Strange Allied Tactics

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

I'm on Patrol 3, shadowing a convoy making its way from the Atlantic into the Irish Sea. My 1st attack, I sink the HMS Nelson. Get depthcharged, no damage, get out of there. I race ahead, setup for another attack. One torpedo each for 2 Large Merchants, this time I get pummeled. Portside diesel is destroyed. I fix the flooding, restring the batteries, fix the compressor. I decide to push my luck. I race ahead, torpedo a Whale Factory Ship. At this point I'm in deep water, I dive to 100 meters, so one finds me. Ussually they're all over me for an hour blowing up water and killing the fish. After 20 minutes they go away. I surface go ahead and set him for another attack. I set up, ahead and then find them turning to port.

OK, now this is where it gets wierd.

I am at silent running at ahead 1/3 at periscope depth. I am within 500 meters of the convoy. I look out from the scope, and they have tramp steamers and Cargo ships running escort patterns! There's flares and spotlights all over the place. I didnt see this from 4 to 5 kms out, but I do now. What's the deal? They already have 4 DDs escorting! So, is the 4th time the charm before a convoy gets totally wigged out and paranoid? I've read where some gamers have attacked a convoy and let it go by, maybe this is why.

I'm running GWX BTW. and it rules

[GoldenRivet]

this behavior is historical and accurate... you were probably detected somehow. The "escort patters" we zig zags, the merchants were often equipped with one or more search lights. In the situation of night time, any merchant or warship with a gun would have fired star shells.

Prepare to encounter this behavior every time you attack a convoy at night.

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

It was only the 4th time in one night I've been doing this and racking up 4 kills so far. I guess it wouldn't be too surprising to see them change tactics if what they had done before wasn't working. This is only 1939. I'm sure it gets 'better'.

[TarJak]

Originally Posted by UnterseeBoogeyMan

I am at silent running at ahead 1/3 at periscope depth.

The answer is is in your description. You were detected because at 1/3rd ahead you are NOT running silent. Although you can rig the boat for silent routine at any speed, what this means is your crew will avaoid making uncessary noise by doing things like loading torps, repairing damage, making dinner etc.

To truly be at silent running you need to be rigged and your speed must be 2knots or less, this is why when you are driving along at flank or whatever and you hit the Z key your speed is dropped to slow (in GWX 1.03 this is now 2kts in stock IIRC it is 3kts) and your crew stop work to make the boat as quiet as possible.

At 1/3rd your escorts most likely picked up the noise of your screws/electric motor and alerted the convoy that there was a possible enemy submarine in the vicinity.

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

Originally Posted by TarJak

The answer is is in your description. You were detected because at 1/3rd ahead you are NOT running silent. Although you can rig the boat for silent routine at any speed, what this means is your crew will avaoid making uncessary noise by doing things like loading torps, repairing damage, making dinner etc.

To truly be at silent running you need to be rigged and your speed must be 2knots or less, this is why when you are driving along at flank or whatever and you hit the Z key your speed is dropped to slow (in GWX 1.03 this is now 2kts in stock IIRC it is 3kts) and your crew stop work to make the boat as quiet as possible.

At 1/3rd your escorts most likely picked up the noise of your screws/electric motor and alerted the convoy that there was a possible enemy submarine in the vicinity.

OK, I wondered about that. I've found that shadowing a convoy 10 km off at 150 meters below running at Ahead Standard at silent running gets me depth-charged by a destoyer 7 kms off. I've also found on my last patrol, that running at 1/3 without silent running with the DD being 4kms away gets me depth charged. I'm think somewhere between 4-5 kms at 1/3 at silent running gets me detected, no? In any case, when you're set up to attack when they're on one course and then they switch it up on you, can really hose up an attack.

[TarJak]

Ahh the frustrations of running submerged. This is why RL Kaleuns liked making night time surface attacks. There was no risk of being heard cos the DD's couldn't really hear a surfaced submarine very well unless it was real close and on diesels.

The problem with the game is that unless the escorts have no radar and you approach in poor visibility you will get spotted before you get close enough to make an attack run. The beauty is that you can also exploit some of the weaknesses that are inherent in the game but were not there in RL.

There are threads which cover the hunt and approach but what I try to do is get in front of the convoy and come in at an angle at dead slow 1 kt until they come onto my position. Unless I'm in a very gung ho mood I never go faster than 2kt when in an attack where escorts are around.

[UnterseeBoogeyMan]

Originally Posted by TarJak

Ahh the frustrations of running submerged. This is why RL Kaleuns liked making night time surface attacks. There was no risk of being heard cos the DD's couldn't really hear a surfaced submarine very well unless it was real close and on diesels.

The problem with the game is that unless the escorts have no radar and you approach in poor visibility you will get spotted before you get close enough to make an attack run. The beauty is that you can also exploit some of the weaknesses that are inherent in the game but were not there in RL.

There are threads which cover the hunt and approach but what I try to do is get in front of the convoy and come in at an angle at dead slow 1 kt until they come onto my position. Unless I'm in a very gung ho mood I never go faster than 2kt when in an attack where escorts are around.

That's ussually my strategy, in this particular case I was 3-4 kms away when they turned 45 degrees to port. That meant I had to do a 180 underwater. The good choice, and the conversative choice, would have been to let them go by, surface, try the attack approach again on the surface. I always wondered about that 1/3 speed anyway. Ussually when it's 1/3 no silent running or ahead standard silent running, they make a bee-line straight for me. This time, they were just amped up looking around. Very interesting. I better have acoustic torpedoes when radar rolls around.

[TarJak]

Originally Posted by UnterseeBoogeyMan

That's ussually my strategy, in this particular case I was 3-4 kms away when they turned 45 degrees to port. That meant I had to do a 180 underwater. The good choice, and the conversative choice, would have been to let them go by, surface, try the attack approach again on the surface. I always wondered about that 1/3 speed anyway. Ussually when it's 1/3 no silent running or ahead standard silent running, they make a bee-line straight for me. This time, they were just amped up looking around. Very interesting. I better have acoustic torpedoes when radar rolls around.

I would have done the end around as many Kaleuns would have had to in RL. If they found they were in a bad position they could not usually improve it by making enough noise to be detected. In GWX if you are not quiet you end up dead.