Opportunity contacts poll

[Warmonger]

For quite some time I'm playing SH3 "Aces of the Deep"-stylish:
I reduced the opportunity contacts range in the contacts.cfg to 16km which is my visual range (playing the 16km atmosphere mod obviously) and I think this is more realistic because unless it was a very important ships there were no radio reports of loners somewhere in the ocean (who would have gathered that info anyway?)

I'm very pleased with it and get only a bit fewer contacts because I dive now regularly to do a sound check and get to find ships which are way out of my visual range this way.

So I'm interested in your opinions about this.

[Iron Budokan]

Spies, broken codes and German aircraft sometimes relayed information regarding lone ships.

[Mush Martin]

Originally Posted by Iron Budokan

Spies, broken codes and German aircraft sometimes relayed information regarding lone ships.

as well as other subs that couldnt maneuver to position but made contact.

I abstain

[dcb]

Originally Posted by Iron Budokan

Spies, broken codes and German aircraft sometimes relayed information regarding lone ships.

This, plus other subs' reports, are precisely the reason why I'd rather keep opportunity contacts on.

[U49]

Originally Posted by Iron Budokan

Spies, broken codes and German aircraft sometimes relayed information regarding lone ships.

Same idea for me behind this information.
But especially in the open ocean should the amount be reduced, as that area is probably not well covered.
Neither by spies nor by the Luftwaffe. Maybe resulting information from the B-Dienst (radio intercept)

[mrbeast]

The B-Dienst operators were very good at intercepting and decyphering Allied radio traffic to discover the locations of ships. Infact its a little known part of the war that the Germans read many Allied messages just as the Allies were reading Axis Enigma traffic. I think one of the reasons that ULTRA intelligence was so well guarded and used only very sparingly was fear that the leaky Allied radio net might give the secret away.

Back on topic I think reducing the number of lone ship radio contacts would probably be a good thing, might reduce tonnage to a more realistic level.

[Kpt, Otto]

Originally Posted by Mush Martin

as well as other subs that couldnt maneuver to position but made contact.

Also being in a type II I do not always have the fuel to chase down and intercept a contact so the reports don't always mean I can bring a result home.

One thing about SH3 and that fact it was unfinished was that I don't get the feel that there are other forces out there fighting the war with us. I am currently only in early 1940 and I have seen posts here where the Luftwaffe do turn up but so far its been a lonely existance our there in the North sea! Im sure as the war progresses this might change. That was one thing about SH2 that I did like and that was reports comming in from other units at sea.

These reports often help in that respect. In Das Boot they often received reports from other subs but couldnt act on it or had to use up valuable fuel to do so.