'Splainin to do....

[Rockin Robbins]

Well, I have good news and I have bad news. Was in a nasty rainstorm at night. Coudn't see my own prow, much less anything else. Radar picked up a big juicy convoy, April 4, 1945, arrayed in a fan-shaped convoy. Checkout their speed: 12 knots. This could be a military convoy! I NEVER get to shoot at warships, other than those worthless escorts. And I'm directly in their path, 15 miles ahead! Yum!

Plotted the course of the first arc, the escorts and targeted the second row, the good stuff! They're running 8000 yards apart, yikes, give me an engraved invitation! I set up for a John P Cromwell approach, but first, have to let the escort go by. Went to radar depth, set up for 3,000 yards off the escort's track. As he got within 5 miles, he began a vicious zig pattern. Sometimes he was coming straight at me!

But it's dark, the sea is rough, it's raining, better play it cool. I went to 100' silent running as he slid on by without a clue at 1500 yards. I WOULD have to sit on the wrong part of his zig pattern. Now let's try to pick up number two in line. He's 8,000 yards away, just where he's supposed to be on radar.

But old Bernard on sonar keeps reporting the escort! Not only is this nerve wracking, it keeps me from getting updates on the trailing target unless I man the sonar myself. No problem. We'll get there. Here he comes, right on track by radar. Now with radar, you get a new position every 10 seconds or so, not a continuous update. I'd rather not shoot from that, lets submerge to periscope depth and shoot by continuously updating sonar. Blub, blub and.......no sonar bearings. Bernard is still reporting the escort, even though it's further away than my target. Here you may insert some very colorful and entertaining profanity! Back to radar depth: 40 feet! Damn, he's past the shoot point.

Hard port! Set up for a Dick O'Kane! Reset AoB for 80º port! Let's........"Sonar contact....merchant.....bearing 30º." NOW YOU TELL ME!!! (idiot) The bearing lines vanish again. Take her to radar depth, we're shooting four by radar bearing! 40 feet again. Radar blips about 10 seconds apart. I mark them with a pencil and count off the seconds between them to interpolate. We're only 1000 yards off the track. Blip, 1....2....3....4.. fire one....6....7...fire two.....9...fire 3....fire 4.\

This is chancy. I've never shot by radar before. Where's the target? Can't see squat in my observation scope and I'm pointed at the correct bearing to a "target" 1000 yards away. BOOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! now that's shooting! Not bad for the first time by radar bearing. Take her down 450'! When you get to the thermal barrier, change course to 90º! I don't know what we hit, but it was something big and made huge explosions! I think it went down.

After a couple of runs by escorts I'm getting away free, Time to do something unrealistic, check the log to see what I sank. In real life captains hardly ever did that for a target they never saw, but we'll cheat just a bit...
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Cruise%2019%20-%20East%20China%20Sea/screenshot9.jpg

Oops.....looks like I got some splainin' to do with the Admiral when I get to port. I doubt the "blame it on Bernard" tactic will get a lot of mileage....

So cruise 19, TMO 1.8, might be my last for this career. Looks like I may have screwed the pooch big time.http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/smileys/argggggg.gif

[Armistead]

The great RR sunk a US carrier....now that's a funny story. I did it once myself. Without cams or contacts in a storm, you really have no clue what your shooting at.

Just sink a few jap merchants and the Admiral won't even bring it up.

[donut]

Thats what "<",">" keys for. Revolver is on the desk, & get off the rug ! :timeout:

[Randomizer]

I suppose neither Sorry or D'oh will cut it come performance evaluation time...

[Rockin Robbins]

TMO 1.8 kills the next and previous target cameras. I play with external camera but don't use it for shooting or identification. I was strictly following the rules...........

My son just told me I now have to put an American flag with "CV" on it on my conning tower and battle flag. And I should put a dunce cap on my blind Kraken dragon.

Maybe if I'm lucky I'll get killed before I have to come back into port....:nope:

[sergei]

Hot damn - you sunk the Essex? :eek:

I think you need a new handle.

From now on I will call you 'Honorable Rockin Robbin San'.

[Pacific_Ace]

Now I have to delete all your videos. :damn:
You were my hero.

