Make your next vacation destination...Scapa flow

[iceflatline]

It's April 1940; 1st Flotilla, 7th Patrol. After dodging numerous fighters and slithering past a seemingly endless number of destroyers, I finally slipped into Scapa last night, and boy was it worth it. Four torpedoes later I had sunk the Illustrious carrier and two Aux Cruisers. Over 50k tons and a torpedo left!

Now, I just need to get back out...

[kiwi_2005]

Some commanders have all the luck, in 1940 i went into the flow twice and never found a thing except alot of escorts.

Well done

[iceflatline]

I could not have done it without all the terriific advice I've gotten from folks like yourself here at this forum. Thanks!

[JBClark]

I guess timing is everything,

I just spent Christmas Day 1939 in Scapa, in my IIa: U16. It took 3 of my 5 fish (I mean eels) just to get inside. I decided to try Scapa after my patrol zone came up empty, but I was resolved to hunt merchants or capital ships only.

We took the long way around, and were forced to kill a V&W in the South channel. As we hooked around into the Western entrance another V&W suprised us out of the fog and we were forced to kill him too. Did I mention that the weather was as bad as it gets? The lookouts kept reporting that they couldn't see the bow, much less the destroyer that almost ran us over. Even Aubry would have flogged these lookouts. Just past the first island in the channel a Hunt I jumped us from out of nowhere and I had to kill him too.

Well, no plan survives contact with the enemy, and I was forced to shoot three times in self-defense so I only had 2 eels left. When I got inside I was hoping for a fat, juicy target. But NOOOO! Nothing but destroyers, tug boats, and trawlers. And all of them hunting me.

This a DID career after all so I snuck out of there with my tail between my legs and two eels left in the tubes. I'm not proud of it but I am still alive, and so is my crew. We finally surfaced 40 kilcks west of the mouth of the western entrance with almost no battery and even less air.

We did sink 2 V&Ws and a Hunt I; but Bdu chewed me a new one anyway. We were sent out to kill shipping, not to indulge in blood feuds with warships. I am afraid that Uncle Karl is getting ready to put me on the beach. In 5 patrols we have killed 6 merchants but we have also sunk 8 warships. I think Uncle Karl thinks I am a waste of a boat. He wants to sink shipping and I keep going after the destroyers.

Insubordination was always my hobby in real life so why should my sim career be any different?

Anyway, congrats on the Illustrious. I wanted to give my crew a prize like that but they will have to settle for getting back to Kiel alive. My guess is that the crew is happy enough with that. When I finally get them back aboard and sober, I'll ask.

JBC

[Vorster]

Oy Vey, wish I has such luck. I snuck in there a day ago (took a break last night to watch Laurence of Arabia with my grilfriend - should rather have played SH 3) and also found nothing. I was right in the harbor. I will try to the west of the harbor, because looking at Prien's historical track that was where the big boys were anchored. I posted some pics here of my exploits http://forums.ubi.com/groupee/forums...3/m/9951058073

I am hoping for some luck before I get out and to my patrol area.

[andy_311]

I go into Scapa in the early years of the war and have sunk a carrier and a battleship +aux cruiser but later on I avoid it like the plauge if takes forever to get out of there if am going to go harbour bashing I'll go for loch ewe carriers,cruisers,bbs,T3s depending when you go in.

[ludwig]

Originally Posted by kiwi_2005

Some commanders have all the luck, in 1940 i went into the flow twice and never found a thing except alot of escorts.

Well done

I already posted this, so I apologize if it sounds as a replica, but here -
http://edseek.com/archives/2005/05/0...urvival-guide/

there's a list of WHAT warship in WHAT port at WHAT time.

it worked for me, Illustrious + Aux. Standard (1.4 patch) game

ciao
ludwig

[BaronVonSchnitzel]

Originally Posted by iceflatline

I could not have done it without all the terriific advice I've gotten from folks like yourself here at this forum. Thanks!

So didja make it out? :hmm:

[iceflatline]

Originally Posted by BaronVonSchnitzel

So didja make it out? :hmm:

I sure did! But harrassed all the way! Battery power and oxygen dangerously low, and crew dead tired, but we made it. Spent the last torp on a V&W on the way out. Total tons... 51888.

