Wasting Torpedoes

[Sailor Steve]

There have been threads in the past in which playing styles were discussed, and two of the responses have been "I don't waste torpedoes on anything under 1000/2000/5000 tons" and "the deck guns aren't powerful enough".

I've just found yet another example of real-life kaleuns going against both of those statements. When Hans-Werner Kraus, captain of U-83, attacked the very old Egyptian steamer Said, which displaced a whopping 231 tons, he fired two torpedoes, both of which missed, and then spent 50 rounds from his deck gun sinking the little ship. Of course it doesn't say how many of those rounds missed, but still...
http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/1755.html

[bigboywooly]

Aye RL Uboats didnt come across targets as often as we do in SH3
Target was a target whatever the tonnage

U 19 - 1 warship sunk for a total of 441 tons
U 24 - 5 warships sunk for a total of 571 tons
U 653 - 1 warship sunk for a total of 840 tons

[Hanomag]

GASP!

[Sailor Steve]

On the other hand...

Here's a u-boat sinking four wooden sailing ships - all by ramming!:rotfl:
http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/3181.html

[Kapt Z]

Originally Posted by bigboywooly

Aye RL Uboats didnt come across targets as often as we do in SH3
Target was a target whatever the tonnage

Exactly!

I cannot say for GWX, since my computer won't run it, but I see way too many targets.(most of the time!)

I still use the auto-TDC, which is WAY too reliable, so I usually fire off 2-3 torps into the sea at the beginning of a patrol to count as 'misses/malfunctions'. I also fire two torpedoes at anything more than 3000 tons. I know I can sink them with one, but I assume a real Kaleun would not know that. Therefore a good patrol is maybe 20,000 to 30,000 tons=4-7 ships.

[Sailor Steve]

GWX cuts way down on the contacts, but still more than real life. I stay in my assigned grid for the whole patrol, which makes a big difference in that respec.

I use manual targetting, but still use Weapons Officer Assistance, and I do several sightings for each shot just as if I was making the calculations. It's surprising how many times I still miss. I too consider 20,000 tons a great patrol.

[Myxale]

Oh, I don't know.
To me GWX is most authentic! Sometimes I get so sink a big cargo with just one Torpedo and other times it has to be more or too many!

As for the contacts...well i just spent 33 days in a VIIB and the majority of it was just cruising around and burning fuel on uncle Karls bill!:hmm:

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Myxale

Oh, I don't know.
To me GWX is most authentic!

I wasn't saying it's not. I agree with you. I was just saying that it still gives more contacts than real life, and I don't think that can be fixed.

[Jaeger]

Originally Posted by Kapt Z

Exactly!

I cannot say for GWX, since my computer won't run it, but I see way too many targets.(most of the time!)

I still use the auto-TDC, which is WAY too reliable, so I usually fire off 2-3 torps into the sea at the beginning of a patrol to count as 'misses/malfunctions'. I also fire two torpedoes at anything more than 3000 tons. I know I can sink them with one, but I assume a real Kaleun would not know that. Therefore a good patrol is maybe 20,000 to 30,000 tons=4-7 ships.

you can have it more realistic: try to shot manually and estimate the height of the targets mast for range input. also estimate the AOB, like real Kaleuns did. if time is short, estimate targets speed only by watching the bow wave. this estimations real kaleuns must do sometimes (when there was not enough time to do long observations because of the targets high speed). if you shot this way, you will have lots of eel wasting, thats for sure. by the way, the manual should be less acurate in mast heights etc, this would force the player to estimate. this would be more authentic. also tonnage should be estimated...

greetz, Jaeger

[Murr44]

Originally Posted by Kapt Z

Exactly!

I cannot say for GWX, since my computer won't run it, but I see way too many targets.(most of the time!)

I still use the auto-TDC, which is WAY too reliable, so I usually fire off 2-3 torps into the sea at the beginning of a patrol to count as 'misses/malfunctions'. I also fire two torpedoes at anything more than 3000 tons. I know I can sink them with one, but I assume a real Kaleun would not know that. Therefore a good patrol is maybe 20,000 to 30,000 tons=4-7 ships.

Same here. I use GWX & I consider 30,000 tons in the Atlantic to be a very good patrol. Most Med patrols usually net me around 10,000-15,000 tons.

[FIREWALL]

Originally Posted by bigboywooly

Aye RL Uboats didnt come across targets as often as we do in SH3
Target was a target whatever the tonnage

U 19 - 1 warship sunk for a total of 441 tons
U 24 - 5 warships sunk for a total of 571 tons
U 653 - 1 warship sunk for a total of 840 tons

What were they doing ? Takeing out a Yacht Club.:p :rotfl:

[bigboywooly]

Originally Posted by FIREWALL

What were they doing ? Takeing out a Yacht Club.:p :rotfl:

Was a 1940s geordie booze cruise IIRC

[jpm1]

you want to increase realism just put some rocks at the bottom of the ocean that would be a first good step my tone could appear a bit sarcastic but my admiration to Ubisoft Romania still remains intact

[Hitman]

Back to the original topic

U-Boats in the Mediterranean did shoot at anything they found; targets were too scarce to save torpedoes, so they wasted them on fishing boats if necessary.

In turn, during the happy times torpedo saving was stringly favoured by aces like Otto Kretschmer, whose motto was "One torpedo, one ship"

Simply different reactions for very different situations, as was logic.

The official doctrine (U-Boat commanders Handbook) encouraged in 1943 to expend as many torpedos as necessary and "not hesitate in shooting salvoes as long as full target destruction was ensured. Better one sunk ship than two damaged ones!" Another paragraph also indicated that the commander must take whatever opportunity he has: "What you have, you have. Don't let torpedo saving considerations deter you from doing the most effective attack"