew, 0 is average.  Intermediate values are allowed.
FORMATION AND THE SHIP'S POSITION IN THE FORMATION.  Note that all ships
should be placed in a formation if you want the capability later to use
the 'randomize' function when you reload the scenario, because only ships
in formation will be randomized.  Things like shore batteries and
anchored ships should not be placed in formations.

You will be asked for the Blue Force and the Red Force's mission.  The
mission selections are:

1 - STRIKE
2 - BATTLE
3 - ESCORT
4 - RAID

STRIKE mission is specified when a force is on a mission to attack a
convoy or bombard shore facilities.

BATTLE mission is specified when a force is on a mission to engage
another battle force.

ESCORT mission is specified if the force is assigned to escort a convoy
or guard an anchorage or port.

RAID mission is specified when a small force is at sea with the object of
attacking commercial vessels.

These missions are specified to give direction to the Computer Warrior.
When commanding a STRIKE force, he will either avoid escorting ships or
steamroller over them heading for the objective.  If the defending force
is too strong he will change to BATTLE mode.

In BATTLE, his object is to inflict the maximum casualties on the enemy
at least loss.

In ESCORT missions he will maintain formations on convoys (or picket
lines, if he is defending anchored forces or shore installations),
attempt to cover all approaches, and intercept intruders and drive them
away.

If commanding a RAID force, he will attack, feint, return, reattack, and
continue the engagement with multiple approaches.  He will retire if
opposed by a significant escort force or if seriously damaged.  The RAID
strategy was designed to simulate the tactics used by German surface
raiders.

The program will ask for the position of the objective (an X-Y position)
and home base (another X-Y position) so that it can plan the initial
approach and has a preferred direction to retreat if needed.

If you are setting up a historical scenario, you might consider adjusting
the game start time so that the amount of time between battle
sundown/sun-up and the game sundown/sun-up is the same.

XIX. THE GENERATE SCENARIO PROGRAM
The GENERATE program creates a completely new game scenario based on
parameters decided by the player.

Using this program, you can create an infinite number of battle
situations.  You can command either side.  The 'Fog of War' is intact,
because you will not know the exact compositions, positions, or
objectives of your opponent.  The 'replayability' of ACTION STATIONS!
then becomes IMMENSE.

XIX.1. INSTALLING GENERATE ON A HARD DISK
Each of the FLEET disks contain a file 'DDF', which informs the computer
of the ships available on that disk.  On the ATLANTIC Fleet disk is the
file 'DDFHARD', Section III instructed you to copy all the files from the
four disks into a single directory.  Go into that directory, delete the
file 'DDF ('DEL DDF'), and rename DDFHARD as DDF ('RENAME DDFHARD DDF').

XIX.2. STARTING GENERATE
Go through your normal computer start-up procedure until you have the DOS
prompt.  Insert FLEET DISK: MEDITERRANEAN in the appropriate drive and
type GENERATE <RET>.  The program will load and you will soon see a menu
screen giving you the adjustable parameters of the Scenario Generator.

XIX.3. GENERAL INFORMATION
The Scenario Generator begins with an open ocean area centred at grid
coordinates X=0, Y=0.  There are two 'home base' islands, separated by
approximately 160 nautical miles.  Each home base island sports a rather
powerful shore battery of 12-14" disappearing guns.

Blue forces are home based on the western island, and generally have
initial positions to the west of the centre of the area.  The Red Force
is based on the eastern island and set up also near their island.  Next
to each island has an 'anchored objective' unit, representing an
anchorage of amphibious and/or merchant shipping.

The only exception to the above is when either side is escorting a
convoy.  In that case neither side is given an anchored objective unit,
and the ship initial positions are reversed (Blue forces east, Red forces
west).  The convoy would then have to traverse 'hostile' waters to reach
the protection of the shore battery on its base island.

XIX.4. MENU
The menu lists the game parameters which the player can control when
GENERATE-ing a scenario.  You can either give specific values or let the
computer choose them randomly.

To change a value, select the number and press <RET>.  The computer will
then ask for the required information, giving you allowable values.

1. HOUR (24-HR CLOCK): This option allows you to select the time of day.
Round number hours can be selected by inputting a number between 1 and
24.  If you wish the computer to select the hour at random, input '0'.

2. WIND VELOCITY can be selected between 1-44 knots.  '0' and the
computer will select the wind velocity at random.

3. WIND DIRECTION can be selected from 1 degree (true) to 360 degrees
(true).  '0' and the computer will select the wind direction at random.

4. SEA STATE varies between 1=light to 4=rough.  '0' and the computer
will select sea state at random.

5. SEA DIRECTION can be selected from 1 degree (true) to 360 degrees
(true).  '0' and the computer will select the sea direction at random.

6. VISIBILITY varies, 1=poor, 2=moderate, 3=excellent.  '0' and the
computer will select visibility at random.

7. SQUALLS indicate the possibility of sudden rain squalls that cut
visibility to minimal levels.  If you select '1', there will be no
squalls;
'2' and the possibility of squalls exists.  '0' and the computer will
decide
if the possibility of squalls exist.  If squalls are possible the program
will randomly select time, frequency and duration.

8. TERRAIN indicates the possibility of other islands in addition to the
two home base islands.  Select '0' and the computer will randomly select
between 0 to 8 additional islands of varying sizes and scatter them
randomly throughout the area.

9. NATIONALITY allows you to select the fleet from which the Blue or Red
side select their forces.  Forces will not mix fleets.  If '0' is
selected, then the nationality will be selected at random from the fleets
available (see 'FLEETS AVAILABLE' below).  It is allowable to have the
same nationality ships on both sides.

10. LARGEST TYPE DESIRED allows you to limit the forces selected to just
destroyers ('3'), or just destroyers and cruisers ('2') - this option is
particularly useful when a convoy game is desired (see 'MISSION' below).
Selection of '0' allows the computer complete freedom in selecting the
sides.  Note that specifying a type as the 'largest type desired' does
not guarantee that you will get that type, only that there is a chance
you will.

11. APPROXIMATE NUMBERS allows the player to specify the approximate
numbers of warships contained on each side.  '1' allows the computer to
select the numbers, '2' is for 2-8 warships, '3' is for 9-15 warships,
and '4' is for 16-22 warships.  The shore battery, anchored objective,
and any merchant ships are not counted against this total.  Note that
these numbers may be overridden by the 'Force' selection (see
'APPROXIMATE FORCE', below).

12. APPROXIMATE FORCE allows the player to select the balance of force
between the two sides.  It is expressed in terms of RED measured against
the BLUE force, in percentage.  For example, an input of '200' would mean
that you desired the Red force to be twice as strong (200%) as the Blue
force, while an input of '50' would mean that you desired the Red force
to be half as strong (50%) as the Blue force.  Force comparisons are
calculated for each specific ship in the FLEET disk; however, as an
estimate, 1 battleship generally equals 2.5 to 3.5 cruisers, and 1
cruiser generally equals 3 to 5 destroyers.

FORCE requirements will override the APPROXIMATE NUMBERS input.  If you
need more or less ships to make a force ratio, the program giveth, the
program taketh away.

Shore batteries, anchored objectives and merchant shipping are not
factored in to the force determination process.

13. CREW QUALITY allows the player to select the quality of the forces.
Allowable values are '-3' (poor) to '+3' (elite).  All of the ships will
be given the specific value.  '-10' allows the computer to randomly
select the crew quality for each ship individually.  In either case,
merchant shipping crew quality is always average, and shore battery crew
quality is good to elite.

14. AIRCRAFT allows the player to determine if ships have the possibility
of carrying float planes.  '0' and the computer will determine each
ship's aircraft load randomly among those ships with aircraft facilities.
'1' and there will be no aircraft in the scenario.

15. MISSION allows the player to determine the missions for the forces.
'0' and the computer will select the mission at random.  '1' is the
STRIKE mission, '2' is the BATTLE mission, '3' is the ESCORT mission, and
'4' is the RAID mission.

If ESCORT is selected, the computer will provide one or more groups of
merchant shipping.  If the number of warships is large the computer may
just use the CONVOY unit, which is a single unit meant to represent large
numbers of merchant shipping.

16. BATTLE STATIONS SET allows the player to select if the forces are
alerted or not.  '0' and the computer will assign this randomly; '1'
indicates that the force is already in General Quarters and is fully
battle ready; '2' indicates that the force is not battle ready, and will
take some time after the initial enemy sighting to have battle stations
manned and be ready to engage.

17. RADAR allows the player to select the radar capability of the forces.
There are three levels of radar equipment: level 1, 2 and 3.  If one of
these levels is selected it represents the MAXIMUM capability that the
force has.  For example, if '2' is selected, then that force's ships may
be equipped with either level 1 or level 2 radar or have no radar at all,
but it cannot have any units with level 3 radar.  The higher the level
the better the radar.

If '0' for 'RANDOM' is selected then there is a 33% chance that a ship
will have some type of radar installed.

18. PROXIMITY OF FORCES allows you to select how near the forces are
initially placed.  '0' allows the computer maximum freedom to place
forces.  '1' (near) biases initial placement of forces close to mid-
ocean, while '2' (far) biases initial placement closer to the islands.
For escort missions, 'near' places the convoys closer to their
destinations, while 'far' places them further away.

19. FLEETS AVAILABLE allows you to input which of the fleets you have
available and wish the computer to choose from.

After all the parameters are selected, you hit <RET> from the main menu
to have the computer begin the computational process.  The program will
stop when it has selected the fleet from which to draw the Blue force,
and you will be asked to insert the appropriate disk; this process will
repeat for the Red force.  If the correct fleet disks are not inserted
the program will abort.  Hard disk users can just hit <RET> each time.

When the forces are selected and positioned the program will ask if you
desire to name the ships of one force.  If you have already decided which
force you want to command you might like to name the ships at this point.
Otherwise, the program will assign names based on the first seven letters
of their class name, followed by a lower case letter.  For example, if
your force was assigned two HOOD class battleships and two BIRMINGHAM
(BIRMGHAM) class cruisers, their names would appear as HOODa, HOODb,
BIRMGHAc, and BIRMGHAd.

The program will then ask that you insert a storage disk and specify the
game file.  Remember, the program will overwrite any games already stored
in that file, so be careful.

PART C: THE INTERNALS OF ACTION STATIONS!

XX. GUNNERY COMBAT
This section provides background information and details in naval gunnery
in general, and the use of guns in ACTION STATIONS!  It is sometimes
technical in nature.  You do not have to read and understand all of this
material to enjoy the game - but it might help you better appreciate what
is going on.

ACTION STATIONS! performs a complex calculation to determine the number
of gunnery hits.  It is designed to accurately reflect all the important
conditions influencing accuracy, rate of fire and hit rate.  A commander
can get the most from his force when he takes them into account.  An
understanding of these factors can also give the player an insight as to
why historical naval engagements were fought as they were, because these
were the same factors which naval officers of the period considered when
making tactical decisions.  After reading this section, you will be
better able to understand some of the 'why's' of naval warfare.

The gunnery calculation has three components:

- STANDARD ACCURACY
- RAPIDITY OF FIRE
- ACCURACY OF FIRE

XX.1. STANDARD ACCURACY
Standard Accuracy is the percentage of hits that a ship would achieve
under 'normal battle' conditions.  These conditions are:

- course and speed of the target is steady;
- course and speed of the firing ship is steady;
- the target has been tracked for at least 6 minutes;
- the range is steady;
- visibility is clear;
- only one ship is firing on the target;
- only one ship is engaging the firing ship;
- calm seas with light wind;
- battleship-sized target;
- daylight;

and several other technical considerations.  The Standard Accuracy tables
used in ACTION STATIONS! are drawn from tables compiled during the late
1930's by the U.S. Naval War College and from British Naval Staff
Estimates, with amplification and modifications by the author to account
for war experience and to adjust to a shell-by-shell accounting.

A major consideration in the creation of the Standard Accuracy tables was
the dispersion of the salvo - how far apart the shells would spread from
the aim point.  One of the technical problems of naval gunnery was (and
is) to limit dispersion.  Microscopic differences in jump, gun, droop,
mutual atmospheric interference, bore sighting accuracy, shell seating,
powder and tube temperatures (and over 55 other identified factors) would
cause the shells in a salvo to spread.  There was always something which
resulted in a small unpredictable deviation in the flight of the shell.

The problem for the fire control system was to centre the Mean Point of
Impact of the salvo (MPI) on the target.  Even with the MPI centred
exactly, the dispersion was usually greater than the size of the target:
for example, a battleship firing 16" guns in 8-gun salvos against another
battleship at 20,000 yards only expect 12% hits even with the MPI
perfectly centred.

5" guns firing at 12,000 yards might expect a mean dispersion of 150
yards in range and 25 in deflection.  When firing at a destroyer-sized
target, broadside on, with MPI centred, a hit rate of 5.7% might be
expected.  If the target was end-on (i.e. 'crossing the 'T') the
percentage drops to about 3.2% because the deflection dispersion is much
greater than the beam of the target (crossing the 'T' REDUCES your number
of hits).

Another reason to limit dispersion relates to spotting.  At ranges over
10,000 yards a spotter has no real depth perception.  The only way he can
differentiate between 'over' and 'short' is if the bottom of the shell
splash was blocked by the hull of the ship.

The spotting job was very difficult, especially when the target was 'hull
down' over the horizon and only the superstructure is visible.  Usually
several spotters indicated 'over', 'short', or 'straddle'.  These votes
were totalled and the majority decision fed into the fire control
computer.

If the decision was 'over', a spotting correction (Rc) was applied to the
next salvo.  Rc might be a constant amount pre-set by the ship's gunnery
doctrine - if say, 200 yards, then the guns stepped down a 'ladder' of
200 yards each time an 'over' decision was reached.  That gave another
reason for limiting dispersion - if one shell was a 'wild shot' and
spread 300 yards further than the MPI was well short of the target.

Accuracy curves are contained in the program for three classes of guns:
small calibre (less than 5.5"), medium calibre (5.5" to 9.5") and large
calibre (greater than 9.5").  These three classifications were
established by grouping weapons with similar ballistic characteristics,
where the angle of fall as a percentage of the maximum theoretical range
of the weapon was similar.  With a similar angle of fall the effective
target size seen by the shells is similar over the weapon class.

Once a ballistic 'standard' was established for each class of gun,
performance could be compared and a correction applied to the standard
accuracy to reflect the merits of each gun.

For example, the standard weapon used to represent all medium class guns
was the British 8"/50 m8.  The German 8"/60 1934 C/34 weapon had a higher
muzzle velocity, heavier shell, less dispersion and fewer shot anomalies,
and thus was given an accuracy bonus correction.  The Italian 8"/53 m1927
was mounted in pairs with the gun muzzles very close, which caused barrel
whip and intershell shock wave interference and resulted in a very high
salvo dispersion and a large number of 'wild shot' anomalies.  This gun
type was penalized in accuracy in comparison to the standard.

In this way all of the 69 gun types of guns in ACTION STATIONS! were
analysed.  Corrections were applied to duplicate the wartime
effectiveness of the gun mount.  Appendix D is a print-out of the data.

XX.2. RAPIDITY OF FIRE CORRECTION
Research in the naval archives in the US, Great Britain, and Germany
discovered the 'design maximum cycle rate of fire' of ship's gun mounts.
This is the maximum rate that the gun mount could sustain fire for a
period of three minutes.  Determining this was not straightforward
because of the different ways data were recorded.  For example, the
British tended to record maximum cycle rate of fire for the gun assembly
and not the mount as a whole, while the Americans recorded the standard
sustained rate at battle range, very different values.  Consequently, the
rate of fire of all weapons had to be converted to a standard.

Other factors were considered - for example, the 16" guns on the Nelson
class battleships were limited in rate of fire by the speed of the
ammunition hoists, and the British 14"/45 m7 suffered from chronic
mechanical breakdowns in all of its engagements that the gun mount was
never able to deliver more than 70% of its theoretical maximum cycle rate
of fire.  Extensive research was conducted to account for all the
individual faults and merits of the gun mounts.  When there were
conflicts, battle experience was held to be the final arbiter.

A standard percentage of the maximum rate of fire was used to account for
ranging systems.  First a ranging salvo (or salvo pattern) would be
fired, and the fall of shots spotted.  A spot correction (range and
deflection) would be entered and new ranging salvos fired.  During this
process rate of fire would remain low to prevent wasting ammunition.
When the MPI was on and the target 'straddled', then the 'range was
established' and the rate of firing would go to maximum.  When the salvos
began to fall off target the process began anew.

This system, with variations, was used by most of the major navies of the
period.  There were modifications, of course, for different
circumstances: for example, in her famous engagement with the battle
cruiser Kirishima the USS Washington stayed at maximum ROF (firing on one
turret ready light) for the duration of the engagement, using a 'constant
rocking ladder', walking the salvos back and forth over the target, an
appropriate method for the relatively short range and large target.
However, generally, at longer ranges the rate of fire was lower due to
the 'wait time' as the spotters awaited the fall of shot - for larger
calibre guns the time of flight could be up to 75 seconds at maximum
range.

After the ROF is corrected for range to target, there are other factors
which are taken into consideration to determine the number of shells
fired by the ship:

- the number of guns which can bear the target.  Each gun mount has an
  established arc of train limited by its placement on the ship.

- the fatigue of the crew - most weapons were loaded either entirely or
  partially by hand.  Captains had to consider crew fatigue when fighting
  their ships.  ACTION STATIONS! measures accumulated crew fatigue and
  degrades the rate of loading accordingly.  It also accounts for
'recovery
  time', when the ship is not firing for a period, allowing the crews to
  rest.  Fatigue penalties can run as high as a 90% reduction of the
standard rate of fire, with larger calibre guns less effected because of
  higher mechanization.

- ship changes of course - as a ship turns it lists - the angle on the
deck
  tends to slow down the loading process.  In addition, the gunfire
solution would lose accuracy during the turn due to gyro lag and other
  limitations.  Most ships simply ceased fire during the turn and waited
to
  steady on the new course and for the gyros and stable zeniths to
settle.
  In ACTION STATIONS! a correction is applied to the rate of fire based
on
  the size of the turn.  Turn penalties range from 10% up to 90% for a
170
  degree or larger turn.  Penalties are greater for gun mounts under
local
  control.

- ship changes of speed - a similar penalty is assessed, approximately
10%
  for each 2 knot speed change.

- if a ship is listing, rate of fire is reduced by approximately 4% for
every degree of list.

- 'surprise fire' is a condition when a target has not been tracked by
the
  director prior to opening fire.  The director does not have a good plot
  of target course and speed.  Additional ranging time is needed to
establish the range and get the MPI centred and tracking.  This is taken
  into account by a penalty of 30% until the track is established.

- concentration of fire on the firing ship - a ship's firing rate would
  slow if a large number of ships were firing on it.  This is a physical
  as well as psychological effect - spray over the gun mounts from near
  misses delayed the loading of open mounts and obscured the gun train
  telescopes, and the shock of hits impacted on the 'human element'.

In ACTION STATIONS! the normal battle condition assumes that 'equivalent
fire' is on all ships - battleship on battleship, cruiser on cruiser,
etc.  A ship's gunfire is penalized or rewarded in proportion to the
number of ships firing on it, the number of guns, and calibre.  Bonus
rate of fire and accuracy is given to a ship not under fire or under
light fire only, while ships under concentrated fire are penalized.

- funnel smoke can effect the rate of fire by reducing the visibility of
  the target, causing a ship to 'cease fire' if the target is obscured,
  or to fire more ranging salvos if it has difficulty seeing the fall of
  shot.  Funnel smoke (called 'stack gasses') is present when a ship is
over 5 knots and within 3 knots of its maximum engine speed.  Stack
  gasses are displayed on the Battle Plot.  Rate of fire is penalized
  by 30% (daytime) or 50% (night) when stack gasses are in the line of
  sight between the target and the firing ship.

- weather conditions effect the rate of fire.  Penalties are assigned
  when the character and direction of the seas effect gunlaying and
  ammunition handling in moderate, heavy and rough seas.

  - pitch penalty: in moderate seas small ships are penalized 30%,
    intermediate sized vessels 20% and large vessels 10%.  If the sea is
    heavy, add 10% to the penalty; if it is rough add 20%.

  - the roll penalty is the same as the pitch penalty, except that guns
    firing under local control are assessed an additional 20% penalty.

  - yaw penalties are 20% greater than the pitch penalty.

  - a spray penalty is assessed when the wind is over 15 knots and the
ship
    is heading within 30 degrees of the direction of the wind (i.e. into
the wind).  Unturreted guns and guns not using director fire are
    penalized 20%.

- If a friendly ship is within 5,000 yards of the firing ship and within
10   degrees of the line of fire a 'masking' penalty is assessed.  This
reflects the gunnery officer's concern that he might be required to pay
  for any damage he inflicts on a friendly ship.  It also simulates the
  safety precautions taken to prevent that damage, including cease fire
for
  a period if the ship crosses in the line of fire.

XX.3. ACCURACY OF FIRE
The rate of fire calculation determines the number of 'rounds out of the
barrel' - next we determine how many hit.  The approach is the same: take
Standard Accuracy (which is dependent upon gun type and range) and
correct to account for the characteristics of the weapon and the
conditions.

- An 'open fire' correction is in effect for the first three minutes that
a   ship fires on a target.  It varies with range, from 10% for a close
range
  target to 90%.

- The open fire penalty is reduced if fire was shifted from an adjacent
target.  The new target must be within 2K range and 15 degrees arc of
train of the old target.

- radar used to supplement visual spotting will receive a bonus of
between
  10% and 30% depending upon the quality of the radar.  If a radar is
used
  as the sole means of targeting a penalty of 20% to 50% is effected.

- at night, the quality of the target illumination effects the accuracy
of   fire.  The following is the hierarchy of illumination, from the best
to
  the worst.

     target on fire
     target's searchlight on
     target illuminated by searchlight
     target in starshell, flare or fire loom
     target silhouetted by starshell, flares or fires
     target silhouetted by dawn or twilight
     visual
     radar
     gun flashes sighted only

- spotter aircraft will increase a ship's accuracy by up to 20% at long
  ranges.

