Being depth-charged: Who thinks the experience is oddly exciting?

[Agiel7]

Think of this scenario:
Its 2300 hours, late 1940. Weather conditions are perfect for a surface attack on a passing convoy. The escorts pass, oblivious to my presence, and I pounce.

I order full speed ahead, decks awash, and launch a salvo of four torpedoes. Obviously, the high-pitched whine of the torpedoes barreling into their targets get the attention of the escorts; the merchants under their protection however, are not so observant.

"ALAAAARM!" the watch officer cries. "Schnell! Schnell!"

The entire crew sprints into the foward compartments as the boat dives below the surface.

At this range, the torpedo hits can be heard clear as day; all four eels hit home. However, when you're this close, the Tommies aren't exactly tickled by the fact that you've just sent four tankers to the bottom from right under their noses.

The distinctive "ping" from ASDIC understandably unnerves the crew, but they must remain still.

"Schleichfahrt" the LI orders as the boat levels off at 70 meters. "Kleine fahrt voraus. Ruder hart backboard" The Tommies can now "see" us so to speak as clear as day, but we must keep them guessing still as we turn right into the path of the closest destroyer.

The "pings" start becoming more rapid until the screws of the escort can be heard clearly without the aid of hydrophones, and the pings stop... everyone on board knows what that means

"Äußerste fahrt voraus! Ruder hart steuerbord!" I order a new depth, almost as deep as the hull can allow.

"Wasserbombs!" the hydrophone operater announces. We brace and pray to survive. The explosions rock the boat, and moderate leaking is incurred in the foward compartments, but with a skilled damage control team, we are able to repair it quickly enough before the destroyers can re-acquire.

"Alle maschinen stopp." I whisper as the last depth-charge detonates, allowing the drift to carry us to our new depth. The destroyer comes around, but because of the explosions, it thankfully takes him longer to find us. Like before, we take evasive manuevers just as he begins his run. The boat is violently rocked, but the damage this time is practically inconsequential.

Each attack makes it harder for them to hit us, as the depth-charges become increasingly inaccurate. A few more runs and the destroyer loses interest. I wait for nearly two hours before the destroyer buggers off before I order periscope depth. The hydrophone operator continues to track the convoy. The night is still young, and I contemplate another attack, but as I look upon my men, exhausted and de-moralized, I decide against it.

---

I remember a quote from Winston Churchill that somewhere along the lines of: "There is no greater thrill than to be fired upon ineffectually." And I can see where he's getting at, though likely, thats because I'm not the one actually praying for respite in that iron coffin, and truth be told, this is not as much fun once hedgehog comes into play.

So who else finds this experience just as exciting, if not more so, as lining up a firing solution with your UZO?

[Jimbuna]

This is all fuel for the immersion factor of this great game....SINK EM ALL!!

[A Very Super Market]

Well, there is a lot of vibration when you are depth-charged... I suppose you could find someone who finds it very exciting.

[Paul Riley]

I think being DCd is almost as good as...well,you know...almost
Unless you happen to take a load right on top of the conning tower,in which case you will probably never feel the warm embrace of a woman again

[Bronzewing]

Well, you know what Churchill said.
"Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result."

[hatemf90]

Yes, its terrifying even if its just a game, when Im standing in the command room with violent explosions around me and and suddenly the boat almost makes half a turn on its side, red light bulbs start breaking and the light goes out for a few seconds... then you hear ping ping ping and its all over again...

damn thats scary

Originally Posted by A Very Super Market

Well, there is a lot of vibration when you are depth-charged... I suppose you could find someone who finds it very exciting.

Girls would be excited surely

[Task Force]

I find being debthcharged to be quite a intresting experience.

[sharkbit]

I find loading the torpedo into the tube much more interesting.

[BasilY]

Originally Posted by Agiel7

I remember a quote from Winston Churchill that somewhere along the lines of: "There is no greater thrill than to be fired upon ineffectually." And I can see where he's getting at, though likely, thats because I'm not the one actually praying for respite in that iron coffin, and truth be told, this is not as much fun once hedgehog comes into play.

Couldn't agree more. The prospect of facing hedgehogs are terrifying. But think about this: During the real war, there are also the Squid, air-drop fido homing torpedo, and about a few hundred thousand trained and motivated real persons (who are NOT like predictable computer programs) dedicated to kill you.

Shooting down a plane feels pretty good too.