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Originally Posted by Stiebler
Lest we forget....
With the imminent release of NYGM TW v 2.2, it's worth remembering some of the earlier key innovative features for serious players.
Random variable speed for all ships and convoys.
This feature where NYGM took the stock game's "it is a merchant then the speed is always 6 knots and it is an escort the speed is always 14 knots" and created variable way point speeds based upon the ship's class and the convoy's designation of slow/medium/fast.
Teddy Baer's innovation took the convoy's starting and way-point speeds and then programmatically altered them randomly by +/- 1 kt or +/- 2 kts (for VERY FAST convoys a possibility of +/- 4kts ), but must not exceed limits of SLOW- min = 4 kts, max = 8 kts; FAST- min = 6 kts, max = 10 kts; VERY FAST- min = 8 kts, max = 15 kts.
The NYGM Random Speed feature makes every encounter something that requires a manual TDC user to check and recheck the targets speed and encourages the player to use multiple torpedo spread to ensure a hit.
The NYGM Random Speed feature also adds a new dimension to finding a convoy when within 24 hours a convoy could be anywhere within a 96 kilometre radius. Making the player 'hunt' for his convoy and not just have it delivered to him.
Random Waypoint Radii.
We had also programmatically changed the great majority of the waypoint radii to increase further the difficulty of finding convoys and other moving ships.
Stiebler.
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Not all ships would have the same FUEL capacity as every other ship in a convoy. Speed for the convoy is dictated by the FUEL consumption of the WORST ship in the convoy with a RESERVE left over for emergency use. Ergo if a small ship has only enough fuel to make the crossing at 5knts with a 10% reserve for emergency use, then convoy speed the ENTIRE crossing will be 5knts. Merchants did NOT have the same means as a Warship to refuel at sea. Nor was there a Refueling ship attached to convoys for merchants. Any speed variation would require a replotting of the convoys route and waypoints plus mean average speed to determine if ALL ships had the fuel to reach the designated Port. Since fuel was in such short supply the needless waste of varing speeds at every waypoint would never take place. Thats why ships all list a cruising speed. That being the MAXIMUM range the ship can travel at best speed with a Reserve. Cruising speed is a hell of a lot less that maximum attainable speed.
As well as the fact that fuel consumption would be paramount in convoy speed settings, the other is as plain as day. Why, if you were a slow merchant ship packed to the gills with goodies you KNOW the enemy will want to sink (and most of your cargo is probably all highly combustable), would you spend 1 more day at sea tempting fate than you would have too? Best speed for the convoy would be maintained at all costs. Even to the extent that stragglers and damaged ships would/were indeed left BEHIND. The needs of the many out weigh the needs of the few.........or the 1.
The only exception to the straggler rule would be :
If the cargo that the straggler carried was so vital it meant victory or defeat at its final destination, then all attempts humanly possible would be made to get the straggler home. However this would NEVER be at the expence of the rest of the convoy. If needed, a rescue/recovery mission would be mounted from the nearest friendly port, with only any spare escorts the convoy could reasonably do without (usually just 1) minding the straggler till that help arrived. The escort that would be tasked with minding the straggler would also have been the most expenable. ie: the oldest, slowest escort of the convoy. The reason being that any 1 left behind was to all extents considered already lost.
The Action is called :
Inderpendant Command Picket.