Munitions Empire

"General... General..." After thinking for quite a while and forcing his foolish brain to keep working, the aide-de-camp finally spoke up, "Now, we can only fight a desperate battle to the end, we need to think of a way... to turn the tide."

He knew there was absolutely no way for them to run; before the exchange of cannon fire began, the Tang Army's fleet had already demonstrated their astonishing speed.

When the Shen Hai Navy just altered their course, the Tang Navy's warships managed to make a large detour and keep up with the Shen Hai Navy's change in direction.

In the face of such a vast difference in speed, any attempt to flee would be suicidal: they couldn't voluntarily withdraw from the battlefield, as that would only give the enemy the opportunity to chase them and systematically devour their forces.

If they only had cruisers and destroyers, there might have been a chance to scatter and flee, since these smaller warships were faster and had a better chance of escape.

Regrettably, what they could least afford to lose were the costly and precious battleships, which were the key to deciding victory at sea.

"Our rate of fire is too slow... there's nothing we can do..." explained a man from Shen Hai with a grim expression. He had already lost the courage to fight a decisive battle, and his whole being was plagued with indecision.

In truth, the more ferocious and cunning a villain behaves when they have the upper hand, the more cowardly and timid they become when faced with a strong opponent.

This man from Shen Hai was one of those people; he was extremely cruel when his navy had the advantage, often plundering and even slaughtering innocent fishing vessels and merchant ships.

However, when facing the main fleet of the Tang Army and the mighty genuine battleships, he wasn't even performing as well as his aide-de-camp.

But, in his moment of despair as he acknowledged that Shireck's ragtag battleships simply couldn't compare to the original ships of the Great Tang Group, he suddenly realized something.

Yes, if he didn't struggle now, it seemed he was destined to die anyway! If he struggled, there might be a slim and faint hope!

Suddenly, he turned around and commanded loudly, "Turn! Point the bow toward the enemy ships! Close in on the enemy's battle line at full speed!"

This was his do-or-die tactic since the Shen Hai military's warships couldn't match the speed of the Tang Army's warships, and it seemed their defenses also couldn't withstand the attack of the Tang Army's cannons.

Under such circumstances, they had nothing to rely on but the intimidating advantage of their main cannons, with their 320mm caliber.

If they were to engage at an extremely close distance, leveraging the firepower advantage of the 320mm caliber main cannons, he might take out two, or maybe even three of the enemy's battleships.

At that point, even if both sides suffered heavily and he died here today, he wouldn't be the idiot cursed by the entire nation of Shen Hai for bringing disgrace upon the military.

With that thought, he involuntarily clenched his fists: "Even if only the bow cannons can attack, we must close the distance quickly!"

The helmsman who heard the order was slightly taken aback, and then, with no choice but to bite the bullet, he carried out the man from Shen Hai's command.

He turned the wheel in front of him, and the two high-speed Shen Hai battleships started to turn in unison.

Seconds later, the Tang Army's lookout spotted something unusual. He rubbed his eyes, then raised his telescope again, confirming the fact that two Shen Hai Navy battleships were turning.

He then yelled loudly, "The enemy ships are turning! Attention! The enemy ships are turning! The enemy ships are making a quick turn!"

Bernard, upon hearing the news of the enemy ships turning, picked up his telescope to take another look at the distant targets, and saw the two Shen Hai battleships turning their bows, seemingly set on not fleeing after all.

"What are they trying to do? They were trying to escape just a moment ago, and now they're charging towards us?" Unable to figure out what the enemy ships were planning, he frowned and looked towards his aide-de-camp.

His aide-de-camp shook his head, equally puzzled by what the enemy commander intended to do. However, soon, a staff officer who deemed himself clever offered his opinion, "General, it might be a tactic to lure us in."

"They change direction first as a feint to disengage, tempting us to follow. Then they suddenly turn back towards us, shortening the distance between us," the staff officer explained.

Bernard nodded in agreement with this analysis, but now the distance between both sides had already reduced to about 8 kilometers, so he saw no need to change his orders because the enemy was rushing over.

"If the distance continues to close, their chances of hitting us will increase," the aide-de-camp still reminded Bernard. Find your adventure at My Virtual Library Empire

Bernard hesitated because an increase in the enemy's chances of hitting his warships also meant that the chances of hitting the enemy ships would equally increase on their side.

He now faced a choice: if he ordered an increase in distance, it would ensure safety. This kite-flying tactic was the most steady approach to secure victory without sustaining damage.

On the other hand, if he ordered to maintain course, it would mean preparing to decide the battle before the enemy ships could come closer. This would greatly test their own gunfire's accuracy, and the luck of the enemy ships.

Initially, Bernard was inclined to employ the RUN & GUN kite-flying tactic to end this naval battle securely, completely annihilating the opponent without sustaining any damage.

