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The same day (22 June 42), four Japanese subs at four different locations attack 4 small convoys and scored 12 torpedoes hit on 4 AP, sinking them all, before escaping with no damage.

One AP was sailing alone to PM and was sunk at arrival. Another was caught in the middle of nowhere while sailing alone too. The others had escort of 6+ SC and DD, with ASW planes in the vicinity.

Worst of all, two were laden with troops and sank minutes after the attack without survivors, despite arriving in ports and having escorts ! 35-40 points of troops lost with 31 of ships...

Until them, the I-boats only sank 6 ships (2 DD, 2 SC, 1 AV and 1 AP) at the cost of 2 of them so I was quite pleased with my ASW tactics (I'm the allied player).

That is by far the most successful day I have ever seen for the I-boats outside major invasion actions (or even during them).

Baaanzai!!!:D

I've seen similar successes by the S-boats in the "SLOT" - no not the Slot shown on the map, the slot between GG and that atoll to the east. It is a deadly spot for the Japanese transports. With the poor IJN ASW capabilities and deadly s-boat torps that slot is a graveyard for APs, TKs and AOs.

While not quite as great as the one you mentioned, last night 3 of my s-boats got 8 hits on transports in that slot.

Ah sub warfare.....carried out correctly it is a beautiful thing !

AmiralLaurent, as the allied player, just add some ASW DDs to your AP/AK TFs.....better still get about six ASW DDs and go-a-hunting wabbits! The Allies are very very strong in ASW....so long as you use the right ships!

I was looking thru my first pbem combat reports, and here is one interesting moment concerning subs I’ve found.

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 11/14/42

Weather: Thunderstorms

Sub attack at 19,42

Japanese Ships
CA Kako, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS S-44

P.S. Hint – this is historical fact, S-44 has really put four torpedoes into CA Kako and sent her to the bottom on 11/14/42.

EDITED: Sorry. When I posted it I was reading Lockwood’s book appendixes where this (false) date of Kako sunk is mentioned. Strange. All my other resources are also indicate that Kako was sunk in august. I guess that is why I did not notice anything special during that game.

Cool!!

Cool!!

My problem with this sub-stuff was that i´ve never played a long scenario...no idea were i can best find the transports going from Truk to Rabaul.

Can someone help?

I recently had my sub torpedoed by a Jap cruiser in a PBEM game

Hi all,

Raver : I allready commit many ships and planes to ASW, almost all convoys are escorted by at least one DD and small escorts. 30% of my planes are in ASW, useful to spot subs, that are then chased by ASW groups (4 DD with high ASW rating). New SC are training by sailing in hot spots (at least they can make I-boats expend torpedoes).
Two of the ships sunk this fateful day were alone. First was sneaking in PM and lonely ships can usually go without being attacked by LBA. Second has detached from a convoy in open sea to be sent to another port, so her path was outside the normal. I have not checked if she was sunk while crossing another path. The other were escorted and sunk in Noumea and Luganville, both ports patrolled by DD and SC and planes.
WHat bugs me is that none of the four subs were seen the day before. Three turns ago, my ASW planes damaged another sub and watched one at the same spot two days in a row off Australia. I sent 4 DD to the spot and they killed I-27. I-11 was killed the month before by SC.
The problem with DD escorting convoys is that they must also escort CV and CA and chase subs and.... so they can't be everywhere.
I will not change my tactics, except that I will give stronger escorts to troopships and less to supplies carriers in the future.


Subchaser : the Kako was sunk by the S-44 on 10 August 1942, while returning to base after the Savo battle.


Odin : there is somewhere on the Net a map of good patrol points for subs, don't know if it applied to both sides or for one only.
The ships will always take the same path from port A to B (but it may differ from B to A) so it is easy to find the paths that will be used the most (Truk to Shortlands, Rabaul and Kavieng for example).
I like better to have subs in open water than in ports, they survive longer and ships not sunk on the spot may sink before arriving in port.
There is a simple way to take alternate shipping lanes. Take a convoy from Truk, change its home base to Shortlands and give then a destination in open sea, east of the common path. They will reach the hex, then go to Shortlands east to usual convoys and so escape most subs in open sea. Then while they are unloading at Shortlands, you can change the base back to Truk.

Originally posted by Mike_B20
I recently had my sub torpedoed by a Jap cruiser in a PBEM game

I had the same thing happen to one of my subs. He got torpedoed and tried to fight it out on the surface with the cruiser.Took quite a few shell hits if I recall. Stupid sub captain deserves to get blown to hell - maybe he just got surprised on the surface and didn't have time to dive. The first inkling that the Japanese were there was probably when the torpedo hit his sub and woke up the lookouts.

Originally posted by AmiralLaurent
Hi all,

Raver : I allready commit many ships and planes to ASW, almost all convoys are escorted by at least one DD and small escorts. 30% of my planes are in ASW, useful to spot subs, that are then chased by ASW groups (4 DD with high ASW rating). New SC are training by sailing in hot spots (at least they can make I-boats expend torpedoes).
Two of the ships sunk this fateful day were alone. First was sneaking in PM and lonely ships can usually go without being attacked by LBA. Second has detached from a convoy in open sea to be sent to another port, so her path was outside the normal. I have not checked if she was sunk while crossing another path. The other were escorted and sunk in Noumea and Luganville, both ports patrolled by DD and SC and planes.
WHat bugs me is that none of the four subs were seen the day before. Three turns ago, my ASW planes damaged another sub and watched one at the same spot two days in a row off Australia. I sent 4 DD to the spot and they killed I-27. I-11 was killed the month before by SC.
The problem with DD escorting convoys is that they must also escort CV and CA and chase subs and.... so they can't be everywhere.
I will not change my tactics, except that I will give stronger escorts to troopships and less to supplies carriers in the future.


