[Pisces]

Originally Posted by Jonny K

I spent maybe 5 hours studying the manual, reading some online FAQs, and watching the tutorial videos to try and learn this game, and I think I've gotten a decent understanding. But then I tried to play the campaign. Here's what happened:

Welcome from me too.!

1. I start a new campaign and realize I need to pick my crew, have no idea how to do that or how it should be balanced, can't find any guides. Add one senior officer and leave it at that.

There is a bug in the game that makes you loose all renown earned during the 1st patrol, because you modified anything to your Uboat load-out before the 1st patrol. That includes crew. Next time don't bother, just go out with the crew and equipment that is given. Only change crew or equipment before the 2nd patrol.

2. Start a mission, learn I must travel half way around the world. Set course, put time compression on highest setting.

3. Suddenly time compression ends and I'm being shot by a battle ship or something. I'm freaking out in a panic to figure out what's going on, I do an emergency dive, and just as I dive the ship runs over me. My sub leaks, the crew freaks out, and then we all die.

This led me to believe that maybe I mis-used the time compression. It would be great if the game could pause when something happens instead of keeping it real time. Anyway, I try another new campaign.

Correct! As allready has been said. Limit yourself to about 256x or 512x. The non-player units have an edge over you when you come out of TC. They allready know what's going on and have made their move. Also, SH3 Commander has a nice table in which you can easily change the desired time compression levels.

3. Micro manage the trip, spending about 4 hours of my real-life time turning the time compression up and down, submerging and surfacing, trying to only travel on the surface during the night (even though my battery power only seems to last 5 hours or so).

You do not need to travel submerged during the day. (definately not during the early years) With reasonable TC levels even green crew will report visual contacts in time. But don't forget to put the Watch Officer back on the conning tower yourself. He is lazy as hell!

4. While traveling I suddenly have massive issues with crew fatigue. Everybody's got an exclamation next to them. I try to swap them around to rest, but it doesn't work too well. I don't have enough rest places for my senior crew. I micro manage this stuff like mad.

Yeah, things get cramped on a Uboat. You have 2 resting places for the Senior crew (big face icons, officers), forward and aft resting quarters. You need two of them on station (engineer and navigator) or you won't be able to command the uboat. The Weapon Officer station can be left unmanned until required. So, 2 on station, and 2 resting you should be able to keep them in a patern.

DON'T fall for the trap of using the "Crew Configuration Buttons" as they can cause CTDs. Micromanage is unfortunately required if you want some level of fatigue experience.

5. I get to my destination, do a patrol, don't see anything.

Perfectly normal. There is nothing specifically scripted to arrive there for you in this specific patrol. Ships have their routes scripted from some place to some destination, via some waypoints. Whether you encounter them depends on luck (or hindsight ) and the frequency of their spawning. Look on the map for icons that appear in your vicinity (a couple of 100 kilometers) and go after them if you so desire. Just remember that they may have moved along while you intercepted them. Or just visit the areas that are of logistical importance for England. (like the north and south entrances to the Irish sea, Gibraltar area, Eastern shores of England) Oh yeah, If you would like to know more of what goes around you, then listen , rather than see. Your own ears to the hydrophones can hear further than your 'sonar'crew can hear, or even much further than your deckcrew can see. Stock SH3 has a horizon of up to 8 kilometers. Most big mods allow you to see up to 16kilometers. Well, weather permiting. But hydropone upto 34km.

6. I opt to end the mission with the menu instead of traveling back.

That's ok. In stock SH3 you are supposed to receive extra renown by docking in the vicininty of your home port, but that also doesn't (allways) work because of bugs. Flying back to your homeport is not so realistic, but if you don't feel like wasting time, go ahead. But you might have encountered some ships if you did go home the slow way. BTW, you can stay at sea as long as you have fuel and torpedos (and gun shells) You do not have to go back after those 24 hours on your patrol location. Go anywhere you please for as long as you want.

So what am I missing? How do I get to the good stuff without hours of traveling and micro managing my crew? Is there a guide out there somewhere that explains how to actually play the game? The manual covers some topics roughly, but leaves soooo much out.

Thanks,


Jonny K



Update - I just looked at Subsim.com and I see some stuff to read. I'll get on it (posted this before finding the root site).

It's a massive quantity of information but I'd guess the whole SH3 forum has all that you need to know. Use the search function with topic words that you would like to know more about. And when all else fails, simply ask! The game manual is barely adequate in telling you what you can or should do. Grow yourself a forum-addiction and you'll no longer be a newby soon enough.