I'd like some navigation advice, I'm a newbie

[DirtyACE]

Well, I've been playing around with the game for about 5 days now. Instead of trying to dive in completely, I'm doing it the gradual way. First I'm trying to learn how to navigate and plot intercept courses correctly. Once I feel I have it down, I'll move on to learning manual plotting of the solution.

So basically I've been using the thread called The Hunt to learn the art of interception. I'm so far getting mixed results. At times I'm really off and others I'm close, more or less. The whole process takes many many steps and I was wondering if there's an easier way of doing it. Are there any other methods to plotting an intercept course? What method would you recommend to a newbie?

I've also ready that there's a shorter version to the same method as The Hunt, but I've also read that it's not accurate. Is that still the case or has it been revised?

[TarJak]

To be honest as a nub What I did was drew a line in the general direction of the target's route then worked out how long it would take for the target (say at medium or ~8-9kt) to travel a certain distance ay 50km. Use the speed/distance charts in the F5 map screen for that. Then I work out how long it will take me to get to that point at standard (~12-14kt). If I can make it before the target then I plot a course for that point. If not I select a closer (to me) distance and work out if I can get there before the target. Once I find an intersect that I think will work I plot the course and go for it. When I reach the intersect or am approaching it I submerge for a sound check and see if I can hear the target (or anything else).

I never bothered to get too accurate as long as I was within a couple of game hours I considered it accurate enough to get close enough for a sound contact.

I also never bother with targets not heading the right way unless they were close. i.e; within my present grid square or in the next grid square.

Don't worry about being too accurate as if you have gotten your self ahead of the target then you can always head along the path he is taking until you make contact. Don't forget that they can change course (In GWX at least), so you won't always find them running on the same course as you mapped out originally which obviously makes them harder to find as it was in RL.

On longer contacts say four or five grid squares where there was a chance of getting an intersecting course I just used my eye and judgement to work out whether I'd be there and if it looked good went for it.

[Brag]

What Tarjack says works. I use a calculator to get my distances right. To get distance traveled in kilomters = speed in knots x time traveled x 1.8.

Estimated time enroute= Time x speed in knots x 1.8 :D

[TarJak]

To be honest it doesn't matter what point you pick as long as it looks like you have a realistic chance of getting to it before the target does. Even if it is miles ahead of them because you can always travel along their path to find them.

Use the sound check technique regularly to find them once you are one the target's pathas you can heard them before you will ever see them. Once you get a bearing on them you can then adjust speed and course for a close in intercept which is much easier to work out.

[S Rafty]

Get the ruler, and draw a line from the target on the map in its gen direction. The if its slow. Set to Ahead Full and aim for a point on that line, and wait it out. Often If my watch crew dont spot it I go to periscope depth and listen for screws.

If its a medium speep and ur far away, I tend not to bother.

[DirtyACE]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I think I'm going to make it easier on myself and try some simple ways of intercepting the target, and eventually I'll work in the additional stuff that most of you veterans use.

I have managed to sink my first ship ever in career mode last night. It was a small merchant, only about 2600 tons, but a kill nevertheless. Took me a good three tries to get his course right. It also seemed like he changed course slightly eventhough I'm playing a stock SHIII. Anyway, I managed to set up perfectly, plus it was just passed 3 AM so it was dark. I put one torpedo into its starboard and then surfaced to finish him off with the deck gun, but by that time he was already going down like a sack of rotten potatoes.

I'm pretty happy. I'm continuing on my course to patrol AL16, but have just spotted another ship so we'll see if I can make it 2 in a row.

Thanks again!:up:

[Canovaro]

Well done! And good luck with that second target.

[TarJak]

Keep up the good work!:up:

[von Zelda]

Draw a line representing the target course.

Draw another line from the target to your u-boat's position and then a few inches further.

Draw a circle from the target position with the radius equal to the speed of the target.

At the intercept point of the circle and the target's course, draw another circle with the radius equal to the speed of your u-boat (usually full speed of 16 - 19 knots depending on the weather).

Using the angle tool, look for the intercept point of the second circle with the line from target to u-boat. Measure the angle at this point using the line from the u-boat and a line to the intercept point of first circle and target's course.

Again using the angle tool, transpose this angle at the point of the u-boat with lines from the target to u-boat and a line from the u-boat toward the target course. This line is your new and accurate intercept course.

This method takes into account your current position relative to the target, the target's course and the ratio of the speed of target and the speed of the u-boat.

Hope this is helpful. It is very had to put into words so I hope you can understand it.

[Canovaro]

Something like this:

http://kuijperonline.nl/operationspinnennetz/intercept.gif

- Note that the contact will be reported a little later than it is spotted (click on the target symbol and look at the time).
- Remember that any contact will have a 4000-7000 radius in which it can spot you. Be there a little early.

[DirtyACE]

Wow! Thanks guys for the detailed info. I will try this out as soon as I spot my next contact. I did manage to sink a second ship on the same patrol. It was another small merchant, apparently from Polish navy (I saw the flag). I'm about halfway to my assigned patrol area.

I have couple more questions:

1. How exactly do you guys calculate the contact's speed? Do you just assume it's 6 knots if he's slow and 9 knots if he's medium? That's what I've been doing so far.

2. I've read that many people run submerged durring bad weather. What exactly is the purpose of this? Does the crew get tired quicker if you sail while surfaced in that kind of weather?

[TarJak]

1. How exactly do you guys calculate the contact's speed? Do you just assume it's 6 knots if he's slow and 9 knots if he's medium? That's what I've been doing so far. Thats all you need to do. Until you are working out your firing solution you don't need to be more accurate than that.


2. I've read that many people run submerged durring bad weather. What exactly is the purpose of this? Does the crew get tired quicker if you sail while surfaced in that kind of weather?In GWX there is a fatigue penalty for having a crew on the watch tower which I believe is greater when in bad weather. Mind you if you play with no fatigue or run at TC >64x then this isn't an issue. Depending on how you play and how many crew you have running submerged can be worse because you then have to put 4 more crew into bunks. If you are not careful about which compartment they are in they may fatigue faster than if they were up top.

[DirtyACE]

Thanks TarJak. I'm currently running just a stock SH. I'll move on to GWX once I get the hang of it.

PS - Just sunk my 3 ship (another small merchant). Still on my first patrol.

[XLjedi]

I use an electronic maneuvering board that plots the intercept (among other things) for me. :ping:

http://www.xl-logic.com/mobo/tutorial_pics/intercept_20070731.png

[DirtyACE]

aaron, where did you get the electronic maneuvoring board? Is it a mod?

Well, I completed my first patrol, sunk 9 ships for almost 47,000 tons. I encountered a convoy heading for England and sunk 2 C2s, 1 T2 tanker, 1 T3 tanker, and a Small Merchant.

Currently on my second patrol, just sunk a C2.

Do you guys guess as to how many torps to shoot at a target? Sometimes C2s wont go down even after 2 torps.

[XLjedi]

aaron, where did you get the electronic maneuvoring board? Is it a mod?

There's a link to the MoBo forum in my signature. No, it's not a mod...

[Reverie]

After you've got the single ship interception down pat, and are using the same principles to meet convoys, your next step might be to go to the Subsim Download Section and get the Lunar Phases Charts (and print them). Then you can start shadowing convoys while planning the time of your approach for night surface attack sans moonlight. It definitely gets you involved and feeling that this is more of an historical simulation.
Reverie

[Canovaro]

Good idea Reverie, must have looked past it on subsim downloads. I Like it.