Forget the DD's....watch out for the Fast Freighters!

[snordin]

I've just completed my fifth patrol with the U-31, and on two of those I've encountered some nastiness I never thought I'd see. On three separate occasions, I've run into a "fast freighter", all between 12k and 14k tons, and all three have taken a full salvo of fish from my bow tubes and not sunk. Not just not sunk, but not even slowed down. Well, until I surfaced for 2 of the 3 (the third was in the middle of a convoy), and they turned and opened fire on me.

Now, this is barely December 1939, so I really wasn't expecting to be shot back at by two deck guns and several smaller guns. Interestingly, the two ships succumbed rapidly to my 8.8cm deck gun (one was sunk by a shot I heaved off as the crew was scrambling to get back in the boat for the crash dive I ordered after those big guns came to bear on me).

Now, as I'm still just fresh out of Command School, is this something I should anticipate seeing often? Or am I seeing a fluke? Or maybe a bug?

Since I know it'll be asked, I'm running GWX 2.1, with a bunch of mods (mostly the standard ones you see).

[kenijaru]

I'd go with "extreme bad luck" :yep:

[-SWCowboy.]

I've never had much luck on the surface either, I'd recommend staying below as often as you can :cool: Less dangerous down there LOL

[Uboatman]

Those Fast Freighters do seem to just laugh at you for thinking you can sink them with a couple of torpedoes, I had one recently that took 5 torps before it went down, however there is some hope, recently I fired 2 fish at the bow end of one and the 1st fish caused it to blow up, I'm not sure exactly where the fish hit but it was stormy weather and the torp was set for 4m impact, it did hit around the area of the foremost rigging, if I ever find one on it's own I may try to replicate this hit

[meduza]

It's not advisable to enter a gunfight against an armed vessel. I was once sunk by a Tramp steamer. Don't ask... :D

In my opinion, the merchants are far too deadly. Once or twice, I torpedoed a ship on surface at night, and once the ship was hit, they immediately pointed the searchlights at me, and start shooting. While I was diving, they scored a several hits. Although they were in flames, sinking.

[Ping Panther]

Hello snordin,

It does seem like some merchants in GWX2 acquire deck guns much earlier than I had been used to before. I'm not sure if this is happening more at random as more of a GWX2 challenge, or if it is from some of the newer ships in the merchant fleets that have been added in the more recent GWX updates.

It looks like you are a first time poster on Subsim, welcome!

[Tachyon]

Are you sure those aren't Auxiliary Cruisers disguised as "fast freighters" ?

Oh and Welcome to Subsim. And beware of Dowly & HunterIXC ;)

[Murr44]

It's not advisable to enter a gunfight against an armed vessel. I was once sunk by a Tramp steamer. Don't ask... :D

In my opinion, the merchants are far too deadly. Once or twice, I torpedoed a ship on surface at night, and once the ship was hit, they immediately pointed the searchlights at me, and start shooting. While I was diving, they scored a several hits. Although they were in flames, sinking.

Yesterday I ran down an 11,000+ ton large merchant NW of Tobruk. She was sailing alone & conditions for making an unobserved approach were awful: mid-morning, clear skies without any wind. My watch crew had spotted her moving away from us at 15,000+ meters (using OLCE 2). I waited until we got to within 4500 meters then opened fire. It took 70+ shells to kill her but I got off without a scratch. Normally I wouldn't have taken such a risk but pickings had been pretty slim: I'd only sank 2 small merchants in 6 days. Two hours after I sank that large merchant I got another 11,000+ ton one. This time I was able to make a proper submerged approach & sank her with 2 torpedoes (the gun crew needed a rest:D).

Meduza is correct though; engaging an armed merchant can be very hazardous to your health!:o

Welcome aboard Snordin.:sunny:

[bookworm_020]

Welcome aboard Snordin!:up:

Some merchants are armed from day one of the war. So it's best to check them out before engaging on the surface. If they do have a gun (just the one!) you can try and position yourself in the blind sport either ahead of behind the vessel your trying to sink. Remember that as the war goes on more ships will be armed, so the chance of you useing your deck gun on anything bigger than a fishing boat get smaller!

With sinking fast freighters, aim around the fore mast on impact seem to do the best in sinking them, they will not sink straight away, but then you can get away with sinking them with around two torpedos:arrgh!:

Good luck and good hunting!:rock:

[Buhring]

Just wondering :hmm:: what is the ship you call a "fast freighter"? I don't have anything named that way on my ship list.

Cheers

HBuhring

[snordin]

Ship sunk! Fast Freighter, 13241 tons
Ship sunk! Fast Freighter, 12612 tons

These are the two entries from my captain's log regarding the "fast freighter". They look like larger versions of the large freighter, all three I saw had a dark hull with light/white top and I believe 4 equal height masts. The bridge was located towards the center of the ship fore/aft and took up approximately 1/3 the length of the ship. There were two large gun emplacements, one on the bow the other on the stern, and 6 or 8 smaller gun emplacements on the superstructure and along the rails. The two I saw hit full speed were moving 12-16 knots.

SH Commander doesn't give them names, like it does other ships, so maybe it's an add-on ship? All I know is I'm gonna need more torpedoes if I want to sink one of these AND something other than a fishing boat.

[Madox58]

As many units are built by useing other units,
they get stretched or shrunk.
The Damage model does not change however.
So if a ship is enlarged?
It's damage model becomes to small and may have critical
strike zones to high up for a torpedo to really damage properly.
And if a model is reduced in size?
You can actually damage it by hitting it 10 meters or more AHEAD of the Bow!

GWX uses many builders units.
Not all were double checked as to the damage models.
So much to do,
So little time and all.

[snordin]

Privateer,

I would like to quickly note that I in no way was knocking the GWX modelling or workmanship. You guys have done an amazing job with the tools available to you.

I'm just a bit frustrated by the arse-whupping that I'm taking by a stinking merchie.
You'd think they'd all be nice civilian sailors and let us just line up 1000 yds off their beam with a nice 90 AOB and no speed and let us just wallop 'em :D

Or maybe even just sink the boat upon sighting a boot and just letting us take the credit.....imagine how much savings in torpedoes we'd have!

[Madox58]

I totally understand Mate.
No one takes offense with your post.
I was just trying to explain why some units are,
shall we say,
Goofy?
:rotfl:
I had a chat with VonHelshing about Damage models.
I asked him how and why he did somethings.
His GREATEST advise to me?
'If no one notices the damage model?
It's probably OK.
It's when people notice that you need to correct it.
And you do it by test after test after test.'
After the first release of the ASWT?
I learned that well!

[snordin]

Well, I have now found the bane to my Kaleun existence.

I've been relying heavily on my first officer to put my fish on target, and today I decided to try my own hand at the game.

Just off the coast of Dover i come upon a lone ship, steaming at about 6 knots. Easy pickings.


Or so I thought.

I start to try to identify the ship, it's hazy so no easy. I get closer. A large merch? A large freighter? C'mon....it can't be!!!

A fast frieghter. Armed to the gills.

Bah!!!! A pox on the fast freighter!!!!!!

At least I can say two things about my encounter. One, I got a lot of practice shooting torps with manual targetting...so if Bernard ever gets a hold of my 1WO, I'm confident I could at least sink a big slow target. And two...that bugger's on the bottom of the Channel right now. Only 7!!! fish to put her down.


I'll say it again..... Bah!!!!

[Jimbuna]

Your powers of observation and the ability to recognise different vessel types will come in time.....but so will addotional models for the game :lol: