[arkhangelsk]

Originally Posted by Avatar_notADV

It's safe to say that the physical features of the weapon aren't necessarily indicative of its capabilities. RH looks like it does at least partially because that's what Nanoha expected it to look like - kind of like her barrier jacket, which was generated at the same time.

So it's not totally unexpected that RH has an effectively-useless sight-thingy because Nanoha expects a big gun to have one - in other words, even though RH doesn't really need it to aim, it's present as a psychological aid to Nanoha, to give it a "big gun" feel.

1) Trying to dismiss something as purely "psychological" is not good analysis technique.
2) And it is not a big gun, or a big cannon. It is a staff! Psychologically, Nanoha should expect RH to auto-aim before she expects a scope, especially since this is the first time we even saw a sight.

That said, I don't see the problem really. We don't ever see a beam attack fired off-bore, so it's reasonable to assume that they can't be fired off-bore. We don't ever see one "miss", and aiming-assist is well within the capabilities of the devices, so it's reasonable to assume the devices help with aiming the big beams.

It is one or the other. Aiming assist beyond providing a sight requires "electronic" off-bore beam steering.

Clearly the homing projectiles' limitations ... technique that Nanoha uses.

Entirely agree with this paragraph, but it proves my point - the stick doesn't do everything for you despite the wishes of say Jimmy C. The user does a lot of the work.

Vice is a special case, because he's the only "sniper" we know about. Additionally, he's just not as much of a mage as most of our other cast members, right? Vice might have to work a lot harder to get his results than, say, Nanoha...

All that wouldn't have mattered had the weapons been auto-aiming, like some propose. Since they aren't, ergonomics are important.

Originally Posted by Keroko

True, aiming can be concidered a requirement for certain situations. Vice was a sniper, which requires a hell of a lot more acuracy then anything we've seen the others do so far.

There we go. When push comes to shove, you need sights and stocks. Ergo, ergonomics are important, even in the Nanoverse. Man, it is amazing how hard people fight for the concept that ergonomics are unimportant!

However, judging by Nanoha's 'metal scope', you could also say that its a matter of personal preference.

The electronic scope is a way to compensate for a proper sight.

Yes, but point in case still is that devices do poses a rather large amount of ergonomics.

Do you mean "automation"?

And at the same time it also blows the idea of a gun being superior in terms of aiming clear out of the water.

What?

About as much as non-homing shots are evaded, really.

Probably the fact it is hard to aim them is a contributor to this.

Source? I can't recall this ever being stated.

Check NanohaWiki.

Which is the case for... oh, just about every spell? Take A's 2, Fate's Arc Saber (a non-homing attack) takes 5 seconds to be fired. A's 5, Signum's Sturm Felle takes 5 seconds, episode 7 has several more spells that don't activate instantly, despite not being homing ones.

You must be reading a completely different paragraph from what I typed. Arc Saber is a homing attack. Sturm Felle has to be set straight down. The point is if you don't aim, you are forced to load correction or homing data, and as you clearly agree, there is a delay out there. There is a clear need, and a clear delay to accomodate it.

Compare with, for example, how Teana did it in Ep1 of StrikerS. Note how fast she shifted b/w different targets, despite being a B rank. That's because she was using sights and aiming instead of fooling around with a "Torpedo Setter" trying to load gyro offsets into her weapons.

LR capaballity?

But 'if they do get close, just point' doesn't exactly require guns.

Long Range capability. With proper ergonomics, you can aim further and hit further, while retaining your ability to point or even spray and pray at close range.

Large attacks are obviously harder to control. The targeting system can only help the aim before the target has moved, afterwards its like throwing a rock, no matter how accurate you throw, if your target moves before the rock hits him you'll miss. But really, even if Nanoha had used a gun-based device and aimed manually, would it have made any difference? Vita would still have dodged.

The point here is to refute the Never Miss claim made by someone other than you. You did notice I'm shooting at about 3 people.

It just occured to me that staff devices may have another function by auto aiming. If the wielder has to focuss aiming down the sight of his device, his concentration is split. By allowing the device to correct the aiming, the user can devide more attention to concentration on the actuall attack, increasing its effciency.

Actually, the fact that sights are projected for long range shots (which you agree to) kinds of takes away from "auto aiming" theories. So what really happens is that the wielder struggles to aim, wastes time loading a guidance system into his shots and/or blows time loading compensating gyro data. How this is supposed to help his concentration is unclear.