Silent War

Oh boy.

How fun this game is.

I played the first Patrol scenario about 4 times without managing to sink a thing! The VERY first Patrol I did for this scenario I had no transit events during week 1, then during the next week (2) I failed to make ANY contact, after failing to make any contact, I then failed my Endurance Roll (even with the DRM in my favor!) and had to RTB. The Scenario ends on the 3rd week, so I knew I was licked. Ahahaha.


I knew after that initial disheartening, crippling failure, that I was strangely in love with this game, and that the War to defeat Japan would be rather tough in the begining once I started the full campaign.

After that initial failure I played the second or third patrol scenario (single sub) that lasted 7 weeks. I left port to go my OpArea on week 1. Then I hunted subs on weeks 2, 3, and 4. I made contact every time, but I was only able to damage ships, and often on the re-attack I wouldn't be able to redamage the same ship (I got some heartbreaking die rolls when probability was in my favor). Luckily the worst thing that ever happened to me during counterattack was being spotted. There is merit to being alive I suppose. At the end of week 4 I had to RTB due to running out of supplies (failed that endurance roll). I was stuck at base on week 5 (what a lucky roll!). Then I did Transit to my OpArea during week 6, and on Week 7 I made contact but failed once again to do a damned thing!

Oh what fun that was, and I even only had -1 torps. I cringe at the thought of running S-1 Subs with -2 Torpedoes.

I just setup the full campaign (yeah, i know) so we'll see how that goes. Hopefully I can pass the Feb '42 Checkmark. I do have a lot of subs though, and I am optimistic...I just have to get the right subs in the right areas...

Everything is pretty straight forward. The game isn't very complex, the most intricate part is combat which I've got the hang of now. I had to make a cheat sheet though (I was surprised there wasn't a combat chart - although there is a counter attack chart) as there are a few modifiers to attack/defense when attacking/being counterattacked that I just kept forgetting. I imagine in time I wont need that.

Well, Week 1 of the campaign starts tommorrow.

Begining of the 2nd Week of February 1942 (9th total week at war)

Status:

15 Ships sunk for 62,000 tons.
3 ships lost - 2 cause unknown (in transit) - 1 to enemy counterattack.

I have 3 weeks left to sink 28,000 tons.

This week we have almost double the number of ships at sea as the previous two weeks.

I don't know that we can sink 10,000 tons a week.

2nd week of the war we sunk 22,000 tons (but lost two ships) - in the following 6 weeks we've only sunk 40,000 tons.

Last week we lost 1 ship (to enemy counterattack) and only managed to sink 1,000 tons. That was the worst week of the war yet, while the week before was looking pretty good as we got around 10,000 tons.

Tonnage seems either hit or miss, with more ships at sea equaling a higher probability of getting tonnage (duh) but during one week of the 8 ships we hit, we managed to damage 5 of them, but only sunk 1.

Not to mention that on average only about 25% of ships that perform combat patrols are able to stay at sea (pass endurance checks).

I've been robbed of hits that should have sunk ships by those damned -2 torpedoes so many times. As if hitting merchant ships wasn't already hard enough...nothing is worse than for a torpedo to hit for no effect.

I wonder if this is what it felt like to be in charge of ComSubPac?

For those unfamiliar with the full campaign, you have to meet certain tonnage quotas up until a certain date in 1943. By the first week of March I need to have 90,000 tons.

Once I get to that date i'll be writing a session report. I'm also working on a sheet to track data from week to week.

This game is awesome.

Another sub game:

You should also try "Attack Sub" (-cold war), it's fun!

I hope to play "Silent War" soon, too, then we could play a combined campaign game

I'm so sad right now w/ regard to my campaign.

My next turn will be the 4th Week of Feruary 1942. I currently only have 75,000 tons sunk. I need to be at 90,000 tons or it's game over. I need a miracle to sink 15,000 tons in one week.

Can I pull it off? I guess we'll find out this afternoon once i'm off work.

Hopefully we can pull it off. Either way If I win or lose I'll be writing a session report of Dec 1941 - March 1942 with the data i kept over the course of the campaign.

If I lose i'm not sure if i'll start the campaign over just yet. I'd like to move it from out of the dining room and in to my actual bedroom, but i'd need to get a table and do some rearranging.

I could play it on Cyberboard or Vassal...but I like to push chits and roll dice.

Week 1 of March 1942 sees me transfered to the Bureau of Ordinance where I am eventually blamed for the failure of the Mark XIV Torpedo as well as a host of things...

We even sunk 11,000 tons in Week 4 of February.

Campaign Totals:

86,000 tons
25 ships sunk
4 submarines lost (2 transit, 1 circular running torpedo, 1 in counterattack)

86,000!

So close.

So close...

Time to start over I suppose.

You are also responsible for those showers that aren't much bigger than the periscope well.

mikoyan wrote:

You are also responsible for those showers that aren't much bigger than the periscope well.

Damn!

Oh well...

www.boardgamegeek.com/article/2130139

Session Report.

I might write something up about silent war for F:AT.

I need to play another game of this. I did a patrol with the Seawolf and that was fun. Of course it was like shooting fish in a barrel. But it made up for the frustration of my first game where I couldn't hit a ship if it were parked right in front of me.

mikoyan wrote:

I need to play another game of this. I did a patrol with the Seawolf and that was fun. Of course it was like shooting fish in a barrel. But it made up for the frustration of my first game where I couldn't hit a ship if it were parked right in front of me.

I just want to get to April '42 so I can get some Gato class subs