Uboat patrol length?

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

My 1st patrol spoiled me; 1st radio intercept is a warship convoy and I torpedo an Illustrious Class Carrier. I move on to rack up 120,000 tons. 2nd Patrol, I'm using calm seas to deck gun my way to 25,000 tons. Then the wind hits, the waves, then the rain and fog. I manage to sonar a contact, sink a large merchant. Spend two days getting to my assigned patrol grid. 24 hours-nothing going on and the weather is lousy. I sit there another day. Nothing.

Drive east towards Ireland. get a radio contact, 5 knots convoy going north. The seas are rough and I have to travel almost 300 kms to have a shot at him. I'm on 3/4 fuel. I say noway, I'd run out of gas. I let him, go but I cruise towards the entrance between the Irish Sea and the Atlantic. The weather is lousy. I see some tramp streamers and small freighters. I cant use the deck gun in this weather so I let them go too. I want to save my fish for the bigguns - Large Merchants, medium cargo, whale factory ships. What can I say? I've been spoiled! Besides, I think when the weather calms down I'll go back to Mr. Deck Gun. 10 days pass and I shoot at nothing! Then the clouds go away but it's still blowing about 10 knots at bearing 255 and the seas are swelling. I make contact with a Large Merchant. Got him. One shot below the first mast is always money.

Then the rain and fog comes back! Whats up with that? Next I get a radio intercept of a convoy due west of me heading straight east. I cruise at 2 knots at periscope depth to intercept. As I'm making a visual on the convoy I see a Large Merchant due East of me heading West. I line up for a portside shot, get him.

The fact is, I went 10 days without anything! Now that is a dry spell I've already been killed once, and even in my previous profile/life, I never went through a spell like that! I guess it happens. I wish this lousy weather would go away. I had calm seas all through my 1st patrol and I have never seen lousy weather pop up 2x on one patrol. Wierd.

[Telgriff]

Sounds like you have a few dozen horseshoes on your Uboat UnterseeBoogeyMan! I have had entire patrols where I have not seen (or sunk) anything more than a couple of trawlers. A good patrol for me 50K.

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

Originally Posted by Telgriff

Sounds like you have a few dozen horseshoes on your Uboat UnterseeBoogeyMan! I have had entire patrols where I have not seen (or sunk) anything more than a couple of trawlers. A good patrol for me 50K.

I guess I play hard and die early. My last career ended in the Irish See and I averaged 2 patrols, over 100k each. We'll see if I can buck the trend. Kaleun Willenbrock met his match at 90 meters, hopefully Kaluen Adama can pull through to the Operation Weserabung! Granted, I did choose the Flotilla that gives you Type IIVs in 1939. 14 fish and then some does wonders!

[Telgriff]

Originally Posted by UnterseeBoogeyMan

I guess I play hard and die early. My last career ended in the Irish See and I averaged 2 patrols, over 100k each. We'll see if I can buck the trend. Kaleun Willenbrock met his match at 90 meters, hopefully Kaluen Adama can pull through to the Operation Weserabung! Granted, I did choose the Flotilla that gives you Type IIVs in 1939. 14 fish and then some does wonders!

I'm cruising around in my IXB from the moment they were available...my convoy approach just sucks...so i only get lone or twin merchants most of the time.

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

Originally Posted by Telgriff

I'm cruising around in my IXB from the moment they were available...my convoy approach just sucks...so i only get lone or twin merchants most of the time.

Have the DDs, as a forwardscreen, started pinging, thus smoking you out if your setup ahead or do you try to shoot the gap in the screen on the surface?
My approach sucks in the fog. I get lined up for a 90 degree shot on a Large Merchant and a DD shows up and puts holes in my boat. Adama goes to Davey Jones' Locker and thus begins the carreer of Kaluen Thomsen.