- if a battery is being controlled by two different directors a 'split
fire' penalty of 20% is assessed.  An example would be if the forward
  main battery turrets are being controlled by the MAIN Director the
after
  main battery turrets are being controlled by the ALT director.

- all fire under the control of any ALT director is assessed a penalty of
  20% due to smaller rangefinders and less experienced fire control
teams.

- an 'over concentration' penalty will be exacted if more than one ship
is
  firing on the same target.  This reflects the problems of sorting out
  each ship's fall of shot.  Over concentration penalties are not
effected
  for close range fire (10K for large calibre guns to 4K for small
calibre
  guns).  The penalty is approximately 10% for each 'extra' ship firing
at
  the target, and is exacted against all the firing ships.

- in night actions the secondary battery is penalized between 30-50% if
the
  main battery is also firing, due to flash interference.

- guns firing under local control are penalized in accordance with the
range to the target: 10% at 4K, up to 90% for over 25K.

- when the target changes course or speed it will disturb the firing
  solution and may 'evade' incoming rounds.  Changes of course and speed
cause more fire control problems for the firing ship when the target ship
  is at higher speeds and at longer ranges.  The accuracy penalty ranges
from 10% to 40%.

- if the range is changing rapidly it is more difficult to track the
target
  and establish the range.  Range rate penalties vary, up to 80%.

- an 'under-salvo' penalty is exacted if a ship is firing less than four
guns on a target.  With a smaller number of shells it is more difficult
to determine the MPI of the salvo, and a single 'wild shot' could impact
  on the estimate.  Under salvo carries a 20% penalty at ranges over 12K,
  10% if under 12K.

- the crew quality effects how well a ship shoots.  Crew quality is
entered   as a number between -3 and +3 in the set-up portion of building
a new   scenario.  This is converted into a -30% to +30% adjustment to
the
  accuracy of fire.

- the size of the target is a factor.  The standard accuracy hit
percentage
  assumes a battleship-sized target.  Target size corrections range from
  -60% for the smallest destroyers and torpedo boats to +20% for the
largest superbattleships, and +30% or +40% for high-silhouette merchants
  and auxiliaries.  PT boats and shore batteries are additionally
  compensated for their small size by including a proportion of 'no
effect'
  hits in the damage determination process.

- sun glint or glare of the surface of the sea occurs during sunset and
  sunrise.  If the target bears within 30 degrees of the sun accuracy is
  penalized by 10%.

- during dawn and twilight a ship can be silhouetted on the horizon.  If
the target is within 60 degrees of the sun the firing ship receives an
accuracy bonus of 20%.

- salvo chasing was a technique used to confuse gunfire solutions by
  constantly making course alterations into the fall of shot.  However,
  the course changes also have a dramatic effect on the ship's own
  accuracy.  Ships firing on targets which are salvo chasing will score
  approximately 20% less hits, while firing ships that are salvo chasing
  will have their accuracy degraded by 30%.

- when a ship is near the limits of day/night visibility, a penalty is
  exacted.

Remember to consult the Gunnery Officer's report (from the Ship's Status
screen) so you can be reminded of the effect your tactical decision have
on gunfire accuracy.

XX.4. ENFILADE FIRE
If two targets are close to one another both may be hit by the same
salvo.  Enfilade hits are indicated by a '999' in the 'number of guns'
column in the Current Hits report.

XX.5. FINAL FIRE CALCULATION
The percentage penalties given above are approximations.  The actual
calculation works with an exponential equation.  For example, a firing
ship may accumulate 6.4 penalty points, entered into the formula

.87^6.4

yielding about a 40% total penalty.

A simplified version of the actual calculation would look like

(#guns)x(ROF)x(range correction)x(.87^ROF correction points)

to determine the number of shells fired, and

(#shells)x(standard accuracy)x(.87^ accuracy points)

to determine the number of hits.

If the result of the calculation is 2.36, 2 shells are hit and there is a
36% chance of a third hit.  If the number was less than -1 say, .57 -
then that would be considered as a 57% chance of 1 hit.

To make things interesting another factor takes into account random
chance.  The number of hits can be reduced as much as 50% or increased as
much as 75% at random.

Is this whole thing worth it?  Try it and see.  If you use your forces to
optimize their gunnery while taking into account the torpedo threat you
will learn much about the 'way and why' naval warfare was conducted
during World War II.

XXI. TORPEDO COMBAT
In section X the mechanics of operating the Torpedo Fire Control (TFC)
Computer and firing and reloading torpedoes was explained.  This section
discusses some of the tactics of torpedo combat.

'If you want to fill 'em with air, bomb 'em; if you want to fill them
with water, torpedo 'em!'  Such was the succinct appraisal of the torpedo
made by a veteran pilot.  And the superiority of the torpedo over bombs
could be extended to cover the wide range of projectiles, for no weapon
in the war proved half as destructive to enemy capital ships as the
'fish'......from U.S. NAVY BUREAU OF ORDNANCE IN WWII.

The torpedo proved to be the most destructive weapon employed against
shipping in WWII.  Ships known to be highly resistant to gunfire and
bombs might be crippled by one torpedo.  An effective torpedo strike
delivered during a surface action can be the single most decisive event
of the battle.

There is an inherent difficulty with the torpedo: hitting the target.

A comparison between gun and torpedo fire can illustrate the problem.  A
28 knot torpedo will take 12.9 minutes to travel 12,000 yards yards,
during which an 18-knot target will move 7,740 yards.  Torpedo numbers
are limited, and if fired in small numbers the target might be able to
manoeuvre to avoid them entirely.  If the target makes a radical course
change it can be over ten miles away from the original point of
intercept.

Compare this with the gun.  A 14" shell at 23,000 yards has a time flight
of only 37 seconds with a mean velocity of 1220 knots.  An 18-knot target
would travel 370 yards.  A gun has hundreds of projectiles, and can
adjust fire based on the results of the previous salvos.

The extreme destructiveness of the torpedo is balanced by the extreme
difficulty in making hits.

Torpedo fire was mostly automated.  However, the human decisions, the
TACTICS of torpedo fire were of vast importance.  The effectiveness of a
torpedo attack is primarily determined by the selection of the FIRING
POINT, characterized by the range to the intercept point and target
angle.  The best firing point allows:

- the torpedoes to have sufficient range to reach the target, even if the
target should alter course or if the initial course estimate was
incorrect.

- the torpedoes to make as many hits as possible by attacking the length
of
  the ship rather than end-on.

RANGE: the longest range that you can launch a torpedo and hit depend
upon the target course (i.e. the target angle relative to the firing
ship) and target speed.  This is called the 'effective range' of the
torpedo.

Hits are more likely when the torpedo track makes a 90 degree angle with
the hull of the target, providing the largest target.  The TFC computer
provides you with the 'intercept angle'.   An angle of 90 or 270 degrees
means you are attack the target 'broadside' and have the largest
effective target size; an angle closer to 0 or 180 degrees means you are
attack the ship end-on, the narrowest part of the ship and the smallest
target.

It can also be proven that when the track makes a 90 degree angle with
the target course the torpedo fire control solution is the most tolerant
of errors in estimating target course and speed.

Torpedoes should be fired in salvos, launching large numbers
simultaneously.  This will sweep a large area, making evasion difficult
and allowing for errors in the TFC solution.

Spread angles can either be large or small, giving a dense or wide
pattern.  Wide salvos threaten many ships, and allow for the largest
errors in estimating target course and speed.  However, this increases
the distance between each torpedo, leaving 'holes' where ships can slip
through.  Dense salvos sweep a narrower area but give a maximum number of
hits on each individual ship, and making evasion by any ship caught in
the torpedo area difficult.

The decision to launch a wide or dense spread depends upon the tactical
situation - if the enemy is engaged, if they are trying to open or close
the range, the relative amount of damage, the number of torpedoes
available to the force, and many other considerations.  It is not a
trivial problem.

The TFC Computer calculates the distance between torpedoes at the point
of intercept for a 1 degree spread.  If you want your torpedoes spaced
250 yards and the TFC says that a 1 degree spread would place them 100
yards apart, then use a 2.5 degree spread angle.

A moderately wide pattern would be to space the torpedoes at about one
hull length apart at intercept - which means you have a good chance to
get at least one hit.  Battleships are about 200 yards long (broadside),
so a spacing of 150-200 yards might be appropriate for long-range
applications.  A dense pattern might be half or one-third a hull length
apart.

In ACTION STATIONS! the torpedo course you set for the centre torpedo of
the salvo.  Torpedoes are then distributed left-right-left-right.  Take
this into account when planning torpedo patterns.

The fire control calculation is most sensitive to the speed estimate.  A
1-knot speed estimate error means 100 yards for every 3 minutes of run -
15 minutes, a 500 yard error.  Take this into account when you plan how
far to spread your torpedoes.  The calculated run time is included in the
TFC computer output.

XXII. RADAR AND VISIBILITY - SEARCHING FOR THE ENEMY
At the bottom of the Action Menu are listed several factors important to
the search process:

TIME
LIGHT CONDITION
DAY VISIBILITY RANGE
NIGHT VISIBILITY RANGE

The night range of visibility is a measure of darkness.  The day range of
visibility is a measure of air clarity.  Both of these measures impact on
visibility both at night and during the day.

XXII.1. DAY RULES OF VISIBILITY
DAY VISIBILITY is the range which a battleship-sized target will be
sighted.  The range of sighting is adjusted based on the size of the
ship.  Smaller ships such as minesweepers, torpedo boats and trawlers are
sighted at ranges up to 6,000 yards less than the day visibility range;
superbattleships, auxiliaries and merchantmen at up to 4,000 yards more,
while cruisers and other ships will fall in between.  The drawing shows
an example for visibility of 36,000 yards.

                           DAY VISIBILITY RANGE
                                   (36K)
               Ranges at which ships will be sighted during
                daylight for a day range visibility of 36K.

                          Actual Sighting Ranges

  30,000                       36,000                    40,000
                                           |
  |______________|  |______________|  |______________|  |______________|

   DD's,             Cruisers          Battleships       Merchants,
   small ships                                           auxiliaries

Day sightings are deterministic - if you are within visibility range of
an opponent, you will always be sighted.

XXII.2. SMOKE
Smoke comes from burning oil slicks, burning ships, or when a ship is
purposefully ordered to make a smoke screen.  Smoke will always be
displayed on the Battle Plot regardless of visibility or the range to the
nearest sighting ship, even if a smoke screen segment is blocked from
view by another smoke screen or island.  Smoke is blown in the direction
and velocity of the wind.  Smoke can last up to 15 minutes in good
weather, and 3 minutes in rain or snow squalls.  Smoke will block the
line of sight for optical tracking, but will not block radar line of
sight.

XXII.3. STACK GASSES
Stack gasses will be seen coming from a ship travelling over 5 knots and
within 3 knots of its maximum engine speed.  Stack gasses can be seen by
an opposing ship if it is within 1.5 times the range of visibility.
Stack gasses do not block visibility.  Smoke screens do not block
sighting stack gasses.  Stack gasses are blown by the wind.  Stack gasses
disperse after 3 minutes.

XXII.4. NIGHT RULES OF VISIBILITY
The night rules of visibility are complex to account for many more
possible conditions.  The following are the various ways a ship can be
sighted at night:

SHIP ON FIRE
SHIP'S SEARCHLIGHT ON
SHIP ILLUMINATED BY OTHER SHIP'S SEARCHLIGHT
SHIP IN STARSHELL OR FLARE LOOM
SHIP SILHOUETTED BY STARSHELL, FLARE OR BURNING SHIP
SHIP SILHOUETTED BY DAWN/TWILIGHT
SHIP SPOTTED VISUALLY
SHIP SPOTTED BY RADAR
GUN FLASHES SPOTTED

The quality of the illumination has an effect on the accuracy of gunfire
- for example, with all other factors equal you will score fewer hits
when firing at gun flashes than when firing on a target illuminated by
starshells.  The higher up the above list, the 'better' is the quality of
illumination.

The Lookout report will list the sighting reason for each contact.

A ship can be sighted as a result of illumination by starshell, flares,
searchlight, gun flashes, or by turning on its own searchlight, but only
if an enemy ship has a clear optical line of sight to the target and the
ships are within 1.5 times the air clarity range (day visibility range).

XXII.5. SEARCHLIGHTS
The instructions for operating searchlights is in Night Action, Section
XIII.  A ship with its searchlight on will be circled in white on the
Battle Plot.  If the searchlight is locked onto a target, a 'cone of
light' will be shown on the chart from the searching ship to the
illuminated ship.  The illuminated ship will also be circled in white.

XXII.6. STARSHELLS AND FLARES
Starshells and flares can illuminate a target:

- by directly lighting the target (i.e. 'in the loom')
- by silhouetting the target.

Starshells are shown as yellow circles on the Battle Plot.  Flares are
shown as three circles in a line.  The area inside the circle(s) is the
loom area.  In some cases the graphic package will not fill in the circle
and the starshell will be shown then just as a circle outline - those are
still fully-effective starshells.

Depending upon the nationality, starshells can illuminate a radius of 2K
or 1.5K.

If a ship is in the loom of a flare or starshell, the ship symbol, vector
and ship number will be displayed in green.

XXII.7. SHIPBOARD FLARES
Shipboard flares can illuminate or silhouette a ship as well as
illuminate itself.  The area of the loom depends upon the size of the
fire.  A ship on fire is circled in white on the Battle Plot.  If the
fire is large enough it will leave a smoke tail.  The circle does NOT
represent the size of the fire loom, which varies between 0 to 3 KYDS
according to the size of the fire.  Ships illuminated by the loom of a
burning ship will have their ship symbol, vector and target number
printed in green.

XXII.8. VISUAL SIGHTINGS AT NIGHT
Night visual sightings are probabilistic.  A probability is calculated
for the range of each possible sighting and then compared to the
locations of all enemy ships to determine if a sighting occurs.

The probability of sighting is based on:

RANGE: the range listed under NIGHT VIS on the Action Menu is the range
(under ideal conditions) that a battleship would be sighted 50% of the
time per 3 minute visual search.  The probability increases as range
decreases.

TARGET SIZE: larger targets are easier to see.

SPEED: high speed targets are easier to see.

RELATIVE BEARING from Ship to Target: ships notoriously keep a poor watch
astern.

PREVIOUS SIGHTING: it is easier to keep a target in sight once it has
been spotted and the lookouts alerted.

XXII.9. RADAR
Radar was continuously improved during this period, and ships were often
retrofitted with new and better installations.  Consequently, no attempt
has been made to assign a single type of radar to a class of ship.  In
the scenarios, radar capabilities are assigned according to historical
records.  Using 'Build Scenario', the player can assign any of 3 levels
of performance to ships with radar.  Using 'Generate Scenario' the player
can specify a number of options for radar installations.

Radar sets are always considered to be 'on', unless destroyed.

All radar installations are considered to have a 'blind zone' due to
superstructure masking.  Targets cannot be detected by radar within 30
degrees of the ships stern (150-210 degrees relative).

Type 3 radar is approximately the performance of late-war US SG ('Sugar
George') radars.  Type 2 is the SG radar in inshore waters or the SC in
open waters, while the type 1 is the SC in inshore waters.  Early war
Japanese, British and German radars should be considered as type 1; the
best Japanese radar type 2, while the best German and British radar (late
war) type 3.

Targets spotted by radar alone can be fired upon.  When visual and radar
are both available the fire is most accurate.

XXII.10. TERRAIN
Terrain Points (shown as circles on the Battle Plot) are considered
perfect cones.  Line of sight is blocked if it crosses terrain.  Shore
batteries and land targets can be sighted if they are on the forward
surface of the cone as viewed from the sighting ship.

XXIII. CHARACTERISTICS OF SHIPS
The data base and models used to represent the ships in ACTION STATIONS!
are detailed and comprehensive.  Every ship class has been individually
researched and the data base tailored to account for unique strengths,
weaknesses and idiosyncrasies.  A listing of the characteristics (with a
few appropriate comments) might be interesting:

CLASS NAME - the class name given in CONWAY'S ALL THE WORLD'S FIGHTING
SHIPS 1922-1946 is used as the standard, with some exceptions.

DIMENSIONS - length and beam, in feet.

MAXIMUM SPEED - under combat conditions.  This might vary dramatically
from the 'top speed' listed in some references, because they were usually
quoting either design speeds or trial speeds.  Trial speeds were often
rigged, with the ship at a low load basis, so that the builder could
qualify for bonus payments for exceeding contractual minimums.  Many
Italian and French ships fit this category.

Some of the scenarios have a low top speed for a unit, due to the ship's
actual condition at the time of the battle.  For example, in the Battle
of Kolumbangara the cruiser Leander could barely make 28 knots due to an
engineering casualty, while normally her top speed would be 32 knots.

TYPE OF TORPEDOES - assigned in accordance with historical records.

TORPEDO MOUNT CHARACTERISTICS - number of tubes, number of reloads, arc
of train.

SEARCHLIGHT INSTALLATION

TARGET SIZE

SMOKE GENERATION CAPABILITY

RUDDER - status and operability

CREW QUALITY - this is a variable selected by the player when the
scenario is constructed

GUN DIRECTORS - numbers and types

MAIN BATTERY MOUNTS - gun type, arc of train, number of guns, director
connectivity, ammunition supply and source.

SECONDARY BATTERY GUNS - arc of train, gun type, number of guns, director
connectivity, ammunition supply.

TERTIARY BATTERY GUNS - arc of train, gun type, number of guns, director
connectivity, ammunition supply.

ARMOUR PLATING -
belt
belt next to engineering spaces
belt next to magazine
belt next to steering engine
deck
deck over magazine
deck over engineering spaces
deck over steering engine
turret glacis
turret top
secondary battery
conning tower
conning tower top
internal splinter armour and bulkheads
director armour
barbette armour
torpedo bulkheads
internal subdivision

AMMUNITION INVENTORY - forward main magazine, aft main magazine,
amidships main magazine, secondary magazine, tertiary magazine, torpedo
reloads.

WATERTIGHT INTEGRITY AND FLOTATION - based on hull size, freeboard,
internal subdivision, and hull member strength.  In a few cases age of
the ship is considered, under the assumption that as a ship gets older
watertight subdivision (stuffing tubes, hatch gaskets, etc.)
deteriorates.

DAMAGE CONTROL ABILITIES AND EQUIPMENT

STEERING ENGINE STATUS

STATUS OF FIRES

ENGINEERING CAPABILITIES AND REDUNDANCY - a composite which includes the
number of main engines, number of boilers, number of emergency diesel
generators, number of pump and auxiliary installations, and the internal
subdivision between all the engineering spaces.

NUMBER OF AIRCRAFT ON BOARD - the data base includes a limitation on the
maximum number of aircraft that can be carried.  The player specifies the
number of actually on board when he creates the initial scenario.

SHELL HIT LOCATION - each ship is divided into 42 different zones.  The
probability of hitting each zone is individually tailored for each ship
class.

XXIV. DAMAGE AND DAMAGE CALCULATION
XXIV.1. SHELL HITS
The gunfire portion of the program determines the number of hits scored
on a target.  Each shell type is related for explosive power, armour
penetration, dud rate and ballistic characteristics.

First, the angle of fall of the shell is calculated.  The shell hit is
located at random in accordance with the probability of hitting 42
different zones.  A check is conducted to see if the armour protecting
that zone (if any) is penetrated.

Armour penetration is determined by comparing the gun type, range, angle
of fall, and the armour hit against pre-tabulated penetration tables.
For vertical armour, the target angle of the ship also is included when
the angle of armour penetration is calculated.  The amount of armour
which the shell can penetrate is reduced for non-normal incidence angle
hits.  This varies from full penetration for a 90 degree hit down to 50%
armour penetration for 45 degree angle hits.

The possibility of a dud is included.  Dud shells are reduced in
effectiveness for engine room and hull hits and other areas where
explosive power is important.  However, if a major piece of equipment is
in the path of the dud it will be destroyed regardless.  Sometimes duds
are just as effective as exploding shells, and sometimes they do not
inflict any damage whatsoever.

Hits on the bridge or other control stations can affect steering and
director control.  If the bridge is hit, control will be automatically
shifted to secondary conn.  A well trained crew can do this almost
immediately.  If secondary conn is hit, control will be transferred to
local stations.  This may take longer.  While transfers are taking place
speed and rudder orders are not possible, and orders for the directors to
change targets may not be allowed.

When a control station is hit, incorrect signals may be sent to the
rudder or the engines, causing the ship to turn, speed up or slow down -
i.e. 'the helmsman was hit, and spun the wheel as he fell...'

If the rudder, steering gear room or steering internal communications
circuits are damaged a 'steering hit' message is included in the SHIP'S
STATUS report (F9), and the ship will not accept helm commands.  The
rudder will be jammed either dead amidships, to port, or to starboard.

XXIV.2. FIRES
Fires are classified as (in order of decreasing severity) major fires,
large fires, and fires, which consolidate the detailing gradations of
fire intensity contained in the program.

Fires 'FWD' threaten the forward main battery magazine; fires 'AFT'
threaten the after main battery magazine.  The longer a fire burns and
the larger it is the greater the probability that a magazine will
detonate.  Flooded or empty magazines will not explode.

On some ships, such as the British Nelson class and the Japanese Tone
class, all of the guns are mounted forward of the superstructure.  Both
the forward and after magazines are also located forward of the ship's
superstructure.  In those cases, consider the aftermost gun mounts and
magazines the 'stern' system.  The above categories still apply to these
ships, even though their physical layout is unusual.

'MIDS' fires can threaten amidships magazines, and also cause damage to
engineering equipment, force abandonment of engine and boiler spaces,
destroy secondary and tertiary battery gun mounts, explode ready service
ammunition and destroy torpedo mounts.

