Smoke candles

[chuckfourth]

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

Forgetting the time needed to spot danger and to react.

The time needed to spot danger and to react is the same irrespective of wether the tank has forward firing smoke dischargers or rear mounted smoke droppers so this time can be safely ignored. Im talking about the extra time it takes the Pz 3 to get behind the smoke compared to tanks with forward firing smoke dispensers, once the -decision- to create a smoke screen has been made.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

And, if the tank is moving, to stop it and go to reverse or "dime turn" - try doing that at full speed and you'd throw the track.

I mention dime turns to point out that the pz 3 has some extra manouverability compared to the run of the mill tank that could be considered as offsetting dropping the smoke at the rear as opposed to firing it out the front. Im not suggesting that the tank driver doesnt know how to drive. In any case I would imagine that if there is the chance of AT guns being around the tanks are moving somewhat more cautously than full speed.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

I suspect first crew reaction would not be dropping smoke but trying to suppress the AT gun

Not if you havn't identified the whereabouts of the AT gun, the tanks usual problem.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

or "sprint" to cover.

Not in the desert or flat russians steppes me-thinks.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

Kinda like that famous Polish "cavalry charge against tanks" - it was not a charge, but a retreat, the Poles knew well that they have to get ASAP into forest and shortest route went through the Panzers. They knew if they tried to turn back (away from the tanks) they'd get slaughtered doing so as they'd have to slow and begin turning in full view of the enemy.
Same applies for tanks, turning on dime is nice but it still shows nicely thin side armour (in fact with later PzIII's the thinnest place).

reverse or turn, depends on the situation.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

As for the smoke itself, would be pretty limited

Why?

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

and might even be more detrimental to the tank than to the enemy, after all the ATG crew may fire blindly through, if they're quick enough the tank is still somewhere there and the ATG position is fixed, whereas tank crew loses any clue on enemy position the moment it backs into the smoke.

This applies equally to tanks with forward firing and rearwards dropping smoke.

Originally Posted by Marek_Tucan

By the way, try not to exaggerate, I have yet to see a tank in SP having to withstand "hundreds" of AT gun rounds. That is if you do not leave Tiger sitting with disabled weapons in front of company of 37mm popguns. If your tanks have to suffer hundreds of rounds fired at them, there is some serious flaw in your setup and no amount of smoke dischargers will mend it

You inference is that I am suggesting the inclusion of pz3 etc smoke to pander to my own style of playing, this is wrong. I think the Pz 3 should get smoke because they had smoke. They used it for the very same purpose as forward firing dischargers, to screen the tank. Removing the smoke from the tank on a technicality seems wrong to me. The game glosses over any number of other similar 'technicalities' in other areas simply because it is a simulation, not reality.

By the way what if the wind is blowing from behind the tanK? no difference whatsoever.

of interest from Lone sentry.
http://www.lonesentry.com/articles/s...ics/index.html

"Smoke shells are not fired by the Pz. Kpfw. II [2] or the Pz. Kpfw. III [3], both of which are equipped to discharge "smoke pots" with a range of approximately 50 yards. These pots are released electrically, and are employed chiefly to permit the tank to escape when caught by antitank fire."

Best Regards Chuck