Switched to GWX

[Zosimus]

Well after a few weeks of running vanilla, I switched to GWX 3.0. So far it's not floating my boat. First of all, it takes forever to get out of Kiel (I think that's the name) because every time you run into a German boat you go back to a low TC (4 I think). It's really hard to get it back up to 1024 because once you hit 512 the system becomes almost unresponsive. Maybe it's low memory or something.

Second, my screen is cluttered with all kinds of weird lines that weren't there before. What's the deal?

Third, the radio messages constantly come in and that always sets TC back to 1.

Finally, I mysteriously died for no apparent reason. I was at periscope depth when suddenly I took damage. Though there were no ships around I went to 25m and got the crew to work on the damage (nothing major). Suddenly I took more damage and started leaking. It was relatively shallow so I called all stop and hit bottom at 43m with serious leaking. I loaded up the damage control and got to work on the red areas while the leaking slowly reduced. I went to the hydrophone and nothing. Then somehow I got more damage and guys were dying. Then came another hit and all hands lost. The only thing I can think of is maybe it was a bomber or some other aircraft.

I reloaded and came back with 3 kills. I think I got lucky because I couldn't see the flags on any of the ships I sank. They were all dark, but I think someone here said that if the ships are neutral that they carefully light themselves up so you can see their neutral flag clearly. Is that true?

[Sailor Steve]

GWX is designed for players who want a more realistic experience. This includes just sailing the boat and looking at the sights.

First of all, it takes forever to get out of Kiel (I think that's the name) because every time you run into a German boat you go back to a low TC (4 I think). It's really hard to get it back up to 1024 because once you hit 512 the system becomes almost unresponsive. Maybe it's low memory or something.
If you use SH3 Commander it's easy to set the TC to the speeds you want under any conditions, including when near land and when sighting a ship. On the other hand, set it too high for those conditions and you risk dying anyway. My best speed for leaving any harbor is...well, 1x. In the Kiel Canal I use 64x, and set the TC limit for 'Near Land' to that number. For 'Ship Sighting' I keep it at 1x simply because if you set it for a high number it will default to that number when you see an enemy ship.

Second, my screen is cluttered with all kinds of weird lines that weren't there before. What's the deal?
I have no idea what weird lines you're talking about. Can you post a screenshot?

Third, the radio messages constantly come in and that always sets TC back to 1.
GWX gives you hundreds of extra messages. The best way around that is the mod that gives you a tiny handful of essential messages and nothing more.
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=4504

Finally, I mysteriously died for no apparent reason. I was at periscope depth when suddenly I took damage.
Where were you at the time? There is a chance you ran aground. There is also a chance you hit a mine.

I think I got lucky because I couldn't see the flags on any of the ships I sank. They were all dark, but I think someone here said that if the ships are neutral that they carefully light themselves up so you can see their neutral flag clearly. Is that true?
No. In GWX all lighted ships are neutral. All neutral ships, however, are not lighted. You still have to figure it out. You can use external view, or you can use one of the mods that make it easier to see in the dark. Or you can, like me, don't shoot at what you can't identify. The game gives way too many kills anyway. :sunny:

[maillemaker]

Well after a few weeks of running vanilla, I switched to GWX 3.0. So far it's not floating my boat. First of all, it takes forever to get out of Kiel (I think that's the name) because every time you run into a German boat you go back to a low TC (4 I think). It's really hard to get it back up to 1024 because once you hit 512 the system becomes almost unresponsive. Maybe it's low memory or something.

As was pointed out above, if you use SH3 Commander you can adjust what TC is set when different events happen. You can also increase the maximum to 4096x.

Also, there is an option in Commander to "Start at Sea". With this setting, the harbor for our bases is still there but the "dot on the map" for it is set out to sea. You start at the dot away from the harbor and related traffic. Likewise when you end your mission you can end within 25 km of the dot instead of having to return to the harbor.

Some people enjoy the scenery when leaving or returning to harbor, and there have been times after a particularly grueling patrol that I have proudly sailed back into my slip to see the nurses tossing flowers at us.

