1st patrol on manual

[kptltU-1312]

guten tag fellow komerads,

i decided that since i was going to load up NYGM Tonnage mod, i might aswell go all out and go manual targetting. - weeeell isnt the atlantic a different place all of a sudden?!

firstly ive been subjected to weather that has submerged my watch crew for at least half the cruise, its been a very rainy, wet and bumpy voyage indeed.

is it my imagination, or just plying for excuses, but does the tonnage mod allow my torpedo fodder to alter speeds & heading, zig-zagging sponaneously throughout? i ask this because i couldnt hit a barn door with a tractor at 10 paces!! i got so frustrated that i very nearly had reason to buy an LCD monitor, and get my hand bandaged.

i finally hit something, a fat C2 but it turned out to fly a USA flag & its only 1939.

my next wonderment is how the hell do you accurately measure range in a rolling sea? its gotta be impossible. (if youve got an answer i probably wont believe you)

despite all this and my desire to head-butt something, ive never been happier with this game. it really feels like im almost there!

cheers all.

[kptltU-1312]

guten tag fellow komerads,

i decided that since i was going to load up NYGM Tonnage mod, i might aswell go all out and go manual targetting. - weeeell isnt the atlantic a different place all of a sudden?!

firstly ive been subjected to weather that has submerged my watch crew for at least half the cruise, its been a very rainy, wet and bumpy voyage indeed.

is it my imagination, or just plying for excuses, but does the tonnage mod allow my torpedo fodder to alter speeds & heading, zig-zagging sponaneously throughout? i ask this because i couldnt hit a barn door with a tractor at 10 paces!! i got so frustrated that i very nearly had reason to buy an LCD monitor, and get my hand bandaged.

i finally hit something, a fat C2 but it turned out to fly a USA flag & its only 1939.

my next wonderment is how the hell do you accurately measure range in a rolling sea? its gotta be impossible. (if youve got an answer i probably wont believe you)

despite all this and my desire to head-butt something, ive never been happier with this game. it really feels like im almost there!

cheers all.

[Foehammer-1]

I do almost 100% now (with external cam only). It is hard indeed to guess the range in rough

seas. Your best bet would be to wait to the end of 1940 or beginning of 1941, so a sonar

becomes available (someone please tell us the date, i forgot). Otherwise, your best bet would

be guesstimating or waiting for weather to improve. Trust me, it can be very frustrating

when you have a Type XXI boat and can't even SEE what's in front of you, let alone calculate

AoB and speed. So don't worry, other kaleuns have the same problem http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

P.S. If you do get a sonar, make sure you either:
1) send several pings to get a range as precise as possible or
2)Tell your sonar operator to do "precise range to target"

[lecek]

Just a tip.

You don't need to find range with great accuracy.

All you need to do is find his speed. I personally use the chart from the sound trainer. There are some mistakes in the sound trainer and I have issues with it, but the speed chart and how to use it rules.

Just don't take the advice of only counting beats for 15 seconds and multiplying by 4. Better to go for 30 and multiplying by 2 or even the whole minute.

But I digress.

However you do it, find his spead by alternate means.

For example if you soundman says he is moving slow then his spee is going to be 5,6, or 7 knots. Medium is always 9. (Be sure to ask him twice, he sometimes lies the first time.)

Once you have his speed, find is AoB. I usually just go ahead of him. From Directly ahead and with him at 270 or 90, you can get very acurate AoB even in rough weather.

Set the AoB in the TDC, make sure to leave it on auto when done. Also set the speed. Now turn your scope to the side you expect him to pass. Turn your scope so that the torpedo gyro angle reads 0. Small tip for extra accuracy, it always rounds gyro angle down, so for perfect 0 solution start at 359 and move just a bit so that it just turns to 0.

This 0 degree solution has the magic property that the range almost doesn't matter. (The sound trainer will tell you it doesn't at all, they are wrong.) All you need to do is guestimate the range. You can be off several hundred meters and still hit the sweatspot.

I have done whole patrols never adjusting TDC range settings, and hitting with every shot.

I have tried to keep this somewhat short. Sorry if it seems incomplete.

[HeibgesU999]

Also remember that if you are approaching your target on a perpendicular course, that Bearing and AoB have an inverse relationship.

On a target crossing your path from left to right:

Bearing 315â? = AoB 45â? stb
Bearing 350â? = AoB 80â? stb

On a target crossing your path from right to left:

Bearing 45â? = AoB 45â? pt
Bearing 010â?= AoB 80â? pt

I set my AoB before I leave port, and have also gone whole patrols without changing it.

I have found the easiest way to measure range is with the Scale on the Periscope and measure the length of the ship. Unfortunately my chart was accidently thrown away, and I have been putting off making a new one.

But for example.

If you measure a C2 Merchant and it is 6 Units long, the range is 1400m. If you measure a C2 Merchant and it is 12 Units long, the range is 600m. This gives you an almost instantaneos range figure in almost any sea condition.

[Dominicrigg]

lecek is very right in that distance is not one of the most important factors. As for measuring the mast height use the arrow keys aswell as the mouse, also shift or alt, i forget which will allow you to move the scope while the mouse moves the lines. This way you can pretty accurately get a measure while the ship rolls. Its just a matter of timing it to get the bottom on the bottom of the ship, then as it rolls past getting the top right.

http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif

[lecek]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Dominicrigg:
lecek is very right in that distance is not one of the most important factors. As for measuring the mast height use the arrow keys aswell as the mouse, also shift or alt, i forget which will allow you to move the scope while the mouse moves the lines. This way you can pretty accurately get a measure while the ship rolls. Its just a matter of timing it to get the bottom on the bottom of the ship, then as it rolls past getting the top right.

http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I do the above as well. The key to slow down the scope is Ctrl. You can always use the arrow keys to move the scope.

[kptltU-1312]

thanks all for your comments.

its gunna take a little time to get these ideas functional in my head, but im certainly gunna continue with this.

i was initially very apprehensive about goin to manual mode (maths and i never did get along) but this is such a better experience now that i wont go back.

"there is no shame in littering the sea floor with wasted torpedoes!!" http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/16x16_smiley-tongue.gif