"Damage to a ship's stack" Topic

In using a rule where the damage to a stack causes the ship's speed to be reduced in half, would vessels with double stacks have to have each stack damaged to receive the same result?

Thanks in advance,
Gert

Good question. I use Under Both Flags and I think there, there's only one factor for stacks regardless of how many stacks the ship has. In that way, only the collective damage matters – not the individual damage to each stack.

I would go with "stacks" generically rather than try to account for multiple stacks. Think of it this way…. you have one fat stack that carries all the draft, or two thinner ones that each carry half. One hit halves a fat stack, or knocks down a thin stack.

That sounds good to me- thank you.

would the smoke from a damaged stack fill the casemate of an enclosed Ironclad?

Those tall thin stacks were a means of enhancing natural air circulation for the fires used to heat the boilers. Hot air rises and creates a slight vacuum beneath it. This vacuum draws air in. Until blower fans were invented and installed to force air into furnaces, you needed a good strong draft to maintain a good hot fire (during the ACW wood was used as fuel). The long thin stacks gave a good path for the hot air from the furnace to raise and the height of the stack increased the strength of the draft created. If a stack were pierced or shot through, the draft was reduced and the fire would not burn as evenly or as hotly. Thus you would loose speed as the steam production decreased. An excellent example of this was the speed reduction caused by multiple stack hits on the CSS Arkansas during its infamous run through the Union Mississippi River fleet from the mouth of the Yazoo River to Vicksburg, Mississippi. Towards the end it barely had enough headway to steer it to the landing rather than just drifting with the river current.

You would have to have a round penetrate the casemate and then the feeder trunk for the stack in order to have a large amount of smoke enter the casemate from a stack hit. Otherwise the smoke raises to the hole made in the stack above the casemate (rather than the top of the stack and this lowers the draft created through the furnace)

Thanks Gamertom

I appreciate the explanation

Why "infamous" versus "famous"? The ARKANSAS saga was one of the great feats of arms during the entire war.

doc mcb – My bad! "Famous" is the proper term. I quite agree with your assessment of the Arkansas saga. The Arkansas' trip down the Yazoo River fighting three Union ships and then run through the Union river fleet to reach Vicksburg is truly epic. And it was conducted with gun crews who largely were Missouri cavalry given the rudiments of handling artillery and then were returned to their regiment after Vicksburg was reached.