Just got Silent Hunter 3, I think I'm doing it wrong. Is there a guide?

I spent maybe 5 hours studying the manual, reading some online FAQs, and watching the tutorial videos to try and learn this game, and I think I've gotten a decent understanding. But then I tried to play the campaign. Here's what happened:

1. I start a new campaign and realize I need to pick my crew, have no idea how to do that or how it should be balanced, can't find any guides. Add one senior officer and leave it at that.

2. Start a mission, learn I must travel half way around the world. Set course, put time compression on highest setting.

3. Suddenly time compression ends and I'm being shot by a battle ship or something. I'm freaking out in a panic to figure out what's going on, I do an emergency dive, and just as I dive the ship runs over me. My sub leaks, the crew freaks out, and then we all die.

This led me to believe that maybe I mis-used the time compression. It would be great if the game could pause when something happens instead of keeping it real time. Anyway, I try another new campaign.

1. As before, add one senior officer.

2. Plot a course.

3. Micro manage the trip, spending about 4 hours of my real-life time turning the time compression up and down, submerging and surfacing, trying to only travel on the surface during the night (even though my battery power only seems to last 5 hours or so).

4. While traveling I suddenly have massive issues with crew fatigue. Everybody's got an exclamation next to them. I try to swap them around to rest, but it doesn't work too well. I don't have enough rest places for my senior crew. I micro manage this stuff like mad.

5. I get to my destination, do a patrol, don't see anything.

6. I opt to end the mission with the menu instead of traveling back.


So what am I missing? How do I get to the good stuff without hours of traveling and micro managing my crew? Is there a guide out there somewhere that explains how to actually play the game? The manual covers some topics roughly, but leaves soooo much out.

Thanks,


Jonny K



Update - I just looked at Subsim.com and I see some stuff to read. I'll get on it (posted this before finding the root site).

[thehiredgun]

use SH3 Cmdr,use the no fatigue option & most P.C.'s Despise Time Compression.I use 2048 T.C. but only sparingly.

[Gerald]

[yubba]

1. start with VII boat they usually have shorter cruises. 2. crew 3 officers easier to jockey around. 3. crew management they have a fatigue patch, me ,I hit the normal surface cruise button this rotates crew. 4. watch your map for shipping reports. 5. best to start in France patrol western approaches.

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by Jonny K

I spent maybe 5 hours studying the manual, reading some online FAQs, and watching the tutorial videos to try and learn this game, and I think I've gotten a decent understanding.

Welcome aboard! Steam Holiday Sale buyer? If so, you made a great purchase. But you're going to need to un-learn a few things if you're a newbie to sim games.

You may want to mine this thread for newbie material: http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=96026

1. I start a new campaign and realize I need to pick my crew, have no idea how to do that or how it should be balanced, can't find any guides. Add one senior officer and leave it at that.

This isn't as vitally important as you think it'd be when you're first starting out. Your new crew is going to be very green - meaning that those little bars above the compartments that symbolize that compartment's effectiveness will not be very full. This gets better as your crew gains experience and earns promotions. I wouldn't worry about it too much for now.

2. Start a mission, learn I must travel half way around the world. Set course, put time compression on highest setting.

The game has certain issues with running TC at the highest setting. You'll miss ships and planes will appear right on top of you. I don't use anything higher than 512x or 1024x unless I'm in friendly waters.

3. Suddenly time compression ends and I'm being shot by a battle ship or something. I'm freaking out in a panic to figure out what's going on, I do an emergency dive, and just as I dive the ship runs over me. My sub leaks, the crew freaks out, and then we all die.

See above. This is the peril of using high time compression.

3. Micro manage the trip, spending about 4 hours of my real-life time turning the time compression up and down, submerging and surfacing, trying to only travel on the surface during the night (even though my battery power only seems to last 5 hours or so).

It's a game of patience. I'm not sure if 4 hours is really necessary to get where you're going, but be prepared to sit for a while doing nothing. It is a submarine simulator after all.

Your battery power should be enough to last you through the game day. You just have to realize that the faster you run, the less amount of time your battery will last. I recommend no more than 3-4 knots submerged and no more thna 9 knots on the surface unless you're chasing something. You don't really have to worry about travelling submerged during the day in the early years of the war - say up until about mid-1941 - or when you're in friendly waters.