If an aircraft is hit by shellfire, an amidships fire is almost
inevitable.  Players can forestall this by jettisoning unneeded aircraft
before an engagement.

Commanders can accelerate the process of extinguishing fires by ceasing
fire on all guns - this simulates releasing the gun crews to assist in
the damage control effort.

XXIV.3. PROGRESSIVE DAMAGE
As damage levels rise there is an increasing chance that progressive
flooding, internal smoke and fires, and other dread occurrences will
damage of force abandonment of gun or torpedo mounts, gun directors,
searchlights, and other installations.  This is a function of how badly a
ship is damaged and how many damage control teams are remaining to
control progressive damage.  So, a ship might not be 'hit' during a
period, and still suffer loss of capabilities.

Damage control capabilities are also considered when determining if
progressive flooding, fires, or general damage destroys equipment.  When
a ship loses all damage control capability, as signified when the number
of damage control teams reach 0, progressive damage is accelerated.

However, there is also 'repair' functions going on, so capabilities might
also later be restored.

XXIV.4. LIST AND COUNTERFLOODING
Whenever ships are damaged the possibility of off-centreline flooding
exits, and the ship will list.  List will effect gunfire rate of fire and
accuracy.  If list exceeds 25 degrees the ship will capsize.  Most ships
lost in WWII capsized before they sank, so list is a significant threat
to the survival of a ship.

ACTION STATIONS! includes stability calculations for each ship class.
List is reported to the player in the Ship's Status report.

As a ship floods and loses watertight inegrity its stability is reduced.
A given off-centre flooding might cause twice the list to a severely
damaged ship than to a ship only lightly damaged.  Also, note that all
the list does not occur instantaneously - it takes time to flood a huge
hull, even through huge holes!

Ships have the capability to correct list by counterflooding, which is a
process of flooding tanks and compartments on the opposite side of the
ship to balance the off-centre weight.  As the list increases, the
counterflooding process is slower.  This is because most ships
counterflood using gravity rather than pumps, and as the ship lists the
counterflooding inlets are not as far below the water and pressure is
reduced.

Counterflooding has its disadvantages - after all, you are essentially
flooding (sinking) your own ship.  You may correct the list, only to sink
at an even keel.

Counterflooding orders are given from the Counterflooding Menu,
accessible from the Action Menu.

XXIV.5. TORPEDO DAMAGE
In ACTION STATIONS! the track of each torpedo is individually calculated
and compared with ship positions to a precision of 3 seconds and less
than a yard.  Torpedo hits are located in one of the following zones:

bow
under forward main battery gun mounts
amidships
under aft main battery gun mounts
aft
screws, rudder and shaft alleys

If the torpedo is not a dud the weight of explosives in the warhead is
compared with the resistance value of the passive underwater protection
system at the location of the hit, and damage is calculated.  Torpedo
hits can destroy magazines, boiler and engineering compartments, screws,
shafts, rudders, reduce watertight integrity, and generally mess up the
internals of a ship.  in addition, shock can cause damage to gun and
torpedo mounts and gun directors.  Very significant is the amount of list
which can be caused - several torpedoes hitting simultaneously on the
same side can capsize a ship that ordinarily might have survived if it
had time to counterflood and control the damage.

XXIV.6. DIRECTOR DAMAGE
Gun directors can be destroyed by shell hits, the shock of torpedo hits,
progressive flooding or fires.

If a gun director is destroyed, then the gun mounts assigned to it will
be automatically transferred to the appropriate alternate director:

Destroyed Director:            Mounts Transfer to
MAIN                           ALT
ALT                   LOC MAIN A SEC PORT
ALT SEC PORT SEC STBD          ALT SEC STBD
ALT SEC PORT                   LOC SEC PORT
ALT SEC STBD                   LOC SEC STBD

If a ship does not have that director, treat it as if it were 'destroyed'
and go to the next director.  Also, note that tertiary battery guns do
not have local control facilities in the simulation.

XXIV.7. DAMAGE REPAIR
Damage control teams can effect repairs on rudders and engineering
facilities.  To alert you of a repair, a 'helm/engine repair' message is
recorded in the Detail Report.  Check the Ship's Status screen and see
what miracles the engineers have wrought.  Full steering or some speed
capability may be restored.

XXIV.8. HIGH SPEED ENGINEERING BREAKDOWN
Operating a ship's engineering plant near maximum capacity increases the
risk of breakdowns.  The mean time between breakdowns varies with speed
and the nationality of the ships.  The risk of breakdown becomes most
significant within 3 knots of the ship's maximum speed.

XXIV.9. HITS ON SHORE FACILITIES
Shore facilities are considered as 'large area targets'.  Firing ships
usually cannot spot the pinpoint location of the target, but are firing
at map coordinates or gun flashes.

the hits reported in the Current Hits Summary or the Main Director
Reports are hits in the correct area of the target.  However, they may or
may not cause damage to the installation.  Shore bombardment in this
period was much a matter of luck - saturate the area and hope for the
best.

XXV. NATIONAL DIFFERENCES
The parameters used in ACTION STATIONS! reflect average warship
performance.  However, in some cases the individual characteristics of a
nation's warships were so unique that it was more accurate to include
these differences.

ACTION STATIONS! includes modifying factors for the following
nationalities:

1 - EARLY U.S. WWII (1941-42)
2 - UNITED STATES
3 - BRITISH
4 - JAPANESE
5 - GERMAN
6 - ITALIAN

The following table shows the modifications made to the standard
parameters to account for national characteristics:

G = GOOD    A = AVERAGE    P = POOR

NATIONALITY                   FACTOR
-•---------                             ------
 •  1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10  11  12  13  14
  šœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœ—
1 • A   P   P   G   A   A   P   A   A   A   A   A   G   A •
2 • A   G   A   G   G   G   A   A   A   A   G   A   G   G •
3 • P   A   A   A   A   P   P   P   A   A   A   A   A   G •
4 • A   A   A   P   A   A   A   A   P   A   G   G   G   P •
5 • A   A   A   G   G   G   A   A   A   A   A   A   G   G •
6 • P   A   P   P   A   P   P   A   A   P   P   P   P   P •
  ™œœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœž

FACTORS:

1 - SHELL DUD RATE
2 - TORPEDO DUD RATE
3 - FIRE OCCURENCE RATE
4 - STEERING/ENGINEERING REPAIR RATE
5 - FIRE EXTINGUISHING RATE
6 - PROGRESSIVE FLOODING EQUIPMENT VULVERABILITY
7 - FIRE DAMAGE VULNERABILITY
8 - MAGAZINE CATASTROPHIC EXPLOSION
9 - STEERING VULNERABILITY
10 - DAY GUNFIRE ACCURACY
11 - NIGHT GUNFIRE ACCURACY/OPTICS
12 - STARSHELL QUALITY
13 - ENGINEERING PLANT RELIABILITY AT HIGH SPEED
14 - OVERCOMING SURPRISE

ACTION STATIONS! also includes the French and Russian Fleets.  There is
insufficient combat data to properly evaluate the factors for those
nationalities, so they are considered to be 'average' in all areas.

XXVI. SINKING (ENEMY) SHIPS - A COMMENTARY ON LIMITED INTELLIGENCE
           (subtitled: 'Why hasn't the thing disappeared yet???')

Gun mounts assigned.  Directors tracking.  On target.  Open Fire! - and
after a few turns the screen lights up with CONGRATULATIONS - you just
sank the YAMATO!!!

A funeral dirge is played on the computer's synthesizer while an animated
battleship (complete with life rafts and the ship's cook) settles below
the waves.

That makes for an entertaining cartoon - and a lousy simulation.  Why?
Read on:

First, 'sinking' ships do not always sink promptly.  It takes time, often
hours, to flood a huge hull.  For instance, in the 1st Battle of
Guadalcanal the Atlanta did not sink until over 12 hours after the
battle.

Why is that important?  Because in a naval action, especially at night, a
commander has little indication as to how the enemy is faring.  He can
see a ship making high speed or manouevering, he can see the ship fire
its guns and he can count shell splashes, and can conclude that the enemy
is still dangerous.

However, if he sees a ship that is 'dead in the water', on fire, and
silent, it does not mean that the ship will sink.  It still may repair
itself or be salvaged.  The commander does not know when the enemy is
finished, and so he fires just a few more broadsides at the target -
rounds that could be more profitably directed against another ship.

An example: at the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, almost the entire U.S.
Task Force initially concentrated on the Japanese flagship Sendal.  After
a few minutes under a storm of fire the gallant light cruiser was in
shambles and sinking, and the American's gunfire should have been shifted
elsewhere.  Eventually Sendal's reluctance to disappear below the waves
induced the Americans to waste torpedoes on her.

At 1st Guadalcanal, the fact that the Hiei did not sink immediately
caused the Japanese to risk other vessels in an attempt to stand by and
save her.

'You've Sunk 'er!' messages and cute drawings may provide instant
gratification to those easily entertained, but they introduce a false
element to the simulation.

ACTION STATIONS! takes a strict approach.  Each ship is assigned a value
called 'watertight integrity', representing a detailed assessment of the
size and strength of the hull, internal subdivision, reserve bouyancy,
freeboard, stability and other factors.  The watertight integrity of the
ship is reduced by shell hits, torpedo hits, ramming, running aground,
magazine and torpedo mount explosions, fires and progressive flooding.
Watertight integrity can be restored by damage control teams, who also
fight fires, stop progressive flooding, protect equipment from being
destroyed by fire and flooding and provide reports of the ship's status
to the commanding officer.

When a ship has lost its watertight integrity, the program calculates how
long it will take before it sinks.  Depending upon the extent of the
damage it could stay afloat for hours or minutes.  When additional damage
occurs the program reassesses this time.

A ship is only known to be sunk when it disappears.  Perhaps it might
leave behind a burning oil slick.

Consequently, the player has the same problems as the real commander at
sea, and he has the same tools with which to make a decision:

- is the target under power?  check the vector coming out of the target
symbol on the chart display.

- is the target firing?  check the Battle Plot for tracers.

- how many hits has he taken?  check the Ship's Status and the Current
Hit report.  Realize, though, that they might be inaccurate - the eyes
plays funny tricks on people who stare at targets 15,000 yards away.

- has the target capsized?  check for the capsized ship symbol on the
chart (a filled-in red square).

- is the target on fire?  Ships on fire are circled in white on the
Battle Plot.  If the fire is large enough it will leave a smoke trail.

And, if the target is pounded and then disappears from the Battle Plot,
well, you might begin to congratulate yourself - if, of course, he hasn't
slipped behind a smoke screen, or your lookouts lost him in the dark, or
he passed out of radar range, or a dozen other factors.

At the end of the battle you can always go to the 'Statistics' option and
get a detailed summary.  If that cruiser that you were sure was finished
shows up in the 'heavily damaged' column instead of 'sunk' - Well, then
you have discovered the frustation of the real commanders who wished they
could go back and put just one more salvo into the stubborn hulk!

XXVII. THE COMPUTER WARRIOR
ACTION STATIONS! includes a computer opponent - crafty, cunning,
ruthless, wise and not altogether humble.  The Computer Warrior can be
assigned to play either side.  Roles are assigned during the loading
phased of a scenario.

The Computer Warrior cannot be assigned to play games which were saved
during a two-player game.

During the loading process the Computer Warrior can be assigned a skill
level, varying between -3 (novice) to +3 (expert).

The Computer Warrior was designed with several objectives:

- to provide a tough, creditable, challenging opponent.
- to provide a variety of reasonable tactical responses to given
situations.

Balancing these requirements was difficult.  If the computer dealt with
each situation with the 'textbook' response play would be stereotyped and
dry.  Games would be repetitive and the challenge of the simulation would
be gone.  Instead, we have included the possibility of unorthodox
manoeuvres and daring (some would say foolhardy) tactics.  When you load
up, you do not know if you are going to get a pussycat or a tiger.

This approach does have its risks - after all, what may be a 'daring'
move in one scenario could equally be 'dumb' move in another.  However,
when we surveyed history, and saw the number of 'dumb' (really dumb)
things done by professional naval officers in actual combat, well, we
could be tolerant of such excursions by the Computer Warrior.  After all,
one of the keys to successful naval command is to take advantage of the
enemy's mistakes.  It may be that the Computer Warrior will give you a
chance to practise that skill on occassion.

The Computer Warrior is programmed to operate within the reasonable realm
of naval tactics.  You will see one- and two-pronged attacks, destroyers
and cruisers either screening the battle lines or operating
independently, delaying actions, and a wide range of responses to the
basic mission options.  Gun battle tactics are primarly drawn from U.S.
tactical manuals of the period, while torpedo tactics were drawn from
Japanese doctrine publications recovered from the sunken cruiser Nachi
near the end of the Second World War.

You have a considerable range of options if you find the Computer Warrior
either too tough or too easy.  You can change the skill level, or take
the stronger or weaker side of the scenario and see if you can out-
perform the historical result.  In all, with 30 scenarios (that's 60
sides) to work through, you ought to be well employed for a few years of
gaming...

XXVIII. TACTICS
Several years ago a reputable publisher designed a game on World War I
naval combat.  In the 'Designer's Notes', the author stated that, in his
'analysis', the role of the naval commander was encompassed by two
questions: whether to run or to fight, and whether to close the range or
open it.

In the Navy, such a statement is called a 'Blivet' - that's defined as
ten pounds of horse manure stuffed in a five-pound sack.

If you have gotten this far in manual, you recognise the fallacy of the
statement.  The naval warfare of the period was complex and demanding,
forcing a commander to make critical decisions constantly - How do I
distribute my fire?  Should I lay Smoke?  Can I stay on a torpedo course
to optimize my gunnery performance, or is the torpedo threat too high?
Should I illuminate?  How can I get to a torpedo launch position without
losing all my destroyers?  Stack gasses are interfering with my fire -
should I slow?  Should I change course and present my armour at an angle
to his fire for additional protection?  What will that do to my closure
rate?  That cruiser has a jammed rudder - should I abandon or protect it?
There are a million more.

What we are going to attempt now is to give you a quick tour through the
basics of naval tactics.  It won't be fancy or comprehensive, but it will
give you a way to structure your thinking, a starting point.

1. ONE-ON-ONE: SINGLE SHIP ACTIONS
In a single ship action, the object is to maximize your ship's advantages
and place the enemy at a disadvantage.  Let's look at daylight actions to
begin with.

First, you have to analyse what you have to work with.  Look at the
armour protection on each of the ships, and the armour penetration
capability of each side's guns.  Check the Armour Penetration table in
this manual and determine the limiting ranges of armour penetration and
consult 'RNG/PTR' from the Battle Plot or Action Menu.  See if there is a
range band where your guns can penetrate his armour while you are still
protected from his guns.  If so, that is the range that you want to
establish and maintain.

Don't forget to take into account the target angle as the battle
progresses - you can increase the 'effective thickness' of your vertical
armour by presenting it at an angle to the enemy, rather than broadside-
on.  However, this implies either a closing course or an opening course,
which will make it harder to maintain the right range.  And, if you end
up changing courses too often to maintain the range, your guns will not
be able to steady on target and score.

The next factor you need to consider is the relative merits of the gun
systems on each side.  Larger guns have much more armour penetration, but
fire much more slowly and have a smaller rate of hitting.  Smaller guns
have a smaller punch per shell but a higher rate of fire and a higher hit
rate.  With all else equal, if you have the smaller guns you want to
close, to take advantage of the higher rate of fire and higher hit rate.
At close range, a cruiser has a good chance against a battleship - it
will get off two broadsides to the battleship's one, and even if it
cannot get through the big armour plates it can chop up gun directors,
steering gear, start fires, and blow holes in the unarmoured portions of
the hull.  For instance, look at what happened at 1st Guadalcanal, where
the Japanese lost a battleship to cruiser fire.

If you are the larger ship, you would like to keep the enemy at arms
length, but you have also another consideration: ammunition supply.  Big
guns have small ammunition stockpiles, characteristically only 100 rounds
or so per gun.  If you keep the enemy too far away, you may run out of
ammunition before you score enough hits for decisive effect.  A good
example of this is the Battle of the River Plate: Graf Spee properly kept
the faster-shooting British at arms length (where they could not
penetrate her armour), but managed her main battery fire so poorly that
she did not score sufficient hits to have a decisive effect on the
battle.  She was forced to break off the action because of ammunition
levels.

In the absence of radar, smoke can be an asset to the weaker side.  Lay a
smoke screen and stay behind it - the other side now has a dilemma: is he
getting away?  If the big guy closes the smoke, you may be able to get to
close quarters where your 'rapid-fires' have the advantage; If he does
not close the smoke, you have a chance to escape.

Also, if you are in a 'one-on-many' situation, you might be able to use
smoke to divide the battlefield so you can isolate and attack the enemy
piecemeal.

Torpedoes usually have little chance to score in a one-on-one.  Both
sides have complete freedom of action, and may be doing a lot of bobbin'
an' weavin', making it difficult to set up a torpedo shot.  (At night, at
closer ranges, this is of course different.)  in single ship actions
torpedoes serve mainly to deter a 'charge' by the enemy or to try to
force the enemy away while you retreat.  Torpedoes can also come into
play when smoke is used and a ship blunders into another at very close
range.

Torpedoes really come into their own in squadron-size actions where ships
are constrained to stay in formation, screen the heavies, cover the
convoy or whatever.

So, in a one-on-one, keep the torpedoes ready but don't bet your lifeboat
seat on them.  Defensively, if you get hit by a torpedo it will be a just
reward for dumbness.  Calculate how long it would take a torpedo run from
he to thee, and NEVER maintain course and speed for that duration!

2. NIGHT ACTIONS
In the war in the Pacific most the surface-to-surface actions were fought
at night.  Historians often reason that this was because of the dominance
of the aeroplane during daylight hours.  Many of them neglect to point
out that the Japanese preferred night combat, trained for it, and
actively sought night combat, even when they had air superiority.  Why?

The key is the effect of visibility on the relative capabilities of
warships.

The various naval treaties of the interwar years, and economic realities,
forced Japan to inferiority in the number of battleships.  However, Japan
was given more freedom in cruiser and destroyer production.  They
reasoned that if they could use their cruisers and destroyers to whittle
down the American battleship force, then they could engage in a decisive
fleet action with a chance of success.

A cruiser's or destroyer's weapon of choice against a battleship is the
torpedo.  However, during daylight these smaller ships would have to run
the gauntlet of miles and miles of gunfire in order to reach torpedo
launch positions.

However, at night the battlefield is compressed.  Visibility is low, and
when you sight each other you might already be in torpedo range.  To
amplify this advantage the Japanese developed the Long Lance torpedo:
long range, fast, and with twice the weight of explosives.  So, the
Japanese Navy trained hard for night actions, and the US Navy paid the
price for their neglect in this area.

The key to Japanese night tactics, then, was to effectively employ the
torpedo.  It helped that they had designed special night optics which
usually allowed them to sight the enemy first.  Their command-and-control
arrangements were flexible, allowing destroyers freedom of action and
room for initiative.

American night action tactics were based on faulty concepts centred on
the assumption of the absolute superiority of the gun.  Torpedo tubes had
actually been removed from US cruisers in the belief that engagement
ranges would be too long to allow effective use of the torpedo.
Destroyers were kept on a short leash in tight screening formations and
not allowed to probe in advance of the main body where they might find
better opportunities for effective torpedo attacks.

One of the best way to learn how to properly handle a gun force in the
face of a torpedo force is by example - and here it is suggested that you
examine the track chart of the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay.  The US
commander cut loose his destroyers early to allow them the opportunity to
employ their torpedo batteries.  They operated on the flanks, with the
cruisers keeping the enemy busy in the centre.  The cruisers kept outside
torpedo range, and counter marched several times (once making a full
figure '8'!) to confound the enemy's torpedo fire control and avoid
torpedo water.

Of course, at that range and with all that manoeuvring the cruiser's gun
batteries were less effective, but they did end up punishing the enemy in
a 1 hour running gun fight.  The US commander compromised optimum gun
tactics, but his course of action preserved his force and confounded the
enemy.  The Japanese commander was convinced that he was confronted by a
force twice the strength.  And, most importantly, the mission was
accomplished.

3. FLEET ON FLEET
Books have been written on this topic - mostly bad ones.  Unfortunately,
most historians do not understand the equipment well enough to recognize
good tactics from bad, and so there are many Blivets floating out in the
world of 'popular naval history'.  Those that master ACTION STATIONS!
will be further along than most - ACTION STATIONS! requires you to use
sound tactics or line the ocean floor.  Of course, your mistakes will not
be terminal, allowing you to progress up the 'learning curve', a process
denied to most naval officers of the period.

3.A. THE BATTLELINE
We cannot discuss all the different combinations of many v. many, so
instead let's assume battleline v. battleline, with fairly balanced
forces on each side.

First, look at the capabilities of your heavy ships as opposed to the
capabilities of the enemy's, just as you did in the one-on-one battle.
Is there a favourable band range?  How do the guns balance out?  This
analysis will help define the basic conditions of the action.

The problem of decisive range again emerges: you may run out of ammo
before you achieve decisive victory.  So, you have to recognize the
limits of effective fire and work with them.  The table below is taken
from USF 21 CURRENT DOCTRINE CRUISERS 1941, a US Navy tactical doctrine
publication:

    Ÿœœœ ESTIMATED OUTER LIMIT FOR ACCURATE FIRE CONTROL - TOP SPOT œœœœ—
    •                                                                   •
    • TYPE OF GUN               BB       CA       CL       CL       CL  •
    • CALIBRE OF GUN            14"       8"       6"      5.5"     5.1"•
    •                           16"                                     •
    • ships having:                                                     •
    • MOST MODERN CONTROL AND                                           •
    • OPTICAL GEAR              22       20       18       16       14  •
    •                                                                   •
    • RECENT CONTROL AND                                                •
    • OPTICAL GEAR              20       18       15       14       13  •
    •                                                                   •
    • OBSOLESCENT CONTROL                                               •
    • AND OPTICAL GEAR          20       18       13       12       12  •
    ˜œœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœž


Battleline tactics are centred on the power of the gun.  The battleship
either win on their own strengths, or they engage and pin the enemy and
limit the enemy's freedom of action to allow light forces to intervene
with the torpedo.  The former was the US and British battleline strategy,
while the latter was the philosophy of the Japanese Navy.

