As far as your statment "Final Patch" is concerned, do not listen to the rumor mill. The mill has been predicting every patch of the four so far was the final. There's been no official announcment from UBI they have stopped all patches. I would bet money there will be more. You show me an official statement from UBI they have given up and I'll believe it. They did a formal announcement for SH3 and I know they will do so for SH4 also.
As far as your difficulty statement, I'm playing stock SH4 and I find it as difficult if not more so than stock fully patched SH3 when set to the higher realism levels. As has been said, too many people complained the whole game was too easy based on attacking one or more of the easy convoys. The larger convoys with 5 or more escorts and several large, valuable ships can be very aggressive and may even cause you to give up in search of easier prey (or lose your boat trying.) There is a wide range of skill for both aircraft and ships. Even some merchants can give a good accounting of themselves if you are careless.
The mod cycle is still early on this product and probably will not be fully mature for a couple more years yet. The game is fully enjoyable without mods and will keep you busy for many months of solid play.
-Pv-
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