First Convey

[Alexdk]

Finally it has happened! I have found my first Convoy!

Finnished sweeping my patrol sector with no targets, so heading over to the west of engand and sammed straight into a large convoy! Its December 1939 and I got mysef a new VII boat with old gassed propelle torps.

oes anybody know how well guarded these things are in 1939? Should I got for escorts first or the merchants? The conyoy is about 50km south of me and about 400/500 km west of Ireland. I am still in deepish waters.

My first convoy here so any tips is appreciated.

Playing GWX btw

Thanks

[Steel_Tomb]

Don't go for the escorts! Especially with the gas powered fish, even if you get a perfect shot at them its most likely they will see the torpedo, take evasive action and increase their speed before dropping nasty stuff on your new ride. Its always best to go for the merchants first IMHO...look up the tonnage in your book to find the juiciest target - then send it down to meet old davey jones!

[Foghladh_mhara]

My experience with convoys at this stage in the war is that the escorts are not all that good. Definately go for the merchants then go deep and quiet. So long as your quiet you should have no problems.

[Alexdk]

Ok, this convoy is BIG! Not sure how to approach it, its night and reativy high winds. I think I am gonna try and get in the middle of it, hit so ships and try to avoid the escorts by hideing out amonst the merchants. Think that wil work?

[Foghladh_mhara]

I suppose everyone has there favourite method of attack but personally I never attack a convoy on the surface regardless of the weather. I track it position and course on the surface, then get well ahead and submerge right in its track and at 90 degrees to it. I then keep a periscope watch until I see the lead escort and then go to 25m(just in case he zigzags over my conning tower by chance) and rig for silent running. As soon as he passes me by I pop back up to periscope depth and look for the merchies. I'll pick out 2 I like and fire 2 eels at each. Then hit full flank, deoth 100m and turn in the direction the convoy is sailing. Soon as I reach about 60m rig for silent running at 1 knot and slowly angle my self away from the convoy. Best button I ever discovered was the one at the sonar station where you can track the nearest warship:D I just keep turning away from him at 10 degrees rudder

[Alexdk]

Erhm...I just spotted the HMS Rodney in the convoy...36000 tons...maybe I shoud go forhim first? What is it, a battleship?

[Morts]

go for Rodney:up:

[Alexdk]

Damn, 3 torps aimed at the middle gun didn't destroy it! Set the depth for 3m and impact trigger! Anybody know the ideal torp depth and place for a 3/4 torp sinking?

[High Voltage]

Is he listing or has he slowed down? If the torps actually went off, you definitely did some damage, so now it's just a question of evading the escorts whil not letting Rodney get away. You may have to pass the convoy and put yourself back in its' path once again for a follow-up attack.
Let us know what happens.
Good luck

[Alexdk]

Small fire started and he just continued merrily on his way. Hmm have reloade just before I make the attack. His draft is listed as 40m! So maybe trying to blow up his ammonition at 3m is a bit shallow? Maybe I shoud let my torps run at a deeper depth? Maybe 5-7m?

[Alexdk]

Got the bugger! Sent 3 torps, 5m depth at it. The third hit the ammo and blew the entrie ship apart! Heheheeh :rotfl: My forth missed a medium tanker though! :damn: Now gotta evade the destroyers, try and load me torps and hit em again! :arrgh!:

[Steel_Tomb]

Happy times, you're lucky to get near a convoy in 44/45 lol in GWX even if your at about 30m, silent running engines all stop they just "know" your there just got blown to pieces in a type XXI..had to fire off my acoustic homing torps quickly took out two but the third DD got a perfect drop on my five DC's went off from bow to stern I sank like a brick lol :cry:.

[Alexdk]

Ouch! :down:

This is turning into a profitable assault.

ships sunk thus far:

HMS Rodney - Nelson Class 36000 tons
2x Medium tankers 2x9500 tons

Total 45000 tons

And I still got fish in the tubes! On my last assault I fire while an escort was virtually on top of me! About 100m behind me :rotfl:Then when the torp hits he races ahead completly clueless :lol:

Happy times indeed!

[Steel_Tomb]

Wow, congrats thats pretty nice for your first convoy contact! I've never come across any major capital ships in my 1941 campaign! You should get a hansom amount of renown from that lot, perhaps even an Iron Cross! :ping::rock::up:

[Jimbuna]

A great first convoy you got there you lucky kaleun :yep: You were right to go for the BB, but remember, your primary mission is usually to starve the Allies of war materials and supplies by going for the merchants. :arrgh!:

[Steel_Tomb]

Even so thats BB will bump up his tonnage considerably! :arrgh!: Sometimes I'm lucky to get 36000t in a whole patrol nevermind one ship lol!

[Brag]

I suppose everyone has there favourite method of attack but personally I never attack a convoy on the surface regardless of the weather. I track it position and course on the surface, then get well ahead and submerge right in its track and at 90 degrees to it. I then keep a periscope watch until I see the lead escort and then go to 25m(just in case he zigzags over my conning tower by chance) and rig for silent running. As soon as he passes me by I pop back up to periscope depth and look for the merchies. I'll pick out 2 I like and fire 2 eels at each. Then hit full flank, deoth 100m and turn in the direction the convoy is sailing. Soon as I reach about 60m rig for silent running at 1 knot and slowly angle my self away from the convoy. Best button I ever discovered was the one at the sonar station where you can track the nearest warship:D I just keep turning away from him at 10 degrees rudder

Fogh has is perfect.
If the Rodney is in good position to hit --let him have a couple of torps.
Be careful: with a battleship in the convoy , they;ll have more escorts.
Good luck!:up:

[Alexdk]

Wow that was cool! After several long grueling hours I have finnished my assault on my first convoy.

