Something new "to me" in SH-4

[thehiredgun]

I'm on my 3rd patrol on another photo recon & i see something new in my crew ! Bored & a 1000 NM from Japan, i was going through vertical list of crew on the extreme left of crew screen & i put it on ability & i have one guy in engine room that is labeled "increase submerged speed" & yet another in control room says " global ability reduced,reduce broken change & a 3rd crewman in watch area that says global ability" increase fanatical change" & see that two out of the 3 has a 3rd job assignment that i didn't give them & both new skills are bright red in color instead of normal gold color ! Any idea's ? Stressed out ,Jap spys or what & what do you about it ?

[maerean_m]

I'm on my 3rd patrol on another photo recon & i see something new in my crew ! Bored & a 1000 NM from Japan, i was going through vertical list of crew on the extreme left of crew screen & i put it on ability & i have one guy in engine room that is labeled "increase submerged speed" & yet another in control room says " global ability reduce broken chance & a 3rd crewman in watch area that says global ability" increase fanatical chance" & see that two out of the 3 has a 3rd job assignment that i didn't give them & both new skills are bright red in color instead of normal gold color ! Any idea's ? Stressed out ,Jap spys or what & what do you about it ?

As you promote guys (with ranks of 3, 6 and 9) they gain new specializations and some times an ability.

A guy with a global ability is like superman, can make the sub go faster just by being on the sub (no matter what compartment).

A local ability (like making the torpedoes hit better) is only activated when that crew member is inside the torpedo room.

[thehiredgun]

Thank you

[EAF274 Johan]

global ability "increase fanatical change"
What does this do?

[SteamWake]

global ability "increase fanatical change"
What does this do?

Makes them more of a fanboy :p

[tycho102]

It boosts efficiency on all compartments.

I was under the impression the "local" ability only applies when that individual is head of the space. I'm not sure of this because I simply haven't been able to gauge the difference the abilities make.

[Old Dog]

global ability "increase fanatical change" What does this do?

I think that one comes into play when the crew is on liberty and they have a run-in with another crew or the Shore Patrol. :D

Giggling is good for your blood pressure.

Old Dog

[captainFlunky]

Boy I dislike this feature, the "power ups" you get as people get promoted. I like the natural ability and specialization, but the local ability is just silly.

I mean, I dont think many sailors in the PTO ever said "Wow, after sinking that tanker, I feel I can make the boat dive faster!"

Doesn't make much sense, but I am sure the modders will be able to put this feature to good use. If anything, I think then local abilties should have a negative effect on the crew to simulate battle fatigue and PTSS.

This would be a huge encouragement to play historically and send these crewmembers off 'to new construction'.

The way it is right now ya might as well have to drive your boat through gold rings a'la Sonic the Hedgehog to get special abilities.

[EAF274 Johan]

If those special abilities are rather rare and aren't too powerful then I don't mind them. I haven't come across any after 5 successful patrols, so I guess they aren't that common.

I don't think it's that unrealistic to have a crew member who makes the boat dive a little faster or decreases torpedo dud rates... I just think of it as having a strict NCO on board who makes the crew work a little harder :)

[PopManiac]

Hmmmm :)

Do they also level-up and can be a mixed class of paladin-elves? :p

[Crosseye76]

Boy I dislike this feature, the "power ups" you get as people get promoted. I like the natural ability and specialization, but the local ability is just silly.

I mean, I dont think many sailors in the PTO ever said "Wow, after sinking that tanker, I feel I can make the boat dive faster!"

Doesn't make much sense, but I am sure the modders will be able to put this feature to good use. If anything, I think then local abilties should have a negative effect on the crew to simulate battle fatigue and PTSS.

This would be a huge encouragement to play historically and send these crewmembers off 'to new construction'.

The way it is right now ya might as well have to drive your boat through gold rings a'la Sonic the Hedgehog to get special abilities.

I'm not sure, but I think I can see what the devs were trying to do here.

When I arrived aboard the 643 boat, I was trained in my job and had a basic working idea of how the sub worked and such. After 4 or 5 patrols, not only could I do my job much faster and quicker, I had picked up skills and job knowledge in many areas that I did not have when I reported aboard, in areas far removed from my 'normal' shipboard job.

This reflects both the unique "qualification" that each submariner must pass to earn his Dolphins, and the fact that young, bright men will learn stuff interesting to them. So you tend to pick up a lot of new things. Even though I was an MT and my "job" was back in the Mouse House, I became a very decent Sonar watchstander just because I wanted to.

The crew as a whole operated much the same way. We became a team, a well oiled machine, we "clicked" as a crew. We were MUCH faster, sharper, more efficent and smoother in everything we did after a few patrols under our belts. The Whole was very much greater than the sum of its parts in this case.

