[WIP] Wolves of the Kaiser:1914-1918 Mod

[iambecomelife]

Sorry to say no plans for those ships .... right now I am working on finishing merchant ships so the release can be as soon as possible .... thank you for the engine room telegraph! It is helpful and I hope to update the model I have now.

[Rhodes]

I am going to quote another Subsim member, Rhodes:


__________________


:Kaleun_Salute:

[Unexp.U-Boater]

Hello there! I found some footage online with closeups of U-Boat officers including Otto Weddigen. The segment starts at 6:03. Hope this can be helpful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyxeh4u2Lag

[iambecomelife]

Hello there! I found some footage online with closeups of U-Boat officers including Otto Weddigen. The segment starts at 6:03. Hope this can be helpful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyxeh4u2Lag

Thank you! I may use some screen captures as artwork for different menus. Or I may splice it into the new WWI menu movie I will be using as a replacement for the standard WWII Pacific movie.

[Kapitain Oliver Leinkraunt]

what a wonderful footage of U-29's bow :D

[iambecomelife]

That's very valuable footage, thank you again! Especially since Weddigen was killed so early in the war - I believe he was the first famous U-Boat commander lost (1915). This is the only Motion Picture footage of him that I have ever seen; in fact, I watched a documentary on the Aboukir/Cressy/Hogue sinking that was produced recently, and they didn't use it ... so I suspect they didn't know about this film's existence.

I have put aside work on the "secret" feature for WOTK, that will make it similar to UBoat, but this is actually good news - playtesting went so well that almost all the hard work is done! :D I will finish implementing the secret feature when the mod approaches release.

A couple minor hints .... the change deals with the crew. And it is something that can be used for WWII mods too if people want. Whether Atlantic or Pacific theatre! :03:

I often work that way - working a couple hours/days, seeing if a change to Silent Hunter 4 is possible, and then postponing it when I find out that it is, in fact, something that can be done ... that way, I can experiment while making sure that I don't get sidetracked from the main focus.

Speaking of which, work is ongoing on another main focus (ocean liners) - this should not be too difficult because they are easier to build than the battleships I had to make. I will be taking a break from modding for Christmas/family stuff, but work will resume right after the New Year's holiday.

[dramaticuser]

I'd imagine it'd a bit of a stretch and not really a priority. so its not much of a suggestion but more of a question.

will ocean liners follow their real life routes? i can only guess, but i'd imagine getting one's hands into records of routes is easier for civilian ships than military ships

in any case, awesome work so far, love this mod!

(also as a big fan of uboat im very interested to see what feature you say will be similar to uboat, crew management if i had to guess)

[iambecomelife]

I'd imagine it'd a bit of a stretch and not really a priority. so its not much of a suggestion but more of a question.

will ocean liners follow their real life routes? i can only guess, but i'd imagine getting one's hands into records of routes is easier for civilian ships than military ships

in any case, awesome work so far, love this mod!

(also as a big fan of uboat im very interested to see what feature you say will be similar to uboat, crew management if i had to guess)

Ocean liners will follow historical routes TO A POINT. :haha: There will be pretty heavy traffic between New York and Liverpool, New York and lesser Western UK ports, North America to Rotterdam, etc. I am lucky to have several books by an author named Duncan Haws - he not only commissioned profile drawings of nearly every important ocean liner, he also lists what cities they usually sailed to. Including the years 1914-1918.

This will help me recreate ocean liner routes with general accuracy. But due to time limitations not every ship will be routed perfectly.

As a side note - one important thing that will be included is correct ship size, depending on where a patrol takes place. Ocean liners, big tankers, and other valuable ships will usually sail in the Western Approaches of the Atlantic. You will have to sail a greater distance to encounter them. Ships in the North Sea and coastal waters will often be smaller. Too often in sub games I see 7,000 - 10,000 ton ships sailing coastwise in the North Sea - even though big ships would not have been able to use coastal ports with a full load. Every ship is designed with economics in mind, and huge Liberty Ships/C2 Cargos (or WWI equivalents) don't make economic sense in shallow, local areas. Even today, many coastal ports are only used by ships of 1000 - 2000 tons.