The tactics of the battleline are not complex.  The battleships must
travel in close company, so that they will have a maximum arc of fire
without interfering with other's line of sight to the target.  The line
formation is best suited for this.  Ideally the line should stem on a
regular course and speed with little manoeuvring in order to maximize
gunnery accuracy.

Splitting the battleline should only be done when you have a significant
superior force.  You do not want to give the enemy the opportunity to
concentrate on one wing of your force and destroy it piecemeal.  This
could happen suddenly if the enemy is proficient with smoke screens.

3.B. DESTROYERS AND LIGHT FORCES
Light forces can assist in the destruction of the enemy battleline in one
of two ways: 1) it can physically score hits with gun or torpedo, or; 2)
it can create a situation favourable to the friendly battleline, or
unfavourable to the enemy battleline.

The weapon of choice for light forces against the battleship is the
torpedo.  However, torpedo hits are difficult to achieve.  USF 33 CURRENT
DOCTRINE DESTROYERS 1940 discusses the question: 'in high visibility, a
torpedo strike on enemy units free to manoeuvre at high speed rarely
succeed unless the enemy can be closed to very short range.  The
probability of reaching short range in the face of gunfire which
materially outranges the gunfire of destroyers does not appear to be
favourable'.

The key words are 'enemy units free to manoeuvre'.  When is an enemy unit
not free to manoeuvre?  If the manoeuvre would place him in an
unfavourable tactical situation, such as allowing the opponent to
concentrate on an isolated wing of the fleet; if the manoeuvre would
place him in torpedo water; if the manoeuvre would result in the force
facing a superior gun force/wing of the opponent; or when the battleline
is strongly engaged with the other battleline.

This last is a key point.  When strongly engaged, the battleline cannot
afford an interruption of fire or interference with accuracy that would
result in manoeuvring - it might be the edge allowing the enemy to score
decisive, unanswered hits.  Manoeuvring also may cause misalignment of
the main body so that some of the line is at a significant greater range
from the opposing force, allowing the enemy to concentrate on one wing.

Another key situation is when the torpedo threat from light forces
becomes so serious that the battleline commander is forced to shift main
battery fire from the enemy battleline to counter the threat.  Heavy
caliper guns are not efficient destroyer-killers because of their low
rate of fire; plus, all the time they are away from engaging the enemy
battleline allows the enemy 'target practise' conditions.

Consequently, the intervention of light forces can be the decisive edge
for victory.

Usually the destroyers should be organized into an inner and outer force.
Destroyers in the inner area serves as reserves to meet enemy
breakthroughs.  During the engagement their primary task is the defence
of the battleline.  When an enemy attack develops they should move out
and aggressively meet the attackers and contest control of the torpedo
launching area.  Only when necessary should they retire for support of
the battleline, because the fire of the secondary batteries of the
battleline is little greater than that developed by the destroyers, and
it does not range far enough to be able to totally prevent enemy torpedo
launch.

Destroyers in the inner screen may be ordered to attack the enemy battle
line.  However, the long distance to torpedo launching positions make
this a difficult task.  An alternative would have the destroyers in the
inner area constantly moving out to replace the attack force in the outer
area which have expended their torpedoes.

Destroyers in the outer area are the attack force.  These forces should
be positioned well in advance of the battle line.  When the engagement
course of the battle line is determined these destroyers should
concentrate on the suitable flank, in advance of the enemy's battleline.

The commander must consider from where to launch the attack and the
enemy's defensive forces prior to committing the attack.  Favourable
areas are mostly in the sector from dead ahead to abeam of the enemy.
Attacks from abaft the beam are unfavourable and should be initiated only
in coordination with other forces attacking from the van, in order to
limit the enemy freedom of action and to seize a favourable opportunity
to launch if the enemy battleline should reverse course.

Destroyer attack forces should be supported by cruisers.  The cruisers
assist in clearing enemy light forces from the path of the attack and
draw fire away from the destroyers.  The destroyers should not seek gun
action with enemy defending forces.  Their objective is to avoid damage
so they have full speed available and full torpedo firepower intact.  In
cases where the enemy has strongly posted a position with defending
cruisers, an alternate launch point should be considered.

The destroyer attack should be coordinated with the fire engagement of
the battlelines, attacks from different target angles, and other
situations which would restrict the freedom of manoeuvre of the targets.
Adequate forces must be concentrated to perform the assigned task, taking
into account the opposition's defences.  Losses are inevitable on the
approach.  The range should be closed until losses begin to be
unacceptable in terms of the remaining torpedo firepower.

In deciding when to attack, the commander is influenced by many
considerations.  If his battleline is superior to the enemy's the role of
the light forces may be primarily defensive, to guarantee freedom of
manoeuvre for his own line.  If his battleline is inferior an offensive
role may be required.  In either case, offensive action should be
aggressively sought when the enemy is inferior either in size of forces
or quality.

Action must be coordinated.  Independent action by light forces just
because a favourable situation momentarily presents itself will often be
fruitless.

Factors favouring the tactical offensive are:

- superiority of friendly light forces.  This can either be an overall
  superiority or a local superiority which could inflict serious losses
to
  the enemy without serious risk.  This should be undertaken cautiously,
  because combat for combat's sake that does not contribute to the
overall
  battle plan may pull forces out of position.

- faulty dispositions of the enemy light forces.

- inferiority of the friendly battleline strength.

- superior battleline strength but inferior battleline speed.  The object
of
  such an attack would be to 'fix' the enemy battle line, or so limit its
  freedom of action to allow the friendly battleline to close to decisive
  range.

- positions to windward of the torpedo launching area.  Smoke could be
used
  to screen the approach of light forces.

- low visibility.  Any condition which allows light forces to close
without
  being observed or taken under fire by defending forces should be seized
in
  order to launch close range torpedo attacks.

Battle situations rarely cooperate in such things, so situations may
develop requiring unsupported torpedo attacks or attacks from
unfavourable target angles.  The most common situation where this might
be required is where the friendly battleline must break engagement to
escape a superior enemy force.  The objective of the attack is to turn or
slow the enemy.  In such a case, the following are of special importance:

- simultaneous attack by widely separated units make the enemy's fire
  distribution complicated and minimize the effectiveness of the enemy's
  manoeuvres to avoid torpedoes.

- use of high speed and high closure rates.

- use of smoke.

- developing effective destroyer gunfire by a flexible approach
formation.

For all attacks, the quickest way to reach a position within effective
torpedo range is to steer a collision course with the target (the TFC
computer can help you calculate this course - just run a torpedo
intercept problem using the torpedo course that is closest to the
destroyer's maximum speed).  Formations of attacking destroyers should
make a right angle with the line of sight to the target to prevent
enfilade.  Courses and formations may be varied to avoid enemy
opposition, or to open firing arcs of the attack force to deal with the
opposition.

3.C. CRUISERS ON THE ATTACK: PRELIMINARY AND SIMULTANEOUS ATTACKS
Cruisers occupy the intermediate position in strength between battleships
and destroyers.  While powerful, their guns do not have sufficient armour
penetration power to use them against the battleline at long or
intermediate ranges.  Some cruisers are armed with torpedoes, but they
are not suitable for attacking the battleline because of the
vulnerability to cruisers to battleship main battery fire - a destroyer
is not a good target for large caliper guns, or worth the ammunition
expenditure, but a cruiser is a justifiable target and well worth a few
main battery broadsides.  Cruisers are too valuable to expend in
unsupported torpedo attacks.

Cruisers serve as the heavy gunpower of the light forces.  The 8"
batteries of heavy cruisers are primarily for the destruction of enemy
cruisers.  The 6" rapid fire batteries of light cruisers are designed to
saturate and quickly destroy other light cruisers and destroyers.

Cruisers are used to support the attacks of light forces and to defend
against opposing light forces.  Their role is vital, particularly since
the low rate of fire of battleship main batteries are unsuitable for use
against small, high speed, rapidly closing targets like attacking
destroyers.

These tasks require quick engagements and decisive results.  Engagements
at short ranges should be sought, particularly against destroyers.
Neither time nor ammunition will allow engagements at over 20,000 yards
for 8" gun cruisers or 16,000 yards for 6" gun cruisers.  Decisive
results can only be ensured by a large number of penetrative hits, so the
armour penetration and the target angle of the opponent should be
considered.  Ammunition should not be wasted - targets should be selected
with care.  Crew fatigue will mount in extended long range exchanges, so
the crew's 'fighting edge' should not be wasted in indecisive encounters
before the 'real thing'.

The PRELIMINARY ATTACK is usually made by cruisers as a prelude to
launching a destroyer torpedo attack.  This attack is launched with
cruisers alone.  Only when the available strength in cruisers is
inadequate should destroyers be included in this attack.  When a
destroyer is committed to a preliminary attack it should not be counted
upon for later participation in a destroyer attack on the battleline,
because the fight for control of the torpedo launching areas will
undoubtedly be close range and deadly.

Destroyers participating in the preliminary attack should seize
opportunities to use their torpedoes against defending cruisers.  The
initial disposition of the attacking force should be carefully made so
that friendly vessels do not foul the torpedo lanes.

The object of the preliminary attack is to destroy and disperse enemy
light forces.  The attack may be before or after the deployment or
engagement of the battleline.  The destroyer attack should follow
immediately, before the enemy has time to reinforce the area.  The attack
must be driven home to decisive ranges.

The object of the SIMULTANEOUS ATTACK is to clear the attack route of
enemy forces in concert with the advance of the destroyer attack.  It
should be made with superior forces.  Inferior forces should be used only
when it is necessary to force the enemy battle line to manoeuvre or to
counter enemy light forces which are threatening the friendly battleline.

Again, quick and decisive results are required.  The tendency will be for
all the forces to converge on the same area, resulting in a general
melee.  Covering cruisers should close the range and remain in the van of
the attacking destroyers.  When control of the launch point is
established, they must depart the launch point to clear the torpedo
lanes.

Heavy cruisers will normally operate in the outer area, and should
support both preliminary and simultaneous attacks.  Light cruisers should
be divided between the inner and the outer area.  Light cruisers in the
outer area will operate in support of preliminary and simultaneous
attacks.  Light cruisers in the inner area may also support these
attacks, but should not press home or risk serious damage since their
primary responsibility is the defence of the battleline from enemy light
forces.

3.D. LIGHT FORCES IN DEFENCE OF THE BATTLELINE
Battleship gunfire alone is generally not sufficient to repel enemy
destroyer attacks, particularly of squadron size or larger.  Light
cruisers particularly designed for the destroyer-killer role (such as the
American Brooklyn class) are the recommended force for the inner screen.

The object of the defending force would be the destruction of the
attacking force before it can reach effective torpedo range.  The proper
stationing of this force is paramount.

By interposing themselves between the attacking force and the battleline,
defending cruisers can defeat attacking destroyers before they can launch
their torpedoes.  However, this may place them in an area where they can
be engaged by the enemy battleline or enemy cruisers.  In that case a
command decision would be necessary to determine if the tactical
situation required them to pay the cost to maintain position.

This short discussion of tactics will not make you an expert - rather, it
is designed to whet your appetite.  All of the critical factors described
are included in ACTION STATIONS!
Enjoy.

APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
ABAFT - Aft of, as in 'abaft the beam'.

ACCELERATION - The rate at which ships can speed up or slow down.  In the
simulation it is a standard (10 knots per turn) for all ship types.

ALT - Alternate.  It can refer to the alternate director of the ship,
which is the backup director serving the main battery, or to alternate
directors serving the secondary battery.

ALT SEC PORT - The alternate director serving the secondary battery with
an arc of train between 210 to 330 degrees relative.

ALT SEC STBD - The alternate director serving the secondary battery with
an arc of train between 30 and 150 degrees relative.

ALTERNATE DIRECTOR - The alternate director is the backup director to the
main director, controlling the main battery.  It has an arc of train
between 30 and 330 degrees relative.

AMIDSHIPS - Condition when the rudder is aligned along the centreline of
the ship, for straight movement.  Also refers to the centre area of the
ship between the main battery gun mounts.

AMMO - Ammunition.

ARC OF TRAIN - The angle through which a gun mount, torpedo mount or gun
director can train and perform its function.  The angle is measured in
degrees relative to the bow of the ship.  Abbreviated 'arc'.

AREA FIRE - The process of firing star shells at an area (without having
a definite target).

AUTO DIR - An option whereby the computer assigns all the gun directors
of your ships to targets.

AUX - Auxiliary ship.

BATTERY - All of the guns of a single type on a ship are referred to as a
battery.  When a ship mounts several sizes of guns they are referred to
as the main (or primary) battery (the largest), the secondary (the next
largest), and the tertiary (the smallest).  Most ships only have a
primary and secondary battery.

BATTERY INTERFERENCE - When a ship is firing more than one battery, the
fire of one battery may interfere with the efficiency of the other.  This
is particularly true if the guns are open mounts (the blast impacts on
crew efficiency) or during night combat (the muzzle flashes interfere
with spotting the fall of shot).

BB - Battleship.

BC - Battlecruiser.

BEARING - The direction of one point with respect to another.  Bearings
can be measured either as TRUE BEARINGS, where the reference is the
compass (i.e. due north is 0 degrees, east 90 degrees, south 180 degrees
etc.) or RELATIVE BEARINGS, where the reference is the bow of the ship
(i.e. straight ahead is 0 degrees, directly aft is 180 degrees, etc.).

BEARING(R) - relative bearing - see bearing.

BEARING(T) - true bearing - see bearing.

BOW - The front (pointy) end of the ship.  Also refers to the arc of
train from bearing 210 relative to 150 relative.

BOW PORT - The arc of train from bearing 210 relative to 0 relative.

BOW STBD - Bow starboard, the arc of train from 0 degrees relative to 150
degrees relative.

BRG - Bearing.

BRIDGE - The primary control station for the ship - the captain's battle
station.

CA - Cruiser, usually a 'heavy' cruiser mounting an 8" or greater main
battery.

CANX - Cancel.  Pronounced 'Can-X'.

CAPSIZE - When a ship loses stability and has sufficient off-centre
flooding it can roll entirely over (i.e. go 'belly up').  The unit cannot
fight or move, and will eventually sink.

CENTRELINE - See CL.

CF - Counterflooding.

CL - Centreline.  Also refers to the arc of train between 30 to 150
degrees relative and 210 to 330 degrees relative.  Also is an
abbreviation for a light cruiser.

COLLISION - The process whereby two or more ships attempt to occupy the
same space at the same time.  If the centre point of two ships are within
450 feet of each other at the end of a turn they are considered to have
collided - not exactly always precise, but is computationally fast; plus,
he who cannot control his ships to that margin deserves what comes.

CONTROL STATION DAMAGE - A hit on the bridge (or, if the bridge has
already been destroyed, on the alternate or local control station) which
temporarily paralyses command of the ship.

COUNTERFLOODING - The process of flooding compartments on the opposite
side of damage to correct list and prevent capsizing.  Also, the process
of flooding a magazine which is threatened by fire to prevent it from
catastrophically blowing up.

COURSE - The direction a ship is heading, measured in degrees(T).

CRS - Course.

DAWN - Between 0530 to 0600.  The sun is not yet up, but there is
sufficient light to silhouette a target against the eastern horizon.

DAY - Between 0830 to 1730.

DD - Destroyer.

DEL - Delay, used when referring to the delay distance before a turn
order is executed.

DELAY DISTANCE - The distance travelled along the current course before a
turn order is executed.

DELAYED TURN - A turn order where a distance along the current course is
travelled before the turn order is executed.

DEL-PORT - A turn order where a delay distance is travelled before a turn
to port is begun.

DEL-STBD - A turn order where a delay distance is travelled before a turn
to starboard is begun.

DIR - Director; could also stand for direction (i.e. 'wind dir').

DIRECTOR - A rotating device which controls the gunfire of gun mounts by
sighting and tracking the target, computing the fire control solution and
transmitting firing instructions to the gun mounts.  Directors can serve
only one type of gun, thus they are classified as main battery directors
(#1-MAIN, #2-ALT), secondary battery directors (#3 SEC STBD, #4 SEC PORT,
#5 ALT SEC STBD, #6 ALT SEC PORT), or tertiary battery directors (#7 TER
STBD, #8 TER PORT).

DISAPPEARING GUNS - A type of shore battery where the guns are protected
behind earthern or concrete embankments and mounted on elevating
carriages which rise above the embankment to fire and 'disappear' to
load.

ENFILADE HITS - Enfilade is the condition when one ship is close to the
line of fire between a ship and its target.  If the enfiladed ship is
close enough to the target, it may be hit by 'over' or 'short' salvos.

ENDUR - Endurance.

ENDURANCE - The total time an aircraft's fuel supply will allow it to
remain airborne.

FATIGUE - A gunnery correction factor to account for the reduced
efficiency of a gun and director crew due to prolonged firing.

FIRE CONTROL - The process of directing the fire of guns or torpedoes
against the target.

FLARES - Illumination devices dropped from aircraft on parachutes to
light an area and illuminate or silhouette ships.

FLOATATION - Same as Watertight integrity.

FORMATION - Ships that are assigned to a group so that orders can be
simultaneously issued to all of them.

GLARE - Condition when reflection of the sun off the water makes spotting
difficult and reduces gunnery accuracy.

GUNFIRE DEGRADATIONS - A list of those factors effecting the accuracy and
rate of a ship's fire.

HEAVY CAL - Heavy calibre, referring to guns above 9.5".

HEAVY SEAS - Weather conditions where the seas are high enough to impact
on the manoeuvrability of even the largest vessels, and where platform
steadiness begins to degrade director-controlled gunfire accuracy.

HELM - The control station for the ship's course and speed, located on
the bridge or, in emergencies, in alternate control locations.

ILLUM - Illumination.  This abbreviation is used when placing gun
directors into 'illumination' (starshell fire) mode.

ILLUMINATION FIRE - The process of assigning a director (controlling at
least one gun)(or a gun mount in local control) to fire star shell to
illuminate a target or an area.

INTERCEPT POINT - See 'point of intercept'.

INTERCEPT RANGE - The distance from the firing point of a torpedo to the
point where it hits the target.

JETTISON - To throw an aircraft over the side, and thus dispose of a fire
hazard.

K - Kiloyards.

KILOYARD - 1,000 yards.

KNOT - Standard measure of speed at sea.  1 knot is one nautical mile per
hour.  A nautical mile is 2,000 yards or 2 KYDS.

KYDS - Kiloyards.

L - When this letter appears in the movement summary of a ship when
issuing movement orders from the chart screen, or after the number of the
lead ship in the formation summary display, it denotes that the ship is
the leader of a line-ahead formation and that the following ships in the
formation are ordered to automatically follow in the wake of the lead
ship.

LIGHT CAL - Light calibre, referring to guns under 5.3".

LIGHT CONDITION - The visibility conditions due to the position of the
sun: see NIGHT, DAWN, SUNRISE, DAY, SUNSET, TWILIGHT.

LIGHT SEAS - Flat and calm weather conditions.

LINE ABREAST - A line of bearing where the bearing between ships is 90
degrees(R) or 270 degrees(R).

LINE AHEAD - An arrangement of ships where one ship is following in the
wake of another at the specified interval.  These ships are usually
assigned to the same formation.

LIST - A measure of how far a ship is off from perfectly level.  A 0
degree list is flat; anything over 25 degrees of list will usually result
in the ship capsizing.

LOC - Local control.

LOCAL CONTROL - When there are no directors to control a gum mount's
fire, then the gun mount attempts to calculate its own fire control
solution.  This is called Local Control.  Local control is inaccurate
when compared to director controlled fire.  Local control can also refer
to any other function controlled from an emergency station i.e. steering
can be controlled from a local control station.

LOC MAIN A or LOC MAIN B - A virtual director simulating the local
control of main battery guns.

LOC PORT SEC - A virtual director simulating the local control of
secondary battery guns on the port side.

LOC STBD SEC - A virtual director simulating the local control of
secondary battery guns on the starboard side.

LOOM - The area of light surrounding a starshell, aerial flare, or a ship
on fire.

MAG - Magazine.

MAGAZINE - Compartment used for storing ammunition.

MAIN - Can either refer to the main battery (the largest guns on the
ship) or the main director.

MAX - Maximum.

MANOEUVRING - Any change in course or speed of a ship.

MEDIUM CAL - Medium calibre, referring to guns between 5.3" to 9.5".

MER - Merchant ship.

MIDS - Amidships.

MIDS PORT - The arc of train measured from 330 degrees relative to 210
degrees relative.

MIDS STBD - The arc of train measured from 30 degrees relative to 150
degrees relative.

MIN - Minute or minutes.

MISMATCH - Attempting to assign a gun mount to an incompatible director
i.e. assigning a main battery mount to a secondary battery director, or a
port side mount to a starboard side director, etc.

MODERATE SEAS - Seas where the wave size is large enough to impact on the
manoeuvrability of smaller vessels, and reduce the accuracy of gunfire
controlled at local control stations.

MT - Mount.

MULTIPLE TURN - An option whereby the player can have the computer
execute more than one 3 minute turn.  Useful for scenarios where contact
have not yet been made.

NIGHT - Between 1830 to 0530.

OPEN FIRE - For the first turn after a ship first commences firing on a
target the spotters are coaching the fire onto the target, and so gun
accuracy is reduced.

ORD - Ordered.

OFFSET - When firing starshells, it is often desirable to fire them
slightly over the target and thus ensure a silhouette for the gunners.
The OFFSET menu command allows the player to indicate the direction of
the offset.

