Anyone else use this convoy tactic?

[difool2]

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

just remember, you can sink all the warships you want... they will be replaced by months end and your up against the largest navys in the world.

the real goal is to put rifles, ammo, shells, oil, food, trucks, tanks, guns, machine parts, tools, fuel and the like at the bottom of the ocean where the allies cant use them and the only way to do that is to sink merchants.

Strategically you could make the argument that it might make sense for Doenitz to
have his boys focus on killing escorts for say a year, then ravage the escort-poor
convoys after that. The Germans made the same mistake in the air in 1943-44 by
pretty much ignoring Allied escorts and beelining straight for the bombers.

[The_Rus]

Well I was AM52 and ran up on a convoy, in perfect weather that had only two escorts. This is the convoy, all British and full of large merchants and large cargos, it also had a medium tanker and a whale factory ship. Line a shoot the lead escort one with a trop and the other with the deck gun. After that went to town, sank like 5 C3 and 3 large merchants. That patrol I finally got 100k. Actually I got about 18 ships, all in AM52. After I ran out of ammunition two planes showed up and I dived.

[C-4]

Once I encountered a convoy early in the war. It overtook me and I got frustrated, so I surfaced at all ahead flank, armed my deck gun and fired away at the Flower, managed to put her on fire and possibly sunk her (can't recall). In any case she was disabled.

The plan worked perfectly until another Flower and a Black Swan decided to join the party. My deck gun didn't fare well against those guys. I managed to retreat to the depth and repair damage, and once I got back to base, I had something like 2% hull integrity left, as I recall.


I'll never try that one again.
C-4

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by difool2

Strategically you could make the argument that it might make sense for Doenitz to
have his boys focus on killing escorts for say a year, then ravage the escort-poor
convoys after that. The Germans made the same mistake in the air in 1943-44 by
pretty much ignoring Allied escorts and beelining straight for the bombers.

They had way more destroyer escorts than you could sink without crushing losses to your U-boat fleet. Meanwhile, the cargo tonnage would be getting through, and they could rebuild DE's a lot faster than they could ever be sunk. Would never have worked.

[AndyW]

The escorts I like most are the ones most far away from me.

As I'm playing in 1944 anyway, I'd have to use all my torps on convoy escorts. I don't even have a deck gun anymore.

Cheers,
AndyW

[Brag]

Originally Posted by The_Rus

Well I was AM52 and ran up on a convoy, in perfect weather that had only two escorts. This is the convoy, all British and full of large merchants and large cargos, it also had a medium tanker and a whale factory ship. Line a shoot the lead escort one with a trop and the other with the deck gun. After that went to town, sank like 5 C3 and 3 large merchants. That patrol I finally got 100k. Actually I got about 18 ships, all in AM52. After I ran out of ammunition two planes showed up and I dived.

Welcome aboard this nest of ruffians.

[RawRecruit]

Originally Posted by The_Rus

Well I was AM52 and ran up on a convoy, in perfect weather that had only two escorts. This is the convoy, all British and full of large merchants and large cargos, it also had a medium tanker and a whale factory ship. Line a shoot the lead escort one with a trop and the other with the deck gun. After that went to town, sank like 5 C3 and 3 large merchants. That patrol I finally got 100k. Actually I got about 18 ships, all in AM52. After I ran out of ammunition two planes showed up and I dived.

I've encountered such a convoy too, but I was running low on torps so I concentrated on the big merchies. Some were armed so the deck gun wasn't an option.

[Hans-Ulrich Rudel]

In the early part of the war, it makes sense to try and sink all the escorts, since armed merchant men are far and few between. I have on several occasions wiped out the entire escort, which of course lets me tackle the unprotected convoy at leisure. See below at patrol no 8. as can be seen 11 ships were sunk, the computer program refused to give me the three destroyers I sunk, 2 were sunk with a deck gun and the other tried to ram me, and it sunk itself with its own its depth charges, that what I call justice! So yes I sunk the entire convoy lol.