Then I got good laugh on the way back when I received a message from bdu saying "be more aggressive!"

[Laughing Swordfish]

In SHII, Scapa was always a good place to go, but like all capital ship harbours, not deep enough to give you a chance if you get rumbled. I used to go in from the SW, not the Eastern approach, timing my run for maximum darkness, and when the the destroyer starts patrolling back the other way. Then lie up on the bottom during the whole of the next day in a narrow channel, to give me the whole of the next night to do the business and get out again

Did once try Loch Ewe with SHIII earlier on in single patrol mode.
Found the Nelson at anchor, and gave her all five! But it was so shallow, that although she capsized, or would have, she rested on the bottom at a 45 degree angle, and I wasn't even credited with the sinking.

Took it out on some torpedo boats and armed trawlers with the guns on the way out though. And that sort of cured me of wanting to mix it with warships once I got into career mode.

U-46 did once sink a destroyer but that was in pretty desperate self-defence, and have occasionally taken a pot shot at them just to break the defensive screen.

But what our Uncle wants is tonnage, and that's what we have to give him, by sneaking and sneaking out. Having got it out of my system, anything else is a bonus.

LS

[Twitchy]

I dont have the guts to sneak into the Evil Flow. I have yet to fully perfect my snap shot and evasion skillz

[Curval]

I've been to Scapa Flow many times. I've never been able to see the carrier everyone keeps talking about. I end up just leaving and swearing I won't waste so much gametime again.

[kiwi_2005]

Thanks Ludwig

Entry Exit Ship Location
19390915 19391010 Auxiliary Cruiser ScapaFlow
1391004 19391014 BB Revenge ScapaFlow
19391101 19400105 BB Nelson Loch Ewe
19391105 19391205 BB Revenge LochEwe
19400301 19400501 Auxiliary Cruiser ScapaFlow
19400307 19400425 CV Illustrious Scapa Flow
19400401 19400601 Auxiliary Cruiser ScapaFlow
19400517 19450101 CL Fiji Light Cruiser LochEwe
19400524 19400630 CL Dido Light Cruiser ScapaFlow
19401211 19401231 BB King George V ScapaFlow
19410201 19410217 Auxiliary Cruiser ScapaFlow
19410210 19410320 Auxiliary Cruiser ScapaFlow
19410315 19450430 CL Fiji Light Cruiser ScapaFlow
19420203 19420228 BB King George V ScapaFlow
19420215 19430903 CV Illustrious Loch Ewe
19420215 19430903 Passenger Liner Bristol
19420915 19430903 CVE Bogue Escort LochEwe
19430903 19440630 CVE Bogue Escort Norfolk

See lugwig above for the full link

[Psycluded]

Originally Posted by Twitchy

I dont have the guts to sneak into the Evil Flow. I have yet to fully perfect my snap shot and evasion skillz

Here's an easy approach. Swing north around the island about 200nm out and then cut in along the coast (about 5-10nm away from land) at just under periscope depth. Take the western approach into the flow and stick to the northern channel, hugging the coast all the way in. This has worked several times all the way through 1940 in my current campaign. Nelson BB and several auxilliary cruisers sunk (or resting on the harbor floor), and multiple escorts sunk when they tried to find me. You'll want to be wary of 3-4 V-W Destroyers and Flower Corvettes along the entrance of the western approach, but so long as you hug the coast well and run submerged at slow, you'll be fine. They don't come too close to the coastline in their patrol patterns.

I haven't had to evade that often in the flow. Keep silent running on, only move at ahead slow, stay submerged, hug the coast and keep your maneuvering to a minimum. Surface briefly to recharge if it's nighttime (and it should be. Time it that way.), and there are no sound contacts on the 'phones (check them yourself). Your primary targets in the flow are stationary capital ships. So, when you're in a good firing position, signal an all-stop and simply hover like a spectre. Fire two tubes at each of your targets (usually takes no more than two if you space out the shots and target them well), targetting the magazines if possible, then immediately turn and sneak out.

[Curval]

Thanks Ludwig...and kiwi too. I didn't even notice Ludwig's post until you mentioned it.

Sweet...heading for Scapa soon. Very soon.