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I'm still new to this....

I discovered by accident that cargo ships (AK and xAK) could transport fuel!!! There I was scouring the pacific for oilers and tankers...

In the manual I read of AK class:

ship specifically designed to carry cargo, including
military equipment, supplies, and resources.

I suppose 'resources' must mean fuel, thinking about it. But, can anyone point me to a better guide to ship classes and types and what each can do, is best for, not so useful for etc? If such exists. Thanks.

AK and xAK load “fuel” as cargo, think 44 gallon drums.
For “resources” think raw materials like iron ore and rubber.

Fuel is fuel, oil is oil and resources is all other raw materiel.

And xAK can carry fuel, just with reduced load. Very handy if not willing to risk precious TK that should always be kept out of harm's way if possible.

The game does not distinguish between steam-engined (reciprocating or turbine) and motor ships (petrol or diesel engines) and between oil-heated and coal-heated steamers - for the sake of keeping things managable, all ships use "fuel".

In the game, "fuel" is produced exclusively in refineries from oil , so it can be considered as being a placeholder for petrol, diesel and heavy fuels like fuel oil and marine fuel ("bunker oil").

Coal would count as "resource", as does iron ore, bauxit, lead, cotton, food and basically anything counting as primary products.

"Resources" can only be moved by freighters of the AK types.

Fuel can be carried in tankers and AK types, the latter taking a 50% penalty in capacity because the fuel is considered to be carried in drums (barrels).

Now, petrol and diesel fuels are liquids and can easily be filled into drums for transportation. It is also possible to refuel small boats like PTs directly from drums. But it would be impractical to refuel larger motor ships or storage facilities with drummed petrol or diesel.

Heavy fuels like marine fuel however, is a dense viscous mass which becomes liquid only when heated - tankers, oilers and storage facilites have the necessary equipment for this. For this reason it is rather unsuitable to be transported in oil drums.

The number of "small fry" motor ships that could be refueld using drummed petrol or diesel is relatively small and the quanities handled that way are insignificant in the scope of the game.

So by and large, "fuel" in the game is "heavy fuel" or petrol/diesel carried as "bulk" in tankers and not in drums.

For this reason, some players seeking more realism avoid shipping drummed fuel on AK types (except maybe a small xAKL to keep PTs and landing craft operating at some forward base).


Edit: Forgot to add - the heavy industries in the game also consume "fuel" and in large quantities - which again favours the "bulk" method over drummed fuel.

I see. Excellent info. Thanks.

In standard scenarios, xAK such as the Liberties have part of their cargo space devoted to wet cargo - it does help to carry a little fuel out from SFO/LAX to wherever they are heading.

And if you aren't already aware, fuel for aircraft and motor vehicles is considered part of 'supply', so you don't have to arrange tankers to support your air ops. Just bring lots of supply.

With the number of Liberty, Victory and other fuel-carrying classes, it does amount to a lot of fuel transported. Most of them also have legs long enough to avoid refueling at the destination, or in a waypoint, so this is pretty neat.

Just bring lots of supply.

This pretty much sums up the game.[:D]

Many items, including troops, can be cross loaded into shipping spaces not intended for them.

The manual provides details on the ratios of cross loading.

Another small point is that when you have loaded oil instead of fuel the numbers will be in red.
The same is true when you have loaded resources instead of supply, the numbers will also be in red.

ORIGINAL: WEXF

Another small point is that when you have loaded oil instead of fuel the numbers will be in red.
The same is true when you have loaded resources instead of supply, the numbers will also be in red.

Orange, not red - but a good point made.

That's why I am just a trooper. I almost got it right.
Wex

I didn't know any of that. Especially the point about fuel for air ops being included in supply. Thanks all!

When you cross load troops into cargo space you get a message in red at the bottom of the loading screen that you don't have sufficient troop space, but at the top of the interface you will still get the report that the unit has loaded 100%.

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

When you cross load troops into cargo space you get a message in red at the bottom of the loading screen that you don't have sufficient troop space, but at the top of the interface you will still get the report that the unit has loaded 100%.

I have never tried to transport troops when that particular device was signaling.... Something about merchant ships with flat bottoms in heavy seas with troops just stowed in the holds left up to their own devices sends tremors down my spine. EGAD - they might start a gambling palace in the aft hold.

Also, if you are interested in keeping things more "realistic;" Symon pointed out (many moons ago) that there were not enough drums in existence to be loading fuel onto AK types. I always self-limit to just using TK and AO, plus the afore mentioned wet capacity of some AKs.

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

ORIGINAL: WEXF

Another small point is that when you have loaded oil instead of fuel the numbers will be in red.
The same is true when you have loaded resources instead of supply, the numbers will also be in red.

Orange, not red - but a good point made.

And just to confuse you, you can also load sup and resonto the same AK, I suppose the same goes for fuel and oil onto a TK. The game appears to take this into account and unloads correctly. Not sure this was indended but it does.

To Phoenix100, Some other points worth noting: When non-tanker type ships load fuel or Oil (in drums) then the loading & unloading is slower than the loading of supplies would be, or into tankers/oilers. Same goes for resources. Slower loading & unloading. Reason: Supplies are pre-packaged, on pallets or in CONEX containers for shipping by rail or ship. Resources are generically in loose piles or stacks dumped into holds of ships. Of course, try to dock your ships whenever possible for faster loading/unloading.

About loading troops into AK/AKE type ships & cargo into AP type ships. The rule book gives the details, see Section 6.3. On page 120, find the row for AK & AKL types. For Allied strategic movement: Divide the Cargo capacity of the AK by 6, that equals the maximum number of troops that can be carried. For AKL's, divide cargo capacity by 8. Remember that each ground unit has a Troops load# & a Cargo load#. Some units like Artillery may have only Cargo loading needs (no troop loading needs). You should use your Cargo ships to move ground units, don't rely only on AP (transports). You will also see that after a unit is loaded on a ship, that it will start loading supplies to fill the empty space on the ship, unless you tell it otherwise.

For ships loading troops that also have a liquid fuel capacity, it is a good idea to click the "Do Not Load Fuel" since it is easier to lose the ship due to any fires from enemy action. Especially Japanese ships, they can be destroyed by one .50 hit.

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

For ships loading troops that also have a liquid fuel capacity, it is a good idea to click the "Do Not Load Fuel" since it is easier to lose the ship due to any fires from enemy action. Especially Japanese ships, they can be destroyed by one .50 hit.

No luck on that - if the ship has a dedicated fuel tank it will load fuel in it even with that setting. But fuel is the last thing loaded so you can often stop the loading before the fuel is loaded, but with some cost of unused cargo space as well.