Manual solution help please

[GoldenRivet]

I have watched the "training video" on manual solutions provided by a member here on the forums. It was fantastic.

every aspect of my solution is practically flawless.

Im quite good at IDing ships... i have the range finder down near perfect, and I have AOB nailed down to a fricken science.

But speed... :down:

I cant tell simply by the bow wake method if a ship is turning out 4 knots or 18.

The clock method doesnt work (yet) and i cant figure out how to get the sonar bone head how to estimate target speed.

with that being said you can have the best range and AOB calculation on the planet but it does absolutely NO good if you dont know the target speed. im often narrowly missing thousands on thousands of tons of merchant shipping and naval task forces out there because of this handicap. occasionally i miss the target by so much as a boat length!!

aside from charts which only work on a 90 degree AOB (which i am almost always between 75 and 110 degrees) does anyone know how to get the in game methods for determining target speed to work.

I have all but pulled along side and whipped out my japanese for dummies hand book and asked "how fast are you ol' boys drivin that big ol' thang?"

[gnirtS]

Assuming you have auto map update on (most do) its easy on the chart.

Zoom in real close to it, use the pencil to create a mark, at the same time start a stop watch (in game or a real one).

Leave it going for 1 minute, 2 is far better.

Then using the ruler tool measure the distance between those points.

Assuming you're using imperial you'll get a distance travelled in nautical miles per time interval.

If your target for example travelled 0.5nm in one minute then just 0.5 x 60 minutes to give its speed, in this case 30kts

If you used 2 minute (better due to course resolution of measuring ruler only doing 10ths of a mile) just do the same but divde by 2. Example its travelled 0.4nm in 2 minutes

(0.4 x 60) / 2 = 12kts (or just 0.4*30)


This works for preplanned attacks on convoys etc when you have time to do it.

Once detected though all bets are off as headings, speed and everything changes constantly so its guesswork and luck from then on.

You do NOT need to know AOB or anything else to use this method of calculating speed.

[GoldenRivet]

ok... wasnt going to pull out my old stop watch hahaha but i guess i will until they get the speed tool fixed in the game. (i assume its broke... or im just using it wrong)

[gnirtS]

Just use the stop watch in the game. That chronometer still works.

Clicking a mouse button, waiting 2 mins, clicking another and measuring isn't hard.

[GoldenRivet]

ok tried the torpedo training mission against the cruiser... you know the one :)

used that old clock and pencil mark method which i havnt used in AGES, thanks for reminding me, tried it with an aviation slide rule calculator which worked nicely.

one torpedoe detonated prematurely, the other three hit directly in almost the exact spot i made my pencil marks on the map. (i was using the foremost part of his bow as a reference) timed it for two minutes... traveled .6 miles in that time frame multiplied times 60 and devided by 2 which yielded 18 knots.

i will put it to practical use in the campaign... i find the convoy attack training mission useless since the merchants seem to drive around aimlessly first heading to the southwest then making a 180 to the northeast then heading west then south... its like their AI is confused about where they should be going... plus the mission starts you out surfaced in broad daylight within visual range of a destroyer!

PS i know its not hard to use the watch in the game- thats what i try to do... i have just been spoiled over the past year or so with SH3 doing the calculating for you when you click the speed portion of the notepad.

[NefariousKoel]

ok... wasnt going to pull out my old stop watch hahaha but i guess i will until they get the speed tool fixed in the game. (i assume its broke... or im just using it wrong)

Use the stopwatch in-game. When you're at the periscope view or at the TBT view. You can bring it up with the button on the menu at bottom left and it stays on-screen.

[gnirtS]

You dont really have time in the torpedo attack to do a 2 minute estimate of speed as its too close already. IIRC its doing 12kts though.

[Liszt_]

As a general rule I think Neal Stevens was saying something about Maxiumum speed in the identifier book divided by 2 is a good estimate to start and then adjust by couple knots up or down as suspected.

ie. if it's a slow freighter in a convoy (max. usually ~12knots) a good guesstimate would be ~7 knots.