Reported a contact with a convoy.

[DaveCrom01]

Hello all,

Well, the last 3 days have been spent playing SH4. It's addictive :-)

One quick question for the "reality players" out there.

I had completed a patrol off Honshu, and put all my torpedoes to good use. My star was greyed out (thanks to those on my other thread!) and I had one aft torp left.

I spotted a huge convoy - battleships, destroyers and heavy tankers. I tailed it until I got a lock on of the ships and hit the REPORT CONTACT button like the good captain I am.

My new mission was "this looks important, attack and destoy".

A bit tricky with only one tinfish in the aft slots.

Sure enough, I sunk a small freighter inside the convoy with it, and now its time for home after a stop at midway for some juice.

I still have the orders. Will I fail the patrol? Wouls it actually have been better not to report it and thus not be assigned to attack it? It doesnt seem realistic to not have ignored it, but now I feel I'm about to get a black mark.

Any thoughts?

Cheers Dave,

p.s I just discovered also that I don't need to have visually put a LOCK on a target to get the sonar dude to give me distance to target! I've been brushing up on my Trigonometry and having a blast!

[-Pv-]

Just my personal opinion, I don't issue a convoy report as long I have any torps if I don't think I'll be able to satisfy the order to sink enough ships. I suspect you need to take out at LEAST one or more of the largest ships. These are usually in the center front or second row in a really big convoy. If I were in your shoes given that particular circumstance, I would have freelanced the attack without the report, did my best with the remaining torp and deck gun, then gone home.
-Pv-

[DaveCrom01]

Thanks PV

Yeah, I'll know for next time. Although I kind of feel that reporting it was the best I could do (for other allied in the area) rather than ignoring it .

I just find so much realism in the game, that I'm just not sure when to make an allowance for the game play :-)

Cheers,
Dave

[-Pv-]

You don't help the AI much unless there is a US task force within sailing distance, or aircraft on a task force within flying distance, or US land-based aircraft within flying distance. If you don't see them attack while you're there, your contact report was just for emersion and you're not really helping the game win (so to speak.) Frankly I would rather take the targets for myself rather than handing them to the AI (if I have any torps left.) In the case you stated, you're not giving up much by reporting in, but you might get docked for not fulfilling the target assignment. Always a risk.
-Pv-

[jasondef]

You don't help the AI much unless there is a US task force within sailing distance, or aircraft on a task force within flying distance, or US land-based aircraft within flying distance. If you don't see them attack while you're there, your contact report was just for emersion and you're not really helping the game win (so to speak.) Frankly I would rather take the targets for myself rather than handing them to the AI (if I have any torps left.) In the case you stated, you're not giving up much by reporting in, but you might get docked for not fulfilling the target assignment. Always a risk.
-Pv-
That's a cool thing in the game, if an Allied task force will come engage an Axis convoy if you report it and they are within range. I hope to see that at least once, and hopefully lend my support and get to watch some of the fireworks of a multi-ship naval battle at the same time. Very cool game to have that possiblity in there!

And you mentioned you MIGHT get docked for not fulfilling the target assignment, but I am wondering what would happen for sure and what the formula is for whether or not you'd get points docked, hmmm.