Convoy attack tactics in SH3 vs. tactics of real life U-boats.

[Hitman]

You an also open sim.cfg in "My Documents/SH3/Data/Cfg" and tweak it like I did:

[Visual]
Detection time=2 ;[s] ;was 0.5
Sensitivity=0.01 ;(0..1)
Fog factor=1.25 ;[>=0]
Light factor=2.8 ;[>=0] ;was 2.0
Waves factor=1.0 ;[>=0]
Enemy surface factor=350 ;[m2]
Enemy speed factor=15 ;[kt]

This will make the enemy a bit more blind at night. But be careful, you can easily overshoot....

[nikimcbee]

Does it auto detect you a certain distance?

[mookiemookie]

I've done it. It's not easy, but it's all about decks awash, slow speed and pre-positioning your boat and keeping your aspect angle as small as possible. GoldenRivet's suggestion about waiting for the wing escorts to break off in their search pattern is good as well. Use that time to get in the escort screen and get to about 2000m away from the convoy and let fly with your torpedoes. Don't stick around to watch the fireworks, just concentrate on getting as much real estate between you and the escorts as possible while your fish are in the water.

Of course once the convoys start getting more heavily escorted, it makes it very difficult. Once they have radar, forget it altogether.

[GoldenRivet]

want a real eye opener?

try a surfaced convoy attack and just as your getting into position the entire convoy changes course right toward you.

[Kapt Z]

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

want a real eye opener?

try a surfaced convoy attack and just as your getting into position the entire convoy changes course right toward you.

Hah! That happened several careers ago. I had to crash dive to avoid being run over by a C3 cargo ship! Took me quite a while to set up a new attack after that.

[Lt.Fillipidis]

Actually, i've had a similar encounter which is now placed in the "Museum of Oddities"
part of my brain.

The night was pitch black, the water was calm, no wind.
Couldnt see a Large Merchant on a 500m distance.
Anyways, i had damaged a destroyer but it didnt sunk.
The convoy was some kilometers away so i decide to approach that ship from the Bow
and shell it. Although i notice a shadow near me. It was a flower class which as by a miracle was heading back to the convoy, which sailed some km further, and at that time it was about 300m front left of me. After that bit of a shock, i decide to shell that first. I would take some shells too but that would go down first.
I fired at about the middle of the ship. The shell impacts and before the crew can load another round, the ship blows sky high.
After another omgshock, i shell the other destroyer and move on.

I caught up with the convoy and the sonarman reports a sinking.
A few mins later, another. The only thing i can imagine of is that the two remaining destroyers rammed each other as the alerted convoy was taking turns for quite some time.

[USAMP1980]

I use an interesting technique:

Upon discovering a convoy (preferable in front of) I set all my torpedos and open all my torpedo doors. The sound of this usually draws the attention of the escourts. If I have to, I Flank Speed so they hear me.
When you see an escourt coming towards you, turn towards her and put her at 0 or 180 degrees. - Click on "Ship:" this will give you the optimal torpedo depth for magnetic setting. When the escort is at 425 meters and closing.. Let her have it. I destroy the pursuing escort...
Then all the other retards rush my way in attempt to kill me. Having atleast 4 front torpedo tubes.. I quickly kill 4 more escourts (all of them). [Set steam torps to "Fast"! ]
Putting the enemy at dead 0 or 180 degrees makes manual settings easy.

Once the escourts are down.. I move to a safer distance (quickly). Set it up to where the convoy broad side to your 0 degrees... surface and man the deck gun and flak gun(s). This does bring their broad side guns to bear, but their gun crew stink. This makes your boat harder to hit windage wise. Then I destroy the convoy with the deck gun as crews reload my torpedos. By the time enemy reinforcements arrive... my tubes are hot and I submerge to periscope depth to unlease hell on the fleeing surviors. As the entire convoy is sinking in flames... I "Run Silent, Run Deep!" back to base.
I average 62,000 to 100,000 tons a patrol. I don't waste torpedoes on 2,000 ton ships. A well placed impact torpedo to the bulkhead will bring down a C-2, C-3 or equivilant in one shot.

This tactic works on vanilla SH3 and GWX3.0 ... but is more hazardous in GWXs due to the armed effency of the merchants. DO NOT GET TOO CLOSE to a flock of armed merchants.. combined they are like a darn cruiser.

In vanilla SH3.. I simply weave in and around the convoy and point blank range.. submerged first then surfaced with deck gun. The broken-arrow range causes the surronding escourts to fire at me.. yet hitting their own ships. If done properly.. the armed merchants will hit each other. In 1.4b I have cause the merchants to turn on each other in retalliation and finish each other off. Especially in the choas of night.

Not bad for an Army guy!