Stories and Patrol Logs + Screenshots and Videos (merged)

[Aktungbby]

Hambone307! A steep learning curve!

[fireftr18]

Let that be lesson for you Hambone. Don't drink sub sim. Boating and alcohol don't mix.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Hambone307

Today we mourn the loss of the USS Grenadier. Due to the drunken nature of her skipper, the Grenadier was detected by carrier escorts and sunken after 5 hours of being depth charged. The Grenadier did not die in vain, however. She successfully sunk 1 Flat top and 1 cruiser before falling prey to circling destroyers.


*Just happened an hour ago*

BE MORE AGGRESSIVE!

[Admiral Alloy]

Two Merchant ships have been slain and laid to rest eternally in the abyss! I left the survivors to float there and think about it.

[Sniper297]

This is about the weirdest one I've had yet. South China Sea in a SARGO class with a full load of 22 Mark 14s, got a contact report task force 200 miles east of Saigon and I was close. Two ISE battlewagons, 3 heavy cruisers, 3 light cruisers, two fat tankers. Went to 220 feet and waited under the layer until the lead escort passed over, came up to periscope depth and fired all 8, sank 2 heavy cruisers and one BB, damaged the second BB. Flank speed, kicked out a decoy, dove under the layer, reversed course and slowed down.

While waiting for the reload the second BB sank, so now comes the time of diminishing returns, principle of calculated risk, discretion is the better part of valor, all that other stuff you think about when you've kicked a hornets' nest and the bees are buzzing around looking for something to sting. He who chickens and runs away lives to chicken another day, is it worth the risk now that they're all stirred up and there's only one heavy cruiser, 2 large tankers, and 3 light cruisers left?

Before I could decide I get another radio contact report - ANOTHER task force heading the same direction only 20 miles east!

Snuck out to the east, surfaced and went to full tilt boogie trying to steer between the two task forces and get ahead of the second one. Made it. Result, 2 fleet carriers, 2 escort carriers, 2 more heavy cruisers and one large tanker added to the total for the day.

Only damper on the whole thing was that mysterious glitch I sometimes get where the sea is flat calm and the visibility is clear but the scope won't keep a lock on a target even within 1000 yards, so I ended up with 4 undeserved misses due to the auto targeting losing the target at the moment of firing. Never did figure out the cause of that one, I get it every once in a while and it's maddening.

[Tromp]

After patrolling the Solomon Islands and finding nothing but Sampans and Junks, I decided to spend my last fuel travelling to the port of Lae. When I entered the bay it was storming outside. Winds blazing, downpoor and mist, I couldn't see anything. The only thing I could see were the the fainth lights of the two lighthouses.

I kept closing at 1/3, anxiously looking for ships docked for the storm. As it probably was my last action before returning to port, I got hasty and messed up bigtime. I didn't check my map or I would have seen I was no 200 meters away from the harbor. Out of nowhere 2 big fat merchants popped out of the mist and instantly started firing into my sub. I backed up full and dove to periscope dept, but not before sustaining major damage.

Remembering at which docks the merchants were tied up, I fired 2 torpedoes at each dock using only the map as I couldn't see anything. I hit the left one but couldn't hit the right. So I made a second, rather stupid, move and surfaced the boat. Using the map I could quite accurately figger out at what position and range the remaining ship would be, and started blasting away with the deck gun. I hit her a dozen times before more bad luck.

Out of nowhere, literally in one second, the weahter changed. It stopped raining and visibility became normal. Now the last ship is firing back at me as I have my boat in a 90 degrees angle towards here, a perfect target. Flank speed down again, now I can finally get a good look and sink her with 2 more torpedoes.

After that I had enough and went back to port with about 80% hull damage. The fleet commander wasn't to happy with these results, probably because I just got the sub brandnew of the warf.
He proposed I get an honorary discharge and put an end to my carreer and save us all a lot of trouble.

I had to decline, so he trasferred me to Pearl Harbor. Out of the Asiatic Fleet, I am now somebody elses problem.

[Ghost Dog]

I'm a fart stinker and a ship sinker.


image uploading

[Leandros]

Originally Posted by Tonnagekoenig

Hi all,

here



is a little video i made as promotion for our Aces of the Deep-Mod "Fall of the rising sun!" and our upcoming online-campaign. Have fun watching. I hope you like it!

So long.

Great video! I plan to use the mission editor in SH4, and other games, to make illustrations for a new counter-factual book I am writing about the Philippines/Dutch East Indies campaign 1941/42. This looks promising.

I just need to upgrade my computer a little. I used SH3 to make some illustrations for my first book.

