When to return home?

[vek73]

In career mode, is there a recommended point or duration after which to complete a mission?? (return to home base)

If I complete objectives while I'm out and I have ample fuel/torps, I typically send a status reports to get new obejctives. But otherwise, when it is time to return for fuel or refitting. The question is do I refit and get more objectives (it seems this could be done endlessly), or return to home base and grab a new "official" mission spend renown, promotions, awards, etc. How should a typical outing last? Any recommendations or insight?

[AVGWarhawk]

I only refit if I need the fuel or there is a hot spot I can go back too. Other than that, if I out of fish or low on fuel. I go to my home port. Collect my booty and start my next patrol.

[Snuffy]

Depending on where I'm based, I usually burn 5/8 of a tank of fuel before I decide to head back to base.

Rumor has it if you are playing any given patrol, the game loads the AI with a certain number of ships. Once those ship go through a single rotation, you will not see another ship in the whole of the Pacific except your own.

Refitting and heading back out will eventually lead to you heading home with a boat full of fish you didn't use.

As I said, burn off 5/8 of a tank and then I no longer radio for future objectives after completing the last one given.

[jdkbph]

I don't think I've used the Rearm/Refuel option once in the game, other than to top off fuel at an intermediary base when outbound or inbound from a patrol.

Feels too much like a "power up" type cheat.

JD

[CaptJodan]

It's actually kind of bad around Guadalcanal in 43. I'm not sure how historically accurate it is, but it seems as if you can just pull up, resupply, and go out about 10 miles to find targets. The shipping passes right by that point to such a degree that you can rack up tonnage by leaps and bounds.

Sadly, I take advantage of it. Hey, I'm there to sink Japanese shipping. Not my fault they waltz right into American controlled territory and ask to be torpedoed. :)

[DavyJonesFootlocker]

I installed Run Silent, Run Deep Campaign mod and found a marked decrease in traffic. Prior to that Larger Tankers were everywhere and I'm sinking 33000 tons plus per patrol. Now I'm lucky if I spot a ship at all. I like the decrease in traffic as I felt guilty getting all that tonnage. Felt like cheating.

[CaptJodan]

I installed Run Silent, Run Deep Campaign mod and found a marked decrease in traffic. Prior to that Larger Tankers were everywhere and I'm sinking 33000 tons plus per patrol. Now I'm lucky if I spot a ship at all. I like the decrease in traffic as I felt guilty getting all that tonnage. Felt like cheating.

Hmm...maybe I'll try RSRD soon. I feel guilty sometimes as well. Been thinking about it, but wasn't sure if I'd screw my SH4 up to high heaven with other mods installed.

[rjbudz]

How long were patrols in Real Life? For how long did captians take out thier boats? I'm sure it varies according to base locations, proximity to targets, etc.

I would think to get the best simulated experience, one would come home (or refit) when the supplies (food) run dry. So how long is that? As the game stands, you could theoretically stay out on one patrol for years.

[seafarer]

Most fleet boats were designed for 70-75 days endurance. I remember seeing the figure of 58 days, as one of the longest US patrols of the war. The USS Lionfish's first patrol in 1945 was 51 days (includes 23 submerged), and she never fired a shot.

It seems from reading patrol reports that, barring mechanical problems forcing an early return to port, patrols lasted anywhere from ~40 to ~60 days.

edit: USS Parche's 3rd war patrol was 86 days (10-Sept. to 2-Dec, 1944), but she did make a stop in at Saipan part way through that. She escorted the USS Sailfish in as Sailfish's transmitter was not working. Her 3rd patrol officially ended on 2-Dec when whe returned to Midway for refit.

[Sailor Steve]

"We head for home when I SAY we head for home...Navigator!"

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[Powerthighs]

As stated above, patrols were usually more than a month and less than two months. Obviously, if you had good hunting and ran out of torps early you would come home much sooner. I try to make mine not last more than about 7 weeks even if I still have fuel/torps.

Regarding reloading and going back out, in the Asiatic fleet later on in the war (when they had more advanced bases) they would sometimes do "double-barreled" patrols where they would return to a forward base after expending their torps, reload, and go back out for another run. I don't know of any instances where this reload happened more than once.

[Snuffy]

Lots of good points here.

Something to consider, we sit in our nice comfortable homes in front of a computer screen and we can come and go as we please in the duration of the sim.

IRL those guys were stuck in a tuna fish can with no real personal space let alone hygene, and some of them got pretty homesick after a good month at sea. Many needed the feel of sand beneath their feet etc.

Good skippers always looked out for the welfare of their crews. Something we as simmers, sometimes do not consider since we can TC all over the world if we wanted to.

:)

Play for real. Your men need to get "home" once in a while to terra firma!

[seafarer]

All the more reason to pick Pearl as home port - let your crew relax in the Royal Hawaiian Hotel (aka the Rest and Recuperation Annex to the Submarine Base).

There should be an option for a swim call while on patrol too :D

[rjbudz]

Of course, there's also Hotel Street.:D

[Rockin Robbins]

I go out until I expend my torpedoes, usually two or three missions, and then return. I always complete at least one mission. Then its back to the farm to end the cruise.

Why? Because only at the end of the cruise are you offered refits, promotions, medals, new boats, etc. If you routinely repair, reload and go back out just once on every patrol, you cut those opportunities in half for your career. People complain about being stuck with the same conning tower too long, but never complete their patrols as they are supposed to.

Complete your objectives. Complete your cruises. There's a good part of the secret to playing SH4.

[Quillan]

I've always played careers based out of Pearl Harbor. I start by making a speed run to Midway, refuel there, then head at my cruising speed to the objective. I return once I've run low on fuel or torpedoes. Like Robbins, I find I usually fit between 2 and 3 missions into a patrol. Once I'm low, I head back to Midway, refuel again, and make a speed run back to Pearl. Typically my patrols last roughly 2 months. The only time I've gone back out from Midway was once when I encountered one of the Battle of Midway task forces near the island, I was close so I rearmed and headed on to where I was going in the first place.