Allied units on strategic map and further possibilities

[The Bandit]

Originally Posted by Wiz33

I know many have requested to be able to see allied/neutral shipping on map. While that would certainly add flavor to the game and makes the player feel that it's not just him against the world. It wouldn't really change the current campaign.

So I got to thinking that if the devs is willing to go through the trouble to adding them to the strategic map. What else can be done that can bring additional gameplay element for the player.

One problem is that NATO Submarine does not play well with others. As in they don't operate in packs and even if they are task as escort for surface ships, they will not operate anywhere close to the friendly ships. They usually will be way ahead scouting/clearing the path.

That means you won't see your sub as part of a SAG/Amphib like your Soviet counterpart (Guess red on red is not really a big concern for them) and with the freeform movement on the strategic map. How do you make the player feel that he's actually part a SAG without actually being incorporated into such a group (in a remote way)?

Here's a few possible solutions:

Rendezvous marker on the Strategic map. The appropriate surface group will be spawn at the location and you're given certain amount of time to arrive at the location. (more inline with how the current strategic map operates).

Respawn player sub automatically to the appropriate location and fast forward the ingame calendar to account for travel time. (just like repair/rearm in port)

Mission type rundown:

Reinforcement: Player would proceed in front of their allies (transports) and clear a path to a friendly port

Mine Laying: Clear a path for allies to marker on strategic map and loiter till mining operation completes.

Rescue: Allied ship/sub sunk with survivor in water. Head to maker (close to you current location). Pickup survivors (loiter for certain time) then head for closest port or allied surface ship.

Assistance: Allied ship/sub (spawn close to player) suffers damage from engaging enemy and will require player to clear a path in front of them to reach friendly port.

All of the above can be further randomise so there may or may not be enemies in the way, so you may end up doing the whole mission on the strategic map (which maybe a nice change of pace).

Further refinement can actually have these missions linked to actual allied movement on the strategic map with some form of simplified combat resolution and random news popup of other actions performance so show other war effort beside the ones that the player was engaged in.

Please feel free to add any other ideas.

I like where you're going with this. The suggestion I would make is, although I'm sure things have changed in the 20-40 years that go between when WW2 ended and the events of Cold Waters take place, but I would think any co-operation would be quite similar to prevent blue on blue.

What I'm getting at is a sub would be assigned a specific grid / "safety lane" and time, which would be shared with air and surface forces who are instructed to attack and generally "steer clear" of that area leaving the sub to "do its own thing" and deal with whatever may be in that area on its own.

This was, for the most part, quite successful for most of the war, although there were numerous friendly-fire attacks early in the war in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor. Aside from this, I can only think of two notable instances, the loss of the USS Seawolf SS-197 and a small supply ship, whose I can't quite remember which was mistakenly torpedoed and sunk by a US Sub who had no information that friendly surface units were in the area.

Things didn't go so hot in the Atlantic though, between Britian, Canada and her allies I can think of numerous rammings and bombings of friendly submarines, sometimes even ones operating in concert with a convoy escort.

While there's probably lots of moving parts to it, I imagine in the few instances where there is direct cooperation (CVBG escort, which was one of the selling points on the 688 class, they'd be fast enough to keep up with the battle group) there are probably careful planning for where the sub will be and when, as well as precise "check-in" times and the like.

To the best of my knowledge there is no such thing as underwater IFF and nobody wants to be second-guessing themselves on whether or not that contact in front of them is their friend who went off that way an hour ago or not.