"Shouldn't canister fire outrange musketry?" Topic

The Reisswitz Kriegsspiel rules provides information about casualties for musketry up to 400 paces. For canister fire information is available up to 800 paces for 6 pounders and 1000 paces for 12 pounders.
So giving both the same range seems inappropiate to me.
There is also the information given that it cannot be assumed that the troops will remain still for long under effective canister fire or low elevation fire without either going forward or back.
IMHO that would mean that the proper positioning of a battery would force a defender to assault that battery or concede the position under fire…

Muzzle energy has to be much the same whether fired by a musket or by a cannon, if anything a musket should be a bit higher.

Range is therefore likely to be similar as the resistance is identical once they leave the barrel.

This assumes that by 'cannister' you mean a can of musket balls and not 'heavy' cannister (a bunch of larger balls).

Heavy cannister would carry further due to its higher muzzle energy (which increases as the cube of diameter) even though its resistance is also higher (but only increases with the square of diameter).

It seems likely that it is the latter being described.

Somewhat surprised that musketry has such a long range. Most set effective fire at no more than half that and decisive at half again.

I'm missing something. Who or what set of rules has given them the same range? Nothing I've played.

@GildasFacit:
The effective range of musketry is way shorter, it is pretty devastating up to 100 paces and still terrible up 200. A battalion firing within 100 paces should be even deadlier than a battery of 12 pounders in this range.
In the 1824 rules there is no separation for canister fire between 0-400 (6pdr) in its effect, but that is made in the 1828 revision.
And yes, between 400 and 800 paces it is assumed that the artillery switches to large canister.
But my point is that there is a range (between 400 and 800 paces) where 6 pounder guns are more effective than long range fire by using ammunition different from solid shot. And line infantry cannot match this (except for getting their skirmisher out).

@robert piepenbrink
Black powder and Valour & Fortitude, my other napoleonic rules are stored away. Which one you play did not?

GildasFacit
"Muzzle energy has to be much the same whether fired by a musket or by a cannon, if anything a musket should be a bit higher"

Sure? Gunners could vary the type of cannister depending on the target. So, for example, Prussian 12 lbers fired either:
a) 41-ball cannisters of 6 oz each
b) 170-ball cannisters of 1 1/2 each
both with a 4 lb charge.

Whereas British medium 12 lbers always fired 42 balls of 6 lb each with a 3 1/2 lb charge.
Denmark used 100 x 2 lb balls with a 5 lb charge.

So on a wargame table, what you're doing is trying to get a fixed dice modifier for what is a variable weapon; varying in spread, range, likelihood of a hit and effectiveness of a hit. If you want figures for other nations or calibres, let me know.

Just taking the example of the battalion volley at 100yds.

Would that then be a larger number of musket balls covering a wider area than the dispersion from a battery of 12 pounders and how many musket balls are in the canister round?

At longer ranges would the aiming ability of the individual with musket mean that the fire is less effective than artillery as range increases?
Maybe the modifiers are taking that into account and not simply a measure of muzzle velocity and kinetic energy?

Yes.

Did any Prussian actually test this, with charts, sheets hanging on a line, etc?
There's your scientific evidence.