FAQ/Walkthrough
>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==<<==>>==
For PC
Version 1.0
By Chris Zawada
User: antseezee
E-mail: antseezee@epix.net
Website: www.antseezee.com
Created: 11/27/05
Last Update: 12/3/05
Copyright 2005 Chris Zawada
-<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>-
Author's Note
----------------------------
Ever accidentally scream battleship while taking a bath? Hah, I never have and
surely hope you never have to. The point is, submarines have been quite a
mystified item, especially in video games. Rarely has any game come across so
accurately as the Silent Hunter series has over the past few years. Silent
Hunter III is the newest addition to the series, featuring our favorite U-Boat
submarines during the WWII era. The ultimate goal is to assume the role as a
submarine commander aboard a U-Boat, and practically sink anything that roars
across the massive oceans. Developed by Ubisoft, this isn't just some generic
simulator game that most gamers toss out the window. Silent Hunter III manages
to combine elements of action, such as commanding stations, turret weapons,
and literally developing your own missions with the in-game editor. Will you
push the rotors to full speed ahead, or stall the engines in an attempt to
escape your horrible reality?
Contributing/Feedback
----------------------------
If you have any contributions, feedback, or strategies you'd like to have
added to the guide, contact me via e-mail or on GameFAQs. I'll be more than
content to add your segment of information, and will also provide credit. If
you have any questions you'd like added to the Common Questions section, ask.
I simply don't have the time to sit around thinking of questions. Provide me
with what you want to know!
Updates
----------------------------
=12/3/05= v1.0
Finished the FAQ. What an awesome game, especially with such an in-depth and
random career mode. Wish I had more time to invest into the replayability of
this title.
=11/27/05= v1.0
Started the FAQ. This is truly a great game, regardless of whether you like
submarines are not. The toughest part is getting use to the massive control
system.
- I've now added a Quick Search function to the guide. Press CTRL + F, and
type in the designated (#.#) to be quickly forwarded to that specific section
of the guide.
============================
- Table of Contents -
============================
1) Introduction
2) Game Basics
> Controls/HUD
3) Career Walkthrough (3.1)
> Naval Academy
> Career Mode
4) Features
> Multiplayer
> Missions Walkthrough (4.1)
> Barham
> Bismarck
> Courageous
> Gibraltar
> Happy Times
> Malta
> Narvik
> Scapa Flow
> U505
> XXI
> Mission Editor
5) Museum (5.1)
> Warhips
> Merchants
> U-boats
> Aircraft
6) Codes
7) Common Questions
8) Copyright/Distribution/Reproduction Guidelines
9) Proper Credits
============================
- 1) Introduction -
============================
Submarine games are few and far between. To be quite frank, no one wants to
play a game where you stay at the controls inside a submarine hull for hours
upon hours. This is why Ubisoft came up with the Silent Hunter series; they
wanted to help place some action elements along with the simulation-like
gameplay. Silent Hunter III is the third game in the series that features
beautiful graphics inside a 3D engine, complete with staff crews, an
encyclopedia of naval vessels from various nations, and a completely innovative
campaign mode that keeps the players hooked time and time again. Will you be
sent on a specific mission to down a secretive military project of the Allies?
Or, will your mission simply consist of randomly patrolling channels, knocking
out any ships that attempt passage? Either way, the game challenges you to act
as a commander, and also act as a military combatant.
In case you had not figured it out by now, Silent Hunter III places you in the
role of the Germans. You command a U-Boat, and also place various tasks upon
your crew members. Your goal is to fight the Allies, and seek your best to down
ships of the Allied fleet. While the series has taken a stray heading towards
more action-orientated combat under Ubisoft (SH1 & SH2 were developed by SSI),
the game still tends to dismount upon the old fundamentals.
The following is an excerpt from the Ubisoft manual (credit to Ubisoft):
August 1939. The Second World War is about to begin. The grey wolves, the U-
boats of the German Kriegsmarine, take to the sea. There will be war in the
Atlantic. The goal - to cut England's lifelines.
Six years later, the war ends, and Germany lays in ruins. The U-boat fleet is
all but wiped out, 30000 of its 40000 men having died at sea. Still, fighting
hard but fair, they had accomplished success beyond all expectations and out of
proportion to their strength. At some points during the war, they had come
close to bringing the British Empire to its knees.
On the Allied side, the cost of victory has been even higher. More than 30000
merchant seamen have been lost in this struggle, along with many thousands of
servicemen from all branches of the military. About 20 million tons of merchant
tonnage lie under the sea. And the emotional cost of the was has been even
greater.
Yet, this is also a time of explosive technological development. Allied anti-
submarine defenses have discovered how to defend against the U-boat and
submarine warfare in general. But the real breakthrough is taking place in
Germany. Having just entered operational service, yet never used in actual
combat, the revolutionary Type XXI U-boat is a prototype for post-war submarine
development in the world's major naval fleets. This, alone, is testimony to the
high level of professionalism and experience of the U-boat force and the
engineers behind them.
This game pays homage to everyone - Allies or Axis - who served at sea during
the crucial years of World War II.
----------------------------
_____________________
##### GAME INFO #####
//////////|\\\\\
Player(s): 1-8 (up to 8 on Ubi.com)
Developer: Ubisoft
Released: 2005
Rarity: fairly rare
Special Features: mission editor, online play
ESRB: Teen
Cover Art on box:
- Shows submarine gliding underwater with ships passing through on the surface
Requirements:
> Windows 2000/XP or better
> Pentium 4 - 1.4ghz (Pentium-M works faster)
> 512MB RAM + (More RAM decreases loading times GREATLY)
> DVD-ROM drive (There is no CD-ROM version of this game)
> 2.0GB+ free HD space
> DirectX 9.0c
> 64MB Video Card or better
(Pixel Shaders v1.1 must be supported. Obviously,
by assumption, you'd need close to the ATI Radeon 8500
or better, along with a respective GeForce 3/4 FX or
better. Heavy emphasis is placed on 3D elements in
this title.)
============================
- 2) Game Basics -
============================
To be quite honest, the PC is the only system capable of managing controls for
Silent Hunter III. This game relies HEAVILY on the keyboard, specifically with
submarine controls, and commanding what to do. The mouse will be used for
selecting options and aiming/navigating. It is essential to understand how the
controls work.
- Commands for quick navigation of the U-boat are commanded by various meters
on the main commanding screen. Point and click the appropriate meter to adjust
the navigational control to what you desire. These controls are taken from the
commanding view on the ship.
=== Speed Meter ===
- Click the lower left button to increase speed or decrease. The command
will not be instantaneous as the engine crew must appropriately adjust the
engine to your request. Certain requests may get delayed if you have
insufficient crew or damaged parts.
=== Direction ===
- Click on either rudder direction to turn the U-boat. You can alternatively
click on the copmass, and pick a set heading. Your Chief Engineer will
automatically navigate the submarine for you. The boat turns faster as
long as the speed is higher.
=== Depth ===
- Depth can be set by clicking on the depth meter, and picking the desired
amount. The lowest possible depth is 4 meters, as this accounts for the U-
boat's keel sinking underwater. Two versions of the depth meter exist. One
is fine tuned for shallow depths up to 25 meters, where you want to attack
ships using your periscope. The other version allows for much deeper
amounts. DO NOT reach the red portion on your meters unless you want
instant depth (too much pressure).
=== Time Compression ===
- If you need to speed up the game, adjust the time compression from x1 to
x1024. This basically speeds up the time scale. If you need to patrol an
area, and have a far-off destination, change time compression to a high
multiplier.
=== Messages Log ===
- This is a practical tool to check up on past messages delivered or
received. Check up on them during tense situations, but mainly an inter-
submarine practice. Does not contain important details from HQ.
=== Stations Panel ===
- This tool let's you fast forward to the various rooms on your U-boat.
These are essential for micro-managing the submarine, aiming, and managing
the turret guns. The following keys are quick shortcuts to avoid using
this panel:
=== Officers Panel ===
- A communication tool that let's you speak with the crewmen aboard your
submarine. These men sort of "auto-handle" the tasks at hand for each
department of the ship. Remember though, losing staff members, or under-
skilled officers can cause trouble aboard your U-boat. This is why it's
important to manually visit their stations and override their commands to
lead your stealth ship to victory. The officers are as follow from left to
right on the actual panel:
=== Stealth Meter ===
- Indicates how stealthy the presence of your U-boat is. This shows the
current status of stealth, but does not indicate whether the enemy has
spotted you or not. Four factors compose the stealth rating on the meter:
SPEED > Increased speed results in more noise (not good)
HEIGHT > The closer you are to the surface, the easier it is to spot
WEATHER > Clearer conditions makes it easier to spot your U-boat
LIGHT LEVEL > More light makes it easier to spot your U-boat
=== Moving in the U-Boat ===
- While you can instantly visit the following stations via the keyboard
shortcuts, you can also physically move your commander around the ship
and freely enter rooms by clicking on doors. Officers can be interacted
with by left clicking on them.
_____________________________
/Controls - Periscope Station/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
F3 - Shortcut to Periscope Station
Arrows - Rotates view
Shift + Arrows - Rotates view faster
Ctrl + Arrows - Rotates view slower
Page Up - Elevates view
Page Down - Lowers views
Ctrl + Page Up/Down - Lowers/Raises entirely
Y - Cycle torpedo tubes selection
Q - Open selected tubes
W - Close selected tubes
I - Open weapons management screen
N - Open/close Recognition Manuals
L - Lock or unlock a target
ENTER - Launch highlighted tubes
- The Periscope Station is the primary tool you use when attacking other ships,
and also for noting down what's going on. There are two periscopes on each U-
boat, an observation & attack version. The attack type is smaller with better
magnification. The observation type is larger (easier to spot by the enemy),
but has a much larger field of view, and can be angled for spotting aerial
targets. The view can be rotated using the keyboard. Make sure to raise or
lower the periscope so that it appears just above the surface of the water. To
ensure you've breached the surface of the water, look for a meter just left of
the periscope instrument. Wait for the scope to break the surface of the water
on the Papenberg Depth Meter. Do not overextend the raising procedure,
otherwise, you're easier to spot. There is an additional tubes status panel
that let's you know what torpedo bays are ready to fire. The appropriate green
(ready to fire), red (tube is loading), or white (tube is not loaded) colors
should fill each bay. Remember to open the selected tube that you want to fire.
Do not forget to fire on friendly ships without identifying them. Make use of
the Recognition Manuals, and attack ships of the opposing nationality. To gain
additional information about a target, press L while in view to almost "seek"
the target. The fire button is right next to the periscope. Press Enter to
launch the selected tubes at the designated target. A small stopwatch in the
one corner of the periscope is the chronometer. This times when being attacked
by depth charges, or when you fire a torpedo. It is mainly used for reference
on how long it takes to knock out a target.
_______________________
/Controls - UZO Station/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
U - Shortcut to UZO Station
- The UZO Station is the preferred scope for shooting targets with torpedoes.
It is practically a weapons-designed system placed on the bridge of the U-boat.
Note that this station can only be accessed when your U-boat is surfaced. Thus,
it would best be used during night attacks where you're rarely detected. The
appearance is identical to the periscope from above, so just use the same
controls to adjust it appropriately. The Papenberg Depth meter and height
adjustment are missing since this is solely mounted.
