Sunk! Modern Naval Investigative Methodology

To prevent expensive boats from hitting and damaging each other when they are docked, sailors put fenders in between the boats. For the purposes of this puzzle, people never put fenders diagonally.
ICONOCLAST
BLACKSMITH
HISTORICAL
SABBATICAL
MEDALLISTS
TECHNIQUES
OCCUPATION
THEMSELVES
ZIPPERLESS
PAGINATION

Hits:

  • Patrol Boat, B2
  • Submarine, B4
  • Destroyer, B9
  • Battleship, E7
  • Submarine, F2
  • Aircraft Carrier, F9
  • Patrol Boat, H6
  • Destroyer, I4

Misses:

  • A2
  • A4
  • A9
  • D9
  • E8
  • F3
  • F7
  • G2
  • H7
  • I2
  • I5
  • I6
  • J4
  • J9
Also I want you to know two things about sailing that truly have nothing to do with this puzzle:
  1. They are not 'ropes' on a boat, they are 'lines.' (So the answer to "How many ropes are there on this boat?" is always zero because they are lines.)
  2. Technically, the 'pier' is the physical structure that you walk on to get to the boat, and the 'dock' is the water surrounding the pier.

20 guesses left