PITCH - Motion of a ship which results when the sea is from a direction
20 degrees or less from ahead.  Can effect gunnery or ship's
manoeuvrability.

PITCH/ROLL/YAW - A gunnery correction factor to take into account of
ship's motion due to moderate, heavy or rough seas.

POINT OF INTERCEPT - The geographic point where a torpedo spread meets
the target ship.

PORT - Left.

(R) - When placed after the word BEARING, it indicates that it is a
relative bearing.

RADAR - Electronic ranging and detection device, capable of detecting
ship up to the horizon.

RANDOMIZE - The subprogram which redistributes the initial positions of
ships in a new scenario.

RANGE - The distance from one ship to another.  In the game, ranges are
always measured in thousand yard units, called KiloYards.

RANGE CHANGE - A gunnery correction factor which accounts for rapid
changes in the range between firing ship and target.

RELATIVE - Bearing measured with respect to the bow of the ship.

RNG - Range.

ROLL - The motion of a ship which results in moderate, heavy or rough
seas when the sea is between 20 degrees of the bow to 60 degrees abaft
the beam.  It may impact on ship's manoeuvrability and gunnery accuracy.

ROUGH SEAS - Weather conditions with dangerous waves, which seriously
impacts on the manoeuvrability of even the largest ships, and seriously
degrades all gunfire.

RUD - Rudder.

RUN TIME - The time in minutes between firing a torpedo and when it is
scheduled to hit the target.

SALVO CHASING - Evasive manoeuvring conducted by a target ship to avoid
the salvos of the enemy.  Basically the captain turns the point where the
last salvo fell on the theory that the firing ship will spot the miss and
correct the fire away from that point.  Salvo chasing interferes with the
target ship's gunfire due to the constant turning, and it also slows the
rate of advance.

SEARCHLIGHTS - Large lights mounted on board a ship, used to illuminate
other ships at night.

SEC - Secondary.  Can refer either to the secondary directors or the
secondary battery.

SEC CONN - Secondary Control - the alternate ship control station, after
the bridge.

SECONDARY BATTERY - The second largest size of guns on a ship.

SECONDARY DIRECTOR - A gun director used to control the fire of the
secondary battery.

SECURE - To stop or cease, as in 'secure counterflooding'.

SILHOUETTE - The condition where a ship is seen by the contrast of its
dark hull against a light background.  Ships may be silhouetted against
the light of dawn, sunset, starshells, or fires from burning ships.

SPD - Speed.

SPEED - How fast a ship is going, measured in knots (nautical miles per
hour).  A ship going one knot will travel 100 yards every game turn (3
minutes).

SPLIT FIRE - The condition when the fire of a single battery is divided
and firing on different targets.

SPOTTING - the process of sighting and tracking the target and correcting
fire by watching the fall of previous salvos near the target.

SPRAY - A gunnery correction factor which takes into account high winds
whipping sea spray over gun crews and interfering with their serving the
guns, or over director control instruments and interfering with the
spotting process.

SPREAD - More than one torpedo being fired from a mount on one turn -
also called a TORPEDO SALVO.

SPREAD DISTANCE - The distance in yards between torpedoes of a single
spread at the point of intercept.

SQUALL - A short and fairly violent rain or snow storm, characterized by
very low visibility.

STACK GAS - When a ship is travelling over 5 knots and is within 3 knots
of its maximum speed a visible cloud is usually seen from the stack.
This cloud disperses rapidly, but it can interfere with spotting if it
gets between spotter and target. It also often can be spotted by the
enemy before the ship is seen.

STAR - Starshells.

STARBOARD - Right.  Also refer to the arc of train from bearing 30
degrees relative to 150 degrees relative.

STARSHELLS - Shells containing a light-emitting flare and a parachute,
fired to illuminate the enemy.

STARSHELL COMPUTER - A special computer in the director or at gun mount
local controls which control starshell (or illumination) fire.  A
director can be in illumination mode or gunnery mode, but not both.

STBD - Starboard.

STERN - The back (blunt) end of the ship.  Also refer to the arc of train
from bearing 30 degrees relative to bearing 330 degrees relative.

STERN PORT - The arc of train from bearing 180 degrees relative to 30
degrees relative.

STERN STBD - The arc of train from bearing 180 degrees relative to 30
degrees relative.

SUNRISE - Between 0600 to 0800.  The sun is on the horizon, causing glare
problems when sighting targets to the east.

SUNSET - Between 1600 to 1800.  The sun is on the horizon, causing glare
problems when sighting targets to the west.

(T) - When placed after the word BEARING, indicates that it is a True
bearing.

TACTICAL DIAMETER - The diameter of the circle (or arc) made when the
ship turns.  In the simulation, it is standard 2,000 yards for all ship
types.

TAR - Target.

TARGET - What you like to have, but don't want to be.

TARGET ANGLE - The relative bearing upon which a target ship is
presenting to an observer.  For instance, observer is broad on the
starboard beam of a ship, the target angle is 90; broad on the port beam
would be 270 etc.

TARGET MANOEUVRE - A gunnery correction factor which accounts for the
reduced accuracy of gunfire when a target changes course or speed.

TERTIARY BATTERY - The third largest gun battery on a ship.

TERTIARY DIRECTOR - A director controlling the tertiary battery.

TFC - Torpedo fire control.

TFC COMPUTER - A program subroutine allowing the player to compute
torpedo fire control launch courses, speed, and intercept ranges.

TORP - Torpedo.

TRACERS - In game use, this term means the dotted lines which appear on
the chart between firing ship and target ship.  Red force firing ship
tracers are red, Blue force tracers are yellow (depending upon palette
chosen).

TRACK - The process of continuously measuring the range and bearing to a
target, and computing its course and speed.  The longer a director tracks
a target, the more accurate are its course/speed estimates and the more
accurate its fire.

TRAIN - See Arc of Train.

TRUE - Bearing measured with respect to compass north.  Also refers to
the accuracy of ACTION STATIONS!

TURN - The process of going to a new course.  Standard Tactical Diameter
for all ship types in the simulation is 2,000 yards.

TWILIGHT - Between 1800 to 1830.  The sun is under the horizon but there
is still enough light to silhouette targets against the western horizon.

UNDER CONCENTRATED FIRE - The ship is being fired at by more guns or
larger guns than it carries itself.

UNDER SALVO - If three guns or less are firing on a target from a ship it
is more difficult to properly spot the Mean Point of Impact (MPI) of the
salvo; consequently spotting effectiveness is degraded and gunnery
accuracy is reduced.

VECTOR - On the chart screen, the line coming from the ship's position is
called the Vector.  The direction the line points is the course of the
ship, and the length of the line is directly proportional to the speed.

WATERTIGHT INTEGRITY - A measure of the amount of damage to a ship's
hull, and how close it is to sinking.  100% means the ship is intact, 10%
means it is near to sinking, etc.

WEATHER LIMITED - This message indicates that the maximum speed of the
ship is limited by the roughness of the sea.

X-POSIT - The X position of a unit on the Cartesian coordinate system.

YAW - The motion of a ship which occurs when the sea is from a direction
within 30 degrees of the stern.  In moderate, heavy or rough weather it
may degrade ship's manoeuvrability and gunfire accuracy.

Y-POSIT - The Y position of a unit on the Cartesian coordinate system.

APPENDIX B: NAVAL BASICS
This section provides some basic information for those not familiar with
naval warfare during the period treated by ACTION STATIONS!

If you haven't, glance over APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY.  It defines many naval
terms, and some specialized terms which have particular meanings in
ACTION STATIONS!

Warships are divided into types and classes.  The traditional of this
period are:

BATTLESHIP: the largest of the combatants.  It has huge naval guns (14",
15" and 16" are typical calibres), thick armour and moderate to high
speed.

CRUISER: is an intermediate-sized vessel, with guns between 5.5" to 12",
and lighter armour.  These ships were large enough for independent
operations, but not strong enough to match up to a battleship.

The DESTROYER is a smaller type of ship.  It has small guns, high speed,
and little (if any) armour.  It packs a big punch by carrying a load of
torpedoes, which can cripple or sink the largest warships.

Speed at sea is measured in KNOTS, standing for nautical miles per hour.
A nautical mile is longer than a stature (land) mile - it is 2,000 yards
long.

Ships underway maintain speed through the water.  They will continue on a
given course and speed unless orders are given to have them change.
Ships are not like land units, which 'sit in place' until you give them
an order - they constantly are on the move, making the battle situation
rapidly-changing.

A useful rule of thumb is that in a 3 minute period (the duration of a
turn in ACTION STATIONS!) a ship will move 100 yards for each knot of
speed.

Courses are measured in degrees.  Due north is 0 degrees, east is 90,
south is 180 etc.  You make order intermediate courses down to the degree
if you choose - for instance, you can order a course of 43 degrees, or
northeasterly course.

Guns on board a ship are placed in gun mounts, designed to have a wide
arc of fire.  However, since hitting your own ship is considered bad
form, they are physically limited from pointing in some RELATIVE
BEARINGS.  A relative bearing is the bearing measured clockwise in
degrees, with the bow of the ship the 0 degree reference.

In ACTION STATIONS! the arc of train is defined by the terms BOW, STERN,
STARBOARD, PORT, AMIDSHIPS, AMIDSHIPS PORT, AMIDSHIPS STARBOARD, BOW
PORT, BOW STARBOARD, STERN PORT AND STERN STARBOARD.

Guns on ships are sometimes of varying sizes.  The largest guns are the
MAIN BATTERY, the next largest the SECONDARY BATTERY, and the next
largest the TERTIARY BATTERY.

In ACTION STATIONS! each main battery mount is individually depicted.
They are identified by number, starting from the bow to the stern, with
port side mounts traditionally given even numbers and starboard side
mounts given odd numbers.  However, to preserve memory and to make the
simulation run faster the secondary and tertiary gun mounts are
aggregated into four zones: guns which are mounted with BOW arcs, with
STERN arc, with PORT arc or with STARBOARD arcs.

The gun director is designed to control the fire of the gun batteries.
Gun directors are turret-like devices located in a ship's superstructure,
and have an arc of train defined just as main battery mounts.  Gun
directors can only control a specific battery, and only those gun mounts
which are assigned to them.  Gun mounts can be divided up among several
directors and fire at different targets.

In ACTION STATIONS! there is a standard number scheme for gun directors:

Main battery gun directors:
#1 MAIN
#2 ALT
#9 LOC MAIN A
#10 LOC MAIN B

Secondary battery directors:
#3 SEC STBD
#4 SEC PORT
#5 ALT SEC STBD
#6 ALT SEC PORT
#11 LOC SEC STBD
#12 LOC SEC PORT

Tertiary battery directors:
#7 TER STBD
#8 TER PORT

Some ships may not be equipped all of these directors.

The director labelled 'LOC' are not really directors, but represent the
capabilities of a gun mount to fire on targets under LOCal control, i.e.
using fire control equipment installed on the gun mount.  Local control
'directors' are #9, 10, 11, and 12.  Tertiary battery guns do not have
local control capabilities.  'LOC' directors are only considered
destroyed when all the guns are destroyed.

APPENDIX C. CAVEATS
Creating this computer simulation for commercial use has been a
challenge.  Every effort was made to make it the most accurate product
available - the assumption was that, for the intelligence level of those
who are interested in such products, accuracy was valued more than
cartoon graphics or pretty pictures.  However, compromises were necessary
to suit such factors as the memory size of home computers, speed of
execution, and to allow a 'human engineered' format designed for clarity
appropriate to a civilian audience.  Plus, a bit of 'showmanship' to add
flavour and excitement.

For those interested in the pure simulation aspects as well as those
steeped in naval history, it is only just that the author outline those
areas where the simulation is not exactly true-to-life.  So, the
following caveats apply:

Smoke screens are displayed on the Battle Plot whether they can be seen
or
not.  No test is made for smoke screen visibility.  This compromise
speeds
execution and saves memory.  With large number of ships most of the
program execution time is consumed in the visibility mode - to add smoke
screen visibility would have been a bit too much.  The result is that
players must be aware that when they are playing a human opponent their
smoke is visible, even if their ship is not.  If you lay a smoke screen
and intend to double back under its cover, then have the ship secure
making smoke.

Stack gasses are tested for the proximity of enemy ships.  However, they
are not checked for lines of visibility being blocked by smoke or
terrain.

Torpedoes are not checked for line of sight blockage by smoke, for the
same reasons.  Since the number of times a game situation would allow an
enemy spread to be 'sighted through a smoke screen' are few, this does
not  have a serious impact on the simulation.

Shore bombardment and PT boats 'hits' shown in the simulation are
actually   shells which land in the immediate area of the target.  The
program then    determines which of these actually hit and damaged the
target.  So, you   may score 100+ 'hits' on a 'shore battery' and still
find the battery   potting away at you.  Really what has been reported as
'hits' has been  shells falling in the 800'x800' vicinity of the target -
the gun mount,  director, and ammo handling facilities of the battery are
much smaller (and hardened) and you may not have scored on them at all.
The battery is  silence either by a lucky 'direct hit' on the gun mount
embrasure, or by  'cumulative damage' - disruption of the area, crew
losses, etc.  A  cumulative damage figure is maintained (the equivalent
of WTI for ships)  and when this goes below 0% the battery will be
silenced regardless if the  guns have yet been 'physically hit'.

It should be noted that shore batteries are more vulnerable to plunging
fire than to short range low angle fire.

The greatest caveat in the simulation has to do with close range gunnery.
The simulation is a 'time-step' simulation in that an entire time period
of 3 minutes is calculated at one time.  So, three minutes of gunnery is
'fired', the number of 'hits' calculated, and then 'scored' in the damage
process.  At longer ranges with only a few hits this works well.
However, at closer ranges with many hits per turn it accentuates the
lethality of ship's gunnery.  In reality, some of the gun mounts might
have been hit early in the 3-minute period, thus reducing the number of
hits.  The increased lethality in the game makes close range actions
(under 6,000 yards) more decisive than would have actually have been the
case.

One comment on the Computer Warrior - he does not cheat.  The information
provided to the Computer Warrior subprogram is the same as what is
provided to a human player - it does not get extra information on out-of-
visibility locations of ships, damage levels, future orders or anything
else.

The Computer Warrior does benefit in the sequence of execution: where the
player enters director orders before the move is executed, the Computer
Warrior enters his after execution of the movement immediately before the
gunnery process.  The Computer Warrior can thus take advantage of new
contacts and adjust for enemy countermoves.  This was considered
necessary for play balance.  Although the Computer Warrior does a fair
job of targeting, its criteria is to maximise the number of hits.  It
does not take into account the tactical situation.  For example, an enemy
destroyer might be further away than another target but is in better
position to launch torpedoes.  The Computer Warrior will ignore that risk
factor in favour of a closer target.

Beyond that, every effort has been made to ensure that ACTION STATIONS!
is a high-fidelity recreation of history.
ENJOY!

APPENDIX D: DATA FILES

1. GUNNERY DATA
RANGE: In thousands of yards
ROF: maximum rate of fire in rounds per minute
AP: armour piercing capability (see AP table)
AC: accuracy: E - excellent; G - good; A - average; F - fair; P - poor

GUN                 RANGE     ROF  AP   AC

USA
18" (EXPERIMENTAL)       40.0 1.8  1    G
16"/45 1935 M6           36.9 2.0  4    A
16"/50 1919 M1/5         35.0 2.0  5    A
14"/45 M8/9/10           34.3 1.8  6    G
14"/50 M4           36.3 2.0  6    G
12"/50 1910 M7           23.5 2.4  9    F
12"/50 1940 M8           38.6 3.5  8    E
8"/55 M12/15             31.7 4.5  12   G
8"/55 M9/14              31.7 4.0  12   G
6"/53 1919 M18           26.7 6.0     13     P
6"/47 1933 M16           26.0   10.0    13   F
5"/51 M15           22.6   10.0    15   G
5"/38 1938 M12           18.2   18.0    17   G
5"/25 M13           14.5   14.0    19   F
4"/50 M8,9               20.7   16.0    19   F
3"/50 M10           13.0   10.0    21   P

JAPAN
18.1"/45 1939 94th Yr         45.3 1.5  2    A
16"/45 1918              40.5 2.1  5    A
14"/45 1908              36.1 1.7  8    A
8"/50 1924               31.1 3.0  12   F
6.1"/60 1933             29.2 4.5  13   A
6"/50 1905               21.3 6.0  13   P
5.9"/40                  20.0 6.0  14   F
5"/50 1915               20.7 6.0  14   A
5"/50 1926               20.1   12.0    16   A
5"/40 1930               16.2   12.0    17   A
4.7"/45 1927             17.5   10.0    16   F
3.9"/65 1938             21.3   18.0    19   A

GERMANY
16"/47 1934              40.3 2.0  3    G
15"/47 1934              38.9 2.3  5    G
11"54.5 1928             46.6 3.5  10   A
8"/60 1934               39.4 5.0  11   G
5"/45 1934               20.1   12.0    16   A
5.9"/60 1925             28.1 8.0  13   F
4.1"/65 1933             19.3   18.0    19   A
3.5"/76 1932             28.1   10.0    20   F

BRITAIN
16"/45 M1           41.6 1.0  3    F
15"/42 M1           29.0 2.0  8    F
14"/45 M7           38.6 1.4  7    F
8"/50 M8            30.7 4.0    12 A
7.5"/45 M6               20.5 3.0    13 P
6"/50 M16,18             25.5 8.0    13 P
5.25"/50 1938 M1         24.1   10.0    15   F
4.7" M9                  17.0   12.0    17   A
4.5" M1/3/4              20.8   12.0    17   A
4"/45 M16 1937           19.0   15.0    19   F
4"/40 M19           17.0   15.0    19   F

ITALY
15"/50 1934              46.2 1.3  6    P
12.6"/43.8 1934               31.3 2.0  9    P
8"/53 1927               33.4 3.8    12 P
6"/55 1936               28.2 4.6    13 P
5.3"/45 1938             21.4 7.5    14 F
4.7"/50 1926             21.4 6.3    15 F
3.9"/47 1935             16.7 8.0    20 F
3.5"/50 1938             17.5   12.0    20   F

RUSSIA
16"/50                   41.6 1.0  5    F
12"/52 1912              27.0 1.7    10 F
7.1"/56 1934             38.8 5.0    12 A
5.1"/50 1936             27.0   10.0    16   A
4.7"/50                  15.7    8.0    17   F
3.9"/56 1934             25.9   12.0    20   A

FRANCE
15"/45 1935              46.2 1.3  6    P
13.4"/45 1912            27.3 2.0  8    F
13"/52 M33               32.8 2.5  8    A
12"/45 1906              27.0 1.7    10 F
8"/50 M24           33.4 3.8    12 P
6.1"/55 M21              23.3 5.0    13 F
6"/50 M30           23.2 6.0    14 A
5.5"/40 M23              20.5 5.5    14 P
5.5" 40 M27              14.0   12.0    14   F
5.5" 45                  21.0   12.0    14   F
5.1"/40                  21.9 5.0    19 A
3.5"/50                  17.5   12.0    20   F

2. TORPEDO DATA               (Speed/range)

                 LOW          MED  HIGH
US MK 15         27/15         33/10     45/6
Long Lance          36/43.7         40/35   48/21.9
German G7a T1               30/13.7      40/8.2    44/5.5
British mk IX           30/12.4     35/10.5   35/10.5
Japanese 8th Year       28/21.9     32/16.4   38/10.9
Italian 21"             26/13.1       30/10    42/3.3
French 1929 D             37/13        40/9      45/7
French 1923 D             29/20       30/18     35/14

APPENDIX E - DISK DIRECTORY
FLEET DISK - LANT contains ships of the German and British Navies, along
with 9 historical scenarios.  The BUILD SCENARIO program is also
contained on this disk.

FLEET DISK - PAC contains the ships of the American, Japanese and Dutch
navies, along with 13 historical scenarios.

FLEET DISK - MED contains ships of the Italian, Russian and French
navies, along with 8 historical scenarios.  The GENERATE SCENARIO program
is contained on this disk.

The ship classes provided give broad coverage of the major classes of
warships, and include many minor, one-of-a-kind, and hypothetical or
'design only' ships.  If you cannot find a particular ship class, check
for the nearest equivalent.  For example, there was little functional
difference between the Japanese heavy cruiser classes FURUTAKA and the
follow-up class AOBA, so the latter can accurately be represented by the
FURUTAKA class data.

British Destroyers were build in 'series', each series denoted by a
letter.  Several of these letter series were essentially the same ship
class, and so the equivalent lettered series are grouped into one class
in the game (example - code SZ will recall data for a ship which could be
any of the S, T, U, V, W, OR Z series of ships).  In other cases,
included classes are indicated by a name in parenthesis i.e. (also
Xxxxxxx).

There are several unit files that are repeated on each FLEET disk.  They
include the merchant vessel classes, convoy, anchored objective, and
shore battery units.  They are duplicated on each disk for use with the
GENERATE program.

The other miscellaneous units (shore batteries, PT boats, minesweepers,
trawlers, etc.) are contained on the PAC disk.

COMMENTS ON SCENARIOS
The following comments are offered to aid your selection of scenarios.
Only a limited amount of information is provided so as not to spoil the
'fog of war' inherent in the initial encounter.

In most cases, detailed historical information was used for the order of
battle, environmental conditions, and initial positions of the forces.
Sometimes in the initial positions of forces were adjusted for play
balance; in other cases, only limited information was available, and so
we made some estimates.

In several scenarios, ships are initially damaged or have reduced
capabilities due to their condition at the time of the battle.  Also,
some ships may indicate 'Damage Control Out', which reflects poorly
trained crews with little damage control skill.

One way to enjoy these games is to go into them cold, without looking at
each side's initial set-up or forces.  That way you have some of the 'fog
of war' present in the actual engagements.  Pick one side, assign the
computer to command the other, and enjoy!  We have included a
recommendation on:

- which side to have the computer play for the 'first time', to make it
  most challenging.

