HansBolter -> RE: Sub patrol zones (1/25/2019 8:40:43 PM)
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ORIGINAL: bradfordkay quote:
ORIGINAL: BBfanboy quote:
ORIGINAL: bradfordkay Be careful about "patrol around hex" settings in areas with high ASW activity. The legs on each section of the patrol zone are so short that your sub will rarely lower its detection level, making it more vulnerable to attack and less likely to get off one of its own attacks. I prefer to set fairly long legged patrol zones along known shipping routes, thus bringing the sub into and out of high ASW patrol areas and keeping its detection level down. I think this depends on where exactly you click. If you wanted to set a patrol around Marcus Island and click on the island, you should get a patrol with the island itself at one corner of the three waypoint hexes. If you click one hex away from Marcus, you get a fairly tight patrol zone around Marcus. But if you click at about 4 or 5 hexes from Marcus, you should get a PZ with much longer legs. Been a while since I used that feature but that is how I recall it. I just experimented with this and found that my earlier experience still rings true. Setting "patrol around target" on an empty sea hex - no matter where it is (I chose hexes in the middle of the open ocean between Truk and Marcus, between Saipan and Formosa, as well as between Midway and Wake) resulted in legs only 3-4 hexes long. This is not long enough to take your sub our of ASW a/c patrol range and reduce the detection level, IMO. Interesting. I never assessed it from that perspective. I too typically see 3-4 hex legs on patterns I allow the AI to establish. I will typically run with that unless it is a particularly bad pattern. However, I often establish distinct patterns with hexes chosen by me for the opposite reason you do because i want a tighter pattern. Another thing to be wary of is letting the AI establish the pattern close to straits or enemy ports with minefields. I'm in August of '45 in my current game and have had plenty subs venture into dangerous waters. Sometimes because I didn't look closely at the pattern established and sometimes because they chase prey out of their patrol patterns into mined straits. The game has so much variability and randomization that we will never be able to efficiently plan and order perfect patterns that are adhered to religiously. After all I want my sub commanders to chase prey, just not into some of the places they have chosen to venture. [:D]
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