It is important to have a good DC-team. With the few pixels of green bar on the original posters screenies, it simply takes too long to repair. Officers with their better experience and skills have a great impact on the DC-crews, even if they have no specialities in this area and they and the crew in the section keep repairing the damage, if they are skilled enough, even if the section is allready flooded 100%.

If you're so badly damaged you start to sink, try to use the engines to either push or pull you to surface as long as possible.

I once took several hits in the bow section from a Battleship during a surface engagement. It ran full of water, before I could repair it, but the crew still kept fixing it, even when it went below the surface. The sinking of the bow lifted my screws above the water, so I was a sitting duck - but I had the BB gunned (!) down so badly, it was sinking to the other side, so he couldn't hit me.
After an hour the leak was fixed and my brave fish-crew started repairs on the torpedo-tubes. It took another 3-4 hours, then the bow-section was dry again. :88)

Sounds exciting! I think 95% of the complaints everyone has is just them not knowing how certain fuctions work. Granted the games manual does little to explain a lot of this stuff, but still some people have freaked out way too quick just because the game is not exactly like SHIII. I include myself in that list.

I only have experience with Midway, but a refit isn't a refit in real-world terms--it's just fuel.

Left Midway two days after the battle in June 1942. Japanese carriers all sunk two days ago, so of course I got bombed by Zeros while in TC, twenty miles from the island. Small damage to multiple components, bulhead damage on after TR, flooding about 25%. Got it stopped, repaired everything, went to PD, started to sink stern first. Three blows and got back to surface, turned around, headed for Midway.

Took "Refit" choice, turned for Japan again. (Note: after refit whole crew on watch but not at Battlestations. Did not set a watch until I went to BS, and came off. Also, occassionally, SH4 seems to repeat SH3's habit of setting the whole watch section except for the OOD. Have had to drag him away and manually put him back in his slot to get him onto the bridge.)

Running for Japan on surface, no damage showing, post-refit. Went to PD. Sank stern first. Went to flank, no engines. Confirmed with outside look that props not turning. Did not blow this time. Was at 1448 feet whn all died.

I agree with others that DC is semi-porked. A DC-repaired bulkhead ought to allow PD pressures. It amounts to a strong kick; not a lot of external force. Regardless, PD should not allow a repaired bulkhead to fail so catostrophically that fatal flooding occurs in ten seconds.

I had a similar situation except it was the bow torpedo room that was damaged.

I took a bit different tack and repaired the bulkhead first (firguring Id stop the flooding), and then the pumps... to hopefully remove the water that came in from the damaged bulkhead.

Problem is the pumps dont seem to do anything (yes I was surfaced). The water remained and she eventualy slipped beneath the surface in an uncontrollable dive.

Has anyone see the pumps do anything ?

If you can repair the compartment and stop the leaks, yes the pumps will dry out a flooded compartment - even if your batteries are at 0%.

Ok then....this brings us to the next question. If the pumps are working and the water is not being pumped out, is the damage to the compartment so bad(even though is shows repaired) that water will never be pumped out and submerging is instant death????? In other words, shows repaired yet water is not getting bumped out, therefore you are screwed and should head home?

I'm guessing it is:hmm:

I cant help but notice a whole lot of ambiguity going on here.

Not really, just trying to get into the developers heads and see what they believe is damage and how the system works in their minds. It certainly did not translate very well in the manual.

last night I had bulkhead damage and yes I know how to use the DC team, I stayed on the surface until everything was repaired and set a course for home. Just for kicks I decided to submerge and when I did so, as soon as my diesels cut off my screws stopped, I blew the ballast and at around 150ft the boat started to rise again and go to the surface. When I got to the surface the diesels started and I began moving again. My point here is once you take damage and repair it, not just the crush depth and bulkheads are changed but the whole damage system seems to take a crap. I had a clear damage screen but my electric engines wern't working? That is not a case of my stupididty and I'm not just complaning to complain, it's something that needs to be fixed.

Not seeing it as a complaint, I see your post as another piece of the puzzle we are attempting to put together here. Just one question, what was the crew status? Also, look at the brightside, at least you could submerge. Did you try it again or just stayed on the surface?

I vote for ambiguity. <g>

A bulkhead is internal; it's welded to the pressure hull, but there can be a leak fore&aft through one that does not admit seawater. What we're seeing is a seawater leak after reported bulkhead damage--that must mean the pressure hull is open to the sea. IOW, the boat is NOT rigged for dive. That status is next to holy in the service, and the CO would be told instantly if the boat could no longer rig.

I'm all for damage that DC crews can't fix. That's realistic. But you must give me information so I can make proper tactical decisions. If I'm not watertight, tell me. I'll turn around. If my readouts show no damage I expect to be able to go to PD at least. That's around 50 PSI on the pressure hull at the keel. Nothing.

If repairs are going to only fix a percentage of the damage I think for game purposes you have to do the SH3 thing with hull % damage and let me make the call. Because right now there's damage after repairs sufficient enough to be leaking massive amounts of seawater, my crew doesn't seem to know, and neither do I.

As for the manual, I'm reminded of that joke about the two old women at the deli:

Woman 1: "The food here is TERRIBLE!"
Woman 2: "Yes, and such small portions!"

i saved it and went to sleep, so I can try it again. My crew was on a normal watch status with normal amounts of fatigue, as soon as I submerged I went to GQ

Same thing happened to me. Both electric motors (I refuse to call them engines) were damaged, one about 40% the other about 60%. Fixed them both completely. Also had Aft-TR flooding to 25% after bulkhead damage; fixed and dewatered. Went to PD, immediately, like in five seconds, began to sink stern first. Went to flank and would not answer bells on electric motors. External view showed neither prop turning. Sank to implosion.

When you get repaired, and are still on the surface, do a save and note the time. Later on, look at the upc files in the save and check out your true damage situation. It will be informative.

[quote=Snowman999]Yes, the bulkhead is internal and makes up the structual integrity of the submarine. Once that integrity is compromised, the strength it once had is now gone. We see that the developers did not include hull damage, only bulkhead. Therefore, we have to assume this bulkhead damage encompesses the hull as well. We can only assume this. Yes, the Chief Engineer would report to the Skipper his feelings on diving is possible but again this is his professional estimation. Not really knowing for sure. With that said, we do not get the Chief Engineer. We only get ourselves. We have to make the best guess on it. If you look back at my screenshots my stern is completely filled with water. Does not seem to pumping out either. I can make by best guess that the sub is already out of trim and a dive is doom...and it was.

IMHO, if the bulkhead is severly damaged as see in my screenshot, chance are diving will not be a smart idea. Once it shows patched up, structually my sub is still toast. My trip home is on the surface.