How to learn Dangerous Waters?

[Drag0n]

I will start by saying Hi since this is my first post on this forums. Just got my hands on Dangerous Waters a couple of days ago. I am not entirely new to submarine simulations. I have played 688(I) and SubCommand quite a lot, and therefore I can say I have quite a good understanding of how the 3 nukes operate in-game.
The new platforms on the other hand are completely different matter. I have made a few attempts to play with them and they all ended in disasters(FFG destroyed with an ASM by a surface ship I was unable to detect, let alone engage on my own, with the helicopter I broke the sonar cable in the first 2 minutes, detected a sub eventualy but didn't manage to get a single torpedo go the way I wanted).
So I guess it is time I did some serious reading and practice(test missions to see how each of the new platform handles surface/underwater/air combat).
What I am asking is: which is the best order to start learnig them?(from the simplest to the most complex, I assume Kilo goes first since is the closest to what I know, but I have no idea about P-3/SH-60/FFG).

[ASWnut101]

There are some good manuals on Bill's site ( www.subguru.com ) for the air platforms. Good one's include the ones from Timmyg00 and I think One Shot put a few out too. Sorry, I can't help you directly since I haven't played DW in a few months.

[OneShot]

Pick up the Ladnlubbers Survival Guide written by Smaragdadler (can be found on www.subguru.com). Thats a very good starting point, as it will give you a number of pointers for further reading and training. As for the platforms ... personally I'd say the Helo, but then thats individual preference. Oh, another good link is the Commanders Academy & Dive Center ... www.commanders-academy.com ... lots of useful info there.

Cheers
OS

[Drag0n]

Thank you for your replies.
One more question however: should I install the LWAMI(hope it is the right designation) mod? I read a few things about it and it seems to improve the realism of the game quite a lot(which is a good thing). However, doe/s it add any 'tricky' features that could confise someone pretty new to the game like me?

[OneShot]

You can safely install the mod. Sure it adds some new features and more important a lot of fixes. If you pay attention to the Readme you should be ok.

Cheers
OS

[Wim Libaers]

Did anyone check the impact of LWAMI on the standard campaign? Sure, one could argue that you can download missions that are better than the standard campaign, but still some people might want to try it.

[Molon Labe]

Originally Posted by Drag0n

Thank you for your replies.
One more question however: should I install the LWAMI(hope it is the right designation) mod? I read a few things about it and it seems to improve the realism of the game quite a lot(which is a good thing). However, doe/s it add any 'tricky' features that could confise someone pretty new to the game like me?

LW/Ami allows the MH-60 to be capable of using its dipping sonar when the player is controlling the FFG. Getting used to it is a little tricky since LW had to come up with some creative ways to use the existing interface to make it work. But, it doesn't take away any functionality of the FFG-AI helo and it dramatically adds to it, so I'd say it's worth learning.

Originally Posted by Wim Libaers

Did anyone check the impact of LWAMI on the standard campaign? Sure, one could argue that you can download missions that are better than the standard campaign, but still some people might want to try it.

We've seen a lot of instances in the first campaign mission where the starting points for the playable sub are already within range of the improved AI sensors. Other starting positions are safely outside those ranges, so all that needs to be done to correct this issue is to start the mission over.