Sound to me you're not giving the TDC the correct vessel ID if at all, so just to make sure. (no offense
).
Before any input to the TDC you have to ID the target.
When manually identifying a target via the identification book don't forget to
A) lock the vessel in TBT or periscope and B) 'mark it' so the name of the vessel you're looking at is in the top left corner at TBT or periscope station.
Or, lock the vessel on TBT or periscope and ask your XO (or which ever) to ID it for you.
If you didn't ID the target, any input (speed, AoB/True heading or range) will mean nothing to the TDC and you'll get what you're describing.
PS_ Any time you send information to the TDC you have to be locked on the target.
Quote:
Originally Posted by fastfed
Yes!! I get it, but what I don't get is how to get range properly and speed.
I can do the three minute mark with my sonar guy, but thats not always doable in every situation (When a merchant pops up out of no where you have no time).
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Getting speed is done via the 3min rule and the Nomograph, don't wait for 4 or 5min's but wait 6mins, 9min's, 12min's and so on (keeps things simple
).
As for range I use the stadimeter, sometimes even from 8000yrds out. The range will be off a couple of 100yrds but I recalculate range starting from 4000yrds then every 10* or 15* degrees to fine tune it, keeping an eye on the targets heading on the TDC (sometimes the true heading I put in changed slightly and I adjust accordingly).
When I started this game I had contact updates turned on to get comfortable with the manual targeting and I used the PK and attack map to check my calculations and inputs (speed, true heading and range), now I'm confie enough and don't use the attack map that way anymore.
I still use contact updates (early war) so I have a dot on the Nav. map to make things easier (the game cheats, so do I 
) But as soon as I get Radar I turn it off, I'm learning ColonelSandersLite method as seen in his patrol vid's" cause I like the way he does it 
.
Side note:
Would like to see how he or anyone els does it without radar (early war), then I might switch off the contact updater if its easy enough.
On topic:
I never had a vessel pop out of nowhere, the only time that happens is in heavy fog but you or your crew member still must have heard it on the hydrophones.
Anyway, you'll have three options:
1_ Keep listening to the hydro's and figure out if the sound is getting closer or not and guesstimate the lot.
2_ Use sonar (Don't forget to adjust the hydrophone otherwise the sonar ping will miss).
3_ Keep tailing the sound contact until the weather clears up.
If you think you don't have enough time or made a soup of it, let the vessel pass and try again with more distance between you and it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by fastfed
using the stadimeter thing.. I level the periscope with the horizon line of the ocean and start to line the ships bottom of the hull with the top of the ship.
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If I understand you correctly, you try to guesstimate how deep the target is in the water then try to put that guesstimating on top of the mast.
If so... Don't, use the artificial horizon and place that on top of the mast (or any part according to the identifications book).
If I didn't, my mistake....
Before I attack a vessel I make sure I know which target I'm looking at, its speed and it heading and preset it in the TDC, I didn't send it though.
I start my attack 5Nm in front of my target and go to periscope depth with scope up when I feel its getting to close to me, then wait until the silhouette (dot) is shown on the Nav.map.
Having all the necessary tools for the TDC I lock on target, switch on the PK, send preset speed to TDC (send it twice), then range and finally its true heading (send it twice as well). I even set my torpedoes at depth and open my tubes.
This however (except for the torpedoes), has a big disadvantage as I can't see nor make out its mast but every consecutive measurement taken after and specially the one's after 4000yrds gives me a near perfect solution when its time to fire my fish.
By the time its time to fire them I'm 90ft under looking at my attack map and wait for the torpedo trackline to pass 0*.
At night or in bad weather getting a good firing solution is harder because you have less time to get a good range estimate but because I already pre-set 2/3 of the solution getting good ranges by stadimeter is less stressful.