PERSONNEL FILE

Name: HANS RUDEL
Date of Birth: 18MAR17
Place of Birth: BERLIN-SCHÖNEBERG
Date of Intake: 01APR34 (CREW 34)

Promotions
15DEC34 SEEKADETT
01DEC35 FÄHNRICH Z. S.
01JUL37 OBERFÄHNRICH Z. S.
01DEC37 LEUTNANT Z. S.
27OCT39 OBERLEUTNANT Z. S.
29AUG40 KAPITÄNLEUTNANT

Medals
09OCT39 IRON CROSS, SECOND CLASS
27OCT39 IRON CROSS, FIRST CLASS
11NOV39 GERMAN CROSS
13NOV39 KNIGHT'S CROSS
04JAN40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES
19JAN40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES AND SWORDS
02MAR40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH OAK LEAVES, SWORDS, AND DIAMONDS
23JUL40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH GOLDEN OAK LEAVES, SWORDS, AND DIAMONDS

Badges
26SEP39 U-BOAT FRONT CLASP
27OCT39 U-BOAT BADGE

U-Bootwaffe Postings
11FEB39 U-Boat Flotilla Weddigen (Commander training)
01SEP39 2nd Flotilla (19 patrols)

U-Boat Commands
01SEP39 U-52, Type VIIB (19 patrols)

Patrol Dates Ships Sunk
(Merchant/Warship) Tonnage
(Merchant/Warship) Comments
1 01SEP39 - 13SEP39 (13 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
2 14SEP39 - 26SEP39 (13 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
3 27SEP39 - 09OCT39 (13 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 94.68%)
4 15OCT39 - 27OCT39 (13 days) 4 (4/0) 13087 (13087/0)
5 28OCT39 - 11NOV39 (15 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
6 12NOV39 - 12NOV39 (1 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
7 13NOV39 - 13NOV39 (1 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 79.10%)
8 06DEC39 - 19DEC39 (14 days) 11 (11/0) 51327 (51327/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 99.88%)
9 20DEC39 - 04JAN40 (16 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
10 05JAN40 - 12JAN40 (8 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
11 13JAN40 - 19JAN40 (7 days) 2 (2/0) 9670 (9670/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 73.68%)
12 15FEB40 - 20FEB40 (6 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
13 21FEB40 - 02MAR40 (11 days) 1 (1/0) 5374 (5374/0)
14 03MAR40 - 09MAR40 (7 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0)
15 10MAR40 - 10MAR40 (1 days) 0 (0/0) 0 (0/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 26.46%)
16 31MAY40 - 18JUN40 (19 days) 2 (2/0) 4766 (4766/0) U-Boat damaged (H.I. 88.19%)
17 30JUN40 - 23JUL40 (24 days) 1 (1/0) 2303 (2303/0)
18 24JUL40 - 15AUG40 (23 days) 2 (2/0) 12613 (12613/0)
19 16AUG40 - 29AUG40 (14 days) 4 (4/0) 27749 (27749/0)
TOTALS: 19 patrols (219 days) 27 (27/0) 126889 (126889/0) 0 enemy planes downed
0 crew lost

I of course have made mods to the program, I only spend one day in port. Note the dates, it has only been one year, and I already have 127,000 Tonns. And have set my 88mm deck gun to fire at 1 second intervals. I use the deck gun when ever I can.

I have found that the best way to tackle a Destroyer is to head at it, flat out moving the scope up and down to see where he is, as he is coming straight for me, I set up the rear tube torpedo at 1.5 meters depth and make sure the tube door is open. When he is approximately 300 meters away I will bring my U-boat about 15 degrees to port, I will then raise my scope up to it full height and lock on and identify him. If you do it right he will not have time to ram you, as that is what he is trying to do,(sometimes he will ram you and sink only himself, but that is rare) As he passes you keep locked , and identify him, as he begins his turn let loose the torpedo at about 65 to 80 meters. With practice you can kill him 50% of the time, saving your game will of course give you as many shots as you like. I am well aware that NO commander would in real life attempt this as it would be madness, but this is a game, and to me the idea of the game is to beat the AI of the program. I found though that maybe the AI learns, what you are about and that after sinking lots of destroyers that the AI will not allow you to do it anymore. Well that is what happened to me, I had to save my games with commander, and reinstall the game, now I find that the destroyers are easy meat again. Please note that this is only my opinion, feedback would be appreciated. Thanks again for the forum guys and gals. Lol I became so addicted that I lashed out $3400 on a new computer, I think that in the past three weeks I have logged about 250 hours real time on this game. I think I have a problem!!

[STEED]

23JUL40 KNIGHT'S CROSS WITH GOLDEN OAK LEAVES, SWORDS, AND DIAMONDS

Hog Wash. :rotfl: :rotfl:

http://uboat.net/men/decorations/ritter.htm

[winniepoo10]

Steed,

What is Hog Wash? The medal is valid or the fact he won it in 1940!!

Jason Winthrop
Nooblietnant 1st class

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by winniepoo10

Steed,

What is Hog Wash? The medal is valid or the fact he won it in 1940!!

Jason Winthrop
Nooblietnant 1st class

I'm guessing that he's laughing about that fact that only one was ever awarded, and it went to a pilot and not a U-boat man