You may encounter big tankers in the North Sea on refueling missions - or see big liners in the North Sea serving as Armed Merchant Cruisers between Scotland and Norway. but they will be exceptions.

[Unexp.U-Boater]

Hello. I found some more U-Boat footage, this time the film U-Boote heraus, a German propaganda film from 1918. It features bits of footage from the interior of the U-Boats (engines and torpedo hatches) as well as lot's of the exterior. All in good quality. I'm not sure if you came across this film before, but I'll send anyway. Happy New Year! https://digitaler-lesesaal.bundesarchiv.de/video/2431/683973

[Nikita Kaleun 20]

This is a fantastic mod that has been in development for a long time. I am super hyped for its release. Does the mod require silent hunter 3 or 4? If silent hunter 4 do I need to mod the Uboat missions expansion version? Would be great to include a guide on installation, please?

Many thanks in advance

:Kaleun_Salute::D

[1Patriotofmany]

This is a fantastic mod that has been in development for a long time. I am super hyped for its release. Does the mod require silent hunter 3 or 4? If silent hunter 4 do I need to mod the Uboat missions expansion version? Would be great to include a guide on installation, please?

Many thanks in advance

:Kaleun_Salute::D It's for SH4. I'm willing to bet you'll need the uboat expansion. All the other ATO mods need it.

[1Patriotofmany]

IAMBECOMELIFE, As far as the qships in the mod, will they be flying neutral flags and just before opening fire hoisting the brit flag or is that not possible to program in?

[iambecomelife]

This is a fantastic mod that has been in development for a long time. I am super hyped for its release. Does the mod require silent hunter 3 or 4? If silent hunter 4 do I need to mod the Uboat missions expansion version? Would be great to include a guide on installation, please?

Many thanks in advance

:Kaleun_Salute::D

It will require SH4: UBoat missions. Either the CD version or the Download-for-Purchase version will work with it. Installation will be extremely easy, so there will not be a lengthy guide. I can guarantee this.

[iambecomelife]

Hello. I found some more U-Boat footage, this time the film U-Boote heraus, a German propaganda film from 1918. It features bits of footage from the interior of the U-Boats (engines and torpedo hatches) as well as lot's of the exterior. All in good quality. I'm not sure if you came across this film before, but I'll send anyway. Happy New Year! https://digitaler-lesesaal.bundesarchiv.de/video/2431/683973

Thanks so much! Extremely useful images, again. :up:

1Patriotofmany, Q-Ships will display the Royal Navy flag and conceal the fake nationality flag when they are attacked - it is very easy to do. No thanks to me. Thank Skwas and his wonderful Silent 3d Editor.

Kind of unfortunate Silent Hunter 3/4 doesn't have a big modding community - there is so much that can be done with his tool, and I have just scratched the surface. :yep:

By way of updates - I am continuing work on big liner type ships ..... I spent some time reviewing images of RMS Titanic. Although she won't be included, the fine details of her construction are very well documented - making her good as source material to design WWI-era ocean liners.

[1Patriotofmany]

Will there be airships in the mod or barrage balloons? I know I'm asking for everything.

[ErdiFerenc]

Hi iambecomelife!

I think I have already expressed my admiration towards your dedication to this project and since then you continued to amaze me.

I am glad that this project is comming along well, especially because I am Hungarian, so I have some hope that maybe KuK will also be implemented some time in the future.

I wanted to ask you, if you would be interested in an S.M. U-5 3d model? Its far from finished but I got plenty of reference photos and I would be glad if I could help out with this. I also thought about modelling the interior for it, because I even got come interior shots of her american sisters, though they might not be sufficient for something like that.

So the main question would be, if an S.M. U-5 was on the roadmap and if a 3D model of it was of use for you?

Anyways here's an early WIP to give an idea about how it should turn out.
https://i.postimg.cc/nz7F2qQ9/2.png

I'll also link a (much) earlier project of mine, an x-craft midget submarine, to showcase about what quality should be expected. Unfortunatelly, I never made it to the texturing part, so only a procedural texture made in blender is applied here:
https://i.postimg.cc/FzV95mp9/X-Craft-3d-model.png

Keep up the amazing work!

