Forward the Arcadia! (TGOD-ish) (CVBG)

[phongn]

Well, goddamnit, how am I supposed to get off on an ASW ship? Hmm. I'm sure I'll think of something.

When you sink your first submarine, duh

I was thinking plenty, but I suppose I'll simply lean back toward trying to further optimize the ASW role.

Man, just leave it be. You have a fine ship, so go hunt those pesky submarines and sink the bubbleheads

[Darth Garden Gnome]

So comrades, are they any suggestions on worthwhile modifications to the Deafening Silence?

[Vanas]

Oh, one final note for the Drydock team while I'm still docked; due to the addition of the marine detachment, I'll need the hangar bay fitted out for a EH-101 rather than the Lynx, if I actually want them to get anywhere fast.
(And I'm not clogging up my hangar with a bloody Chinook).
If the chapper can be painted in the same crazy-paving WWII camo scheme as the ship, even better.

[Ar-Adunakhor]

So comrades, are they any suggestions on worthwhile modifications to the Deafening Silence?

Honestly? Cut out all placards and name references on the sub, and paste them on a Seawolf class submarine.

To maintain a Los Angeles class sub? Re-coat it in newly developed sound dampening materiels, replace the Los Angeles conning tower and command center with Seawolf adaptations, and rip out the entire drive system and put in a new one. The drive should probably be either a Seawolf drive or some experimental/theoretical super-silent one that you can find, either one.

Oh, one final note for the Drydock team while I'm still docked; due to the addition of the marine detachment, I'll need the hangar bay fitted out for a EH-101 rather than the Lynx, if I actually want them to get anywhere fast.

Done. Using my "contacts" I have procured a Merlin HM Mk1 for you. It can fufill both ASW and troop transport roles.

[Pick]

I want a parrot .

How about a pod of minesweeping dolphins?

You mean the little game where the guy gets sunglasses if you win?

We train dolphins for that now?

[Batman]

So comrades, are they any suggestions on worthwhile modifications to the Deafening Silence?

Honestly? Cut out all placards and name references on the sub, and paste them on a Seawolf class submarine.

That'd probably be cheaper than the rest of your recommendations anyway,
even if we include the cost of the Seawolf.

[Ar-Adunakhor]

That'd probably be cheaper than the rest of your recommendations anyway,
even if we include the cost of the Seawolf.

Well, yeah, that's why I put it first and foremost. The Seawolf subs are expensive, but it would be far *more* expensive to bring a Los Angeles up to spec. Not to mention the Seawolf is better than anything you could make out of the Los Angeles, anyway. The only reason I included the second option was that Captain Iannazzo expressed a desire to remain with the Los Angeles class in our previous deployment.

[Pcm979]

Hey Surlethe, you can have the Tico if you want it... I really have no burning desire to captain any particular kind of vessel, as long as it's named the HMS Agamemnon. Plinking subs works fine for me.

[Batman]

'Plinking' subs may very well be the more challenging job anyway. AAW/ASuW is pretty straightforward. ASW is to this day as much an art as a science.

[Surlethe]

Aw, hell; why not? Sure, I'll take the Tico. You want to switch ship names?

[Pcm979]

Yes please. It looks like the glue for the ship's placards hadn't dried yet anyway.

[Surlethe]

Sounds good. I have more immediate resources on the Ticonderoga-class, and I'm already drafting initial plans for a wanktastic refit in the future (not now; she needs to play an ASW role in ESG-28).

PS- Why is there a boomer in ESG-28? That seems so random.

[Darth Garden Gnome]

I am perfectly willing to upgrade to Seawolf (and thus avoid treachery on the high seas!) with Admiral Christy's approval. I was presented with the Los Angeles class when I joined the group, where Stofsk already held command of a Seawolf class vessel, and then I was unaware that we could each command one. Now that we have been split into seperate groups, the change seems more appropriate.

Therefore I do request for the upgrade to a Seawolf class submarine, and with full respect to Rear Admiral Rebikov I have decided to re-re-name it the Silence, because the "Deafening" part added too many syllables for my taste.

[Ar-Adunakhor]

PS- Why is there a boomer in ESG-28? That seems so random.

