Warship

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Unlike Tanks or Combat Aircraft, warships have been around forever. Great naval battles are remembered throughout history books as far back as boats bigger than a canoe existed. This article covers the types of ships and their strategies throughout the ages.

Pre-Modern

Ships at this time were restricted to rivers or coastlines, partly because they could not endure rough conditions on ocean seas, but also because primitive navigation techniques restricted ships to remain in sight of land. As a result, most battles wouldn't take place far from major ports or routes. Before the invention of the cannon, there were really only a few ways for ships to fight each other:

• Boarding
• Firing various missiles at the enemy (arrows, javelins, catapults)
• Ramming
• Setting them on fire

The last two in particular had a high probability of getting your own ships destroyed, so naval combat was kind of a crapshoot.

Ship Types

• Galley: Sailships that came with long rows of oarsmen to help give the ship an extra boost of speed. Very useful for maneuvering against the wind, or gaining speed to ram the enemy. The Romans had a special version that used a spike to lock ships and allow their marines to board, as they found that if they fought better on land than on sea, then they'll just apply the same tactics onto boats.
• Fire Ships: Usually made from suprlus ships or even rafts, sometimes one navy would try to set the enemy on fire by setting one of their own boats on fire, and hope that it drifts into their ships. At the very least, it could create panic, as the enemy would try to steer the hell away from them.
• Longship: A Viking galley that was long and narrow, allowing it to enter shallow waters for amphibious deployment. They had a characteristic large square sail and the sides were typically lined with shields.

Age of Sail

When shipbuilding technology allowed ships to navigate the open seas, they became formidable powerhouses, especially when armed with a long row of guns. Broadside barrages were now the dominant tactic, as a ship would attempt to strafe the enemy within range of the side-mounted cannons. This is the type of warfare you normally think of whenever you think of pirates. And with newly developing sea trade routes appearing around the world, the importance of a powerful navy became a key factor in empire-building. The Royal Navy began categorizing warships on the Rating System, which was defined by size and number of guns (hence where we get the term "first-rate")

Ship Types

• Carrack: The first ocean-going large (by-then standards) ship capable of long voyages. The Carrack had "castles," or raised decks for archers to shoot from, until hey eventually started carrying cannons.
• Galleon: Evolved from the carrack, galleons were armed merchant ships that acted as auxiliaries to the navy. The high castles of the medieval Carrack were no longer needed, but the same general shape was kept.
• Ship of the Line: A ship that belong to the first three rates. These ships had three decks (two for third rate) full of guns, and got their name as they formed the main offensive line in battle, much like a line of riflemen in terrestrial battles. The winner was typically whoever brought the most cannons to the fight, hence they could go upwards of 90 cannons on the largest ships. The 74 gun ship was the most common, as it had the right balance of speed and power. Ships of the line continued to be built in steamboat versions until Ironclads took over.
• Frigate: A ship of the fifth or sixth rates. A Great Frigate belonged to the fourth rate. These smaller ships were not part of the line, but could be used as scouts, convoy escorts, or to protect the flanks from other such ships.
• Sloop of War: A ship below the 20-gun threshold, and was thus "unrated."

Modern

When ships became self-powered, they also could become armored and better armed as well. New strategies began to emerge, especially now that navies could fight below the water with submarines, or above them with naval aircraft.

Some ship designs adopted an "All or Nothing" approach when it came to armor. Because excessive armor would slow down a ship and make it less able to maneuver in combat, it was decided that certain parts would be more armored than others, until they eventually decided to dispense with armor except on the most critical parts (I.e. Engine room, ammunition stores, etc). This allowed ships to stay fast and mobile while avoiding sinkage.

Ship Types

• Ironclad: The first modern ship that one would recognize as being distinct from Age of Sail ships; Ironclads were steamboats that were covered in a layer of iron that could block most cannonballs. They were invented during the American Civil War, with each side developing their own variant: The Merrimack, which was a pre-existing ship that had been converted simply by adding some metal armor with a sloped dome over the deck, and the Monitor, which was a purpose-built design featuring a rotating turret with two guns rather than the standard broadside gun arrangement.
• Torpedo Ram: the torpedo ram dates from an odd part of naval history when Torpedos were first invented, were powerful, but were very short ranged. The ram's job was to use high speed and it's low profile to get up to a target and jam a torpedo down it's throat, while they were still in the harbor. To do so it had to first ram through harbor defense, hence the name. Needless to say, Torpedo Rams were not even all that well liked even when they were being built and so no designs survived past the 19th century. The most famous Torpedo ram is the Fictional "HMS Thunder Child" which fought the Martians in the War of the Worlds.
• Fast Attack Craft: Small warships that mostly fight in coastal waters. This typically includes Patrol boats, Gunboats, Missile Boats, or Torpedo boats.
• Corvette: The smallest "proper" warship, as in, being able to survive combat in open water. They are used as convoy escorts, or light Helicopter carriers.
• Frigate: Better armed than a corvette, Frigates are escort ships designed mainly for protecting convoys in heavy combat. Most modern navies use mostly frigates, especially if they lack aircraft carriers.
• Destroyer: A fast escort ship designed to intercept Torpedo boats, there original name was 'torpedo boat destroyer' and was just shortened to 'destroyer'. Nowadays as light ships they also get anti submarine dutys.
• Cruiser: Smaller than a battleship, the cruiser is used mainly for air defense and shore bombardment. After the (mostly) retirement of the battleship, the Cruiser is the largest warship still in use (not counting Supercarriers).
• Q-Ship: A warship disguised as a merchant vessel in order to lure enemy submarines.
• Battleship: The typical gun-armed capital ship of a navy. Battleships declined in use as aircraft carriers became more feasible, and with smaller ships taking their place as the main source of artillery. Still they are far from useless and they are occasionally dragged out of retirement, such as Iowa was during the gulf war, to show the other ships how "The Big Boys Do Battle".
• Dreadnought: A large battleship where all of its guns are at maximum caliber. This not only increased its firepower, but also simplified both logistics and firing solution complexity, as all guns would have the same range and angle of fire. These were popular in WWI as many navies competed on who could build the biggest dreadnought. They were eventually made obsolete as they were massively expensive and could be outdone by aircraft.
• Aircraft Carrier: A giant floating aircraft strip. These ships need to be massive to give fighters enough runway space, even with specialized launching systems such as the CATOBAR catapult system. By no accident, these ships are often called "floating cities." Besides their physical size and large crew, they are high-endurance self-sufficient ships; many aircraft carriers are nuclear-powered, allowing them to endure long deployment without refueling. Their aircraft also provide them with all they support assets they need, between strike capabilities and early warning craft to cargo transports and refueling craft. Supercarriers are even more massive, carrying a plethora of aircraft.
• Amphibious Assault Ship: These look like small aircraft carriers, but realistically they can only deploy helicopters and VTOL fighter jets. However, they can also deploy boats and amphibious craft, as they can include a sea deck below.
• Attack Submarine: Submarines designed specifically to attack enemy ships and subs using torpedoes. These optimize speed and stealth, and are among the smallest subs.
• Cruise Missile Submarine: Submarines designed mainly to fire long-range cruise missiles.
• Ballistic Missile Submarine: Submarines used in strategic nuclear warfare rather than direct combat. Think of "The Hunt for Red October" on why this is a big deal.

Vehicle Warfare
Combat Aircraft - Siege Weapons - Tank - Warship