What kills you?

[jazzabilly]

The most?

I've only lost one skipper so far, in about 20 or so patrols played, and four careers (most get deleted).

I lost a Balao Class boat in a minefield. Ever since then, I steer well clear of shallow water.:o

A/C have come close, and I haven't tangled with a Bungo Pete as of yet.

[JonB]

Well, I havent died yet. Only done a couple of restarts when wanting to try another sub or a new mod.

Speaking of wich, I´m running on "normal" with a realizm of about 65 %. Every escort/destroyer who has been after me with he´s depthcharges has just been too easy to get away from, even quite easy to kill (while they are looking for me). Why is this? I thought "normal difficulty" should be normal... Is it that every one I´ve come across are novices? Because I havent played further than middle of -43 so far...

[tater]

Jon, if you are playing the stock game... well, the campaign is simply awful. Wrong types of escorts, and the skill levels are universally badly done. In stock, ALL convoy escorts are set to low quality AI such that they are literally targets not much more capable than the odd small merchant.

What kills me?

Shallow water, and not just mines. A mean kaibokan in RSRDC can ruin your day.

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/tatersw/SH4/CD_D1.jpg

[Soundman]

Knowing I'm not really gonna die ! I mean, sometimes I get more bold than I would in real life. For example...once in a while, I like taking on those DDs, whereas in real life, I'd be running like hell. Most of the time I win those battles, when I don't, well...that's what saves are for. :lol:

[SteamWake]

Greed usually :yep:

[Red Lord of Chaos]

Betty usually, by the time the things go over the deck is awash but the tower is still above the waves. Even if I'm not killed outright the damage takes me later when I'm forced deep.
Most entertaining near death was in an IX, nearly sunk by an exploding merchant! 49% hull damage, took both 'scopes and popped 4 bulkheads along with other systems. Only the aft torp room and tower were dry and about half of the crew were wounded... Somehow I limped into Surubaya...

[Travis Reed]

Gonna hafta go with shallow water, subnets, mines, and tiny islands you don't even see...

Then of course...there's the blind lookouts not informing me of land based guns (also in shallow water)...

I really hate the Marshalls and now refuse to patrol there...everytime I go, the weather is bad...or the waves are high...and I end up dying mysteriously while patrolling with TC up (no higher then 1024, and usually closer to 512). One time I know it was shore guns as it pulled me out of TC after the initial hit (which doomed me...). It's rather nice how the lookouts are blind...:roll:

I think the last one was due to a subnet, but I can't be certain...

[tater]

Travis, if you are playing a modded campaign, like RSRD, the Atolls in the Marshalls--and elsewhere---are actually atolls. A primary failing of the stock game, is that there were NO REEFS. What good is an anchorage like Truk, for example, when it is open to the wide sea?

Back with the first major campaign rewrite, I populated the atolls with subnets to fill in for the missing reefs. Carotio, using Ref's terrain tool made Truk a proper atoll by raising tiny islands where the reefs should be. I think that the Marshalls retain my subnets, plus many many more added by lurker in RSRDC. Heck, lurker might have simply redone all of them himself.

Long story short is that if you use RSRDC, the marchals have reefs, and should you plot a course THROUGH any atoll, you will hit a subnet at 10 knots, and sink.

[jazzabilly]

Yes, Tater I found those subnets when I tried to pop a stationary merch. in Kwajalein. About 25 sec. or so after firing I heard "torpedo impact....torpedo impact" and saw two ghysers of water only about 500 yds in front of my boat. I had a good laugh over that and pulled away.

[Soundman]

Yep, I hit one of those nets at night once. Took me a while to figure out what had happened.

[JonB]

hm, I never come across any subnets... Are they in the TMO as well?

Would be cool to hit one someday, just to know, lol. And I´ve never seen any mines neither. I probably must patrol more shallow waters by the sound of it. :o

[kylesplanet]

hm, I never come across any subnets... Are they in the TMO as well?

Would be cool to hit one someday, just to know, lol. And I´ve never seen any mines neither. I probably must patrol more shallow waters by the sound of it. :o

If your using TMO, you will find some mines. :yep: As far nets, they're in there but RSRD adds more.