- the objectives of each side.

- the 'threat axis' i.e. the direction from which the enemy will most
  likely (approximately) appear.

PAC DISK
BLUE force is US/Allies            RED force is Japanese

HORANIU (night, DD v. DD and convoy, coastal) (HORANIU.SCN)
One of the lesser-known engagements in the Pacific, probably because of
it's indecisive nature.  The Japanese were escorting a convoy to Horaniu
- they had just repelled an air attack and were scattered when
intercepted by an American force.  The Japanese escorts were tired, the
American force chased but could not catch, and when they returned to the
area the Japanese Convoy had disappeared.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS:090 BLUE THREAT AXIS:270
     RED OBJECTIVE: CONVOY PROTECTION
     BLUE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION

JAVA SEA (-day-night, CA v. CA and convoy, coastal) (JAVA_SEA.SCN)
The first decisive surface action of the Pacific war.  A combined Dutch-
British-Australian-American force attempted to fight past a Japanese
escort force to attack an amphibious group.  The US cruiser Houston was
without her after turret due to previous damage.  The Dutch commander of
the combined Allied force made several key judgement errors which
severely limited the effectiveness of his force, and suffered a severe
defeat.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 000
     RED OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION

VELLA LAVELLA (night, DD v. DD and convoy, islands) (VLAVELLA.SCN)
Two widely-scattered US destroyer forces trying to intercept a Japanese
convoy.  A night action, but with very good visibility which negated any
advantage afforded by the early-model US radar installations.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 090     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 270
     RED OBJECTIVE: CONVOY PROTECTION
     BLUE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION

EMPRESS AUGUSTA BAY (night, CA v. CA, coastal) (EMPAUGST.SCN)
A Japanese task force is escorting a convoy when it receives information
of a US convoy.  The Japanese convoy turns back while the warships steam
at high speed to intercept.  The US convoy is only a phantom - however,
there is a US task force out to intercept them!  A mid-ocean collision
resulted in a donneybrook and a virtual draw.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 160     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 340
     RED OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

VELLA GULF (night, squalls, DD v. DD, islands) (VELLA_GF.SCN)
A small Japanese force of destroyers on a resupply mission is intercepted
by a US destroyer force.  Low visibility and rain squalls give the
advantage to the US radar, which allowed an early decisive unopposed
torpedo strike.
(NOTE: because of disk limitations this scenario is located on the MED
disk)
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT: 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: TRANSIT SOUTH
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

KULA GULF (night, CL v. DD, islands) (KULAGULF.SCN)
A Japanese destroyer force on a resupply mission is surprised by a
superior US task force.  The Japanese ships are chopped up badly, but the
Long Lance balanced the event by sinking one of the US cruisers.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED THREAT AXIS: 090     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 270
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ESCAPE NORTH
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

KOLUMBANGARA (night, squalls, CL v. CL, islands) (KOLUMBGR.SCN)
Two task forces in a head-on collision.  The US force had a few radar
equipped ships, but the Japanese had a radar warning device which served
them better.  One cruiser on the US side was limited in speed due to
engineering troubles.
The initial brush was scored for the US force, but Japanese DDs reloaded
torpedoes under cover of a rain squall and returned to score on two
cruisers and a destroyer.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 120     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 330
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

2nd GUADALCANAL (night, BB v. BB, islands) (2ND_GUAD)
The classic night battleship confrontation of the Guadalcanal campaign.
A mixed and scattered Japanese force1e wants to bombard Henderson Field -
a smaller US force interposed.
While the Japanese caught one US BB in searchlights and concentrated on
her, another US BB was able to move unobserved and decisively intervene
with radar directed gunfire which left a Japanese Battlecruiser burning
and out of control.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 150     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 330
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: BOMBARD LAND, ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: PROTECT HENDERSON

SUNDA STRAIT (night, CA v. CA + convoy, inshore) (SUNDA_ST.SCN
When trying to escape the Japanese juggernaut early in the war, the
cruisers Houston and Perth stumbled into a Japanese convoy and
overwhelming strong escort.  Houston still had her after turret out of
action from a previous engagement.
In one of the bravest actions of the war the Houston and Perth were
eventually trapped and sunk, but not until the Japanese suffered
significant losses.  Let the computer take the Japanese side and see if
you can match the valour of the Houston and Perth's impossible battle.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 020     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 200
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

1st. GUADALCANAL (night, BB v. CA, islands) (1ST_GUAD)
A strong Japanese force intent upon the bombardment of Henderson Field
was intercepted by a significantly weaker pick-up force of assorted
cruisers and destroyers.  Some of the US ships had radar, but this
advantage was negated by poor command arrangements and inexperienced
teams.  The Japanese for once did not spot the Americans until the range
was point-blank, and a fearfully lethal melee resulted where the quick-
firing gunnery of the American ships balanced out the deadlines of the
Long Lance.  Both sides suffered significant losses, but Henderson was
successfully protected.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 150     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 330
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: BOMBARD HENDERSON
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: DEFEND HENDERSON

SINGAPORE (dawn, BB v. BC + convoy, coastal) (SINGAPORE_SCN)
Another hypothetical 'what if' scenario.  Three days after Pearl Harbour
the British despatched the heavy ships of their Far Eastern Forces to
intercept a Japanese Amphibious force.
The British were attacked at sea by torpedo bombers, and lost the Prince
of Wales and the Repulse.
If the air strikes had not been successful, the Japanese Commander
intended to deploy cruisers and destroyers for a night sweep and torpedo
attack.  If they were unsuccessful, he had that force backed up by
battlecruisers.
In this scenario we assume that the British have evaded the night sweep.
They now have a decision - press on? retire?  Try to defeat the Japanese
forces piecemeal?  Where is everybody, anyway?  If you liked the Sunda
Strait scenario, you will be overjoyed by this suicidal search-and-attack
situation.
     COMPUTER: RED (Japanese)
     THREAT AXIS: UNDETERMINED
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTION: PLAYER'S CHOICE

SAVO ISLAND (night, CA v. CA + convoy, islands) (SAVO.SCN)
This stinging defeat of the American Navy is familiar to every student of
naval warfare: a Japanese cruiser force penetrates a defended anchorage
and inflicts disastrous losses on the surprised defenders.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 120     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 300
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: PROTECT THE ANCHORAGES

CAPE ESPERANCE (night, CA v. CA, islands) (CAPE_ESP.SCN)
A Japanese cruiser force on a bombardment mission is intercepted by a
defending cruiser force.  Radar and a better command structure allowed
the US force to surprise and cross the enemy's 'T'.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: BOMBARDMENT
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

KOMANDORSKI ISLANDS (dawn, CA v. CA, convoy, open sea) (KOMNDRSK.SCN)
In this classic daylight action of the Pacific war, a US task force bent
on intercepting a Japanese convoy finds them outnumbered by the convoy
escort!  A long-range action ensued until the Japanese force broke off
due to low ammunition and fear of air attack.  The Japanese commander was
faulted for not closing the decisive range - however, US gunnery was
better, and closing target would have presented the US force with a good
torpedo target.
(NOTE: at press time we were not yet sure we would have room for this
scenario - the 31st.  We list it here in the happy prospect that we will
have room for it.)
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: SURVIVAL

LANT DISK - SCENARIOS
RED force is British               BLUE force is German

RIVER PLATE (dawn, CA v. CA, open sea) (RVRPLATE.SCN)
Graf Spee v. Exeter, Ajax and Achilles.  The German commander used his
main battery poorly, splitting his fire and constantly shifting targets.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION

DENMARK STRAIT (dawn, BB v. BB, open sea) (DENMRKST.SCN)
Hood and Prince of Wales v. Bismark and Prinz Eugen.  Hood blew up early
in the engagement leaving the novice Prince of Wales (still with dockyard
workers and main battery faults) to fight alone.  The Germans won this
one, but a hit in Bismark's fuel bunkerage eventually lead to her demise.

Now, what if the Hood hadn't blown up....
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: DISENGAGEMENT WITHOUT DAMAGE

PENANG (night, CA v. DD, islands) (PENANG.SCN)
Late in the war the Nachi was discovered leaving the Indian Ocean and
heading for Singapore.  Some British destroyers were in position to
intercept, with cruiser reinforcements on the way.  Nachi's lookout and
bridge watch was inefficient, allowing the British destroyers to close
and execute a spectacularly successful 'star pattern' torpedo attack.
Here, Nachi has a problem - should she try to bull through the British
destroyers, or play cat-and-mouse and look for an opening, with the
possibility that the trailing British cruisers might catch up?
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 020     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 180
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ESCAPE SOUTH

NORWAY (day, heavy weather, low visibility, BC v. BC) (NORWAY.SCN)
In the Norway Campaign there was a brush between a British and a German
force.  Because of heavy weather, high seas, snow squalls, high winds,
and generally dreadful conditions the encounter was indecisive.  This
situation is almost like 'hide and go seek' - and any more information
would spoil the surprise.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     THREAT AXIS: UNDEFINED
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY LOSSES, MINIMIZE OWN DAMAGE

BEAR ISLAND (day, CL v. DD, open sea) (BEAR_IS.SCN)
During the Murmansk Convoy battles, the British cruiser Edinburgh took a
torpedo hit in the stern which crippled her.
She was directed under escort to Russia.  An additional escort of Russian
vessels was dispatched to meet them.  A German force intercepted the
Edinburgh, sank her with torpedoes and silenced the escorting British
destroyers for the loss of one of their own ships.  The remaining Germans
could have swept the sea clean, but the Russian ships arrived, and the
Germans withdrew.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: SURVIVAL
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

CONVOY WS-5A (day, heavy seas, low visibility, CA v. CA + convoy, open
sea) (CVY_WS5A.SCN
In the days of 'raider cruisers', the radar-equipped Hipper discovered a
heavily-escorted British troop convoy.  The usual rules of raider warfare
applied - the Hipper must hit without being hurt herself.  She tried to
use her radar to manoeuvre for a torpedo attack, but was discovered and
driven off.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED OBJECTIVE: CONVOY PROTECTION
     BLUE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION

BARENTS SEA (dawn, CA v. CL + convoy, open sea) (BARENTS.SCN)
Again on the Murmansk run, a heavily escorted British Convoy in the
process of regrouping after a storm was intercepted by a strong force of
German heavy vessels.  Low visibility and moderate seas inhibited both
side's efforts to find the other.  The Germans wasted several
opportunities to inflict decisive damage, in the main because they were
under orders not to risk their ships to any critical damage.  When one of
their cruisers took an engine room hit they recalled their forces.
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     RED THREAT AXIS: 270     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 090
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DEFENCE
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION, MINIMIZE OWN LOSSES

PQ-17 (day, hypothetical, BB v. BB + convoy, open sea) (PQ-17.SCN)
On the Murmansk run, convoy PQ-17 was a singular disaster.  Under the
threat of a sortie by a German battleship task force the British command
ordered the convoy to disperse - almost all the ships were destroyed
piecemeal by submarine and air attacks.
In this scenario we hypothesize that the convoy did not disperse, and
that the German surface forces did not turn back.  The close escort
cruisers must hold off the Germans until reinforcements arrive.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 180     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DEFENCE
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION, MINIMIZE LOSSES

NARVIK (day, DD v. DD + convoy, in a Fjord) (NARVIK.SCN)
After the German invasion of Norway a British destroyer force penetrated
a fjord to strike at the invading force.  It was a close-range battle
with little room for manoeuvre for either side.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED THREAT AXIS: 090     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 270
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

MED DISK

RED force is British          BLUE force is Italian

GENOA (hypothetical)(day, BB v. BB, coastal) (GENOA.SCN)
Early in the Mediterranean war the British conducted a successful
battleship bombardment of Genoa.  An Italian fleet sent to intercept lost
track due to inefficient aerial reconnaissance.  This scenario begins
with the British force approaching Genoa, and the Italian force at sea.
The British player must shell the port facilities (and even perhaps even
hit an Italian Battleship docked for repairs) and then retire; the
Italian player must use his port defences, and try to get the fleet into
position to intercept.
In this scenario, the situation is made more difficult for the British.
In the actual battle, fog hid the British ships from the shore batteries,
allowing them to bombard the harbour using their spotter aircraft to
direct fire.  In this scenario the British player will have to fight his
way through the shore batteries and harbour defences to get to his
objective - but he cannot take too long, or he will be trapped.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED THREAT AXIS: 000     BLUE THREAT AXIS (FLEET): 000
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: BOMBARDMENT, ESCAPE
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION

SPARTIVENTO (day, BB v. BB, open sea) (SPARTVTO.SCN)
The Italian Fleet went to sea to defend a convoy; the British Fleet was
at sea for the same reason.  They discovered each other, closed,
exchanged calling cards and then withdrew with no significant damage to
either side.  Reading the history books published by both sides is
amusing, because they both felt they were faced by a superior force!
     COMPUTER: EITHER
     THREAT AXIS: UNDEFINED
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY LOSSES, MINIMIZE OWN LOSSES

CAPE SPADA (day, low visibility, CL v. CL, open sea) (CP_SPADA.SCN)
An Italian cruiser force stumbles into a British destroyer force and
gives chase.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     THREAT AXIS: UNDEFINED
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION

FORCE K (night, CL v. CA + convoy, open sea) (FORCE_K.SCN)
This battle is a classic example of the effect modern technology on the
battlefield.  The British Force K operating out of Malta was tasked to
intercept a heavily-escorted Italian convoy destined to re-supply the
Afrika Korps.  By effective use of radar the British force was able to
sink all the merchantmen in the convoy without loss.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     THREAT AXIS: UNDEFINED
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DEFENCE

CAPE BON (night, CL v. DD, coastal) (CAPE_BON.SCN)
Late in the Mediterranean war the Italians became increasingly desperate
to get supplies through to North Africa, in some cases loading cruisers
with hazardous deck cargoes of fuel and ammunition for a high-speed run
through the British blockade.  In this engagement Italian cruisers were
intercepted by a radar-equipped British-Dutch destroyer force, to the
severe discomfort of the cruisers.
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ESCAPE SOUTHEAST

2nd SIRTE (day, heavy weather, BB v. CL + convoy) (2NDSIRTE.SCN)
The classic Mediterranean convoy action where a few British cruisers held
off a vastly superior Italian task force.  The Italian destroyers were
slowed by heavy weather and could not get into position, and the Italian
cruisers would not penetrate the British smoke screens for fear of a
torpedo attack.  No ships were lost in this engagement, but it was an
eventual victory for the Italians.  During the engagement the convoy was
forced to alter its course away from it's destination so that they could
not enter Malta under the cover of darkness; all the convoy ships were
discovered at sea the next day and sunk by aircraft.  For this battle to
be a victory for the British, he must not alter the convoy course any
further than 250 degrees(T).
     COMPUTER: BLUE
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY PROTECTION ON COURSE 250-300
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: CONVOY DESTRUCTION OR DIVERSION, MIN LOSSES

CALABRIA (day, BB v. BB, coastal) (CALABRIA.SCN)
One of the few full fleet actions of the war.  The Italian force was
superior to cruisers while the British force was superior in battleships.
In the actual engagement the Italians could not capitalize on their
cruiser superiority because of an early hit on one of their battleships
which caused them enough damage to decide them to withdraw.
     COMPUTER: RED
     RED THREAT AXIS: 210     BLUE THREAT AXIS: 030
     RED FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION
     BLUE FORCE OBJECTIVE: ENEMY FORCE DESTRUCTION

SHIP DATA FILES
The following data files gives vital information on the ship classes
available in ACTION STATIONS!

KEY

CLASS NAME: The full ship name is given.  In the program the name is
abbreviated to an 8-space limit.  The lower case letters indicate those
left out of the abbreviation.

SPEED: in knots

DIMENSIONS: length and beam, to the nearest foot

A/C: maximum number of aircraft that can be carried

Pts: ship points, a measure of the watertight integrity of the ship

ARMAMENT: for the main battery, the first number is the number of
turrets/mounts; then the number and size of guns.  For secondary and
tertiary battery guns, the number of guns and their size is indicated.

TORPS: number of torpedo tubes and number of reloads

AMMO: number of rounds in the Forward, Aft, and aMidships main battery
magazine, then secondary and tertiary rounds

ARMOUR: in tenths of an inch KC-face hardened class A equivalent,
adjusted for angle of presentation.  BB = barbette, CT = conning tower,
Int = Interior (splinter) armour, Tur = Turret face (glacis) - top, Mag =
Magazine belt and deck protection (total), Str = Steering belt and deck,
SB = secondary battery.  Note that destroyer gun shields with splinter
protection only are considered as '0' armour for shell penetration
purposes.

Information on zone percentages, torpedo protection, list and stability,
and other damage internals are maintained as propriatory data.
Information on magazine capacities is sometimes estimated.

FLEET DISK: PACIFIC

In addition to US and Japanese Fleet units, contain all auxiliary/shore
units.

SHIP CLASSES

AUXILIARIES, MERCHANTMEN, AND SHORE BATTERIES

MERSHIPS CLASS AUXILIARY           FILE: MS
('slow' cargo ship)
9 Knots, 450ft x 120ft, 0 A/C, 4 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-3in //
// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 150 M 0

MERSHIPM CLASS AUXILIARY           FILE: MB
('medium')
12 Knots, 450ft x 120ft, 0 A/C, 4 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT: //// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 0 M 0

MERSHIPF CLASS AUXILIARY           FILE: MF
('fast')
18 Knots, 450ft x 120ft, 0 A/C, 4 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-3in //
// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 150 M 0

TANKER CLASS AUXILIARY                  FILE: TT
12 Knots, 450ft x 120ft, 0 A/C, 4 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-4in //
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1 A 150 M 1

PT-BOAT                            FILE: PT
40 Knots, 8ft x 1ft, 0 A/C, .3Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2 - .8in // 2-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1000 A 0 M 0

TRAWLER                            FILE: TW
17 Knots, 150ft x 27ft, 0 A/C, 1.14 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2-3in/SEC: 2-8in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 0 M 200//SB 400

LAND TARGet                        FILE: LT
(an area land target with minor defences, for shore bombardment
objective)
0 Knots, 0ft x 0ft, 4 A/C, 100 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-3in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 0 M 0

ANCHored OBJective                 FILE: AO
(a group of ships - 2 knots to prevent unrealistically long torp hits)
2 Knots, 540ft x 54ft, 0 A/C, 100 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT://
// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 0 M 0

Shore BATtery - 5IN                FILE: S5
0 Knots, 0ft x 0ft, 0 A/C, 50 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1000 A 0 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0, Int=0
Tur 40-0, Mag=180-180, Str=0-0, SB=0

Shore BATtery - 8IN                FILE: S8
0 Knots, 0ft x 0ft, 0 A/C, 75 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-8in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1000 A 0 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0, Int=0
Tur 40-0, Mag=180-180, Str=0-0, SB=0

Shore BATtery - 14In                    FILE: SX
0 Knots, 0ft x 0ft, 0 A/C, 200 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-14in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1000 A 0 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0, Int=0
Tur 140-0, Mag=180-180, Str=0-0, SB=0

Shore BATtery - 14IN                    FILE: SQ
0 Knots, 0ft x 0ft, 0 A/C, 100 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-14in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 2000 A 0 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0, Int=0
Tur 140-0, Mag=180-180, Str=0-0, SB=0

CONVOY                             FILE: CY
(represents an entire convoy)
11 Knots, 1200ft x 120ft, 0 A/C, 100 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-3in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 0

MINESWEeper                        FILE: MW
17 Knots, 230ft x 33ft, 0 A/C, 1.74 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2-4in/SEC: 2-.8in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 0 M 200 //SB 300

UNITED STATES: BATTLESHIPS

NEVADA CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: NE
(Featuring a combination of triple and double main battery turrets)
20 Knots, 575ft x 108ft, 0 A/C, 49.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-14in/SEC: 16-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=135, Deck=45, BB=135, CT=160, Int=15
Tur 180-50, Mag=135-50, Str=100-35, SB=5

NEVADA 41 CLASS BATTLESHIP              FILE: N1
(Post-Pearl Harbour modifications)
20 Knots, 575ft x 108ft, 3 A/C, 49.5 pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-14in,/SEC: 12-5in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0//SB 2400//TB 2000
ARMOUR (x10) Belt=135, Deck 40, BB=135, CT=160, Int=6
Tur 160-50, Mag=135-40, Str=100-40, SB=8

NEW YORK CLASS BATTLESHIP                    FILE: NY
(Early 14" gun design with turret amidships)
21 Knots, 565ft x 106ft, 3 A/C, 46.95 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-14in/SEC: 16-5in/TER: 8-3in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 200//SB 4000//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=120, Deck=60, BB=120, Ct=160, Int=15
Tur 120-40, Mag=120-60, Str=60-30, SB=90

MODified PENNSylvania CLASS BATTLESHIP       FILE: PE
(Powerful main battery, good protection)
21 Knots, 600ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 52 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-14in/SEC: 12-5in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0//SB 3000//TB 3600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=80, BB=140, CT=160 Int=16
Tur 180-50, Mag=140-80, Str=140-80, SB=5

PENNSYLVania CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: PM
(Post-Pearl Harbour modifications)
21 Knots, 600ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 53.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-14in/SEC: 16-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 660 A 660 M 0 //SB: 6600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=50, BB=140, CT=160 Int=16
Tur 180-50, Mag=140-50, Str=140-50, SB=25

New MEXICO CLASS BATTLESHIP             FILE: NM
(Similar to Pennysylvanias, underwater protection difference)
21 Knots, 600ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 52 pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-14in/SEC: 12-5in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 3000//TB3600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=80, BB=140, CT=160 Int=16
Tur 180-50, Mag=140-80, Str=140-80, SB=5

COLORado MODified CLASS BATTLESHIP      FILE: CO
(Pennysylvanias with 16" main battery)
21 Knots, 600ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 52 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC: 12-5in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0//SB 3000//TB 3600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=80, BB=140, CT=160, Int=16
Tur 180-50, Mag=140-80, Str=140-80, SB=5

