Quest for Realism

Berinhardt · 02-06-08, 04:12 PM

I really appreciate the attention to detail and historical accuracy of SH4, but while researching some of the subs I was surprised to find how much different the actual mission results really are.

For example, on any one of the campaigns, I leave Pearl Harbor, refuel a bit at Midway and head into the Pacifc Theater - typically either for my patrol area or a known Japanese shipping lane. Sinking 8-10 ships in a few days/weeks before my fuel runs low or I run out of fish doesn't seem to be a problem.

However, when I look at historical mission records on http://fleetsubmarine.com such as the Threshers http://fleetsubmarine.com/ss-200.html or Tambors http://fleetsubmarine.com/ss-198.html I see 40-50 day missions with no kills. A great mission seems to be +50 days with 4 - 6 kills. This seems really odd to me, I expected it to be a bit higher. (Taking nothing away from the real crews and captains - they have all my respect)

So, what makes the game so different from the historical battle?

Is it:

Target density - does the game model or spawn +400-500% more shipping than the historical record?
Unrealistic sensors - Am I just detecting more ships visually and via sonar and radar than is realistic?
Unrealistic weapons - are the game torpedoes or ship damage modeling significantly different or just plain unrealistic. It doesn't seems so, especially after the 1.4 patch thickened the hulls on surface ships.
Other ???

Is there a mod that remediates issues #1 (if it is the contributing factor)

Any thoughts?

02-06-08, 04:12 PM	#1
Berinhardt Seaman Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 37 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Quest for Realism I really appreciate the attention to detail and historical accuracy of SH4, but while researching some of the subs I was surprised to find how much different the actual mission results really are. For example, on any one of the campaigns, I leave Pearl Harbor, refuel a bit at Midway and head into the Pacifc Theater - typically either for my patrol area or a known Japanese shipping lane. Sinking 8-10 ships in a few days/weeks before my fuel runs low or I run out of fish doesn't seem to be a problem. However, when I look at historical mission records on http://fleetsubmarine.com such as the Threshers http://fleetsubmarine.com/ss-200.html or Tambors http://fleetsubmarine.com/ss-198.html I see 40-50 day missions with no kills. A great mission seems to be +50 days with 4 - 6 kills. This seems really odd to me, I expected it to be a bit higher. (Taking nothing away from the real crews and captains - they have all my respect) So, what makes the game so different from the historical battle? Is it: Target density - does the game model or spawn +400-500% more shipping than the historical record? Unrealistic sensors - Am I just detecting more ships visually and via sonar and radar than is realistic? Unrealistic weapons - are the game torpedoes or ship damage modeling significantly different or just plain unrealistic. It doesn't seems so, especially after the 1.4 patch thickened the hulls on surface ships. Other ??? Is there a mod that remediates issues #1 (if it is the contributing factor) Any thoughts?