Howitzers?

What are they for? They seem pretty useless to me. :/

They have less range than regular cannons and are less accurate as well (Or so it seems to me) so I have no idea what their function is.

Well i find that they kill more than cannons, mainly because canons usually just knock people over.

Yes but unlike regular cannons they kill up to 50 guys in a hit at ranges over 100...

Regular cannons kill perhaps 2 people a shot...

Because of their inaccuracy, I consider them to be more suppression weapons. Yes, a shell could annihilate half a unit but what they're best at IMO is shock factor.

Focusing two or three howitzer units on a flank while volleys of musket fire cut into the enemy could prove devastating to morale.

No, howitzers are much more offensive weapons than cannons are.
The trick is to bring them in close enough before unlimbering to take full advantage of their anti-infantry potential.

Howitzers can fire over your own troops, a little like a mortar unit, unlike the cannons which fire in a more direct line, and can sometimes kill your own troops. This is a great advantage and ideal for sieges.

Originally Posted by daniu

No, howitzers are much more offensive weapons than cannons are.
The trick is to bring them in close enough before unlimbering to take full advantage of their anti-infantry potential.

Well if they have roughly (Or exactly) the same unlimbering speed why is a howitzer using canister shot more effective than a regular cannon? Or by "Anti-infantry potential" do you mean the regular exploding shot? Because whenever I use Howitzers I have a dickens of a time hitting anything with explosive shot. :/

Originally Posted by hippacrocafish

Well if they have roughly (Or exactly) the same unlimbering speed why is a howitzer using canister shot more effective than a regular cannon? Or by "Anti-infantry potential" do you mean the regular exploding shot? Because whenever I use Howitzers I have a dickens of a time hitting anything with explosive shot. :/

Yes sorry wasn't quite clear here, wasn't talking about canister.
I meant the regular exploding shot; it's very inaccurate long range (up to being useless), but if you move it in close enough, it it will do lots of damage.

yes i have to agree with daniu there is definately a tactic to using howitzers

Howitzers:

-Fire over your men and terrain; making them effective on terrain maps and/or when you need to screen your artillery battery. This also enables you to use terrain to make your howitzers invulnerable to foot artillery.

-Use an exploding shell, as opposed to regular round shot; this explodes and therefore has a larger damage radius. If the range is right (Or if your lucky) your shells can explode amidst enemy ranks (Rather than above them) and kill scores of men. Foot artillery on the other hand tend to just knock men over and not kill them.

-Their short range means howitzers are usaully used as offensive weapons, although on small maps they can be used as the latter.

Originally Posted by Eazyrider

Howitzers:

Foot artillery on the other hand tend to just knock men over and not kill them.

This has always seemed odd to me - I would have thought that being hit by a speeding 12 Ib iron ball would tend to do severe crushing & dismembering damage to the unfortunate victim. I mean to say, no-one's going to take up his bed & walk after that, are they ? Yet it happens in the game all too often & they rejoin their unit. Most curious.

Originally Posted by Jackhammer

This has always seemed odd to me - I would have thought that being hit by a speeding 12 Ib iron ball would tend to do severe crushing & dismembering damage to the unfortunate victim. I mean to say, no-one's going to take up his bed & walk after that, are they ? Yet it happens in the game all too often & they rejoin their unit. Most curious.

I think it's because the game's unit models are designed so their limbs cannot be severed (No blood). Thus cannon balls just knock the wind out of them.

Originally Posted by Eazyrider

I think it's because the game's unit models are designed so their limbs cannot be severed (No blood). Thus cannon balls just knock the wind out of them.

That's not exactly the case. The troops that are just knocked over are those that fall because of the ground shaking or because they've been hit indirectly by other soldiers that have been hurled aside/back by the cannonball.

A cannonball is a rather small solid sphere with absolutely no explosive power. Even if fired in the middle of enemy ranks, it will directly hit and kill only a very limited number of troops. If you fire in the middle of a formation you will, instead, see that it punches a large hole into it. Obviously not all of the people that were forming that hole have been directly hit, most of them have just been knocked down by the impact on the ground nearby, or by other soldiers. Obviously that's not lethal damage.

the historically biggest round shot (if I'm not wrong) has a caliber of 20 inches. This means that it could, with luck, only hit a maximum of 2 people side by side. In NTW the biggest round shot are much smaller than that (around 5 inches if i'm not wrong), which means that it will extremely rarely directly hit more than one soldier per rank. The hole left in the ranks, if you notice, is much wider than that, and it's made by one soldier that's been directly hit (and killed) and a couple that have just been knocked over because they haven't been hit directly.
It's actually very possible that such a small round shot could pass right in the middle of a rank without directly hitting anyone at all, since the space between the legs of two soldiers even in a close ranked formation is decidedly wider than 5 inches. Sure, they'd be left shaken and sitting on their ass, maybe showered mud and earth, but most definitely not dead.

