Amazing! Frustrating! Intriguing!

[Holdit]

I been playing SH3 for about a fortnight and what a fortnight it's been! I started with a full career in 1939 commanding a type II (yes, I was determined to do it the hard way...) and had sunk three ships on my first control - with manual targeting - so I was pretty happy. I play with 79% realism, by the way.

Then...I installed the Grey Wolves mod. Wow! This game is just...amazing. The wireless traffic is deeply immersive; the sea water is like a painting, I've seen seas varying between rough and glassy and I'm sure I haven't seen it all yet; the ships look terrific; the interface is fantastic, including the interactions with officers; in short the most immersive simulation I've seen since the otherwise unfortunate B-17.

Unfortunately, installing the Grey Wolves mod dropped my existing boat in the middle of nowhere (literally! - 0-0' W 0-0' N). No problem sez I...I'll just start again. Ooops but I have to be in Kiel now if I want the type II. Bugger! All that extra transit time...still never mind (and aren't the harbours with traffic amazing too? Last time leaving harbour I passed a cruisier that had dropped in to say hello).

Three patrols later, though, and frustration is starting to creep in. Using G7-a's, I've rendered three ships for a total of about 21,000 tonnes swamped and dead in the water...but not sunk (aaaargh!!!) even though they'd taken three or four torpedo hits each. I thought about maybe using the G7-e's instead, but I wanted to avoid all the malfunctions - maybe I would have been better off.

Of course, being in a type II means that (a) I very quickly run out of torpedoes with which to finish off the targets and (b) I don't have a deck gun with which to administer a coup de grace either. Nothing to do but hang around hoping the bloody thing will sink until I get fed up and call it a day and set off on the long slog back to Kiel. Oh well, at least I have a II-D now, with lots more fuel so I can make the transits at higher speed.

Here's the intriguing bit which makes me wonder if I'm not getting some reward for my efforts after all. Firstly, I wasn't getting any "be more aggressive" messages from BdU. Then, after my third patrol, I was promoted to...Leutnant-sur-Zee I think it was. Last night I had to save my fourth patrol while it was in progress and because this involves "returning to base" I noticed I was going to get the Iron Cross 2nd class. Not bad for someone who has yet to register even a single ton of shipping sunk.

Is anyone aware of how the performance-reward system is modelled - just curious, I don't intend to manipulate it or anything. Also, is the new damage model in the Grey Wolves mod off-whack or is it me doing something wrong. If I finish patrol #4 by sailing away from yet another almost-sunk ship I think I'll end up going postal in the control room...

[HunterICX]

When I started with TGW mod

Also I had the same thing about sinking ships.
Mostly I had to leave the ship lying dead into the waters but not sinkings.

Also I noticed sometimes when I had an ship leaning I stayed around the ship and after 5 or 6 hours in game , a Message popped up....''She's Going Down''

So sometimes you have to wait a long time before she finally decides sink.

Also I faslty learned how to use my torpedo's

I never fired at an greater distance then 1000 Meters
because the T1's sometimes decides to blow up in the middle of the water.

So after that I mostly fire 2 torps at an ship the 1st one I aim at here Engine compartment to make her laying dead in the water or at least to slow her down..the next one i fired under her commander tower and mostly I have the luck she sinks or doesnt struggle a long time before she decides to go down.

my average tonnage per patrol was 9,000 tons

after that I upgraded to an VII because I needed something bigger.

My tonnage rate has gone up dramaticly towards the Record of 38,000 tons (Convoy attack) I was really suprised of that score, but also In the middle of the convoy I spotted an Southampton Cruiser. worth 10,000 Tons.

my average in the VII is 16,000 per patrol.

Also maybe its adviced to go the the Navy school again m8 and do the Torpedo Practice to get weak spots of an Ship.

[Grey Area]

Last night I had to save my fourth patrol while it was in progress and because this involves "returning to base"

You don't have to return to base if you save, you can just save mid-patrol.

[horrgakx]

Note that if you do return to port (under 20km away) then you get more renown. If you take the option 'return to port' in the middle of the sea your score is lower.

The only thing I don't like about the Grey Wolves mod is the drastically reduced water visibility. Yes I know it is more realistic, but I enjoyed the clear waters of the original. Is it possible to put it back?

