at a loss with naval battles

[alejandroPH]

ok i know i'm probably supposed to lose this battle since they have two ships, but every time i replay this battle i can't get to at least damage their ships. i'm at a loss, my ship's refusing to fire even if i keep on clicking the enemy ships. sometimes it fires one time, but then after that it just moves around until the enemy ships pound it into submission. i don't suppose the range is the issue since i reckon my ship has a larger one (i can't be sure of this though because there's no mention for ship ranges, but since my ship's more expensive i reckon it has to be). and yes, the toggle fire on/off is on (i'm assuming this is the fire at will button ?)

another gripe. sometimes i put it into first person mode so maybe my ship can start hitting them. but everytime i aim it to the enemy it turns into the red x and can't get it to fire.

lastly, i just tried to manually manage it instead by controlling the broadsides, but every time i fire it falls just short of the ships and my shells land/explode a few metres before reaching the enemy. again i don't think it's range bec the enemy ships were able to perfectly hit me from the same range


my ship: wooden frigate (kaiyo maru class)

enemy ships: 2 wooden corvettes (kasuga class, kaiten class)

so can anyone be a pal and help me with my frustration

edit: about the shells not reaching the target, i think i may have just discovered the answer. i set my shells to explosive instead of solid usually, but i just tried using solid and it hits. can anyone confirm that explosive just has a shorter range ?

[Winterspawn]

ok i know i'm probably supposed to lose this battle since they have two ships, but every time i replay this battle i can't get to at least damage their ships. i'm at a loss, my ship's refusing to fire even if i keep on clicking the enemy ships. sometimes it fires one time, but then after that it just moves around until the enemy ships pound it into submission. i don't suppose the range is the issue since i reckon my ship has a larger one (i can't be sure of this though because there's no mention for ship ranges, but since my ship's more expensive i reckon it has to be). and yes, the toggle fire on/off is on (i'm assuming this is the fire at will button ?)

another gripe. sometimes i put it into first person mode so maybe my ship can start hitting them. but everytime i aim it to the enemy it turns into the red x and can't get it to fire.

lastly, i just tried to manually manage it instead by controlling the broadsides, but every time i fire it falls just short of the ships and my shells land/explode a few metres before reaching the enemy. again i don't think it's range bec the enemy ships were able to perfectly hit me from the same range


my ship: wooden frigate (kaiyo maru class)

enemy ships: 2 wooden corvettes (kasuga class, kaiten class)

so can anyone be a pal and help me with my frustration

edit: about the shells not reaching the target, i think i may have just discovered the answer. i set my shells to explosive instead of solid usually, but i just tried using solid and it hits. can anyone confirm that explosive just has a shorter range ?

I'm not so sure about that, in Empire the different kinds of ammunition had different ranges, but in FoTS I don't really know, I guess so but the difference is probarly almost nothing.

I remember this defensive battle against the AI where I had a Kasuga while the AI had a Kasuga and a Kaiten and we stayed just out of eachother's range. My harbour defense was shooting at them, while I was manually firing broadsides at them because they where just out of my range and didn't come any closer. My explosive shell hit them perfectly fine even though I was actually out of range.

[alejandroPH]

okay never mind i think all this confusion was because i usually set my ships to use explosive shells, which i can confirm with 90% certainty that it has indeed as shorter range than solid shot.

@Winterspawn, Well, i don't really know why you had a different experience than mine. weird

[Humble Warrior]

edit: about the shells not reaching the target, i think i may have just discovered the answer. i set my shells to explosive instead of solid usually, but i just tried using solid and it hits. can anyone confirm that explosive just has a shorter range ?

Explosive shells do indeed have a shorter range. Stick to solid until you get real close.

Hints:

1.Press the Space bar to see your ship`s range and check your ships firing Arc (if it doesn`t already show it).


2. I assume you`re attacking. At the start of the battle, place your ship furthest right or left then work you way to the edge of the map, up and level with enemy ships (but still out of range). You should now have one ship in front and the other behind it. Then move in slowly to THE CLOSEST ship as soon as it starts smoking (moving) stop your ship. You should now have only one ship to fight equalling your situation much more as the other won`t do anything as long as it does not `detect` you.

Attacking head on on both ships makes your life much harder, though it`s quicker.

3. I don`t touch the 3rd person view. Just fire at will and win most ship battles now.

4. Experience will affect who fires first. But point 2 can still make things easier.

5. Nearly forgot. Important. Repair whenever you can, use judgement here. The AI ship will repair too.

[ccgr1121]

^ Basically what he said.

Also, your first person woes are due to you aiming too high. It only works when you are in close range. On top of this, you cannot simply aim at their sails or funnels. You have to aim at the actual side of the ship, or else it win't work.