How does the game determine whether a ship between you and your target gets hit?

[unmerged(733286)]

Question in topic.

I am really curious how the game determines what happens when I am shooting at something with another ship, friendly or enemy, between me and the target. I swear I have had turns where some shots will go over the in between ship, while some will hit it, all it the same distance and all crossing over the intervening ship. Is it random? If not, how is it determined?

If it IS random, I think it would be nice at some point to implement a system where shots "arc," and there is a safe zone where ships can sit and be shot over.

 

[unmerged(733404)]

My guess is that if the ship leaves the range of the gun around the time the shot was taken, it will miss.

 

[unmerged(733286)]

My guess is that if the ship leaves the range of the gun around the time the shot was taken, it will miss.

Huh? I am not talking about what determines if you hit the target ship, it's about shooting "over" ships in between.

 

[KildarKMT]

I imagine that shots do follow a sort of arc with the apex being halfway between the firing ship and the target. This may require some testing, but from what I remember it feels like shots that collide with something below minimum range will be deflected, while shots that collide above will deal damage. Shots at a certain height can also pass safely over empty decks while colliding with superstructures.

 

[vimaria]

Projectiles follows a arc like KildarKMT say and it's true that shots that hit something below minimum range is deflected. All the ships are 3D models so when large ships fire at each other smaller ships can pass below the projectiles without getting hit. There is a small random element added when a gun fires and for long shoots that can have a huge impact on the elevation of the projectile. It will make some shoot overshoot the target while other hit or land to short.

Another important part for the projectiles weapons is that they really aim and shoot from the barrel and not by just looking at the target and sending away the projectile at the optimal angle. So the artillery do not aim for the sky to look cool but rather to shoot away the projectile at the correct angle. If the boat gets hit by the enemy and is knocked to the side when the gun is about to fire it will not have time to adjust the aim and the shot will most likley miss.