Her captain refitted her to launch both nuclear ballistics and normal cruise missiles. Due to that modification she can add to both the ESG's surface bombardment power and strategic maneuverability. In addition, of course, the Gnisnal can be an insurance policy against a powerful country backstabbing us for their own political gain. In light of the "insurance" stance, it only makes sense to seperate the two nuclear delivery systems. (Arcadia and Gnisnal, of course.)

[Surlethe]

Ah-hah; that makes sense. One of the things I'm considering for the future (and, admittedly, it seems far-fetched) is doing away with most of the ASW equipment (read: helicopters, and associated maintenance equipment and crew) on the Irascible and adding strategic weaponry (as well as extra tactical capability) in its place.

[Ar-Adunakhor]

You are aware, of course, that ASW ability is a powerful and necessary element in cruiser builds? Ticonderoga class cruisers already have a healthy compliment of both SSMs and SAMs, and there would not be a large benefit in more missile systems of the same type. When that is combined with their gun compliment and AEGIS system, the only remaining threat to be addressed is not from surface or air combatants but, obviously, submarine ones. Should you strip your ship of the ASW choppers, (which are a truly vital component to the submarine defense system, both in target acquisition and neutralization) she would be virtually blind when facing underwater hostiles.

Strategic nuclear weapons would be an... interesting modification, doubtless, but it is my firm belief that you should retain at least two of the ASW choppers and crew. This does not preclude your strategic arsenal, of course, but merely lowers the number of ballistic missiles that you are able to carry to around two or four.

[Surlethe]

My thought was that the ship will be operating in the context of a task force, rather than alone; in that case, different ships are able to specialize, so if there's a frigate, e.g., dedicated solely to ASW, then my Tico doesn't need to be as heavily geared against submarines. Of course, I had also considered stealth remodeling, just in case I needed to operate alone, but I wasn't expecting to operate singly (and I don't expect stealth remodeling to go as far as active ASW choppers, of course).

How valid is that line of reasoning? As far as I know, it's the same reasoning that permits CV(N)s to exist with very few offensive and defensive armaments besides their complement of aircraft.

[OOC: My main concern is that choppers, while invaluable to ASW, take up way too much space that could otherwise be devoted to masturbatory fantasy. ]

[Darth Raptor]

You mean the little game where the guy gets sunglasses if you win?

We train dolphins for that now?

...

We're all going to die.

[Ar-Adunakhor]

It is operating in a task force, that is true, but the level of specialization that you are talking about is not viable. Ships are required to carry out both individual tasks and group actions, so I will address the specialization in both contexts.

Individual: This should be fairly obvious. A ship that is devoted to ASW or AA combat is going to be utterly devestated when they are tasked with facing a situation that does not play to their strengths. A common task assigned to a destroyer, for instance, is that of sea lane patrol and vessel interdiction. If the destroyer is a devoted anti-aircraft ship, there would be very little they could do when faced with even minimal armed resistance.

Group: Even in the context of a group, there are notable disadvantages. Should one of the ships be destroyed, then the type of power that ship is specifically assigned to provide is greatly reduced. A smart foe will then exploit that and follow up with attacks focused on the area the lost ship was powerful in. In contrast, if every ship able to perform in most areas then only the average power is reduced. (as opposed to both average power and area-specific power being lost with the specialist ship) Not only that, but when you take into account the fact that ships are assigned a variety of roles even within the context of the task force (cruisers can fufill the role of air defense, surface engagement, and ASW defense) they can be used to supplement one or several weakened areas in another group without creating specific weaknesses in the aiding group.

Mind, I am not trying to say specialization is bad, just that overspecialization is. There are specialized ships in the navy, but there are no ships that are devoid of power in vital combat areas.

Now, something you mentioned was that CVNs can exist without weilding combined arms themselves. This is only viable due to the fact that they are massively multi-purpose as well. How? Their aircraft, of course. They carry air superiority fighters, mud movers, ASW/ASuW choppers, and recon rovers. These can all deploy as independent forces and be assigned to a specific area; however, when viewed in the context of launching from the carrier it shows the carrier to be an extremely generalized ship. Notice, however, that even though they are powerful and generalist that they are deployed with other warships. Those other warships are, basically, yet another extension of their generalist power. They are C3/C4 ships, and as such their surrounding battlegroup should be considered in the same light as their aircraft: extensions of their power.

