akula_krieg
08-16-05, 10:18 PM
I've finally graduated to 1943, and have a new command: U-534, a Type-IXC. This is my first experience with a IX, and I've inherited a veteran crew to boot.
Ran into a convoy west of the British Isles, and attempted a night attack. Whoops. Within 7,000 meters I'm spotted and suddenly have two armed trawlers and two corvettes bearing down on me.
Now, I'm not exactly an orthodox kaleun, and I enjoy a good scrap with an escort any day...but four of 'em? I decided since they weren't full-size destroyers, maybe I could take 'em on. Manned the deck gun and waited.
Five minutes later, my gun crew nailed an ammunition bunker on the lead corvette and blew her sky-high. I managed to put a shot on the trawler moving up right behind the wreckage, but took a solid hit on the bow and decided my luck had run out. Made a crash-dive, pulled out at 20 meters and moved back up to periscope depth.
I could not have been luckier. The armed trawler and another corvette had made a hard port turn to avoid the sinking 'vette and presented a perfect 90-degree AOB at bearing 0, range 700 meters. Set up a quick snapshot on both and another minute later I had two more escorts headed for the bottom.
Stayed at PD, hit a hard starboard turn and caught the last trawler at my 180, again at a 90 AOB. Nailed the sucker with a stern tube.
Now I'm on the surface, headed for a nice, juicy, unescorted convoy that's centered on a passenger liner.
This is all at 100% realism. I've heard horror stories on this board about 1943-onwards. I must be the luckiest kaleun alive :rock:
-akula-
Ran into a convoy west of the British Isles, and attempted a night attack. Whoops. Within 7,000 meters I'm spotted and suddenly have two armed trawlers and two corvettes bearing down on me.
Now, I'm not exactly an orthodox kaleun, and I enjoy a good scrap with an escort any day...but four of 'em? I decided since they weren't full-size destroyers, maybe I could take 'em on. Manned the deck gun and waited.
Five minutes later, my gun crew nailed an ammunition bunker on the lead corvette and blew her sky-high. I managed to put a shot on the trawler moving up right behind the wreckage, but took a solid hit on the bow and decided my luck had run out. Made a crash-dive, pulled out at 20 meters and moved back up to periscope depth.
I could not have been luckier. The armed trawler and another corvette had made a hard port turn to avoid the sinking 'vette and presented a perfect 90-degree AOB at bearing 0, range 700 meters. Set up a quick snapshot on both and another minute later I had two more escorts headed for the bottom.
Stayed at PD, hit a hard starboard turn and caught the last trawler at my 180, again at a 90 AOB. Nailed the sucker with a stern tube.
Now I'm on the surface, headed for a nice, juicy, unescorted convoy that's centered on a passenger liner.
This is all at 100% realism. I've heard horror stories on this board about 1943-onwards. I must be the luckiest kaleun alive :rock:
-akula-