FredMSloniker fucked around with this message at 02:01 on Mar 14, 2015

• 1942, January 14, 0746: Task force continues to attack USS Plunger with depth charges and active sonar. Lieutenant Commander Fred Sloniker orders boat rigged for silent running and sets course away from the task force.
  
  
• 0756: Sonar indicates the majority of the task force ships are behind USS Plunger, with one ship to port and none ahead. LtCdr Sloniker maintains course. Indications are that task force cannot find the boat and is depth-charging her former location.
  
  
• 0920: Sonar reports no contacts remain. USS Plunger maintains course.
  
  
• 0930: Sonar reports still no contacts. LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat hard to port to ensure no ships are hiding in the sound of her propellers.
  
  Oddly, the noise that blocks your sonar directly behind you doesn't seem to stop even if you're on electrics and at all stop.
  
  
• 0954: Having completed its turn without revealing contacts, USS Plunger rises to periscope depth.
  
  
• 0958: No ships spotted. USS Plunger surfaces and resumes patrol.
  
  
• January 15, 1339: USS Plunger has been on patrol off of Tarokan Island for over 96 hours. With fuel reserves now at 25%, LtCdr Sloniker reluctantly orders the boat back to port.
  
  
• January 18, 1045: USS Plunger returns to base without a single additional sighting.

HerpicleOmnicron5 fucked around with this message at 19:30 on Mar 14, 2015

FredMSloniker fucked around with this message at 21:03 on Mar 15, 2015

• 1942, February 4, 0846: USS Plunger sets out from Surabaya for its patrol of the Molucca Sea choke point. Lieutenant Commander Fred Sloniker is hopeful that, this patrol, he will be able to successfully sink a Japanese vessel.
  
  
• February 7, 0616: USS Plunger reaches patrol zone. LtCdr Sloniker makes routine report, receives further orders:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Conduct scouting operations in the Molucca Passage for the next 36hrs and remain within 100nm of the point. If IJN units detected move into your area report to ABDA Task Force 3 ASAP. If IJN units are detected outside of the Patrol area, proceed at your discretion to intercept and destroy.
  
  LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat to travel between Kema, a port on the coast of Celebes, and Ternate, a city on the coast of Maluku. Any traffic through the choke point must cross that line.
  
  
• February 8, 1816: USS Plunger completes patrol. LtCdr Sloniker makes routine report, receives message:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Conduct Combat Operations in the Molucca Sea at your discretion, remain on station as long supplies are adequate.
  
  USS Plunger resumes patrol.
  
  
• 2103: Deck watch calls an alarm: an island has been sighted directly ahead of USS Plunger. LtCdr Sloniker immediately orders emergency reverse, narrowly avoiding running aground. Examining the map afterwards reveals that a carelessly placed map marker obscured the tiny island of Pulau Maju. The patrol route is adjusted to avoid it in future.
  
  Okay, let's take a quick look at what almost killed us. See this?
  
  
  
  Notice anything amiss? Of course you don't, because there's a huge honking star on the map. Let's zoom into that star a bit, shall we?
  
  
  
  That's what got my heart racing. Thankfully I didn't have time acceleration up too high, so throwing her into reverse kept us out of trouble. The first screenshot was actually taken after the second, and you can see the adjusted patrol route and the 5 nm circle I drew around the island, just to be safe.
  
  
• February 10, 0102: USS Plunger receives flash traffic:
  
  From: ComSubAsia
  
  To: Forces Afloat
  
  Heavy IJN units in transit from Cam Ranh Bay to eastern Sumatra. Expected to be in the area of 03N 10830E at approximately 1800 on the 11th of February. Units operating within striking distance attempt to intercept.
  
  USS Plunger cannot reach location in time. LtCdr Sloniker makes routine report, receives the following reply:
  
  GOOD WORK X NO NEW OBJECTIVE AT THIS TIME X PATROL ANOTHER AREA OF YOUR CHOICE OR RETURN TO BASE X
  
  USS Plunger continues patrol.
  
  
• February 11, 0950: USS Plunger's fuel reserve down to 50 percent. LtCdr Sloniker makes another routine report and is again informed that there are no objectives for his boat at this time. He briefly considers striking at the coast of Manila, but ultimately orders USS Plunger back to base.
  
