"Magazine hits of coastal batteries/fortifications" Topic

The last few times I've gamed with coastal forts and gun batteries it seems that the killing blow on the batteries have been a 'magazine explosion'. Now once I could understand, but its getting to be a trend. Roll a bunh of dice and hope for the 'lucky' magazine hit. Do our rules overstate the likelihood of the critical magazine hit?

How common an event was a fort/battery suffering a magazine explosion? I'm thinking it was infrequent. Didn't one of the Hatteras forts suffer a magazine hit? Fort Sumter stood up to a battering without losing the magazine didn't it?

Can you cite historical examples?

The danger to magazines was from mortars and high angle guns. Magazines were the most protected part of a battery and were below ground level whenever possible. I have never heard of one exploding due to a rifled gun hit. Even with the battering Ft. Sumpter took, the only threat to the magazines were from mortars. The walls and batteries were eventually reduced to rubble, but the magazines weren't hit.

Fort Pulaski in Georgia surrendered when a corner of the fort collapsed and the union guns were firing directly at the magazine doors.

The WW1/2 era gun batteries here in Alexandria VA (In Fort Hunt Park) which protected Washington DC have magazines under the gun positions, under about 30 feet of dirt, so I think the chances of getting a hit there are pretty remote. The shells would have been lifted by an elevator and the powder in a separate elevator one at a time, so I would think that would be harder to take the whole thing out with one hit.

I would have to agree that the threat would be more from high angle shells, but even that would be a pretty tough (and lucky) shot.

Mortars were notoriously inaccurate during the American Civil War. Farragut gave Porter an extra days bombardment at Fort Jackson, but apparently (and in hindsight, rightly) didn't expect much return on the effort.

So Pulaski is a good example of the magazine at risk. But was that was due to the Union dragging guns through the swamp to attack the 'back' of the fort?

Any example of magazines getting blown from bombardment by ships?

If you ever visit Ft. Pulaski, you will see why the magazine is so exposed: the fort is built on an artificial mound in the swamp. Everything underground is also underwater, not the best place to store gunpowder.

The magazine at Fort Fisher was blown up the night after the battle--possibly by curious Union troops exploring the fort by torch light! Rob

<<Fort Pulaski in Georgia surrendered when a corner of the fort collapsed and the union guns were firing directly at the magazine doors. >>

The magazine wasn't breeched, but, shells were coming very close. The fort was suppose to be the most state-of-the-art in the US. The rifled guns of the Union did tremendous damage to the front right corner, most of the damage remains (but it has been stabilized). It wasn't an attack against the back of the fort. Shells from the main union artilley concentration were just clearing the parapet and then impacting inside the fort on the rear walls near the access point to the left magazine.

"The fort was suppose to be the most state-of-the-art in the US" Mainly because the effect of rifled artillery had not been considered. A serious mistake. Now, ft Fisher was state of the art. The best/biggest fort being Ft Monroe.

Interesting though about the threat of the magazine being hit on the opposite side of the parade ground at Ft. Pulaski. I volunteer at Ft McHenry. In the 1814 attack there was concern about the same thing. During the civil war era the main magazines were moved to buried positions under the earth works outside the masonry fort.

"Do our rules overstate the likelihood of the critical magazine hit?"

I would vote yes. Forts were well respected during the period for a reason. You didn't take on a coastal force without a seriously strong naval force. Reason being a fort's guns are sighted by a prearranged grid and therefore if they had big enough guns with enough range were going to tear into the attacking ships. See what happened at Charleston. I always give the fort guns in my game bonuses. So, an attack on a fort should be, in general, about silencing the larger guns or getting past it as quickly as possible.