Vientiane Throne of Civilization

Chapter 2042 Practical Test
Lin Youshu also came from that era.

In that era, the cannons used on ironclad warships or sailing warships were no different from those used by artillery units.

When at sea, it is used as a naval gun. When it is ashore, if it is to fight on land, it can be pushed off the ship and used as a regular cannon. To put it simply, it is the same thing.

At most, a mounting bracket would be added so that the cannon could be operated stably on a rocking ship.

According to his view, the navy should be a comprehensive branch of the military. Once you're on a ship, you have to know a little bit about everything. Once you're off a ship, you have to switch to the army.

However, Lin Youshu clearly had different ideas regarding the arrangement of the Black Sail Vanguard.

"It is indeed possible to directly load the Thunderclap Cannon onto the ship for use, but it is actually unnecessary."

"When our naval fleet is conducting operations, it will not only send one type of ship. Destroyers and Black Sail Vanguard ships can be used in combination, each performing its own duties."

"When artillery firepower is needed, we can just use the main and secondary guns of the destroyer to output the firepower. According to my thinking, the main task of the Black Sail Vanguard is to advance and launch surprise attacks. Bringing the Thunderclap Heavy Cannons onto the ship would be a burden."

As the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Xu had far too many things to think about every day.

In contrast, Lin Youshu, as a naval lieutenant commander and now the commander-in-chief of a naval fleet, only had his mind on fleet training and combat.

Therefore, his thinking in this regard is much clearer than Zhou Xu's.

"Of course, considering certain necessary circumstances, long-range firepower still needs to be provided."

"Previously, the Dark Elf fleet would deploy crossbowmen and ballistae on the ships. Now, the Dark Elf soldiers on our ships are all equipped with the latest Thunder Rifles, and for heavy firepower, we have several heavy machine guns."

"When necessary, it can also be used in conjunction with mage units or high-end combat forces."

With its powerful engine and protective shield, the Black Sail Vanguard ship is indeed a good choice to be used in conjunction with mage units or high-end combat forces.

While Lin Youshu was speaking, the Black Sail Vanguard and destroyers at sea had finished their adjustments and began a live-fire exercise.

In the live-fire exercise, both sides switched to blank rounds for the exercise.

It has no real destructive power.

However, the strength of the Black Sail Vanguard's shield had already been confirmed in previous tests.

Based on this premise, Lin Youshu also specially formulated the rules for the live-fire exercise. He wrote them down one by one in a notebook and handed it to Zhou Xu.

Zhou Xu glanced at it; the first rule was, "Being hit three times in quick succession by a destroyer's main gun means you lose."

This is easy to understand. The shield of the Black Sail Vanguard ship cannot withstand the second shot from the main gun. Two shots are enough to completely destroy the shield and cause damage to the hull. If the third shot hits, it will definitely create a huge hole in the Black Sail Vanguard ship.

There are also algorithms to coordinate with secondary artillery firepower, with dozens of rules in total.

According to Lin Youshu, the rules for this exercise are still being improved.

Zhou Xu was only there to review the results, so he didn't need to understand the rules of the exercise.

In the short span of time, the Black Sail Vanguard had already rushed into the destroyer's firing range. Faced with this situation, the destroyer was not polite at all, and its main guns and secondary guns opened fire simultaneously.

Although it was a blank round, the scale of the operation was quite impressive, which suggests there was some grudge involved.

This was clearly not the first time either side had conducted a live-fire exercise. The dark elf soldiers on the Black Sail Vanguard were well aware of the formidable long-range firepower of their Great Zhou destroyers. Almost simultaneously with entering the firing range of their Great Zhou destroyers, they immediately deployed their shields and increased their speed to maximum. Now it was time to showcase their sailing skills!

Don't be fooled by the fact that the shield was blasted open by a destroyer while they were testing its strength; that was because they stayed put.

The Black Sail Vanguard's superior agility and speed, far exceeding those of ordinary ships, is itself a major advantage.

The destroyers were well aware of this, but the Black Sail Vanguard's maneuvering was simply outrageous.

With limited main gun movement speed, hitting the target is not so easy.

However, they also came up with a strategy: use the main guns to restrict the Black Sail Vanguard's movement, and then use the secondary guns to rack up points.

Considering the roles and characteristics of the two ships, a one-on-one duel is actually disadvantageous for the destroyer, which is why they have lost more often than they have won in previous live-fire exercises.

And those victories were all achieved using this method.

Today, the Emperor is watching the battle from the port, and the soldiers are all highly motivated.

After a series of maneuvers and tug-of-war, the Black Sail Vanguard successfully approached the destroyer after its shields were destroyed and its hull was subjected to several rounds of fire from its secondary guns.

At that very moment, the opposing destroyer immediately ceased fire.

At the port, Lin Youshu then began his explanation...

“Under normal circumstances, if the Black Sail Vanguard Ship gets this close, it can directly ram it with its enchanted ram. However, this would result in significant losses. Therefore, the exercise rules stipulate that once the ship gets close enough, the mission is considered successful, and the destroyer can no longer fire its cannons.”

After all, it's just an exercise. We can't just ram or blow up the ship every time we have a live-fire exercise, can we?
Zhou Xu nodded in understanding.

This immediately shifted the focus of the battle to boarding maneuvers.

Once close combat breaks out, the advantages of the dark elf soldiers will be quickly amplified.

The naval soldiers on the destroyer were clearly aware of this as well. Almost at the same time that the Black Sail Vanguard successfully approached, the naval soldiers on the destroyer had already lined up with their guns at various points on the destroyer.

Facing those rows of gun barrels, it wouldn't be so easy for the dark elves to break through; the Great Zhou's naval soldiers still had an advantage in marksmanship.

During this time, although the dark elf soldiers also fought back with rifles, they were ultimately lacking in firepower. Instead, the Zhou navy soldiers used rifle fire to suppress their offensive, which made Eredar quite anxious. He wished he could personally charge into battle.

Lin Youshu's tactical style can be said to have been deeply inherited from Bai Tu. Once he gains the upper hand, he will relentlessly press forward and will never give the enemy any chance to breathe.

Although both sides' naval soldiers had received his training, Lin Youshu's previous tactical thinking obviously could not have taken into account the characteristics of the dark elves. The tactics were all based on the naval soldiers of their Great Zhou.

This meant that the Dark Elf naval soldiers were clearly still somewhat out of their element in terms of tactics.

In the end, during the boarding action, the human soldiers managed to turn the tide and win!
Standing at the port, Zhou Xu could even hear the soldiers' joyful cheers.

During this time, Zhou Xu glanced at Ereda, who looked slightly annoyed, as if he had lost a battle. He smiled and didn't take it too seriously.

Ultimately, it was just an exercise. Once on the battlefield, without these constraints, the Black Sail Vanguard Ship could simply ram into it after getting close, and the outcome would be hard to predict.

Conversely, on the battlefield, their Great Zhou's destroyers would unleash their full firepower, and the enemy might be sunk before they even got close.

Not to mention, in actual combat, how could their technologically advanced destroyers possibly operate alone? Their powerful mass production capabilities are also a major advantage of their technological prowess!
(End of this chapter)