Subchaser : the Kako was sunk by the S-44 on 10 August 1942, while returning to base after the Savo battle.


Odin : there is somewhere on the Net a map of good patrol points for subs, don't know if it applied to both sides or for one only.
The ships will always take the same path from port A to B (but it may differ from B to A) so it is easy to find the paths that will be used the most (Truk to Shortlands, Rabaul and Kavieng for example).
I like better to have subs in open water than in ports, they survive longer and ships not sunk on the spot may sink before arriving in port.
There is a simple way to take alternate shipping lanes. Take a convoy from Truk, change its home base to Shortlands and give then a destination in open sea, east of the common path. They will reach the hex, then go to Shortlands east to usual convoys and so escape most subs in open sea. Then while they are unloading at Shortlands, you can change the base back to Truk.

A combination of human and computer controlled subs works well.

I like to have my subs patrol between ports with occaisonal visits to ports, and never stay anywhere for any length of time, especially within a couple of hexes of a major port.

Keeps you subs from being spotted, and makes them more effective.

Also keeps the opposing player honest about escorting transports.

I usually park my subs somewhere until they are spotted and then I move them. As long as they are not spotted they lie in wait. Unless of course I need them for transport.

I was recently ambushed by skillful sub placement in a PBEM game.
The sub was parked in the middle of the ocean between Noumea and Rockhampton...exactly on a full move length for a fast taskforce.

Maybe my opponent was hoping to waylay a carrier.

What I sent however was a destroyer taskforce with the aim of setting up fast transport missions to Gili Gili from Townsville or Cairns.
The sub sank a destroyer and shredded a DMS and another destroyer.
Needless to say I needed to send another taskforce.

Never seen such a rampant sub before.
I've learned to never send a taskforce direct to a major port.

Hi all,

Originally posted by Mike_B20
I was recently ambushed by skillful sub placement in a PBEM game.
The sub was parked in the middle of the ocean between Noumea and Rockhampton...exactly on a full move length for a fast taskforce.

Maybe my opponent was hoping to waylay a carrier.

What I sent however was a destroyer taskforce with the aim of setting up fast transport missions to Gili Gili from Townsville or Cairns.
The sub sank a destroyer and shredded a DMS and another destroyer.
Needless to say I needed to send another taskforce.

Never seen such a rampant sub before.
I've learned to never send a taskforce direct to a major port.

Are you saying that single enemy sub attacked 3 of your ships
in one turn (i.e. that it attacked 3 times)?

Are you sure?

I must say I can't remember seeing submarine attacking more than one target one turn...


Leo "Apollo11"

Hi all,

Originally posted by Mike_B20
I recently had my sub torpedoed by a Jap cruiser in a PBEM game

You mean that enemy CA (cruiser) torpedoed your submarine?

Are you sure?

I must say that this is the first time I ever hear that submarine
would be attacked by torpedo...

How did it happen?

Do you have "Combat Report" text file?


Leo "Apollo11"

I've seen Japanese subs get off 2 attacks on the same TF before, but never 3...

Apollo 11, the sub definitely got off two attacks on the taskforce one turn. The next day it seemed to get off another as the taskforce moved away. Maybe it was a different sub.

The cruiser torpedoing a sub incident definitely happened, sorry I have no combat report.
The commander of the sub attacked a cruiser on the surface at night...silly bugger.
Sonny had the same experience in an above post.

During this horrible turn, the same sub attacks three times the same AP, one time during the night/morning phase (2 hits), then two times in the day/evening phase (1 then 4 hits). I guess the first attack did enough damage to reduce speed to 0 so the boat was still at the same place in the day phase.

The most I remember I have seen is two attacks by the same sub during the same surface combat phase.

For the surface fight between a cruiser and a sub, I'm curious wich ship attacked the other. A sub surprised by a surface ship may have no choice.

Or the attack took place in shallow waters and the commander took a risk that could win him a Navy Cross... or a wooden cross.

Here is an real example of an US Sub attacking a cruiser on surface:
http://www.combinedfleet.com/atully07.htm

Originally posted by AmiralLaurent
[B.........................
For the surface fight between a cruiser and a sub, I'm curious wich ship attacked the other. A sub surprised by a surface ship may have no choice.

.................... [/B]

Wish I would have saved the combat report for that but I didn't. The game did not go to the surface combat screen - it all happened on the sub attack screen. The sub did not fire first IIRC. The picture was of the sub with no target ship in the top half of the screen. Then the message that it was hit by the torpedo and then the cruiser picture showed in the top half - just like when DDs search for a sub which has not attacked - if they find it and depth charge it they then show up on the screen. After that it was just like a sub firing on an AP - there was an exchange of gunfire. Can't remember if the sub got off any hits but the cruiser clobbered the sub with tons of shells.

I went through my old emails and found this combat report .
The attack that damaged another destroyer in the taskforce happened three hexes away by a different sub.
Three attacks by a sub in one day on one taskforce .

Sub attack at 37,71

Japanese Ships
SS I-24

Allied Ships
DD Hammann, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack at 37,71

Japanese Ships
SS I-24

Allied Ships
DMS Southard, Torpedo hits 1, on fire
DD Morris


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack at 37,71

Japanese Ships
SS I-24

Allied Ships
DMS Southard, on fire, heavy damage