Brand spankin nooby can't find his own butt

Aktungbby · 01-31-16, 07:27 PM

woodenboat!

Sniper297 · 01-31-16, 07:41 PM

Yup, if you DO intend to complete a photo mission make sure you take the pics before sinking the targets in that particular harbor, because the lock on is required to activate the camera and you can't lock onto one that's already destroyed. By the way, best way to find your butt is with two mirrors.

fireftr18 · 01-31-16, 10:06 PM

Welcome aboard woodenboat!

You're going to have a lot of questions, don't be afraid to ask. This is a great group here, and everyone is willing to help.
A couple suggestions:
Make generous use of the tutorials. You can try doing things a little different, good practice for the controls, look around the boat, etc.
Always save in a new file. There is a known bug with saves. If you overwrite saves, the files will eventually corrupt. I do a save just before leaving port (fireftr). Then save just after leaving port, then whenever I think I need one (fireftr1, fireftr2, etc).
Read over all the "tips & tricks" and practice.
Finally, try the mods. They make a great game much better. You customize the game for yourself.

Now get studying, there's going to be test later. Ignore Wolferz, he always tells newbies to grab his oar.

Majestik 909 · 01-31-16, 10:20 PM

Welcome!

Majestik 909 · 01-31-16, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fireftr18

Welcome aboard woodenboat!

You're going to have a lot of questions, don't be afraid to ask. This is a great group here, and everyone is willing to help.
A couple suggestions:
Make generous use of the tutorials. You can try doing things a little different, good practice for the controls, look around the boat, etc.
Always save in a new file. There is a known bug with saves. If you overwrite saves, the files will eventually corrupt. I do a save just before leaving port (fireftr). Then save just after leaving port, then whenever I think I need one (fireftr1, fireftr2, etc).
Read over all the "tips & tricks" and practice.
Finally, try the mods. They make a great game much better. You customize the game for yourself.

Now get studying, there's going to be test later. Ignore Wolferz, he always tells newbies to grab his oar.

Didn't know about the "known bug with saves."

woodenboat · 02-01-16, 09:52 AM

I'm back.

Because I have a real life in the real world, I have never been what many would call a "gamer." But already, I have found myself playing this sim and spending way more time on it than I would have considered healthy, given all I have to do in the real world. I have to admit though, that this sim offers a different type of satisfaction than I've ever gotten with any other shooter. For one thing, I find it very relaxing. I've never played any other sim where I sit down at the computer with a cup of coffee and think to myself, "Well, let's see where we are going today." I really do think that the appeal to this game is the unique combination of strategy and relaxation punctuated by periods of sudden excitement.

So I came back to Pearl after having sunk the ship I was SUPPOSED to photograph. I really wanted to complete the mission as ordered just because to me, that's where the realism lies. So, instead of ending the mission, I opted for a refit and headed back to Yokohama. (no, it aint "yellow fever." lol) I noticed that the refit did not give me a submarine full of torpedoes - only a few.

This time I found at least one ship that called for a Kodak moment. It was a modern tanker. I took the liberty of sending it to the bottom after the photo session.

I got the photo and searched for other ships that also needed to pose for the camera. Couldn't find any other such like ships and so, I headed home. In the process, I racked up a heck of a score in tonnage. When I got back to Pearl, I ended the mission but it showed the assignment as being "incomplete." Still, I received the naval version of the CMOH so I guess the high command wasn't totally disappointed in my performance.

Thanks guys for the guidance. I would never have guessed on my own that I needed to search ship by ship looking for my camera button to light up. That just would not have occurred to me.

BTW, what is the crush depth on these subs? I think that I have erroneously presumed that the red needle on my depth gauge was the "do not go below" indicator. At one point, I found myself with over 1000 ft under my keel and a gang of destroyers closing in on my sorry butt. So, I headed for the thermocline ASAP. The red needle was set at 350 ft. So I guessed the thermocline would be somewhere around 250 ft - or at least I figured I would find it before 250 ft. I never heard any "...passing thermal barrier" warning. When I got to 250 ft, the sub caved in and down I went. Hmmm.

