Pete,
Those are, as you know, just the reasons why some folks avoid stages with "must hit/knockdown" scenerios UNLESS they have suitable knockdown targets.
Frog and others,
As one can readily understand, in a man-on-man stage, failure to knockdown targets is akin to scratch hits on a real advisary. Of course, one could use some real lightweight, small knockdows for the folks with little guns. That would sorta simulate their need to shoot much more accurately than the person shooting a 40, 44, or 45 loaded original weight bullets to late 1800s muzzle velocities. Ahhhh.. now .. just where does authenticity end and the fairness of uniform stages start?
??
What I have seen several times is stages with cardboard targets or repaint targets after each shooter and the shooter is responsible for deciding to, or not to, shoot again any targets he/she thought they missed. More often, the stage writer is merciful and does not allow the shooter that option. IF one is at SASS "in your face" distances from targets spotting your own hits/misses is quite feasable (at least for those folks shoot nitro powder!!!) -- at 20-30 yards, not to mention 40-50-60, etc, the shooter has little hope of spotting hits/misses (unless, of course, he/she has the 10/20 or better vision many of us once had and really fast eyeballs). If it means a reload to shoot missed targets, it is almost always in the shooter's interest to just take the misses, if allowed by the scenario. These kind of stages let the shooter use pretty much whatever loads and guns are allowed.
Lar