Fred

[Hambone307]

Just got done with submarine school and was granted command of the USS Narwhal. Shakedown patrol went perfect and the crew performed their duties flawlessly. Our first mission was to do a recon of Honshu. Made it into the bay with no issues except for the occasional air patrol forcing us to submerge. As we were finishing our final approach to the docks my sonar man calls out an approaching warship contact. I raised the attack scope and spotted an auxiliary sub chaser. We were still in 500' of water so I dropped down below the thermal layer. I ordered my sonar man to follow the contact while I worked with my helmsman to maneuver closer to the docks. Last update from my sonar man indicated that the sub chaser was closing slow at medium range. The crew grew deathly silent when we were suddenly pinged by him. Before we knew it, we were getting DC'ed to hell. First run took out our diesel engines, aft tubes, bow tubes, radio, pumps, and destroyed the aft bulkhead. Second run took out my attack scope, tore the crew quarters to pieces, destroyed the starboard electric engine, crippled the port electric, destroyed the starboard drive shaft and propeller. My 2nd advised of severe flooding in the aft torpedo room, crew quarters, bow torpedo room and engine room. Assessing the situation while we dropped past 350' I ordered to blow main ballast. I directed the gunnery crews to their stations and once we were surfaced, blow him to kingdom come. As we broached the surface, the gun crews jumped to their task without hesitation while the repair crews attempted to get our engines running. Our gunnery crews got off two shots into the sub chaser when we were hit hard by his gun. "Men down on deck!" was screamed through the hatch as our bow gun was ripped from its mounting. Two more shots from our aft gun sent him to Davy Jone's locker. I turned to my navigator and had him plot a course out of this darn bay. We got our port diesel in operating condition and made fast to safer waters. Assessing our damage I felt it to be reckless to attempt another infiltration into the bay. We repaired what we could and loitered outside of the bay to hopefully bring home some tonnage. After picking off 13,000 tons of merchant shipping and 1 Betty, we returned home with our torpedo reserves exhausted. The Admiral was less than satisfied when he saw the condition of the boat and the kill list. He court marshaled me on the spot, stripped me of my command, and threw me in the brig to think about my failure while I await my court hearing.

Running through the Luzon Strait.

[captcrane]

[Spraug]

Since all of this is still in my first war career, I'll take some time to introduce. The career started in Manila with an old boat (Salmon, Narwhale,…?) which was sent North the Luzon at the outbreak of hostilities. In the first sorties, I only encounter small game: freighters and maybe small convoys. Then I am ordered South of Kyushu, where I almost run over by a task force, I can just dive quickly enough not to get converted to fish food, when the boat comes up again in the task force, we are in heaven: Shikaku-class carrier, a Chitose-class seaplane tender, a CVE and several cruisers. It's close range so four bow torpedo tubes sink the Shikaku and the four stern ones the CVE. after that our trusty iron coffin dives for our lives. The beginning of a wonderful friendship.

Our base gets shifted to Surabaya (lovely port), then to Fremantle and the boat manages couple of patrols - mostly Celebes Sea - including a lovely and uneventful trip South of Australia to get into the action around the Solomons. All attempts to intercept the IJN Carrier Task Force before it enters the Coral Sea fail and they get into position and launch their airplanes. However, as they turn North to retreat (before the US strike arrives), I find them . They are fast and I barely manage to break in from the West, but the reward is another Shikaku-class carrier and a Mogami-class cruiser becoming coral real estate. We return to Fremantle and - surprise - I am offered a new boat: USS Drum. Of course I accept the upgrade to a Gato-class, who wouldn't want six bow tubes?

During the First patrol I miss the battle of Midway and on the second patrol with the new boat we are expected to bring home pictures of Osaka harbour. So we steam full throttle to Midway, refuel and then start the long journey across the Pacific at 9.5 knots when suddenly, only around 1'000km West of Midway we have a sound contact of a warship. Curious, but expecting a friendly I order the course adapted to investigate and with every meter we crawl onwards, there's another sound contact. Going fast, nearly all warships, all coming straight East and no friendlies are reported in the area.

MY FINEST HOUR

The task force is spread far and wide, so I try my usual dive-and-let-them-run-you-over approach, because I couldn't avoid it if I tried. they are going at 15 knots or something. It works and we pass the Destroyer screen, so I order the boat up to periscope depth. The enemy is organized in (at least) two lines, no idea about either so let's have a look at the Southern. We approach the first contact, which suddenly turns out to be another DD: They have two screens - this is definitely serious business. Dive, evade, circle behind it, second screen passed. We are directly north of the next one in line, turning South and then East to go along with them. Again the periscope goes up and this time it's pay day: The Southern line is led by a Kongo-class battleship, then an Ise-class, followed by a Shikaku-class carrier and another Ise-class! Hell yes, is this serious: The IJN obviously want a re-match of Midway.

The boat is still turning we are around 400 meters away from the Kongo-class: no duds will save you! We launch four torpedoes at point blank range and as we finish the turn East all four of them hit close to each other, just 1m above the keel. She immediately starts to list and while she starts to capsize - still outracing me, I turn the periscope around to make best use of the stern tubes. The Ise-class is right next to me, also racing at 15 knots, so the obvious target is the carrier. Short range again, almost straight on, four fish launch at least three hit and explode near the bow and she literally crash-dives. I've never seen such a big ship sink so quickly.

