Submitted by Chainsaw Aardvark on Thu, 2007-05-17 15:00.
The convoy commander has surface detection and underwater. As the date advances, the two get better. (I probably won't include Naxos/sub radar at the scale the game is at) Furthermore, the escorts have a choice of speeds - a slow speed to improve tracking (sprint and drift tactics) and high speed for quick movements. Depth charges will give the targeted sub a few inches of free movement after use, since they historically blinded the destroyers when deployed. Part of the design will probably be some sort of flow-chart/tracking sheet to keep everything straight.
I'm still considering some technical possibilities. LuT & FaT pattern running torpedoes, and acoustic homing weapons. Almost all WWII torpedoes had sever problems initially as there was little testing preformed on expensive weapons during the 1930s, so there might be a rule for that. (Some estimates run up to 40% failure rate!) Perhaps with a bit more research, US & Japanese subs will appear.
Oddly enough, I don't think aircraft will show up in game - this is about the actual convoy intercepts, not the hunt on a whole. There is a possible metagame feature where a commander draws cards to get certain events (Mechanical breakdowns, prior intercept of the wolf pack etc.)
I want the game to be historically accurate - perhaps enough to be a teaching tool to some extent. However, I also want it to fall inline with the many hours I spent playing "WolfPack" on the family's 386 PC. (which is not one of the more accurate sub games) Either way, it gets complicated.
While I will try to be a stickler about the sub types (albeit not the subtypes... VIIB vs VIIC etc.) escorts will probably be a more generic two or three Destroyer/Corvette, not directly linked to historical classes.
Sighted sub, sank same...
The convoy commander has surface detection and underwater. As the date advances, the two get better. (I probably won't include Naxos/sub radar at the scale the game is at) Furthermore, the escorts have a choice of speeds - a slow speed to improve tracking (sprint and drift tactics) and high speed for quick movements. Depth charges will give the targeted sub a few inches of free movement after use, since they historically blinded the destroyers when deployed. Part of the design will probably be some sort of flow-chart/tracking sheet to keep everything straight.
I'm still considering some technical possibilities. LuT & FaT pattern running torpedoes, and acoustic homing weapons. Almost all WWII torpedoes had sever problems initially as there was little testing preformed on expensive weapons during the 1930s, so there might be a rule for that. (Some estimates run up to 40% failure rate!) Perhaps with a bit more research, US & Japanese subs will appear.
Oddly enough, I don't think aircraft will show up in game - this is about the actual convoy intercepts, not the hunt on a whole. There is a possible metagame feature where a commander draws cards to get certain events (Mechanical breakdowns, prior intercept of the wolf pack etc.)
I want the game to be historically accurate - perhaps enough to be a teaching tool to some extent. However, I also want it to fall inline with the many hours I spent playing "WolfPack" on the family's 386 PC. (which is not one of the more accurate sub games) Either way, it gets complicated.
While I will try to be a stickler about the sub types (albeit not the subtypes... VIIB vs VIIC etc.) escorts will probably be a more generic two or three Destroyer/Corvette, not directly linked to historical classes.
U-boat Aces has proven to be an excellent resource, along with the old standbys of Uboat.net, and Nihon Kaigun for the IJN.
There is a fine line between hobby and obsession. I seem to have lost sight of it some time ago.