The person laying smoke that I'm taking advantage of

[Frostbow]

XxSecretSquirrelxX: Seattle slow down and I'll smoke.

Me: Thank you!

 

[Pugilistic]

Im fine with this most of the time except when someone drags fire into my small puff, or when a BB shoves me out of my smoke. 

In these situations, a "pardon me for being in my own smoke" is liable to filter into the chat. 

[Frostbow]

16 hours ago, Pugilistic said:

Im fine with this most of the time except when someone drags fire into my small puff, or when a BB shoves me out of my smoke.

Happened to me once. BB player from the MB-BR clan deliberately pushed my ship out of the smoke that for all intents and purposes was big enough for two ships to hide on. 

[Captain_Rawhide]

I hate when people sit in my smoke.  

1.  They draw more fire onto me.  Even if I am not the intended target I get hit by shells being fired at some big fat BB sitting there.

2.  I can't move.  I never sit completely still.  Somebody sitting behind me negates my ability to move around or escape when the smoke burns off.

3.  Oh, and thanks for taking away the spotting I was counting on. 

I will occasionally drop smoke for somebody else if I see they are in trouble and it will be useful for them.  I never get an acknowledgement.  

[Justin_Simpleton]

I confess that I don't understand the when, where, why, and how to use it when it comes to smoke.  As I'm learning to play DDs, it's becoming painfully obvious.  I'm imagining that improved voice communication might help me learn faster. 

[Frostbow]

1 hour ago, Captain_Rawhide said:

Even if I am not the intended target I get hit by shells being fired at some big fat BB sitting there.

Battleships usually stay at the back; they do not just move forward or rush to where the destroyers are. Are you using your smoke near battleships?

[Justin_Simpleton]

19 minutes ago, Frostbow said:

Battleships usually stay at the back; they do not just move forward or rush to where the destroyers are. Are you using your smoke near battleships?

What about BBs with a secondary build?  Doesn't the spotting plane work for the BB when in smoke?

[Nevermore135]

55 minutes ago, Justin_Simpleton said:

I confess that I don't understand the when, where, why, and how to use it when it comes to smoke.  As I'm learning to play DDs, it's becoming painfully obvious.  I'm imagining that improved voice communication might help me learn faster. 

The sad fact is that 99% of the time in Randoms you are better off using your smoke selfishly. There is a very high chance that laying smoke for an ally will go completely ignored and wasted, and often time when it is not cruisers and BBs will light themselves up anyways by not being cognizant of their smoke firing detection range.

At the same time, DDs need to be aware of the larger spotting situation when using their smoke to break contact or farm. I can’t count the number of times I’ve watched a DD pop their smoke and proceed to sit in it while the entire flank loses their vision. It becomes quite funny when they then ask for intelligence data.

[Frostbow]

11 hours ago, Justin_Simpleton said:

What about BBs with a secondary build?  Doesn't the spotting plane work for the BB when in smoke?

I don't know. My experiences so far have not been ample enough to allow me to answer. 

[ArIskandir]

Oh I loved so much laying smoke for Random mates I oughta be Puff The Magic Dragón... Good times 

Silly stuff like that is what I miss the most about the game

 

[Nevermore135]

20 hours ago, Justin_Simpleton said:

What about BBs with a secondary build?  Doesn't the spotting plane work for the BB when in smoke?

9 hours ago, Frostbow said:

I don't know. My experiences so far have not been ample enough to allow me to answer. 

The practical application of spotter aircraft to detect targets is extremely limited due to the air detection ranges in WoWs, the way firing mechanics affect detection (both air and surface), and the limited patrol radius of catapult aircraft.

Just about the only time catapult aircraft provide useful spotting information for battleships is when used to see over nearby islands (and they are often quickly shot down). Smoke screens are also torpedo magnets, so unless there are no torpedo threats on the flank sitting in smoke in a BB can be incredibly dangerous, even with hydro.

It can be argued that there is some niche utility for Sicilia and G. Verdi to utilize their spotter in tandem with their own exhaust smoke, but even then the offensive utility of such a tactical maneuver is limited by the need to refrain from firing the main guns (which will light up the ship for any target within secondary range).

Edited May 1 by Nevermore135

[Justin_Simpleton]

13 minutes ago, Nevermore135 said:

The practical application of spotter aircraft to detect targets is extremely limited due to the air detection ranges in WoWs, the way firing mechanics affect detection (both air and surface), and the limited patrol radius of catapult aircraft.

Just about the only time catapult aircraft provide useful spotting information is when used to see over nearby islands (and they are often quickly shot down). Smoke screens are also torpedo magnets, so unless there are no torpedo threats on the flank sitting in smoke in a BB can be incredibly dangerous, even with hydro.

It can be argued that there is some niche utility for Sicilia and G. Verdi to utilize their spotter in tandem with their own exhaust smoke, but even then the offensive utility of such a tactical maneuver is limited by the need to refrain from firing the main guns (which will light up the ship for any target within secondary range).

