Merchant cruisers become more credible opponents when they can threaten a raider with torpedoes as well as four-inch guns. Torpedoes give an auxiliary a chance to inflict decisive damage even when it cannot win a conventional gunnery duel. The imagined design is then compared with Royal Navy armed merchant cruisers of the Second World War. Better-armed auxiliaries might have posed a much more serious threat to German surface raiders.
Notable Point · 45:03-46:08
Why armed merchant cruisers need real striking power
The campaign's armed merchant cruisers gain guns and torpedoes, prompting a comparison with the limited offensive value of their Second World War predecessors.