Vehicle: USS Monitor

[Susano]

USS MONITOR

Val	CHA	Cost	Notes
13	SIZE	65	20" x .10"; -13" KB; -8 DCV
76	STR	1	Lift 933 tons; 15d6 HTH Damage
10	DEX	0	OCV: 3/DCV: 3
23	BODY	0
7	DEF	15
2	SPD	0	Phases: 6, 12
Total Characteristics Cost: 81

Movement:	Ground: 0"/0"
Swimming: 4"/8"

Cost	Abilities and Equipment
1	Propeller-Driven Ironclad:  Swimming +2"; Surface Only (-1), 1 Continuing Fuel 
Charge (easily obtained fuel; 6 hours; -0), Limited Maneuverability (-3/4), Side Effects 
(propeller does KA 1 1/2d6 to anyone coming in contact with bottom stern of vehicle, 
occurs automatically, only affects environment around vehicle; -1/2)
Water Vehicle: Ground Movement -6"

Tactical Systems
43	11" Dahlgren Smooth Bore Cannon: RKA 4 1/2d6, Increased Range (914"; +1/4),
Indirect (can be arced over some obstacles; +1/4), 32 Charges (+1/2); Extra Time 
(1 Turn to load and fire; -1), OIF Bulky (-1), Real Weapon (-1/4)
5	11" Dahlgren Smooth Bore Cannon: Another 11" Dahlgren Smooth Bore Cannon 
(total of 2)
10	Armored Hull: +4 DEF; Limited Coverage (hull/frame; -1/4)
14	Armored Turret: +6 DEF; Limited Coverage (turret; -1/4)
73	Total Abilities and Equipment Cost
154	Total Vehicle Cost

Value	Disadvantages
25	Distinctive Features: U.S. Navy Ironclad, the first of her kind (NC, Extreme)
25	Total Disadvantage Points
26	Total Cost (129/5)

Description:

Like the H.M.S. Dreadnought, the U.S.S. Monitor was such a new and unique vessel she managed to name and define a whole class of military warship. Constructed in 1861, and launched January 30, 1862, the Monitor was designed by John Ericsson and built under his direct supervision. His design, which consisted of a single revolving turret set into a very only a very low hull, created the standard for virtually all such ships to come. Although a fairly successful design from a combat point of view (there was virtually nothing for an enemy's guns to target), the vehicle wasn't very sea worthy, and the Monitor herself sank off of Cape Hatteras on December 31, 1982 in the midst of a strong gale.

 

Although the first "monitor" (of which the U.S. Navy would eventually commission 71 between 1861 and 1937), the Monitor wasn't exactly the first ironclad vessel. At the same time the United States Navy was building the Monitor, the Confederate Navy was building the C.S.S. Virginia (better known to some as the Merrimac). The two met on March 9, 1862, at the battle of Hampton Roads, in an encounter that Ken Burns' states (in his documentary "The Civil War") "made every other fleet in the world obsolete".

 

The Monitor measures 172 feet long, is 41.5 feet wide, and is a little over 11 feet deep. She displaces 987 tons, has a crew of 49, and mounts two 11" Dahlgren smoothbore cannon in a rotating turret. The guns can launch a 135 lb shell upwards of 2,000 yards. For protection, the Monitor has 1" armor plating on her deck, 2-4.5" on her sides, and 8-9" on the turret.

[Michael Hopcroft]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

Unfortunately thre Minotor did not prove all that seaworthy. It was sunk less than six months later in a storm off Cape hatteras that many older ships could have survived. Also, the battle of Hampton Roads, in which the Monitor fought the Virginia, was a tactical draw -- neither ship could damage the other, so int he end the Virginia withdrew. (It did count as a strategic victory for the Uniion because the Virgiina never again threatened Union ships).

 

Thje Monitor was the first step in the evolution of steel-contructed, armored warships. Concepts used in its deisgn, such as the rotating gun turret, are used to this day.