[Rockin Robbins]

Now I have to delete all your videos. :damn:
You were my hero.
I should be welcome in Japan after the war, then.:D I hear they take raw fish and vegetables, roll it up in seaweed and eat it! I can hardly wait...:doh:

[Jensthemens]

:har:
I almost did the same thing once, but noticed an American flag before shooting. And it was only a lone merchant not an Essex.:D

[donut]

11.) How do i get the next/ previous camera back?
The easiest way is to open the /data/cfg/commands.cfg in TMO. Search for " [Cmd50] " Your looking for these two blocks:
　
[Cmd50]
Name=Camera_on_next_unit
Ctxt=1
;Key0=0xBE,,">"
Page=0x34000000,3714
[Cmd51]
Name=Camera_on_prev_unit
Ctxt=1
;Key0=0xBC,,"<"
Page=0x34000000,3714
Simply remove the semicolon placed in front of the key assignment, and you have the next/previous cameras back. Note: this will restore hotkeys. It will not restore the buttons on the ordersbar.

[Distortion]

Where u and Bernard on drugs during the attack? Ah well after 5 years in battle we dont blame ya! :salute:

[ETR3(SS)]

I wanna be at this court martial. :har:

[Randomizer]

On the plus side all the torpedoes functioned as designed.

[Rockin Robbins]

I really don't want the cameras back. Even if Ducimus hadn't killed them I would have, just like I killed the event camera within a month of first playing the game. It was cool at first, but then didn't feel right. I'd kill the captain's log too until the end of the cruise if I were designing the sim. Normally I wouldn't check it, but the size of those explosions....

You had to be there. Black as the inside of a closet, plus giant seas, plus torrential rainfall. I could have put a camera on the deck of the target and STILL wouldn't have known whether I was on a sampan or the USS Essex.:wah:

[Ducimus]

This is the precise reason why
a.) I made the next unit cam inaccessible
b.) stopped background music from playing.

Your supposed to ID your targets before shooting! My biggest qualm with the next/previous unit cam, is on a single press of a button you can obtain:

1.) Nationality of the sound or radar contact
2.) Type of ship the sound/radar contact is, and if its worth attacking.
3.) Any armarment on the deck of said contact.
4.) See what is around the contact and what formation they are in if any.
5.) If they are alerted to your presence. (blinking lantern)

Its possible to get all that info, from 9 to 14 nautical miles away, while partially or fully submerged, without ever establishing visual contact, nor raising the periscope. As BS goes, that is what you call amazingly, and stunningly, full of ehh.... excrement.

RR, if they don't throw the book at you, lemme know, i'll fix that. :rotfl2:

[donut]

Can Lockwood keep you out of Fort Levenworth ? You better get some rest today Pal.

[AVGWarhawk]

Klink, you idiot!

[Falkirion]

In the words of a foul mouthed robot. "Well, we're boned!"

Nice shooting by radar RR, shame they were friendlies though. Wish I could have been there watching.

[ANTARES]

RR... I nearly fell out of my chair after reading your AAR... I had a bad day today, but reading your post... I owe you a beer!

[I'm goin' down]

I came accross two escorts and a big passenger linner cruising at 20 knots, lined up in single file with the liner in the middle. They were going too fast for me to close, so I ran parellel and tried to get lock at 3,000 yds using the Easy AoB mod. I fired all ten torpedoes using spread angles of varyious degrees. I missed all shots, the closest by 2 - 300 yds. That took care of all of my torpedoes.:hmmm:

[Rockin Robbins]

Hey, I was inside 100 miles from the Japanese home islands NNE of Okinawa. I couldn't identify squat. In real life I could have identified them by interference patterns on my radar screen, but not in the game.

I figured I could spit to the coast of Japan, these have to be Japanese. Now I'll be bustin' rocks for the next 20 years. And that's only if I'm LUCKY!:woot:

Wonder how Lockwood would know it's me. After all, truthfully I never saw what I shot at and never saw it sink. Coulda been a sampan for all I know. And with these weird currents, stormy condition and darkness, I coulda been anywhere, you know?

