Need HELP! Cant run sub properly

Nuker22110 · 06-20-08, 06:52 AM

Hello,
I have just gotten Silent hunter 4. This is my first subsim. After reading the manuel, and playing the tutorial,there are still many features that i cannot grasp.(I'll forget about the TDC for awhile). So can any experienced skippers guide me along, so i can take the fight to the IJN?
Questions:
1)Time compression.Every time i start time compression, hoping to reach my patrol area quickly, or to get back to port, a contact would appear, causing the time compression to go back to x1 again. Is there any way to make to tie compression ignore the contacts and continue?
2)I have read some books on submarine warfare. It seems that a submarine could fire the torpedoes, using only the sonar returns, and not surface and shoot,which is the only way that i could get done.
3)During the supply mission, after i launched the dinghy, do i need to recover it? And how ,long must i wait before i will receive a new directive from command?
4)How do you set an intercept course for a convoy?
5)Is the savegame automatic? Or do i have to return to port to be able to save game? If not, how do i do so?
6)Back at port, what part is for what?(SD improved radar?What is it for?)
7)How do i run from a depth charge attack?

There are many other questions, but i would try to find the answer myself.
Any help would be appreciated.

wetwarev7 · 06-20-08, 08:19 AM

1. Take everyone off deck watch and empty the sensors room. You don't need those sissys freaking out everytime they see a potential collision hazard or enemy anyways.

2. Yes, that's correct. You need to not surface in order to launch torpedoes from a submerged position.

3. You won't be able to recover the dingy or the men. They've gone native.
3a. Command will notify you of your new orders when they are darn good and ready. You aren't the only sub in the fleet, ya know!

4. Figure out which way they are headed. Get there before they do. Wait.

5. Escape. The key, not panicking and opening the hatch while submerged in an effort to.

6. The little squre thingy is called a desk. It's for placing your medals and pictures on.

7. As fast as you can. Turning helps.

Hope this helps! (Or at least makes you smile

)

dcb · 06-20-08, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wetwarev7

Hope this helps! (Or at least makes you smile

)

Not just smile. It';s been a while since I've laughed that much.
:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:
Good thing to see people still keep their humor. Thanks for the good laugh, Wet.

Quillan · 06-20-08, 09:11 AM

First, make sure you are fully patched up. This is 1.4 if you only have SH4, or if you bought the U-boat Missions expansion that'll take you to 1.5.

Time compression drops by default to different settings, depending on what was spotted and how. Enemy air contacts, either visual or radar, drop time compression to x1. Trust me, you DO NOT want to ignore these. Enemy vessels will drop the TC to x1 also if they're spotted by your watch crew, but only to x8 if they are picked up on radar or through a radio report. Friendly ships/planes will also drop TC if picked up on radar, so I make a habit of turning off the surface search radar when near a friendly port.

Forget sonar-only targeting for a while. It's possible, but only when using manual targeting.

After the inflatable boat has been launched and you've completed that objective, radio in a status report. If your fuel and torpedo reserves are high enough, you'll be assigned a new mission.

Going to skip the intercept part, because there are a couple of good tutorials around here you can find in the sticky threads. The save game has already been covered.

SD radar is air search radar. It only picks up aircraft. It is always on whenever you are surfaced. SJ radar is surface search radar. It picks up ships. In version 1.4, you have to manually turn it on every time you surface. In 1.5 it turns on automatically when you surface, but in both cases you can turn it off. The improved version of both are just that, improved. They have better range and better detection. For the guns, never switch mounts. If your boat has a fore mount, you can upgrade the caliber but do not switch to aft mount; it screws up the crew positions. You'll want the largest deck gun you can get. 5"/25 > 4"/50 > 3"/50 in gun terms. For anti aircraft guns, I'm partial to the twin 20mm. In the later towers I normally put one 40mm and one dual 20mm. Almost nothing else in the boat can be upgraded.

-Pv- · 06-20-08, 01:25 PM

"... 3a. Command will notify you of your new orders when they are darn good and ready. You aren't the only sub in the fleet, ya know!..."

Not quite. Once you have completed your initial mission, use the radio and report in. HQ will give you a new mission. If you don't request a mission, you have play freelancer without a mission until you run out of fuel and torps. You will do better in the game if you don't spend all your time freelancing.
-Pv-

Nuker22110 · 06-20-08, 06:00 PM

Ok, then is it possible to turn off the radar? If so, how?

And sometimes HQ sends u a report about a convoy. Is it nessary to intercept? If so, do i go to the point on the navigation map, with the spot that HQ has given? If not,where do i go?
And how do u adjust torpedo speed?