[OOC: I know. But honestly, what is more wanktastic than being able to fight well against everything, eh? ]

[Surlethe]

[all OOC; of course, John Bayh already knew all this ... .

That's pretty clear-cut; thanks for the instruction.

Since there's pretty much nothing more wanktastic than fighting well against everything (see, e.g., Matt Huang), I've decided that any future refits are going to add 20 m to the hull length. ]

[Vicious]

[all OOC; of course, John Bayh already knew all this ... .

That's pretty clear-cut; thanks for the instruction.

Since there's pretty much nothing more wanktastic than fighting well against everything (see, e.g., Matt Huang), I've decided that any future refits are going to add 20 m to the hull length. ]

As a fellow Tico commander, I welcome you to the fleet, Captain Bayh. [In regards to making the Ticos more badass (as if 122 varied missiles, 5-inch guns and the best ship-based radar/tracking system in the world weren't enough?) the area in which you could do the most would be in terms of the hull. The Ticos are built on the older Spruance-class destroyer hull, compared to the more recent Arleigh-Burke-class DDGs, which also sport AEGIS and a newer "stealthy" design. However, if you're going to refit the hull, you might as well scrap the Tico and shoot straight for the proposed CG(X), big brother to DD(X), which was rumored to be cancelled in early 2006. I don't have any info on the plans though, so you'd have to do some digging yourself.

Even without modifying them the Ticos are amoung the most powerful surface combatants currently in service in the world, and represent a balanced, powerful warship capable of holding her own in nearly any situation. Moreover, their AEGIS systems give them unprecedented theater defence capabilities, where one AEGIS-equipped cruiser is potentially capable of defending an entire taskforce against a hostile missile strike. Coupled with each vessels' individual self-defense systems, AEGIS virtually guarantees that the enemy has to expend a massive amount of ordinace in order to inflict any damage against the primary targets: the carrier and/or amphib vessels.

Personally, I find the role of fleet defense and primary escort of our glorious flagship Arcadia to be one of the most important I could fill, and am honored to be the shield that will keep her from harm. You'll probably see more action then I do, should we go further and do a STGOD-style thread with this, being in the ESG.]

[Noble Ire]

Personally, I find the role of fleet defense and primary escort of our glorious flagship Arcadia to be one of the most important I could fill, and am honored to be the shield that will keep her from harm. You'll probably see more action then I do, should we go further and do a STGOD-style thread with this, being in the ESG.]

[Don't worry. I'll make sure my men let something get through every once and awhile, just for you.


]

[Pick]

Protecting the Arcadia seems like a wise plan *sagely nod*. I hear that her incompetant commander has no idea what the fuck she is doing *more sagely nodding.*

[Uraniun235]

Would it be at all feasible to make CTF-81 the result of the aftermath of something very much like "Red Storm Rising", in which a slowly disintegrating Soviet Union contributed ships and material (which it could no longer afford to maintain itself) to a UN taskforce which until relatively recently got very little in the way of funding and support?

Ah-hah; that makes sense. One of the things I'm considering for the future (and, admittedly, it seems far-fetched) is doing away with most of the ASW equipment (read: helicopters, and associated maintenance equipment and crew) on the Irascible and adding strategic weaponry (as well as extra tactical capability) in its place.

Er, wouldn't that be a pretty blatant display of nuclear weapons any time your ship went into port? CTF-81's official policy is that the presence or absence of nuclear ordnance is a classified matter.

[Very, very "out of character" (yes I know I've been playing it a bit fast and loose with in and out of character) - Arcadia probably has a few tactical nukes, and Gnisnal probably has a couple of MIRV'ed SLBMs, but honestly that's way more firepower than we'll probably ever need... and if we ever needed more we'd probably carry them aboard the SSBN.]

[Civil War Man]

Would it be at all feasible to make CTF-81 the result of the aftermath of something very much like "Red Storm Rising", in which a slowly disintegrating Soviet Union contributed ships and material (which it could no longer afford to maintain itself) to a UN taskforce which until relatively recently got very little in the way of funding and support?

Depends on what enemies we'll be fighting.

For me at least, how the US faired will affect my character. If they still remain a cohesive government, I'm going to have to be a lot more badass to swipe one of their current destroyer-class vessels.

But then again, I am supposed to be a pirate.