Of course in real life I wouldn't know I sank the USS Essex. I'd be fat, dumb and happy until I returned to port. Wouldn't even know enough to lie to protect myself. "Yup, Admiral, four hits out of four, radar bearings. I'm good.....damned good, sir! What? You identified what I sank, GREAT! What was it, a carrier? Hehehehe!":D

Yeah, that's about the end of the pleasantries there, isn't it?:o

[Armistead]

Must've been late war....

With all the times allied ships and planes killed allied subs....lil pay back.

I had one allied merchant shoot at me one time. Think it was Dutch...

[DigitalAura]

That's awesome! That's a great story... I can imagine how freakin' surprised you were upon that investigation! LOL

So curiously, what is the protocol here? Are you supposed to attempt to ID ships? That would render the whole concept of SONAR ONLY as illegal.

P.S. Ducimus... you ignored my PM? :stare:

[sergei]

When you get back to Pearl you might wanna give these guys a call.
I hear they do good work.
http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/224/jag2k.jpg

[Nuc]

Can Lockwood keep you out of Fort Levenworth ? You better get some rest today Pal.

Portsmouth Naval Prison would be more likely, knowing RR's insistance on historical accuracy

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/58/Portsmouth_Naval_Prison.jpg/350px-Portsmouth_Naval_Prison.jpg (http://www.subsim.com/wiki/File:Portsmouth_Naval_Prison.jpg)

[SteamWake]

LOL I have this fear everytime I get into a 'blind attack' situation.

[Munchausen]

:03: I hear Tokyo Rose is looking to find a male partner for her broadcast.

[Armistead]

Banzai RR

We thank you for your dedicated service to me. Our best Geisha
awaits your return to Tokyo.

You can have it all here, booze, women, wealth...all we ask is you kneel.

"RR radio's back in" "I want it all, I want it all"....as he kneels in his sub.

Be careful Master Robbins. The evil Lockwood has a shoot to kill APP out on you.

Your Emperor Hirohito

[Rockin Robbins]

Gulp!

Well I finished my cruise and am sitting outside Guam to go into port. Wasn't a really terrible cruise for the last part of the war. Duci had the harbor south of Tokyo harbor so full of Q-ships it was amazing! Just trolling for innocent submarines they were. I sank two and lost one to a dud.

Here's the SH4Report Report:

292022 APR 1945
From : Cdr Rockin Robbins

Cycle : 14

To : SubRon 14 & ComSubPac
Report from USS Kraken
Patrol area : East China Sea

Realism 80%
Mods used 11
100 TriggerMaru_Overhaul_17
105 BETA_TMO_17_to_18
110 Beta18_Patch1_Ver5_UPC
115 Beta18_Patch2_ver3_GfxSnd
120 Beta18_Patch3_SubSkins
125 Beta18_Patch4_Ver2_Dats
200 RSRDC_TMOv170_V411
210 RSRDC_V411_Patch2
400 3000 Yard-Meter Bearing Tools (1280x960)
400 SH4 1.5 Crew Message Box v.1.1
610 Rockin Robbins Convoy From Hell

Special Mission Conducted: No

The following ships/aircraft have been destroyed
Number of Warships sunk : 2
Number of Merchants sunk : 5

Total Warship tonnage : 27845
Total Merchant tonnage : 27417

Total Gross tonnage : 55262
Total JANAC tonnage : 44210

301123 MAR 1945
Ship sunk! Medium Modern Composite Freighter, 4466 ton
Long 122° 52' E, Lat 28° 21' N

301446 MAR 1945
Ship sunk! Large Modern Composite Freighter, 7146 ton
Long 122° 59' E, Lat 28° 40' N

310808 MAR 1945
Ship sunk! TYPE C Coastal Defense Ship, 745 ton
Long 123° 44' E, Lat 29° 22' N

040310 APR 1945
Ship sunk! US-Fleet Carrier Essex-Class, 27100 ton
Long 129° 56' E, Lat 27° 04' N

111242 APR 1945
Ship sunk! Medium Modern Split Freighter, 3269 ton
Long 139° 46' E, Lat 34° 44' N

230927 APR 1945
Ship sunk! Large Modern Composite Freighter, 7166 ton
Long 138° 36' E, Lat 34° 35' N

231057 APR 1945
Ship sunk! Medium European Composite Freighter, 5370 ton
Long 138° 28' E, Lat 34° 37' N


Torpedoes fired : 24
Torpedo impacts : 15
Torpedo misses : 6
Torpedo duds : 2
Torpedo premature explosions : 1
Gun loaded 0 times


