Changing my play style for survival

[timmy41]

what? be more aggressive! *rams a destroyer*

nah im doing the same thing as you now that im playing an actual serious DiD campaign instead of messing around. good luck!

[Zedwardson]

Followed my rules, and had a very successful patrol!

At AN14 and AN13 I followed my rule no five, and came across a lot of East west runners, on a smooth sea (thus, I could use the deck cannon to full effect!

3.11.39. 1417 Patrol 4
U-27, U-Flotilla Saltzwedel
Left at: November 3, 1939, 14:17
From: Wilhelmshaven
Mission Orders: Patrol grid BF15 5.11.39. 0053 Grid AN 46 Ship sunk! SS Ability (Coastal Freighter), 1869 tons. Cargo: Coal. Crew: 34. Crew lost: 20 6.11.39. 0523 Grid AN 14 Ship sunk! SS Crest of the Wave (Medium Cargo), 5081 tons. Cargo: Coal. Crew: 44. Crew lost: 21 0628 Grid AN 14 Ship sunk! SS Garoufalia (Granville-type Freighter), 4707 tons. Cargo: Wine/Spirits. Crew: 100. Crew lost: 81 1738 Grid AN 13 Ship sunk! SS Clan MacArthur (Large Merchant), 10615 tons. Cargo: Iron Ore. Crew: 59. Crew lost: 55 1807 Grid AN 13 Ship sunk! MV Corheath (Coastal Tanker), 1240 tons. Cargo: Gasoline. Crew: 19. Crew lost: 6 2253 Grid AN 14 Ship sunk! SS Kooyong (Passenger/Cargo), 2253 tons. Cargo: General Cargo. Crew: 175. Crew lost: 84 7.11.39. 0730 Grid AN 13 Ship sunk! SS Napier (Medium Cargo), 5082 tons. Cargo: Steel. Crew: 48. Crew lost: 1 1251 Grid AN 13 Ship sunk! MV Vinemoor (Granville-type Freighter), 4708 tons. Cargo: Foodstuffs. Crew: 107. Crew lost: 16 1531 Grid AN 13 Ship sunk! MV Harrier (Motor Vessel), 114 tons. Cargo: Foodstuffs. Crew: 13. Crew lost: 3 11.11.39. 1827 Patrol results
Crew losses: 0
Ships sunk: 9
Aircraft destroyed: 0
Patrol tonnage: 35669 tons

Came across a gorgeous convoy, even had a Ax. Cruiser in it. I turned stern (Which is the only place that had a eel left) fired a slow steam eel at the largest mass of freighters, crashed dived while turning 90 degrees, and once i got to 100 meters, went silent and let the convoy go past, sadly, no hit.

Also had some first ship sightings

First Polish warship (It depth charged me, well aimed, but I was nice and deep)
First Neutral USA ship.
first Aux. Cruiser.

still, I will take 9 ships and 35k tons any day, and earned myself a Iron Cross.

[Badger Finn]

Medals
20NOV39 IRON CROSS, SECOND CLASS

19JAN40 IRON CROSS, FIRST CLASS

Badges
12SEP39 U-BOAT BADGE

U-Bootwaffe Postings
18MAY38 U-Boat Flotilla Weddigen (Commander training)
01AUG39 1st Flotilla (6 patrols)

U-Boat Commands
01AUG39 U-20, Type IIA (6 patrols)



101AUG39 - 15AUG39 (15 days)0 (0/0)0 (0/0)
231AUG39 - 12SEP39 (13 days)1 (1/0)2239 (2239/0)
321SEP39 - 08OCT39 (18 days)2 (2/0)10911 (10911/0)
403NOV39 - 20NOV39 (18 days)2 (2/0)4471 (4471/0)
502DEC39 - 22DEC39 (21 days)2 (2/0)11563 (11563/0)
604JAN40 - 19JAN40 (16 days)1 (1/0)9385 (9385/0)

Transferred to u-boat school...



To game out is to have fun! To sub*sim* is to have skill alot of bloody patience and have fun!

[raymond6751]

We need more of these 'tactics that work' threads. Well done.

Here's another tip, never let your battery charge go below half except in combat. I sometimes mix surface and submerged travel to conserve fuel and extend range. I watch that battery gauge. It isn't nice to go into combat with no under-water range.

