Three fish short of a full spread - A GWX Tale

Wolf52 · 02-05-14, 06:56 PM

I had recently started playing GWX again after a year, and was just about to wrap up a successful first patrol from the beginning of the war. I had terrorized the Northern Approaches and decided to head home, since I only had two stern and one bow torpedo left.

I set a couse straight north, to take me around the western side of the Hebrides on the first leg of my journey home. Day turned into dusk, and as night fell I spotted a destroyer, heading due south, at high speed, directly in front of me. Hunter killer? Too early for that. Was I spotted? Perhaps a task force?

I submerged to periscope depth and rigged for silent running. I altered couse slightly so that I was no longer directly in the path of the oncoming destroyer. The hydrophones picked up quite a few more contacts. So it was a task force after all. Damn! Only one bow torpedo!

The destroyer took no notice of me as the task force got closer and closer. Then, through the periscope I picked up a bigger shape. If it was a light cruiser I could try to hit him with just one to destroy his engine and finish him off later. As the shape got cloer I was able to indentify it: the Hood. Damn!

The distance closed. By my calculations I would pass within 700 meters of the target. There was no way I could hit him and do any appreciable damage so I watched him glide by. If I had a full spread to throw at him, I would have been less than 500 meters away when I fired.

Fate was to prove even more cruel. In my amazement, I saw another large shape coming in behind the Hood. It turned out to be the Nelson! And not stopping there, the Rodney as well! GAH! Disgusted that i had not saved more torpedos for the return trip, I let them all pass unharmed.

This was quite possibly the luckiest I have have ever been at running into a task force, and yet also the unluckiest. I love this mod, but that has to be the most frustrating experience with it yet...

VONHARRIS · 02-07-14, 01:36 AM

Well , that just sucks.
But the coin has two sides. What would have happened if you launched your torpedo and were detected afterwards?

At least , you made it home in one piece to fight another day.

Wolf52 · 02-07-14, 06:41 PM

That's precisely why I didn't launch it, a destroyer didn't seem worth it and 1 wasn't going to be enough to sink anything else. Didn't feel like getting depth charged for hours just to damage a ship. I did have a bit of luck on the way back, broke a personal record by sinking an untouched small merchant with just two deck gun shots! He split in half before the third shell was even loaded.

hoover2701 · 02-08-14, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wolf52

I did have a bit of luck on the way back, broke a personal record by sinking an untouched small merchant with just two deck gun shots! He split in half before the third shell was even loaded.

Man, that's a great compensation for not sinking the Hood! You lucky guy!

02-05-14, 06:56 PM	#1
Wolf52 Torpedoman Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 115 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	Three fish short of a full spread - A GWX Tale I had recently started playing GWX again after a year, and was just about to wrap up a successful first patrol from the beginning of the war. I had terrorized the Northern Approaches and decided to head home, since I only had two stern and one bow torpedo left. I set a couse straight north, to take me around the western side of the Hebrides on the first leg of my journey home. Day turned into dusk, and as night fell I spotted a destroyer, heading due south, at high speed, directly in front of me. Hunter killer? Too early for that. Was I spotted? Perhaps a task force? I submerged to periscope depth and rigged for silent running. I altered couse slightly so that I was no longer directly in the path of the oncoming destroyer. The hydrophones picked up quite a few more contacts. So it was a task force after all. Damn! Only one bow torpedo! The destroyer took no notice of me as the task force got closer and closer. Then, through the periscope I picked up a bigger shape. If it was a light cruiser I could try to hit him with just one to destroy his engine and finish him off later. As the shape got cloer I was able to indentify it: the Hood. Damn! The distance closed. By my calculations I would pass within 700 meters of the target. There was no way I could hit him and do any appreciable damage so I watched him glide by. If I had a full spread to throw at him, I would have been less than 500 meters away when I fired. Fate was to prove even more cruel. In my amazement, I saw another large shape coming in behind the Hood. It turned out to be the Nelson! And not stopping there, the Rodney as well! GAH! Disgusted that i had not saved more torpedos for the return trip, I let them all pass unharmed. This was quite possibly the luckiest I have have ever been at running into a task force, and yet also the unluckiest. I love this mod, but that has to be the most frustrating experience with it yet...

02-07-14, 01:36 AM	#2
VONHARRIS Konteradmiral Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Greece Posts: 1,992 Downloads: 300 Uploads: 0	Well , that just sucks. But the coin has two sides. What would have happened if you launched your torpedo and were detected afterwards? At least , you made it home in one piece to fight another day.

02-07-14, 06:41 PM	#3
Wolf52 Torpedoman Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 115 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	That's precisely why I didn't launch it, a destroyer didn't seem worth it and 1 wasn't going to be enough to sink anything else. Didn't feel like getting depth charged for hours just to damage a ship. I did have a bit of luck on the way back, broke a personal record by sinking an untouched small merchant with just two deck gun shots! He split in half before the third shell was even loaded.