COLORADO CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: CM
(Post-Pearl Harbour modifications)
21 Knots, 600ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 53.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC:16-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 660 A 660 M 0//SB 6600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=50, BB=140, CT=160 Int=16
Tur 180-50, Mag=140-50, Str=140-50, SB=25

SD-1917 CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: SA
(The 1917 South Dakota class, cancelled Washington Naval Treaty)
23 Knots, 660ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 63 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-16in/SEC: 16-6in/TER: 4-3in//2-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0//SB 4000//TB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=136, Deck=39, BB=135, CT=160 Int=22
Tur 180-50, Mag=160-70, Str=80-60, SB=10

LEXINGTon CLASS BATTLESHIP              FILE: LX
(Battlecruisers, cancelled by Washington Naval Treaty)
32 Knots, 850ft x 105ft, 0 A/C, 62.25 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC: 16-6in/TER: 6-3in//4-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0//SB 3600//TB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=87, Deck=43, BB=140, CT=160 Int=15
Tur 140-50, Mag=88-50, Str=87-50, SB=0

North CAROLINa CLASS BATTLESHIP              FILE: NC
(Powerful successful warship class)
28 Knots, 714ft x 108ft, 4 A/C, 58.85 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-16in/SEC: 20-5 in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1113 A 557 M 0//SB 8800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=147, Deck=77, BB=160, CT=160 Int=6
Tur 160-70, Mag=160-77, Str=118-70, SB=20

South DAKOTA CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: SD
(This class featurs inset belt armour - a poor feature)
28 knots, 666ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 58.85 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-16in/SEC: 20-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1113 A 557 M 0//SB 8800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=29, Deck=72, BB=174, CT=160 Int=145
Tur 180-73, Mag=160-77, Str=118-60, SB=20

IOWA CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: IO
(Successful, powerful, robust battleship class)
33 Knots, 861ft x 108ft, 4 A/C, 67.55 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-16in/SEC: 20-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1113 A 557 M 0//SB 8800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=173, Deck=138, BB=174, CT=175 Int=25
Tur 200-73, Mag=173-138, Str=135-62, SB=20

MONTANA CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: MN
(Iowa, lengthened to add a 16" turret, cancelled before war's end)
28 Knots, 890ft x 121ft, 4 A/C, 70.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-16in/SEC: 20-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1113 A 1113 M 0 //SB 8800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=221, Deck=70, BB=210, CT=180 Int=70
Tur 180-78, Mag=290-80, Str=180-70, SB=20

ARKANSAS CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: AK
24 Knots, 555ft x 108ft, 3 A/C, 46.5 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 6/12-12in/SEC: 16-5in/TER: 8-3in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 4000 //TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=100, Deck=47, BB=110, CT=120 Int=10
Tur 120-40, Mag=110-48, Str=50-30, SB=65

IV-2 CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: IV
(Design study for the 'maximum battleship', limited by Panama Canal)
25 Knots, 975ft x 108ft, 2 A/C, 77 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/15-18in/SEC: 20-6in/TER: 6-3in//8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 600 M 0 //SB 4000//TB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=160, Deck=75, BB=150, CT=160 Int=25
Tur 210-70, Mag=185-75, Str=160-50, SB=10

UNITED STATES CRUISERS

OMAHA CLASS CRUISER                FILE: OM
(Obsolescent fire control, but a US cruiser with torpedoes)
33 Knots, 550ft x 55ft, 2 A/C, 17.72 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 6/10-6in/SEC: 8-3in//6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1800 A 1200 M 0//SB 16000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=15, BB=5, CT=13 Int=5
Tur 5-5, Mag=30-15, Str=30-15, SB=0

PENSACOLa CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: PA
('Tin-clad' cruiser built under treaty limitations)
32 Knots, 570ft x 65ft, 4 A/C, 21.36 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-8in/SEC: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 750 A 750 M 0 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=8, CT=13 Int=0
Tur 25-15, Mag=40-18, Str=30-10, SB=0

NORTHAMPton CLASS CRUISER               FILE: NN
32 Knots, 582ft x 66ft, 4 A/C, 21.36 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-8in/SEC: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 933 A 468 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=38, Deck=10, BB=15, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 25-15, Mag=38-20, Str=30-10, SB=0

PORTLAND CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: PO
32 Knots, 582ft x 66ft, 4 A/C, 21.36 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-8in/SEC: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 933 A 468 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=58, Deck=25, BB=15, CT=13 Int=0
Tur 25-15, Mag=58-30, Str=23-25, SB=0

NEW ORLEAns CLASS CRUISER               FILE: NW
32 Knots, 578ft x 62ft, 4 A/C, 23.65 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-8in/SEC: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 933 A 468 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=58, Deck=30, BB=50, CT=80 Int-0
Tur 50-28, Mag=58-30, Str=50-30, SB=0

BROOKLYN CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: BR
(Large and effective rapid fire gun battery - a destroyer killer)
32 Knots, 800ft x 62ft, 4 A/C, 22.89 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/15-6in/SEC: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 2700 A 1800 M 0 //SB 1600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=56, Deck=20, BB=60, CT=80 Int=0
Tur 65-28, Mag=56-20, Str=56-20, SB=0

ATLANTA CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: AA
(Anti-aircraft cruiser, deadly in close range v. destroyers)
33 Knots, 520ft x 53ft, 0 A/C, 17.77 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 8/16-5in/SEC: 8-8in//8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 2625 A 2625 M 1750 //SB 4000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=38, Deck=13, BB=13, CT=25 Int=0
Tur 13-13, Mag=38-18, Str=38-13, SB=10

CLEVELANd CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: CL
(Brooklyn, substituting extra armour for one turret - top heavy)
32 Knots, 600ft x 64ft, 4 A/C, 21.84 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-6in/SEC: 12-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 1800 A 1800 M 0 //SB 6000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=53, Deck=20, BB=60, CT=50 Int=6
Tur 60-30, Mag=59-20, Str=47-20, SB=8

ALASKA CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: AL
(The larger guns do not make up for the lower volume of fire)
33 Knots, 791ft x 91ft, 4 A/C, 50.43 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-12in/SEC: 12-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 660 A 330 M 0 //SB 6000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=80, Deck=50, BB=130, CT=108 Int=10
Tur 128-50, Mag=80-50, Str=110-40, SB=0

UNITED STATES - DESTROYERS

FLETCHER CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: FL
(The classic - powerful, durable, well-balanced)
35 Knots, 369ft x 40ft, 0 A/C, 5.4 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 24-.8in//10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 850 A 1275 M 0 //SB10000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=8, Deck=5, BB=0, CT=5 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=8-5, Str=8-5, SB=0

PORTER CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: PR
(Tended to be top-heavy)
37 Knots, 372ft x 37ft, 0 A/C, 4.16 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5in/SEC: 10-.8in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=5 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=8-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GRIDLEY CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: GR
38 Knots, 334ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.7 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 16-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FOUR PIPEer CLASS DESTROYER             FILE: FP
(Officially 'Wickee/Clemson' class, WWI vintage)
35 Knots, 310ft x 31ft, 0 A/C, 2.32 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4in/SEC: 1-3in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 400 //SB 200
ARMOUR (x10) Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, Ct=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=8-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FARRAGUT CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: FT
36 Knots, 330ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 4.46 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 2-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MAHAN CLASS DESTROYER                   FILE: MH
36 Knots, 334ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 4.69 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 3-.8in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SOMERS CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: SO
(Porter class, without the large alternate gun director)
35 Knots, 371ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 5.74 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5in/SEC: 10-.8in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=5 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=8-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SAMPSON CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: SM
37 Knots, 371ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 5.74 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5in/SEC: 10-.8in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=5 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=8-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SIMS CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: SS
37 Knots, 341ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.97 pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 3-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 1500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

BENSON CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: BE
36 Knots, 341ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.97 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 8-.8in// 10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 4000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

BRISTOL CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: BL
36 knots, 341ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 5.02 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5in/SEC: 6-.8in// 5-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

BENHAM CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: BM
38 Knots, 334ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.7 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Turr 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

NETHERLANDS

DERUYTER CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: DR
32 Knots, 551ft x 51ft, 2 A/C, 15.08 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/7-5.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 750 A 1000 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=13, BB=20, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 40-20, Mag=30-13, Str=20-0, SB=8

JAVA CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: JV
(8 mount limit forced a consolidation into 'twins' turrets)
30 Knots, 509ft x 53ft, 2 A/C, 14 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 8/10-5.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 300 A 300 M 900
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=20, CT=50 Int=0
Tur 40-40, Mag=20-10, Str=0-0, SB=0

VANGHENT CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: VG
32 Knots, 307ft x 32ft, 0 A/C, 3.28 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-4.7in/SEC: 2-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY - BATTLESHIPS

KONGO CLASS BATTLESHIP                  FILE: KN
(Actually a battlecruiser, British design)
30 Knots, 720ft x 101ft, 3 A/C, 47.25 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-14in/SEC: 14-6in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=80, Deck=48, BB=100, CT=80 Int=0
Tur 110-48, Mag=80-48, Str=30-30, SB=60

FUSO CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: FO
24 Knots, 689ft x 109ft, 3 A/C, 50.2 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 6/12-14in/SEC: 14-6in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 2800//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10) Belt=120, Deck=47, BB=120, CT=120 Int=0
Tur 120-48, Mag=120-48, Str=30-30, SB=60

TOSA CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: KA
(Under construction when cancelled by Washington Naval Treaty)
26 Knots, 760ft x 100ft, 2 A/C, 58.4 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-16in/SEC: 20-5.5in/TER: 8-5in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 600 M 0 //SB 6000//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=127, Deck=55, BB=110, CT=140 Int=30
Tur 110-70, Mag=129-60, Str=90-55, SB=10

AMAGI CLASS BATTLESHIP                  FILE: AM
(Another design study warship)
30 Knots, 820ft x 101ft, 2 A/C, 60.75 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-16in/SEC: 16-5.5in/TER: 4-5in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 600 M 0 //SB 6000//TB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=100, Deck=40, BB=110, CT=140 Int=30
Tur 110-70, Mag=115-40, Str=90-40, SB=10

-13- CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: 13
(design, predecessor of Yamato)
30 Knots, 900ft x 101ft, 2 A/C, 61 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-18.1in/SEC: 16-5.5in/TER: 4-4.7in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 360 A 360 M 0 //SB 3200//TB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=149, Deck=50, BB=110, CT=140 Int=30
Tur 110-70, Mag=150-50, Str=110-50, SB=10

YAMATO CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: YA
(Hard to hurt.  Slow guns, but when hit the target knows it)
27 Knots, 840ft x 128ft, 6 A/C, 74 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-18.1in/SEC: 6-6.1in/TER: 24-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 1800//TB 7200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=207, Deck=79, BB=220, CT=112 Int=0
Tur 260-106, Mag=194-79, Str=142-79, SB=10

NAGATO CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: NO
25 Knots, 725ft x 114ft, 3 A/C, 57.39 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC: 18-5.5in/TER: 8-5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 5400//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=118, Deck=71, BB=167, CT=146 Int=30
Tur 140-70, Mag=118-70, Str=70-30, SB=10

IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY - CRUISERS

NAKA CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: NA
(sturdy and servicable with a good war record)
35 Knots, 520ft x 47ft, 1 A/C, 10.39 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 7/7-5.5in/SEC: 2-5in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 600 M 0 //SB 400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=20-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

YUBARI CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: YU
(small, almost a large destroyer)
32 Knots, 450ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 7.56 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/6-5.5in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 5-0, Mag=20-5, Str=0-0, SB=0

FURUTAKA CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: FA
(main battery not safely armoured, but hull durable in a fight)
33 Knots, 595ft x 57ft, 2 A/C, 20.23 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-8in/SEC: 4-4.7in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=15, BB=10, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=30, Str=0-0, SB=0

NACHI CLASS CRUISER                FILE: NI
(With the Long Lance battery, excellent but poor turret armour)
33 Knots, 661ft x 68ft, 2 A/C, 24.07 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-8in/SEC: 8-5in// 16-16 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 900 A 600 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=45, Deck=25, BB=15, CT=15 Int=0
Tur 15-10, Mag=45-50, Str=25-25, SB=7

MOGAMIS CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: MS
(Mogami with the original main battery guns - good, but top-heavy)
36 Knots, 661ft x 68ft, 3 A/C, 22.4 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/15-6.1in/SEC: 8-5in// 12-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 2000 A 1500 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=45, Deck=15, BB=10, CT=15 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=50-50, Str=20-15, SB=7

MOGAMIS CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: MS
(8" gun conversion.  Less top-heavy, but gun gives lower hit rate)
34 Knots, 661ft x 68ft, 3 A/C, 24.4 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-8in/SEC: 8-5in// 12-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 900 A 600 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=45, Deck=15, BB=10, CT=15 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=50-50, Str=20-15, SB=7

TONE CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: TO
(a successful recce cruiser with fantail devoted to float planes)
35 Knots, 650ft x 60ft, 5 A/C, 26.85 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-5in// 12-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 6400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=40, Deck=20, BB=30, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 30-10, Mag=57-22, Str=25-20, SB=7

AGANO CLASS CRUISER                FILE: AG
(economy design: good companion for DD in torpedo attacks)
35 Knots, 564ft x 50ft, 2 A/C, 16.8 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5.9in/SEC: 4-4.7in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 400 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=23, Deck=8, BB=10, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=23-20, Str=0-0, SB=0

KITAKAMI CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: KT
(40 torp tubes - approximated by 4 mounts of 5 tubes, 20 reloads)
36 Knots, 520ft x 47ft, 0 A/C, 11.14 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-5in// 20-20 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=20 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=20-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

TENRYU CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: TE
(obsolescent)
32 Knots, 458ft x 41ft, 0 A/C, 8.7 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.5in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 400 M 200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=20-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY - DESTROYERS

KAMIKAZI CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: KZ
(vintage WWI)
31 Knots, 329ft x 30ft, 0 A/C, 3.44 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/3-4.7in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 100 M 100
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MUTSUKI CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: MU
33 Knots, 329ft x 30ft, 0 A/C, 3.54 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2-4.7in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 100 M 100
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, MAg=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MUTSUKIT CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: MT
(Mutsuki modified as a high speed transport)
33 Knots, 329ft x 30ft, 0 A/C, 3.54 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2-4.7in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 100 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FUBUKI CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: FI
34 Knots, 378ft x 34ft, 0 A/C, 4.18 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5in/SEC: 2-.8in// 9-6 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 1200 M 0 //SB 200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, Ct=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

HATSUHARu CLASS DESTROYER               FILE: HA
34 Knots, 353ft x 33ft, 0 A/C, 3.37 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/5-5in/SEC: 2-.8in// 6-6 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 1000 M 0 //SB 200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SHIRATSu CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: SH
34 Knots, 353ft x 33ft, 0 A/C, 3.37 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/5-5in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 1000 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

KAGERO CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: KR
35 Knots, 381ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.07 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 1200 M 0 //SB 500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

YUGAMO CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: YO
35 Knots, 384ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.15 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SHIMAKAZe CLASS DESTROYER               FILE: SK
(experimental, with advanced main propulsion machinery)
40 Knots, 410ft x 37ft, 0 A/C, 5.8 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-5in/SEC: 2-.8in// 15-5 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

AKITSUKI CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: AT
(surprisingly effective 3.9" rapid fire main battery)
33 Knots, 433ft x 38ft, 0 A/C, 5.4 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-3.9in/SEC: 4-.8in// 4-4 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1600 A 1600 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

CHITOSE CLASS AUXILIARY                 FILE: CH
29 Knots, 604ft x 62ft, 12 A/C, 13 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-5in//
//AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1 M 1
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=1

GERMAN - BATTLESHIPS

BISMARCK CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: BI
(excellent - highly accurate but complex and fragile fire control)
29 Knots, 794ft x 118ft, 6 A/C, 63.75 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-15in/SEC: 12-5.9in/TER: 16-4.1in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 2000//TB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=126, Deck=52, BB=135, CT=140 Int=35
Tur 136-50, Mag=126-67, Str=126-45, SB=39

TIRPITZ CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: TZ
(Bismarck + torpedo tubes)
29 Knots, 794ft x 118ft, 6 A/C, 63.75 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC: 12-5.9in/TER: 16-4.1in// 8-8 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 2800//TB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=126, Deck=52, BB=135, CT=140 Int=35
Tur 136-50, Mag=126-67, Str=126-45, SB=39

QPQ-BC CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: OP
(Battlecruiser designed for long range merchant raiding)
33 Knots, 825ft x 99ft, 4 A/C, 53.5 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-16in/SEC: 6-5.9in/TER: 8-4.1in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 200 M 0 //SB 1200//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=71, Deck=52, BB=72, CT=79 Int=18
Tur 82-20, Mag=90-40, Str=40-15, SB=20

H-CLASS CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: HG
(solid design, obsolete underwater torp tubes, cancelled by war)
29 Knots, 870ft x 124ft, 4 A/C, 63.75 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-16in/SEC: 12-5.9in/TER: 16-4.1in// 6-6 torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 2800//TB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=128, Deck=60, BB=145, CT=155 Int=45
Tur 155-50, Mag=126-67, Str=126-45, SB=39

H-44 CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: H4
(huge, supposedly 20" guns.  18" in game - 20" never built, no data)
29 Knots, 1121ft x 167ft, 4 A/C, 94 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-18in/SEC: 12-5.9in/TER: 16-4.1in// 6-6 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 2800//TB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=150, Deck=60, BB=150, CT=155 Int=45
Tur 155-60, Mag=150-67, Str=150-60, SB=39

SCHARNHOrst CLASS BATTLESHIP            FILE: SC
(The 11" guns will serve well in low visibility, short range fight)
32 Knots, 742ft x 100ft, 4 A/C, 54.4 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-11in/SEC: 12-5.9in/TER: 14-4.1in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 630 A 315 M 0 //SB 1800//TB 5600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=138, Deck=39, BB=138, CT=138 Int=30
Tur 142-49, Mag=138-39, Str=50-30, SB=0

GERMAN - CRUISERS

HIPPER CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: HI
32 Knots, 640ft x 70ft, 3 A/C, 31.25 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 12-4.1in// 12-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 560 A 560 M 0 //SB 5040
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=35, Deck=13, BB=32, CT=24 Int=12
Tur 63-28, Mag=48-20, Str=28-12, SB=5

LEIPZIG CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: LE
33 Knots, 570ft x 50ft, 2 A/C, 16.2 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-5.9in/SEC: 6-3.5in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 360 A 720 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=8, BB=12, CT=39 Int=10
Tur 12-12, Mag=20-16, Str=20-8, SB=5

KOLN CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: KO
33 Knots, 570ft x 50ft, 2 A/C, 16.2 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN 3/9-5.9in/SEC: 6-3.5in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 360 A 720 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=8, BB=12, CT=39 Int=6
Tur 12-12, Mag=20-16, Str=20-8, SB=5

EMDEN CLASS CRUISER                FILE: EM
29 Knots, 509ft x 47ft, 0 A/C, 14 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 8/8-5.9in/SEC: 3-3.5in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=8, BB=8, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 5-0, Mag=20-8, Str=0-0, SB=0

M CRUISER CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: MG
(laid down, never completed)
35 Knots, 584ft x 56ft, 2 A/C, 19.6 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5.9in/SEC: 4-4.1in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=10, BB=25, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 33-8, Mag=20-10, Str=0-0, SB=5

SCOUT-CR CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: SP
(large destroyer classed as a 'Scout' cruiser)
36 Knots, 476ft x 48ft, 0 A/C, 11.8 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5.9in/SEC: 2-3.5in// 10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 800 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=8, BB=5, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=8-8, Str=0-0, SB=5

GRAFSPEE CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: GS
(Pocket Battleship)
26 Knots, 617ft x 71ft, 2 A/C, 28 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/6-11in/SEC: 8-5.9in/TER: 6-4.1in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 300 A 300 M 0 //SB 1600//TB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=35, Deck=18, BB=39, CT=59 Int=17
Tur 55-41,Mag=54-18, Str=32-18, SB=4

GERMAN - DESTROYERS

MAAS-Z1 CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: MA
37 Knots, 374ft x 37ft, 0 A/C, 6.31 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 8-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 240 A 240 M 120 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

Z-23 CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: Z2
38 Knots, 400ft x 37ft, 0 A/C, 7.21 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.9in/SEC: 14-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 240 A 240 M 120 //SB 4000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

G 1936A CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: Z6
38 Knots, 400ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 7.21 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/5-5.9in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 240 A 360 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

G 1936B CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: ZB
38 Knots, 400ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 7.21 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5in/SEC: 14-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 900 M 0 //SB 4000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MOWE CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: MO
33 Knots, 281ft x 28ft, 0 A/C, 1.89 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/3-4.1in/SEC: 1-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 200 M 0 //SB 200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

T-1 CLASS TORPEDO BOAT                  FILE: T1
35 Knots, 270ft x 28ft, 0 A/C, 1.69 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-4.1in/SEC: 4-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 100 M 0 //SB 900
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0. CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

ITALIAN - BATTLESHIPS

VENETO CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: VV
(high-velocity long range gun, but inaccurate)
30 Knots, 720ft x 102ft, 3 A/C, 59.75, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-15in/SEC: 12-6in/TER: 12-3.5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 2880//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=157, Deck=58, BB=138, CT=94 Int=16
Tur 100-39, Mag=93-50, Str=40-40, SB=50

CAVOUR CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: CR
(outclassed by all likely BB opponents, too slow to catch cruisers)
27 Knots, 524ft x 87ft, 1 A/C, 44.25 pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-12.6in/SEC: 12-4.7in/TER: 8-3.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 2880//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=93, Deck=50, BB=91, CT=102 Int=16
Tur 100-33, Mag=93-50, Str=51-11, SB=5