[JonB]

Thanks!

I´ll go into shallow waters, hit "Ahead flank" and start scanning the ocean :rock: :lol:

[gimpy117]

Static Damage. :down:

[rubenandthejets]

DDs got me a lot, until I found that clicking on the depth meter stem let me dive below 45 meters :oops: . Running aground and not respecting gunboats and subchasers enough gets me dead now. The death that really annoys me: planes crashing into me fter I shoot them down!

[Falkirion]

Getting caught on the surface by bombers, DD's hammering the crap out of me in shallow water, and coastal batteries that can somehow see a sub slipping into a harbor even though the nights pitch black.

[ssn724]

Planes, I can't stop trying to shoot them down. Last one crashed into my stern and sank me.

[rifleman13]

What kills you?
Sheer incompetence... :dead:

[magic452]

1 sub net
1 betty
2 DD s

All because of, as Rifleman13 said, incompetence.

macgi452

[groomsie]

This really burnt me, making an approach on a convoy (~ March 1944), 2 big merchants escorted by 2 armed merchants in rough seas. Running the TMO 1.6.2 and RSRDC...Scope down and waiting for sound bearings to approach my firing point. Poke up the scope and here is the lead armed merchant steering direct for me--I've been scope down, silent running, and heard no pings (did armed merchants have sonar?). And in the background his partner is also pulling out of line and headed for me. Dropped scope to hope it is coincidnence.

It isn't. They both non chalantly cruised over top and killed me. Unbelievable. Made me wish I'd simply tried to take them out (they draw more than a destroyer and surely don't maeuver all that great?)...lesson learned. Ducimus is evil.

[Dread Knot]

Poke up the scope and here is the lead armed merchant steering direct for me--I've been scope down, silent running, and heard no pings (did armed merchants have sonar?).

Some Japanese merchants were equipped with hydrophones. How well trained they were on them I can't say.

[Raptor1]

Small almost-uncharted islands in the East Indies, those are the main cause of death

[groomsie]

Poke up the scope and here is the lead armed merchant steering direct for me--I've been scope down, silent running, and heard no pings (did armed merchants have sonar?).

Some Japanese merchants were equipped with hydrophones. How well trained they were on them I can't say.

I'd heard that, but still not sure about accurate sonar (vs hydrophones)...in rough seas, with a convoy moving at 12 knots, and a submarine running silent at 1 knot, not sure it is realistic to have an armed merchant pick you up so precisely...which brings me back to Ducimus is evil.

[magic452]

Groomsie we all agree that Ducimus is evil, very smart but evil.
I'm still playing 1.4 so in 1.5 with TMO there are killer merchants??
If so do they have DC s. Is this for U boats or Fleet boats?

Magic452

[tater]

The japanese used XPCs (converted merchants) as escorts quite a bit. Some are indeed armed with depth charges, sonar, etc. They are in RSRDC.

[magic452]

Thanks Tater
They are converted merchants, not armed merchants. ( they don't look like merchants.)
I'll be on the look out for these guys.

I'm on my 8th. patrol out of Midway and patrolling around Japan and have only seen one warship and didn't mess with him as I was in shallow water.
been coming home with 50 or 60,000 tons, but no warships.?????


Magic452
1.4 with TMO & RSRDC.

[Red Lord of Chaos]

Lucky ***, I've had a parade of Jap carriers, about half a dozen invasion fleets plus extremely well escorted lone small passenger ships...:huh: Life's fun in the Phillipines...:rock:

[groomsie]

Groomsie we all agree that Ducimus is evil, very smart but evil.
I'm still playing 1.4 so in 1.5 with TMO there are killer merchants??
If so do they have DC s. Is this for U boats or Fleet boats?

Magic452

Yep, whatever you call them it is basically a merchant with guns, depth charges, and it would appear sonar/hydrophones. They do show up in the recognition manual along with warships, so they are not classified as merchants per se.

Surprised to get nailed by one so professionally/easily...probably took him for granted and in hind sight I think I should have tried to exploit the fact it is basically a merchant--deeper draft and slower speed than a subchaser or destroyer--and as such I should have gone after one or both and then move to the merchants. Lesson learned.

