I'm beginning to think that we're playing it all wrong, this was our second game of Landships and the first scenario that uses barrage attacks, or should I say didn't use them...
Between us we had 9 ART and the game only lasted four rounds with us all managing to fire the guns each time. That worked out as 36 possible attacks using the ART but as only about 50% of the communications were successful there was still only a possible 18 attacks, only one of which was actually ordered and actually took place.
This seems a serious fault with the game unless I'm not understanding the rules, what are the odds of first rolling 3 or less for communications and straight after rolling a 1 to say that an attack can take place, this is very, very unlikely making the ART pretty much worthless as even when they do hit they only do the same damage as small arms.
I understand you can actually increase the odds of an order taking place by attacking that hex in subsequent turns, however that doesn't work either as that player just moves his pieces from the hex being attacked leaving the resist marker on an empty hex
It was due to the lack of "hits" with the ART that none of the deadly gas got put down in what is supposed to be an easy win for the Germans. I'm sure it would have been if they had ever got ordered to fire the gas.
I'll give Landships one more chance but form what I can see it will soon be going on ebay...