What do you think?

[DavyJonesFootlocker]

Good grief, RR is an Alien! Just kidding! :rotfl:

[walrusbomb]

lot of excellent points already made about the German Navy.

it's hard, sometimes, to forget that the Nazis were just another political party. Peel back another layer and you'll find turmoil *inside* the Nazi-party (especially when discussing the Navy *and* Northern Africa).

Morality is a slippery slippery slope.

[AkbarGulag]

I will not play SH3 again, because simply it is old technology. I always love and appreciate new things and technology.

As for what is preffered, I really prefer the atlantic, the whole 'Heavy' feel. I feel more vulnerable and the extra dive depth, well, that just adds to the pressure. I guess it comes down to your own individual imagination.

As far as Nazi's are concerned? After volunteering for the New Zealand Army, my grandfather served in N. Africa, Greece, Crete (he was defending the North West Airfield there, AA guns.. was rear guard observer in Greece) and fought at Monte Casino. Whenever I see a dark skinned soldier in WW2 african footage I try and see if it's him ^^. His take on the Germans, he had a lot of respect. I spent a lot of time pestering him and was the only family member he ever told his stories to. He thought the Germans were great soldiers who had the same dirty job as he did. He felt no animosity, and he never reffered to them as 'Nazi's'.

I'm sure this is true of many services... when you had a job like those guys had, I guess politics is the furthest thing from your mind.

When asked about the prospect of being a prisoner, his attitude was it was better to be taken by a german than any other nation, he said 'you could trust them'. This may have been unique to the north african theatre, but it gives you an insight into the reality of politics for an average soldier.

[DavyJonesFootlocker]

Rommel's Afrika Korps was indeed a different set of soldiers than say, the Waffen-SS. In fact Rommel let go a group of Jewish soldiers in North Africa. So I can understand your Father saying he was safe. Can't say for the rest of the occupied lands the nazis took. They murdered most of them. I read the book "Black Angels"- A History of the Waffen-SS and they did some monstrous things. I know that some Hitler Jugend served in the Kreigsmarine and they too were a fanatical bunch.

Hey, I found this article about the u-boat off the coast of my home island.

http://www.newsday.co.tt/people/print,0,29835.html

[Schlippittz]

I prefer the U-boats. I have a fascination with the WWII era German military. I tell that to some people and they think I'm a wannabe Nationalsozialistische, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I just admire their hardware, their way of fighting a war, and maaaan did they know how to dress a soldier. It always seemed to me that a US GI looked like a slob next to a nattily attired member of the Wehrmacht, with their long grey coats and such.

Haha, so I guess I'm into their fashion more than the fascism!

The Hitlerjugend didn't really make it into combat until the end of the war when Germany was starving for manpower. Then they started sending the 15 and 16 year old graduates of Hitlerjugend programs to the front lines. I agree with previous assessments of the German military; most of them were not Nazis, and were just doing what they felt like was their duty to their uniform and the Fatherland.

[Capn_Sinky]

Read "Submarine!" by Ed. Beech and then read "Iron Coffins" for a comparison. Both started about the same time and had very similar experiences. A great comparison. Will also help with your tatics.

I also read a story about the American submariner who after WWII took command of the I400 for testing and sailed it to Hawaii. The american crews had to work next to the Japanese sailors to learn how operate the boat. How scarry would that be.

"You pull lever GI and boat dive, sure, you go ahead and try, Japanese boat dive fast, you see"

It was also very interesting when he was talking with the Japanese Sub commanders and they were swaping war stories. It was always in terms of "us" and "them". "Us" meant submarines and "Them" meant surface vessles regardless of nationality.

[AkbarGulag]

Originally Posted by DavyJonesFootlocker

Hey, I found this article about the u-boat off the coast of my home island.
http://www.newsday.co.tt/people/print,0,29835.html

I had a teacher from Trinidad&Tobago at school, she was awesome. At the time, she did something I had never seen before, she brought her 2 year old daughter to school, from then on she brought her everyday. In all my years as a student (15), I had never seen a teachers child at school ^^

I get the impression she just thought it was normal and didn't even ask :p Thats NZ of back then for you, if you did something unexpected, people just accepted it.

Great story in there DavyJones, interesting little snap of life in the carribean. NZ had 500,000 US serviceman here during WW2.... we had a population of about 1.5 million ^^ My Grandfather said resentment was common to that fact while on duty in Europe. The boys just wanted to come home and fight the Japanese, rather than have all these 'yanks' here shagging their girlfriends. England of course wasn't interested, thus the titanic shift in NZ foreign defence policy from that time on. Thus the new relationship with the US was born, a country that actually shared the same ocean! Well, got along until the US got pissy about our non-nuclear legislation anyway

Hello Capn_Sinky, an articulate audience welcomes you

[Platapus]

I like sub games because of the sneakyness.

You can't wade in, a-guns a-blazin. You have to plan and wait. Picking the best time to strike. I find sub games much more mentally stimulating (which does not take much with my mind )

I also like the weaknesses of subs once the moment of surprise is gone.

I also like the solo type play although that really should not be incorporated in SH3 due to the wolf-packs.

I don't have a problem playing the Germans. It is a simulation of history. I find the prospect of killing British no more or less abhorrent than killing Japanese. I would not like to kill either in real life.

I guess my "attitude" mimics many of the real life Kregsmarine in that there was nothing personal, just a duty to do.

And, of course, I never forget it is just a frickin game

[prologos]

Originally Posted by AkbarGulag

my grandfather served in N. Africa, Greece, Crete (he was defending the North West Airfield there, AA guns.. was rear guard observer in Greece) and fought at Monte Casino.

Greek here!!! That's the Maleme Airfield, present day Chania. The fiersiest battles in Crete were fought there. My grandfather (from my father's side) also took part in the battle, after the capitulation of the main Greek Army fighting the Italians in Albania, when Germans invaded Greece from the NE borders with Bulgaria and Jugoslavia. In fact he came across many German columns on his way back to Athens (and later by boat smuggled to Crete and after the fall of the island to Egypt). He told me that the Germans really respected them and in fact they were given orders not to take Greek prisoners as a token of respect from Hitler in the way they fought (and humiliated) Mussolini. He was later incarserated by the English in Egypt (made a force march through the desert and send to prison camp in Libya) after the Greek Army of Middle East mutinied near the end of the war, in regard of political issues conserning the resime Greece should have after the liberation.

[DavyJonesFootlocker]

Wow, AckbarGulag nice to know you met one of us in NZ. I played cricket once with a group from NZ a long time ago. Nice chaps.