What happened?

Also, does anyone know what effect stormy weather has on the enemy's ability to detect my sub? I mean, can they do better, worse or is it basically the same regardless? It might have been a false comfort, but I found myself in a driving rain the second pass through Yokohama harbor and it felt good. I felt like I had some additional something something to hide behind. But I could be kidding myself.

Sniper297 · 02-01-16, 11:22 AM

Two questions.

First, when you resupply with empty tubes, you need to change to the torpedo loading screen and slide one of the torpedoes into a tube to "prime" the loading process, then click the resupply anchor icon again to get a full load of torpedoes.

Second question is more complicated. Ordinary engineering uses a design safety factor of 150%. What that means is if they want a car trailer that will carry a load of 1000 pounds, they design it so it will carry 1500 pounds before something breaks.

The pressure hull of a sub is the same way, but most are engineered beyond the 150% factor. The "test depth" is the depth that the builders guarantee, each sub is taken out by civilian workers and dived to the test depth before delivering the sub to the Navy. The design depth is deeper than that, the crush depth is estimated since you obviously can't test it in real life since nobody can come back and tell you what it was. Most WWII subs were designed with a safety factor of 200% or more, if the specified design depth was 300 feet the engineers would design something they were sure would survive to at least 600 feet.

In game it's different from real life since the programmers didn't really understand what they were doing, plus it had to be translated into English and some terms were translated wrong. "Crash depth" for example is used for both the depth at which the sub will level off if a "crash dive" is ordered, and also used for crush depth in a different file.

The red needle on the gauge is different depending on if you have the shallow or deep gauge selected, for the shallow gauge it's periscope depth, for the deep one it's "MaxDepth" as defined in the CFG file for the sub. The actual crush depth (mis translated as "crash depth") is in the ZON file for the sub, much deeper than the needle. Stock game GATO for example, MaxDepth (red needle) is 100 meters, crush depth is 190 meters. There's also a "crash speed" in the ZON file, that defines how many "hit points" the sub loses per second when below crush depth.

Then there's the damage factor - if you look at the damage control screen in the upper left corner there's a "hull damage" percentage, if it's anything other than 0% then the crush depth will be shallower than the default. For example if the hull damage says 20%, you'll start taking crush damage at 150 meters instead of 190. And of course as the "hit points" accumulate the hull damage percentage will increase and the crush depth will decrease, so you're between the devil and the deep blue sea if there are destroyers overhead.

woodenboat · 02-01-16, 02:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sniper297

...safety factor of 150%.

The pressure hull ... a safety factor of 200% or more, if the specified design depth was 300 feet the engineers would design something they were sure would survive to at least 600 feet..

YES! That's exactly what I thought. I don't really understand all the info about how the programmers wrote their code and such. I'm not a computer geeky sort of guy. But I gather that you're saying the programmers plugged ... say ... 350 ft into the game as a "crush" depth and that does NOT mean 351 ft. Right? Actually, that's good to know. In the future I will know to be happy getting below the thermocline and not much deeper. So far, I've found the thermoclines to vary from around 160 ft to 210 ft depending on the mission and the sea.

Also, I didn't know about the "wrench" icon. Now I'll know to look at that in the future. But that makes sense. I didn't realize that I had even taken on any damage but in retrospect, I know I did. When this is all brand new to you, there is a lot that gets by in the chaos of battle.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Florida Sailor

Bad weather hinders the escort's abilities to detect you.

This is also very good to know. I suppose that this would include running on the surface, but I hate to risk it. Early on, when I had JUST gotten the game, I was patrolling along at night, on the surface because I foolishly thought that the darkness would be my friend when SUDDENLY AND WITHOUT WARNING, I was lit up by two destroyers with huge spotlights.

Oh yea, that's when I learned to do a lot of game saves.

Florida Sailor · 02-01-16, 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodenboat

I'm back.