_________________________________
/Controls - Torpedo Data Computer/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
F6 - Shortcut to Torpedo Data Computer
- One of the few useful aiming tools when firing torpedoes. The Data Computer
calculates an angle at which the torpedo would have to turn in order to hit the
designated target. It obviously doesn't give you the direct solution, but gives
you a reference point as to how many degrees to turn before firing the torpedo.
Refer to the base map, and look where the red line aims towards the nearest
target. Several details are told about the estimated target, such as speed,
angle on bow, range, and bearing. The computer can also estimate angles for
submarines with multiple firing tubes.
______________________________
/Controls - Torpedo Data Panel/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
ENTER - Launch selected tubes
- This is the practical weapon status controller for detailing settings on each
of your torpedoes. Torpedoes come in two varieties: impact only (first hit
causes an explosion) or magnetic & impact only (detonates upon magnetic
detection or detonation). The torpedoes base depth can be set to adjust for
varying ship sizes. Most torpedoes run off of a minimal 3 meter depth. Torpedo
speed can be adjusted appropriately to 3 different settings.
__________________________
/Controls - Navigation Map/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
F5 - Shortcut to Navigation Map
- This is the practical tool when plotting the course for your submarine. To be
honest, the navigation map is generally a one-time tool. You'll pick a
destination based on your mission's objectives. You may have to fool around
with the map during patrol missions. Waypoints can be set using the designated
tools under this section. Make sure to delete old waypoints or unwanted courses
of action.
______________________________________
/Controls - Crew and Damage Management/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
F7 - Shortcut to Crew and Damage Management
- The basic goal of this station is to repair damaged areas of the ship, or
check the status of your mates. Crew members have three types of stats - Morale
(blue), Fatigue (yellow), and Health (if wounded). The idea is to upkeep all of
these bars to a full position for maximum effectiveness aboard your submarine.
Crew can also be trained in the following categories:
> Torpedoes
> Gunner
> Flak
> Watch
> Command
> Communication and Sensors
> Engines
> Damage Control
> Medic
- Any mate with a rank of Warrant Officer is only permitted one category
specialty, while general Officers can acquire up to 3 specialties. There are
also several key stations to a U-boat that must be fairly understood if you
want to be the ultimate commander:
+ Bow/Stern Torpedo Room (where torpedoes are fired)
+ Bow/Stern Crew Quarters (resting locations)
+ Radio and Sonar Room (communications)
+ Command Room (where you do most of the hands-on managing)
+ Diesel/Electric Engine Room (most important, moves the submarine)
+ Tower Deck (peak tower on ship, used when surfaced)
+ Deck Gun (mounted gun for personal defense on surface)
+ Flak Gun (another surface gun with heavier firepower)
- Crew assignments must be maintained to operate each station. Not enough crew
for an essential station can be doomed. You can move crews via this main
station by clicking on personnel and repositioning them. Some of the commands
are automatic, especially crews on the surface switching back underground
during a diving attempt. If your U-boat sustains damage, you have to be
careful. Non-repairable damage either causes cosmetic damage, or can cause
internal hull problems. Your depth meter maximum diving depth will be reduced.
You can assemble a repair team out of skilled personnel by clicking the button
below the submarine shadow. Assign them by pointing, dragging, and clicking to
the damaged area.
____________________________
/Controls - Deck Gun Station/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
F10 - Shortcut to Deck Gun Station
Tab - Enters optical aim
Space - Fires gun
- The deck gun is essentially the mounted cannon the submarine's tower. This
weapon can only be used when surfaced, and primarily in good weather. You must
assign a crew to the deck gun if you want to use it. Refer to the crew
management screen and manually assign a crew when surfaced or operate it
yourself by directly heading to the station. Think of this tool as a finishing
weapon for nailing down cargo ships, or easy targets. You may have to refer to
this once your submarine runs out of torpedo ammunition.
_____________________________
/Controls - Flak Gun Stations/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose, fire
F11 - Shortcut to Flak Gun Stations
F - Switches to Flak Gun #1
T - Switches to Flak Gun #2
G - Switches to Flak Gun #3
Tab - Zooms in
- The flak guns are essentially secondary weapons, sort of like anti-air
defenses. They're designed for shooting down aerial, or targets that must be
aimed at with a varying angle. To be honest, these will rarely be used unless
aiming for enemy torpedo planes. On a side note, you will also have to assign
crews to the flak guns via the watch officer, a separate crew, or manual
operation. Some submarines have up to 3 Flak Guns, although others will have
less.
_________________________
/Controls - Radar Station/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
R - Shortcut to Radar Station
- This allows you to manually operate the radar station if searching for far-
off targets. The direction, range, and type of mode can be altered. This is
essentially an unimportant task at hand, as it is usually automatically
staffed. However, on a side note, if you use the radar, it also gives away your
position due to strong frequencies and sounding waves. This is best used during
navigation.
______________________
/Controls - Hydrophone/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
H - Shortcut to Hydrophone
- The hydrophone is practically a synonym for sonar, although it is a much more
primitive version. The Hydrophone relies heavily on sound waves in the water,
thus your ears of operation. The machine sends out a ping underwater that will
bounce back if an object is hit. The range between both targets will be sent
back as data to the submarine. You can manually operate this if you wish, but
again, it should be automatically crewed and not worried about. You can alter
the volume, ping, and any information noted down.
__________________________________
/Controls - Radio Messages Station/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
M - Shortcut to Radio Messages Station
- This is the official area where you keep in contact with your HQ to receive
or send status updates. The interesting thing about the radio messages station
is that you can interact with the BdU, or commander of all U-boats. From here,
you'll receive the ability to request a new patrol zone, send out contact
reports to other U-boats, request new orders, or an escort if fairly close to a
nearby base. Obviously, it can get fairly difficult under extreme conditions,
but is still an interesting option nonetheless.
_________________________
/Controls - Captain's Log/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Left Click - Pick, confirm, choose
K - Shortcut to Captain's Log
- The neat captain's log is just a status updater on any events accomplished
during a mission. The best feature is that it notes down how much tonnage your
U-boat has sunk.
- If you ask me, this is by far the most important feature of Silent Hunter
III. When aboard your submarine, speak to the officers aboard for each
department, and left click to issue a specific order. The following list will
tell you what each order does, and when issued to the appropriate officer:
::" CHIEF ENGINEER "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Propulsion#
------------
`Standard Mode = Submarine uses diesel engines on surface, electric
engines underwater and maintains use of both sides.
`Recharge Mode = Submarine must be on surface - charges batteries
for electric motors while using one engine for
propulsion.
`Snorkel Up = Raises pole to charge batteries.
`Snorkel Down = Lowers pole to charge batteries.
`Rip for Silent Running = Ultimate stealth mode for the U-boat.
`Secure from Silent Running = Cancels stealth mode and any actions
that occurred from doing it.
#Maneuvers#
-----------
`Knuckle Left = Makes an evasive 90 degree turn to the left.
Will automatically sink to 25 meters if on surface,
otherwise, stays at current depth. Useful for
avoiding torpedoes.
`Double Knuckle Left = Same as above, except makes an additional
90 degree turn. Just used to throw opponents
off to an extent.
`Knuckle Right = Same as Knuckle Left, except to the right.
`Double Knuckle Right = Same as Double Knuckle Left, except right.
`Deploy Decoys = Launches decoys to help throw off depth charges or
torpedo attacks
#Emergency Orders#
------------------
`Crash Dive = Dives to 70 meters as quick as possible. Do this if
you're scrambling to evade.
`Blow Ballast = Uses compressed air to rise to the surface as quickly
as possible. Do this if you're sinking fast and need
emergency rising power.
#Reports#
---------
`Fuel Level = Shows current fuel level for your U-boat.
`Battery Level = Used for your electric motors, make sure to recharge
these while on the surface.
`Compressed Air Level = Used for the ballasts, this supply is
replenished on the surface.
`CO2 Level = This essentially acts as how much oxygen is left for
breathing purposes. This will replenish naturally when
surfaced.
::" NAVIGATOR "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Courses#
---------
`Plot Course = Let's you manually plot a course on the map.
`Spiral Search Pattern = Spirals around from a center looking for
targets in the surrounding area.
`Zigzag Search Pattern = Zig-zags back and forth from point to
point.
`X Search Pattern = Forms an X pattern from several points looking
for opposition.
#Reports#
---------
`Maximum Range at Current Speed = Calculates how far you can go
with fuel supply & speed range.
`Time to Course End = Time necessary to reach plotted course end.
`Range to Course End = Calculates distance to reach plotted course
end.
`Depth Under Keel = Tells the depth from the submarine to surface.
`Weather = Gives a brief status update on the weather.
`Return to Course = Submarine will go to a previously plotted course.
::" WEAPON OFFICER "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Torpedo Attack#
----------------
`Ship Identification = Gives a brief status on the targeted ship.
`Solution = A torpedo solution will be given to hit a target.
`Fire Torpedo = Officer fires torpedo using current solution.
#Choose Target#
---------------
`Nearest Ship = Officer will target nearest ship for torpedo firing.
`Nearest Merchant = Officer will target nearest merchant ship for
firing.
`Nearest Warship = Officer will target nearest warship for firing.
`Recommended Target = Officer will target best choice for firing.
`Solution on Map = Officer shows current target on your wide-view map.
`Weapons Management = Shows status displaying flak, deck gun, and
torpedo ammo.
::" SOUND OPERATOR "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Report#
--------
`Repeat Last Report = Operator repeats last message.
`Report on Nearest Contact = Sound Operator will attempt to ping
or detect the nearest contact.
#Hydrophone#
------------
`Normal Sweep = Typical search pattern is used with auditory detection.
`Follow Nearest Sound Contact = Operator will follow nearest contact
using pings.
`Estimate Range to Contact = Estimates range to detected sonar contact.
`Precise Range to Contact = Attempts to target a precise range on a
contact.
::" RADIO OPERATOR "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Report#
--------
`Report Nearest Radio Contact = Repeats last radio contact.
`Send Contact Report = Operator sends contact report to base.
`Send Patrol Report = Operator sends patrol report to base.
#Radar#
-------
`One Sweep = A 360 degree radar sweep is attempted to detect objects.
`Continuous Sweep = Radar is used continuously.
`Turn Off = Radar is turned off; this helps prevent being detected.
#Gramophone#
------------
`Play = Plays music on your gramophone; useful for disguising your
submarine sounds as radio waves.
`Previous = Goes to a previous song.
`Stop = Stops the gramophone.
`Skip = Skips to the next song.
::" WATCH OFFICER "::
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
#Choose Target#
---------------
`Nearest Ship = Nearest ship will be targetted for deck gun shot.
`Nearest Merchant = Nearest merchant ship will be aimed for deck gun
shot.
`Nearest Warship = Nearest warship will be targetted for deck gun shot.
`Recommended Target = Best available target will be aimed for with the
deck gun.
#Crew on Deck#
--------------
`Man the Deck Gun = Orders a crew to operate the deck gun.
`Man the Flak Gun = Orders a crew to operate the flak gun(s).
`Man the Deck & Flak Gun = Orders a crew to operate both weapons.
`Watch Crew = Orders a crew on the watch tower for sighting ships.
#Weapons Management#
--------------------
`Fire at Will = Orders deck/flak gun to fire at any target.
