Moving and Shooting

[Dissaray]

Just look at the red and green sections of the AOB dial, that is how I figure it out. The green is for when you are on the starbord, right, side of the target and the red is for when you are on the port, left, side of the target.

If you find your self behind a target and can't find your way around to the front without giving your self away or escorts make this problamatic you can still kill the target with ease. Though the accuracy of your data is paramount for this work. When you ID your target you can find the depth of the keel in your target recognition manual, the number is generaly diferant for every ship. Simply set your torpido's running depth to about 1m lower than the value given in the manual, so if the keel is at 6.5m set for between 7.5 and 8. Then make sure your torpido is set up with a magnetic pistol, by defult they all should be, and let fly with your shot, well swim but you get the idea. The torpido will cruse in right underneeth the target and blow up somewhere underneeth it. This causes herendous damage to your target and negates the need for a 90deg shot in most situations; though the 90deg is still your best bet for a good hit.

As for 90deg shots, range isn't all that important, as long as the target is inside around 1500m. The only time range realy matters is when your are realy close to bow on or stern on with your target, your extreem AOBs.

The speed measuring with the map, the 3:15 method, your speed dosen't effect your results. At least not as far as I can tell. It is beacouse you are measuring the target's movment relitive to the Earth and not the target's movment relitive to you; at least that is how I understand it to work.

[Biggen]

Originally Posted by Dissaray

The speed measuring with the map, the 3:15 method, your speed dosen't effect your results. At least not as far as I can tell. It is beacouse you are measuring the target's movment relitive to the Earth and not the target's movment relitive to you; at least that is how I understand it to work.

This is what I was thinking. But Wazoo has two different ways of getting a targets speed and heading. One is when your U-Boat is moving and one is without it moving. I'm just curious as to the difference. If I am marking its locations every 3:15 on the map, what does it matter if I am moving or not?? It's speed and heading shouldn't change if I am moving, right??

Damn computations...

[Dissaray]

Originally Posted by Biggen

This is what I was thinking. But Wazoo has two different ways of getting a targets speed and heading. One is when your U-Boat is moving and one is without it moving. I'm just curious as to the difference. If I am marking its locations every 3:15 on the map, what does it matter if I am moving or not?? It's speed and heading shouldn't change if I am moving, right??

Damn computations...

I read thru that tutorial a while back. The diferance is you have to convert the relitive bearing to target to the bearing relative to true north, in order to get the targets location while effectivly negating your movment.

[Hook]

Ok, now you have me confused.

If you're plotting a single point on a map, it doesn't matter if you're moving or stationary, or what direction or speed you're moving, the point is still on the same place on the map and doesn't move.

Once you've plotted 3 points 3:15 apart and they're in a reasonably straight line and the same distance apart, you've got the course and speed. If they aren't in a straight enough line or aren't the same distance apart, keep plotting until you've got three that are, as long as the target itself is not trying to evade you but moving in a straight line. If it's already evading, you have other problems.

When I'm plotting my 3 points, I'm often running at ahead full on the surface using the WO's nearest visual contact reports. (Edit to add: I've got map contacts turned off.)

If you're talking about using hydrophone bearings, it's easier to do it while stationary, but it can be done while moving... generally.

Hook

[Biggen]

Originally Posted by Hook

Ok, now you have me confused.

If you're plotting a single point on a map, it doesn't matter if you're moving or stationary, or what direction or speed you're moving, the point is still on the same place on the map and doesn't move.

Once you've plotted 3 points 3:15 apart and they're in a reasonably straight line and the same distance apart, you've got the course and speed. If they aren't in a straight enough line or aren't the same distance apart, keep plotting until you've got three that are, as long as the target itself is not trying to evade you but moving in a straight line. If it's already evading, you have other problems.

When I'm plotting my 3 points, I'm often running at ahead full on the surface using the WO's nearest visual contact reports. (Edit to add: I've got map contacts turned off.)