[iambecomelife]

Will there be airships in the mod or barrage balloons? I know I'm asking for everything.

Yes, that's the idea - although right now I am working on the AI civilian ships and not aircraft.

I had a complete Wings3d model of a German "Drachen" balloon, but it was destroyed in the hack attack several years ago that deleted most of "Wolves of the Kaiser". It was not a big loss; in my opinion it was not a very good model. :haha::haha::haha:

The destruction of several submarine models and interface work was much more important - fortunately I have recovered from this loss. And I have the most important mod items backed up on an online Microsoft account. I learned my lesson!

As I get closer to release and round out the aircraft roster, you will see images of airships, balloons, etc.:salute:

[iambecomelife]

Hi iambecomelife!

I think I have already expressed my admiration towards your dedication to this project and since then you continued to amaze me.

I am glad that this project is comming along well, especially because I am Hungarian, so I have some hope that maybe KuK will also be implemented some time in the future.

I wanted to ask you, if you would be interested in an S.M. U-5 3d model? Its far from finished but I got plenty of reference photos and I would be glad if I could help out with this. I also thought about modelling the interior for it, because I even got come interior shots of her american sisters, though they might not be sufficient for something like that.

So the main question would be, if an S.M. U-5 was on the roadmap and if a 3D model of it was of use for you?

Anyways here's an early WIP to give an idea about how it should turn out.
https://i.postimg.cc/nz7F2qQ9/2.png

I'll also link a (much) earlier project of mine, an x-craft midget submarine, to showcase about what quality should be expected. Unfortunatelly, I never made it to the texturing part, so only a procedural texture made in blender is applied here:
https://i.postimg.cc/FzV95mp9/X-Craft-3d-model.png

Keep up the amazing work!

Wow, your work is wonderful quality, thanks for your interest! Although to be honest I had not planned on having U-5 or an Austro-Hungarian career for the initial release. At the moment I want to get out a German campaign with Atlantic warfare out as soon as possible. In the future, however, other nationalities may be covered.

Do you have any experience modeling European buildings, land vehicles, WWI era people, or farm animals? Right now my plan is to buy the rights to use several models, but if you can mod these things then of course that would save me money. Thanks a lot.

[iambecomelife]

Minor update: After much torment, new liners are about to be "launched!" This is a big step forward, due to previous shortage of WWI liners. I have two styles of bridgework that I will adapt for different liners between about 10,000 - 25,000 tons - one bridge based on Cunard ships, and another bridge based on Titanic. And her sisters from the White Star Line. Just bought a new book on modeling the Titanic, which will help me with details! Also a bit of work on interface/crew management stuff. :up:

[ErdiFerenc]

Thanks I really appreciate it coming from you! Yeah thats totally understandable after all those years of development.

I can give it a try, I have some experience with organic modelling and buildings too. Send me a pm with what exactly you would need so we can discuss what reference material I should use!

[iambecomelife]

Thanks I really appreciate it coming from you! Yeah thats totally understandable after all those years of development.

I can give it a try, I have some experience with organic modelling and buildings too. Send me a pm with what exactly you would need so we can discuss what reference material I should use!

Thanks so much! Very grateful you are being understanding - I know you're very interested in Austrian models and it's hard to be asked to model other stuff. I will be in touch soon. :up:

BTW, there is a good chance the initial release will at least let you fly the Austrian flag and win Austrian medals, so there will at least be some content for the "Aussies"...lol. :haha:

[iambecomelife]

Minor Update:

Had an unfortunate setback. It turns out certain components I am using for the ocean liners do not skin well and/or have very distracting problems with their vertices.

So some of the ocean liner work will have to be restarted. But this is not a huge problem; in a day or two I will have these problem parts rebuilt!

Producing ships in Wings3d is a roll of the dice so I'm not disheartened - it's not unheard of for a model to "go south" and need to be scrapped.