There's been situations where I move in with my sec. spec. ship in conjunction with my DD mate to take out the enemy DD.  Then I find myself and DD smoked up and lose sight of the enemy DD.  After a moment or two it dawns on me to use my spotter which reveals the enemy DD in a couple of secs.  He dies while launching torpedos.  To use this as a planned tactic I think you have to have a good understanding of the aircraft detection range of the DD and the spotting range of your ship's spotters.

[Nevermore135]

19 minutes ago, Justin_Simpleton said:

There's been situations where I move in with my sec. spec. ship in conjunction with my DD mate to take out the enemy DD.  Then I find myself and DD smoked up and lose sight of the enemy DD.  After a moment or two it dawns on me to use my spotter which reveals the enemy DD in a couple of secs.  He dies while launching torpedos.  To use this as a planned tactic I think you have to have a good understanding of the aircraft detection range of the DD and the spotting range of your ship's spotters.

You’re still describing a very niche, coordinated maneuver with your friend, and arguably a mistake on his part for denying vision of the threat. And as you acknowledge, in this situation the DD dies while launching torpedoes - so it’s very much a risky situation you’ve put yourself in if he’s launching torps from within his own air detect range (or even AA range if he foolishly forgot to turn it off).

Spotter aircraft aren’t really “spotters” in the sense that the word is often used by players. Their primary purpose is to improve main battery range, reflecting their historical use to spot the fall of shot and relay corrections back to the ship, thus leading to increased accuracy/effective range of the ship utilizing them. They aren’t meant to be scout aircraft, and their implementation largely reflects that.

Edited May 1 by Nevermore135

[Justin_Simpleton]

2 hours ago, Nevermore135 said:

You’re still describing a very niche, coordinated maneuver with your friend, and arguably a mistake on his part for denying vision of the threat. And as you acknowledge, in this situation the DD dies while launching torpedoes - so it’s very much a risky situation you’ve put yourself in if he’s launching torps from within his own air detect range (or even AA range if he foolishly forgot to turn it off).

Spotter aircraft aren’t really “spotters” in the sense that the word is often used by players. Their primary purpose is to improve main battery range, reflecting their historical use to spot the fall of shot and relay corrections back to the ship, thus leading to increased accuracy/effective range of the ship utilizing them. They aren’t meant to be scout aircraft, and their implementation largely reflects that.

What I'm describing is a situation that occurs when the friendly DD makes a mistake.  Rather than remaining helpless in smoke, you can use spotter planes in a non-typical way to gain the advantage of having vision for both you and the friendly DD at a time when the enemy DD thinks it's safe to just sit in the cap to deny your capping and launch torps in your general direction.

[Wolfswetpaws]

3 hours ago, Justin_Simpleton said:

What I'm describing is a situation that occurs when the friendly DD makes a mistake.  Rather than remaining helpless in smoke, you can use spotter planes in a non-typical way to gain the advantage of having vision for both you and the friendly DD at a time when the enemy DD thinks it's safe to just sit in the cap to deny your capping and launch torps in your general direction.

Spotter planes and Fighter planes, launched from a Battleship (for example) can be utilized to detect ships while the battleship is inside a smokescreen.

So, for your "oops scenario" ...

~DD is sailing along then arrives at their intended destination and is planning to park there for a little while and observe the red-team while their torpedoes are reloading.
~DD accidentally hits their smokescreen key.
~BB or Cruiser that was following along (generally speaking) is now unable to see targets and the DD that popped-smoke is unable to see targets.
~BB or Cruiser launches a spotter or fighter plane consumable as an improvised solution to the total loss of detection caused by the smokescreen.
~Plane gets shot at by a ship that forgot to turn off its AA while it hoping to sneak-up on the DD parked inside its own smokescreen.  Thus the enemy is detected and the friendly ships are not quite caught by surprise.  Indeed, they might even be able to turn-the-tables upon the ship that was trying to sneak-up on them.  🙂 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075029/quotes/?ref_=tt_trv_qu

Quote

Lone Watie: I'm gettin' better at sneaking up on you like this. Only an Indian can do something like this.

Josey Wales: That's what I figured.

Lone Watie: You figured?

Josey Wales: Only an Indian could do something like that.

[Lone Watie hears a gun cock behind him; turns and sees Moonlight]

Lone Watie: It's not right, this damn woman doing something like this to me. I used to have power. Now old age is creeping up on me.

Josey Wales: More like old habits than old age.

Josey Wales Sneaking up

 
Edited to add:  Remember that a spotter/fighter plane can be seen by the red-team ships and they can use the plane's presence to understand that the ship that launched the plane is in the vicinity of the plane.
Careful observers may note the orbit of the plane and track its progress well enough to "blind fire" at the ship if they can correctly deduce the ship's movement and the center of the plane's circular orbit above the ship.
 

Edited May 1 by Wolfswetpaws