Despite what the popular board game suggests, naval warfare isn’t as easy as shouting a series of coordinates until the enemy’s vessel is obliterated. A reallife game of battleships is all about military planning, precision and firepower.
Early battleships launched during the late 19th and early 20th century carried enormous guns capable of launching projectiles across the ocean surface to targets thousands of metres away. To defend themselves against enemy ships with equal firepower, they needed to be heavily armoured too, with thick steel plates encasing their huge hulls.
During World War I, battleships became dominant naval weapons. Prior to the Great War, Germany challenged the Royal Navy as the most powerful fighting fleet, Britain hit back with the revolutionary HMS Dreadnought, kick-starting a naval arms race. However, by the…
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History of War Book of Combat Machines (Digital) - 1 Issue, History of War Book of Combat Machines 2016