And Ducimus is evil in a good way. We love it.

[jazzabilly]

As a sub driver I've been trained by the best ~ in U-Boats by the RN & USN in '43 and '44 (GWX) and it's taught me extreme caution. Meaning, don't be seen, don't be heard and never take liberties with a surface ship. Kill it when you can.

As far as playing SH3 (modded) I guess it qualifies as a "Perisher" course for SH4 skippers.

[fishfood]

Time compression kills me in about 2 seconds flat when the hydrophone still shows that DD 5000+ yards out rather than finishing his attack run after stuffing a depth charge down my hatch...:damn:

[ancient46]

Life is a terminal illness.

I have have run aground on a tiny island underneath the map marker (the birth of my Transparent Marker Mod), inadvertently hit the dive key in time compression. Forgot the sub has lousy brakes and ran ashore. Forgot I mapped the "E" key to a mouse Button for another game and emergency surfaced to the delight of the enemy. Tried a deck gun battle with the deadeye RFB/RSRDC Japanese Merchant Marines that hit the first time all the time doing extreme damage to my sub. And so on.

[magic452]

thanks groomsie, those must be the rather strange looking things I see in the manual.
Haven't run across any yet, haven't run across any warships yet so I'm taking Red Lord of Chaos advice and just transferred to Freemantle.

It's been so long since I took on a convoy or TF I just might be able to post what this thread is about ( What kills you). :D

Magic452

[Red Lord of Chaos]

Aye, you see sweet FA from Pearl, 'course I managed to surpass myself on this point with the most jaw dropping sighting yet... A Pocket BB!:o
Too fast to intercept but serious eye candy.

[otto69]

Yes, Tater I found those subnets when I tried to pop a stationary merch. in Kwajalein. About 25 sec. or so after firing I heard "torpedo impact....torpedo impact" and saw two ghysers of water only about 500 yds in front of my boat. I had a good laugh over that and pulled away.

If you sink slowly to 200 ft. and proceed very slow , you can go under the sub net. Then the stationary ship can be sunk. I think the net is to deep, but it was fun to go under it. I found this out as I was trying to get close to the ships. Going very slow, then I ran into it. Went to emergency reverse and changed camera view to out side. And low and behold ,there is the net.

Otto

[Pvt. Public]

i havent had SH4 for very long, only been killed twice. once i was waiting for a small convoy to come to me. i was ahead of them in firing position all stop and silent at night. i poke a scope up to have a peek as they were getting closer and saw no sign of suspicion. so i upped the time compression a tad. next thing i know the escort closest to me drives over my tower in a depth charge run.
the other wasnt much of a death... i escaped 4 destroyers with a destroyed rudder. that made me mad more than anything else thats happened.:damn:

[groomsie]

It's been so long since I took on a convoy or TF I just might be able to post what this thread is about ( What kills you). :D

Magic452

Started a new career, start of war in Phillipines in an S-Boat and I can say try that for some convoy / TF action!! And, I also added a new "what kills me" last night...unreported damage.

Hit a big well escorted convoy last night in darkness, scored 2 hits on an old liner (troop transport) and eventually evaded the large screen. Took ~ 58% hull damage on a lucky DC, but other than minor damage to deck gun surprised to find no other damage or flooding. OK, so I move on to next objective, and there I am next night approaching a convoy in shallow water, many merchants and only 1 escort I can see. He spots me and is coming in so I decide to try the "down the throat" as water is shallow, I'm in full reverse and lined up and hit the fire key. Nothing, except a report that bow tubes too heavily damaged.

Apparently my torpedo tubes were knocked out and no one bothered to report it. So I'm backing down full in shallow water and can do nothing. If I'd known of the damage I could have returned to port (and maybe should have with 58% hull damage).

So what kills me is incompetent crew who can't report non-functioning systems (and the main weapon not functioning might warrant a "Hey, Skipper...").

[Dread Knot]

So what kills me is incompetent crew who can't report non-functioning systems (and the main weapon not functioning might warrant a "Hey, Skipper...").

A lot depends on who is saying "Heeey Skipper!" :D

http://blogs.pitch.com/wayward/gilligan.jpg