Artillery

[Hellfire]

I have seen the "Artillery" weapons in the Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology, the repulsorlift platform with the grenade launcher and the giant turbolaser-equipped replusorlift vehicle, but is there/has there been any sort of true indirect fire artillery in Star Wars such as Tube or Rocket Artillery, requiring the use a forward observer?

[Stofsk]

I don't think we have ever seen that kind of artillery in SW, unless the CIS hailfire rocket tank counts?

I think ortillery (orbital artillery... don't look at me, I didn't come up with the term) has some place on the battlefield. It does depend on you having aerial superiority, but what invasion could take place without having aerial superiority established? Besides, there has to be a reason why a 'clean bombardment' was crucial to Vader's plans, and why Ozzel fucked them up so badly he had to die for it.

Think of it like a battleship that's close to the shore and providing artillery support for the troops on the island or otherwise nearby. A planet is one giant island in space, and if you have orbital supremacy then your ISDs can be positioned wherever they need to be to support the stormtroopers on the ground. Maybe there is no reason to have indirect artillery because the capships above can do that for you in the way a naval ship today can do it? What does everyone else think?

[Shinova]

The fact that spaceship guns can virtually reach any point on the planet would make ground artillery kinda redundant, I suppose. Yeah, I guess that's why.

[Darth Raptor]

There are indirect ground artillery units in SW. I don't know if they need forward observers, but there are lightly armored repulsorcraft that can lob proton shells over long distances. I think the Alliance had a tracked model that doubled as a mine layer too.

[Stofsk]

I can see theatre shields being an effective counter to ortillery (hehehe) but, it can also counter indirect artillery from the ground as well.

[Darth Raptor]

I can see theatre shields being an effective counter to ortillery (hehehe) but, it can also counter indirect artillery from the ground as well.

Not if they're inside the shield, which is really the only reason I can think of for the ground artillery. They're all on the several kilometer range scale.

[Hellfire]

There are indirect ground artillery units in SW. I don't know if they need forward observers, but there are lightly armored repulsorcraft that can lob proton shells over long distances. I think the Alliance had a tracked model that doubled as a mine layer too.

Very cool.

The fact that spaceship guns can virtually reach any point on the planet would make ground artillery kinda redundant, I suppose. Yeah, I guess that's why.

True. A limited BDZ-type operation would be just as dangerous to the troops the ship is supporting as it is to the enemy due to the megatonnage yield of the turbolasers (considering that they vaporized asteroids in TESB), which is where smaller scale and/or precision weapons would come into play. Of course this hardly matters if your goal is absolute destruction.

[Stofsk]

They can dial down the power of their turbolasers, so that instead of slagging everything they just blow shit up.

Again, Vader desired a 'clean bombardment' against the Rebels at Hoth. But he also expected Luke Skywalker to be alive and in a position to be captured.

[Shinova]

I can see theatre shields being an effective counter to ortillery (hehehe) but, it can also counter indirect artillery from the ground as well.

Not if they're inside the shield, which is really the only reason I can think of for the ground artillery. They're all on the several kilometer range scale.

Of course, if you position your ships right, you can fire a shot that can arrive at a roughly horizontal angle to whatever your target is, I think, thus potentially coming in under the theatre shield anyway.

Unless the theatre shield is a sort of bubble shield that is like a half-sphere that has encapsulated your own forces as well. Then, ground artillery would be the only way to hit the thing.

But then again, if you're inside this hypothetical half-spherical theatre shield, the opposition is in a really bad position anyway, so I dunno.

[Darth Raptor]

Of course, if you position your ships right, you can fire a shot that can arrive at a roughly horizontal angle to whatever your target is, I think, thus potentially coming in under the theatre shield anyway.

Unless the planetary terrain screwed with it. Mountains and such.

But then again, if you're inside this hypothetical half-spherical theatre shield, the opposition is in a really bad position anyway, so I dunno.

It could be used defensively too. Breach of theater shield by enemy ground forces would be cause for the defenders to whip out their own ground artillery and go to town.

[FTeik]

Well, the ISB gives us this little piece of artillery:

Field Missile Launcher

The Leveler I self-propelled concussion missile launcher was developed by Bryn and Gweith, a subdivision of CoMar, as a hardened fortification and long range siege weapon. Each Leveler I carries 28 concussion missile tubes mounted atop a heavy-track chassis in a four tube by seven tube formation. These tubes can be fired individually, in salvos of seven, or all 28 at once for maximum effect.

Reloading time is two combat rounds per tube, during which no firing can be conducted. Leveler Is carry no additional ammo themselves, and are instead usually accompanied by a repulsorlift ammo wagon. These vehicles are strictly designed for artillery support, being equipped with only the lightest shielding and no defensive weapons.

