Should I get the Type XXI

XXI sure is amazing! Every spec of it is far superior to everything you've used to and in that sence makes the VII- and IX-line feel like submersible surface boats rather than submarines.
Speed both surface and underwater, diving speed and depth, torpedo loading speed, camo capabilities... All amazing and nothing like before. Plus the best little gizmos German scientist came up like schnorkels and RWR, you name it you got it!


Then again it's late war and there's only so little single kaleun can do to sunk enemy ships and still survive. While having the ability to launch six acoustic torpedoes and reload all tubes in ten minutes or so, attacking convoys is pretty much a no-no. At least unless you're a very seasoned veteran and no excatly how to avoid the finest ASW devices aboard those destroyers.


In 1945 I believe U-boats stuck close to shores protecting fatherland rather than tried to sink merchants in Atlantic or Arctic ocean. While you most certainly can, the massive convoys are extremely dangerous to attack, and then again sinking rogue merchants on the coasts of England doesn't feel the same anymore at that point. The amount of airplanes protecting the seas north and west of British Isles is huge and makes the trip around boring since you have to (and should!) dive all the time.


XXI is a u-boot to experience of course, but would I take it on next time I play the war, I'm not so sure anymore. The feel of overpower makes me recless and attacking convoys recklessly late-war is a sure way to get sunk, excatly like JuanLiquid said! Then again this is in no way XXI's fault

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[BristolBrick]

Originally Posted by Mussalo

XXI sure is amazing! Every spec of it is far superior to everything you've used to and in that sence makes the VII- and IX-line feel like submersible surface boats rather than submarines.

The feel of overpower makes me recless and attacking convoys recklessly late-war is a sure way to get sunk, excatly like JuanLiquid said! Then again this is in no way XXI's fault

I don't have that last problem, I did have it in other games. (Mount and Blade - I would get overconfident and recklessly die immediately in battles, so before very battle I would swear to myself even if the odds were massively in my favor - it worked a charm)

My one problem with the XXI technically is the depth keeping in rough seas, if you set it to periscope depth in 15m/s wind, you will unintentionally surface, and half the time the periscope at full extension will be submerged. I shot my planes-man with a luger after surfacing momentarily in the middle of a hunter-killer group I had gotten into by sneaking in, their sonar is terrible in heavy seas. My recommendation is to set depth to 24m if you want to be able to look through the periscope soon, but not right now.

Originally Posted by BristolBrick

My one problem with the XXI technically is the depth keeping in rough seas, if you set it to periscope depth in 15m/s wind, you will unintentionally surface, and half the time the periscope at full extension will be submerged. I shot my planes-man with a luger after surfacing momentarily in the middle of a hunter-killer group I had gotten into by sneaking in, their sonar is terrible in heavy seas. My recommendation is to set depth to 24m if you want to be able to look through the periscope soon, but not right now.

Yes, I have the same problem. XXI slowly rises towards surface from periscope depth. While I understand launching a torpedo decreases the mass of the sub thus increasing the buoyancy, this happens even without launching torpedoes and certainly wasn't a problem with VII or IX.

I think it could be related to other behaviour I witness with XXI: my good old CE, who is a veteran on controlling my subs, has now problems with hitting the target depth with XXI, always exceeding it by dozen meters or so. I guess his internal PID controller is not tuned to underwater speeds over 10 knots..