I agree the way the Dev's implemented it seems a bit odd, but I'm not sure how else to reflect the deep "Sea change" that a crew undergoes from Patrol 0 to patrol 3,4,5, Etc. That profound change that submariners undergo as they progress from simply operating the boat to almost having the boat become a part of you is really something to see.

Now you consider a WW II fleet boat, where the crew are forced into the furnace of life - and -death combat. The Iron Men who come through that are going to be a tall step above average. Nothing concentrates the mind like someone trying very hard to kill you.

So there does need to be some way to reflect the sharper way a Veteran crew will do anything compared to a Novice crew. However, all the crews are not the same, so I don't think you can do it all with global increases. Some crews just did not "Click", some Officers did not work out well, some men did not thrive onboard the boats, or under the pressure. So while 2 boats might have both done 5 successful Patrols, boat #1 would still be a bit sharper, faster, and smoother than boat #2. The difference would be a few special or unique Officers and Crewmen.

That's what I think the Devs were trying to do, give the flavor, the "something extra" that having the right person, in the right place, at the right time can impart.

[jerryt]

My boat is now crewed by officers and master Chiefs! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[John Channing]

Boy I dislike this feature, the "power ups" you get as people get promoted. I like the natural ability and specialization, but the local ability is just silly.

I mean, I dont think many sailors in the PTO ever said "Wow, after sinking that tanker, I feel I can make the boat dive faster!"

Doesn't make much sense, but I am sure the modders will be able to put this feature to good use. If anything, I think then local abilties should have a negative effect on the crew to simulate battle fatigue and PTSS.

This would be a huge encouragement to play historically and send these crewmembers off 'to new construction'.

The way it is right now ya might as well have to drive your boat through gold rings a'la Sonic the Hedgehog to get special abilities.

I'm not sure, but I think I can see what the devs were trying to do here.

When I arrived aboard the 643 boat, I was trained in my job and had a basic working idea of how the sub worked and such. After 4 or 5 patrols, not only could I do my job much faster and quicker, I had picked up skills and job knowledge in many areas that I did not have when I reported aboard, in areas far removed from my 'normal' shipboard job.

This reflects both the unique "qualification" that each submariner must pass to earn his Dolphins, and the fact that young, bright men will learn stuff interesting to them. So you tend to pick up a lot of new things. Even though I was an MT and my "job" was back in the Mouse House, I became a very decent Sonar watchstander just because I wanted to.

The crew as a whole operated much the same way. We became a team, a well oiled machine, we "clicked" as a crew. We were MUCH faster, sharper, more efficent and smoother in everything we did after a few patrols under our belts. The Whole was very much greater than the sum of its parts in this case.

I agree the way the Dev's implemented it seems a bit odd, but I'm not sure how else to reflect the deep "Sea change" that a crew undergoes from Patrol 0 to patrol 3,4,5, Etc. That profound change that submariners undergo as they progress from simply operating the boat to almost having the boat become a part of you is really something to see.

Now you consider a WW II fleet boat, where the crew are forced into the furnace of life - and -death combat. The Iron Men who come through that are going to be a tall step above average. Nothing concentrates the mind like someone trying very hard to kill you.

So there does need to be some way to reflect the sharper way a Veteran crew will do anything compared to a Novice crew. However, all the crews are not the same, so I don't think you can do it all with global increases. Some crews just did not "Click", some Officers did not work out well, some men did not thrive onboard the boats, or under the pressure. So while 2 boats might have both done 5 successful Patrols, boat #1 would still be a bit sharper, faster, and smoother than boat #2. The difference would be a few special or unique Officers and Crewmen.

That's what I think the Devs were trying to do, give the flavor, the "something extra" that having the right person, in the right place, at the right time can impart.

Nicely put and spot on!

JCC

[Bane]

Are there any 'abilities' that have a negative affect on the boat? That could balance things out a bit and give us a reason to dismiss crew members and enlist new ones.

[-Pv-]

Remember too English is not the 1st language of the devs and sometimes we are easlily confused by descriptions that come close to intent but don't translate perfectly.

As has been stated so well, the devs are trying to provide us with a dynamic crew that can improve and suffer. I have seen many instances of both.
Long surface running in a storm is an example where crew fatigue will rapidly increase. Wounded or tired crew become less efficient. If there are any other major detractors I'm unsaware of them as yet. I suspect in war, it's in everyone's self interest to give their all (plus some) in an all out effort to stay alive, so the emphasis is on skill gained rather than on slackers dooming the boat to failure (which the other crew would take exception too and apply the appropriate pressure.)

That said, I'm in the habbit of replacing crew that did not improve during the patrol.
-Pv-