[Koshka]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

Also' date=' the battle of Hampton Roads, in which the Monitor fought the Virginia, was a tactical draw -- neither ship could damage the other, so int he end the Virginia withdrew.[/quote']

 

Posting from work, so I don't have any of my books available, but IIRC if the Monitor had used a full charge of powder in its cannons it probably would have gotten through the Virginia/Merrimac's armor. It was only using partial charges because someone higher up didn't trust the cannon design to not blow up with a full charge.

 

I'll see if I can find that reference later.

[Edsel]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

All the these quotes are from Warships and Naval Battles of the Civil War by Tony Gibbons:

 

"When the Merrimack returned to battle the following morning, she met the newly-arrived Monitor in an inconclusive action. The Monitor used reduced charges in her guns, so the full penetrating effect was not developed, while the Merrimack, now low on powder, had only shell rather than solid shot to use against her enemy.

 

About the Monitor's rate of fire:

 

Monitor was struck twenty-four times, and anyone near the turret wall when it was struck was knocked down by the consuccion. She fired fifty-five rounds, loading and firing every six or eight minutes in the three and a half-hour battle.

[Susano]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

About the Monitor's rate of fire:

 

So... should I give the Monitor's cannon an Extra Time limitation of around 5 minutes then?

[Old Man]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

That seems like an insanely low reload time given that 18th-century British warships could reload and fire every thirty seconds or so. Is the six-eight minute figure just an average?

[LordGhee]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

Remember that black powder cannon after ten rds or so had to stop to let the guns cool or when you tried to load it would cook off.

 

Lord Ghee

[Edsel]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

I think a one minute reload rate would be closer to the mark. There were several reasons for the low rate of fire during the battle.

 

I imagine that the turret was pretty cramped, even more so than a casemate ship. Fire the gun pull it back in, swab it out, reload then run the sucker back out. All of this in a vessel that was barely seaworthy. I read that a steam system was used to rotate the turret and was it was not very good at tracking. With only two guns in a moving turret you'd better make sure you aim well. It probably took a while to get the guns properly trained on the target before they'd take a shot.

 

Oops, too far right bring it back left. No not that far left, back to the right a bit. Almost there... almost there... Dang! Back to the left again.

 

And yes you did have to let the guns cool down if you were firing too rapidly, however I bet with the difficulty they had loading and aiming that wasn't as much of a worry as it'd normally be. With the smoke and constricted fields of view the combatants lost sight of each other several times. The Virginia had a ram which she tried to use but the Monitor was more manuverable so she missed the two or three ram attempts. After a ram attempt it would take the vessels several minutes to get back into position to shoot at each other.

From what I've read it was over 120F in there (the poor engineroom crew had to contend with 178F!). The ship was designed in the hopes they could manage 8-9 knots (which they never achieved). In reality about 6 knots was top speed.

 

The Virginia probably had just as hard a time getting her guns to bear. Each gun had three different ports but the field of fire was pretty restricted for each port. They had to position the gun to face the right port and then get the Monitor into the field of fire for that port.

 

BTW later in the year the Virgina sought a rematch. She had managed to renew her supply of shot and had been reinforced with additional iron plates. However the Monitor refused to fight a rematch. Since the Union had the Virginia bottled-up and the Union army was closing in on the port, and the wooden ships had withdrawn to a safe distance, the Union had no reason to renew the battle.

 

Edit: BTW its all in all a pretty good write-up are you going to do the Virginia as well?

[Susano]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

Edit: BTW its all in all a pretty good write-up are you going to do the Virginia as well?

 

Eventually. I want to add a few things to the Monitor. Extra Time (1 minute) for the guns, and the Crew Served limitation.

 

Right now I an tinkering with some panzers.

[Kaeto]

Re: Vehicle: USS Monitor

 

Part of the slowness in loading the Monitor's guns was that they turned the turret so that the back of the turret was to the Virgina, rather than close the armored gunport doors which would have taken even longer on reload.

The Virginia had most of her guns mounted in a broadside, only the bow and stern guns could be swung from one gun port to another. Which meant in order to aim the majority of her guns you had to manuever the ship. That is where the Monitor revolutionized naval warfare with it's turret, as it was the first ship to have one.