Glass Cannon/Real Life: Difference between revisions

 

* Since the introduction of gunpowder in the High Middle Ages, Artillery Cannons are (probably) the very first and oldest definition of this trope: Deadly when given a chance to attack from a safe distance but easily neutralized by the destruction of its crew and/or the cannon itself.

** American tank destroyers during [[World War II]] were ''very'' lightly armoured, in most cases lacking a roof for their turret which exposed the crew to all kinds of nasty unpleasantness like enemy fire, grenades, and worst of all, rain, which is just plain mean-spirited on the part of the idiots who came up with that idea to shave off some weight. They usually mounted a bigger gun than friendly tanks and were [[Fragile Speedster|extremely fast]]: the [[wikipedia:M18 Hellcat|M18 Hellcat]] can clock up to 55 mph on good roads. However, the whole American doctrine was more or less bunk, since by that time the Germans were on the defensive, and the undergunned American Shermans often wound up facing them instead, without any tank destroyer help most of the time. The Germans and Russians on the other hand, made theirs more akin to [[Mighty Glacier]]s instead.

*** M36 Jackson had the excellent 90mm gun which could destroy any German tank at distance. Sadly, it had Sherman chassis and lightly armoured body. It could stand against most infantry and light arms, but against heavier German or North Korean tanks, its first round had to count. (Fortunately, it usually counted.) The Yugoslavians converted M36 into a real tank by up-armouring it and changing the diesel into that of T-62. They served in the Croatian Army to 2005.

* The Swedish [[Thirty Years' War]] era [[wikipedia:Leather cannon|Leather Cannon]], which could well be the [[Trope Namer]]. It was basically a copper barrel wrapped on stout leather, like cow hide. The idea was to make the cannon light enough to be mobile and easily carried, which it was. It weighed 40 kg (90 lb) and could easily be carried by two men. Unfortunately it also was prone on over-heating- leather is a good heat insulator - and tended to burst if three or more shots were shot in succession without letting the barrel to cool. Purely as a weapon it was a failure, but as a concept it revolutionized the role of the field artillery. The Swedes developed then a heavier but more reliable bronze Regiment Gun, which could be considered as [[Lightning Bruiser]], as it was towed by one horse or three men, was durable enough to be towed in gallop, and could be easily moved to new emplacement.

* Suicide bombers also tend to fall into this. They don't usually pack armor or a gun, but when they explode, you're in trouble.

** Battle of Jutland somewhat enthusiasm in this area. Curiously, while it ended in bureaucratic [[Blame Game]]s, now it looks like the battlecruisers took beating from each other and battleships (which they should avoid in the intended use), but what caused British losses were ''not'' weak defences, but desire to squeeze the advantages combined with poor training (safety procedures were ignored to maximize rate of fire) and logistical problems (excessively sensitive powder used without brass casings). Thus hits that normally would not be crippling led to fires and magazine explosions. Germans didn't have these problems (being more paranoid about ammunition after an earlier disaster of exactly this sort), so for them battlecruisers worked adequately even in a bad situation, and most likely prevented it from getting a lot worse. See e.g. [//www.dreadnoughtproject.org/tfs/index.php/Battlecruiser this summary].

* Aircraft carriers exist to operate aircraft. Anything not related to operating aircraft, even to some extent being armed simply to defend themselves without their planes, is usually considered a waste.

* Light tanks by definition are supposed to be very mobile, protected from small arms and constitute a serious danger. E.g. Soviet BT Tanks: on most BT-5s, 45-mm longbarrel cannon, armour 10–13 mm—price of max speed 52 km/h on tracks and 72 on wheels.

** Some light tanks just go over the top, however. Look at [http://epizodsspace.airbase.ru/bibl/shirokorad/ot-min/244.jpg this] experimental [[Military Mashup Machine|monstrosity]] (1936-1936). It's a launcher for two fortification-busting 245-mm missiles slapped on BT-5. Max range is 1500 m. Failed [[Incredibly Lame Pun|to hit]] production run as unfit for real assault due to its crappy accuracy, slow reload and—surprise—fragility from top to bottom. Normally light tanks have nothing to do within visual range from enemy fortification even without extra explosives strapped on top.

* Nuclear missiles without silos are arguably the ultimate example of glass cannons in real life, especially in the context of a nuclear war. Ballistic missile submarines have torpedoes, but they would still be in deep trouble if found. Mobile ground based units are even worse, with [[wikipedia:File:SS-25 Sickle in Siberia.jpg|no defenses at all]] against the inevitable enemy counterattacks. Of course, you're supposed to just leave before the counterattack anyway.

* The torpedo boat was a small but maneuverable ship that had powerful armaments that could be used to sink the much bigger battleships of the era, and relied on its speed, agility, and ability to field a lot of them to avoid not getting destroyed.

* The Mitsubishi A6M Zero was extremely fragile, with no armor and fuel tanks that would leak continuously from even the smallest puncture instead of sealing like Allied tanks, so that even the most minor glancing hit could destroy it. It also had better armament than any of its rivals and could blast apart most Allied aircraft with a single burst, and a turn rate good enough to get into a firing position against even the most elusive enemy. It was the king of the Pacific skies until faster American fighters showed up that could simply barrel down on a Zero from above, destroy it, and run away before the Zero's wingmates could respond.

* The [[Dirty Commies|Soviet Union]] produced a literal example. The 2B1 Oka was the largest self-propelled artillery piece ever built, and could fire a 420mm ''nuclear projectile'' from it's 65-foot-long barrel up to 28 miles downrange. Unfortunately, the recoil of such a monster cannon was too powerful, damaging the gun mount, snapping the treads, and tearing up the transmission. Assuming it even could fire a second shot, it would be effectively a stationary artillery piece.

 

----