No, not at all. I use the Weapons Officer assistance and I still miss sometimes. I'm perfectly happy letting him do the hard parts.

I like to play the game in the role of the captain not the weapons officer, so I leave that stuff up to him.

:) Hello All, Manual targeting makes SH3 much more challenging...........especially if you miss. Good Hunting, Erich Topp U-552

I think a person will miss a great deal of gameplay if they don't figure out manual targetting. It's much more satisfying to do your own calculations successfully on one merchant than it is to get a BF2 unlock. That being said, though, I do let the WO make the calculations a lot more often than I used to. I can do some basic "snap" shots on the fly, and I will be careful to set up of the simpler solutions, but anything complicated gets delegated to the computer officers.

One thing that bugs me about torpedos.
How come it takes 7-10+ men 10 minutes to load ONE torpedo into the launch tube?

One thing we have not to forget is that in periscope attack is the captain the only one who looks throw the periscope and is him who has to give the data (ship class, angle of bow, speed...) to de WO in order that he can set the TDC (the WO)

I do manual targeting, but I also "cheat" using the TDC.
Say I have to make a "hurry up" shot, such as some weird 90-degree turn on the torpedo's gyrocompass... with an escort breathing down my neck...

The TDC map quickly updates the projected topedo bearing, allowing me to make a fairly accurate "guesstimate" for the shot. In fact, in these instances I usually press the fire button while looking at the TDC map, and not through the scope.

I've gotten fairly good at this, which makes me feel a little guilty. (No one could possibly draw updates like that in real time.) But I just tell myself that's my WO helping me out.
I guess he's really quick with that pen! :rotfl:

I salute you hardcore guys that use manual all the time. I cant even figure out how the hell to work the notebook.

:88)

You 100% realism guys are crazy :)

I don't use manual targetting but I plan on trying it out sometime in the near future.

I agree with the other posters! It's definitly more fun with manual targetting :rock: (It is another game)

But I also use sometimes the WO, especially if I am in a hurry setting up multiple shots to a fast running convoy.

I've thought for a long time that targetting wasn't my job. but I tried to collect datas by myself and I enjoyed it. so I go on like this :ping:

First, the tube has to be pumped dry before the inner loading door is opened. Then, the torpedo weighing more than a ton has to be unloaded from it's cradle by attaching chain hoists, hooked to the loading tray, checked to make sure everything is working properly and winched into the tube. While this is being done, the gyro connections have to be properly aligned or the gyro angle setting device (which is outside the tube) won't work. Couple that with the fact that this is hard work that allows no room for error (if the torpedo is dropped, men can die, and even if they don't it's extrememly difficult to get it up off the deck again) and you have ten minutes being a very FAST time.

I do - but I just started and am only in the Naval Academy. I don't plan on changing that once I start the missions though. I've found it very difficult so far, but I'm sure it's a matter of time before I pick up what I'm doing wrong.
Great game overall.
:up:

I haven't used any Weps Officer assistance in several months, HOWEVER I do set up fast 90 eyeball attacks in almost all instances. (That is, I don't use the protractor and rules of planar geometry for attacks.) I did all the geometry stuff at first for several weeks, and that is what allowed me to gain the understanding and experience needed to move on for strictly positional attacks.

However, I would and will use the full blown geometry if I ever get the chance of a shot at a capital ship. Amazingly, I've only ever seen one as he was zooming by in the darkness at an angle which prevented an attack. :-(

Only manual targeting for me. :up:

Getting tremendously frustrated at the 100% realism, but I daresay with all the aides and "how-tos" on this forum, I am getting the hang of it. Only 18k tonnes so far, but I do admit the satisfaction of doing it yourself is well worth the initial learning curve.

To be sure, I am getting more annoyed with the fatigue fidgetting than the manual targetting. The "you go this way, you go sleep" min-maxing is silly. I would assume that shioft rotation IS something a lower officer or NCO arranges, not the kaloun?

can we close this zombie poll becuase it already as old as Bernard!

Another exhumation :nope:

I started playing this game as a real newbie as I had never really played sub games before although I played SHII but never really got into it. I played SH3 for a few months before learning manual targeting, which took me a while to suss out - mainly because I got the AOB principle the wrong way round:damn: Once I mastered it I played the game 100% all the way. But lately I have been real lazy and I use auto targeting. I guess I have mastered it and there was no new challenge to overcome.

Yep --this is what I do, too.