BTW, what is the crush depth on these subs? I think that I have erroneously presumed that the red needle on my depth gauge was the "do not go below" indicator. At one point, I found myself with over 1000 ft under my keel and a gang of destroyers closing in on my sorry butt. So, I headed for the thermocline ASAP. The red needle was set at 350 ft. So I guessed the thermocline would be somewhere around 250 ft - or at least I figured I would find it before 250 ft. I never heard any "...passing thermal barrier" warning. When I got to 250 ft, the sub caved in and down I went. Hmmm.

What happened?

Also, does anyone know what effect stormy weather has on the enemy's ability to detect my sub? I mean, can they do better, worse or is it basically the same regardless? It might have been a false comfort, but I found myself in a driving rain the second pass through Yokohama harbor and it felt good. I felt like I had some additional something something to hide behind. But I could be kidding myself.

Crush depth is affected by hull damage to your boat. Look at the hull damage percentage in the "Wrench" tab in sub management screen (F-10 in the stock game). The hull damage percentage is at the upper left. A refit does not repair hull damage, only a return to base and Patrol end will fix that.

Bad weather hinders the escort's abilities to detect you.

Dave

01-31-16, 07:27 PM	#1
Aktungbby Gefallen Engel U-666 Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: On a tilted, overheated, overpopulated spinning mudball on Collision course with Andromeda Galaxy Posts: 30,031 Downloads: 24 Uploads: 0	Welcome aboard! woodenboat! __________________ "Only two things are infinite; The Universe and human squirrelyness?!!

01-31-16, 10:06 PM	#3
fireftr18 Ocean Warrior Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Kentucky Posts: 2,528 Downloads: 77 Uploads: 0	Welcome aboard woodenboat! You're going to have a lot of questions, don't be afraid to ask. This is a great group here, and everyone is willing to help. A couple suggestions: Make generous use of the tutorials. You can try doing things a little different, good practice for the controls, look around the boat, etc. Always save in a new file. There is a known bug with saves. If you overwrite saves, the files will eventually corrupt. I do a save just before leaving port (fireftr). Then save just after leaving port, then whenever I think I need one (fireftr1, fireftr2, etc). Read over all the "tips & tricks" and practice. Finally, try the mods. They make a great game much better. You customize the game for yourself. Now get studying, there's going to be test later. Ignore Wolferz, he always tells newbies to grab his oar. __________________ Of all the forms of Martial Arts, Karaoke causes the most pain!

01-31-16, 10:20 PM	#4
Majestik 909 Planesman Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: California Posts: 195 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Welcome! __________________ Previous Kommandant U-196 - 400,317 GRT - Current Kommandant U-847 - 592,000 GRT - Monsun Gruppe 33 - Codename - Majestik - "Kommen flach! Alles ruhig! Machen umdrehungen für zwei knoten! Bis periskop!!!"

