Hot Air Baloons... Confirmed O_o

[cudakite]

This is odd right? It's not just me right?

From Hornung's report from San Fransisco

When the battle loaded up I noticed something unusual right away… I could see the other player setting up his units. Extremely puzzled by this I remarked to Kieran this “bug”. Later I was to find out that I have hot air balloon technology (I didn’t even notice the balloon till John pointed it out). Apparently this piece of tech allows you to watch the other player set up his forces before the battle starts and he can’t watch you set up! Later on after the battle I asked Kieran about the balloon and he said at one point in the build you could actually command the balloon unit. He said, that they found it unnecessary and later removed control of it. (Perhaps this is the stepping stone to planes as units in the next Total War series? Guess we’ll find out!)

http://shoguntotalwar.yuku.com/topic...ster/1/?page=1

[brynje]

Hope it will look like this in Darthmod napoleon then

[Kip]

The first battle won thanks to control of the skies took place at Fleurus during the French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802). The French first deployed L'Entreprenant, a manned hot-air balloon in 1794. It flew above the range of enemy muskets and cannons and from its vantage point, the first aeronautic corps of the French army kept track of enemy troop movement to great advantage. The corps returned to action in various battles, but was never a replacement for using cavalry in reconnaissance, and was later disbanded by Napoleon.

Read more at Suite101: Balloons in Early Warfare: A Brief History of Wartime Use of Balloons Before WWII http://militaryhistory.suite101.com/...#ixzz0eW8KD2Ki

http://militaryhistory.suite101.com/...airship_in_war

Not the best source, but it gets the job done

[Graphic]

This thread made me lol.

Cool feature...I guess? We'll see

[RuleBritannia]

Hot air baloons as espionage/military units did exist, though they typically were ineffective.

[Thoragoros]

Very true, weren't the hot air baloons used more or less prototypes that never saw signifigant 'action?'

[REQUIEM]

hah sounds like a cool feature, will this be at our disposal in classic MP matches? if so how will it work? do you have to buy the option to see the enemy set up his forces at the expense of having lesser units cause you bought the hot air balloon?

[TheAussieDigger]

i think ive read that they tested dropping grenades and tar from hot air balloons but it was too easy for the enemy to shoot the balloon and render it useless

[CruscaderScout]

Ive heard that too

[cudakite]

^ Dude! You're a Madison Scout? That's awesome! /off topic



on topic/ So did the balloon crew have two cans with a REALLY long string to relay the enemies position to the general?

[TheAussieDigger]

^ Dude! You're a Madison Scout? That's awesome! /off topic



on topic/ So did the balloon crew have two cans with a REALLY long string to relay the enemies position to the general?

if u just climb to about 500m above where ur own army is u could easily see the other army while the men couldnt

[Emperador Carlos]

Balloon snipers FTW...

[Graphic]

Balloon snipers FTW...

Awesome. Balloon artillery would be epic.

These need an entry into "weapons that don't exist but should" at Uncyclopedia.

[erasmus777]

Awesome. Balloon artillery would be epic.

These need an entry into "weapons that don't exist but should" at Uncyclopedia.

You know somebody tried. I gotta google that right now...

[Shiloh]

I'm not sure about balloon artillery but they were used during the American Civil War for reconnaissance.

Both the Union and Confederate armies used balloons for reconnaissance during the American Civil War, marking the first time that balloons were used in the United States for reconnaissance. The professional aeronaut John Wise was the first to receive orders to build a balloon for the Union army.

[Emperador Carlos]

The South will rise again! (In a balloon)

[Shiloh]

The South will rise again! (In a balloon)

It might look something like this:

[erasmus777]

I'm not sure about balloon artillery but they were used during the American Civil War for reconnaissance.

Both the Union and Confederate armies used balloons for reconnaissance during the American Civil War, marking the first time that balloons were used in the United States for reconnaissance. The professional aeronaut John Wise was the first to receive orders to build a balloon for the Union army.

My grandfather was in the US Army Balloon Corps when it was dissolved... during WWI. (I'm not that old, it's just the men in my family like to sire children well into middle age ) His job was recon and directing artillery fire. I don't recall the exact circumstances surrounding the balloon's demise ... something about the Wright brothers

[Graphic]

His job was recon and directing artillery fire.

Did they have portable radios back then or did he use hand signals? I'm thinking of Saving Private Ryan "Tiger tanks...two of them. Panzer tanks...two of them..."

[erasmus777]

Did they have portable radios back then or did he use hand signals? I'm thinking of Saving Private Ryan "Tiger tanks...two of them. Panzer tanks...two of them..."

No, I think it was telegraph: you wired the messages back. Any kind of fog, low clouds, or smoke would seem to make hand signals impossible and semaphore impractical.

I can't remember SPR very well, except that it had one of the worst endings of any movie I've ever seen, in case you're making a funny reference that I'm missing :p