Well, I'm having a pretty frustrating first career myself.

On my first patrol, I made absolutely no contacts. On my second, The game CTD'd after I reached my patrol grid, and I had to start back at port. :88)

I received a contact report along the way my second time through, and I decided to pursue.

It took at least a day of chasing at full ahead (9 kts in heavy seas) as well as periodic diving to take a listen with the hydrophones. I made contact sometime at night. I finally set up my attack position, but the heavy seas were driving me crazy - I marked the ship (coastal merchant) but the periscope kept unlocking as I tried to make a range estimation. It took several minutes to get a reading that I was satisfied with. After doing it once, I realized I wasn't going to make the attack, so I took two more readings to figure out where he was going and how fast.

Then I accidentally erased some markings that I needed :damn:

I used what I had, and recommenced chasing with periodic listening. By the time I was ahead of his path, it was at least noon. I made contact, but the seas were still heavy and range was a pain to determine, again. It took me two attempts to get a speed estimation due to the periscope unlocking...

So finally, I'm in the perfect position, I set up my torpedoes for 000 gyro deflection, and I'm going to hit him 90 degrees on his port, 800 meters away. Perfect.

I check the torps one more time. Ok, good.

Check the ship - he's gone past my firing point and is now 20 degrees off my bow...GRRRRR! I decide to fire anyway...I've waited too long for this...Miss.:damn::damn:

Now he sees me and starts zig-zagging. At this point I'm incredibly frustrated - all this time chasing, and now he's getting away... I line up a shot from his stern in a vain attempt to catch him in the between zig-zag. Miss ... :dead:

Screw it - I'm going home...

Day ends with 2 torps on nothing, out of 5 total, and I have no deck or flack gun to annoy him with...

I have another contact report though - wish me luck!

Spending two whole weeks on station in AN52, all the while cursing BdU for sending me to a shallow, mine-sown, plane-ridden, ASW-infested tonnage desert, where I saw five merchants (sank them all, though, but for a paltry 16K).

Then suddenly noticing my orders say "AM52."

After I threw the boat's cat overboard, and then shot the cook, for good measure, and using language I cannot repeat on a public forum, I am taking us and our 9 remaining torpedoes to AM52.

And, if anyone gripes, just remember how fast the cat sank.

Well, you have learned more hard lessons in your first career than a lot of people, and you aren't sunk, so I would call it a success.

• Choose your attacks carefully. BdU might give you a contact 50 km away, doing 9 knts, moving away from you -- no use bothering with that. Use one of the intercept models to decide if it is worth the chase.
• Have your torp (and backup torp) settings ready long before the target is in shooting position. Have your tubes open. And have a Plan B -- for example, a hard turn to starboard, full speed, to bring a magnetic to bear as the target passes you.

Good hunting!

Commander, U-51 reporting.
Date: 9FEB1940
Location: Wilhelmshaven
Patrols Complete: 3
Gross Tonnage: 21,000 tons
Boat: VIIB

Ahoy Grey Wolves. I just installed GWX3 Gold and I absolutely love it. I must say I'm enjoying my time much better than SH4 with RFB installed. I have to gripe about a few things.

So patrol number two was spent patrolling within the vicinity of the Rockall Bank. I had been at sea with nothing but the sweet drone of the Gramophone playing my swing and jazz tunes. So I drop to 30 meters for a hydrophone check. Bingo! Contact, Merchant bearing 90 and closing, slow speed! I started using Nefeleodamon's 4 bearing hydrophone tactic to begin getting a track on this fat lady. I observe for an hour and a half, taking 30 minute readings and gathering an excellent course. There was a bit of an Atlantic gale ripping through the area, so I knew I wouldn't have to worry about being spotted. I ran ahead flank to the intercept point and dropped to periscope depth. She's moving along her merry way, and finally when I hear the sonarman call out the right bearing I let fly with 3 evenly spaced fish in her direction. All my math was checked and double checked, so no problem right? Wrong. All three missed! The storm had changed her course and speed along with side tacking from the wind drift :damn: I guess when you're not using homing torps, you just fire that spread and cross your fingers.

Patrol three was a bit more exciting. I infiltrated convoy CU coming from Halifax. By that time I only had two fore torps remaining after successful run ins earlier in the day with a medium cargo and great lakes steamer. I gathered some quick info, and let fly. Both fish struck home as I was on my way to the deep in silent running. After being DC'ed by the escorts for about 2 hours, I managed to silently slip away at a nerve racking depth of 200 meters.:o Well then to my horror, I messed up on the target I hit. I didn't properly ID it, and ended up sending a neutral large freighter to the bottom. All the renown I had gathered by my earlier sinkings had now been eliminated :damn: looks like im not gonna be making those trans-atlantic runs in an IXB anytime soon :nope: All is fair in love and war. Back at Wilhelmshaven sipping beer and securing provisions. Just got orders for my 4th war patrol........................

Stay frosty gents
-Commander, U-51

In the Western Approaches moving out into the Atlantic having spent five days in the wading pool that is the Celtic Sea in double digit depths sweating bullets when I run into a thinly (well, for 1942, anyway) escorted large convoy. Sneak in under the cover of darkness and see a large tanker and a whale factory ship. All four forward tubes in my VIIB flooded, calculations made... two in the nose of the factory ship and one in the mid-ships and engine room of the tanker. BOOM!.....BOOM! Whale ship sleeps with the fishes... BOOM!-KABOOM!!!! The tanker blows apart... Job done.

Order 40 metres depth to run under the ships for my escape. The minute the crew acknowledge the order...CTD.

Nice....REAL effing nice!
:damn:

(Hey look at me posting in a very old thread!)
 

Well, I was chasing a sonar contact in the night during a heavy storm, turns out it was a very large merchant. Its 1939, so I man the deck gun, pull up right next to him and fire a round into his engine room.


Turns out, he was a Q-ship, and right when I fired he gave me both barrels, killing the gunners, and crippling my submarine. I dont think I would of been able to dive, so later while I was trying to go home some planes finished the job with a few well placed bombs.

It was a sad day.

BE MORE AGGRESSIVE!! http://www.psionguild.org/forums/ima...ies/pirate.gif

The sound, when the impact igniter fails and the torpedo sinks to the deep ._.

Attempting to clean up some excess saves, not catching the warning about the effect on everything after resulting in deleting your in patrol save during the best patrol of your career so far, and having to start over from port.

Quite a bit more than four * were used but important new player lesson learned.

shooting down a plane only for it to crash into you and destroy your uboat :(

That's why my favourite counter-measure against aircraft is crash dive.

was reloading my externals and i dont like to dive while i am doing it

Then you had a really unlucky day. I've never been attacked during external reloading. Did you do it by day or at night? Anyway, it's to be regretted that you managed to shoot the aircraft down and still didn't make it.

Sitting at periscope depth in the middle of a convoy when a dead merchant drifts into me. Bye bye cruel world. Saved the 6 destroyers a job though.

Or more recently, trailing a wounded Revenge class (wounded it with two shots, one was very lucky after missing a large merchant, and broke its rudder so it left the convoy) firing off my last torpedo at him, surely a kill shot then...................McAfee decides its time to reboot after doing a damned upgrade. Nearly threw the rig out the window, till i realised i was in the basement.

LOL :)