Yesterday i found my first big convoy! But unfortunately the really big merchants all were in the convoy's center and i asked myself: How is it possible to shoot at these big central-located ships, without getting rammed or discovered by outer ships!?
Any good strategies or ideas?
thx in advance
Steam driven torpedoes set to detonate at 9m depth with magnetic pistols.
Should run underneath the lightweights and detonate under the belly of the beasts you seek.
thx, nice tip!! i'll try that next time
I go right up inside the convoy. Usually I get ahead of them, try to plot the course of each column of ships, and then lie submerged in between waiting for them. The middle row seems the most valuable generally. That's where I usually find the tankers. You do have to be careful about being rammed. So far, I've been scraped once, by a C2 that was zigzagging, but didn't take any significant damage. Scared the hell out of me, though. I was using the periscope, when I heard this horrible grinding noise and the scope started tilting to the right. Turns out the keel of the boat was scraping over my stern. I thought I was deep enough to avoid that, but the weather was rough, so it might have dipped between waves and rode a little deeper.
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yup best bet is to make sure you plot a course ahead of convoy and lie in wait and come IN the convoy, that way you can fire away dive and hide w/ the noise of the ships and the escorts have a harder time getting to you, this does come the added danger of being rammed though!
Yeah that is what i do. I sit way ahead of the convoy and let em go right past me, whilst i pick off what i want wihout really moving from my spot.
If the seas are nice enough i open up the deck gun and start to work on em. As soon as the last ones in the convoy work their way up to me, i start the engines up and go flank back up to the good ones, all the while awaiting reloads.
Reloads done, i use up whatever i have left and proceed at peri outside of the convoy to end the mission.
Most annoying thing happened the other day. Had a liner in the middle so i shot 3 fish at it... thud.... thid.... thud....WTF? How is that possible?
Life depends on circumstance.
I am currently on the U99, and I use Otto Kretschmeyers tactics for attacking convoys too.
If it's daylight I submerge in front of the convoy or run in from the side and get in between the rows of the convoy. I can then shoot with both bow and stern tubes and get 5 fish out before they know whats hit them. Have to be careful about ranges though, too close and you dont give the torpedo time to arm, but get it right and you can just fire a spread down the row and be sure to hit on or two ships without difficulty.
You can run around in the middle of the convoy and it makes the escorts jobs very difficult as they try to find you amongst all that noise, winding between the other ships. Watch yer depth though, dont want rammed or go too deep and show up on sonar.
Best is at night however, when you can simply stay on the surface and drive right up to them and use 1 well-aimed torpedo to sink each ship, and the escorts have to find you visually as you're invisible to sonar on the surface. If you get the escort then you've free reign, but it's surprising how many you can take out with a swift torpedo/gun attack in the dark. I trailed one convoy all night, slashing in an firing and then dropping back to reload before getting in position again.
How deep is too deep, when thinking of sonar? I guess that is what happened to me when I got caught in a convoy attack, I dove away and the escorts found me. I'm new to sub sims and VERY ignorant of most of the radars and sonars. Thanks
BF
I was in a 18 ships convoy with 4 destroyers, with the XXI, I was just in periscope depth at ahead 1/3, took all my crew to the torpedo room and just fire them all at the ships that were closer to me, then the destroyers came to look for me, I manage to sink 1 and silent running till I was in the convoy, then secure from silent running and smashed a troop transporter, 2 t3 tankers, and finally the cream da la cream, the auxiliary transport, **** it was so fun to watch it sinks, I imagine that people are jumping off the boat and start to scream and panic, she sank just like the Titanic
after that I just rigged for silent running and was going the opposite way of the convoy till I was far enough.. have fun
EDIT: that ship http://www.silenthunteriii.com/uk/gallery_1/img10.jpg
I'm not 100% sure how the game models it, Basil, but less than 20 meters deep seems to be safer against sonar than deeper. Periscope depth they have a real problem finding you, but everything is dependant on other factors. From what I've read, active sonar (ASDIC) can't pick up stuff at the surface, and can't pick up stuff very deep, but in between was pretty good. How far from the surface it starts having problems is likely dependant on surface conditions. Rough seas cause more interference than calm seas. I've also read that ASDIC isn't very good very close to the target (within 300 meters or so), but that's also within the minimum arming distance of your torps. Escorts also mount hydrophones like yours, so avoiding them is a matter of not making noise. Slow speeds and silent running are your friends there, and I suspect hiding inside the convoy helps too. I haven't been found yet inside the convoy, but I have been picked up outside it.
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