Newbie is learning to Hunt!

[Gunsilnger]

Guten Tag friends!

Just thought I'd give you all a little "After Action" Report.

August-September 1940, First career in SH5, Happy Times Campaign.

Being still relatively early in the war, and my limited experience, I've made an effort to avoid escorted convoys, instead looking for unescorted convoys, and attacking sitting ducks as they sit in port. Well, I've had a grand old time learning how to aim my torpedoes, track ships, and generally just be sneaky. I've had some success with port raids, snuck into two ports and was able to sink three big troop transports in one and a couple merchant ships in the other as they sat anchored. Entered a third port, but found only warships there, so I very quietly, very slowly, snuck back out.

Which leads me to this hunt: After completing the British East coast mission, I set course for the North Atlantic. While passing the northern tip of Ireland, I recieve a contact report, near my current course, heading towards me. I decide that since it's on my way and not far from my assigned patrol point, that I might as well try and get the tonnage. I set course to intercept, and before long, around 11:00 pm I get the report for smoke on the horizon and go to scope depth. As I approach it appears to be a single merchant ship so I start getting my boat lined up for a solution when I get another report of smoke on the horizon, and then shortly after reports of multiple ships spotted. Apparently the lead ship was running as scout to give the rest of the convoy time to start zigzagging. Now I decide to ignore the lead ship and head for the main convoy, which turns out to be five rows of four, armed but with no escorts. As I close I do a U-turn and position myself between the second and center rows and go all stop. I reduced speed until three of the four ships had passed and then matched speed again. Now that I was in a good position I targeted the lead ship on my port side and launched two at slow speed and immediately targeted the lead ship on my starboard side, and launched two more, at full speed, with hopes that they'd catch up th the first two. As soon as the second salvo was on it's way, I spun my scope around 180 degrees and targeted the last ship in the row on my port side and fired my stern tube. At this point I turn my scope back around and see that my timing was almost perfect: as the second torp on the port side hit, the first torp on the starboard side was impacting. And as if I hadn't been lucky enough, the one I launched from my stern tube hit it's target hard in the bow and must've opened it up good because it immediately started to sink. NOW they're zigzagging, but my plan had worked, those first three had no warning whatsoever. I fall in with the convoy and match speed, then finish off the burning ship on the port side with one more torp as the one on the other side slows to a stop and falls to the rear. At this point I shadowed the convoy for a while and took shots at a couple more ships, scoring another hit. I'm now down to only my external reserves so reluctantly I decide to leave the convoy. I all stopped again and let the remaining ships pass and then turn toward the crippled ship from the first attack, now about 1 km behind the rest. Once behind the damaged boat, I surfaced and manned deck guns, at the same time bringing my reserve torpedoes inside. My gunner made short work of the last boat as I steered to dodge their fire. After that last ship went down I set a course to port for refit.