Result:
Nelson Battleship 36000t
2 x Destroyers 2000t
1x Whaling factory 12500t
3x Medium tankers 28500
1x Medium Merchant 5500

Totat Tonnage is 84500 tons! It usually takes me like 3 or 4 patrols to get that much!

Woohoo! :rock:

now time to get some shiny medals and lobster! :arrgh!:

Thanks for the tips fellow Kaptains!

[Brag]

Congrats!!!

But remember--you were extraordinarly lucky, especially with that DD on top of you. Most of us would have been killed. :yep:

[Alexdk]

Yeah I was lucky. after my assaults I usually had a destroyer circling, athough only on my final attack (which missed :damn:) did a destroyed drop depth charges...about 150m wide. Luckily its only 1939 and the destroyers are hopelessy incompotent :rotfl:Things won't be this easy for long. But arrived home on dec 28th, just in time for christmas :arrgh!:

[Brag]

Christmas on the 28th? You better check your navigation almanac and make sure you're in the right port :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[Jimbuna]

Yeah I was lucky. after my assaults I usually had a destroyer circling, athough only on my final attack (which missed :damn:) did a destroyed drop depth charges...about 150m wide. Luckily its only 1939 and the destroyers are hopelessy incompotent :rotfl:Things won't be this easy for long. But arrived home on dec 28th, just in time for christmas :arrgh!:
:roll: :hmm: :lol:

[Alexdk]

:hmm: ........Doh!:damn:

Too much time banging me heading into the hull during the recent storm! :damn:

Ok....fine...so we missed Christmas...so intime for new years then! Hey one outta two ain't bad :rotfl:

[Genferret]

The Rodney likes to pop up in '39 I would guess from this story here.

My 4th patrol out (which I'm still on now) the first convoy I ran across that was England bound had the Rodney in it. I popped off 4 Eels, one at the Rodney about 1m under her keel, one at a whaling vessel, one at a large tanker, and the fourth at a large merchant. All 4 hit, the tanker and whaling ship went down immediately. Rodney got injured and had a serious list but seemed to continue on just fine. The large merchant made it about another 5nm or so but she went down as well.

I then headed towards my designated patrol sector, happy with that tonnage, but disappointed at the no-kill on the Rodney.

After a few days patrolling my area (BF17) I decided to head home since my NavO said we'd have just about enough to get home at 1/3 speed with a little left over in case we came across a merchie to chase down.

As I'm passing through AM29 on my way home I dove down to periscope depth to let my sonarman check for any sound contacts. Lo and behold there was a convoy on it's way out that was heading nearly straight for us. So I set myself up in my standard convoy intercept position (just about dead ahead of them and sligthly off to the right of where they'll pass me).

Once the lead escort was past me I brought myself back up from 40m to about 13m. Just enough to get the scope far enough up to see the targets, but deep enough that in the rough waters my tower wouldn't break the surface. As I'm scanning for a nice target what do I see? The Rodney appears to have set sail again with this new convoy.

This time around she didn't get away. In the position I was in she passed within 1500m of me and I sent all 4 bow torpedos her way at a 7 degree spread. All 4 hit and she went down pretty quick. The next hour was kind of hairy with the escorts searching for the perpetrator that had just sunk their battleship but I managed to get away unscathed.

Now continuing my journey home to Wilhelmshaven and the Rodney will be missing her previously scheduled date of attacking the Bismark (she was one of the ships present on the last attack on the Bismark).

[Steel_Tomb]

I've never come across a convoy in 1939 yet, just single contacts normally...where abouts is this convoy? grid reference?

[Kpt. Chandler]

I came across my first capital ships in Gwx yesterday as well.
I'd played the game a long time ago but had never came across a Task force but found and installed this mod which rocks btw.

My second patrol, in October 1939, heading along the north coast of Scotland ran into long range visual contact of a British Task force. Lots of Destroyers protecting Nelson, Illustrious (i think), Hood and Rodney. This was my lucky day. I tracked ahead a bit thne got as near as i could aiming one torp at the rear of Rodney, one at rear of Hood and another 2 fired in. Had to avoid the escorts so dived. When i surfaced later there was the Rodney moving 0 kts!
Finished it off and continued my patrol.

Man i love this game :rock:

[Genferret]

I've never come across a convoy in 1939 yet, just single contacts normally...where abouts is this convoy? grid reference?

Just opened up my Captain's log from that patrol.

First convoy I mentioned was Nov 19, 1939 @ 18:31 Grid AL 3

Second convoy was Nov 25, 1939 @ 18:39 Grid BF 17

[Steel_Tomb]

Nov 25 lol, lucky day thats my bday I'll see if I can get some record tonnage :ping:

[Alexdk]

Found my convoy in the AM 53 I think, about 500m NE of Ireland.

[Jimbuna]

Welcome aboard Kpt. Chandler :arrgh!:

[Steel_Tomb]

My second patrol, in October 1939, heading along the north coast of Scotland ran into long range visual contact of a British Task force. Lots of Destroyers protecting Nelson, Illustrious (i think), Hood and Rodney. This was my lucky day.:rock:

LUCKY! Thats like about 200k tonnes there! you should have fired one fish at each target at the boiler room to stop them all, wait for the escorts to leave you alone, reload and take them down again...then home for booze and medals :arrgh!:.