sonarman detection impairment ?

[Tozzifan]

Hello,
I'm still on the first patrol of my first career (started december 1941, now around march 1942), and still roaming south of Formosa strait, unsuccessfully hunting

along this timeline, I've detected only three ships, although having done my homework, trying to be compliant with shipping lanes maps found through subsim forum (patrolling slow, from BUngo/Formosa straits, to SIngapore)

of course I've patrolled using time compression 32-128x (frequently asking reports to sonar station)

what troubles me is that all the three ships detection was achieved by myself, occasionally using sonar

what then (a deaf) AI sonarman stands for?
or am I missing something?
or is something in my modded (described in signature) SH4 out of place?
or just a mere lack of luck?

thanks

[mido]

You have to listen yourself, I never had a sonar man detecting a ship on its own, no matter what mod I used. I am in May '45 now and still detect plenty of ships with RFB/RSRDC although some people here say there are only fishing boats left during that time of the war. I dive once every 2 or 3 hours (game time of course), depending on my speed and listen for 1 minute and find ships frequently. While listening I don't use TC. Sometimes I "bump" into ships by radar contact but that is rather the exception.

[Tozzifan]

but if I have to listen myself all the time, then TC is a risk to miss even the whole Japanese fleet passing in range, when using it enroute or along patrols ... ok, I have to adapt, otherwise I'll miss the whole war

[mido]

Originally Posted by Tozzifan

...then TC is a risk to miss even the whole Japanese fleet passing in range...

This is correct, I started to listen myself and without TC when I found out by coincidence that I am close to a battleship group, which was neither reported by radio men nor by sound men.

[Tozzifan]

in my opinion, this is more like as a noticeable AI bug, because if the sim halts or slows down when something is spotted on the surface, it seems illogic that the same event should not happen when hearing becomes the substitute sense for eyesight

[mido]

From the height of a submarine you can probably see objects at a distance of 10 miles if the weather is clear. At the same time you can listen to noise under water at a much greater distance. But I agree, the AI crew "needs better training"...

[TorpX]

Originally Posted by Tozzifan

Hello,
I'm still on the first patrol of my first career (started december 1941, now around march 1942), and still roaming south of Formosa strait, unsuccessfully hunting

along this timeline, I've detected only three ships, although having done my homework, trying to be compliant with shipping lanes maps found through subsim forum (patrolling slow, from BUngo/Formosa straits, to SIngapore)

of course I've patrolled using time compression 32-128x (frequently asking reports to sonar station)

what troubles me is that all the three ships detection was achieved by myself, occasionally using sonar

what then (a deaf) AI sonarman stands for?
or am I missing something?
or is something in my modded (described in signature) SH4 out of place?
or just a mere lack of luck?

thanks

This is how it works in RFB (not sure about your set up):

The early war sound equiptment in USN boats was not very good. But, it improves over time. The AI crew ability reflects this. When you listen you can hear to the extended range, as if you were using the best equiptment. Meaning that you can almost always hear better than your crew. AFAIK, this is a stock flaw and cannot be fixed.

I tried to find the threads where this was discussed, but came up empty. Someone here can probably provide a better expanation.In any case, sound was not modeled very well in SH 4.

[Diopos]

I don't think it is a "bug". Was the same in CAcesOfTheDeep and SH2 (IIRC). It is an insentive, for the player, to use the hydrophone or radar terminal himself rather than to rely solely on "auto" reports. If the player had no reason to "man" these stations himself then there would be no actual need to include them in the game (and all their associated graphics and code) ...

.

[Vaux]

Well, this thread taught me something. Looks like I should man the sonar periodically.

[WernherVonTrapp]

BTW, early 42, I find some very good hunting in the Makassar Strait and Celebes Sea, but I'm playing TMO 2.5 w/RSRDC. Lots of tankers in this area in early July 42.

[mido]

Originally Posted by Vaux

Well, this thread taught me something. Looks like I should man the sonar periodically.

Absolutely! This is why I find ships now in '45.

[Loudspeaker]

I never realized this problem. I accepted the fact that it is hard to find targets, just as it were historically. Some skippers went through most of the war without spotting a target. And I like my game to reflect reality as close as possible when playing simulators. Otherwise I would be playing arcade games.

Besides, I think it's fun to operate the various stations myself now and then. Gives you the feeling of being really there...

[donna52522]

I have found that during TC you can see the clock slow a bit, that's when i turn off TC, dive and have a listen myself. You can personally pick up targets that are even at a greater range than radar can detect. Of course sometimes you may not hear anything when the clock slows, so it will mean there's a fishing boat or sampan in your vicinity.

[Tozzifan]

Originally Posted by donna52522

I have found that during TC you can see the clock slow a bit, that's when i turn off TC, dive and have a listen myself. You can personally pick up targets that are even at a greater range than radar can detect. Of course sometimes you may not hear anything when the clock slows, so it will mean there's a fishing boat or sampan in your vicinity.

good hint!

[TorpX]

Originally Posted by Diopos

I don't think it is a "bug". Was the same in CAcesOfTheDeep and SH2 (IIRC). It is an insentive, for the player, to use the hydrophone or radar terminal himself rather than to rely solely on "auto" reports. If the player had no reason to "man" these stations himself then there would be no actual need to include them in the game (and all their associated graphics and code) ...

.

Is is a bug, or flaw, if you prefer. There is nothing wrong with the idea of manning the stations yourself. But in the game you can somehow hear much better than you should, or the crew can. The basic reason for this is the crew ablity is a function of various AI detection values (which can be modded), while the sound you hear at the station, isn't. Ubisoft just didn't consider this aspect of the game very important. I realised this when I discovered that one can "hear" distant ships, eventhough islands are inbetween us.

Ideally, you and the crew should have comparable abilities, and the detection ranges should be based on the equiptment available at the time.