But mostly I am well beyond the harbor eye candy so I almost always start and end at sea.

Second, my screen is cluttered with all kinds of weird lines that weren't there before. What's the deal?

I can't speak to that one without a better description. Is this when you are underwater? Radar contacts maybe?

Third, the radio messages constantly come in and that always sets TC back to 1.

I agree this can be annoying and you can either do as was suggested above and mod out the traffic or you can just move the radio operator from his station :) . I do this when I am on long runs out to the American coast so I can crank up the TC to max and read a book or something while I crawl across the Atlantic.

Finally, I mysteriously died for no apparent reason. I was at periscope depth when suddenly I took damage. Though there were no ships around I went to 25m and got the crew to work on the damage (nothing major). Suddenly I took more damage and started leaking. It was relatively shallow so I called all stop and hit bottom at 43m with serious leaking. I loaded up the damage control and got to work on the red areas while the leaking slowly reduced. I went to the hydrophone and nothing. Then somehow I got more damage and guys were dying. Then came another hit and all hands lost. The only thing I can think of is maybe it was a bomber or some other aircraft.

Sounds like a mine or aircraft. Where were you on the map and what was the date?

Steve

I reloaded and came back with 3 kills. I think I got lucky because I couldn't see the flags on any of the ships I sank. They were all dark, but I think someone here said that if the ships are neutral that they carefully light themselves up so you can see their neutral flag clearly. Is that true?

[Zosimus]

Okay the first screen shows new lines on the right hand side of the screen.

http://i57.tinypic.com/2zpsfw3.jpg

Their purpose is unknown.

The second screens shows my ship in an apparent spiderweb of lines. I suppose these are the relevant bearings of the ship.

http://i57.tinypic.com/2vbwz60.jpg

[Ifernat]

Finally, I mysteriously died for no apparent reason.

Most of your other questions have been answered but I did want to elaborate on this. In all likelihood if you weren't running aground then the answer is you struck a mine, especially if you were off the East Coast of England (or in coastal waters) in mid 1940 or later.

GWX does a good job of simulating the ever increasing number and density of the British coastal minefields that were laid to protect coastal shipping. If you're on the surface (Or if you happen to be a heavy merchant with a 10m max draft) you'll go right over the top of them. A submerged U-boat at 15m depth however....boom.

[Ifernat]

I hate to be 'that guy' but from the GWX PDF manual page 88

A nomograph is a device used to relate quantities in such a way that the value of an unknown quantity can be approximately determined given the values of the other related quantities. The GWX nomograph consists of three scales arranged in such a way that a straight line drawn between the values of known quantities on their respective scales will cross the third line at the value of the unknown quantity on the third line corresponding to the two known values.

Stock Silent Hunter III uses metric units (such as ―kilometers‖) to measure distance and imperial units (such as ―knots‖) to measure speed; however, it is difficult to mentally convert metric measurements to knots of speed, so the three values in the GWX nomograph are knots (nautical miles per hour), kilometers, and minutes. This allows players to calculate

1. a ship‘s speed in knots based on the number of kilometers a ship has traveled in a certain period of time;

2. The number of kilometers a ship will travel in a specified number of minutes at a certain speed in knots;

3. The amount of time it will take a ship to travel a specified number of kilometers at a certain speed in knots.

As you correctly noted on the other thing...yes...that is a bearing and range overlay...I find it quite useful. It shows you the bearing lines and and has range increments of 100 m.

[maillemaker]

Yup, what Ifernat said: The scales on the right-hand side of the map are your nomometer. And it is fantastically useful and necessary for plotting intercepts.

If you get a radio report of a convoy moving at 8 knots due east, and you know it's going to take you 3 hours to intercept, you can use the nomometer to tell you how far the convoy will move in 3 hours at 8 knots by drawing a line from the 8 knots on the left-most line to 180 minutes on the right-most line. Where it crosses the middle line tells you the number of kilometers it will move. You can then refine your intercept.

The radial overlay is also very useful as it shows relative bearing and distance around your boat.

Steve