`Hold Fire = Prevents the topside crews from firing their weapons.
`Short Range = Orders gun crews to fire at only targets 1000 meters or
less.
`Medium range = Orders gun crews to fire at targets up to 3000 meters
or less.
`Long Range = Orders to fire at targets up to 8000 meters or less.
`Aim for Hull = Target will be aimed at in the hull section.
`Aim for Command Deck = Target will be aimed for at the commanding
section, useful for knocking out a commander.
`Aim for Weapons = Target will aim for the weapons section aboard the
ship.
`Aim for Waterline = Target will be aimed at right where the waterline
meets the ship's base.
===============================
- 3) Career Walkthrough (3.1) -
===============================
Before you can hop into career mode, it becomes essential to learn the key
traits of this enticing mode. For starters, career mode is generated entirely
RANDOM. All patrol assignments are randomized. As the years progress, the
advancements become more accessible, with tougher ships to face on the high
seas. Please note that while your U-boats get better, so do the enemy's ability
to hunt you down. You have a choice of starting anywhere from 1939 to 1943
under career mode. Various flotillas (water stations) can be picked to start
your career from. You can transfer to another base for a change of scenery.
______________
/Naval Academy/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
To be quite frank, the Naval Academy is a "training session" per say to teach
you the basics of Silent Hunter 3. The Naval Academy is NOT part of the career
mode, although I include it as a sub-section since this mode sort of
intertwines as a tutorial. The following paragraphs will guide you through the
five training missions.
____________
^Navigation^
============
- The first few screens will display data depicting brief shortcuts for
the speed controls and navigation. Read them over briefly, but remember
that a lot of the commands can be issued manually. Hit start once you've
read them through.
+ You will be in your main control room. Look at the left pop-up bar
vertically along the screen. Pick the objectives button. You'll notice
that you have to travel south, southeast through the narrow channel. Use
the arrow keys to turn around, and click on the man leaning over the map.
In the lower left corner, click the Plot Course button. Now, click and
drag a line through the channel. Once this is done, your navigator will
automatically adjust the speed to Ahead Standard at the correct heading.
Wait until you receive your first radio message. When this occurs, dive
the submarine to about 11 or 12 meters. Do this by adjusting the meter in
the lower right corner just right of the compass. Your watch crew should
automatically go inside. If you want to fool around with the periscope,
head to the station, and press Page Up until it erodes out of the water.
Some of your fellow Schnellboats will pass by on the surface. Eventually,
you will the second objective completed. Now, look on your main map via
the Navigator. Plot a new course towards the three red lines that appear
on the map. Once you do this, your third objective is complete. Finally,
set your depth to 25 meters. Continue on this course slightly south. Once
the red lines disappear from the navigation map, manually set the compass
directly south. Your fourth and final objective will complete. Use time
compression to speed things up (+ and - in the lower right corner). Once
the last objective is complete, set your depth to 0 meters to surface.
Press escape and abandon the mission. You will receive excellent as your
commendation.
_________________
^Naval Artillery^
=================
- As usual, you'll be debriefed with a few screens on how to operate naval
artillery. The biggest consideration is that you have to manually order a
crew to operate a deck gun or flak gun as proceeded. They do not do it
automatically. It can be done either from the crew management screen, or
your Watch Officer (one of his commands).
+ The main goal of this mission is to down 4 out of 5 merchant ships using
the deck gun. Click the man with the hat in the lower right corner. Tell
the Watch Officer to man the deck gun with some of his crewStart off by
pressing B, and then pick a target by marking it with the binoculars and
the spacebar. Your men should start firing at the recommended target. If
you want to try it yourself, press F10, although it's fairly difficult.
Moving the mouse up or down will adjust the range on the gun, while you
can swivel back and forth. Anyhow, stay in binocular mode and watch as
your men continue to pound the ship. You can recommend a target to aim
for. Since this is a transport boat, just aim for the hull as merchant
ships are fairly weak. Down the 2 closest ones in front of you. You may
want to time compress as it takes time to down ships using the deck gun.
Again, pick another target to take down using the deck gun. Keep doing
this, and aim manually if you wish. Sometimes the AI does a horrible job
on missing. Just find the perfect ideal range where you hit the ship, and
keep firing there until it says "neutral unit destroyed."
Repeat this strategy until all 5 ships are destroyed. If a ship starts to
run away from you, simply increase the speed and chase after it. You'll be
told that all objectives are complete with an OK message.
*NOTE: There is a minor glitch that disables your watch officer from
the icon to the lower left. If you happen to press D or dive the
submarine, your watch officer will for some odd reason head to
the crew quarters. He can be re-assigned to the bridge, however,
his icon will be grayed out. Nonetheless, if this happens,
assign some men manually to the deck gun from below, and aim it
yourself.
________________
^Flak Artillery^
================
- As usual, you will learn the basics through a few brief screens about
the Flak Gun. Think of it as the anti-aircraft weapon. It works the same
way as the deck gun, except has shorter range and is used at an aerial
angle.
+ The Flak Gun Artillery was by far the easiest in my judgement. Start off
by immediately going to the Watch Officer, and assigning a crew to the
Flak Gun just like you did for the deck gun. For this exercise, press F11
to immediately take control of the Flak Gun. Aiming the Flak Gun is really
easy. It's just like firing a weapon in any first person shooter, except
shots at farther ranges tend to sag a bit. Click the mouse to get rid of
the arrow pointer, then swivel it around like a mounted turret. When the
planes start to swoop towards you, fire a round or two and try to pierce
them. You only have 20 ammo rounds per cartridge, so don't hold down the
trigger unless the enemy is close. It really takes 2-3 flak rounds to down
a plane. For farther ranges, aim slightly above, and single fire hoping a
round swoops in the area of the plane. Ten planes will circle around your
perimeter. Aim for the bi-wings first, the bombers, then the fast fighters
last. You should be able to get a majority of them easily.
________________
^Torpedo Attack^
================
- You'll read up on the basics of firing torpedoes. All you need to do for
this exercise is to place the periscope over a target, wait for the arrow
to appear, then click the fire button while holding the periscope fairly
close to the ship. Don't worry about manual aiming as that comes about
later.
+ You'll have several ships scattered around you. DO NOT fire at the
merchant ship standing still in front of you. For some odd reason, this is
the only ship that will actually speed up causing your torpedoes to
frustratingly miss time and time again. I found that speeding forward
slowly on this mission (2-6 knots) made a world of a difference. Launch
the torpedoes while moving slowly by holding the periscope over the
target. A tip is to press Q to open a selected tube bay, before firing it.
This saves time. Click the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th tube from the periscope view,
and then the fire button to launch each one. Chase each ship around,
adjusting your meter to the appropriate heading. You can use the periscope
heading at the top for reference. Don't worry about asking your weapons
officer for identification or anything like that. Simply use the periscope
and fire method. It will be done automatically for you.
_______________
^Convoy Attack^
===============
- As usual, the game will give you in-game tips on how to ambush the convoy.
Most of it is self-explanatory, but they provide some good tips for
evasion maneuvers when dealing with depth charges, not to keep your
periscope always raised, and so forth.
+ This mission will test everything you've learned so far in Silent Hunter
3. However, it won't be an easy task. Basically, a convoy will be roaming
north-northeast, while you approach from the southeast. Right when the
mission starts, raise your periscope. You should see several ships. The
game says to down the merchant ships first, however, that's your choice.
There is approximately one Hunt I Destroyer at the lead of the pack. If
you take this baby out, then all of the merchant ships can easily be taken
down (even with cannons to an extent). However, if you pass, this may come
back to haunt you. Either way, I simply ignored the Destroyer. Target the
first merchant ship dead ahead and fire 1-2 torpedoes. Make sure to down
this one. Stay at the 12 meter depth moving ahead silently. Check on your
stealth meter though as it will start to turn less green. If this occurs,
lower the periscope to restore the green meter. Anyhow, move slowly
towards them, and try to aim for the big C2 Cargo Ships if possible. These
babies stack a lot of tonnage. It will usually take two torpedoes to down
the large cargo ships, unless you get a squeak shot that causes it to tip.
Eventually, the Destroyer will catch on to your position. You may hear
pinging along your interior. Go to the Free-look camera, and check where
the Destroyer is. If it's running a straight-path over you, press D, and
go to maneuvers (under your Chief Engineer). Have him make a hard right or
hard left to avoid the depth charges being dropped by the destroyer. Try
not to sustain any damage. Reset your bearing, and speed up time
compression if you're turning. Get back to 12 meters depth, raise the
periscope, and fire 1-2 more torpedoes at several targets. Keep firing
until you're waiting for reloads, or a Destroyer makes another run at you
again. Repeat this strategy until you've decommissioned about 8 tons of
ships. If you reach 16 tons downed, you'll receive an excellent
commendation.
____________
/Career Mode/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Career mode is quite different from most next-gen titles. Rather than just
playing out a linear compilation of missions, Silent Hunter III let's you
choose your starting year, and ALSO your starting base. The selections will
decide your mission output, patrol zones, and varying maps to travel
throughout. For purposes of this walkthrough, the guide will start with 1939.
- After you select a year and flotilla, the game brings you to the Career
Management screen. The area will appear to be like an office. The middle desk
controls the logs for your career. You can view earned awards, commendations,
apply for a transfer (to another flotilla), and also view the entire history of
your actions. The leftmost desk allows you to adjust video & sound options. The
right desk is fairly interesting. This allows you to view what current
advancements are equipped on your U-Boat. A technology tree for U-boat
advancements can also be viewed for reference purposes. The upper left filing
cabinet allows you to manage your crew. The charted map against the wall let's
you start a mission. You must click there in order to save your changes as
well.
"CREW MANAGEMENT"
-----------------
- To be honest, Crew Management is the most key essential to manage
during career mode. During your career, you will earn RENOWN points
that act as part-reputation, and also like buying credits. These points
can be paid out to recruit, or "entice" other men to join your U-boat
crew. Skilled officers, pettyofficers, and sailors vary in skills. The
most skilled of each category cost more or a hefty amount of renown
points. Unskilled sailors generally tend to cost 0 renown points.
Sailors with specialties will cost more. The idea is to earn renown
points, but spend a few to make sure your submarine staff is at full
capacity. If you lose any men during a mission, replace them via this
menu. You can also pre-sort the base configuration for who you want
where on the ship.
- Crew is split into 3 categories: Officers, Pettyofficers, and Sailors.
Officers are brown-suited men with skills. They can head departments on
your ship based on their qualification(s). Pettyofficers are unskilled
officers; they have no qualifications. Sailors are white-suited with no
skills, and are generally used for labor-purposes.
- Qualifications List:
> Watchman = [Star] --> The watchman qualification greatly increases
observation capabilities when surfaced. This
officer usually leads on the bridge.
> Gunner = [X] --> The gunner is responsible for lead firing
capabilities of the deck gun. This is optional on
smaller submarines.
> Flak Gunner = [Eagle] --> The flak gunner will hit enemy planes
better if specialized.
> Radioman = [Backwards Z] --> A radioman will work more efficiently
along with your sonarman. They can pick
up targets at farther ranges.
> Helmsman = [Insignia] --> These specialties allow them to command
at the head of the boat in a chief
engineer, navigating, or weapons position.
