The deck fight
The deck fight is the boarding action inside a ship, fought compartment by compartment through hatches, with the boarders trying to take the bridge, the engine room or the hold.
17 numbers, 0 with an outside source
- A0 numbers at grade A
- B0 numbers at grade B
- C0 numbers at grade C
- D0 numbers at grade D
- E17 numbers at grade E
Functionality
1 topic
Boarding
- A raider boards by matching your speed inside 5 km for 20 s.
- The helm breaks a boarding match unless that procedure asks you first.
- THE DECK FIGHT | your armed crew and boarding party meet the boarders.
- You command it, even when the Second flies the ship.
- GENERAL QUARTERS has the crew suited before they arrive.
- Win, and that raider has nobody left to board with.
- Lose, and the raiders fill their hold from yours, the most valuable goods first.
- They take the ship only if you fought on after the Second's warning.
Values
17 numbers: 17 E
Each value is read from the game code. Sort by any column heading, or filter by grade or by a word.
| Quantity | Value | Grade | Source | Why this value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seconds in one step of the deck fight | 5 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a step long enough that one shot a step is a single aimed burst. |
| Seconds to move through one hatch into the next compartment | 10 s | EAuthored | Atomic Rockets, astromilitary, Naval Boarding | The game chose a quick move. No source gives a time to pass a hatch. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Seconds for a boarding party's cutter to open a sealed hatch | 40 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose it so a cut hatch is slower than a walk and a real cost. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Seconds to get a squad into suits | 60 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose about a minute. The mirror gives no donning time here. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Seconds boarders must hold the bridge or engineering to take the ship | 30 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a short hold, so an undefended compartment falls quickly. |
| Seconds boarders must hold the cargo hold to strip it and go | 60 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a longer hold than for the bridge, because stripping cargo takes time. |
| Chance of a hit for one man, one shot a step, no cover, a seasoned hand | 0.05 chance | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a low base chance so many shots and cover decide the fight. No source gives a hit rate in a corridor. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Hit chance of men who just came through a cut hatch | 0.5 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a penalty for men who arrive in a rush. |
| Seconds the breach penalty lasts | 10 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a short window after the hatch opens. |
| Multiple on the chance to hit a squad that has held its ground | 0.5 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose half the hit chance, so cover matters without making a squad safe. |
| Hit chance multiple for a shot through an open hatch into the next compartment | 0.6 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a penalty for a shot through a hatch. |
| Seconds a vented compartment knocks suited men about | 20 s | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a short stun. A vent is a violent change of pressure and the sources give no time. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Hit chance multiple of men stunned by a vent | 0.3 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a large penalty while the stun lasts. |
| Hit chance multiple of a squad halfway into its suits | 0.5 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose half effect while a squad suits up. |
| Share of men lost at which a boarding party falls back to its pod | 0.5 share | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose it so a boarding party can break and retreat. No source gives a break point. The sources are silent on this figure. |
| Hit chance multiple by crew skill | rookie 0.8, seasoned 1, veteran 1.3 multiple | EAuthored | No source recorded | The game chose a modest spread between a rookie and a veteran. |
| Which compartments each hatch joins | a, SPINE FWD, BRIDGE, across, b, QUARTERS, SPINE FWD, down, c, SPINE MID, SPINE FWD, across, d, AIRLOCK P, SPINE MID, down, e, SPINE MID, AIRLOCK S, down, f, SPINE AFT, SPINE MID, across, g, CARGO HOLD, SPINE AFT, down, h, ENGINEERING, SPINE AFT, across table | EAuthored | Atomic Rockets, astromilitary, Naval Boarding | The game drew the plan of a medium hull. The airlocks sit amidships because a boarder at the bridge airlock won 65 of 66 fights. The sources are silent on this figure. |
Real-world basis
4 points
- A boarding party must enter by an airlock or cut through the hull, and a defender can wait at the airlock with weapons aimed.
- Men in a compartment that is vented lose air, so suited men are stunned and unsuited men die.
- A hatch cut by a team takes time, and the men who come through it fight badly for a moment.
- A boarding party that loses a share of its men falls back to its pod.
Game and reality differences
2 points
- The deck fight plays on a plan of a medium hull drawn on its side. A real hull has far more compartments.
- The airlocks sit amidships, three cut hatches from the bridge, the engine room and the hold, because an airlock beside the bridge let eight boarders take the bridge in 65 of 66 fights.
Source absences
4 points
- Atomic Rockets does not provide values for the following:
- Time to cut a hatch. 40 seconds is authored.
- Time to get into suits. 60 seconds is authored.
- Time to hold a compartment.
- Hit chance for a shot between compartments. 0.6 times the base chance is authored.
Sources
1 document
- Atomic Rockets, astromilitary, Naval Boarding: A boarding party that enters by an obvious airlock risks a hot reception, the target can endanger the party by firing its attitude jets, and the hostiles could vent the hab module to vacuum, so boarders should keep their suits on. (all uses)