If you're talking about using hydrophone bearings, it's easier to do it while stationary, but it can be done while moving... generally.

Hook

If you are confused then I have no hope!

I am in agreement with you, however. I can't quite figure out how me moving will matter when I am trying to determine a targets speed and its movement track. If i use the 3:15 rule, than me moving should have no bearing on whether I can determine its speed.

The same logic should also follow when trying to determine its track. As long as I have marks of the target over time, I should be able to plot it track no matter my movment direction or speed, correct? What does it matter if I am moving if I am plotting points on a map of the target?

Yet there is a whole tutorial on moving while plotting done by Wazoo here: http://www.paulwasserman.net/SHIII/ that looks way over my head.

??

[Pisces]

Plots with the 3m15s rule are not (in theory) affected by your own movement. If you are stationary then all bearings are plotted from the same place. If you are moving the bearing lines are started all equally displaced point. (and here is where the theory disclaimer comes in) The endpoints, where the target are are also equally displaced according to the target's motion.

But, if you dilly-dally and take your time between range measurements and plotting them on the map then the plot lines are not started from where the range and bearing was measured initially. That's no problem if ALL plot lines are late/displaced equally. In other words late by the same amount of seconds. But if you are quick with one plot, and very late with another then you won't get an accurate target track. The trick is to be consistant. Or average over enough plots.

You can safely make course and speed changes all you want when plotting, aslong as those lines are started from where your uboat was when the rangemeasurement was done. Just don't get sighted in the process.

Your speed and course wil affect the outcome of the speedmeasurement from the notepad-procedure. But that's not plotting, or the 3m15s rule.

[Biggen]

Originally Posted by Pisces

Plots with the 3m15s rule are not (in theory) affected by your own movement. If you are stationary then all bearings are plotted from the same place. If you are moving the bearing lines are started all equally displaced point. (and here is where the theory disclaimer comes in) The endpoints, where the target are are also equally displaced according to the target's motion.

But, if you dilly-dally and take your time between range measurements and plotting them on the map then the plot lines are not started from where the range and bearing was measured initially. That's no problem if ALL plot lines are late/displaced equally. In other words late by the same amount of seconds. But if you are quick with one plot, and very late with another then you won't get an accurate target track. The trick is to be consistant. Or average over enough plots.

You can safely make course and speed changes all you want when plotting, aslong as those lines are started from where your uboat was when the rangemeasurement was done. Just don't get sighted in the process.

Your speed and course wil affect the outcome of the speedmeasurement from the notepad-procedure. But that's not plotting, or the 3m15s rule.

I figured range would be screwed up if you were moving as it was only valid for that split second when you took it.

So, as it looks to me, my movement shouldn't have any effect on me being able to plot a targets course or gets its speed. Cool!

[Hook]

Originally Posted by Biggen

Yet there is a whole tutorial on moving while plotting done by Wazoo here: http://www.paulwasserman.net/SHIII/ that looks way over my head.

I think I see the problem. That's a little more complicated than it needs to be. I've never bothered with either my own compass course or the target's.

What I do is, get a range and bearing, then use the protractor tool to draw a line at the correct angle and use the ruler to plot a point at the correct distance. Once that point is on the map, it's valid and doesn't move no matter how I maneuver.

The protractor tool is easier to use if you're following a plotted course, as you have a nice reference line to start with, but can be used by the overlay that appears around your sub in GWX when zoomed in. This is easier to do if the target is on your starboard side. If it's on the port side, you will have to do some arithmetic with the protractor tool.

Edit: And just for fun, let's say I'm not following a plotted course and don't have the overlay when zoomed in, only the sub silhouette. What to do?

Get my course (from the compass, as close as possible, or by whatever other means you can figure out, even from the sub silhouette itself) and draw a line from my sub in that direction. Use that as a reference line. As your sub moves, you can adjust the line to be more accurate.

Hook