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amurph182 · 11-21-07, 03:18 PM

Real crews were constantly in flux, with a good number of each crew making either their first or last patrol. Skippers generally didn't have much of a say in who came or went, although they could sometimes hang onto a guy or keep someone off the boat if they had the pull.

To simulate this, after each patrol I do the following. It might seem like a lot, but it really only takes me about 5 minutes:

award medals to the crew members that "deserve" them. (if we sank a bunch of sampans, then the gunners get medals. If we managed to survive serious damage, then I give them to the damage control guys, etc)

I get rid of a certain number of the crew. I don't have a set in stone %, but I do it based on rank. I generally replace about 10-20% of my sailors that have made more than 1 patrol with me. I choose them at random.

Then I move on to the PO's, and again I remove a given % of them based on how many patrols they've done. For example, I try not to have them do more than 5 patrols, but if a guy has done 4 and then got promoted to PO then I'll give him another patrol or two. If I have a whole bunch of PO's "eligible" for relief, then I'll pick a % based on the total number that I have, usually about 20%, and roll a die for each one to see who gets the axe. If I've got 10 PO's on the boat and they've all made 3 patrols, then I'll roll a die, go down the roster until I get to that number guy, and relieve him. repeat as necessary.

For Chiefs, I usually pick a guy who's going to be my COB. He's untouchable until he's made 3 patrols as COB. Then he gets relieved no matter what. I then promote my most experienced chief to COB, where he gets 3 patrols. As for the rest of the chiefs, I try and have at least one per compartment and get rid of 2 of them (minus the COB) after each patrol. I basically use a throw of the die to see which ones I let go. I then promote the most senior PO in each compartment to CPO.

I rarely promote officers. I relieve 2 after each patrol and bring in a guy that has the rank of the guy who left. Every now and then I won't relieve any officers, and sometimes I'll relieve 3, or even more after I've made a larger number of patrols (I figure if they're going to send me back to Mare Island for an overhaul at some point, then losing 4 officers at once isn't THAT unrealistic). The end result is that I get about 3-5 patrols per officer, after the first 2 guys get relieved after the first patrol.

then I give promotions to the crew that is left. I try to promote PO's to CPO to fill leadership roles first. I don't try to have a chief in each watch in a given compartment, but I don't limit it to 1. If I have a guy who's made a couple patrols in the first spot on the third watch in the bow torpedo room, and I can make him a chief, I will and then I'll move him to lead the first or second watch. Etc.

then I promote sailors so that they can get a specialty.

last I promote officers, if any are eligible and I have promotions left. Basically my ensigns start out as watch crew on the 2nd and third watch, with a LT heading the first watch, and then I put my j.g.'s in the 2nd and 3rd command room watch, again with a LT heading the first. Any other officers (IF I have any) will be spread around, either in the conning tower or engine room. If a guy gets a promotion, he moves to the appropriate spot. In real life, officers took on more and more amounts of responsibility as they were promoted and gained experience, so this simulates things pretty good.

Then I go out and bring in new crew members to replace the ones that left. I really try to use seaman as often as possible. The last two or three spots on each watch are usually new recruits or guys with 1 or two patrols. If I just can't fill an opening for a PO or CPO, I'll recruit one of them. Officers work the same way, if I have an opening for a LT but I can't fill it, I'll bring one in. But if I have a j.g that is close to promotion, I'll have him do the job and bring in a new j.g to replace him.

This way I end up with a capable crew, but they're never superhuman. It can be noticable...a relatively inexperience watch crew might not see a plane until it is too close, or I end up with slightly slower torp loading times (which can ruin a good submerged torp attack) or a gun crew gets horribly innaccurate. etc.But they're never bad, and sometimes incredibly good.

11-21-07, 03:18 PM	#8
amurph182 Seaman Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 35 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	Real crews were constantly in flux, with a good number of each crew making either their first or last patrol. Skippers generally didn't have much of a say in who came or went, although they could sometimes hang onto a guy or keep someone off the boat if they had the pull. To simulate this, after each patrol I do the following. It might seem like a lot, but it really only takes me about 5 minutes: award medals to the crew members that "deserve" them. (if we sank a bunch of sampans, then the gunners get medals. If we managed to survive serious damage, then I give them to the damage control guys, etc) I get rid of a certain number of the crew. I don't have a set in stone %, but I do it based on rank. I generally replace about 10-20% of my sailors that have made more than 1 patrol with me. I choose them at random. Then I move on to the PO's, and again I remove a given % of them based on how many patrols they've done. For example, I try not to have them do more than 5 patrols, but if a guy has done 4 and then got promoted to PO then I'll give him another patrol or two. If I have a whole bunch of PO's "eligible" for relief, then I'll pick a % based on the total number that I have, usually about 20%, and roll a die for each one to see who gets the axe. If I've got 10 PO's on the boat and they've all made 3 patrols, then I'll roll a die, go down the roster until I get to that number guy, and relieve him. repeat as necessary. For Chiefs, I usually pick a guy who's going to be my COB. He's untouchable until he's made 3 patrols as COB. Then he gets relieved no matter what. I then promote my most experienced chief to COB, where he gets 3 patrols. As for the rest of the chiefs, I try and have at least one per compartment and get rid of 2 of them (minus the COB) after each patrol. I basically use a throw of the die to see which ones I let go. I then promote the most senior PO in each compartment to CPO. I rarely promote officers. I relieve 2 after each patrol and bring in a guy that has the rank of the guy who left. Every now and then I won't relieve any officers, and sometimes I'll relieve 3, or even more after I've made a larger number of patrols (I figure if they're going to send me back to Mare Island for an overhaul at some point, then losing 4 officers at once isn't THAT unrealistic). The end result is that I get about 3-5 patrols per officer, after the first 2 guys get relieved after the first patrol. then I give promotions to the crew that is left. I try to promote PO's to CPO to fill leadership roles first. I don't try to have a chief in each watch in a given compartment, but I don't limit it to 1. If I have a guy who's made a couple patrols in the first spot on the third watch in the bow torpedo room, and I can make him a chief, I will and then I'll move him to lead the first or second watch. Etc. then I promote sailors so that they can get a specialty. last I promote officers, if any are eligible and I have promotions left. Basically my ensigns start out as watch crew on the 2nd and third watch, with a LT heading the first watch, and then I put my j.g.'s in the 2nd and 3rd command room watch, again with a LT heading the first. Any other officers (IF I have any) will be spread around, either in the conning tower or engine room. If a guy gets a promotion, he moves to the appropriate spot. In real life, officers took on more and more amounts of responsibility as they were promoted and gained experience, so this simulates things pretty good. Then I go out and bring in new crew members to replace the ones that left. I really try to use seaman as often as possible. The last two or three spots on each watch are usually new recruits or guys with 1 or two patrols. If I just can't fill an opening for a PO or CPO, I'll recruit one of them. Officers work the same way, if I have an opening for a LT but I can't fill it, I'll bring one in. But if I have a j.g that is close to promotion, I'll have him do the job and bring in a new j.g to replace him. This way I end up with a capable crew, but they're never superhuman. It can be noticable...a relatively inexperience watch crew might not see a plane until it is too close, or I end up with slightly slower torp loading times (which can ruin a good submerged torp attack) or a gun crew gets horribly innaccurate. etc.But they're never bad, and sometimes incredibly good.