[kiwi_2005]

Originally Posted by horrgakx

The only thing I don't like about the Grey Wolves mod is the drastically reduced water visibility. Yes I know it is more realistic, but I enjoyed the clear waters of the original. Is it possible to put it back?

Yes if you install "SH3Commander 2.6" you can change the visibility by upping it to 20 in the options, to get your boat showing like in the stock game when submerged.

SH3 Commander 2.6 is a must have.

[SteamWake]

[quote=kiwi_2005]

Originally Posted by horrgakx

SH3 Commander 2.6 is a must have.

and where does one get this ?

[Lovro]

After a year just started playing SH3 again - stock version this time with manual targeting and the whole realism stuff. 2 patrols-> 12 ships went down resulting in 80.000t in Davy Jones' locker. Biggest one was 11.000t T3 (bastard was hiding in the middle of the convoy full of neutral ships and 4 destroyers).
I'm thinking of installing grey wolves mod I'm just afraid that it would get too frustrating- I get pissed when 4 fish in a role bounce dud or ship not sinking after 3 direct hits below the smoke stack (both happend on todays patrol+ rammed by a lone C3 which was a bit embarrasing:hmm:). But from as far as I can tell it realy improves the immersion which is what I want. So shuld I get it or not? I also have weak hardware does GW mod require more PC power that stock SH3?

[Fat Bhoy Tim]

Originally Posted by Lovro

or ship not sinking after 3 direct hits below the smoke stack (both happend on todays patrol+ rammed by a lone C3 which was a bit embarrasing:hmm:

in GW you'd be shooting yourself in the foot putting all 3 in the same place. You want to hit as many compartments and vital areas as possible.

[kiwi_2005]

[QUOTE=SteamWake]

Originally Posted by kiwi_2005

and where does one get this ?

http://www.subsim.com/subsim_files/patches2005.html

[enaceo]

The ranks are ,I think,configured by the "basic.cfg" file in the data/cfg folder of your game.But I am not sure of this.
About the damage system-it is a huge improvement over the "health-points" system of the stock game.It has some problems though,but if it is refined even more it will probably be very realistic.

[Holdit]

Update: The run of bad luck ended last night with a single torpedo to the stern of a Large Cargo ship which obediently sank (eventually). Much cheering from the crew and a happier skipper.

A couple of other things I've seen that make this game special:

In patrol #3 as I was stalking an unescorted merchantman on the surface at night, a lookout called "we've been spotted" and sure enough there was the "victim" pointing a searchlight directly at U-11 (why didn't the boat's number change when I upgraded?). I backed up out of the light's range and then, via external view, I saw the beam begin to move back and forth, as if trying to re-acquire. Nice touch.

Having watched the cargo ship in patrol #4, and having put in my 24 hours in AN47, I set off down the east coast of Scotland in search of a victim for my two remaining torpedoes. I passed Aberdeen and Dundee without incident and was approaching the entrance to the Firth of Forth when the lookouts announced a ship astern at close range. The "ship" turned out to be a torpedo boat which was happily tailing me while shooting lumps out of the conning tower! Taken by surprise, I manned the 20mm instead of submerging, which probably would have been more prudent. I didn't think I (I mean, Seaman Beck) was getting anywhere, because it was hard to keep the gun on the target, but after much shooting back and forth, the torpedo boat moved away to the west, firing a few parting shots as it went but otherwise seeming to decide that the game wasn't worth the candle - maybe I'd landed a few hits after all. This seemed to me to be very realistic - the kind of thing you read about in true-life accounts; instead of death-or-glory, one side realises it doesn't like the odds anymore and decides that discretion is the better part of valour. Any medal avaialable after this patrol will be going to Seaman Beck for sure.

Not long after that, and not far away, a ship was sighted far astern, heading more or less for the area I'd just vacated - it was a V&W destroyer. I may be reading too much into it, but it seemed to me to be as if the torpedo boat had put the word out. It was late in the day, so I stayed on the surface, presenting a narrow profile to the destroyer and headed in the general direction of away at flank speed.

This was the first patrol in which I'd met the Royal Navy. It was a sobering experience when I realised that if I wasn't careful my first kill might never make it on the scoreboard back at Kiel...

[Grey Area]

Oh yes, they will call for reinforcements that's for sure.


-Running GW and loving it - thanks guys.