> Machinist = [Steering Wheel] --> These improve the efficiency of your
electric or diesel engines
accordingly.
> Torpedoman = [Torpedo] --> Allows for faster reload times, and/or
less misfiring chance.
> Medic = [Snake around Rod] --> Heals any wounded personal, or
improves morale.
> Repair = [Diving Helmet] --> Repairs any damaged parts quicker.
"SUBMARINE UPGRADES"
--------------------
- Since there are roughly 4-5 base U-boat models, you can also purchase
upgrades for your own U-boat to enhance its abilities. The same RENOWN
points used for purcasing better staff can be used for receiving
upgrades. Please note that these upgrades can only be acquired via the
chronological scale listed under the reference tree. Once you reach
that date in your career, the part or new technology is available at
the cost of several points.
- Upgrades List:
> U-Boats (Various models have size, speed, and firepower differences)
=======
Type IIA @ Early 1939
Type IID @ Late 1939
Type VIIB @ Middle 1939
Type VIIC @ Early 1940
Type VIIC/41 @ Middle 1943
Type VIIC/42 @ Early 1944
Type IXB @ Middle 1939
Type IXC @ Middle 1941
Type IXC/40 @ Middle 1943
Type IXD2 @ Early 1943
Type XXI @ Middle 1944
> Canning Towers (The surface tower used for observation)
==============
VIIB/1 @ Early 1939
VIIC/1 @ Late 1939
VIIB/2 @ Late 1941
VIIC/2 @ Middle 1942
VIIC/3 @ Late 1942
VIIC/4 @ Late 1943
IX/1 @ Early 1939
IX/2 @ Early 1940
IX/3 @ Late 1941
> Torpedoes (Each advancement has better stealth or destructive power)
=========
T1 @ Middle 1939
T2 @ Late 1939
T3 @ Early 1941
FaTI @ Middle 1941
FaTII @ Late 1942
LuTI @ Late 1943
LuTII @ Late 1944
Falke @ Late 1942
ZaunkoningI @ Middle 1943
ZaunkoningII @ Early 1944
> Flak Guns (Each advancement has better ammo capacity or firepower)
=========
C/30 @ Early 1939
M42 @ Middle 1943
M42 Zwilling @ Late 1943
C/30 Zwilling @ Middle 1940
C/38 @ Late 1942
C/38 Vierling @ Early 1943
C/38 Zwilling @ Late 1943
> Sensors (Each advanced hydrophone, sonar, or radar capabilities)
=======
GNG @ Early 1939
KDB @ Late 1939
S-Gerat @ Late 1941
Balkon-Gerat @ Middle 1943
Nibelung @ Early 1944
FuNO29 @ Late 1941
FuNO30 @ Late 1942
FuNO60/64 @ Middle 1943
FuNO391 @ Early 1944
Metox @ Middle 1942
Borkum @ Middle 1943
Naxos @ Late 1943
Tunis @ Middle 1944
> Specials (Advancements increase hull materials, armor, and integrity)
========
Bold1 @ Late 1941
Bold2 @ Late 1942
Bold3 @ Late 1943
Bold4 @ Middle 1944
Bold5 @ Late 1944
Alberich @ Middle 1941
Tammatte @ Middle 1943
Alberic Verbessert @ Late 1943
Snorkel @ Middle 1943
"STARTING MISSIONS"
-------------------
- The missions assigned in the game are actually by random. They consist
of patrol zones. You will generally come across random encounters of
convoys, enemy escorts, and so forth. Use what you learned from the
training exercises.
- Before a patrol mission starts, you can click a Change Realism button
if you want to alter the outcome of a mission. The interesting thing is
that the higher realism % yields better rewards, and a more valid
score. From most veteran players, 33% realism is a good number to set
it at by checking the various boxes. If YOU have a very long patrol
route, I recommend turning off limited fuel. There was a large problem
with the game sending your submarine to insane patrol routes (until the
recent patch came out from Ubisoft).
- The Patrol Report will tell you where you must go, to which grid, and
which base to return to.
"COMPLETING MISSIONS"
---------------------
- Upon completion of a patrol route, you'll be rewarded with one
qualification star. Qualifications are specialties that can be assigned
to certain sailors/officers to make them specialized men. The advantage
of specialized men in certain compartments is that the efficiency of
that compartment rises GREATLY. You are rewarded (1) Qualification Star
after a patrol. Go to Barracks, Qualifications, then pick a soldier.
Drag the gold-filled star according to which category you want. Place
it over the description of the selected soldier. This man will now
receive that specialty. You can assign medals and promotions the same
way, however, they are earned on a basis of performance during the
battles.
- If there is a weak spot on your ship, finish your patrol, then tune it up by
awarding your qualification to a well-performed officer. When you start off in
1939 (for example), your electric engines compartment will be very weak. The
batteries run dry only after a few hours underwater. Fix this by awarding one
of your pettyofficers with a machinist qualification. This way, your electric
engines operate at full potential. I recommend giving a Medic qualification to
your Watchman as well, since the Watchman tends to go into the Bow Quarters
once you go underwater.
=========================
- 4) Features -
=========================
When Ubisoft goes out of their way to take a submarine simulation, and enhance
it to the next degree, they better add some extras for it. Silent Hunter III
also includes online multiplayer, the ability to play scenario-designed
missions, and even create your own missions with the handy editor! This section
will describe all three major features in detail.
- One way of increasing the replayability when playing Silent Hunter 3 is to
hone your skills to a higher degree against humans opponents. Multiplayer can
be played over a LAN (local area network), or on Ubi.com. Ubi's personal online
service acts much like the MSN Gaming Zone, or Gamespy. You can easily signup
for a Ubi.com account inside the game by providing an e-mail and account name.
After doing this, login. Game can be sorted by settings, ping, or other
options. When creating your own server, you may choose from the following
selections:
>-> Server Name
>-> Password (if you want restricted players only)
>-> Players (1-8)
>-> Difficulty: Easy, Normal, Hard, or Realistic
>-> Game Mode: Generated (random environment) or Normal
>-> In Game Chat: Free (players can talk), Restricted (no talking)
>-> Allow U-boat/Crew/Torpedo Selection (Customization Features)
- Once the settings are picked, the host may selct from four different
multiplayer maps. Basically, Silent Hunter III can only be played as a CO-OP
type. Since everyone spawns in their own submarine, you act together like the
classic wolfpacks that hunted throughout World War II.
+" Morning Wolfpack "+
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
LOCATION: North Atlantic
BRIEFING: Large convoy left Halifax port. Estimated route through grid
BE. Heavily escorted convoy.
GOAL: Destroy oil tankers
"A nice mission where everyone can hit the convoy from all sides. Usually,
teammates can destroy the armed escorts/destroyers, then focus on taking
out the slow-moving objective tankers."
+" Night Attack"+
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
LOCATION: North Sea
BRIEFING: The HX-45 convoy inbound. Any U-boats patrolling grids BD, BE,
CF head for interception!!!
GOAL: Attack and sink
"Yet another convoy mission, except at night. Your main goal is to down
every ship, however, you have to be careful as the spotlights can really
let yourself get lit up. It's crucial to ensure your targetted shots head
for the enemy combatants. The HX-45 is heavily guarded near the interior,
back portion."
+" Storm "+
^^^^^^^^^^^
LOCATION: North Atlantic
BRIEFING: Bad weather reported west of England. Visibility conditions are
poor. Rely on hydrophone and radar detection of targets.
GOAL: Proceed with operations
"Too bad they didn't include a single-player mission like this. You're
basically coasting along a patrol route in horrible, wavey conditions.
Try to stay at periscope depth the entire time as you cannot see a single
thing. Once a target is sighted, make sure to contact with teammates on
who hits what."
+" Task Force "+
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
LOCATION: North Sea
BRIEFING: The Atlantic war has already been lost, but the hunters are
still out at sea. Your wolfpack has intercepted a heavily
escorted carrier task force. Show them what you're made of!
GOAL: Take out everybody
"A very difficult missions since you have air threats to deal with, a
plethora of modern destroyers, and large cannon ships. Fire multiple
torpedoes at the carriers to penetrate their thick hulls. Focus on
eliminating destroyers that tail your buddies."
_______
/Barham/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "November 1941
You are Oberleutnant zur See Von Tiesenhausen, commander of the
U-331. On the 25th of NOvember, operating off the coast of Egypt &
Lybia, he spotted a group of three battleships and eight
destroyers. These were the Queen Elizabeth, Barham, and Valiant -
out of Alexandria in support of operations against Axis convoys.
With a daring approach, Von Tiesenhausen launched a salvo of four
torpedoes at the second battleship in the line. Although he came
under attack immediately and was not able to witness it, he scored
three hits and sunk his target."
GOAL: Sink any British capital ship <---> RATING: ****
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIC (1941)
- This is by far one of the more exciting missions during the game. You're
basically in perfect position to ambush some key ships, but have to keep an eye
out for the gruesome line of Destroyers that will rip you to shreds. No wonder
why Von Tiesenhausen never lived to see the battleship sunk.
- When you first start off, stay stopped until the eight destroyers close in on
your position. The three battleships will be grouped behind the initial line of
destroyers. Do a rig for silent running, and head diagonally straight ahead to
the right. This should line you up for a 90 degree shot on one of the
battleships. Make sure to stop again to prevent the destroyers from pinging
your submarine. I recommend launching all four torpedoes at one of the
battleships. Try to get within 1500 meters of range, otherwise, many of the
torpedoes will simply miss or your detection range will be ruined. The
Destroyers will start to disperse once you are detected. Make sure to to fire
the back torpedo if any Destroyers circle around back. Whatever you do, do not
surface the submarine, otherwise you will be killed. Make use of the free-
looking camera and prepare to emergency dive if a Destroyer is about to ride
directly over your boat. You may get crushed and die immediately. Expend all of
your torpedoes, and try to down a second battleship for kicks and giggles. Your
mission is complete if you destroy one of the battleships, so fire spare
torpedoes to eliminate them if they do not sink.
_________
/Bismarck/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "May 1941
Home Fleet sent to hunt Bismarck. Current position of Bismarck
grid BE. All U-boats in area move to engage any British warships."
GOAL: Intercept and sink any British capital ships <---> RATING: ***
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIC (1941)
- This is another entertaining mission, although it is ruined by a lack of
danger. You're basically submerged for periscope depth, however, the entire
Home Fleet is directly ahead of your U-boat. You must sink them to help prevent
your own Bismarck from sinking.
- Considering the Bismarck is a German landmark (their ultimate Battleship),
your utmost important is to protect. However, this is not your ultimate
objective. You simply need to sink one major British battleship. Fire two
torpedoes at each major target. Make sure to manually reload the torpedoes via
the weapons management screen. Aim for the two nearest Battleships, then work
on the Destroyers last as cleanup. It's sort of a fun mission, but you most
likely will NOT be detected unless you surface. Just waste all of your torpedo
ammo for a mission complete. Don't worry about the Bismarck, as it will most
likely sink due to cannon fire. It's a sad sight to see, but at least you
survived.
___________
/Courageous/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "September 1939
The most effective counter-measure against u-boats of early war
was the aircraft. Understanding this, the British Admiralty
deployed its carriers to provide air patrols over the hunting
ground of the u-boat. On 17th September 1939, U-29 came upon one
of these carriers - the HMS Courageous. By sinking it, he would
prove the carrier's vulnerability and thus win the open ocean for
the u-boats."
