Convoy Tactics

[Sam503]

Does anyone have any tips or tactics that I can try on convoys? Specifically how can I avoid being detected by the escorts?

[BillBam]

Let us know what mods your have installed, especially the supermods as this makes a big difference on escort abilities.

[Rockin Robbins]

First of all, in convoy attacks I'm targeting one ship at a time. I'm not going to shoot a pattern of six torpedoes at three targets. Why? Bad stuff happens after the first booms and while you're waiting for subsequent ones. Most of the bad stuff causes the later torpedoes to miss. And you could need those torpedoes for escorts. Shoot 'em and you lose 'em.

So I plan my first approach to a convoy for just after sunset, approaching from quite a ways ahead, pointing my bow at the nearest escort. I'm flooded down to decks awash, about 30' of depth, still running on diesels and not going faster than 10 knots. Now early on you have a shallow angle into the convoy but as they get closer your approach angle can steepen as you keep your bow toward the escorts.

I set up for a Dick O'Kane attack so I can shoot at any range as long as the torpedoes will get there. As I close my aim is to locate the largest merchie in the middle. When I'm securely at right angles to the track and the escorts in front have passed, I'm ready to shoot. I shoot at a range between 1500 and 2000 yards on the first shot at a convoy. Shoot two, one to the bow and one 1/4 of the way forward from the stern of your target, do an immediate 180 and boogie out of there decks awash.

If your pursuers haven't seemed to spot you and the nearest escort is 3000 yards away, surface, hit the jets and go for an end-around across the back of the convoy. You have about 30 minutes or even longer as the escorts will all be on the side of the convoy you attacked from, looking for you.

Now you have an approach to the unguarded side of the convoy. Same decks-awash deal, except that you can get MUCH close this time. Hit and run, end around across the back of the convoy, rinse and repeat.

If the excorts do force you down, track them carefully. At some point one will stop to listen and direct the others. That's your chance to come to periscope depth and do great harm. He's almost a 100% probability shot. Close to within 1000 yards, preferably somewhere close to 500, and so a point and shoot with a torpedo set as shallow as you can get it. When he goes boom you can get free.

This works with TMO, so it will work with everything.:D

[Sam503]

OK, that helps. I thought it was a good idea to come from behind so the escorts can't hear you through their own propeller noise like the manuel said. Does coming in from the back make it hard to get to a right angle?

I'm also not sure what you mean by a Dick O'Kane attack? Does deck awash just mean 30' under? (im completely new as im sure you can tell =D)

i havnt gotten the game yet so no mods. just doing research seeing as i cant wait untill it comes in the mail =D

[Rockin Robbins]

I've made an appointment for you to attend Rockin Robbins' School of Submarine Thuggery (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=1025180&postcount=1) free of charge. Enjoy and leave a few targets for me!:D

[Sam503]

Cool... certaintly enough to go over! This should be very helpful! thanks alot, just what i was looking for! :DL

[Armistead]

RR, you really have that luck, getting by all the escorts with TMO decks awash to get within 2000 yards of a merchant unseen. I sometimes make it to about 3000 yards, decks awash, light fog, ect...an escort almost always sees me and I'm going about 2kts.

For me it depends on the convoys, the big ones of 12-50 ships, you can usually find a spot between the escorts, go deep let them pass and come up in the middle of the convoy and have at it. I dont shoot at escorts unless I must.

Another tactic that works good is to stay back at night about 6000 yards and shoot one M14 from long range and haul arse. The DD's will see it and come looking, but you'll be long gone setting up your attack. Your goal is to pull the DD's away, they'll stay looking for a long time where your torp came from.

Why they're looking, you now have an unguarded convoy or at least a flank side. I'll come in on the surface decks awash and attack unless clear skies, then I'll dive, but go flank attack and pull away and surface fast. I'll then pull out as the DD's will be coming back. Now why they're looking again, you plot another attack...don't worry about damaged ships dead on the water, you can clean them up with your deckgun once the battle clears. The goal is to leave as many dead on the water ships as possible to gun down later saving torps.

The goal is to keep the DD's dancing, always looking for you where you once were. Plan it right you can always be attacking why they're looking for you at your last position of attack.

[doulos05]

Note: I'm running bog standard 1.4

I've had a lot of success positioning myself ahead of the convoy and dropping below the thermal around 160'. Rig for silent and the lead destroyer almost always runs right over you. As soon as he gets over you, start on your way up. Your goal is to get to periscope depth just as the first line of the convoy comes abreast (meaning you're right in the middle of them, make sure you open up all your tubes once you pass through 100'. For a convoy attack I rig them all for between 15 and 20 feet since no merchants worth hitting draft less than that.

Light off one torp forward, one torp aft and watch the excitement. Dive under the wreckage in front of you and come up briefly on the other side to see if you've got a snap shot on the merchant on the other side. This one will probably take 2 torps to get a hit because he'll be maneuvering. Use the first torp to get a hit with the second. Then, dive for the thermal and circle back under the convoy. The only downside to this is that you've drawn all the escorts into the middle so you can't keep pecking at the convoy to the left and the right.