DUILIO CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: DO
27 Knots, 524ft x 87ft, 1 A/C, 44.25 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-12.6in/SEC: 12-5.3in/TER: 10-3.5in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 2880//TB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=93, Deck=50, BB=91, CT=102 Int=16
Tur 100-33, Mag=93-50, Str=51-11, SB=50

ITALIAN - CRUISERS

TRENTO CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: TX
(Treaty cruiser with inaccurate main battery mount)
31 Knots, 611ft x 64ft, 3 A/C, 24-75 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 16-3.9in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=20, BB=40, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 40-20, Mag=40-20, Str=20-10, SB=4

ZARA CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: ZA
(good design, but inaccurate main battery)
29 Knots, 570ft x 65ft, 2 A/C, 21.36 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 16-3.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=60, Deck=30, BB=6, CT=60 Int=0
Tur 60-15, Mag=60-30, Str=30-10, SB=4

CADORNA CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: CA
(fragile, fast)
36 Knots, 527ft x 48ft, 2 A/C, 15.06 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 2800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=17, Deck=8, BB=8, CT=20 Int=0
Tur 8-8, Mag=18-8, Str=0-0, SB=4

MONTECUCcoil CLASS CRUISER              FILE: MX
(Cadorna with less speed, better protection)
34 Knots, 558ft x 51ft, 2 A/C, 16-74 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 2800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=33, Deck=12, BB=28, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 28-13, Mag=28-13, Str=0-0, SB=4

duca d'AOSTA CLASS CRUISER              FILE: FX
(better armour, but could not stand up to a 8" gun cruiser)
34 Knots, 558ft x 54ft, 2 A/C, 19.5 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 2800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=40, Deck=14, BB=40, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 40-14, Mag=40-14, Str=0-0, SB=4

GARABALDI CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: GA
(best balanced of the Italian cruisers)
31 Knots, 575ft x 59ft, 2 A/C, 18.14 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/10-6in/SEC: 8-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1000 A 1000 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=43, Deck=25, BB=43, CT=55 Int=0
Tur 55-20, Mag=43-22, Str=0-0, SB=0

REGOLO CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: RG
(fast enough to run down destroyers and run from cruisers)
40 Knots, 434ft x 45ft, 0 A/C, 10.82 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5.3in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

BANDe NERE CLASS CRUISER           FILE: BN
(scout cruiser, could not make speed at battle loads)
30 Knots, 524ft x 48ft, 2 A/C, 14 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6in/SEC: 7-3.9in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 2800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=10, Deck=9, BB=10, CT=15 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=10-10, Str=0-0, SB=4

ITALIAN - DESTROYERS

TURBINE CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: TU
36 Knots, 300ft x 30ft, 0 A/C, 2.2 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4.7in/SEC: 2-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

NAVIGATOri CLASS DESTROYER              FILE: NV
32 Knots, 351ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 4.02 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-4.7in/SEC: 6-.8in// 6-0 Torps
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 1500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FOLGORE CLASS DESTROYER                         FILE: FE
38 Knots, 351ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 4.02 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4.7in/SEC: 8-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 1500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MAESTRALe CLASS DESTROYER               FILE: ML
32 Knots, 334ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 3.28 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4.7in/SEC: 6-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

ORIANI CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: OR
38 Knots, 341ft x 34ft, 0 A/C, 3.9 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4.7in/SEC: 8-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //TB 2500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

SOLDATI CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: SL
34 Knots, 334ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 3.66 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4.7in/SEC: 8-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GREAT BRITAIN - BATTLESHIPS

KING-GV CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: KG
(too many compromises, defective in main battery turrets)
28 Knots, 714ft x 108ft, 4 A/C, 56.75 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/10-14in/SEC: 16-5.2in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 6400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=140, Deck=50, BB=160, CT=30 Int=20
Tur 160-59, Mag=150-60, Str=45-20, SB=20

NELSON CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: NL
(awkward and vulnerable design, low ROF sec/ter battery)
23 Knots, 700ft x 106ft, 4 A/C, 45.02 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-16in/SEC: 12-6in/TER: 6-4.7in// 2-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 285 A 285 M 285 //SB 1620//TB 1050
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=159, Deck=38, BB=150, CT=140 Int=0
Tur 160-73, Mag=171-63, Str=50-60, SB=20

Queen ELIZaBeTH CLASS BATTLESHIP        FILE: QE
(WWI era, greatly modified, effective for its age)
24 Knots, 640ft x 90ft, 3 A/C, 52 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-15in/SEC: 20-4.7in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 424 A 424 M 0 //SB 8000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=130, Deck=25, BB=100, CT=110 Int=10
Tur 130-51, Mag=130-50, Str=40-15, SB=10

REPULSE CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: RE
(low stability, poor underwater protection)
28 Knots, 794ft x 90ft, 4 A/C, 40.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-15in/SEC: 17-4in// 8-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 504 A 252 M 0 //SB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=99, Deck=55, BB=125, CT=110 Int=20
Tur 110-41, Mag=99-40, Str=40-15, SB=60

RSOVERGN CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: RV
(WWI era, without needed modification)
21 Knots, 600ft x 88ft, 3 A/C, 45.5 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-15in/SEC: 12-6in/TER: 8-4in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 320 A 320 M 0 //SB 1560//TB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=130, Deck=30, BB=100, CT=110 Int=10
Tur 130-51, Mag=130-40, Str=40-15, SB=60

HOOD CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: HO
(WWI era, lost before needed modifications were accomplished)
30 Knots, 600ft x 104ft, 0 A/C, 61.75 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-15in/SEC: 6-5.5in/TER: 14-4in// 4-12 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 480 A 480 M 0 //SB 1200//TB 3500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=120, Deck=45, BB=120, CT=110 Int=15
Tur 150-50, Mag=90-55, Str=50-20, SB=50

TERROR CLASS MONITOR                    FILE: TR
(Better suited to shore bombardment than ship-to-ship action)
12 Knots, 400ft x 88ft, 0 A/C, 9.7 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/2-15in/SEC: 4-4in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 0 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=40, Deck=20, BB=80, CT=60 Int=10
Tur 130-43, Mag=40-40, Str=20-20, SB=0

GREAT BRITAIN - CRUISERS

D-CL CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: DC
(Obsolescent WWI era)
29 Knots, 465ft x 47ft, 0 A/C, 9.7 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 6/6-6in/SEC: 3-4in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 200 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=30-10, Str=15-10, SB=0

BIRmiNGHAM CLASS CRUISER           FILE: BH
(Obsolescent WWI era)
29 Knots, 565ft x 65ft, 0 A/C, 18.6 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 8/9-6in/SEC: 5-4in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 300 A 400 M 200 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=15, BB=20, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=30-15, Str=20-10, SB=0

CAPETOWN CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: CW
(WWI cruiser converted into an effective AA platform)
29 Knots, 452ft x 44ft, 0 A/C, 8.58 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-4in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 2400 A 2400 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=0, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=30-10, Str=0-0, SB=0

EMERALD CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: ED
(Obsolescent WWI)
32 Knots, 535ft x 54ft, 1 A/C, 18 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 7/7-6in/SEC: 5-4in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 300 M 200 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=0, Ct=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=30-10, Str=20-10, SB=0

KENT CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: KE
(magazine protection good, but light side plating vulnerable)
31 Knots, 590ft x 69ft, 1 A/C, 25.7 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-4in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=10, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=40-10, Str=10-10, SB=0

LONDON CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: LO
(improved Kent)
32 Knots, 591ft x 69ft, 1 A/C, 25 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-4in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=33, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-15, Mag=40-15, Str=10-10, SB=0

NORFOLK CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: NK
(improved London with better turrets and ammo supply system)
32 Knots, 591ft x 69ft, 0 A/C, 25 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-4in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=35, Deck=15, BB=10, CT=10 Int-0
Tur 10-10, Mag=40-15, Str=10-10, SB=0

EXETER CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: EX
(useful to show the flag)
32 Knots, 575ft x 59ft, 2 A/C, 16.78 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-8in/SEC: 4-4in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=15, BB=0, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=40-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

LEANDER CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: LR
(Poor ammunition supply limited main battery rate of fire)
32 Knots, 575ft x 59ft, 2 A/C, 14.4 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6in/SEC: 8-4in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=40, Deck=13, BB=10, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=35-20, Str=15-15, SB=0

ARETHUSA CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: AR
(smallest possible useful cruiser, outclassed by many DDs)
32 Knots, 500ft x 51ft, 1 A/C, 10.54 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-6in/SEC: 4-4in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 400 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=23, Deck=10, BB=10, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=30-10, Str=0-10, SB=0

SoutHAMPTON CLASS CRUISER               FILE: SN
(Balanced design with good war record)
32 Knots. 580ft x 62ft, 3 A/C, 20.24 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-6in/SEC: 8-4in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=45, Deck=13, BB=20, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=45-20, Str=15-15, SB=0

EDINBURG CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: EG
(improved Southampton, but MB guns still hand rammed!)
32 Knots, 612ft x 63ft, 3 A/C, 21.24 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-6in/SEC: 12-4in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=45, Deck=20, BB=20, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 40-20, Mag=45-30, Str=0-20, SB=0

DIDO CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: DI
(very effective anti-aircraft cruiser)
33 Knots, 512ft x 51ft, 0 A/C, 10.9 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-5.2in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1800 A 1200 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=10, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=20-20, Str=0-10, SB=0

FIJI CLASS CRUISER                 FILE: FJ
(Improved Edinburg, fragile - one was sunk by 1 bomb hit)
33 Knots, 555ft x 62ft, 3 A/C, 21.1 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-6in/SEC: 8-4in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=33, Deck=20, BB=10, CT=40 Int=0
Tur 20-10, Mag=33-20, Str=0-13, SB=0

ABDIEL CLASS CRUISER-MINELAYER               FILE: AB
34 Knots, 400ft x 40ft, 0 A/C, 8 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-4in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 400 M 1
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GREAT BRITAIN - DESTROYERS

VW-DDs CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: VC
(Robust WWI era design, excellent war record)
30 Knots, 310ft x 29ft, 0 A/C, 2.85 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4in/SEC: 2-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 250
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

AB-DDs CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: BC
32 Knots, 320ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 3.53 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4.7in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

CDEF-DDs CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: CC
32 Knots, 320ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 3.78 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4.7in/SEC: 4-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GHI-DD CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: GH
32 Knots, 320ft x 35ft, 0 A/C, 3.71 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4.7in/SEC: 4-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 500 A 500 M 0 //SB 1000

TRIBAL CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: TC
33 Knots, 360ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 5.04 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-4.7in/SEC: 10-.8in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 1200 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

JKLMN CLASS DESTROYER                   FILE: JK
32 Knots, 345ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.66 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-4.7in/SEC: 14-.8in// 10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1200 A 600 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

STUVWZ CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: SZ
32 Knots, 360ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 5.06 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4.7in/SEC: 14-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 4000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

O-DD CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: OC
33 Knots, 345ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.44 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-4in/SEC: 6-.8in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 800 A 800 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FLOWER CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: FR
16 Knots, 190ft x 19ft, 0 A/C, 2.32 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 1/1-4in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 100 A 0 M 0 //SB 150
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

HUNT CLASS DESTROYER                    FILE: HT
26 Knots, 264ft x 29ft, 0 A/C, 2.41 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-4in/SEC: 6-.8in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 2000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

L-4inch CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: L4
(L class DD with 4" AA guns)
32 Knots, 345ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.66 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-4in/SEC: 14-.8in// 10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 1600 A 1600 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FRANCE - BATTLESHIPS

COURBET CLASS BATTLESHIP           FILE: CT
(WWI era, very poor underwater protection)
20 Knots, 536ft x 87ft, 0 A/C, 36.7 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 6/12-12in/SEC: 22-5.5in//
//AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 3300
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=106, Deck=32, BB=110, CT=118 Int=16
Tur 114-39, Mag=134-52, Str=10-10, SB=71

BRETAGNE CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: BT
(WWI era, poor underwater protection)
20 Knots, 533ft x 87ft, 3 A/C 43 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/10-13.4in/SEC: 14-5.5in/TER 8-3in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 200 //SB 3400//2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=106, Deck=27, BB=98, CT=124 Int=18
Tur 98-28, Mag=107-45, Str=63-33, SB=31

NORMANDI CLASS BATTLESHIP               FILE: ND
(post-WWI design, never built.  Quad turrets)
20 Knots, 554ft x 88ft, 0 A/C, 43 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/12-13.4in/SEC: 24-5.5in// 6-18 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 400 //SB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=118, Deck=19, BB=112, CT=118 Int=19
Tur 134-39, Mag=118-39, Str=63-33, SB=47

LYON CLASS BATTLESHIP                   FILE: LY
(designed only.  Heavy battery in quad turrets)
23 Knots, 617ft x 94ft, 0 A/C, 45.1 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/8-13in/SEC: 16-5.1in// 6-18 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 800 M 400 //SB 4800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=118, Deck=19, BB=112, CT=118 Int=19
Tur 134-39, Mag=118-39, Str=63-33, SB=47

DUNKeRQUE CLASS BATTLESHIP              FILE: DK
(unusual design, 2 quad turrets forward)
29 Knots, 686ft x 102ft, 2 A/C, 46.5 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/8-13in/SEC: 16-5.1in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 7865
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=5, Deck=51, BB=136, Ct=105 Int=102
Tur 130-59, Mag=102-51, Str=10-10, SB=35

RICHeLIEU CLASS BATTLESHIP              FILE: RU
(2 quad turrets forward, better protection than Dunkerque)
30 Knots, 794ft x 108ft, 3 A/C, 57.9 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/8-15in/SEC: 10-3.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 416 A 416 M 0 //SB 2800//TB 6500
ARMOUR (x10):Belt=5, Deck=59, BB=159, CT=134 Int=176
Tur 170-77, Mag=176-75, Str=10-10, SB=50

FRANCE - CRUISERS

TROUIN CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: TI
(light protection makes this ship vulnerable to DD fire)
33 Knots, 575ft x 56ft, 2 A/C, 15.2 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-6.1in/SEC: 4-3in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 600 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=8, BB=0, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=10-10, Str=10-10, SB=0

DUQUESNE CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: DQ
(build on TROUIN pattern, upgunned to 8" main battery)
33 Knots, 625ft x 62ft, 2 A/C, 21.4 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 1600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=10, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 10-10, Mag=10-10, Str=10-10, SB=0

SUFFREN CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: SF
(Duquesnes, trading 2 knots for better protection)
31 Knots, 606ft x 64ft, 2 A/C, 21 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 8-3.5in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 1600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=10, BB=10, CT=110 Int=23
Tur 10-10, Mag=23-22, Str=22-22, SB=0

ALGERIE CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: AE
(good fundamental design)
31 Knots, 590ft x 65ft, 3 A/C, 21.1 Pts, 6 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-8in/SEC: 12-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 400 A 400 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=48, Deck=30, Bb=38, CT=38 Int=0
Tur 38-28, Mag=48-30, Str=38-30, SB=0

BERTIN CLASS CRUISER                    FILE: BQ
(DD squadron flagship.  Fast, poor secondary battery arrangement)
34 Knots, 548ft x 53ft, 2 A/C, 11.1 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-6in/SEC: 4-3.5in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 900 A 450 M 0 //SB 800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=10, BB=0, CT=10 Int=0
Tur 5-5, Mag=10-10, Str=0-0, SB=0

GALISeONnieRe CLASS CRUISER             FILE: GE
(improved Bertin, with better protection)
32 Knots, 564ft x 57ft, 4 A/C, 16 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-6in/SEC: 8-3.5in// 4-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 900 A 450 M 0 //SB 3000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=40, Deck=15, BB=40, CT=38 Int=0
Tur 40-20, Mag=40-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

FRANCE - DESTROYERS

CHACAL CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: CQ
(main battery ROF slow)
34 Knots, 393ft x 37ft, 0 A/C, 4.25 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5.1in/SEC: 2-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 280 A 280 M 0 //SB 600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GEOPARD CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: GD
(poor fire control and ROF limits effectiveness beyond 13K)
36 Knots, 404ft x 38ft, 0 A/C, 4.87 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5.5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 280 A 280 M 140 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

AIGLE CLASS DESTROYER                   FILE: AI
(also Vauquelin class.  Better main battery)
37 Knots, 402ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 4.88 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5.5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 1-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 280 A 280 M 140 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

FANTaSQUE CLASS DESTROYER               FILE: FQ
(excellent general-purpose design)
37 Knots, 402ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 5.01 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5.5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 280 A 280 M 140 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MOGADOR CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: MR
(excellent design, but unreliable main battery mounts)
39 Knots, 430ft x 45ft, 0 A/C, 5.77 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/8-5.5in/SEC: 4-.8in// 10-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 560 A 569 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

BOURSQUE CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: BO
(a disappointment)
30 Knots, 327ft x 32ft, 0 A/C, 2.64 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.1in/SEC: 2-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 250 A 250 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

L'ADROIT CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: LA
32 Knots, 331ft x 32ft, 0 A/C, 2.76 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.1in/SEC: 2-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 250 A 250 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10) Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

LE_HARDI CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: LH
35 Knots, 366ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 3.54 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5.1in/SEC: 2-.8in// 7-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 250 A 400 M 0 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

MELPOMENe CLASS TORPEDO BOAT            FILE: MP.SHP
34 Knots, 250ft x 26ft, 0 A/C, 1.36 Pts, 0 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/2-3.9in// 2-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 0 A 100 M 100
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

RUSSIA - BATTLESHIPS

GANGUT CLASS BATTLESHIP                 FILE: GT
(dreadful, unlivable, unsanitary, death trap)
23 Knots, 588ft x 81ft, 2 A/C, 31.25 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-12in/SEC: 12-4.7in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 300 A 300 M 600 //SB 1800
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=88, Deck=14, BB=80, CT=100 Int=20
Tur 100-50, Mag=178-14, Str=10-10, SB=49

SoVyetskly_SOYUZ CLASS BATTLESHIP       FILE: SV
(inspired by Italian designs, possibly improved, not launched)
30 Knots, 851ft x 129ft, 3 A/C, 59.7 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-16in/SEC:12-5.1in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 2400
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=130, Deck=60, BB=130, CT=180 Int=10
Tur 130-60, Mag=130-60, Str=50-20, SB=10

KRONShTaDT CLASS BATTLESHIP             FILE: KH
(inspired by Scharnhorst, laid down but not com[leted)
33 Knots, 817ft x 103ft, 4 A/C, 50.5 Pts, 8 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-12in/SEC: 8-5.9in/TER: 8-3.9in//
// AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 1200//TB 1600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=90, Deck=35, BB=90, CT=90 Int=0
Tur 90-35, Mag=90-35, Str=45-18, SB=5

RUSSIA - CRUISERS

PROFINTeRN CLASS CRUISER           FILE: PN
(WWI hold-over)
22 Knots, 507ft x 50ft, 1 A/C, 9.4 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 8/15-5.1in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 300 A 500 M 700 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=18, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 18-18, Mag=30-10, Str=15-5, SB=0

Krasnyi_KAVKAZ CLASS CRUISER            FILE: KK
(4 guns in single mounts - not a lot of punch)
29 Knots, 551ft x 51ft, 0 A/C, 15.1 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-7.1in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 12-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 0 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=30, Deck=10, BB=30, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 30-15, Mag=30-15, Str=0-0, SB=0

KIROV CLASS CRUISER                FILE: KV
(Italian inspired with strengthened hull.  Serviceable)
34 Knots, 584ft x 58ft, 1 A/C, 15.1 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-7.1in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=20, BB=20, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 30-20, Mag=30-20, Str=0-0, SB=0

Maxim_GORKIY CLASS CRUISER              FILE: GY
(Variation on Kirov)
35 Knots, 626ft x 58ft, 2 A/C, 16.6 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/9-7.1in/SEC: 6-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 1200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=20, BB=20, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 30-20, Mag=30-20, Str=0-0, SB=0

CHAPAYEV CLASS CRUISER                  FILE: CV
(compares unfavourably with Clevelands on same tonnage)
34 Knots, 659ft x 65ft, 2 A/C, 21.1 Pts, 4 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/12-5.9in/SEC: 8-3.9in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 900 A 900 M 0 //SB 1600
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=20, Deck=20, BB=20, CT=30 Int=0
Tur 30-20, Mag=30-20, Str=0-0, SB=0

RUSSIA - DESTROYERS

LENINGRaD CLASS DESTROYER               FILE: LD
34 Knots, 418ft x 39ft, 0 A/C, 5.2 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 5/5-5.1in/SEC: 2-3in// 8-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 100 //SB 200
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

TASHKENT CLASS DESTROYER           FILE: TK
('Blue Beauty', Italian design, good)
32 Knots, 459ft x 45ft, 0 A/C, 5.2 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/6-5.1in/SEC: 6-.8in// 9-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 600 A 300 M 0 //SB 1500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

GNEVNYI CLASS DESTROYER                 FILE: GI
32 Knots, 371ft x 23ft, 0 A/C, 3.1 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.1in/SEC: 2-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 300 //SB 1000
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

STOROZheVol CLASS DESTROYER             FILE: SI
32 Knots, 370ft x 33ft, 0 A/C, 4.3 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 4/4-5.1in/SEC: 2-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 200 A 200 M 300 //SB 500
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

OPYTYI CLASS DESTROYER                  FILE: OI
39 Knots, 387ft x 38ft, 0 A/C, 3.06 Pts, 1 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 3/3-5.1in/SEC: 4-.8in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 150 A 300 M 0 //SB 1300
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

OGNEVOI CLASS CRUISER                   FILE: OG
36 Knots, 383ft x 36ft, 0 A/C, 4.51 Pts, 2 Dir
ARMAMENT:MAIN: 2/4-5.1in/SEC: 2-3in// 6-0 Torps//
AMMO:MAIN: F 280 A 280 M 0 //SB 300
ARMOUR (x10): Belt=0, Deck=0, BB=0, CT=0 Int=0
Tur 0-0, Mag=0-0, Str=0-0, SB=0

End.