  
• February 15, 0636: USS Plunger sights a ship patrolling Surabaya. This is the only ship that she has spotted in open water for her entire patrol. Docking swiftly follows.

FredMSloniker fucked around with this message at 03:03 on Mar 19, 2015

• 1942, February 27, 0000: USS Plunger sets out from Surabaya, its destination the Makassar Strait. Its route is plotted to avoid shallow waters. Lieutenant Commander Fred Sloniker orders ahead flank.
  
  
• 2257: USS Plunger reaches its patrol area, makes routine report to COMSUBPAC. Further orders received:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Conduct combat operations for the next 36hrs within 100nm of the Makassar Strait ( Central). If IJN units detected move into your area report to ABDA Task Force 3 ASAP. If IJN units are detected outside of the Patrol area, proceed at your discretion to intercept and destroy.
  
  LtCdr Sloniker orders a patrol course back and forth across the strait, ahead standard.
  
  
• March 1, 1056: Patrol complete without event. LtCdr Sloniker makes routine report. Further orders received:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Reset patrol area to the Southeast Makassar Strait / Makassar City for the next 36hours. Remain with 100miles of the center of the patrol area.
  
  USS Plunger sets course, ahead flank.
  
  Incidentally, I've been presenting these orders exactly as given in-game. I don't know if the inconsistent English is an authentic 'make the encryption harder to break' thing, the fault of a less than literate mod team, or a little of each.
  
  
• 1712: USS Plunger reaches patrol area. LtCdr Sloniker orders ahead standard, then consults navigational map to determine ideal patrol. After some debate, he orders the boat stationed off the coast of Makassar City itself, reasoning that any targets of interest will be traveling to or from it.
  
  
• March 2, 1742: Small split freighter spotted! LtCdr Sloniker orders dive to periscope depth, ahead flank, and pursuit course set.
  
  
• 1828: Estimated freighter speed is roughly equal to USS Plunger's submerged flank speed. Some distance can be closed because USS Plunger is not directly behind freighter, but waiting will present a smaller target. There is also the matter of the target's nationality, which has yet to be established due to rough seas. LtCdr Sloniker elects to continue to pursue.
  
  
• 1845: Freighter's sails finally clearly visible. The vessel is Dutch, and therefore off limits. LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat to surface and return to patrol position, ahead flank.
  
  
• March 3, 0437: patrol complete. LtCdr Sloniker makes routine report, receives further orders:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Remain on patrol in the central Makassar Strait / Balikpapan Ara. Patrol area at your discretion, remain on station as long supplies are adequate.
  
  Frustrated by the lack of viable contacts, LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat north through the strait. What he has yet to tell the crew is where he actually intends to take it...

FredMSloniker fucked around with this message at 07:23 on Mar 26, 2015

FredMSloniker fucked around with this message at 06:24 on Mar 25, 2015

• 1942, March 5, 1044: After over 48 hours of sailing at flank speed, USS Plunger reaches Lieutenant Commander Fred Sloniker's desired hunting grounds: the mouth of the bay outside of Davao. USS Plunger settles in to blockade the port for 96 hours or until something of interest happens.
  
  
• 1401: Less than four hours into the blockade, new orders are received:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Proceed to a position along the Japanese-Singapore shipping lanes (1430N 112E by 150nm) and conduct anti-shipping operations. Remain on station for 96hrs, however if IJN units are detected outside of the Patrol area, proceed at your discretion to intercept and destroy. Make reports to higher authority as necessary.
  
  Grumbling at the timing of the orders, LtCdr Sloniker nonetheless orders the blockade abandoned and ahead standard to the patrol area.
  
  This actually happened because I decided to radio in, not expecting anything to happen. Apparently poking COMSUBPAC with a stick was what was needed to get them to wake up and give us a mission, though!
  
  
• March 6, 0529: Diving officer reports fuel reserve below 50%. USS Plunger still has more than sufficient fuel to perform operations and return to Surabaya, but a note is made.
  
  
• March 8, 0102: Radioman reports op immediate traffic received:
  
  EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY SHIFT BASE OF OPERATIONS TO FREMANTLE AUSTRALIA X
  
  The captain and crew of USS Plunger were unaware that, a mere day after they left Surabaya, the Battle of the Java Sea began, a battle that has just ended disastrously for the Allied forces. Fremantle is 1500 nautical miles from Surabaya as the crow flies. The Plunger's fuel situation has suddenly become much worse.
  
