You know, I think eS might be right. The BR made the need for a dedicated missile platform pretty clear, it wouldn't be at all surprising if Cannala rolled out a DDG or some such, and given that Cannala still has "More ship experience" and "More missile experience", it is all but guaranteed to be better.
I would really like a Research Credit or something for our first sub, though. Since we don't have one, we should try to limit the features in an attempt to focus on what really matters. Like, how simple can we make a sub whilst still being effective? I know that by this point in history, double-hulls were standard, but could we get away with a simpler one-hulled or one-and-a-half-hulled (which was a real thing) design? I mean, it's not like there's a lot of ASW we have to dive under. As for the sensors, do we really need active sonar? I definitely think we can scrap the IR.
Rapid diving and surfacing is important, but the chimney might be unnecessary- just replace one missile silo with more batteries. In fact, replace some of the torpedo tubes with more batteries- this is a missile sub, it doesn't need six forwards facing torpedo tubes. Make it 2/1 instead.
I think that if we cut enough features, we could get this down to a hard Hard or easy Very Hard design, as opposed to the hard Very Hard the current Sobriety would likely be.
In fact, the Archer II looks closer to what we should be aiming for, although I think we should go straight for a missile sub- our torpedoes are great when dropped from planes, but shit when fired from ships/subs.
I dunno whether double hulled is necessarily better than single hulled, submarine designs of this era seem to be a mix of both, diverging into double-hulled for the Soviets and single-hulled for the Americans later in the cold war. For the sake of simplicity, I've made the Archer II a single-hull design, like the Type VIIC U-boat.
Active sonar isn't needed for a missile sub, but nice to have if we already have a model of it. And yes, IR is unnecessary. Here, have a cruise missile version of the Archer II, copying the Sobriety name. I've also updated the Archer II with the specification for 600mm torpedo tubes for future-proofing.
UFN-SSG-45 SobrietyThe Sobriety is a vessel that builds on the tradition of the old Archer Destroyers, albeit by sinking intentionally. It's Forenia's first proper submarine, using a single strengthened pressure hull and ballast tanks to sail safely beneath the waves, with bow planes for quicker diving and stern rudder to steer. The Sobriety has dual diesel-electric propulsion depending on whether it's surfaced or submerged, based off the diesel-electric engines in the Vodka.
It's the first Forenian vessel to be primarily armed with the Saltseeker anti-ship missile, carrying four Saltseekers or the GARM variants in vertical silos aft of the sail. The Sobriety must surface to fire, while its Saltseekers are modified to quickly return to sea-skimming profile after vertical launch, and the launch tubes feature quick-closing hatches to allow for a speedy escape underwater should that prove necessary. The Sobriety's secondary armament is a load of up to 6 torpedoes, fired from 2 bow and 1 stern 600mm torpedo tubes, which should serve as a nasty blow should it encounter Cannalan warships at close range. The torpedo rooms are designed with some extra space, should we later develop larger torpedoes.
On deck, its conning tower features a periscope for stealthy observation, as well as an extensible radar mast for long-range detection. Short-range however, it relies on a passive sonar in the bow to seek out and target enemies, a larger varient of the passive sonar of the Whalesong mine. It doesn't have any other on-deck weapons, forgoing these in favor of a more streamlined design for speed. Instead, emphasis is made to improve its crash-diving speed should the Sobriety come under aerial attack. If there is time, a snorkel is developed to allow the Sobriety to recharge its batteries when submerged at slow speed. Variants of the Sobriety may serve as special forces transports if a couple of the launch silos are replaced by additional personnel quarters and stowage for small boats, allowing the Forenian Navy to create "The Sober SEALS", a special forces branch dedicated to submarine-to-shore operations.
With all that said however, I'm still voting for the attack torpedo sub. My version of the Sobriety is still quite ambitious, as four missiles may be too much considering that was about how many the first purpose-built guided missile submarines carried in the 1960s (
Grayback class,
Juliett-class). Any lower, however, and I don't see the point of a missile sub over a cheaper Iceberg bomber which carries two, even accounting for stealth.
On the other hand, I'm sure the Archer II won't exceed a Hard difficulty, possibly even Normal. Unlike most of our other designs, it's based off something that isn't in the 1960s/70s, a 1940 submarine (Type VIIC U-Boat). Also, there's the metagaming reason: torpedo submarines are going to be more effective than missile submarines given that the enemy has absolutely no anti-submarine measures at present, not even depth charges. Going for the simpler submarine now gives us the opportunity to go for a SSG carrying 6-8 Saltseekers later.
(1) UFS-DDG-45 'Onegin' Guided Missile Destroyer: ConscriptFive
(2) UFS-CG-45 'Bogdanov' Guided Missile Cruiser : NAV
(2) UFN-SS-45 Archer II: Kashyyk, Cnidaros
(2) UFS-GMC-45 "Outmatch" Pattern A: eS, Happerry
(0) UFN-SSG-45 Sobriety:
Additional thoughts for revision: we probably want to revise that goddamn Wooden Spear. But not this turn because the Cannalans have initiative on the Plains island lane, probably next turn instead. Anyone know if it's possible to make lander doors that open downward instead of outward?
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Topic: Intercontinental Arms Race: Finale (Read 602986 times)