GOAL: Sink the Courageous <---> RATING: **
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIB (1939)
- Sadly enough, while the description sounds enticing to the average player,
the Courageous mission turns out to be more of a bore, than an absolute
slaughterfest.
- You'll start at a position about 8000 meters north of an incoming fleet
consisting of 4 British Destroyers & 1 Courageous Fleet Carrier. The problem
with this mission is that the ships move too darn fast, and even at a speed of
Ahead Flank, you'll only come to within 2500 meters of the carrier. This
distance, while susceptible for the torpedoes, will rarely hit their target,
especially if they slow down or alter their course. Because of this, I found
that the only way to take down the carrier was to fire (2) long-range torpedoes
at roughly less than 1800 meters. It usually takes more than (2) torpedoes to
bring down the thickly armored carrier. Preferably 3+ torpedoes ought to do the
job. It works best to alter your course slightly southeast so you can get even
closer to the carrier which flocks behind the 4 Destroyers. If the carrier
manages to move east past you, you're literally screwed as it will zig-zag its
path back & forth if you're detected. Your submarine is too slow to catch up to
it on the surface, unless you travel several grids. The deck gun HARDLY does
any damage to the carrier - trying to eliminate just the destroyers and
finishing the carrier off with the deck gun does not work. If you find yourself
left alone, or a plane attacks, manually gun against the airplane. Use the Flak
aiming system, and simply estimate the arch on your rounds to nail the weak
British planes. This was a frustrating mission, and not as fun as the others.
__________
/Gibraltar/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "December 1941
Despite opposition from Admiral Doenitz - who regarded this as a
distraction from the main effort of war against merchant shipping,
Germany sent over 60 u-boats into the Mediterranean during the
war. As the straits were under effective control of British
patrols, this was always a risky affair. An additional 19 u-boats
were either lost or forced to return, and no u-boats ever returned
inside the Med. All were either sunk or scuttled by their crews.
GOAL: Sneak through their defenses and enter the Mediterranean
<---> RATING: ***
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIC (1941)
- This is one of the few missions that hands you a instant win by giving you an
advantage over the enemy. Instead, you must navigate through the narrow Strait
of Gibraltar while avoiding enemy patrols, and surviving to reach a certain
grid/base.
- The biggest problem with this mission is that you cannot simply glide
underwater to the other side. Your battery levels will go to low. Start off by
going to periscope depth while it is daylight out. Use time compression to
boost ahead until a ship or aircraft is spotted in range. If you're not
detected, use the periscope to fire a torpedo and nail the ship (if it's
closing in on you). If you just keep getting sonar contacts, ignore them. When
it becomes night out, and the surrounding area seems fairly clear, surface.
This will recharge your batteries, and let you use the electric engines for the
most important place - the strait. You should have passed several ships before.
If you stayed surfaced, patrol aircraft would have spotted you and start to
engage. Anyhow, continue through the strait. If you are spotted recharging on
the surface, try to engage the lighter boats with your deck gun. The problem
is, the remaining Allied fleet will flock to your coordinates, meaning you have
to do an emergency dive. Do this, and rig for silent running. Stream steadily
through the strait with a full power supply. Head for the grid about two blocks
right to the exit of the strait. Once here, you'll have to head northeast to La
Spezia base for repairs. This is by far one of the longest single-player
missions, so feel free to save your progress and try it another time.
____________
/Happy Times/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "April 1940
It's early in the war, in the U boat "Happy Times". You are on the
surface, in the vicinity of the Rockall Banks. Your watch officer
has spotted a weakly escorted convoy dead ahead. The opportunity
presents itself for a devastating attack, and the night is
approaching. Convoys are scheduled to be picked up by escorts near
Longitude of 12W, so your window of opportunity is of just one or
two hours."
GOAL: Sink 25,000 tons of merchant shipping <---> RATING:
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIB (1940)
- You would think a mission of this magnitude would be easy, but it can be
challenging due to the limitations of your U-boat.
- Start off by moving slightly northwest at a fast speed on the surface. Get
within 4000 meters of the large convoy, then go to periscope depth. Bring the
periscope up, and move forth at ahead flank underwater. Now, engage the nearest
transport ships using torpedoes. The task is harder than usual because merchant
ships usually have large hulls. It may take up to 2-3 torpedoes to down the
large C2s. Tankers will usually down themselves from their own fires. You must
make every torpedo count, otherwise, it's a waste of a possible downing.
Getting within the 1000 meter range is EXTREMELY critical. The deck gun is
fairly useless as you'll take extreme fire from the minor armed transport
ships. Watch for the Hunt I Destroyer at the north tip of the convoy. If you
follow these directions, you should be able to reach the convoy before the
armed destroyers to the northeast. They'll be set off by about 6000-8000
meters.
______
/Malta/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "August 1942
Major convoy passing south of Sicily. All U-boats head for CN25,
CN26 and CN28. Report contact with convoy and engage."
GOAL: Engage merchant ships <---> RATING: **
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIC/41 (1942)
- This is another frustrating merchant-sinking mission where you'll have to
bypass some patrols.
- For the most part, this mission starts off fun, but becomes frustrating near
the end. If you raise your periscope, you'll notice that warships are battling
in the distance. However, they're shooting at German aircraft flying overhead.
This is your main distraction. As tempting as it is to engage the warships
(especially the Nelson Battleship), hold off from the urge. Instead, keep
zooming by underwater till you're within 2500 meters of the transport. Adjust
your direction farther northeast so you can get a perpendicular firing angle. I
recommend getting as close as possible, and as quick as possible. If you try
firing the torpedoes from a long range, a few will miss, and there will be no
way to complete your primary objective (you also do not have a deck/flak gun).
Start to fire torpedoes at five second bursts apart. Two to three torpedoes per
target will surely bring one down. If you fire your torpedoes too close, they
will both him the same section of the ship and do minimal damage. Aim for the
cargo ships as the troop vessels tend to be heavily armored and not worth the
tonnage.
_______
/Narvik/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "April 1940
As part of Operation "Weserubung", the Invasion of Norway, you
have been tasked with the protection of forces landing at Narvik.
On 10th of April, British Destroyers have probed the fjord. Losing
two of their own for two of our Zerstorer, they have managed to
destroy the troop carriers. Now, reinforced by a battleship, they
are coming again."
GOAL: Sink the Warspite <---> RATING: *
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type IXB (1940)
- You would think protecting a fleet could be more exciting, but not when
you're stationed a hefty distance away in shallow water.
- Basically, the British are attacking your trapped fleet in and around the
area of Norway. It's up to you to help sink the oncoming fleet with a surprise
attack. You'll spawn north of the advancing warships. To the right of the
attacking fleet are some German Type 34 Destroyers, however, most of them will
get mowed down by the British fleet. Move south at a moderate speed (no more
than 1/3 or slow - enemy has excellent sonar capabilities). Concentrate on
downing the gigantic Revenge Battleship in the middle of the 3-4 Destroyers.
Three torpedoes will take it out, however, they must be direct hits. Whatever
you do, don't dive below 15 meters. The water you're in is extremely shallow,
and you'll cause damage or a lack of stealth to arise on your position. Your
goal is to destroy practically every ship you come in contact with. The problem
with this mission is that the objective says to engage the Warspite. However,
no "Warspite" ship actually appears during the mission. I'm not sure if this
was a typo on the developer's part or what. Concentrate on destroying the
battleship, then the surrounding destroyers. You'll most likely be out of ammo,
and will have to resort to the deck gun for supporting fire.
___________
/Scapa Flow/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "October 1939
You are NE of Scapa Flow British naval base. Attempt to penetrate
the base defences. Sink any capital warship you may find. Good
luck!"
GOAL: Priority targets - British capital warships <---> RATING: ****
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type VIIB (1939)
- This is one of my more preferred missions since you have to do some tricky
navigating, while practically the goal of assassinate any discovered
Battleships.
- You'll basically be northeast of the Scapa Flow base, however, a long
peninsula surrounds the base preventing sea access. You have to navigate to the
left diagonally south, then cut up around the peninsula while avoiding enemy
patrols. You will find the lone battleship about 15000 meters off-shore of the
Scapa Flow base. Refer to this ASCII map on where to navigate:
__________________________
| Scapa Flow | - Plot a path right near the beginning
| __ | of the mission. You will encounter 2-3
| __ / / / ships while navigating around the
| / \__/\__/ /___ / [You] perimeter. If you want, destroy any
|__/ / | ships that chase after you. Once you
| [B] / | get close to Scapa Flow, search lights
| / / on the ground will start to shine back
| / / and forth. Surface during the night,
| /_____/ but go under if any ships approach
| your position. The Battleship should
be stationary in the harbor. Finish it
off with 4 fired torpedoes for a mission
complete. There is only one encountered
Battleship.
_____
/U505/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "June 1944
On June the 4th, 1944 Task Force 22.3 - a Hunter Killer group
formed around the escort carrier USS Guadalcanal - was heading for
Casablanca. Travelling northwards, they were expecting, based on
ULTRA and Radio Direction Finder intercepts, to encounter a
submarine on the route. And they got it, closer than they may have
wanted. You are in a bad position minutes away from destruction.
But so is their carrier."
GOAL: Sink the USS Guadalcanal <---> RATING: *****
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type IXC/40 (1944)
- One of the few missions that places you in danger first, and gives you only
one way out.
- Basically, you're trapped, and the path of your travel is also known. Two
destroyers have surrounded your position. A nearby carrier is supporting their
movement. You are ordered to take out the grand carrier. When you first spawn,
one destroyer is perpendicular to you straight ahead. Another one should be
heading directly towards you from the rear. Try to eliminate the Destroyer in
front of you first, as this one is VERY dangerous. The one on the rear can be
evaded using a hard left knuckle maneuver. Fire two torpedoes at the straight-
ahead destroyer. Then, do an emergency maneuver. Once you hit a manageable
depth, lower your speed and secure for silent running. Hope that your stealth
meter goes to green. If it does not, rise anyway, and head west towards the USS
Guadalcanal. Get to periscope depth, and go full speed if you have to
considering the fact that you're probably being chased by the remaining
Destroyer. Fire all four front torpedo bays at the carrier, even if the
distance is close to 3500 meters. Now, do another dive and evasion maneuver to
prevent damage done by the depth charges. If you're lucky, two out of the four
shots will pelt the carrier. This can actually sink the carrier after a tad
while. However, try to reload, re-dive, resurface and repeat until the carrier
is destroyed. Once it is destroyed, get the hell out of there. You can try to
eliminate both Destroyers near the beginning using the aft bay torpedoes,
however, the ship will be closing too fast (before the torpedoes can actually
arm & disable it). The excitement on this mission is quite simply the best.
____
/XXI/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
BRIEFING: "November 1944
You are the first type XXI U-boat to reach operational status,
ahead of the schedule. And you have just the prestige target to
test the boat against, a heavily escorted carrier task force."
GOAL: Primary -> Sink the fleet carriers
Secondary -> Sink the escort carrier <---> RATING: *****
RECOMMENDED OPTION: Type XXI (1944)
- Yet again, the developers surprise us with an enticing mission that let's you
explore the possibilities of the most advanced submarine during World War II.
