Weather = Seriously Bugged?

Blacklight · 01-06-10, 11:09 PM

The weather model for SHIII is broken. The weather tends to get "stuck", usually with high wind, storm, rain, etc..
This is in the stock program and is un-moddable. I believe the latest version of GWX makes the weather a little more random, but nothing is going to be able to TOTALLY fix the problem.

We HAVE discovered a bit of a workaround. We noticed that the weather tends to change roughly every three days of game time. Saving the game, and then reloading it, resets this "timer". So, if say, you're sailing and the weather is perfect with no wind, you save the game when you're out there for two days, and then you exit, and reload your saved game, the timer will reset, giving you another three days of game time of the same weather you had when you saved. This is by no means a 100% as the weather timer DOES vary some for when it changes the weather. Especially the closer you are toward the equator where it changes the weather more frequently.

Hope this helps. Maybe some others have some other suggestions as well.

Also, if you don't know about it, ALWAYS save while surfaced. There is a major bug that will cause you to plunge to the bottom of the ocean when you restart if you save while under water. Also, if you're using the GWX mod, don't save anywhere near a base as it will cause all the ships in the base to crash and burn when you restart.

Spunky48 · 01-06-10, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blacklight

Also, if you're using the GWX mod, don't save anywhere near a base as it will cause all the ships in the base to crash and burn when you restart.

This is a bad thing how? :P

I'm not using any mods though.

Edit: Is it also bugged in Silent Hunter 4?

Dissaray · 01-07-10, 12:03 AM

One thing I have read here on these forums and seen in game is that the weather tends to get stuck less often when when you keep the time compresion no higher than 128. This will also make encounters with the enemy more frequent it seems.

Kpt. Lehmann · 01-07-10, 12:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blacklight

Also, if you're using the GWX mod, don't save anywhere near a base as it will cause all the ships in the base to crash and burn when you restart.

You are incorrect, matey. What you have described in the quote above is a stock SH3 problem and has nothing to do with GWX. The above quoted problem is common regardless of the mod used.

Saving near any campaign scripted or random layer AI unit in SH3 will cause it to lose its waypoints and travel in a straight line.

Blacklight · 01-07-10, 02:09 AM

Quote:

One thing I have read here on these forums and seen in game is that the weather tends to get stuck less often when when you keep the time compresion no higher than 128. This will also make encounters with the enemy more frequent it seems.

This is true. You definitely do get more contacts that way.

Steel_Tomb · 01-07-10, 05:42 AM

Que the obligatory "It's been stormin' for three months!!!!" lol.

Weather is a bit strange in SHIII, but there is nothing we can do about it really

.

Red Heat · 01-07-10, 07:39 AM

My aproach to the game i consider heavy heather a true ally...except the the heavy fog in some aproaches like in the earlier of the war...because with out radar its very dificult to follow a contact at the surface!

RConch · 01-07-10, 08:32 AM

Weather in the North Atlantic really did suck most of the time.
All commanders should take the time to enjoy "Bloody Winter" by John M. Waters to get a real taste of what the boats, escorts and merchants had to deal with.

Hitman · 01-07-10, 09:35 AM

So far the best solution I have found is to have different scene.dat files that I enable/disable depending on where I'm going to patrol. If I'm going to patrol in the North Atlantic, I use one that allows random weather (which will tend to go to 15 m/s) but with the waves size smaller than standard and fog disabled. That gives me consistent rough weather, but not unplayable at all. For tropical patrol areas I use one with fixed wind speed. Clouds change, rain comes and goes, but you never get a storm.

NYGM also comes with modifications incorporated to the campaign files that increase the chances and periods of good weather.

01-06-10, 11:09 PM	#1
Blacklight Ocean Warrior Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Connecticut Posts: 2,507 Downloads: 145 Uploads: 0	The weather model for SHIII is broken. The weather tends to get "stuck", usually with high wind, storm, rain, etc.. This is in the stock program and is un-moddable. I believe the latest version of GWX makes the weather a little more random, but nothing is going to be able to TOTALLY fix the problem. We HAVE discovered a bit of a workaround. We noticed that the weather tends to change roughly every three days of game time. Saving the game, and then reloading it, resets this "timer". So, if say, you're sailing and the weather is perfect with no wind, you save the game when you're out there for two days, and then you exit, and reload your saved game, the timer will reset, giving you another three days of game time of the same weather you had when you saved. This is by no means a 100% as the weather timer DOES vary some for when it changes the weather. Especially the closer you are toward the equator where it changes the weather more frequently. Hope this helps. Maybe some others have some other suggestions as well. Also, if you don't know about it, ALWAYS save while surfaced. There is a major bug that will cause you to plunge to the bottom of the ocean when you restart if you save while under water. Also, if you're using the GWX mod, don't save anywhere near a base as it will cause all the ships in the base to crash and burn when you restart. __________________ Be my friend or be a mushroom cloud. "I am coming at you. You will explode in a couple of minutes !"

01-07-10, 05:42 AM	#6
Steel_Tomb Ace of the Deep Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Cambridgeshire - UK Posts: 1,128 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Que the obligatory "It's been stormin' for three months!!!!" lol. Weather is a bit strange in SHIII, but there is nothing we can do about it really . __________________ _______________________________________________ System Spec: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4Ghz \| 4Gb Corsair XMS2 Dominator DDR2 PC-2 6400 RAM \| XFX GeForce 8800GTS 640mb PCI-E \| Creative X-fi sound card \| 250Gb HDD \| *Rest In Peace Dave, you will be missed.*

01-07-10, 07:39 AM	#7
Red Heat Ace of the Deep Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Portugal Posts: 1,093 Downloads: 267 Uploads: 0	My aproach to the game i consider heavy heather a true ally...except the the heavy fog in some aproaches like in the earlier of the war...because with out radar its very dificult to follow a contact at the surface! __________________ "There is three kinds of man: the living, the death, and those who are at Sea." Plato

01-07-10, 08:32 AM	#8
RConch Captain Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: No. Virginia Posts: 619 Downloads: 518 Uploads: 0	Weather in the North Atlantic really did suck most of the time. All commanders should take the time to enjoy "Bloody Winter" by John M. Waters to get a real taste of what the boats, escorts and merchants had to deal with. __________________ "Noch und Noch" Prowling the Nord Atlantik with GWX 3.0.

01-07-10, 09:35 AM	#9
Hitman Pacific Aces Dev Team Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Spain Posts: 6,109 Downloads: 109 Uploads: 2	So far the best solution I have found is to have different scene.dat files that I enable/disable depending on where I'm going to patrol. If I'm going to patrol in the North Atlantic, I use one that allows random weather (which will tend to go to 15 m/s) but with the waves size smaller than standard and fog disabled. That gives me consistent rough weather, but not unplayable at all. For tropical patrol areas I use one with fixed wind speed. Clouds change, rain comes and goes, but you never get a storm. NYGM also comes with modifications incorporated to the campaign files that increase the chances and periods of good weather. __________________ One day I will return to sea ...

01-07-10, 12:03 AM	#3
Dissaray 中国水兵 Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 280 Downloads: 35 Uploads: 0	One thing I have read here on these forums and seen in game is that the weather tends to get stuck less often when when you keep the time compresion no higher than 128. This will also make encounters with the enemy more frequent it seems.