Blair's Hitler's U-Boar War recently made it's way back in to my reading rotation, and has rekindled a desire to once again set sail. I've done a number of AARs over the years here, and I recently revisited the most recent one, and it's all made me itch to return to the deep.

So I downloaded all the files I need to run both Operation Monsun and TMO for SH4.

But before I do so I wondered what I've missed. Like FotRS for example. What else? If you could only pick one mod for SH4 which one would it be and why?

Just wanted to be sure I had all the dope before casting lines.

I've found myself in the same boat, DBond. I am reading "Iron Coffins" and, like you, have been searching for some good U-Boat action. As it stands, there appear to be three options out there: SH4, SH5, and U-Boat, that fit the mix of visual and technical detail I'm looking for in a sub sim. I am not sure which one to go with just yet, and have been exploring mods for each.

I know and love SH4, but graphically it's getting long in the tooth, these days.

SH5 has great graphics but was pretty awful as a stock game. I have seen that there is a supermod for it that is supposed to be very good. My hang up with that is that it is apparently incompatible with Steam's SH5, which is the version I have.

U-Boat is pretty fun, but a much different approach than the Silent Hunter titles. It is great, visually, but there are a few gameplay points that I can't quite decide if I like, yet.

I used to be very into FotRS Ultimate. I have not played it, or followed it, for some time now. I'll fully admit that it could have changed direction but, in the case that it hasn't, I wouldn't recommend it.

The Wolves of Steel mod is now compatible with Steam version of SH5 .
Check here https://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=236598

Cheers,
Slug

Hey mate, how's things? Yeah, your post summed up where I am. By the way, I have Iron Coffins too. It's a great read, though controversial, as some things in the book have never been confirmed as true.

I checked out U-Boat, and wasn't convinced. I have SH5 but never actually played it,but if there's a good supermod perhaps I will.

FotRS is talked up on Subsim, but it's mostly the guys who made it. Perhaps that's because it's been out a while and the shine has worn off a bit. It makes sense to give this one a go I think.

TMO and Op Monsun I've played extensively, so I know what I'm getting with those two.



Thanks for the link. this is a SH5 mod correct? Gotta be with those weather graphics I reckon. Have you played it Slug? What's your impression?

Duh, you said it was SH5 right there in your post.

Hey buddy, things are well. Been a ghost around these parts for a while but still drop in from time to time to see what's new. How have you been? If you start another uboat career make sure and write up AARs like you used to. I always enjoyed them. I am enjoying Iron Coffins. I am about 1/3 through it. Interested to know what the controversy was.



I think I love UBoat for the water more than anything. It is gorgeous. There are some serious shortcomings though, crew morale and oxygen usage being the two most glaring right now for me.



FotRS is/was great! Not sure now, because I haven't updated it or followed it in a long time. What caused me to forego it was a major update push they did, where they made all the destroyers capable of firing torpedoes at your sub, even while submerged. I complained until blue in the face about how ahistorical that was, but the modders seemed convinced that they would've done it if they could've, or some nonsense. Sad. I miss playing it. Really made SH4 shine.



Excellent info. I will download and install that tomorrow, no doubt. I appreciate your input. I find it hard to get the most current scoop when coming to a forum a bit late to the party, as I am with SH5.

I'm doing fine thanks. Yes, if I get a new submarine career going I will probably document it in an AAR, as I tend to do haha.

I watched a few videos of U Boat, and I haven't written it off, but I'm not convinced enough right now. Plus I have never done EA. But it's on the wishlist so I can keep tabs on it.

Thanks for the thoughts on FotRS. I think I'd probably like it. But it's Blair's U-Boat book I'm reading lol. If it were his Pacific book I'd probably be looking at that mod instead of Op Monsun. It may just go without saying, but for me the two most essential books (actually three books) to get the whole picture of the submarine war in all oceans are Clay Blair's Silent Victory for the Pacific war, and Hitler's U-Boat War, which is two volumes, The Hunters covering 1939 though 1942, and The Hunted covering the remainder. I have a lot of sub books, but for me these are the best resources.

