Total Dweeb mission that shows the strengths and very real problems with SH3.
March 1940, my Type VIIB (From Kiel) is slated to patrol AN31 -- just off the coast of Norway. Strange BdU would send a long-range boat there, and I figured they wnated me to do something better. So after clocking in the 24 hours, I head on over to Scapa Flow. I'd paid S.F. a visit the previous patrol, sneaking in through the W, finding nothing, and slipping out the S undetected.
This time I came in through the S, and had made it past the straights (running silent, submerged, daytime, with high winds and medium fog), when one of the corvettes starts pinging. It's shallow water, and I don't have much room to maneuver. I dare not poke the scope up (and external view is disabled), but I can hear 5 ships around me. ASDIC is going nuts. After sneaking around a bit, I pop the periscope barely out of its case and notice that the seafloor is so disturbed I can't see the undersea environment about 100m around me. As the destroyers make thei rattack runs, some of them come so close I can make out their hulls as they go past, watching them roll depth charges off the back as they go, which hit the bottom, and detonate with a flash and a cloud of dirt. That's when I time the bursts of flank speed forward (or when the destroyer starts coming across the bow, emergency reverse).
A few times, the keel of a destroyer scraped the deck as it passed, making a horrifying screeching noise as the warship's 2-meter draft slid along, taking now the Flak cannon, now the deck gun along with it. One even took off the A couple depth charges got close enough to blow some pipes and shake us around.
Finally, a particularly close bow-to-stern run got me p*ssed off. I sent Hans down to the aft torpedo room, and had him flood the tube and give the eal a full head of steam. Rotated the scope to 180, and popped it up, right as he was approaching about 300m range. Calculated a bit of lead to starboard, and hit fire. Flank speed and hard port rudder, and another destroyer's coming on my six. Right then an explosion goes off in the distance. I break right and watch the cans fall off the back of the boat, just off to port, and explode on the floor. Meanwhile, I send Hans to the bow torps, and having him prep a surprise there. Pop the scope up and minimum range and send one that way.
Another explosion.
I cut to silent running and slink NE. After a while, the audio contacts are all distant.
I finally risk a putting the scope above the water for a peak. I get it above the storm-tossed waves and see
destruction.
Parts of V&W Destroyers and Flower Corvettes are scattered everywhere --something like 5 ships have sunk; smoke and debris hang over Scapa Flow (we'll say three of htem ran out of depth charges). Everything is eerily quiet.
I bring her to the surface long enough to grab some fresh air, then glide over to the port - nothing. I skirt the shore, wary of the new gun emplacements they seem to have installed -- I pull out so that my periscope is masked by the fog.
I head for the western exit, when I come across the Invincible, parked.
I pull up for a money shot, and set up a full spread of all four forward tubes.
The ruckus I had raised earlier must have warned them; their boilers were going and as soon as I choked off the spread, the flattop tried to get underway. The first torp hit amidships; one missed/was a dud and the other two hit the fantail. Still moving forward, she started to list towards me, then rolled over hard. The aircraft that weren't strapped to the deck slid into the water. Soon she was smoking in the Mud of Scapa Flow.
As I continued, there was an Auxiliary Cruiser desperately trying to get moving. Hans had two forward torpedos loaded; nothing else was left. This time, I stagger the shots, giving the second one some lead. Sure enough, I fire the first, she gets moving. Torp one hits the stern; Torp two amidships, and she starts taking on water in the bow, slowing to a stop.
I pull up to the burning wreck, waiting for her to sink. I get cocky and wait there for an hour.
Eventually someone who's not fighting hte fire ont he Aux cruiser spots me and starts firing.
So I drop the scope, and pull around side.
eventually, I figure it's time to leave, pull out to about 800 meters, and fire my last, aft, torpedo at the Aux cruiser.
I exit via the west, dodging a patrol craft, then head back to Kiel, with 4 kills and 39000 tons of british warships.
