RE: [DS2] Multiple and Mixed weapons turrets

I'd like to ask some Vietnam Tankers about this as its right there 
with what they were doing, but I'll extrapolate.

At 11:34 AM -0400 7/20/01, Bell, Brian K (Contractor) wrote:
>I am unsure that it would generally happen. People tend to stay at one
task
>if it is somewhat effective rather than switch to another task, even if
it
>is more effective, if it envolves a change of mind-set.

Agreed.

>I find it difficult to believe that the gunner in a vehicle would get
up
>from his controls for the main vehicle gun to grab the controls of the
>remote APSW. Then jump back and forth. Even if the same controls could
be
>switched from the main gun to the APSW, a change in mind-set and time
for
>the software to load parameters for the new weapon would present some
delay
>and degredation in effeciency. The gunner would be changing to a new
set of
>mental clues to look for as targets, a new set of effective ranges,
>different readouts to indicate the staticstics of the weapon (is it
>overheating? Is it near the end of ammo? Is it near the end of its
traverse?
>etc.). Especially if the gunner is worried that while he is firing the
>spitgun at soft targets, that an enemy Deimos may crest the hill and
blow
>him away.

The gunner is going to stay at the Gunner Station, if the commander 
wants him to engage infantry targets with an MG, he'll be using the 
Coax. One of the two weapons up on the turret roof are for the Loader 
and/or the Commander (depends on the tank, some have both..). In 
general practice, both have MGs for engaging various types of targets 
from infantry to aircraft.

>The same reasoning applies to switching guns in the same turret. If you
are
>firing the MDC/3 at an approaching Andromeda, you won't want to take
the
>time to switch to a DFFG/3 (even if it can be done in 15 seconds and
the
>MDC/3 takes 20 seconds to reload).

This isn't what I'm opposed to per say. Its no different than the 
Commander Saying

BMP in the OPEN, 2 o'clock, HEAT!
  and 9 seconds later saying
T72 on the crest, 12 o'clock SABOT!

Switching targeting modes/magnification levels for the gunner isn't a 
big deal. He's got to adjust the train/elevation anyhow (as does the 
targeting computer based on target range/speed and other factors like 
crosswind.

An NAC TC ordering one target to be engaged with a HEL in one moment 
then as a new threat pops up orders a different weapon isn't much of 
a change.

I'm assuming both occur over the different "turns".

>As has been pointed out a lot in the DS2 turn is abstracted (hence the
>variable time of a turn). One of these things is the weapons fire. Each
>weapons fire is not, specifically, one shot. It represents the
effectiveness
>of the weapon, gunner and vehicle driver over the entire time frame of
the
>turn. It's not just that you fire your HVC/2 at the Paladin. It is that
you
>maneuver around the defile for a clean shot, fire, but miss, evade
while
>reloading, and fire again, this time tagging it dead center.

Good concept in the abstract. However that does go against the 
principle of a vehicle with different weapons engaging a target over 
that slightly longer abstracted phase.

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