02-01-16, 09:52 AM	#6
woodenboat Mate Join Date: Jan 2016 Posts: 51 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	I'm back. Because I have a real life in the real world, I have never been what many would call a "gamer." But already, I have found myself playing this sim and spending way more time on it than I would have considered healthy, given all I have to do in the real world. I have to admit though, that this sim offers a different type of satisfaction than I've ever gotten with any other shooter. For one thing, I find it very relaxing. I've never played any other sim where I sit down at the computer with a cup of coffee and think to myself, "Well, let's see where we are going today." I really do think that the appeal to this game is the unique combination of strategy and relaxation punctuated by periods of sudden excitement. So I came back to Pearl after having sunk the ship I was SUPPOSED to photograph. I really wanted to complete the mission as ordered just because to me, that's where the realism lies. So, instead of ending the mission, I opted for a refit and headed back to Yokohama. (no, it aint "yellow fever." lol) I noticed that the refit did not give me a submarine full of torpedoes - only a few. This time I found at least one ship that called for a Kodak moment. It was a modern tanker. I took the liberty of sending it to the bottom after the photo session. I got the photo and searched for other ships that also needed to pose for the camera. Couldn't find any other such like ships and so, I headed home. In the process, I racked up a heck of a score in tonnage. When I got back to Pearl, I ended the mission but it showed the assignment as being "incomplete." Still, I received the naval version of the CMOH so I guess the high command wasn't totally disappointed in my performance. Thanks guys for the guidance. I would never have guessed on my own that I needed to search ship by ship looking for my camera button to light up. That just would not have occurred to me. BTW, what is the crush depth on these subs? I think that I have erroneously presumed that the red needle on my depth gauge was the "do not go below" indicator. At one point, I found myself with over 1000 ft under my keel and a gang of destroyers closing in on my sorry butt. So, I headed for the thermocline ASAP. The red needle was set at 350 ft. So I guessed the thermocline would be somewhere around 250 ft - or at least I figured I would find it before 250 ft. I never heard any "...passing thermal barrier" warning. When I got to 250 ft, the sub caved in and down I went. Hmmm. What happened? Also, does anyone know what effect stormy weather has on the enemy's ability to detect my sub? I mean, can they do better, worse or is it basically the same regardless? It might have been a false comfort, but I found myself in a driving rain the second pass through Yokohama harbor and it felt good. I felt like I had some additional something something to hide behind. But I could be kidding myself. Last edited by woodenboat; 02-01-16 at 10:08 AM.

01-31-16, 07:41 PM	#2
Sniper297 The Old Man Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Philadelphia Shipyard Brig Posts: 1,386 Downloads: 160 Uploads: 19	Yup, if you DO intend to complete a photo mission make sure you take the pics before sinking the targets in that particular harbor, because the lock on is required to activate the camera and you can't lock onto one that's already destroyed. By the way, best way to find your butt is with two mirrors.

02-01-16, 11:22 AM	#7
Sniper297 The Old Man Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Philadelphia Shipyard Brig Posts: 1,386 Downloads: 160 Uploads: 19	Two questions. First, when you resupply with empty tubes, you need to change to the torpedo loading screen and slide one of the torpedoes into a tube to "prime" the loading process, then click the resupply anchor icon again to get a full load of torpedoes. Second question is more complicated. Ordinary engineering uses a design safety factor of 150%. What that means is if they want a car trailer that will carry a load of 1000 pounds, they design it so it will carry 1500 pounds before something breaks. The pressure hull of a sub is the same way, but most are engineered beyond the 150% factor. The "test depth" is the depth that the builders guarantee, each sub is taken out by civilian workers and dived to the test depth before delivering the sub to the Navy. The design depth is deeper than that, the crush depth is estimated since you obviously can't test it in real life since nobody can come back and tell you what it was. Most WWII subs were designed with a safety factor of 200% or more, if the specified design depth was 300 feet the engineers would design something they were sure would survive to at least 600 feet. In game it's different from real life since the programmers didn't really understand what they were doing, plus it had to be translated into English and some terms were translated wrong. "Crash depth" for example is used for both the depth at which the sub will level off if a "crash dive" is ordered, and also used for crush depth in a different file. The red needle on the gauge is different depending on if you have the shallow or deep gauge selected, for the shallow gauge it's periscope depth, for the deep one it's "MaxDepth" as defined in the CFG file for the sub. The actual crush depth (mis translated as "crash depth") is in the ZON file for the sub, much deeper than the needle. Stock game GATO for example, MaxDepth (red needle) is 100 meters, crush depth is 190 meters. There's also a "crash speed" in the ZON file, that defines how many "hit points" the sub loses per second when below crush depth. Then there's the damage factor - if you look at the damage control screen in the upper left corner there's a "hull damage" percentage, if it's anything other than 0% then the crush depth will be shallower than the default. For example if the hull damage says 20%, you'll start taking crush damage at 150 meters instead of 190. And of course as the "hit points" accumulate the hull damage percentage will increase and the crush depth will decrease, so you're between the devil and the deep blue sea if there are destroyers overhead.