Originally Posted by Abriael

That's not exactly the case. The troops that are just knocked over are those that fall because of the ground shaking or because they've been hit indirectly by other soldiers that have been hurled aside/back by the cannonball.

A cannonball is a rather small solid sphere with absolutely no explosive power. Even if fired in the middle of enemy ranks, it will directly hit and kill only a very limited number of troops. If you fire in the middle of a formation you will, instead, see that it punches a large hole into it. Obviously not all of the people that were forming that hole have been directly hit, most of them have just been knocked down by the impact on the ground nearby, or by other soldiers. Obviously that's not lethal damage.

the historically biggest round shot (if I'm not wrong) has a caliber of 20 inches. This means that it could, with luck, only hit a maximum of 2 people side by side. In NTW the biggest round shot are much smaller than that (around 5 inches if i'm not wrong), which means that it will extremely rarely directly hit more than one soldier per rank. The hole left in the ranks, if you notice, is much wider than that, and it's made by one soldier that's been directly hit (and killed) and a couple that have just been knocked over because they haven't been hit directly.
It's actually very possible that such a small round shot could pass right in the middle of a rank without directly hitting anyone at all, since the space between the legs of two soldiers even in a close ranked formation is decidedly wider than 5 inches. Sure, they'd be left shaken and sitting on their ass, maybe showered mud and earth, but most definitely not dead.

I disagree.

It kills the first few, but after that i think the cannonball just sits in the stomach of its second or third unfortunate victim.

I'll take Howies over cannons anyday. The best thing about them apart from their area of effect (decimates Cav) is that you can protect them easier by placing troops in front of them. Well defended Howies are the bane of any would-be attacker. This is mainly in SP play though. In MP I would be concerned about them being taken out by 9-12 Pndr's as they move in to firing range. Obviously alot depends on the map. If there's at least one decent hill between you and the enemy, take Howies every day of the week, rain or shine. My beef with MP is the crappy funds even on large. There should be a setting double that to allow for adding Chevrons etc.

Originally Posted by ElementUK

I'll take Howies over cannons anyday. The best thing about them apart from their area of effect (decimates Cav) is that you can protect them easier by placing troops in front of them. Well defended Howies are the bane of any would-be attacker. This is mainly in SP play though. In MP I would be concerned about them being taken out by 9-12 Pndr's as they move in to firing range. Obviously alot depends on the map. If there's at least one decent hill between you and the enemy, take Howies every day of the week, rain or shine. My beef with MP is the crappy funds even on large. There should be a setting double that to allow for adding Chevrons etc.

The AI may choose to stand off & take out your Hw's in SP, depending on LOS, or pound your PBI's - forcing you to advance to close the range for your Hw's, & we all know how awfully slow foot artillery is in the game. You could lose a pile of men before you even get in striking distance of the enemy line. For this reason I always include at least 2 batteries of 12's in my build, despite their slow reloads; in certain situations you need to project long range damage as well as short-to-mid.

One thing i'm curious about, Does the explosive shot do more damage to forts than, cannon's normal roundshot?
Or the other way round?

Originally Posted by Londnred

One thing i'm curious about, Does the explosive shot do more damage to forts than, cannon's normal roundshot?
Or the other way round?

Would have thought Howitzers are more an AP weapon, whereas roundshot resembles medieval catapult ammo ( bludgeioning ), so theoretically cannon are much the better option for reducing fortifications. Howitzers should fire OVER fort walls & impact on infantry in exposed areas within.

Originally Posted by Jackhammer

Would have thought Howitzers are more an AP weapon, whereas roundshot resembles medieval catapult ammo ( bludgeioning ), so theoretically cannon are much the better option for reducing fortifications. Howitzers should fire OVER fort walls & impact on infantry in exposed areas within.

Oh, Good answer, +Rep.