The most reckless/foolish thing you have ever done?

[Howard313]

I'm curious as to how much of the Bernard persona we have in each of us so I started up this thread so we can talk about some of the stupid decisions we have made.

Here's one of my own stories from back in my early SH3 days, while it didn't end horrible or anything it wasn't the brightest idea.

I was on my way back from a very good patrol, my list of kills went on for about three pages in the Captain's log (Before I got GWX mind you). I was out of every type of ammunition, torpedoes, deck gun, and flak gun had all run dry. My watch officer tells me he sees a ship in the distance so i bring up my uzo to check it out.

A small fishing vessel greets my eyes on the horizon, and at this point my mind switched over and my blood thirsty side popped out.

"Ahead Flank!" I gave the order. "New heading 140!"

My men, despite the confused expressions on their faces, did as they were told and my Type VIIB uboat raced toward the harmless insignificant fishing vessel. After a few minute of chasing them down we were within 500m of each other, by this point the captain of the fishing boat is having a heart attack, going at his top speed and zigzagging trying desperately to avoid me, while I'm on conning tower laughing like a maniac.

Long story short, My uboat plowed right into his starboard side and i literally ran over him causing him to do a barrel roll underwater. We didn't get a scratch. The fishing boat plucked up to the top for about 10 seconds before quickly sinking back beneath the waves.

And the best part? I didn't even get credit for killing him.
Really? After all that I don't even get acknowledgment for the sinking?

Anyway, after BDU heard of my little ram attack they suggested that I transfer and try my hand at being the captain of a destroyer, not sure why though.

[Brag]

The weather outside Brest was foggy with rain. The moment Brest was taken by German forces, I entered the straits. Out of the gloom a destroyer appeared. It was British and it had a friend behind him. We passed each other not three hundred meters appart. I ordered a normal dive. We were at 17 meters when both destroyers returned pinging. They dropped a bunch of charges for about an hour, then left.

A good idea when entering a newly occupied port, is to give time for enemy vessels to leave.

[STEED]

Without question came to the surface to finish off a ship and while I was lining up the shot a Destroyer came out of no where and rammed me.

What was I thinking.

[Sailor Steve]

Lucky you, sinking that fishing boat at all. Way back in my SH1 days I found out the hard way that sampans are made out of high-tensile steel armor, while US submarines are made out of paper. Ram him, sink me.

In SH3 I still have to go with the time I was shelling a merchant and was too close when he exploded, killing the entire bridge crew including myself, and killing one of the Kriegsmarine's best insructors.

You see, this was during artillery training at the Naval School.

[Missing Name]

Engaged 4 destroyers with the deck gun at once. Sank one, damaged two.

Forced to withdraw with serious damage, barely made it back to base.

I want to take on a BB with the deck gun now. I've seen a pic of someone taking on an entire task force somewhere...

[FIREWALL]

Sept. 15, 1940 13:18 AN12 75m of h2o under me. Peri depth 1knt spd


SO tells me we have a contact close by. I raise scope.

Ahhhhhh. 5 Destroyers. And... Nelson BB at 700m

Fire a 4 torp spread. Then the fun began.

[Gerald]

Originally Posted by FIREWALL

Sept. 15, 1940 13:18 AN12 75m of h2o under me. Peri depth 1knt spd


SO tells me we have a contact close by. I raise scope.

Ahhhhhh. 5 Destroyers. And... Nelson BB at 700m

Fire a 4 torp spread. Then the fun began.

I'm just saying, Avoid shallow water,

VIIB
Playing catch-up with a convoy, in the shallows of AM53, during heavy fog.
A RN Desstroyer brought that very aggressive Kaleun's carreer to a very short end.

[timmy41]

attempted to sink a bogue in a hunter killer group, only to have another hunter killer group come across me during the attack just by chance! doh!

