AS
01-02-07, 01:06 PM
Hi guys,
I started my first "real" GWX patrol in a VIIc in Sept. 1940, which is shortly before Lehmann-Willenbrock (U-96) enters the scene. Iīve skipped 1939 and early 1940 just to make it more realistic and difficult, I didnīt want all those easy kills in the beginning of the war and I definitely didnīt want to gain exaggerated tonnage. All I wanted was playing SH3 GWX as realistically as could be.
I was even prepared not to sink anything on my first jouney.
Now guess what happened: After 6 absolutely boring days I encountered a convoy near the British Eastcoast. It was getting dark and heavy fog blurred the scene. So I dived to listen. My sonarmen freaked out as we realized that we must be quite in the middle of a huge convoy. Raising the scope it took me a while until I saw a destroyer in the heavy fog. Behind me there was a huge merchant, very close, I took the chance and fired the aft torp at him but the AoB was pretty lousy and my torp was never heard of again. Meanwhile the destroyer had passed me by, all of a sudden a small merchant appeared right before my eyes - as I said it was dark and foggy. Although it was just a small merchant (2300tons) I fired a torpedoe becuase she was right before me at 0 degree. Easy shot, quick kill.
Some seconds later I saw a big shadow at 340 degree, about 1200m away. I simply shot at this ship because it seemed like a pretty good chance, it also seemed very big, so I fired my remaining 3 torps. I saw one hit, didnīt look like much damage. Suddenly search lights everywhere. The big ship starts shooting at my scope (?), everything seems confusing. Before the next torp was due my boat is shaken like hell, there is an awful sound and my crew starts yelling- a merchant that I hadnīt noticed accidently rammed me!
I look at the damage screen and see heavy flooding in 3 compartments, tower is "red", two guys wounded, both scopes destroyed, hydrophone/sonar/radio destroyed, guns and flak destroyed, my U-Boat rushes down while I hear another torp hitting something, the third one has obviously missed or was a dud.
I try to stop my Boat from falling. The radio room is half filled with water already, the pumps symbols seem so slow. My Boat goes deeper and deeper. I ordered flank speed ahead and "surface", no reaction. At 120m I blow the ballast tanks, no reaction. At 160m I blow ballast again and again until I only have one more try left. Iīm at 180m now, and to be honest with you, I wasnīt really interested much anymore, because I had ended this career already in my mind. So I couldnīt believe my eyes when I saw that the flooding had been stopped at 200m. I blew ballast tanks once more and ordered surface, and yes, after touching the 210m for a second, my sub raised and I went to 80m and sneaked away. I heard depth charges nearby, but the destroyers hadnīt detected me.
Now what could I do without sonar, radio, scopes? Well, Iwaited till daybreak and marked the spot where I had hit the big ship. My "GW-experience" had taught me that sometimes ships slow down extremely or stop after being hit. I estimated an "out of sight" spot to surface - itīs no fun surfacing at daybreak without sonar and scopes. I was lucky, there was noone around, but still there was heavy fog. I started heading for the spot where I hit the big ship, slowly I creeped forward, I didnīt want any surprise attacks from out of the fog. Suddenly I saw the ship I had hit - a huge battleship, stopped, leaning to one side heavily damaged. It was the Rodney, a British battleship with 36000 Tons. (No need to say that I identified this ship while my unexperinced Watchofficer was looking around not seeing ANYTHING!!!).
My only chance to sink her was firing at a range far enough to avoid detection. In this case I was lucky that there was fog, without it it would have been very difficult to get into firing range without being detected... I calculated a solution (which was easy as the ship was stopped) and fired all 4 torps. The first one hit in the middle, there was an explosion, and the ship sank quickly - all in all it only needed 3 torps to sink this huge battleship.
With my crippled U-Boat I ran home as quickly as I could. I couldnīt even report my success, because the radio was destroyed.
So I accidently sank the Rodney Battleship, a small merchant and I almost lost my U-Boat on my first "realistic" GWX patrol... do you know why I feel awful? Because it was all just mere chance, no plotting and schemeing, no clever attacks and tricky evasive tactics... it was just a confused captain in the middle of a convoy I accidently had ran into in a foggy night, and it was a one in a million coincidence that the Rodney passed my by at a perfect AoB and distance. If she had been 500m farer away I wouldnīt even have noticed her at all!!!
So what should I do now? Start a new "realistic" career or continue this one as "hero of the day", the "right time right place"-skipper who doesnīt even know what he fires at...