- When you first start off, you'll be diagonally northeast of a convoy
proceeding north. The two primary goal carriers are located in the middle of
the pack, past the second row of warships. The two carriers are lined up one
after another, so find them on your radar as you proceed forth. Use Ahead Slow,
and the speed is quite adequate based on your excellent crew. It takes roughly
3-4 torpedoes to nail down each main carrier, and another three torpedoes for
the Bogue Escort Carrier. The Escort carrier is hiding around back at the rear
of the fleet. Focus on this threat last. To actually navigate to the center
where the carriers are can be a real treat. Make sure you're dived at or around
14-15 meters (the XXI has an extended tower bay). Use Ahead Slow, but rig for
silent running so you are not initially detected. Make sure to stop before
firing your enhanced torpedoes for maximum destruction capabilities. You may
have to fire a few torpedoes to disable some of the Destroyers as they're
extremely dangerous on this one. Really, the best part about this mission is
how sleek, advanced, and awesome your XXI is. It's faster, has TONS of more
torpedo ammunition, and six firing tubes.
- One of the customization features released with Silent Hunter III was a
mission editor. It can be accessed in the Windows Start Menu, under Ubisoft->
Silent Hunter III->Mission Editor. The Mission Editor only allows you to create
a single loadable mission via the missions mode once you start up the game. The
following section will briefly go over the system and how it works.
*NOTE: If you need visual guidance, click open, and enter the SH3 directory
under My Documents. Browse through the folders till you see a file
called mission for a SH3 compatible format. Open it. This basic
template shows set waypoints, and what happens when you simulate a
created mission.
[ NEW MISSION ]
- Start off by clicking the blank page in the upper left corner. A start date
(Year, Month, Day) & Start Time must be selected for the mission. This starts
the mission off right when you spawn on the screen. This is perfect for setting
the date according to important invasions.
- Now, a world map of the entire planet will be displayed. EVERY single area is
simulated in this game, which is absolutely amazing. Use the scrollbar on your
mouse to zoom in on the map. I do not believe there is an alternate key to zoom
in. Anyhow, use the horizontal scroll bar to move side-to-side. As you zoom in
closer, major naval bases along the coast will be displayed. You will have to
choose the strategic location where most of the action takes place. If you want
the drag and pan the view back and forth, use the white hand key on the main
toolbar.
[ CREATING ENTITIES ]
- Entities form the details of a map you make. These are the enemies you
engage, or the artificial objects that have artificial intelligence act for
them. In order to place an entity, click on any of the tabs under the Tools
Panel to your right. Once a tab is picked, select a nationality, then a model,
and drag it onto an appropriate area on the map. Note that sea, land, and air
vehicles must be set to the correct terrain type (or lack thereof). Once the
object is placed at a specific position, a large dialog box pops up. In here,
details can be assigned regarding the object. Anything from the crew skill
operating the craft, to max speed, heading, or even description can be altered.
Click Accept, and your object will be placed.
[ MOVING ENTITIES ]
- First off, not all entities can be set to waypoints. Certain land
emplacements or bases are restricted from this option. Anyhow, once a ship is
placed, make sure the hand tool is not selected. Click on the diamond shape for
the entity. It should now be highlighted. Right click to bring up a mini-menu,
and hit Add Waypoint. Simply click and drag from point-to-point where you want
the object to move IMMEDIATELY when the game starts. Right-click to stop adding
waypoints. When the game starts, your ship/vehicle/aircraft will begin to move
towards the designated position.
[ CUSTOMIZING ENTITIES ]
- If you want to piece fleets together, right click a waypoint, and hit add
group. Create a group, then mix-n-match them using the tools panel and
assigning them via the drop-down box. Really, groups should be limited to
convoys that travel together, or warships vice-versa.
[ CUSTOMIZING MISSIONS ]
- Click on the Mission item on the main toolbar. This brings up several
different choices.
> Parameters:
The main title of the mission, briefing, and starting date/time can
be set. Parameters are perfect for setting the mood. These also display
the letters that appear on the WWII-stylish memo, along with the
customized wording you want to tell the human player. This is ideal for
setting the perfect scenario, like a D-Day ambush, or something along
those lines. Weather, visibility, wind speed, and even the chance for
weather to change can all be altered from this option.
> Objectives:
This is where the official brief list of objectives are listed for
the player. Objectives cannot be typed in. They must be created, then
defined by using objects you created on the map. In many cases, this
involves sinking a certain amount of tonnage, patrolling a map zone, or
eliminating a certain amount of ships.
> Triggers:
Triggers are essentially reactions that occur when a certain event
happens. These are perfect for adding mood to the atmosphere of a tense
mission. For example, passing through a certain narrow strait causes 3
battleships to start moving. The idea is to use these to make key events
occur. Don't overuse triggers though, otherwise, the mission can become
more of a hassle to the player than a fair chance.
> Events:
These are similar to triggers, except they tend to coordinate the relation
between objectives and triggers. If for example, a certain ship is
destroyed, then trigger blank will occur. Events do not necessarily have
to be used, but can flash messages to the player, or alter objectives.
They're useful in a sense for objective-based missions, as opposed to
patrol zones.
> Validate:
This is probably the most useful tool in finalizing your mission. Click
the Check Mission button, and the SH3 Mission Editor will go through
everything you've created to make sure there is no conflict or gruesome
error. If you're missing something, it says what it is. In many cases, you
need to add a player unit where the player spawns.
- There are also some side tools not heavily described.
> Radius Ruler:
Shows the distance between two points, or a circular obtrusion.
> Estimated Time Arrival:
Used to show you how long it would take a ship at a set speed to reach
a waypoint. You can get it to show by clicking on the designated entity.
> Simulator:
The most important side tool. Click the > arrow button on the main
toolbar. It actually starts the mission with all waypoints moving or
events occurring. It does not account for the player's unit actions,
however, it does account for all AI-controlled events. This is ideal for
making sure ships do not hit each other based on accidental waypoint
paths, or a mission lasting too long. You can speed time acceleration up
using the + red clock, or down using the - blue clock.
- Once everything is created, you can save your mission. Note that you cannot
save your mission as a "mission file" unless it is validated. Make sure
everything is compatible using the Validate tool. The game will not let you
save it as a mission until validated.
[ SUMMATION ]
- There you have it. The SH3 Mission Editor is a useful tool, but you need
imagination, the ability to add excitement, and utilization of all features.
Try to add triggers and events if a player thinks they can take an easy route
only to get surprised. Try setting slower speeds on the larger ships (rather
than their max speed), in case your human player gets caught in a bind and has
to submerge. No one will have fun spending 25 minutes chasing a carrier because
they're going 18 knots, and you can only go 12 knots. The Mission Editor cannot
be used in creating a career, so just stick with creating single missions. Try
to re-create certain key events from World War II, and publish your mission
file on a popular website like subsim.com. The possibilities are endless.
Ensure to fine tune your briefing to a brief, but cordial style. Make
everything seem strict, professional, and you'll have a great time customizing
for this wonderful engine (and darn good game).
============================
- 5) Museum (5.1) -
============================
One of the more intriguing features of Silent Hunter III is the inclusion of a
statisical museum, in which you can examine past ships, trade vessels, and some
aircraft/U-boats used during World War II. Exact specifications are provided,
although it's interesting to examine the types with their advantages &
disadvantages. This section will detail what the enyclopedia inlcudes,
excluding exact specifications.
_________
/Warships/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Warships are the muscle boats of the sea. These are armed with cannons, depth
charges, AA guns, and new technologies that make them superior to merchant
boats. Warships are generally produced out of high-grade materials, making them
armor plated along the hull. This proves to be an advantage as normal light
arms hardly do any damage. Warhips generally feared U-boats since there was no
definitive method of detecting them, aside from lucky pings or noise detection.
Warships consist of carriers (ships that allow launching/landing of aircraft),
destroyers (ships designed for underwater hunting), cruisers (naval support
fire, fairly bulky), boats (small ships with light arms), and battleships
(motherships with maximum cannon power).
{ Bogue Escort Carrier } [ American/British ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: This is practically a large carrier that is designed for
quick exploitation of fighter jets aboard the ship's base. It's
main purpose was escorting large fleets and giving the ability
for immediate air power, preferably for planes with submarine
downing capabilities.
{ Casablanca Escort Carrier } [ American ] ( 1943-45 )
Description: A smaller version when compared to the Bogue, the Casablanca
was slightly faster, and a tad more agile in avoiding enemy
attacks. Again, it's main purpose was for escorting fleets with
air support.
{ Clemson Destroyer } [ American/British/Canadian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: One of the smaller American destroyers, these ships were
designed for attacking other ships, U-boats, and a plethora of
vessels aboard the rumbling seas. The ship is quite fast, and
not the easiest target to take down.
{ Fletcher Destroyer } [ American ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: Almost twice as big as the Clemson, the Fletcher had the
advantage of more firepower with nearly identical speed. A
bigger target though.
{ Samers Destroyer } [ American ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A build slightly faster than the two above destroyers, the
Samers had the advantage of better anti-aircraft capabilities.
Thankfully, our U-boats glide underwater.
{ Buckley Destroyer Escort } [ American ] ( 1943-45 )
Description: A fairly small vessel designed for escorting the larger
carriers, the Buckley had the advantage of depth charge racks
and a fairly modern design.
{ Evarts Destroyer Escort } [ American ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: A very small escort vessel with basic armament. Has the ability
to launch advanced depth charge devices, though.
{ JC Butler Destroyer Escort } [ American ] ( 1943-45 )
Description: Introduced somewhat late, this escort has an awesome amount of
firepower, especially the main battery cannons. Moderately small
with a slow speed though.
{ Armed Trawler } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/
German/Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/New Zealand/
Norway/Poland/Romania/Russia/South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Do not be fooled by these dinky old ships. While they hardly
have any speed, and lack the modern design to be destructive,
they do have depth charge racks. On a side note, they're
extremely small, making them tough targets to hit. These were
usually set aside to escort merchant convoys.
{ Elco Torpedo Boat } [ American ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was a surface boat designed for firing torpedoes at other
ships or surfaced submarines. The advantage was that it
possessed awesome speed, and was extremely small. Keep an eye
out for these small targets as they love catching up on
distracted submarine commanders.
{ V&W Destroyer } [ Australian/British/Romania ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This ship really has nothing innovative, aside from lots of
AA guns for emergency situations. It does have slightly faster
speed than most destroyers.
{ River Destroyer Escort } [ Australian/British/Canadian/FreeFrench ]
( 1943-45 )
Description: The late introduction of this ship was mainly due to the
addition of better U-boat protection. Not very fast though.
{ Flower Corvette } [ Australian/British/Canadian/FreeFrench/Greece/India/
Norway/South Africa ]
( 1940-45 )
Description: This is a fairly small escort ship designed for taking down
submarines. However, it has a horrible speed amount, making it
fairly useless.
{ King George V Battleship } [ British ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: An almost ceremonial battleship for the British, this baby has
huge battery cannons, lots of anti-aircraft weaponry, and a nice
speed for a HUGE ship. No anti-submarine weapons exist, but
that's what the escort ships are for.
{ Nelson Battleship } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A fairly primitive yet huge battleship, the Nelson has less
firepower than the King George. Still, it's capable of laying
down punishable fire under extreme conditions.