But no time to waste, as the Ise-class Battleship is now directly ahead of me, dodging the sinking hulk of the Kongo-class, and just far enough to try: The two remaining bow torpedoes just need to swim straight ahead. Our luck holds: both hit, both explode and obviously take out most of the screws or engines. Her stern immediately starts to sag as she takes water and she slows to a crawl. So at least she won't outrun us. The last Ise-class approaches from astern and half the Destroyers of the IJN are now coming for us. I order her down and the boat quickly passes the thermal layer.

Only now do I call off the silent running and ring the alarm for battle stations. We need new torpedoes. While the crew loads like maniacs, we dodge some destroyers (diving under the remaining Ise-class helped more than a little) and pass under their keel line and then "race" straight East after our prey. This throws them off and I keep track of the limping battleship. It takes forever to load four tubes and there is no time for a full reload, so up to periscope depth again (in silent mode of course). The battleship made good use of the time and is now around 1,5km ahead of us, and zig-zagging (helming?). But at 5 knots, that's not gonna save her, as we launch a tight spread of four torpedoes before crash-diding below the thermocline again. And again our daring is rewarded with two explosions. Running deep the crew loads fresh fish while I hope she will sink on her own, but she doesn't. We have to dodge the destroyers again, so I decide to try our luck more from the South to get her broadsides for a change. Up to periscope depth again and yes, she's not running anywhere anymore but only manages a single knot. Two torpedoes are ready, both are launched and one hits about one third her length from the bow and finishes her off.

Most of the torpedoes are spent, the crew is tired, the batteries have seen better days, the main fleet is over the horizon and the destroyers are taking the score personally, so I decide to break it off. Before going on the photo tour, we returned to Midway for refit.

Before even reached striking distance, the Japanese task force was not only located but also lost over 98'000 tons of their finest warships. Definitely NOT the re-match they were looking for. Definitely my finest hour (so far).


P.S.: After a long time of not encountering anything but merchants and destroyers - with a troop transport group from time to time - I had another encounter with a carrier task force today and continued the tradition: in a crazy battle I sank first a Taiho-class fleet carrier, then, by accident, a destroyer and finally an Accost-class escort carrier. The CVE will be in my memory for the time being, because I spent my last two torpedoes on it, without sinking it. So again we dodged destroyers to shadow it and then, when the two destroyers had no line of sight, we surfaced and actually sank it with gun fire at 50m. Boy those survivors will have a story to tell of crazy American submariners.

[Spraug]

Sorry for the long post.

MY DARKEST HOUR

Around two patrols later, my stupidity and arrogance led to my darkest hour. Patrolling the Solomons and the Bismarck-Sea, we made good progress with lots of merchants going to Davy Jones' Locker. So much so that even before reaching my deployment point all the ammo except 20mm AA was spent. Not only not a single torpedo or shot 4 50 left, but of course we also sustained damage that meant any dive below 25m would be our last. Despite this, I wanted to get to the Deployment Point, so we could end the patrol with another objective achieved. So instead of turning around like a reasonable man, I ordered her further North. Just as the objective was reached, our sonar picked up a task force. Again, the reasonable man would have left, but curiosity killed not just the cat, right? The force was obviously sailing for Rabaul, so I set an approach course from the South where we would come at them at around 80-90° and went to periscope depth. When we approached visual range, I nearly started crying: A circle of destroyers, two tankers, two fleet carriers (Shikaku-class, I believe), two escort carriers, something like three mixed cruisers and BOTH Yamato and Musashi!

And the worst I could throw at them was bad language. The reasonable man would have sailed away, but at least I wanted to send a contact report to fleet command so that they would know what was afoot. Cautiously we edged closer, but unfortunately not cautiously enough: suddenly the three closest destroyers turned towards us as one and I don't have to elaborate what happens when three destroyers go after a sub without ammo that can't dive deeper than 25m.

Due to the hull damage, I sustained in a much earlier duel, I couldn'T load another save and have another attempt at the force, because the time difference was so large that it wouldn't spawn anymore. So there was nothing I could do to change the outcome. And this dark day was the only time I ever encountered a Yamato-class battleship.

Well, I'm in early 1944 now, preparing for Leyte. You have not seen the last of me, Yamato!

[Spraug]

Originally Posted by merc4ulfate

… Truk ... I sat near the entrance of the west side of the lagoon for a while when I picked up high speed screws.

I raised the scope and saw one destroyer, two Kongo Battleships and one Chitose Seaplane Tender with a Japanese mini-sub on board leaving the lagoon.

Hmmm, this is very interesting: how far were you from the lagoon when they spawned? In another thread someone explained that camping doesn't work, because they don't spawn when you're too close…

P.S.: Nice catch, by the way. I really like the Seaplane Tender, but so far I've only encountered it once. It was travelling with a Shokaku-class and a Hiryu-class carrier, so I went for different targets. But I'd so much like to get back at them for supporting these pesky seaplanes.

[Harmsway!]

A short SHIV movie I put together. Not a lot of action in this one but a small victory non the less.