Hang in there, we are in a very good position right now. These modeling difficulties are nothing compared to what was faced with the battleships, now already modeled. :salute:

[Allerberger]

Hello, i don't know if you want to add the ships with the optical illusion camouflages, but i think this site might be helpful for you:Kaleun_Salute:
https://www.history.navy.mil/our-collections/art/exhibits/conflicts-and-operations/wwi/dazzle-paint-ship-camouflage-designs-.html

[Doctor Haider]

I am going to quote another Subsim member, Rhodes:

And http://www.tvre.org/en/torpedo-attacks-during-wwi


Unfortunately I will not be including 100% accurate WWI slide rule and manual computer firing in the game - due to time limits and also due to not enough primary source material to make the aiming devices look accurate. Lastly, I am just not that good at devising targeting interface mods. :oops:

In Wolves of the Kaiser, WWII equipment will be retained, but with technological advances disabled. For instance, there will be no FAT/guided torpedo provisions in either aiming equipment or in torpedo loadout. :yep:

__________________

Afaik the pre-calculated aim angles were also used in form of printed books for each type of torpedo speed/target speed/AOB values.

[Fritz Klum]

Just thought I'd drop this here:



OP began development of this mod when I was 13.


Now I am 30, and the mod is still incomplete xD


That's pretty insane if you think about it. Hats off to you for continuing at for that long and not getting burnt out!

[iambecomelife]

Just thought I'd drop this here:



OP began development of this mod when I was 13.


Now I am 30, and the mod is still incomplete xD


That's pretty insane if you think about it. Hats off to you for continuing at for that long and not getting burnt out!

Just FYI I had a family member with a serious illness that lasted for several years; to be honest family has got to come first. On top of that, she lived out of the country, and I had to help with the situation ... I could not in good conscience tell my family that I was too busy with computer games to help. :03:

This, along with the ransomware attack I have talked about (deleted much of my work) was responsible for much of the delay.

She has unfortunately passed away, but I am thankful for the time we spent.

[iambecomelife]

ErdiFerenc, thanks for your private message! I will write back ASAP once I finish work (I am working a 56 hour work week)..... XD

Another minor update:

Good news and bad news.

The bad news is that there will be another development pause, I will not have access to my modding computer (family time I cannot get out of! lol...) However, it will just be for about 5-6 days.

The good news is that I redid the ocean liner parts that were giving me trouble, and I am much happier with how they look after being skinned. Another nice step forward!

White Star Line type passenger ship wheelhouse has been skinned, soon I will be working on skinning the Cunard Line style wheelhouse.

I also found several interior spaces for the WWII Type II that I can adapt easily to WWI interiors! So I will be able to drop some of the interior work I was going to do from scratch, this will be a big help in pushing up the release date.

Also, while I don't have access to my desktop computer during "family time" I will have a laptop with MSWord, Excel, etc. As I usually do, I will work on the written parts of the mod - things like radio messages.

WWI war news is 100% complete for all war years. From June 1914 to December 1918, as I mentioned earlier. I think I will work on distress messages and intelligence updates, I need more of those types of wireless messages. I have a WWI merchant ship war loss book that lists every British steamship sunk by UBoat in WWI, so I can add distress calls on historically accurate dates/times. :D

All in all, feeling very confident about our situation now! Stay tuned.

[Fritz Klum]

Just FYI I had a family member with a serious illness that lasted for several years; to be honest family has got to come first. On top of that, she lived out of the country, and I had to help with the situation ... I could not in good conscience tell my family that I was too busy with computer games to help. :03:

This, along with the ransomware attack I have talked about (deleted much of my work) was responsible for much of the delay.

She has unfortunately passed away, but I am thankful for the time we spent.


That is a much sadder story than I was aware of. I am sorry for your loss. Apologies if my earlier message seemed insensitive in light of that - I was not aware of those circumstances.

[iambecomelife]

That is a much sadder story than I was aware of. I am sorry for your loss. Apologies if my earlier message seemed insensitive in light of that - I was not aware of those circumstances.