However, he soon realized a serious problem! Time!

Glancing at his wristwatch, Bernard knew that if this naval battle continued to drag on, the sky would gradually darken.

If night fell completely, the Shen Hai Navy, no matter how disheveled, could successfully break away and flee a thousand miles.

By sunrise tomorrow, the Tang Army would not be able to find a single Shen Hai naval warship that had stayed behind.

It was a difficult choice whether to risk letting some of the Shen Hai Navy escape to ensure his own safety or to decisively engage here and annihilate the Shen Hai Navy completely, accepting some losses.

Bernard pondered hard, with each passing second seemingly pressuring him to make a decision that would determine fate.

"Enemy ship's bow is now directly facing us!" As if to remind Bernard, his executive officer put down the binoculars and shouted loudly.

In the end, Bernard cautiously chose the strategy of 'flying a kite.' He did not feel that taking risks was necessary, for he had already won this naval battle.

The Shen Hai military's navy would certainly not be able to recover quickly, he had already taken control of the northern sea's dominance, cutting off the shipping route between Shen Hai and Beiyuan City, he had achieved the strategic objective.

In such a situation, there was no need for him to take further risks. Holding onto the victory already in his grasp, he could send the good news back home.

Thus, Bernard lifted his head and commanded, "Correct course, helm to port fifteen! Increase the distance from the enemy ship!"

Hearing this command, the executive officer knew that Bernard had made up his mind to consolidate the victory already in hand. Saying nothing more, he immediately repeated Bernard's orders loudly.

Following that, the Tang Army's warships began to turn, and this maneuver, in the eyes of a Shen Hai man, immediately engulfed him in despair.

His enemies really did not give him any chance. The enemy commander wisely used the advantage of speed to increase distance, preparing to take further advantage in a long-range artillery battle.

Such pitiless tactics had no aesthetic appeal, but they were the most rational and safest choice.

"They're actually avoiding battle! They shamelessly avoid battle!" The Shen Hai man watched the turning Tang Army battleships and roared in annoyance and embarrassment.

"General, the forward main guns are loaded and ready to fire," the executive officer kindly reminded the Shen Hai man.

Grinding his teeth, the Shen Hai man swung his arm forward ordering, "Fire! This is our last chance!"

"Boom!" The two Shen Hai battleships' forward main guns belched dazzling flames, and a few seconds later, next to the Tang Army battleships that were turning, spectacular pillars of water rose up.

Amidst these water pillars, as if heaven was rewarding the desperate, flames erupted from the stern of the Dongwan No.1 battleship; one of the Shen Hai's shells had hit the main gun turret at the stern of Dongwan No.1 battleship!

...

"In reality, a larger caliber is not always better for cannons. Modern technology is multi-dimensional, and there are more ways to enhance the power of a weapon than just a brute increase in caliber," explained an engineer in the naval shipyard of Linshui City inside the Great Tang Kingdom, giving a lesson to a group of students about warship cannons.

"The biggest difference between naval guns and army guns, especially howitzers, is actually the barrel length and chamber pressure," he essayed while drawing on the blackboard, beside which stood a cross-section model of a ship's cannon.

"Put simply, naval cannons belong to the gunnery system, while army artillery tends towards howitzers," he said dropping the chalk and picking up a pointer to tap on the blackboard, "because only with high chamber pressure and a high caliber ratio can a cannon achieve higher muzzle velocity, faster projectile speed, a flatter trajectory, and a longer range."

His students were taking notes, and he allowed them some time to do so. His back was towards the dense blackboard notes; there was a lot to cover in this lesson.

"With technological advances, army artillery will also evolve towards gun-howitzer systems, but for now, we can't afford to equip our artillerymen with the expensive naval guns," he concluded, then set down the pointer and picked up the model, moving into the aisles between the desks.

"True, naval guns have many advantages but they also have significant issues, notably their weight and cost," he expounded. "Under similar technical parameters, gunnery is more costly and heavier and thus unsuitable for army use. The navy, however, doesn't have such concerns."

"Compared to the crucially important and pricey warship, the cost of the gun seems much cheaper, so naturally equipping warships with better-performing cannons becomes the obvious choice," he summarized.

"So, Shireck's 320mm caliber heavy cannons aren't necessarily more powerful than our 305mm caliber heavy cannons?" a student asked, raising his hand.

The teacher laughed as if hearing a funny question, but afterward, he answered seriously, "Of course, our heavy cannons use the most advanced metallurgical technology, the materials are the best provided by our technical department, and they offer the highest performance parameters. If Shireck could surpass that, why would they still be going to great lengths to recruit so many technical engineers?"

"Believe me, there is no team in this world with more advanced technology than us." His confidence was palpable, and his eyes shone with light.