For spotting over-the-horizon targets, Levelers are equipped with DER (dedicated energy receptors). These receptors feed target information to the gunner’s holo-display who then programs what salvo pattern to fire - narrow, medium, or wide.

Presently, the Leveler I is standard issue to Imperial assault forces, although there have been some complaints about their tracked chassis’ inability to deal with weather extremes.

Field Missile Launcher
Model: Bryn & Gweigth Leveller I
Type: Medium concussion missile launcher
Scale: Speeder
Skill: Missile weapons: concussion missile launcher
Crew: 6
Cover: 1/4
Ammo: 28
Cost: 55,000 (new). 25,000 (used)
Availability: 2, R or X
Body: 2D
Fire Rate: Up to 28
Fire Control: 2D
Range: 20-600/3/16 km
Blast Radius: 20 meters
Damage: 7D

[Jim Raynor]

The PC game Force Commander has two mobile artillery cannons for the Imperials and a mobile proton torpedo launcher for the Rebels:

Mobile Artillery
Imperial

Once this hovering platform is deployed, it becomes a medium-range artillery launcher capable of firing deadly bursts of energy in a parabolic arc. Blasts from any artillery unit can affect both friendly and enemy units, so always deploy them wisely.

Heavy Artillery Platform
Imperial

An upgraded mobile artillery piece, this hovering platform carries a large weapon capable of raining down destruction on a Rebel base. A hit from the heavy artillery platform can severely damage all units within its blast radius, making it a hazard to both Imperials and Rebels.

Loratus Mobile Proton Torpedo Launcher
Rebel

A mobile parabolic projectile platform that is made for taking out enemy units at far range with the help of a spotter. These units are also capable of laying mines to blow up unwary Imperial units.

The Databank entry for the SPHA-T at starwars.com says it can be armed with different weapons, including concussion missiles:

Developed by the engineers of Rothana, technological partners of the Kaminoans, the SPHA-T stands for "self propelled heavy artillery -- turbolaser." The vehicle's central cannon is modular, allowing different artillery units to be fitted with different weapon types, such as ion cannons, anti-vehicle laser cannons or concussion missile launchers.

In the animated Clone Wars microseries, some SPHA-Ts at the Battle of Muunilist were armed with indirect fire artillery cannons.

In the Boba Fett story in Tales of the Bounty Hunters, artillery strikes were mentioned by Kardue'sai'Malloc (Labria), a Devaronian loyalist who fought for the Empire:

page 320
"I was a good servant to the Empire," the Butcher said. "My own people rose in rebellion. They sent my command out to Hunt them down. And I did it, Fett. I Hunted them across the northlands, and I caught them in the city of Montellian Serat. We shelled them until they surrendured-"

[Grandmaster Jogurt]

The Technical Commentaries reference a variant of the SPHA-T that fired projectiles that arced, shown in the Clone Wars cartoons.

[Deathstalker]

There is reference to arty being used in the Jedi Trial novel IIRC.

[Junghalli]

The fact that spaceship guns can virtually reach any point on the planet would make ground artillery kinda redundant, I suppose. Yeah, I guess that's why.

Ortillery is IMO unlikely to replace artillery for the following reasons.

(1) Power level. With the kind of weapons a starship will probably have firing on a planet's surface will likely be just as dangerous to your troops as theirs. Although if you have energy weapons that can be dialed down this may be less true.

(2) Reliability. An orbiting spacecraft only has a very tiny window of time in which it can hit a target at any given point on a planet's surface, and then it has to wait until it's made another orbit to fire again. A geostationary orbit would allow it to give indefinite reliable fire support, but only on a location close to the equator.

So ortillery would basically be a strategic weapon, used for blowing up enemy cities and military installations. It wouldn't be very good as fire support.

[Grandmaster Jogurt]

(2) Reliability. An orbiting spacecraft only has a very tiny window of time in which it can hit a target at any given point on a planet's surface, and then it has to wait until it's made another orbit to fire again. A geostationary orbit would allow it to give indefinite reliable fire support, but only on a location close to the equator.

Considering that the unfinished Death Star was able to float above Endor (too close for it to be an orbit) and the strength of SW engines and repulsors, why would they need to be confined to orbit?

[Tychu]

cant the planetary ion gun we see in Empire be considerd artillary? and those i think ATTE's that have that heavy laser weapon ontop seems like a moving artillary to me, i dont know maby my definition of artillary is wrong or a little off

[Sea Skimmer]

cant the planetary ion gun we see in Empire be considerd artillary?

It would be correctly called a piece of artillery. A fortress gun if you wanted to be more specific.

and those i think ATTE's that have that heavy laser weapon ontop seems like a moving artillary to me, i dont know maby my definition of artillary is wrong or a little off

Technically any large weapon could be considered a piece of artillery. But generally the direct fire weapons of armored vehicles, tank and APC analogues, aren't called artillery.