Patrol narrative:
Torpedo data:
301100 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 7
301101 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 8
301101 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 9
301103 MAR 1945 : Torpedo miss
301104 MAR 1945 : Torpedo miss
301104 MAR 1945 : Torpedo miss
301110 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 3
301112 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 1
301112 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
301113 MAR 1945 : Torpedo miss
301445 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 1
301445 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 2
301446 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 3
301446 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
301446 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
301446 MAR 1945 : Torpedo dud
310807 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 1
310807 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 2
310807 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 3
310807 MAR 1945 : Firing tube 4
310808 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
310808 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
310808 MAR 1945 : Torpedo hit
310810 MAR 1945 : Torpedo miss
040309 APR 1945 : Firing tube 1
040309 APR 1945 : Firing tube 2
040309 APR 1945 : Firing tube 4
040309 APR 1945 : Firing tube 3
040310 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
040310 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
040310 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
040310 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
111241 APR 1945 : Firing tube 7
111242 APR 1945 : Firing tube 8
111242 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
111244 APR 1945 : Torpedo miss
230920 APR 1945 : Firing tube 8
230920 APR 1945 : Firing tube 9
230920 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
230920 APR 1945 : Firing tube 10
230921 APR 1945 : Torpedo dud
230921 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
231056 APR 1945 : Firing tube 4
231056 APR 1945 : Firing tube 5
231057 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
231057 APR 1945 : Torpedo hit
231216 APR 1945 : Firing tube 6
Cdr Rockin Robbins
CO USS Kraken
\

Ha, ha! the last dud didn't make the report. Firing tube 6 and no hit, no miss, no dud. So what happens now? Does the Admiral let me live? Rather than learn to like raw fish, I guess I'm gonna face the music...:shifty:

[Rockin Robbins]

Returned to port and first got my routine report:

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Cruise%2019%20-%20East%20China%20Sea/SH4Img2009-09-16_145549_267.jpg

Then surprise, surprise!:D I received a medal from the President of the United States.:up::up::up:

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Cruise%2019%20-%20East%20China%20Sea/SH4Img2009-09-16_152211_798.jpg
Yes, sir, I am GOOD! Look at that great shiny medal from the US President himself! When you're hot, you're hot!

What's that? Follow you?

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Cruise%2019%20-%20East%20China%20Sea/SH4Img2009-09-16_152251_658.jpg
Oh, Noes!!!! Can I change my mind about that Geisha girl and the suchi now? No, huh? Should have used the gun on the desk....

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Cruise%2019%20-%20East%20China%20Sea/SH4Img2009-09-16_152331_361.jpg

What a way to end a career. Now, do I load it up at the end of the previous cruise and try to finish the war, or do I start all over again? Somehow I'm becoming a sudden convert to the theory of alternate timelines...:nope:

I've been framed, I tell you! Framed! Give me a medal and spank me will you?

[Rip]

Hey, I was inside 100 miles from the Japanese home islands NNE of Okinawa. I couldn't identify squat. In real life I could have identified them by interference patterns on my radar screen, but not in the game.

I figured I could spit to the coast of Japan, these have to be Japanese. Now I'll be bustin' rocks for the next 20 years. And that's only if I'm LUCKY!:woot:

Wonder how Lockwood would know it's me. After all, truthfully I never saw what I shot at and never saw it sink. Coulda been a sampan for all I know. And with these weird currents, stormy condition and darkness, I coulda been anywhere, you know?

Of course in real life I wouldn't know I sank the USS Essex. I'd be fat, dumb and happy until I returned to port. Wouldn't even know enough to lie to protect myself. "Yup, Admiral, four hits out of four, radar bearings. I'm good.....damned good, sir! What? You identified what I sank, GREAT! What was it, a carrier? Hehehehe!":D

Yeah, that's about the end of the pleasantries there, isn't it?:o

Hell no. You fired on and sank a jap sub that had just fired on and sank one of our carriers.

