Harpoon Commanders Edition

[Bubble Head]

My wife has gifted me Harpoon's Commander Edition for my bday - which was fairly awesome of her Gotta love it when your missus supports your obsessions.

I've never really gotten into Harpoon in anyway shape or form, is this edition worth getting into and learning?

There is what, Harpoon 3 etc out there?

Can anyone clarify if this is still a good edition game play wise (being so old) and if there are hundreds of hours of fun to be had in it, or will its age just frustrate me?

Don't tell my wife I asked

[Herman]

If you do not know the difference between Harpoon Classic and Harpoon3, here is a quick video showing some of the major points:



Both versions have hundreds of scenarios. Whichever version you decide to play will likely give you countless hours of enjoyment. It's the kind of game(s) where you always want 'just a few more minutes' and end up greeting the sunrise.

Welcome aboard, shipmate.

p.s. If your wife is purchasing the Harpoon Ultimate bundle of games from Matrix Games, you get both the Harpoon Classic and Harpoon3 versions in the same package for one price.

[Bubble Head]

Thanks for that Herman,

Just a couple quick questions from a noob - I had a go at one of the training exercises in the west pacific - off the coast of eastern Australia and in central west Australia. Some things went to plan some things did not -

My naval shipping group did fairly well - picked up a few oilers at close range and finished them off with a plethora of ship to ship missiles - easy.

The colins class sub I had out there did not go so well. Had her under, with sonar going - moving slowly to the east and tracing a recon circle for another sub. Initially was alerted to her presence when she fired a torpedo at me and missed. Went deeper and kept trying to get a lock on her, no dice and within short shrift she had me torpe'd and on the ocean floor - just couldn't get a fix even though I went silent, stationary and had sonar only pinging and she was obviously in close quarters? Did I miss something?

Also - I attempted a 17 bird bombing run on the norther Queensland airbase - everytime I attempted to get birds out there (F111 Ardvarks) it kept telling me they only had a 50nm range - which seemed a bit low to me - 50nm? These are long range strike craft and should have been able to make the hop to qld from vic easily - beat the **** out of the field and get back to base with fuel to spare - I sent them anyway in the interest of science, and they managed to pound the air base but bingo'd on the return trip... again - did I miss something here?

Sorry for the major noob fest out here but those things threw me somewhat - any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Herman]

Originally Posted by Bubble Head

The colins class sub I had out there did not go so well. Had her under, with sonar going - moving slowly to the east and tracing a recon circle for another sub. Initially was alerted to her presence when she fired a torpedo at me and missed. Went deeper and kept trying to get a lock on her, no dice and within short shrift she had me torpe'd and on the ocean floor - just couldn't get a fix even though I went silent, stationary and had sonar only pinging and she was obviously in close quarters? Did I miss something?

Glad to see that you tried the "1.0 Beginner Walk-Thru Scenario" from the WestPac battleset.

One of the first things you learn about submarines is Silence is Golden. The fact that you turned on your active sonar means that you can be counter-detected at much longer range than the effective range of your sonar. As my personal rule of thumb, I expect that my active systems (radar and sonar) can be counter-detected at 150% of their effective range. If my active sonar can detect a sub at 10 nm, I expect that the enemy probably heard my sonar at 15 nm or more. That likely explains why your first indication of the enemy sub was via a Torpedo Telegram.

When you went deep (a typically good evasive manoeuvre), you placed the enemy sub on the other side of the thermocline layer. If you do not understand what The Layer is, you can check out this video:



More than likely, he was just too far away for your active sonar to detect him. It is like shining a flashlight in a darkened house. You can be seen from a longer distance than your light beam will actually illuminate.

One thing you could have tried was to go above the layer to search for the enemy sub. The Layer is always between the Shallow and Intermediate depth ranges in Harpoon. You could also try to point your sub in the direction of the enemy since your sonar has a blind spot to the rear known as The Baffles.

If the enemy has detected you before you detect him, one of the best tactics is to run and clear the area and come back to search for him since he has you at a significant disadvantage.

Originally Posted by Bubble Head

Also - I attempted a 17 bird bombing run on the norther Queensland airbase - everytime I attempted to get birds out there (F111 Ardvarks) it kept telling me they only had a 50nm range - which seemed a bit low to me - 50nm? These are long range strike craft and should have been able to make the hop to qld from vic easily - beat the **** out of the field and get back to base with fuel to spare - I sent them anyway in the interest of science, and they managed to pound the air base but bingo'd on the return trip... again - did I miss something here?

Sorry for the major noob fest out here but those things threw me somewhat - any help would be greatly appreciated.

Sir, the effective attack range for these aircraft is 50 NM. Target range is 601 NM. Should we close and attack?

The 50nm warning message you received was only meant to tell you the weapons range for your aircraft. It refers to the AGM-130E Popeye missiles carried in your loadout. Your planes had plenty of fuel to reach the actual target if you selected the "Yes" option.

Other than that, I think your air mission was successful. If you require further assistance, just ask. A video can be prepared for this scenario if you feel it is necessary to walk you through the process. However, I think you learned the appropriate lessons from this introductory scenario.

[Bubble Head]

Hi Herman,

Thanks for the information - I think I am underestimating the power of this simulation - the graphics etc must be deluding me because I just didn't realize it modeled threats up to this detail. From what you are saying, it obviously does this to an incredible degree.

I didn't realize you prepared walk through videos of scenarios either, whilst the mission was successful, I would still be interested to see a walk through if its on offer?

Finally just another quick one - I'm at work at the moment, but for when I get home - is there a plotting tool I can use on the subs to draw nm ranges around them to remind me of the 150% threat areas etc - couldn't find a way to do it last time I checked?

Thanks so much for your help.

[Herman]

In direct response to a request for assistance from:

ORIGINAL: Bubble Head

Hi Herman,

Thanks for the information - I think I am underestimating the power of this simulation - the graphics etc must be deluding me because I just didn't realize it modeled threats up to this detail. From what you are saying, it obviously does this to an incredible degree.

I didn't realize you prepared walk through videos of scenarios either, whilst the mission was successful, I would still be interested to see a walk through if its on offer?

Finally just another quick one - I'm at work at the moment, but for when I get home - is there a plotting tool I can use on the subs to draw nm ranges around them to remind me of the 150% threat areas etc - couldn't find a way to do it last time I checked?

Thanks so much for your help.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...23&postcount=5

A new video for [HCCE] WalkThrough has been added the YouTube Harpoon for Dummies channel.

You can watch



"Harpoon for Dummies" channel * FAQ * Facebook * HarPlonkHQ

Harpoon3.6.3 users can get the Complete PlayersDB Harpoon 3.6.3 Library
Harpoon ANW users can get the Complete PlayersDB Harpoon ANW Library
Harpoon HUE users can get the Complete PlayersDB Harpoon HUE Library

[Bubble Head]

Hi Herman,

Thanks very much for this - it was exceptionally helpful. I was blown away at how fast you got this up for me!

[Herman]

Glad you found the video helpful.

We're here to help and help all who ask for it.

[CV32]

Hi Bubble Head,

You will find the development and support site for Harpoon Commander's Edition at http://www.harpgamer.com