{ Revenge Battleship } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: The smallest of the battleships, the Revenge still possesses
capable cannons on both ends of the ship. The speed is fairly
drab, but it can serves it usefulness during wartime.
{ Illustrious Fleet Carrier } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: The largest of the British carriers, this behemoth has great
speed and plenty of room for aerial attacks. It's also armed to
the teeth when dealing with opposing German planes.
{ Dido Light Carrier } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: For a Cruiser, the Dido Light has excellent speed, and a balance
of weapons capable of handling any situation. Can be tough to
hit though unless you get a well-planned shot on it.
{ Fiji Light Cruiser } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Another cruiser, except twice the size of the Dido, the Fiji
makes an excellent companion for larger travelling fleets.
{ Auxiliary Cruiser } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This is a large cruiser that makes extensive use of its numerous
topside cannons. It lacks defensive weapons though, especially
against air attacks or submarine attacks. Quite a primitive
build if you ask me.
{ C Class Destroyer } [ British/Canadian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: An extremely fast moving ship, the Class C is also armed with
modern weaponry for an aged design. Watch out for these nifty
fellows.
{ Hunt I Destroyer } [ British/Greece/Poland ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Not much speed, and lacking with a short stock of ammo, this
ship poses little of a threat to your vessel.
{ Hunt II Destroyer } [ British ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: Slightly faster, and armed better, this is a much-needed
improvement over the primitive Hunt I.
{ Hunt III Destroyer } [ British ] ( 1941-45 )
Description: The best upgrade in the Hunt series, the Hunt III possesses
identical speed as the Hunt II, but more stopping power. These
ships tend to have excellent turning capabilities, so keep your
eyes open, and try to nail them first on an escorted fleet since
they can do considerable damage.
{ J Class Destroyer } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: One of the faster destroyers, it also possesses lots of U-boat
takedown weaponry. The extra length on the ship should make it
an easier target though.
{ Tribal Destroyer } [ British/Canadian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A slightly heavier version of the J Class, but the same speed,
this is another threat to keep your eyes open for.
{ Black Swan Frigate } [ British/India ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This is a slow moving ship designed for isolation patrols.
The frigate though has capabilities of downing U-boats if
detected. Still, it's fairly large, and the slow speed should
make it an easy target for most U-boat commanders.
{ Bismarck Battleship } [ German ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: Easily one of the largest battleships in the game, the Bismarck
was a feared ship during World War II. The multiple massive
cannons and moderate speed for a ship of this size almost turned
it into a God. Thankfully, this ship is on your side.
{ Hipper Heavy Cruiser } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: While this ship is moderately fast and fairly large, it lacks
base weaponry when fighting other surfaced ships. It does
however have a plethora of extra torpedoes which are useful for
downing ships from long distances.
{ Commerce Raider } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: The Germans were smart during the war. They created a ship that
looks like a Commerce ship, except it is armed with cannons and
cranes capable of stealing supplies from merchant ships!
Thankfully, we get to protect these in the U-boat fleet.
{ Type 34 Destroyer } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Believe it or not, the Type 34 is one of the best destroyers for
multi-tasking. This baby is armed with NUMEROUS depth charge
racks for downing opposing submarines, has moderate firepower
aboard, and great speed. This was the German destroyer featured
in the "U-boat 579" movie.
{ Schnellboat } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Disguised like a leopard's skin on water, the Schnellboat had
good speed, combined with a small design. The advantage was that
it could fire torpedoes while avoiding cannon fire from opposing
large ships. Mak schnell!
{ Saldati Destroyer } [ Italian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: For a medium-sized ship, the unique Saldati had great speed.
Its even armed with decent amounts of firepower to fight aboard
the sea.
__________
/Merchants/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Merchants are practically the non-combatants of the sea. While they may look
fairly similar to warships, and may possess some of the necessary advancements,
they practically transport cargo. Cargo can consist of civilians, supplies, or
reinforcements for an opposing army. Merchants tend to be unguarded and
extremely easy targets. Their hull also tends not to be thick, meaning they can
usually be engaged with your onboard deck gun.
{ Landing Ship Tank } [ American/British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was a huge transporter for landing tanks and convoys at
isolated destinations. The perfect target for a U-boat looking
to score a difference in the war.
{ Passenger Liner } [ American/British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A civilian ship full of non-combatants. It was rumored that
these ships held ammo or supply crates for the British effort
secretly between the U.S. & Britain until America declared war.
One of the major passenger liners was downed during the war
causing controversy. Be weary of your decision when attacking
these.
{ Troop Transport } [ American/British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A lightly armed transport ship designed for moving infantry
across the ocean, or from point-to-point. Scoring one of these
will help your side greatly.
{ Small Tanker } [ American/British/Greece/Japan ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A transport designed for moving petroleum or oil. The
disadvantage with tankers was that they were slow and rarely
armed. Because of this, these are the easiest targets for U-
boats. Also, scoring one scorches the supply effort for the
Allies, literally.
{ T2 Tanker } [ American/British ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: A huge version nearly three times as big as the Small Tanker,
the T2 carried more oil for longer trips. Many tanker ships were
colored black to help disguise themselves better during the
night. Again, another easy unarmed target.
{ T3 Tanker } [ American/British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Slightly faster and bigger than the T2, the T3 tried to move
things across the ocean as undetected as possible.
Unfortunately, it's just another target that is easy to take
down once the escorts are gone.
{ C2 Cargo } [ American/British/Greece/Japan ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Cargo ships were just as slow as tankers during the war. This
simply transports supplies and is unarmed.
{ C3 Cargo } [ American/British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: A thicker version of the C2, this is just as susceptible and
easy to take down. Do not worry too much about merchant ships
for the most part.
{ Coastal Merchant } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/
German/Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/
New Zealand/Norway/Poland/Romania/Russia/
South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Another smaller, yet primitive transport ship. This ship is
EXTREMELY slow for a vessel on the sea.
{ Liberty Cargo } [ American/British ] ( 1941-45 )
Description: One of the few cargo ships that attempted to arm themselves,
the Liberty ships were equipped with a few moderate cannon and
AA weaponry. This one is just as slow as any other cargo ship
though.
{ Small Merchant } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/
German/Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/
New Zealand/Norway/Poland/Romania/Russia/South Africa/
Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Despite being a merchant ship, these were still targetted during
the war. This is one of the slowest ships you'll find on the
sea, and also is unarmed. Usually transported goods for private
contractors.
{ Victory Cargo } [ American ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: Another ship similar to the Liberty, except faster and just as
armed.
{ Fishing Boat } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/
German/Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/New Zealand/
Norway/Poland/Romania/Russia/South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Generally a ship for private fishermen, fishing boats can easily
be destructed and are close to the slowest vessel on the sea.
Don't worry about these at all unless instructed.
{ Small Coastal Vessel } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/
France/German/Greece/India/Italian/Japan/
Netherland/New Zealand/Norway/Poland/Romania/
Russia/South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Another slow moving ship usually for tradesmen, the coastal
vessels are quite small and easy to raid.
{ Trawler } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/German/
Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/New Zealand/Norway/
Poland/Romania/Russia/South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Think of this as the armed trawler, except unarmed. Plain and
simple, it is used for moving goods or assisting merchant ships
in transport.
{ Tug Boat } [ American/Australian/Brasil/British/Canadian/France/German/
Greece/India/Italian/Japan/Netherland/New Zealand/Norway/
Poland/Romania/Russia/South Africa/Sweden ]
( 1939-45 )
Description: Tug boats are generally used for guiding larger ships in and out
of tight quarters. You'll find these ships to be plenty across
the sea, however, they're unarmed, so target them last. Note
that targetting these first can help rid the navigational skills
of larger ships.
________
/U-Boats/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
U-Boats are the premiere feature of Silent Hunter III, and essentially where
ALL of the gameplay takes place. Every station, element, and feature of a U-
boat is simulated in this game. You interact with the surrounding elements to
create a realistic experience. U-boats were the first forms of "reliable"
underwater submarines that could dive to reasonable depths. Their torpedoes
were considered responsible for nearly turning the tide of the war, had it not
been for infantry difficulties.
{ Type IIA Submarine } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was the base design of a German submarine, which were
mainly built after World War I. Interestingly enough, the Type
IIA was really nothing innovative, consisting of light firepower
(3 torpedo tubes, 1 gun). The main goal was for training
purposes and/or defensive patrols.
{ Type IID Submarine } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This final version of the Type II featured some extra additions
that helped with mobility. However, the ship was eventually
assigned to training duties to help teach new commanders how to
operate these deadly weapons.
{ Type IXB Submarine } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was the first base model to incorporate longer firing range
capabilities, and also could travel in extensive distances all
the way to the South Atlantic. Thus, the ship was larger than
the VII's, yet possessed long-range capabilities for sinking
many cargo transports.
{ Type IXC Submarine } [ German ] ( 1941-45 )
Description: Similar to the IXB, except its range was increased to compensate
for longer travels. Recharging capabilities were improved as
well.
{ Type IXD2 Submarine } [ German ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: This was one of the largest and longest range U-boats developed
at the time. It was equipped with a dual-diesel engine capable
of acting for stealth and/or maximal speed. These ships could
travel as far as the Indian Ocean, in an attempt to aid the
Japanese.
{ Type VIIB Submarine } [ German ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was practically the first advanced U-boat capable of
extended range, speed, and firepower. One of the firing tubes is
placed at the rear of the submarine for instances when turning
can not be initiated.
{ Type VIIC Submarine } [ German ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: This was the most common U-boat produced during WWII. It
featured a lengthier design than the VIIB, however, still
possessed excellent firepower and moderate underwater speed.
{ Type XXI Submarine } [ German ] ( 1944-45 )
Description: The latest design featured an extremely fast underwater design,
a better reloading mechanism for firing torpedoes, and complex
architecture. All in all, this was a hybrid for future submarine
design, but only a few could actually be used during the war due
to the late arrival.
_________
/Aircraft/
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Aircraft are especially designed for engaging U-boats (although they had a TON
of uses during World War II). Their ability to launch bombs, torpedoes, or an
assortment of loads made them dangerous threats. Combine this with the fact
that they fly, and well, you're fairly screwed. The game limits the variety of
aircraft though, so don't expect a flight simulator.
{ B24 Liberator Bomber } [ American/British/Canadian ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: This was a practical assault aircraft with heavy bombing
capabilities. Was mainly used for attacking surfaced ships. Has
a ton of defensive turrets mounted on it as well.
{ Avenger Torpedo Bomber } [ American/British ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: These were very primitive aircraft capable of launching a single
torpedo in the water. Their main duty was shooting down opposing
ships, although they had the ability to hit surfaced submarines.
These should be your primary threat when manning the flak guns,
especially a target to take down.
{ PBY Catalina Search Plane } [ American/British/Canadian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Although this aircraft could be armed with a torpedo or bombs,
they were primarily fast, unarmed patrol planes used for
spotting enemy ships.
{ Swordfish Torpedo Bomber } [ British ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Despite how cruddy the appearance of this bi-wing plane is,
it still could perform by launching a single torpedo or light
load of bombs. Probably one of the worst aircraft you'll
encounter in the game.
{ Hurrican MKII Fighter Bomber } [ British/Canadian/Romania ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: The primary threat of the British aerial division, the MKII
was capable of laying down one bomb and the ability to strafe
fight with other planes. Has an extremely fast speed and is hard
to shoot down.