Nuker22110 · 06-25-08, 12:52 AM

ok. how many ships do i need to sink on a patrol mission before i get a new mission?

Hylander_1314 · 06-25-08, 12:23 PM

I think just one will suffice. I tend to get greedy though, unless it's early in the war and those darn faulty torpedoes are really acting up. The last convoy I attacked, my first 6 torpedoes were faulty, and after reloading, I lined up for another attack, and out of 6 torpedoes, 5 were faulty, and the one that hit the large freighter didn't even slow her down.

Nuker22110 · 06-28-08, 01:08 AM

Hey. Which is the best submarine to use during the career mission?

Sailor Steve · 06-28-08, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuker22110

Hey. Which is the best submarine to use during the career mission?

The one that turns you on the most.

Seriously. Arguably the best sub is the most modern, that being the Gato/Balao classes. But you'd be surprised how many of us love to run the old 'S' boats. They're leaky, cranky, and don't dive very deep, but they have lots of charisma. It's like all the people who chose the Type II in SH3.

The best boat is the one you like.

MDV_4life · 07-02-08, 07:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hylander_1314

I think just one will suffice. I tend to get greedy though, unless it's early in the war and those darn faulty torpedoes are really acting up. The last convoy I attacked, my first 6 torpedoes were faulty, and after reloading, I lined up for another attack, and out of 6 torpedoes, 5 were faulty, and the one that hit the large freighter didn't even slow her down.

If you are shooting at big targets, then try shooting as deep as posible.

In example if the depth of the ship is 10 then try setting your torpedoes at 8 meters or something. That should do the trick.

seafarer · 06-25-08, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuker22110

ok. how many ships do i need to sink on a patrol mission before i get a new mission?

On a patrol mission, you need to stay within a certain range of your assigned area (the map symbol) for a certain period of time. For stock SH4, I seem to remember it was within 50 nautical miles of the map marker, for 48 hours (or maybe 72 hours)?

If you are using any of the big mod pacs, then they will have modified it (check your orders).

Nuker22110 · 09-14-08, 03:19 AM

How come every time i shoot a torp at enemy ships, it usually misses?

SteamWake · 09-14-08, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuker22110

How come every time i shoot a torp at enemy ships, it usually misses?

You remembering to open the torpedoe bay doors first ? If you miss astern alot its most likely because you dident open the doors frist.

If your using autotargeting it really sucks at judging depth. 90% of the time I set my torps as shallow as they will go with our without auto target. The 'under the keel' shot while effective is hightly unreliable. If you do wish to try an under the keel shot consult the recognition manual for the draft of the ship and manually set the depth about a foot below that. Note that any time you 'lock' a target the autotargeting will change the depth of the torpedo run and you will have to set it again.

I highly recommend reading or watching some of the guides offered here at subsim. Most if not all your questions are covered in great detail there.

The manual has been the brunt of many a joke around here and frankly is best used as a coaster.

Nuker22110 · 09-15-08, 02:31 AM

Then usually when u use time compression *4000, what is ur FPS?

And is there any mods that greatly increase crusing speeds so i don't have to spend help my time getting to an area, or lagging when i use time compression.

And any mods that changes the sub skins to a cool sub? Like a Los-Angeles class?

06-20-08, 06:52 AM	#1
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	Need HELP! Cant run sub properly Hello, I have just gotten Silent hunter 4. This is my first subsim. After reading the manuel, and playing the tutorial,there are still many features that i cannot grasp.(I'll forget about the TDC for awhile). So can any experienced skippers guide me along, so i can take the fight to the IJN? Questions: 1)Time compression.Every time i start time compression, hoping to reach my patrol area quickly, or to get back to port, a contact would appear, causing the time compression to go back to x1 again. Is there any way to make to tie compression ignore the contacts and continue? 2)I have read some books on submarine warfare. It seems that a submarine could fire the torpedoes, using only the sonar returns, and not surface and shoot,which is the only way that i could get done. 3)During the supply mission, after i launched the dinghy, do i need to recover it? And how ,long must i wait before i will receive a new directive from command? 4)How do you set an intercept course for a convoy? 5)Is the savegame automatic? Or do i have to return to port to be able to save game? If not, how do i do so? 6)Back at port, what part is for what?(SD improved radar?What is it for?) 7)How do i run from a depth charge attack? There are many other questions, but i would try to find the answer myself. Any help would be appreciated.

