Engaging convoys and escorts in SH4

[Ghayth203]

Guys I've been playing Silent Hunter III, and finished its career early this year, and I returned to sub sims a week ago with Silent Hunter IV: Wolves of the Pacific about a week ago, when I used to play Silent Hunter III, I wouldn't fear corvettes or armed trawler' escorts... Engage them with deck gun, lure the destroyer to go a straight line towards my stern tube, fish in the water then spray and sink towards the see bed, then I keep shadowing the convoy untill they stopped zigzagging and evading, then I use my torps, send a salvo, score multiple hits & kills, then home and tea...

But when I play SH4, the only escorts I meet are destroyers packing good punches with their single or twin turrets across all their deck, so it would be suicidal to meet them with a stern mounted 4"/50 cal... So I get it, you should never shoot a shell towards a Fubuki or a Minekaze class destroyer, but in order to sink a ship in a jap convoy or a task force, how would you get close enough to fire? I mean escorts are all around, and there is no gap or loophole to exploit it, and early war torps like Mk. 10 and Mk. 14 don't do you any favor..?

How to engage convoys and escorts in SH4?

[Aktungbby]

Ghayth203!

[Cybermat47]

Attack at night, on the surface, and at maximum range. Let your fish loose and run like hell. Be as far away as possible when the torpedoes hit. Then reload and do it again.

The Mk.14’s long range is your friend.

Ahoy @Ghayth203,


and welcome to subsim!

As for your question about escorts and / or destroyers, consider - you are the commander of a submarine ... not a destroyer or even a cruiser.
So act like a CO of a submarine, then it works well with the attacks.

[Ghayth203]

Thank u guys for all the answers, I appreciate it well, as I found a new strategy to deal with escorts

Pretty contradictory to what Bleiente said of acting like a commander of a sub, this strategy or tactic or whatever it is, it instructs you to go right towards or right away from your chaser, that way you put him in your 0 or 180 (making and easy solution and using contact influence pretty devastating), flood three torps, the first one that you should fire would have to go offset, I use 1 degree left, that way, when you fire it, you know he is going to dodge right, then the second and third, should go offset 3 degrees right as I recommend, he will be going right towards the second and the third fish, fire your first one at -1000/980 yards mark (Although I live in a metric country, but for immersion stuff I would use yards and feet and miles to measure, it's a fleet boat, not a u-boat or your boat )

Anyway, I sunk to Fubukis that way as I reported a convoy contact and they told me to inflict damage to the escorts for followup attacks

Hope you find that effective

Always doubt what we say but try it out.
Back then, when there was still SH2 vs DC, I deliberately did things that were considered impossible many times online, in the end I was the most vicious destroyer commander on the international scene.

Here we only perform a fictional fight and it is intended to give the player fun.
Test your limits.

[Ghayth203]

Ahoy Bliente, I'll see where me and my crew can go
I was just promoted to a Gato Class USS Drum right now

[jimmbbo]

Welcome!!
I have had success in base SHIV 1.4 stock game using automatic targeting by

1) Intercept the convoy course or parallel the convoy at >5 miles to be ~15 miles ahead of the convoy and set up 1000 ft from the convoy track at a slight (~5 deg) angle that allows targeting several ships in the front row of the convoy.
I focus on convoys with 3 or fewer DDs... Taking on 4 or 5 DD convoys can be hazardous to your health. I avoid "active" convoys where all the ships are shuffling around, as the DDs are likely the "A" team, and setting up a solution on shifting merchants is a real headache... Best to go on to better grounds.

2) I set up a 5 mile radius circle for a reminder that the lead destroyer will be able to see me soon.

3) Stay surfaced as the convoy approaches to figure out which ships are coming. When the ships are identified, or the lead destroyer is getting too close to detecting me, dive to 200 ft, silent running. Set torpedoes for depth/speed/contact

4) Wait for lead DD to get about 5-10 deg from dead ahead, then rise to 150 ft. Monitor escort positions and determine threat levels.

5) When threats are acceptable and the targets are within 30ish degrees of the bow, put crew at Battle Stations, come up to periscope depth

6) Through 100 ft, open each outer door (Keys Q to open, W to change tubes). Confirm DD locations... If they stop to listen, they disappear from the tactical plot.

7) Approaching PD, switch to tactical plot to confirm DD locations and decide which targets to shoot and go to the periscope to set up and shoot the targets. If DD close or closing fast, re-submerge to 250 ft. determine targets of choice if unknown (they display as soon as periscope breaks the surface).

8) As soon as last torpedo is fired, submerge to near max depth. Through 100 ft, set speed to 2 kt ahead, heading toward convoy to confuse the DD sonar men. Set up zig zag to 5-6 miles out. 30 ft below thermal layer, increase speed to 5 kt.

9) As sound dies out, release crew from battle stations, rise to PD, confirm clear then surface and total your tonnage!!

GOOD HUNTING!!!