I need a manual...

[brandtryan]

sorry I can't remember which thread--but someone figured it out. IIRC, there is a black line at the bottom of the mirror image. Place this black line on the tip of the highest mast of the actual ship. According to the user, this gives very accurate range.

[VirtualVikingX]

Originally Posted by brandtryan

sorry I can't remember which thread--but someone figured it out. IIRC, there is a black line at the bottom of the mirror image. Place this black line on the tip of the highest mast of the actual ship. According to the user, this gives very accurate range.

Ah. So the principle is to JUST and/or EXACTLY see two images? With now space in between?

How did it work in RL?

[Bilge_Rat]

Originally Posted by brandtryan

sorry I can't remember which thread--but someone figured it out. IIRC, there is a black line at the bottom of the mirror image. Place this black line on the tip of the highest mast of the actual ship. According to the user, this gives very accurate range.

that may have been me, but I get inconsistent readings.

In SH4, you had a mirror image of the ship and you would lower the waterline of the mirror image to the top mast of the actual image to get the range.

in SH5, they appear to have gone back the the SH3 method (which I have not played since 2007) where you place the thick black line in the middle of the scope on the waterline of the TGT and place a separate thinner horizontal line from the stadimeter somewhere on the ship. I had presumed it was to the top of the mast, but in the last mission I played, I had the most accurate reading from the top of the funnel..

Part of the reason may be due to an inaccurate ship identification, some of the freighter classes look remarkably similar.

of course, if the manual actually explained such basic info, we would not have to fumble around like a bunch of clowns trying to figure out this stuff...

[VirtualVikingX]

Originally Posted by VirtualVikingX

The supplied manual is not very informative. So maybe somebody can help me with these questions:
- 1. How do i use the stadimeter properly? I am very unsure now, as I have no info on its use in SH5.
- 2. I am sure I saw something about mast height somewhere (manual targeting). Am I dreaming? And if its there - where did I see it?

Are anybody able to answer my questions - or maybe some guidedance/thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

[GDFTigerTank]

That is how it worked in real life.
The Stadtmeter uses simple right angle geometry and ratios to find the distance.

***WARNING: MATH!***

Knowing the height of the ship's mast and the angle from your periscope at which that image hits the top of the mast sets up an equation using the tangent of the angle.

Basic Right Triangle Equation:
tangent(angle)= opposite length (height) /adjacent length (distance)

How Equation Applies here
tangent (periscope image angle) = height of ship's mast / range to target

Since you know the first two of the three values in the equation, you can then of course solve for the third - Range to Target.


And as brandtryan stated below you do not have to or WANT to put the image exactly on the of the mast. Depending how fast you are in creating your firing solution and especially if your target is say - a destroyer bearing down on you at 40 knots , you can use the stadtmeter to aim ahead of him so that he doesn't outrun your plot. Rather he may very well run INTO it.

Likewise for a target like a carrier desperately running away from you at flank, you might dip the Stadtmeter image slightly on top of the real image to make up for the fact that by the time you plot the full solution he could be farther away than when you took the Stadtmeter reading.

The leading with the Stadtmeter is most important when you have to shoot fast with only 1 or 2 readings and perhaps only a best guess at the speed of a target before you engage.

The whole reason that you should normally take 3 or 4 stadtmeter readings ( or more) before firing is so that inconsistencies in any single single reading will be mitigated in the plot of your final solution as more data is entered into the calculation. Getting the speed and AOB right too is of course just as critical.

[VirtualVikingX]

Ah. It was the mast height that puzled me. I did not know that the game "knows" the mast height! I could not understand how the stadimenter worked with just one value out of three.

I understand how it works if you have 2 out of 3 values. THANKS!

[Jander]

The game "knows" the mast height from the identification book where you have to select the ship type prior to using the stadimeter.

[GDFTigerTank]

This is why correctly identifying the class of the target is so important. Wrong ship class = wrong mast height
Wrong mast height = wrong equation
wrong equation = "WTF happened to my torps! That plot was perfect! "

Yes the plot was perfect - had the target been the ship you thought it was


Also - can someone please remind me... I have not played Silent Hunter IV for about 6 months now... it's - KNTS = distance in 3 minute right?
ex. ship traveling 500 meters in 1 minute = 15 knts?

[brandtryan]

I think the new version of Adobe Acrobat has a print to toilet paper option. You can try that.

[sergei]

Originally Posted by brandtryan

I think the new version of Adobe Acrobat has a print to toilet paper option. You can try that.

Yep, that about sums it up.

[commandosolo2009]

Originally Posted by VirtualVikingX

The supplied manual is not very informative. So maybe somebody can help me with these questions:
- 1. How do i use the stadimeter properly? I am very unsure now, as I have no info on its use in SH5.
you place the horizontal line of the periscope on the water line of the ship. then you press obtain range by stadimeter, you will move the mouse, and a replica of the periscope image appears, put the moving (copied) horizontal line with the highest point on the ship (not the flag only the mast) and left click. now you got the range. it's not specific as the screen resolution and the fact that the target could be very far away) could not help with stadimeter.
your best bet is to use the navmap or TAI and extend a line from the ships course. put a compass and measure current view bearing plot X then swivel the scope a bit closer to your 0 bearing. then check the bearing and mark it with the compass. put another X set torp settings for the new bearing marked. just be sure to make other tdc data before the ship gets in that bearing.

your priorities for manual targetting. 1- ship ID and AoB 2- speed 3- range
- 2. I am sure I saw something about mast height somewhere (manual targeting). Am I dreaming? And if its there - where did I see it?

you choose the right ship ID from the half finished recog manual on basis of exclusion. then tick that ship. this would automatically enter the ships mast height into the TDC and if you look at torpedo running depth a stern appears denoting the ships draft (by hovering the mouse over the ship, not the torpedo line)


Anyway, we should start working on some sort of "community manual" - as the official one is just about the obvious parts. As of now I am feel that there are parts of the game that I do not know about, but I cant be sure because the manual is so short.

And the bugs makes it even worse. First time I was in the bunker, I did not find any guy that could help me upgrade my sub. I thought it was supposed to be like that. And that he would show up later in the campaign. Turns out it was a bug, as I could do it when I loaded the game again.

patch 1.2 in the pipe and hopefully should impact by 11th-12th May *Fingers Crossed*