Honorverse ramblings and musings

Sov wrote:The seventy-two missiles of Tremaine’s “Barricade” drove directly through the heart of Tamaguchi’s first five hundred-missile salvo. Although a Mark 23’s impeller wedge was bigger than any standard missile’s, it remained considerably smaller than the outsized wedges counter-missiles used to sweep incoming fire out of existence.

Brigade XO wrote:Not sure why the Barrricade missiles would not have been usefull against the SLN ships unless they were either ultimatly destroyed by wedge fratricide of their missile targets or ended up too far from the SLN ships and never entered their engagement range of those ships.

Given that The SLN was chasing- presuming they were going on the same vector and Tremain's force wasn't attempting to curve away to a closer point of the hyper limit- they should have ended up flying right through the remains of any of those RMN vollies. While the power supply for the missiles wedges might have been drained, that doesn't have to mean that the warheads would be dead. Even one laser head going off infront of the SLN ships would have had some effect if nothing more than forcing them to concentrate some sensor capability to other ballistic weapons.

cthia wrote:I also must add that I am concerned not simply because it seems possible, but because it would eliminate the "wasteful" aspect of the notion. The same waste that the SLN admiral commented on, paraphrasing... "It seems wasteful for such obviously expensive missiles." But I suppose as Honor was fond of saying, again paraphrasing...

"If you don't agree that it's cheaper than people and ships, bill me!"

cthia wrote:

Brigade XO wrote:Not sure why the Barrricade missiles would not have been usefull against the SLN ships unless they were either ultimatly destroyed by wedge fratricide of their missile targets or ended up too far from the SLN ships and never entered their engagement range of those ships.

Given that The SLN was chasing- presuming they were going on the same vector and Tremain's force wasn't attempting to curve away to a closer point of the hyper limit- they should have ended up flying right through the remains of any of those RMN vollies. While the power supply for the missiles wedges might have been drained, that doesn't have to mean that the warheads would be dead. Even one laser head going off infront of the SLN ships would have had some effect if nothing more than forcing them to concentrate some sensor capability to other ballistic weapons.

BARRICADE I suppose we as readers should give a moment of silence and appreciation for Tremaine's first battle tactic, born of his first battle plan.

There's plenty of the Old Lady in this plan and a little of Foraker too. We must study our enemy musn't we?

I'm not sure why they wouldn't have been useful either. Unless they were all destroyed, which I didn't get the feeling that that was the case. Subsequent launches also attacked to get more of the SLN missiles that were missed. But I kept waiting for the part that the surviving missiles would carry on.

As a matter of fact, since the Barricade missiles had lower acceleration and the follow up launches would overtake them easily, perhaps they could have been made to arrive very closely together -- after the Barricade missiles had passed through the Solarian launches with plenty of time left on their drives.

cthia wrote:

cthia wrote:quote="Brigade XO"Not sure why the Barrricade missiles would not have been usefull against the SLN ships unless they were either ultimatly destroyed by wedge fratricide of their missile targets or ended up too far from the SLN ships and never entered their engagement range of those ships.

Given that The SLN was chasing- presuming they were going on the same vector and Tremain's force wasn't attempting to curve away to a closer point of the hyper limit- they should have ended up flying right through the remains of any of those RMN vollies. While the power supply for the missiles wedges might have been drained, that doesn't have to mean that the warheads would be dead. Even one laser head going off infront of the SLN ships would have had some effect if nothing more than forcing them to concentrate some sensor capability to other ballistic weapons.quote

BARRICADE I suppose we as readers should give a moment of silence and appreciation for Tremaine's first battle tactic, born of his first battle plan.

There's plenty of the Old Lady in this plan and a little of Foraker too. We must study our enemy musn't we?

I'm not sure why they wouldn't have been useful either. Unless they were all destroyed, which I didn't get the feeling that that was the case. Subsequent launches also attacked to get more of the SLN missiles that were missed. But I kept waiting for the part that the surviving missiles would carry on.

As a matter of fact, since the Barricade missiles had lower acceleration and the follow up launches would overtake them easily, perhaps they could have been made to arrive very closely together -- after the Barricade missiles had passed through the Solarian launches with plenty of time left on their drives.

It was also noted that Tamaguchi was towing lots of pods. I just knew they were going to be targeted by stealthy probes and destroyed. But perhaps it was concluded that more of the missiles could be destroyed while in their balliistic phase than by stealthy armed probes.

I also thought Tamaguchi would give tit-for-tat as far as the tactic of hypering out and microjumping out of the other side of the system to bring the Charles Ward to bear. They might have been able to destroy the fleet auxiliary. She would have made a nice prize, if so.

cthia wrote:

Brigade XO wrote:Not sure why the Barrricade missiles would not have been usefull against the SLN ships unless they were either ultimatly destroyed by wedge fratricide of their missile targets or ended up too far from the SLN ships and never entered their engagement range of those ships.

Given that The SLN was chasing- presuming they were going on the same vector and Tremain's force wasn't attempting to curve away to a closer point of the hyper limit- they should have ended up flying right through the remains of any of those RMN vollies. While the power supply for the missiles wedges might have been drained, that doesn't have to mean that the warheads would be dead. Even one laser head going off infront of the SLN ships would have had some effect if nothing more than forcing them to concentrate some sensor capability to other ballistic weapons.

BARRICADE I suppose we as readers should give a moment of silence and appreciation for Tremaine's first battle tactic, born of his first battle plan.

There's plenty of the Old Lady in this plan and a little of Foraker too. We must study our enemy musn't we?

I'm not sure why they wouldn't have been useful either. Unless they were all destroyed, which I didn't get the feeling that that was the case. Subsequent launches also attacked to get more of the SLN missiles that were missed. But I kept waiting for the part that the surviving missiles would carry on.

As a matter of fact, since the Barricade missiles had lower acceleration and the follow up launches would overtake them easily, perhaps they could have been made to arrive very closely together -- after the Barricade missiles had passed through the Solarian launches with plenty of time left on their drives.

It was also noted that Tamaguchi was towing lots of pods. I just knew they were going to be targeted by stealthy probes and destroyed. But perhaps it was concluded that more of the missiles could be destroyed while in their balliistic phase than by stealthy armed probes.

I also thought Tamaguchi would give tit-for-tat as far as the tactic of hypering out and microjumping out of the other side of the system to bring the Charles Ward to bear. They might have been able to destroy the fleet auxiliary. She would have made a nice prize, if so.

ldwechsler wrote:We all know the phrase "The best laid plans", etc. Tamaguchi was snookered...until he figured it out too late.

And the point is that all over the League, the Sollie fleets are losing. That will cost. Sometimes they will lose some really good officers.

And all the planets in THIS sector will soon know of the defeats.