Thanks for the kind words, I'm not offended. My grandmother lived to be 92, so although it was a sad situation I am grateful for her long life.

I enjoyed her stories about WWII in the Caribbean! As you may know, lots of ships were sunk in the Caribbean back then, in "Operation Drumbeat" .... the US actually built an anti-sub airbase near her house - some of the people in her village were terrified because they'd never seen a blimp before! c:haha::haha:

[1Patriotofmany]

Thanks for the kind words, I'm not offended. My grandmother lived to be 92, so although it was a sad situation I am grateful for her long life.

I enjoyed her stories about WWII in the Caribbean! As you may know, lots of ships were sunk in the Caribbean back then, in "Operation Drumbeat" .... the US actually built an anti-sub airbase near her house - some of the people in her village were terrified because they'd never seen a blimp before! c:haha::haha: It seems to me that generation lived longer than today on average, though I know by the tables it isn't true. The terrible thing for me is I never got into history(at least the part of talking to your relatives about their experiences) until it was too late to talk to them. I talked a little to one grandfather and he told me a little about the depression and the rationing during WWII, but I didn't dig deep back then. He built Airplanes in SE PA during the war. I did get in touch with his brother and he sent me a little personal news letter detailing his life before he went a couple years later. He was on the island the silver plates flew from, was an electrician in the service. Almost all my uncles and my father served in the military but they were all peacetime, army for most and father coastguard. I just wish they were all around, I'd have a million questions for them. When I hear someone dying in their 90's or even 80's or 70's I think they've lived a good life as far as longevity. I see too many people going in their 60's now, so 90 is the jackpot. Condolences to you though it's never easy seeing family pass on, but you'll see her again. It's not over if you believe and ask.

[iambecomelife]

It seems to me that generation lived longer than today on average, though I know by the tables it isn't true. The terrible thing for me is I never got into history(at least the part of talking to your relatives about their experiences) until it was too late to talk to them. I talked a little to one grandfather and he told me a little about the depression and the rationing during WWII, but I didn't dig deep back then. He built Airplanes in SE PA during the war. I did get in touch with his brother and he sent me a little personal news letter detailing his life before he went a couple years later. He was on the island the silver plates flew from, was an electrician in the service. Almost all my uncles and my father served in the military but they were all peacetime, army for most and father coastguard. I just wish they were all around, I'd have a million questions for them. When I hear someone dying in their 90's or even 80's or 70's I think they've lived a good life as far as longevity. I see too many people going in their 60's now, so 90 is the jackpot. Condolences to you though it's never easy seeing family pass on, but you'll see her again. It's not over if you believe and ask.

Thanks very much for your kind post! I look forward to seeing her in heaven, as you say. :yep:

[iambecomelife]

By the way, people, I alluded to another project I was working on that took some of my time away from WOTK! :yep:

I was not allowed to give details - for confidentiality reasons.

Now I can report that I was part of the development team for the latest GWX! It just released, and I strongly recommend that you download it if you have any interest in WWII submarines! Kapt. Lehmann and the other staff who worked with me really went above and beyond to make this release ground-breaking, so please give it a try! :Kaleun_Salute::Kaleun_Salute:

https://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=252967

[Kpt. Lehmann]

Thank you for your kind words and the time you spent on our behalf, Iambecomelife. The best part was getting to know you better. Really nice, given that we've both been here a LONG time now. :doh::D


:Kaleun_Salute:

[Tigerzhunters]

ermm soo any progress or it stuck or maybe the worst stopped? well actually take ur time guys might be i could play this when im already have a kid :)

[iambecomelife]

ermm soo any progress or it stuck or maybe the worst stopped? well actually take ur time guys might be i could play this when im already have a kid :)

Definitely not!

As mentioned recently - I have some "family stuff" coming up but development will resume around March 1, 2025.

Furthermore, tremendous strides have been made with the interior, which was one of the hardest parts.

On top of that, the replacement ocean liner hulls have been excellent, I am happy with them now.

I will try to post an update with different screenshots in March.

By the way, I have decided to include two crew management variants for the mod.