4. While traveling I suddenly have massive issues with crew fatigue. Everybody's got an exclamation next to them. I try to swap them around to rest, but it doesn't work too well. I don't have enough rest places for my senior crew. I micro manage this stuff like mad.

Ah, fatigue. There's a lot of us who hate micro managing that stuff, so we turn it off.

"How" you may ask? Mods! SH3 out of the box is a decent game, but there are many little issues that could be much better. The "standard" mod that many people use around here is the Grey Wolves Mod. It's a big download, but it comes with an installer (if you're using the Steam version of the game, you'll need to change the install directory path, but other than that, it works fine). I'd recommend that heartily. It adds new campaigns, new airplanes, new ship types, new visual effects. It's amazing the difference between stock and GWX.

SH3 Commander is a companion program that allows you to change lots of little tweaks to the game - such as turning off fatigue entirely. It's a very unobtrusive little program. Just install it and run it whenever you want to play SH3.

Welcome aboard again. You'll find that the Subsim forums are full of some of the most helpful people anywhere.

[Sailor Steve]

WELCOME ABOARD!

Originally Posted by Jonny K

1. I start a new campaign and realize I need to pick my crew, have no idea how to do that or how it should be balanced, can't find any guides. Add one senior officer and leave it at that.

First off, get SH3 Commander. No matter whether you play stock SH3 or use one of the supermods, Commander is the lifeline for playing SH3 realistically.

Now, when you choose your crew you will have the option of choosing qualified or unqualified officers and men. The qualified ones cost renown, and are at the top of the list. The unqualified "free" ones are at the bottom. Qualified men placed in the correct compartments will improve the efficiency of those compartments.

With Commander you can add any qualifications you like after the first patrol.

2. Start a mission, learn I must travel half way around the world. Set course, put time compression on highest setting.

First, a question: In what year, port and boat type are you starting? Starting in a Type II in 1939 will mean you have an assigned grid that is very close by, in the North Sea. Start in a Type VII and you will be assigned a grid somewhere in the North Atlantic. Start in a Type IX and you do indeed run the risk of being assigned a station "halfway around the world".

Again, SH3 Commander actually lets you choose the grid you will patrol. And, as mentioned, starting in 1941 from a French Atlantic port in a Type VII will put you very close to the action.

3. Suddenly time compression ends and I'm being shot by a battle ship or something. I'm freaking out in a panic to figure out what's going on, I do an emergency dive, and just as I dive the ship runs over me. My sub leaks, the crew freaks out, and then we all die.

The game default setting for "Enemy Ship (or plane) Spotted" is 8x, which means they spot you and open fire at before you realize it's happening. It is possible to change that in the game cfg files, but once again Commander makes it easy. Set it for 1x and you will drop to real time the instant the enemy is spotted, which is usually before he spots you.

This led me to believe that maybe I mis-used the time compression. It would be great if the game could pause when something happens instead of keeping it real time. Anyway, I try another new campaign.

No, you did nothing wrong. You were just unaware of the game's quirks.

4. While traveling I suddenly have massive issues with crew fatigue. Everybody's got an exclamation next to them. I try to swap them around to rest, but it doesn't work too well. I don't have enough rest places for my senior crew. I micro manage this stuff like mad.

Some of us, like me, enjoy dropping out of TC every four hours (two hours if it's stormy) and changing all the crew around. Unless you have that sickness, yet again Commander is your friend. As mentioned before, you can set it for 'No Crew Fatigue' and leave it alone.

[Pisces]

Originally Posted by Jonny K

I spent maybe 5 hours studying the manual, reading some online FAQs, and watching the tutorial videos to try and learn this game, and I think I've gotten a decent understanding. But then I tried to play the campaign. Here's what happened:

Welcome from me too.!

1. I start a new campaign and realize I need to pick my crew, have no idea how to do that or how it should be balanced, can't find any guides. Add one senior officer and leave it at that.

There is a bug in the game that makes you loose all renown earned during the 1st patrol, because you modified anything to your Uboat load-out before the 1st patrol. That includes crew. Next time don't bother, just go out with the crew and equipment that is given. Only change crew or equipment before the 2nd patrol.