Cheers, AS
I started my first "real" GWX patrol in a VIIc in Sept. 1940, which is shortly before Lehmann-Willenbrock (U-96) enters the scene. Iīve skipped 1939 and early 1940 just to make it more realistic and difficult, I didnīt want all those easy kills in the beginning of the war and I definitely didnīt want to gain exaggerated tonnage. All I wanted was playing SH3 GWX as realistically as could be.
I was even prepared not to sink anything on my first jouney.
Now guess what happened: After 6 absolutely boring days I encountered a convoy near the British Eastcoast. It was getting dark and heavy fog blurred the scene. So I dived to listen. My sonarmen freaked out as we realized that we must be quite in the middle of a huge convoy. Raising the scope it took me a while until I saw a destroyer in the heavy fog. Behind me there was a huge merchant, very close, I took the chance and fired the aft torp at him but the AoB was pretty lousy and my torp was never heard of again. Meanwhile the destroyer had passed me by, all of a sudden a small merchant appeared right before my eyes - as I said it was dark and foggy. Although it was just a small merchant (2300tons) I fired a torpedoe becuase she was right before me at 0 degree. Easy shot, quick kill.
Some seconds later I saw a big shadow at 340 degree, about 1200m away. I simply shot at this ship because it seemed like a pretty good chance, it also seemed very big, so I fired my remaining 3 torps. I saw one hit, didnīt look like much damage. Suddenly search lights everywhere. The big ship starts shooting at my scope (?), everything seems confusing. Before the next torp was due my boat is shaken like hell, there is an awful sound and my crew starts yelling- a merchant that I hadnīt noticed accidently rammed me!
I look at the damage screen and see heavy flooding in 3 compartments, tower is "red", two guys wounded, both scopes destroyed, hydrophone/sonar/radio destroyed, guns and flak destroyed, my U-Boat rushes down while I hear another torp hitting something, the third one has obviously missed or was a dud.
I try to stop my Boat from falling. The radio room is half filled with water already, the pumps symbols seem so slow. My Boat goes deeper and deeper. I ordered flank speed ahead and "surface", no reaction. At 120m I blow the ballast tanks, no reaction. At 160m I blow ballast again and again until I only have one more try left. Iīm at 180m now, and to be honest with you, I wasnīt really interested much anymore, because I had ended this career already in my mind. So I couldnīt believe my eyes when I saw that the flooding had been stopped at 200m. I blew ballast tanks once more and ordered surface, and yes, after touching the 210m for a second, my sub raised and I went to 80m and sneaked away. I heard depth charges nearby, but the destroyers hadnīt detected me.
Now what could I do without sonar, radio, scopes? Well, Iwaited till daybreak and marked the spot where I had hit the big ship. My "GW-experience" had taught me that sometimes ships slow down extremely or stop after being hit. I estimated an "out of sight" spot to surface - itīs no fun surfacing at daybreak without sonar and scopes. I was lucky, there was noone around, but still there was heavy fog. I started heading for the spot where I hit the big ship, slowly I creeped forward, I didnīt want any surprise attacks from out of the fog. Suddenly I saw the ship I had hit - a huge battleship, stopped, leaning to one side heavily damaged. It was the Rodney, a British battleship with 36000 Tons. (No need to say that I identified this ship while my unexperinced Watchofficer was looking around not seeing ANYTHING!!!).
My only chance to sink her was firing at a range far enough to avoid detection. In this case I was lucky that there was fog, without it it would have been very difficult to get into firing range without being detected... I calculated a solution (which was easy as the ship was stopped) and fired all 4 torps. The first one hit in the middle, there was an explosion, and the ship sank quickly - all in all it only needed 3 torps to sink this huge battleship.
With my crippled U-Boat I ran home as quickly as I could. I couldnīt even report my success, because the radio was destroyed.
So I accidently sank the Rodney Battleship, a small merchant and I almost lost my U-Boat on my first "realistic" GWX patrol... do you know why I feel awful? Because it was all just mere chance, no plotting and schemeing, no clever attacks and tricky evasive tactics... it was just a confused captain in the middle of a convoy I accidently had ran into in a foggy night, and it was a one in a million coincidence that the Rodney passed my by at a perfect AoB and distance. If she had been 500m farer away I wouldnīt even have noticed her at all!!!
So what should I do now? Start a new "realistic" career or continue this one as "hero of the day", the "right time right place"-skipper who doesnīt even know what he fires at...
Cheers, AS