Standard Crew Management will be identical to traditional Silent Hunter IV.

Advanced Crew Management will have very detailed character traits for each of the crew members. Crewmen will have unique strengths, and will adapt differently to military service. Some may become better sailors and others may become worse. It will be very important for players to examine their sailors' skills, behavior, and physical condition .... if not you may end up with a sick crew, a mutinous crew, or even end up stranded at sea. :haha:

[ReallyDedPoet]

Nice :yep::up:

[Bubblehead1980]

Definitely not!

As mentioned recently - I have some "family stuff" coming up but development will resume around March 1, 2025.

Furthermore, tremendous strides have been made with the interior, which was one of the hardest parts.

On top of that, the replacement ocean liner hulls have been excellent, I am happy with them now.

I will try to post an update with different screenshots in March.

By the way, I have decided to include two crew management variants for the mod.

Standard Crew Management will be identical to traditional Silent Hunter IV.

Advanced Crew Management will have very detailed character traits for each of the crew members. Crewmen will have unique strengths, and will adapt differently to military service. Some may become better sailors and others may become worse. It will be very important for players to examine their sailors' skills, behavior, and physical condition .... if not you may end up with a sick crew, a mutinous crew, or even end up stranded at sea. :haha:


Looking forward to this!


I may have some questions on crew management if have time. I want to do something similar in my mod for fleetboats in TMO. I already made it where player was bit more involved...no automatic promotions, made ranks/rates historically accurate, more accurate crew composition etc.

[Stratos]

Hello and excuse my ignorance, was this mod ever released?

[Kapitain Oliver Leinkraunt]

Not yet; it’s still a work in progress :)

[iambecomelife]

Not yet; it’s still a work in progress :)

Thanks, that's right!

"Family bonding time" is over, I am back to work on the mod. :up:

On a more serious note, we just lost someone at work; he passed on before he could retire. This, along with the time at my late grandmother's house on vacation, made me think of how important it is to live life to the fullest. We only get one chance. As one of my favorite musicians said, "a life you don't live is still lost." I read somewhere the other day that graveyards are full of people who thought they had more time.

Thank you to those of you who have understood my need to put life on hold often, over the years, rather than finish the mod. If there is something you want to achieve, do it! WOTK is something I want to do, and will see through....However, make sure you prioritize your family and loved ones - they come first. As mentioned earlier, my family and I often had to take care of my grandmother over the past few years - at present, I can look back and feel proud that we made her later years as comfortable as possible. She was never in a nursing home.


A sincere thank you to the 99% of commenters at subsim who have been patient with the delays that were caused.

Once again, family comes first.

[Steps off soapbox]: Now that I said that, it is great to be back in the USA.... new screenshots and more coming soon!

[Stratos]

Thanks for the answer, looking forward to try it.

[Kapitain Oliver Leinkraunt]

Any smoke on the horizon Sir? :Kaleun_Binocular:

[1Patriotofmany]

Thanks, that's right!

"Family bonding time" is over, I am back to work on the mod. :up:

On a more serious note, we just lost someone at work; he passed on before he could retire. This, along with the time at my late grandmother's house on vacation, made me think of how important it is to live life to the fullest. We only get one chance. As one of my favorite musicians said, "a life you don't live is still lost." I read somewhere the other day that graveyards are full of people who thought they had more time.

Thank you to those of you who have understood my need to put life on hold often, over the years, rather than finish the mod. If there is something you want to achieve, do it! WOTK is something I want to do, and will see through....However, make sure you prioritize your family and loved ones - they come first. As mentioned earlier, my family and I often had to take care of my grandmother over the past few years - at present, I can look back and feel proud that we made her later years as comfortable as possible. She was never in a nursing home.


A sincere thank you to the 99% of commenters at subsim who have been patient with the delays that were caused.

Once again, family comes first.

[Steps off soapbox]: Now that I said that, it is great to be back in the USA.... new screenshots and more coming soon! So true sir! But also when this comes to completion your name will live on well past your years(as long as you note your name in the splash screen!) :)