[Rockin Robbins]

If you run a test, you'll find that 50% of Mark 14s die at about 3000 yards out. They've not had a chance to get within a mile of the target and they're already a miss. I won't shoot at anything further out than 3000 yards as a result.

Even if you don't get a shot off on your first approach, if you attract the escorts, you've done your job. Get the heck out of dodge and do the end around to the other side. The escorts will stay on the side you were sighted for quite awhile. There's always a chance they spot you early coming in the first time. Don't worry about it. Turn tail and run full throttle to get away. Break contact and end around to the unguarded side of the convoy. I always head to the back side of the convoy to cross over at 5000 yards range or so to the other side. This is because I can get the 5000 yards in a hurry traveling at a speed opposite the convoy. Then I'm opening the range at my speed plus the convoy's speed. Gets me to the other side quicker. Then it is slower because I have to catch back up to the convoy and get ahead of them to begin the approach on the other side. My concern is to quickly break contact with my pursuers. Cutting out the back way seems to do that best.

All this is dependent to having a good choppy sea. If you're in calm water, the only way you'll get a shot off is to surface in the middle, take some wild shots, be chased and have a high probability of getting killed in the counterattack. At least at night if you open up the range to 3000 yards you're home free and can regroup for another approach.

Sometimes in supercalm water the better part of valor is to leave the convoy alone and seek single targets.:salute:

[McHibbins]

First of all, in convoy attacks I'm targeting one ship at a time. I'm not going to shoot a pattern of six torpedoes at three targets. Why? Bad stuff happens after the first booms and while you're waiting for subsequent ones. Most of the bad stuff causes the later torpedoes to miss. And you could need those torpedoes for escorts. Shoot 'em and you lose 'em.


Hm.....:hmmm:

I managed it most of the time to shot a pattern of three or four torps.
The first one or two on the farest and the last on the nearest. So there´re
few seconds between the "booms" giving the convoy or the other choosen targets little time to react.

But it´s a question of your position at the convoy of course and so it´s not possible every time

[Bubblehead1980]

Simple alternative to what I have read, just got at it for the way most night surface attacks were made, works well in TMO esp on dark nights.

Saw you have a 6 ship convoy heading South with 3 escorts, one forward and one on each flank, its dark with half moon or less, calm seas.Move ahead and stay at about 9,000 yards away and about 3,500 yards off the projected path of the convoy(draw a line on map) then slow to convoys speed, everyone once in a while the flank escorts(one or both) will make a run way out in the field searching, leaving the side exposed, so then make a hard turn away of using stern tubes or towards if using bow tubes.Keep the bow or stern pointed towards lead escort to give yourself small profile, use slow speed and full rudder to keep your bow or stern moving as the escort progresses, soon the cargo ships should be withing visual of your TBT.Get your speed, AOB, Range set, fire at will on slow speed, even if your are close, gives you more time to get out of there.After torpedos are gone, use backing speed and rudder to get you turning away, then ahead 2/3 and rudder to get you moving away, when the first fish hits, ahead flank and haul a**, the flank escort should still be way out away.This works very well.

If thats too risky for you and you have Mark 14's, set them on low power and fire from 4-5000 yards, works fine also.I just enjoy the challenge of having to get in close as they usually did in RL.

Robins, was that a typo saying 50% of Mark 14's burn out at 3000 yards? Put them on low speed and they go well beyond 3000 yards.I fired on a high speed convoy from 6,500 yards because couldnt get any closer and scored 4 out of 6 hits, the others just missed astern.

[Rockin Robbins]

Robins, was that a typo saying 50% of Mark 14's burn out at 3000 yards? Put them on low speed and they go well beyond 3000 yards.I fired on a high speed convoy from 6,500 yards because couldnt get any closer and scored 4 out of 6 hits, the others just missed astern.
No, I set up a shooting gallery with slow-speed Mark 14's. Over half ran out of steam and vanished at about the 3000' line. This was a shooting gallery with anchored merchies at 4,000 yards range, submerged sub plinking point and shoot shots.

I'll have to run the tests again I guess. I can't find my video.

[Bubblehead1980]

No, I set up a shooting gallery with slow-speed Mark 14's. Over half ran out of steam and vanished at about the 3000' line. This was a shooting gallery with anchored merchies at 4,000 yards range, submerged sub plinking point and shoot shots.

I'll have to run the tests again I guess. I can't find my video.

very weird, must be some type of bug? they run well beyond 3000 yards for me.

[Armistead]

If my M14's are on slow, range says 9000 yards. I haven't checked that, but I've had hits at close to 8000. My M14's on high will go over 3000 yds..


Not unless you mean 50% of the time they premature, other than that mine seem to work within the ranges stated for M'14s.