2. Start a mission, learn I must travel half way around the world. Set course, put time compression on highest setting.

3. Suddenly time compression ends and I'm being shot by a battle ship or something. I'm freaking out in a panic to figure out what's going on, I do an emergency dive, and just as I dive the ship runs over me. My sub leaks, the crew freaks out, and then we all die.

This led me to believe that maybe I mis-used the time compression. It would be great if the game could pause when something happens instead of keeping it real time. Anyway, I try another new campaign.

Correct! As allready has been said. Limit yourself to about 256x or 512x. The non-player units have an edge over you when you come out of TC. They allready know what's going on and have made their move. Also, SH3 Commander has a nice table in which you can easily change the desired time compression levels.

3. Micro manage the trip, spending about 4 hours of my real-life time turning the time compression up and down, submerging and surfacing, trying to only travel on the surface during the night (even though my battery power only seems to last 5 hours or so).

You do not need to travel submerged during the day. (definately not during the early years) With reasonable TC levels even green crew will report visual contacts in time. But don't forget to put the Watch Officer back on the conning tower yourself. He is lazy as hell!

4. While traveling I suddenly have massive issues with crew fatigue. Everybody's got an exclamation next to them. I try to swap them around to rest, but it doesn't work too well. I don't have enough rest places for my senior crew. I micro manage this stuff like mad.

Yeah, things get cramped on a Uboat. You have 2 resting places for the Senior crew (big face icons, officers), forward and aft resting quarters. You need two of them on station (engineer and navigator) or you won't be able to command the uboat. The Weapon Officer station can be left unmanned until required. So, 2 on station, and 2 resting you should be able to keep them in a patern.

DON'T fall for the trap of using the "Crew Configuration Buttons" as they can cause CTDs. Micromanage is unfortunately required if you want some level of fatigue experience.

5. I get to my destination, do a patrol, don't see anything.

Perfectly normal. There is nothing specifically scripted to arrive there for you in this specific patrol. Ships have their routes scripted from some place to some destination, via some waypoints. Whether you encounter them depends on luck (or hindsight ) and the frequency of their spawning. Look on the map for icons that appear in your vicinity (a couple of 100 kilometers) and go after them if you so desire. Just remember that they may have moved along while you intercepted them. Or just visit the areas that are of logistical importance for England. (like the north and south entrances to the Irish sea, Gibraltar area, Eastern shores of England) Oh yeah, If you would like to know more of what goes around you, then listen , rather than see. Your own ears to the hydrophones can hear further than your 'sonar'crew can hear, or even much further than your deckcrew can see. Stock SH3 has a horizon of up to 8 kilometers. Most big mods allow you to see up to 16kilometers. Well, weather permiting. But hydropone upto 34km.

6. I opt to end the mission with the menu instead of traveling back.

That's ok. In stock SH3 you are supposed to receive extra renown by docking in the vicininty of your home port, but that also doesn't (allways) work because of bugs. Flying back to your homeport is not so realistic, but if you don't feel like wasting time, go ahead. But you might have encountered some ships if you did go home the slow way. BTW, you can stay at sea as long as you have fuel and torpedos (and gun shells) You do not have to go back after those 24 hours on your patrol location. Go anywhere you please for as long as you want.

So what am I missing? How do I get to the good stuff without hours of traveling and micro managing my crew? Is there a guide out there somewhere that explains how to actually play the game? The manual covers some topics roughly, but leaves soooo much out.

Thanks,


Jonny K



Update - I just looked at Subsim.com and I see some stuff to read. I'll get on it (posted this before finding the root site).

It's a massive quantity of information but I'd guess the whole SH3 forum has all that you need to know. Use the search function with topic words that you would like to know more about. And when all else fails, simply ask! The game manual is barely adequate in telling you what you can or should do. Grow yourself a forum-addiction and you'll no longer be a newby soon enough.

[Jimbuna]

Nothing much I can add other than...

[Pisces]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

Nothing much I can add other than...

And "BE MORE AGRESSIVE"

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Pisces

There is a bug in the game that makes you loose all renown earned during the 1st patrol, because you modified anything to your Uboat load-out before the 1st patrol. That includes crew.

