Definitive torpedo depth/exploder status in 1.3

nomad_delta · 07-13-07, 03:16 AM

As I promised in my previous thread concerning torpedo depth and exploder issues as of the last patch, now that 1.3 is out I'm back at work trying to figure out where things stand. I've spent the better part of the day running hundreds of torpedo depth and exploder tests, carefully examining and tweaking the torpedo_us.sim file, and running more tests...

Here's a link to the previous thread in case you hadn't seen it already:
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...ght=definitive

Now, on to what I've found for patch 1.3:

I'm afraid it's bad news. After hours of testing, I am convinced that the contact/influence exploder system is still broken as of patch 1.3. Or, to be more specific: the contact/influence dial is broken.

My testing and data from the last thread was accurate, but my previous conclusion was wrong. I previously concluded that since the maximum depth at which a torpedo would hit a given target was the same regardless of whether "Contact" or "Contact/Influence" exploders were selected, the magnetic detonators must not be working properly. I have now determined that to be incorrect. As Tycho102 pointed out in the previous thread, the magnetic detonators are in fact working properly, as evidenced by his 'torpedo cheats' mod that allows for increasing the magnetic detonation range.

What is not working properly, however, is the ability to turn off the magnetic detonators! Even when the dial is set to "Contact", torpedos still detonate via magnetic influence without ever touching the target. I was able to tweak the "magnetic detonation range" value in the "torpedos_us.sim" file in the same way that Tycho102 did for his torpedo cheats mod to completely verify this. With the "magnetic detonation range" value set unusually high -- to 4 meters rather than the default of 2, for example -- "Contact" torpedos would detonate even when set to run an additional 15 feet below the target, just like the "Contact/Influence" torpedos.

What's interesting is that the torpedos are not permanently 'stuck' on magnetic detonations only. There is a date range specified in the "torpedoes_us.sim" file that disables magnetic detonators on the Mark14 torpedo entirely as of exactly 06/01/1943. (This isn't properly represented in the currently available torpedoes_us.sim 'tweak' file; I've been using a hex editor to view and modify the file directly.) As a test, I modified the torpedo attack training mission to take place on 10/01/1944 instead of the default 01/01/1943 -- the magnetic exploders indeed stopped working entirely (regardless of the dial position) and I consistently got contact explosions at values matching the drafts of the ships I was firing at.

I've spent hours trying various ways of modifying the "torpedo_us.sim" file, and also modifying the reference to the exploder dial in the "dials.cfg" file, but to no avail. No matter what values I use, the game absolutely ignores the status of the torpedo exploder switch. I can reliably turn magnetic exploders either completely on, or completely off (by modifying torpedo_us.sim), and they do work -- but there's no way to change the exploder type from within the game.

So that's the summary of what I've found out so far:

You're stuck with magnetic exploders whether you want them or not prior to 06/01/1943.

After 06/01/1943, your magnetic exploders go away and you can't turn them back on again no matter what you do.

I've been staring at hex editors for so long my eyes are starting to go buggy on me, so I'm going to take a break for a bit. I'd be really interested to hear what everyone else thinks about this. For my part I'm kinda disappointed that this didn't get fixed in 1.3, and more so that it doesn't look like this is something we could fix with a mod. At least not in any way I've been able to come up with... anyone got any ideas?

nomad_delta

PS: All testing was performed on a completely clean install from DVD with only patch 1.3 applied and no mods, of course. I also temporarily modified the % chance of "depth problems" occuring to 0% to prevent any randomness.

07-13-07, 03:16 AM	#1
nomad_delta Planesman Join Date: May 2007 Location: San Francisco, California Posts: 185 Downloads: 1 Uploads: 0	Definitive torpedo depth/exploder status in 1.3 As I promised in my previous thread concerning torpedo depth and exploder issues as of the last patch, now that 1.3 is out I'm back at work trying to figure out where things stand. I've spent the better part of the day running hundreds of torpedo depth and exploder tests, carefully examining and tweaking the torpedo_us.sim file, and running more tests... Here's a link to the previous thread in case you hadn't seen it already: http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...ght=definitive Now, on to what I've found for patch 1.3: I'm afraid it's bad news. After hours of testing, I am convinced that the contact/influence exploder system is still broken as of patch 1.3. Or, to be more specific: the contact/influence dial is broken. My testing and data from the last thread was accurate, but my previous conclusion was wrong. I previously concluded that since the maximum depth at which a torpedo would hit a given target was the same regardless of whether "Contact" or "Contact/Influence" exploders were selected, the magnetic detonators must not be working properly. I have now determined that to be incorrect. As Tycho102 pointed out in the previous thread, the magnetic detonators are in fact working properly, as evidenced by his 'torpedo cheats' mod that allows for increasing the magnetic detonation range. What is not working properly, however, is the ability to turn off the magnetic detonators! Even when the dial is set to "Contact", torpedos still detonate via magnetic influence without ever touching the target. I was able to tweak the "magnetic detonation range" value in the "torpedos_us.sim" file in the same way that Tycho102 did for his torpedo cheats mod to completely verify this. With the "magnetic detonation range" value set unusually high -- to 4 meters rather than the default of 2, for example -- "Contact" torpedos would detonate even when set to run an additional 15 feet below the target, just like the "Contact/Influence" torpedos. What's interesting is that the torpedos are not permanently 'stuck' on magnetic detonations only. There is a date range specified in the "torpedoes_us.sim" file that disables magnetic detonators on the Mark14 torpedo entirely as of exactly 06/01/1943. (This isn't properly represented in the currently available torpedoes_us.sim 'tweak' file; I've been using a hex editor to view and modify the file directly.) As a test, I modified the torpedo attack training mission to take place on 10/01/1944 instead of the default 01/01/1943 -- the magnetic exploders indeed stopped working entirely (regardless of the dial position) and I consistently got contact explosions at values matching the drafts of the ships I was firing at. I've spent hours trying various ways of modifying the "torpedo_us.sim" file, and also modifying the reference to the exploder dial in the "dials.cfg" file, but to no avail. No matter what values I use, the game absolutely ignores the status of the torpedo exploder switch. I can reliably turn magnetic exploders either completely on, or completely off (by modifying torpedo_us.sim), and they do work -- but there's no way to change the exploder type from within the game. So that's the summary of what I've found out so far: You're stuck with magnetic exploders whether you want them or not prior to 06/01/1943. After 06/01/1943, your magnetic exploders go away and you can't turn them back on again no matter what you do. I've been staring at hex editors for so long my eyes are starting to go buggy on me, so I'm going to take a break for a bit. I'd be really interested to hear what everyone else thinks about this. For my part I'm kinda disappointed that this didn't get fixed in 1.3, and more so that it doesn't look like this is something we could fix with a mod. At least not in any way I've been able to come up with... anyone got any ideas? nomad_delta PS: All testing was performed on a completely clean install from DVD with only patch 1.3 applied and no mods, of course. I also temporarily modified the % chance of "depth problems" occuring to 0% to prevent any randomness. Last edited by nomad_delta; 07-17-07 at 11:15 PM.