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Doolan · 07-15-05, 06:50 AM

Ahoy!

Before I start, I feel the need to clarify that I consider RUb to be the best mod out there by far, as it addresses most of the realism issues I found in the original game with a single, user-friendly install, eliminating mod compatibility problems and the nuisance of downloading a ton of separate files and installing them in that exact, magical order that is not always obvious.

Two of the additions I find most welcome are, oddly enough, the ones that seem to generate most negative opinions in the community: the fatigue model, which I consider very well implemented, and the change in the deck gun's rate of fire - it didn't take an expert to realize that the original was absurdly fast-.

The deck gun in RUb is not the all-powerful tool of destruction it was in the original, unmodded game, much better than torpedoes in every situation but stormy weather, but something "doesn't feel right" with the new one.

For what I have read, deck gun attacks on merchants early in the war were not common but were not rare either, and some books define them as a "usual tactic" inherited from WWI and stopped only because of the arming of merchant ships, intensification of air patrols and other circumstances that endangered U-Boote whenever they were on the surface for too long.

I have only tried the "new" deck gun in RUb in four patrols, but I find it completely worthless now, which is probably also "off", even though not as much as the original model was.

As an example we have a convoy I intercepted in the atlantic at night in a calm sea, escorted by a single armed trawler. Attacking the trawler on the surface was out of the question, but I thought I would send her down with an electric eel to make my life easier before hitting the merchants. Down she goes, and I proceed to torpedo the tankers, C2 and C3 in the convoy. I play with dud torpedoes (100% realism) and my manual TDC is not the best out there, so a few ships remain crippled but refuse to sink.

One of them is a T2 tanker, hit by two torpedoes. She has a partial listing starboard and her stern is a handful of meters lower. About one quarter of her deck is awash and two heavy fires are present, yet she doesn't stop and tries to limp away. Out of torpedoes, I choose to use my deck gun to finish her (a pretty believable tactic according to my data).

Nearly 40 shells later, all well below the waterline, she is still there. Not a new fire, not even a spark. Not the slightest change in her listing, and she didn't go down a mere centimeter further. I fire 5 more and wait about an hour. Nothing.

My men are tired and my sonarman hears a destroyer closing in as soon as I dive, so I call it a day and sail back to Wilhelmshaven.

On the way back I hit a kustenschiff with 20 shells below the waterline, all port side. Not even half a degree of listing, not a single deck fire. She goes away proudly at full 6 knots without even looking back.

I'm not a real U-Boot captain, so I couldn't say, but I believe that if this was the actual situation there wouldn't be the slightest mention of deck gun use in the books. What's your experience with the new deck gun? I find it VERY reasonable to make it useless against armed ships, but it should suffice to sink a crippled tanker without forcing the crew to man it for 24 hours without sleep...

Keep in mind that I am not complaining, but rather asking for your opinions, data and information.

Thank you kindly for this great mod, which has made SHIII a completely new game to my eyes.

Regards,

Jack Doolan

07-15-05, 06:50 AM	#1
Doolan Torpedoman Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 112 Downloads: 16 Uploads: 0	RUb 1.4.2 and deck gun damage (not RoF) Ahoy! Before I start, I feel the need to clarify that I consider RUb to be the best mod out there by far, as it addresses most of the realism issues I found in the original game with a single, user-friendly install, eliminating mod compatibility problems and the nuisance of downloading a ton of separate files and installing them in that exact, magical order that is not always obvious. Two of the additions I find most welcome are, oddly enough, the ones that seem to generate most negative opinions in the community: the fatigue model, which I consider very well implemented, and the change in the deck gun's rate of fire - it didn't take an expert to realize that the original was absurdly fast-. The deck gun in RUb is not the all-powerful tool of destruction it was in the original, unmodded game, much better than torpedoes in every situation but stormy weather, but something "doesn't feel right" with the new one. For what I have read, deck gun attacks on merchants early in the war were not common but were not rare either, and some books define them as a "usual tactic" inherited from WWI and stopped only because of the arming of merchant ships, intensification of air patrols and other circumstances that endangered U-Boote whenever they were on the surface for too long. I have only tried the "new" deck gun in RUb in four patrols, but I find it completely worthless now, which is probably also "off", even though not as much as the original model was. As an example we have a convoy I intercepted in the atlantic at night in a calm sea, escorted by a single armed trawler. Attacking the trawler on the surface was out of the question, but I thought I would send her down with an electric eel to make my life easier before hitting the merchants. Down she goes, and I proceed to torpedo the tankers, C2 and C3 in the convoy. I play with dud torpedoes (100% realism) and my manual TDC is not the best out there, so a few ships remain crippled but refuse to sink. One of them is a T2 tanker, hit by two torpedoes. She has a partial listing starboard and her stern is a handful of meters lower. About one quarter of her deck is awash and two heavy fires are present, yet she doesn't stop and tries to limp away. Out of torpedoes, I choose to use my deck gun to finish her (a pretty believable tactic according to my data). Nearly 40 shells later, all well below the waterline, she is still there. Not a new fire, not even a spark. Not the slightest change in her listing, and she didn't go down a mere centimeter further. I fire 5 more and wait about an hour. Nothing. My men are tired and my sonarman hears a destroyer closing in as soon as I dive, so I call it a day and sail back to Wilhelmshaven. On the way back I hit a kustenschiff with 20 shells below the waterline, all port side. Not even half a degree of listing, not a single deck fire. She goes away proudly at full 6 knots without even looking back. I'm not a real U-Boot captain, so I couldn't say, but I believe that if this was the actual situation there wouldn't be the slightest mention of deck gun use in the books. What's your experience with the new deck gun? I find it VERY reasonable to make it useless against armed ships, but it should suffice to sink a crippled tanker without forcing the crew to man it for 24 hours without sleep... Keep in mind that I am not complaining, but rather asking for your opinions, data and information. Thank you kindly for this great mod, which has made SHIII a completely new game to my eyes. Regards, Jack Doolan