Are you sure about that one? I always fill out my crew right from the start and haven't had that problem. On the other hand for awhile now I've been in the habit of running a first "false patrol" (a quick trip around the harbor), just to make sure my first real patrol doesn't start on the first day of the month, so I may be misremembering.

On the other hand, not long ago someone commented that the only things that cause renown loss are equipment upgrades, because they delay the start date.

[Brag]

Welcome aboard!
There is little I can add to the above. I seldom run TC above 128. The micromanaging the crew represents the many frustrations a green crew causes.

To learn where the ship traffic is, visit the Operation Spinnennetz thread.

[Tinman764]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

Are you sure about that one? I always fill out my crew right from the start and haven't had that problem. On the other hand for awhile now I've been in the habit of running a first "false patrol" (a quick trip around the harbor), just to make sure my first real patrol doesn't start on the first day of the month, so I may be misremembering.

On the other hand, not long ago someone commented that the only things that cause renown loss are equipment upgrades, because they delay the start date.

That's exactly how what I do. As I understand it, you can change crew and torpedos without a problem.

@ Jonny K, welcome I'm pretty new to SH3 myself. You definatly want to take a look at SH3 Commander and GWX3.0 mod.
Only thing I think needs stressing is to be patient when you're setting up attacks, especially on convoys. Nothing worse than rushing an attack and spending the next 2 hours dodging escorts without scoring a hit lol

Hey,

Thanks for all the input guys, this is a lot of good info for only a few hours time! I can't believe I missed the newbie guide in the forum, stickied and everything.

Yes, this was a steam sale purchase (gotta love Steam). It's good to see mods and updates for the game. I'll try to run a few conservative mods, but I'm also cautious about changing the game too much just yet. It's always possible to mod a game until it no longer resembles what it should, and if the original game was so good then I shouldn't need to change too much, just a little. I'll see if I can keep fatigue enabled for the moment. As for realism, I'm currently running about 60% realism with most options on but not manual targeting. I know this is a major point of the game, but I'll work my way up to it. I'm going to assume I have a competent crew who will do that for me.

As for loosing renown after your first patrol with a modified crew, I didn't encounter that.

I should admit that I did have an encounter on my first patrol, but I lost the ship. In very stormy waters I detect a merchant ship via hydrophone, I put the periscope up and see it's right in front of me and extremely close (only a few meters) and moving away. I jump to my crew section and start throwing guys into the torpedo room to prepare an attack. I jump back to the periscope and the ship was gone. I searched around the area but never found it again. It was exciting for a moment though. :-)

I'm going to go through the guides and check out the mods. One other thing I was wondering - when identifying ships, I have that guide book, but the book doesn't tell me the nationality of the ship (specifically, is it an enemy or not?). I assume that the color of the ship on my map and in the periscope indicates it's an enemy if red, correct? And blue is ally, right? I couldn't find any description of the colors.


Thanks,


Jonny K

[frau kaleun]

In the stock game:

red=enemy
blue=friendly
green=neutral

For realism's sake, GWX (and maybe the other supermods, I'm not familiar with those) remove the color-coding and require you to ID ships the way real sub commanders did - by getting close enough to make out the flags and markings on them. But with GWX at least you can add the colors back easily enough if you find you'd rather keep them around.

Also be aware that in the game a torpedo needs to run at least 300 meters to arm itself, so if you find yourself a few meters away () from an unexpected target there's really no rush to set up a shot... you've got to get some distance before there's any point in firing off an eel at her.

Ok, an update. I went through much of the newbie guide thread and found that most of the links are dead (5 years old). Is there a new place I can find the community manual?

I think I'm going to try playing a little more on the stock game first to get some experience before I crank it up with the Grey Wolves or anything else. Are there any graphics only mods? I'm suffering info overload and have spent so many hours studying stuff while playing the actual game very little, so I need a break.

One more question - when I have my navigator ping for the ocean depth does that give away my position? I've hit the bottom before (I thought ordering my engineer to dive would mean he'd dive to a reasonable level, but he just kept going). The Nav map seems to show some depth colors, but they are hard to make out and I don't know the legend for how deep the colors mean.

Thanks,


Jonny K