{ Short Sunderland Search Plane } [ British ] ( 1942-45 )
Description: This was one of the few long-range planes capable of patrolling
and laying down a heavy payload if an enemy was spotted. Has
lots of defensive turrets too.
{ JU88 Level Bomber } [ German/Italian/Romania ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This long-range bomber has a moderate payload of bombs, and only
a few defensive turrets. Nonetheless, it can lay down a payload
over a set distance.
{ JU87 Stuka Dive Bomber } [ German/Italian/Romania ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: This was a short-range bomber designed for laying down a fairly
light payload of bombs, returning, reloading, then going back
out to combat.
{ BF109 Fighter Bomber } [ German/Italian/Romania ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: Thankfully one of the fastest aircraft in the game is on your
side. The BF109 is capable of holding one bomb, and has powerful
machine guns for fighting combat.
{ FW200 Condor } [ German ] ( 1940-45 )
Description: Primarily a patrol plane for the Germans, the FW200 has an
insane amount of fuel storage. This baby can travel in excess of
up to 2700 miles! Nonetheless, it has a moderate payload of
bombs and equivalent machine guns for fighting in the air.
{ SM79 Sparviero Level Bomber } [ Italian ] ( 1939-45 )
Description: The odd flame coloring of this attack bomber was ideal
considering it could hold "2" torpedos or a fairly heavy load of
bombs. Only has a few defensive turrets, but moderately fast
power and average range for a obmber. Nice creation by the
Italians.
============================
- 6) Codes -
============================
Unfortunately, Ubisoft left the ultimate submarine simulator with no codes. As
much as it sucks to say it, codes are practically nonexistent in this game
engine. That isn't to say that codes do not exist, but you'll have to rely on
trainer programs and/or editing game files. The latest trainers can be
downloaded from either:
http://www.subsim.com/
- or -
http://www.gamewinners.com/
- Make sure to download the trainer that matches your version of Silent Hunter
III. If you don't have that version, download the new patch and update it!
============================
- 7) Common Questions -
============================
)) Gameplay ((
----------------------------
<< What would you rate Silent Hunter III? >>
- I'd probably rate it a [10/10]. Now you're probably thinking, what makes this
game perfect? Honestly, it's the best simulation game I've ever played,
compared to flight simulators, aircraft simulators, submarine simulators, and
any simulator. Silent Hunter III combines beautiful high-resolution graphics
across a vast gaming engine that literally maps the world in all perspectives.
You can traverse to the polar caps if you wish, or gruesomely engage numerous
patrols along your path to victory in the Atlantic. What's absolutely amazing
in this game is how crisp and accurate the details are. This is a submarine
simulator. Factors such as fuel levels, possible damage, misfiring torpedoes,
and grumpy crew are all factors that YOU have to solve as a commander. If
there's really anything to complain about this Ubisoft creation, then it has to
come down to bugs. Yes, there are bugs in the base version of Silent Hunter
III. However, the recent patches (up to the latest version, 1.4) have fixed
nearly all of them. The ability to play online co-op with up to 8 players
total, the ability to play a single-player career that can literally lasts a
few years (on your PC, if you play in relative time), and the ability to
simulate everything to perfection is what amazes me as a gamer. I've personally
never been a huge fan of simulation games, but I can tell you this one is fun,
exciting, and crisp to the detail. There's not much more to ask for, and that's
why it gets a perfect ten.
<< Any common tips I should use during every game? >>
- I have SEVERAL tips you should always do. If performing long-distance travel,
try to stay surfaced during the night, and submerged at periscope depth during
the day. The chance of getting spotted during the day is easier than at night.
Travelling on the surface at night will recharge your electric engine
batteries. If these run out, you will have no propulsion underwater. Running
underwater during the day conserves your diesel engine fuel, which can run out
leaving your stranded in the middle of a large body of water. When engaging
targets, a common rule of thumb is to fire two torpedoes per ship. This does
not guarantee sinking, but "usually" disables the target to an extent. If you
damage a target just enough, but do not destroy, sometimes the target will
lopside or collapse from fire/damage. I usually tend to do this to smaller
boats to conserve my torpedo ammo. Carriers, battleships, and large ships tend
to take up to four direct hits to down. Not downing a ship yields no reward, so
it is ESSENTIAL to make sure your wounded victims go down for the count.
Managing the crews can be a hassle, but a necessary task. If you notice
exclamation marks around your men, this means they're tired. Fix this by
placing them in the quarters. However, I usually do not do this for my engine
crews. Replacing these men with unqualified men decreases the overall
efficiency of the motors. PLEASE note that the electric and diesel engines are
staffed by the same crew. They switch automatically depending on whether you're
on the surface or underwater. Don't forget to click the "Damage Crew" button in
the lower right corner if you need to quickly assemble a crew. If damage is
aboard your submarine, click the yellow/orange/red room in the upper left
corner, and you'll see a fixing animation start to move.
<< Are there any other versions of Silent Hunter? >>
- Yes. There are official two previous releases - Silent Hunter & Silent Hunter
II both for the PC. Aside from Silent Hunter III which just came out during
middle 2005, the previous releases came out a tad earlier (96' & 01'
respectively). SSI developed both previous titles. In case you didn't know, SSI
is one of the most known developers of simulation games throughout their
careers. Both Silent Hunter games were a big success, as they represented
submarine simulation to the ultimate extreme. Ubisoft saw the sight for a
profit, and bought out the series for their own development team. Ubisoft
developed the third game, and upped the presentation values to accomodate
modern gaming. Hence, you get a masterpiece. If you are wondering, Silent
Hunter 4 has been announced, and was set for a late 2006 release. However,
recent news has said that the game was most likely cancelled due to lack of
interest. Guess we're stuck with SH3 forever. No problems there.
<< My Watchman disappears after I re-surface. How do I get him back? >>
- This was fixed in the last patch. If you dive underwater, and your Watch
Officer gets off the bridge, he actually hides away in the Stern Quarters. This
is a resting room since he is not needed anywhere else. To fix this, you have
to manually force him back onto the bridge when you surface. Surface the
submarine, then press F7 to enter the Crew Management screen. Look for the
officer's face in the Stern Quarters, then click and drag it to the Bridge
outpost. He'll reassume his position and reappear on your officer menu.
<< My torpedoes won't reload. What's going on? >>
- I believe this is a major glitch, although I could be mistaken. If you fire
out your torpedo tubes, but notice they're not getting reloaded, then click on
your Weapons Officer. Pick Weapons Management. Once at the screen, click on any
of your torpedoes, drag them out of the torpedo bay slot, then let go. For some
odd reason, the red light will turn green as if they were loaded all along.
However, it's almost like you gotta manually queue them to get loaded (it's
suppose to auto-load for you). Oddly enough, the game will then queue the last
torpedo bay with the timer (you'll see the torpedo meter slowly fill up). If
you hold your mouse over the torpedo, a timer counts down to how long it takes
to get reloaded. I'm not sure if this is a glitch, or a lack of crew operating
the torpedo rooms.
<< How do I get a better U-boat? >>
- During career mode, simply buy a new one under the U-boat area in your
office. Newer models cost more renown, so save it up by doing several patrols.
I'm going to admit, if you start your career in 1939, then it's gonna be real
boring. There's hardly any threatful actions, and you can only carry about six
torpedoes on the basic U-boat.
<< What's the most tonnage you've sunk on a patrol? >>
- Maybe 16K. I'm really not that good as a torpedo man. I use automatic aiming,
but I have a tendency not to maximize the effectiveness of the torpedoes. I
like long-range firing, or am very conservative and will only waste 2-3
torpedoes on a single target.
<< Have you ever experienced any cool replays? >>
- The best moment I've had with this game was during the U505 mission under the
missions mode. I started off by immediately nailing the lone destroyer in front
of me with two torpedoes. I fired both aft-side torpedoes, but missed the rear
destroyer. I cut a hard left at Ahead Flank towards the USS Guadalcanal
carrier. At about 3400 meters, I launched four forward torpedoes at the target,
hoping a majority would down the large mammoth. Soon enough, the destroyer from
behind me caught up, and started dropping depth charges. I was too slow to
dive, and the ship ended up swiping the top of my U-boat, gashing a hole in the
stern. My stern rudders were destroyed, and I could not rise. My ship started
to sink from medium flooding. I assembled a repair crew to help hold back the
damage, but it was too much. Soon enough, my submarine was dropping off a meter
every three seconds. I told the Radioman to start playing the Gramophone - aka
the German anthem. Meter by meter my U-boat sunk, however, we heard three out
of four impacts on the USS Guadacanal, then the crashing thump as the carrier
was destroyed. Mission accomplished. Our men stood high, proud, and plummeted
to the bottom with the objective complete. Of course, I forgot to save a
replay!
<< What's the latest patch? >>
- I believe the latest patch is v1.4b. Fixes several problems plagued in the
past. You need the same version in order to play against other players. Players
with different versions cannot play with each other. The patch can be acquired
at subsim.com, or Ubisoft's official website. Google it for mirror links.
<< Where can I get modifications? >>
- Subsim.com is your best choice. There are a few other fan sites that offer
links to download the mods as well. I know that there is a popular Reality mod
which fixes some of the "arcade elements" not tuned to realism in Silent Hunter
III. There are also several mods that add more military warships, and merchant
ships. I am not sure if there are any mods which revamp the entire engine.
<< Where can I get custom missions? >>
- Try subsim.com again. I'm sure they'd have a list of custom missions created
by people fooling around with the mission editor.
=====================================================
- 8) Copyright/Distribution/Reproduction Guidelines -
=====================================================
This FAQ/Strategy Guide/Walkthrough is my own published work, and copyrighted
by Christopher Zawada. Whatever you do, DO NOT edit this FAQ in any way. DO
NOT steal anything from this FAQ. If you want to use some information in your
own guide, simply ask me. If you want to place this guide on your website,
either link to the GameFAQs game page, or download the file and place it on
your own web server. Basically, you can post this on your website as long as
it's in ORIGINAL form, and not linking directly to GameFAQs. Aside from that,
all proper credit is due when necessary. Also, don't even think about selling
FAQs. Trying to prosper off of other people's work will get you in big time
trouble (coming from an eBay seller myself).
Any site out there has permission to host my FAQs (following the above terms),
however, these are a list of current sites that host my FAQs officially:
============================
- 9) Proper Credit -
============================
I'd like to thank the following people for their help in making this FAQ
possible:
)) CJayC (( for constantly updating GameFAQs, and dedicating his entire life
to it. Takes a lot of effort to keep a site going this long.
)) Rootsecure.net (( for letting me use an excellent ASCII generator, which
composed this typical-style art. Excellent.
)) Ubisoft (( for taking the Silent Hunter series to a whole new level. The
presentation, detailing, and game engine were simply perfect.
)) Gamewinners.com (( for proving that the only cheats were trainers and/or
editing game files.
)) Silent Hunter III GameFAQs Board (( for their excellent opinionated topics.
)) Subsim.com (( for being the best Silent Hunter III resource when it comes to
getting mods, missions, or custom features.
"Some people make sacrifices to make other people happy." - Chris Zawada
"Freeeeeeddooommmmmmmmm!" - William Wallace (Braveheart)
