Torpedo tactic: under keel

[Argyle9000]

Putting a torp on "contact influence" and shooting her a few feet under the keel of a ship was a good way to bust open the keel of a ship, according to the SH3 forums back in the day.

Does this tactic still work in SH4? If a ship's keel is 10 feet under water, should I set the torp at 11 feet? Does this even work in SH4? I've noticed that, during my first few patrols, the torpedoes don't seem to be as sensitive when set to "contact influence" as they were in SH3. They often just swim right under a ship and keep going.

R

[Argyle9000]

Putting a torp on "contact influence" and shooting her a few feet under the keel of a ship was a good way to bust open the keel of a ship, according to the SH3 forums back in the day.

Does this tactic still work in SH4? If a ship's keel is 10 feet under water, should I set the torp at 11 feet? Does this even work in SH4? I've noticed that, during my first few patrols, the torpedoes don't seem to be as sensitive when set to "contact influence" as they were in SH3. They often just swim right under a ship and keep going.

R

[bubblehead1980]

The "keel shot" does work in SH 4, however....

As in real life, Mark 14 torpedos, which were standard torpedo for US subs into Mid 1943, were unreliable,very unreliable in the early war.

Their problems are mirrored in the game and include:

Running as much as 10 feet deeper than set.Sometimes less though, difficult to tell.

Premature detonations when set to "Contact+Influence".Torpedo will be on track them blow up before hitting anything.

Dud torpedos when set to contact only and sometimes when set to influence.This really happened after they disable the magnetic detonators.

Best advice when using Mark 14 before July 43 is to set it shallow as possible and fire 2 or 3 for each target...one is likely to be a dud, sometimes two...least one hit and it might sink the target or disable it so you can finish it off.

The US magnetic detonators proved so troublesome they were done away with by 1944 and they figured out the contact detonator's problem so that eliminated duds for the most part.Pretty rare to get a dud fish from 1944 on unless you fired inside the minimum distance and the fish does not arm. You can still use the magnetic detonator(contact+influence) in the game for the entire war if you would like.

If your target's keel is 10 feet, set it to 2 or 3 feet below the keely(i set it to 2 feet below) if using contact+influence.Two or three feet below is most effective, you wouldn't think so but it is.Also, if the seas are heavy, then the draft can be slightly different since the ship is bobbing up and down, so may want to compensate.

The magnetic detonators are sensitive, your fish just ran deeper than set and was outside the target's magnetic field.It sucks but you just have to compensate as the real skippers did and set them shallow and deal with the contact deonators not exploding due to the dud problem.

Also, when new torpedos are introduced in 1943 and 44(Mark 23 and 18) do not try to set them deep for a while, this simulates the shakedown period when they too ran deep...Mark 18's especially.Luckily, they had few if any detonator problems.

You will prob curse the game a few times when you have carrier lined up for a perfect shot, fire all four bow tubes and they all are duds(happened to me) but it gives you a tiny idea how the actual skippers felt.

Hope this helps, should save you the troubles I had when I first got SH 4.good luck.

[Argyle9000]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">f </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Awesome reply! Thanks a lot. I'll give it a try.

[tenakakhan_1981]

Are you using TMO at all, Argyle? If so some genius posted a chart with all the drafts of merchant and JWS ships; my ratio of keel shots has risen sharply since using that. I can find it for you if you're using it.

[Wolferz]

Early war US Torps also had a major problem with the contact detonator. Hitting a ship at the original ninety degree angle prodiced alot of duds by busting the pistol when they hit.
After this problem was discovered, they handed down orders to hit ships at a fourty five degree angle, which cures the busted pistol problem. It's the same in game.

[bubblehead1980]

ah yea, forgot to mention that.That was a solution used until they found out about the firing pins and fixed them.Not always possible though so I just use the method I described, works pretty well.May get 2 duds out of 3 torpdos but the one may drop the target or least damage it enough so I can finish it off or cripple it and it sinks later.

In TMO is the premature explosions and duds more realistic? Stock mirrors the duds VERY well as well as running deep.The Prematures are random, sometimes they happen one after another, then I'll go nearly an entire patrol without one before they start going off premature.

Killed me when I fired a spread of six at a fleet carrier and all 6 exploded prematurely lol

[Argyle9000]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by tenakakhan_1981:
Are you using TMO at all, Argyle? If so some genius posted a chart with all the drafts of merchant and JWS ships; my ratio of keel shots has risen sharply since using that. I can find it for you if you're using it. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'd love to have that chart! When I find merchants, I just keep the depth at six feet and fire away because I have no idea how deep the boats are.

[Yooperbacker]

Hello Argyle9000,
I believe the charts tenakakhan is speaking of is the charts I put together.
To check out these charts you will see a link to them under my signature (sub picture).
I made up Draft Charts for ver. 1.4, 1.4 w/TMO, 1.5 and 1.5 w/TMO

Thanks tenakakhan for recommending these charts. I also use them all the time.

[tenakakhan_1981]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Yooperbacker:
Hello Argyle9000,
I believe the charts tenakakhan is speaking of is the charts I put together.
To check out these charts you will see a link to them under my signature (sub picture).
I made up Draft Charts for ver. 1.4, 1.4 w/TMO, 1.5 and 1.5 w/TMO

Thanks tenakakhan for recommending these charts. I also use them all the time. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That's the genuis! I have a memory like a seive. No problem, actually had a question about them, but I'll PM you so as not to go off topic.

Anyway Argyle, with those your keel shot ratios will rise, but be wary in heavy seas and with the lighter tonnage ships; being right on the wire with the draft shots can sometimes lead to fish heading just under your target - something contact influence helps with until after 1943.