[Alpha Von Burg]

When I reach my patrol area I would try and stay submerged for as long as I can and suface when CO2 levels hit 50%. I usually set a schedual to when I surface, being some time after sun set and sometime before sun set.

Being submerged as its advantage, such as hydrophone scan which has better "visual" range, most of the time and reduces any chance of being spotted first.

And to conserve battery life I just stay at slow speed.

Hope this help...

[Jimbuna]

some time after sun set and sometime before sun set.

Do you mean some time before sunrise?

[Alpha Von Burg]

Originally Posted by jimbuna

Do you mean some time before sunrise?

Ah yes, thanks for pointing that out...

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Alpha Von Burg

Ah yes, thanks for pointing that out...

[Sailor Steve]

You better run, AvB. It's a bad sign when Jim starts winking at you.

[HW3]

A patrol technique that works for me is to run submerged for 6 hours at slow speed (2-3kts), surface and charge batteries, which takes about 1 hour, run submerged for another 6 hours and repeat. By doing this I rarely run into a airplane or surface ship while surfaced, and my batteries are always over 50%.

[Zedwardson]

Originally Posted by HW3

A patrol technique that works for me is to run submerged for 6 hours at slow speed (2-3kts), surface and charge batteries, which takes about 1 hour, run submerged for another 6 hours and repeat. By doing this I rarely run into a airplane or surface ship while surfaced, and my batteries are always over 50%.

Thanks, I will have to try that when it gets a little more risky to be on the surface my my guy(s).

[K-61]

I remain surfaced as much as possible, until air cover becomes a real pain. If weather is bad and visibility low, I submerge and run slow, using hydrophones to hear farther than I can see. Why stay up top and risk being run over? I've had a couple of collisions that way and it is a nasty surprise.

My most recent convoy must have a radar equipped escort. It's spring of 41, off the coast of Spain, weather bad and very low range visibility. I was using hydrophones to track the convoy and when I was close enough decided to surface and try to spot it visually. Suddenly I began to take damage but could not see where it was coming from. As I crash dived a corvette came into view. I evaded and several hours later was running somewhere to the east of the convoy when again that corvette suddenly looms out of the murk firing everything it has at me. Again, crash dive and evade. This time I chose to break off. I have no advantage over that convoy and would likely get killed if I persisted. Discretion is the better part of valour. I'm in the first patrol of my new IXC; she's not an agile VII and I can't risk getting caught on the surface, wallowing like a whale.

[Badger Finn]

Originally Posted by HW3

A patrol technique that works for me is to run submerged for 6 hours at slow speed (2-3kts), surface and charge batteries, which takes about 1 hour, run submerged for another 6 hours and repeat. By doing this I rarely run into a airplane or surface ship while surfaced, and my batteries are always over 50%.

This will keep you out of trouble - you can also expand on that general theme for all sorts variables but I also run a 6 hour system very similiar I some times will chug on the surface dependant on weather, position etc

[sharkbit]

Originally Posted by HW3

A patrol technique that works for me is to run submerged for 6 hours at slow speed (2-3kts), surface and charge batteries, which takes about 1 hour, run submerged for another 6 hours and repeat.

If you do that before mid 1943, you are just giving up way too much flexibility in patrolling. Just think of the area you can cover on the surface compared to the area that you would cover when submerged and the potential targets that may be spotted. I rather rely on my watchcrew to see targets than the hydrophone pick up targets.

I might submerge during the day and run on the surface at night in areas that are heavily patrolled by aircraft early/mid war but I think running submerged when you do not need to is giving up the huge advantage that patrolling on the surface gives you.
Most of the time though, I patrol on the surface and rely on my watch crew to spot airplanes. "Aircraft Spotted!"= crash dive.

Having said all that, I'm starting to get into late 1943 and aircraft are making things a wee bit more difficult so patrolling submerged in certain areas may be a wise thing to do.
Come 1944, I may be singing the praises of your technique.

[the.terrabyte.pirate]

I'm currently using a slightly different patrolling technique.

Ahead 1/3, half an hour submerged, half an hour on the surface.

I know that it's unlikely that within 30 minutes a sound contact would pass into and then out of my hydrophone range, but surfacing every half hour keeps the batteries charged between 75% and 100% at any time.

Not only does this mean I patrol at a faster speed, but I also have enough battery charge left to turn off recharge mode if I need those extra few knots to catch a contact.