06-20-08, 08:19 AM	#2
wetwarev7 Grey Wolf Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Deep Waters Posts: 871 Downloads: 31 Uploads: 0	1. Take everyone off deck watch and empty the sensors room. You don't need those sissys freaking out everytime they see a potential collision hazard or enemy anyways. 2. Yes, that's correct. You need to not surface in order to launch torpedoes from a submerged position. 3. You won't be able to recover the dingy or the men. They've gone native. 3a. Command will notify you of your new orders when they are darn good and ready. You aren't the only sub in the fleet, ya know! 4. Figure out which way they are headed. Get there before they do. Wait. 5. Escape. The key, not panicking and opening the hatch while submerged in an effort to. 6. The little squre thingy is called a desk. It's for placing your medals and pictures on. 7. As fast as you can. Turning helps. Hope this helps! (Or at least makes you smile ) __________________ Guess I should change my sig since SH5 has an offline mode now

06-20-08, 09:11 AM	#4
Quillan Samurai Navy Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 579 Downloads: 2 Uploads: 0	First, make sure you are fully patched up. This is 1.4 if you only have SH4, or if you bought the U-boat Missions expansion that'll take you to 1.5. Time compression drops by default to different settings, depending on what was spotted and how. Enemy air contacts, either visual or radar, drop time compression to x1. Trust me, you DO NOT want to ignore these. Enemy vessels will drop the TC to x1 also if they're spotted by your watch crew, but only to x8 if they are picked up on radar or through a radio report. Friendly ships/planes will also drop TC if picked up on radar, so I make a habit of turning off the surface search radar when near a friendly port. Forget sonar-only targeting for a while. It's possible, but only when using manual targeting. After the inflatable boat has been launched and you've completed that objective, radio in a status report. If your fuel and torpedo reserves are high enough, you'll be assigned a new mission. Going to skip the intercept part, because there are a couple of good tutorials around here you can find in the sticky threads. The save game has already been covered. SD radar is air search radar. It only picks up aircraft. It is always on whenever you are surfaced. SJ radar is surface search radar. It picks up ships. In version 1.4, you have to manually turn it on every time you surface. In 1.5 it turns on automatically when you surface, but in both cases you can turn it off. The improved version of both are just that, improved. They have better range and better detection. For the guns, never switch mounts. If your boat has a fore mount, you can upgrade the caliber but do not switch to aft mount; it screws up the crew positions. You'll want the largest deck gun you can get. 5"/25 > 4"/50 > 3"/50 in gun terms. For anti aircraft guns, I'm partial to the twin 20mm. In the later towers I normally put one 40mm and one dual 20mm. Almost nothing else in the boat can be upgraded. __________________ We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, that we are now qualified to do anything with nothing.

06-25-08, 12:23 PM	#8
Hylander_1314 Sea Lord Join Date: May 2006 Location: 5 Miles Inland West Of Lake Huron Posts: 1,936 Downloads: 139 Uploads: 0	I think just one will suffice. I tend to get greedy though, unless it's early in the war and those darn faulty torpedoes are really acting up. The last convoy I attacked, my first 6 torpedoes were faulty, and after reloading, I lined up for another attack, and out of 6 torpedoes, 5 were faulty, and the one that hit the large freighter didn't even slow her down. __________________ A legislative act contrary to the Constitution is not law. -John Marshall Chief Justice of the Supreme Court ---------------------

06-20-08, 01:25 PM	#5
-Pv- The Old Man Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 1,434 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	"... 3a. Command will notify you of your new orders when they are darn good and ready. You aren't the only sub in the fleet, ya know!..." Not quite. Once you have completed your initial mission, use the radio and report in. HQ will give you a new mission. If you don't request a mission, you have play freelancer without a mission until you run out of fuel and torps. You will do better in the game if you don't spend all your time freelancing. -Pv-

06-20-08, 06:00 PM	#6
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	Ok, then is it possible to turn off the radar? If so, how? And sometimes HQ sends u a report about a convoy. Is it nessary to intercept? If so, do i go to the point on the navigation map, with the spot that HQ has given? If not,where do i go? And how do u adjust torpedo speed?

06-25-08, 12:52 AM	#7
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	ok. how many ships do i need to sink on a patrol mission before i get a new mission?

06-28-08, 01:08 AM	#9
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	Hey. Which is the best submarine to use during the career mission?

09-14-08, 03:19 AM	#13
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	How come every time i shoot a torp at enemy ships, it usually misses?

09-15-08, 02:31 AM	#15
Nuker22110 Watch Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 17 Downloads: 50 Uploads: 0	Then usually when u use time compression *4000, what is ur FPS? And is there any mods that greatly increase crusing speeds so i don't have to spend help my time getting to an area, or lagging when i use time compression. And any mods that changes the sub skins to a cool sub? Like a Los-Angeles class?