Torpedoes

Torpedoes are a potent weapon system that typically act as secondary weapon systems on many ships. Torpedo bombers and submarines carry them as their main armament, however, as do some light ship designs.

## Using Torpedoes

Torpedoes initially have very short range and slow speeds, though they improve significantly over time. The Torpedo Technology category improves their range and damage.

Torpedo ranges are listed as two numbers, a shorter high-speed range and a longer low-speed range. The torpedo may be fired on either speed setting, as determined by your crew (i.e., the AI), based on which seems more likely to generate a hit.

Torpedoes will be fired automatically by the AI in appropriate circumstances. If you are playing on Captain mode, you may also manually fire torpedoes. However, you may only fire when your crew(i.e., the AI) believes that it has a valid firing solution which doesn't endanger friendly vessels.

## Mounting Torpedoes

Torpedoes come in two mount types:

**Submerged** torpedoes may be mounted as single tubes on ships over 2,500 tons. Six mounting positions are available - one fore, one aft, two port, and two starboard. Submerged tubes may be reloaded, with a reload time of approximately 40-50 minutes. Submerged tubes weigh roughly 1/3 more than surface tubes.

**Surface** tubes can be mounted in launchers of 1-5 tubes, depending on technology level. Initially they can only be used on destroyers, but eventually all ships may use them. Surface torpedo tubes cannot typically be reloaded, though a later technology allows a single reload to be carried. There are four positions for surface torpedo launchers on each side of the ship, as well as six pointson the centreline. The first of these may be fired forward, while the rest may fire to either side of the ship. No surface torpedo mounts may fire aft. Initially, only destroyers may mount surface tubes on the centreline, but later technologies allow them to be placed on ships of up to 7,000 tons.

Torpedoes are affected by the variable technology setting when creating a game. By default, a surface torpedo tube is an "18 inch" torpedo, weighing 18 tons. However, some variable tech settings use "12 inch" torpedoes weighing 12 tons per surface tube, or "21 inch" torpedoes weighing 21 tons per surface tube. *(Unclear if others exist, unclear if there's any damage difference between them)*

## Defending Against Torpedoes

Torpedoes are not affected by typical armour. Instead, torpedo defence systems (unlocked by the Damage Control tech category) are used to reduce the impact of torpedo strikes. Torpedoes may also be dodged, especially by lighter and more agile ships. While a clumsy battleship may be struck by even a low-speed torpedo at moderate range, destroyers are extremely hard to hit even at very close ranges. Players may also try to place their forces between two nearby enemy forces, to prevent them from firing torpedoes that could hit their own ships, or to use light ships as screens that would be hit instead of capital ships. Note that enemy torpedoes cannot be seen on the map, only friendly torpedoes.

Note that you may occasionally need to defend against your own torpedoes, if they are launched carelessly. Extremely fast ships can even be faster than their own torpedoes, which makes it possible for them to be struck by their own torpedoes. Maneuver carefully in torpedo-heavy waters.