As for Iron Coffins, I read it first a long time ago, before I had heard any criticism. I really like the book. It paints such a vivid picture. It's just the sort of first hand account I love. The issue with the book is that there are things described in it that never happened. So it comes under criticism in the same way that Guy Sajer's Forgotten Soldier does. Written by authors who were there, but describing things and presenting them as factual when evidence either proves, or strongly suggests, it is fiction. Clouding the issue is that some of what is written is demonstrably true. So these books fall somewhere between historical record and fiction.

What is hard to tell is to what extent did the authors attempt to mislead, and how much is due to simply misremembering, which is no crime. But, especially in the case of Werner's book, it's held against him that he did in fact promote the book as factual, "setting the record straight". I was age two when the book was written, so I don't know first hand, but this is according to what I've read about it. There are some articles about the fact or fiction questions surrounding Iron Coffins on the 'net.

But people's opinions are one thing. Facts are another, so I got out my copy and had a look to see if I could recall any specific examples. I did.

In Iron Coffins Werner describes attacking Halifax 133 in June of 1941. June 24. He claims U-557 sank five ships for 30,000 tons, and was forced to abort with severe depth charge damage. But neither German nor Allied records bear this out, and it is assumed that U-557 sank no ships, nor required other than routine repair. Mis-claims are not at all uncommon in submarine warfare. Matter of fact, German confirmed claims proved after the war to have been roughly double that of post-war confirmation. But I think here is a clear fabrication, and not the only one in the book. For me, I still enjoy the book, I've re-read it since this came to light for me. But I approach it more as a historical novel, a book that sets the right tone and appeals to me. but I cannot see it any longer as a serious historical record, for better or worse.

In the end I decided to install Operation Monsun. I've played it before and it's a great mod. Commanding U-Boats in SH4 isn't necessarily better than doing so in SH3, but the game is a bit newer and much easier to install and get running. The SH3 supermods are excellent, but I just don't want to jump through the hoops. And I'm not convinced about that SH5 mod, as I'm not sure I want to follow that campaign. Maybe I won't want to be a drumbeater or sail to the Indian Ocean. Monsun allows me to be more in control of how it all plays out. So SH4 it is. Hard to believe this game came out thirteen years ago! How time flies.

This time I got the mod install right, using JSGME, which makes it all so much easier.

This is the install order I went with

OpsMonsun_V705
OMv705_to_V720
OMv720_Patch5
OMEGU_v300
OMEGU_v300_Patch7
KiUB_English
Magnified Hud Dials for OM+OMEGU_Medium
OM Metric Nomograph

The nomograph was made for me years ago by Subsim member max-peck, and special thanks to him. I have a particular attack method, which requires a nomograph to determine speed, and this version is larger, metric, and easier for these old eyes to read. I would struggle without it. The larger HUD dials serve the same purpose, and the KiUB English is a fantastic attack persicope that can be seen in shots from my last AAR (but with the photobucket nonsense on them now). For skippers using manual targeting, it really is a fantastic periscope/TDC type mod.

Here's the previous AAR

https://SimHQ.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/4012656/sh4-operation-monsun#Post4012656

The plan now is to conduct trials, and get some torpedo shooting practice until I feel qualified for command once more. Then set sail and document it all in another AAR.

And in case anyone may be interested, 14 years ago I wrote an AAR here, and reposted it at Subsim. The idea was my boat had been assigned to the "Jadgbootwaffe", a small force of type VIIs tasked with attacking warships only. I wrote it like a patrol report. This was in SH3. It's on this board, but I found it more easily on Subsim. The images are lost to time so text only now.

https://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=99445

Actually, now that I think about it, I probably posted it on Frugal's, not here, and that's why I couldn't find it.