[sublynx]

Trying to sink a destroyer that knows where I am, with a magnetic torpedo, at close range, with manual targeting, when I have never tried magnetic shots before, not even on a merchant. It was the black screen for me - you reap what you sow

[The Dean]

Can't decide. Either

1)Taking on more than a dozen Short Sunderlands in my IXB with 2 light flak cannons (x2 magazines) at flank speed across Biscany, surviving with 11 or so confirmed kills, heavy damage, 3/3 dead/wounded.

or

2)Wounded a heavy cargo ship, stern almost under but refusing to go down. No torps left, waters too rough for the deck gun, and an armed trawler is bearing down. It had been a busy patrol, but not a profitable one. I opt for ramming the freighter's underside astern. When that doesn't work, I circle around, resurface, and beach myself like a whale on the freighters deck, having decided that either that my weight will finish her off OR the idiot trawler captain that's been shooting at me this entire time lands enough errant shots around me to damage the freighter beyond seaworthiness. The latter works, kill confirmed, crew sworn to secrecy, back to base and a smiling, clueless BdU.

[Howard313]

Originally Posted by The Dean

2)Wounded a heavy cargo ship, stern almost under but refusing to go down. No torps left, waters too rough for the deck gun, and an armed trawler is bearing down. It had been a busy patrol, but not a profitable one. I opt for ramming the freighter's underside astern. When that doesn't work, I circle around, resurface, and beach myself like a whale on the freighters deck, having decided that either that my weight will finish her off OR the idiot trawler captain that's been shooting at me this entire time lands enough errant shots around me to damage the freighter beyond seaworthiness. The latter works, kill confirmed, crew sworn to secrecy, back to base and a smiling, clueless BdU.

This is proof that sometimes it takes a little bit of recklessness to get the job done. Good job!

[Luno]

Well, my whole career was pretty stupid...

I started with a type II. No kills on my first patrol. On the second, one torpedo kill (coastal merchant) and one flack gun kill (tugboat). I fired two torpedoes at a C2 cargo (she was not in a convoy, but had a destroyer escorting). Both fishes hit the ship squarely in the middle, and it caught fire, but it hardly slowed down at all. I was out of torps and I had to let that one go. I later encountered another coastal merchant. Emboldened by my success against the tug, I pulled right along side it, as it was zig-zagging (not smart) and gave it all I had with the flak gun. We were almost touching at some points, and I had to pull hair raising turns to avoid being plowed over by the ship. I caused all the cargo on its deck to catch fire and explode, but she sustained no other damage. I expended all my ammo and high-tailed it to base (but not before being bombed by several Hurricanes - thankfully I received no hits).

On the third patrol I fired a torpedo for no reason (accidentally hit Enter ) but later I found and torpedoed a Norwegian merchant, (his lights were out) and he caught fire but he continued on his way. I came across another C2, fired my last 3 fish, 2 hit under the funnel, and he was dead in the water, but still afloat. I waited for hours... I expended all my flak ammo, and then proceeded to ram him. No effect whatsoever. I went home without a single kill.

On my fourth and last patrol, I loaded up with 5 TIIs (electric). I had to expend 4 of them on one small merchant. I decided to sneak into Hartlepool at night to send the last fish into a stationary ship. I came across a fishing boat in the port itself and sank him with the flak gun (I could not resist such an easy target).

Now here comes the really dumb part: as I watch the fishing boat go down, out of nowhere comes this DD with spotlights bearing down at ramming speed, shells whizzing past my head. I go to periscope depth and gun the engines. I narrowly escape him and the depth charges. Then I maneuver silently, for a while, and raise the observation scope for a look. Whoops - he's right next to me, and I got his attention. Searchlights are on me again and he's turning around. I lower the scope, but now I'm out of options. He starts pinging and nails me with depth charges. The sub settles the few more meters to the bottom, and he charges me again, ending my career.

What did I learn: don't push your luck with DDs, stay out of shallow water, ensure the victim never sees you, 1st mission objective is to stay alive, 2nd is to sink targets.

Originally Posted by Luno

What did I learn: don't push your luck with DDs, stay out of shallow water, ensure the victim never sees you, 1st mission objective is to stay alive, 2nd is to sink targets.

Outstanding!

". . . ensure the victim never sees you . . ."
This is the big one, that goes right past so many players.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by The Dean

1)Taking on more than a dozen Short Sunderlands in my IXB with 2 light flak cannons (x2 magazines) at flank speed across Biscany, surviving with 11 or so confirmed kills, heavy damage, 3/3 dead/wounded.

Stock game? In GWX, as in real life, they only show up one at a time. But fighting that one is a bad idea.