GOOD WORK!

[Bubblehead1980]

Tough luck RR, I once fired by radar on friendly merchant, luckily it didnt sink.Since that I wait until the storm passes, just shadow the convoy then attack once its cleared up.Takes time but better than risking it.

I once sank a Russian merchant right outside Le Perouse Strait at night.Was dark but couldnt see the flag, crew identified the ship as an Akita Maru(Ducimus forgot to change the name of that freighter when on the russian roster) so I let loose some Mark 23's. The fire illuminated the Russian flag, not good.So I continued to patrol the Sea of Okhotsk and sank some more ships, finally a DD got lucky and nailed me when one lucky depth charge, that was the end.

As far as starting over, you should just leave it at that, had a great career and made one huge mistake.Start a new career and learn from it.:yeah:

[Armistead]

Shame they were'nt duds that hit the carrier.

Are there any cases of a US sub shooting a US ship?...other than you.

[Rockin Robbins]

As far as starting over, you should just leave it at that, had a great career and made one huge mistake.Start a new career and learn from it.:yeah:

You're right. That's what I'm going to do, starting from a sugar boat this time with the color dazzle camouflage. Woooo Hoooo!

19 cruises (or 20 according to my last medal) almost all with TMO, and during which I developed several attack techniques in the career. I was blinded, pinged a DD and was charged at 30 knots out of the fog, conducted an epic raid on Truk lagoon, sinking four warships, sank a warship with the 40mm in TMO 1.8, had a couple lousy loads of torpedoes, hit three escorts with Cutie on a Leash, yeah, it was a good career.

And look at these great muscles I'm getting from bustin' rocks!

[Armistead]

The emperor had this waiting for you ...She was captured on a remote island...should've went to Tokyo..http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YamDoDK71Ds&feature=related

I actually saw her in WS, NC when she was here....she is awesome.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDlS8bCXG30&feature=related

[Rockin Robbins]

That's not something you want to show to a guy wearing stripes and a ball and chain every night.:D I woulda gone to Tokyo in a flash I I knew she was there, but then the Japanese would have been defeated, I would have been captured and instead of bustin' rocks, I'd be stretchin' rope or stoppin' bullets.:shifty:

[Pacific_Ace]

"conducted an epic raid on Truk lagoon, sinking four warships"

Wow what?
Ive been to Truk, found nothing but fishing vessels! Did Ducimus add it in with TMO or something?

[Rockin Robbins]

Must have been. The Truk raid was back in TM 5 days.

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Carolines%20Cruise/CarolinesTrukLagoon4downmap.jpg

There's my escape shot, just before a cruiser opened up on me with his main batteries and missed as I hightailed it out of there. My final score was a guarding Asashio south of the lagoon I had to kill to gain entry, an Agano on the west end, a subchaser anchored against an island (flipped him into the air with my torpedo hit from 3,000 yards) and finally the Kuma cruiser that opened up on me just before my torpedoes struck home and I lit out of there the luckiest submariner alive to tell the tale.

Here's the Kuma taking the opportunity for an easy kill.:Dhttp://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa293/RockinRobbins13/Silent%20Hunter%204/Carolines%20Cruise/CarolinesKuma1-1.jpg

THAT was an epic and foolhardy mission. Oops, I must have forgot one. There's five scores in that chart!

[Armistead]

In 43 Truk is always full of Capital Ships. I went 3 times in a row and each time a large different TF sitting there. I need a Yamato, always one there to rape. Course I TMO RSRD, but saw plenty there with just TMO.

Need some subnets there, I think only FORS doe's that.

[ReFaN]

was there in 43, loads of small subchasers, but nothing else :<

[Armistead]

And you're running RSRD?

[ReFaN]

And you're running RSRD?

TMO and RSRD

[Armistead]

You should at least run into several dd's patrolling truk. Also, always look in the shallows to the east.

Did you go past the reef into the atoll. The mountains block radar and you have to get the right angle. The last I looked in the ME almost always a Yamato and Fuso there. I think in May and June it's full of TF's.

[ReFaN]

ran around everywhere, even the harbors where empty.