  After tense discussions over the map board, LtCdr Sloniker decides that sufficient fuel remains to carry out their patrol, then return to Darwin, Australia for refueling before seeking out new orders. USS Plunger maintains course.
  
  
• 1735: USS Plunger reaches patrol area and receives a confirmation of its orders:
  
  From: COMSUBPAC
  
  To: USS Plunger (SS-179)
  
  Conduct anti-shipping operations. Remain on station for 96hrs.
  
  LtCdr Sloniker orders a patrol route that widely sweeps the assigned area, ahead two thirds to conserve fuel.
  
  
• March 10, 1026: Aircraft spotted; LtCdr Sloniker orders an immediate crash dive. While observations taken through the periscope before it is submerged as well indicate that the aircraft did not spot USS Plunger, the boat nevertheless remains submerged.
  
  
• 1130: USS Plunger surfaces. Shortly thereafter, a junior officer reports an alarming finding: the expected range of the boat (calculated from the vessel's speed and the rate of fuel consumption) has dropped sharply for no reason he can explain. It is now uncertain whether USS Plunger has enough range to reach Darwin. LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat stopped while an investigation is carried out.
  
  The cause of the discrepancy is soon identified: after the crash dive, LtCdr Sloniker failed to give the order to reduce from flank speed. As a result, the batteries have been depleted to under 50% charge, and the fuel demands from both propelling the boat and recharging the batteries are causing artificially low efficiency. Darwin is still within reach.
  
  It wasn't until I was writing this report up that I realized I hadn't come close to disaster here. I genuinely thought I'd have to limp home at 1/3 speed, if I could get home at all. I hadn't realized until I tried to explain it just now why my range dropped so much.
  
  
• March 11: Morale aboard the USS Plunger is low, due in part to the lack of action on patrol and in part to embarrassment over LtCdr Sloniker's earlier mistake. His birthday goes unobserved.
  
  
• March 12, 1804: It has now been over 96 hours since beginning of patrol. LtCdr Sloniker radios for new orders, but is told to continue patrol. Unwilling to admit defeat even as fuel supplies drop, LtCdr Sloniker continues patrol.
  
  Two things going on here. First, because of the aforementioned confusion about how much range I had, I was actually sitting still while I waited out the 96 hours. However, it appears that the objective was actually 'sink something', as it didn't complete after the allotted time. I didn't want to go back to port with an incomplete, so I waited.
  
  
• March 13, 0000: After six hours of struggling with himself, LtCdr Sloniker orders USS Plunger to Darwin, ahead two thirds. Morale continues to be low, with only the promise of returning once the boat is refueled keeping the men's spirits alive.
  
  I started ahead one third, then saw, to my surprise, that I had way more range than I was expecting (the batteries had recharged while I sat around). So I nudged it up to two-thirds and saw that I could still make it.
  
  
• March 14, 0229: Diving officer reports fuel reserve below 25 percent. USS Plunger maintains course and speed.
  
  
• March 15, 1633: As USS Plunger passes the island province of Tawi Tawi, the officer on deck spots a merchant vessel. Despite the fuel situation, LtCdr Sloniker immediately orders the boat to periscope depth and to pursue the ship ahead flank.
  
  
• 1639: The merchant vessel is 7200 yards away and tentatively identified as Japanese. The boat will need to get within 4500 yards to make a shot with fast-running torpedos, so LtCdr Sloniker continues the pursuit.
  
  
• 1643: The merchant vessel is now 5400 yards away, maintaining a constant course and speed of 11 knots, and definitely identified as Japanese. LtCdr Sloniker orders a course change, aiming to incercept, rather than merely pursue, the ship.
  
  
• 1647: With further information on the vessel's course and speed available, LtCdr Sloniker orders another course change to refine the intercept. The ship is now 3200 yards away and closing.
  
  
• 1650: The merchant vessel is now 2500 yards away. LtCdr Sloniker orders all forward tubes opened.
  
  
• 1653: The merchant vessel is now 2000 yards away. Fearing USS Plunger will be detected if it gets much closer, LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat brought about to aim directly at the ship.
  
  
• 1655: The merchant vessel is now 1943 yards away and presenting a clear broadside. LtCdr Sloniker orders all four forward tubes fired, aiming them at points along the ship's profile.
  
  
• 1656: Three of the torpedoes are clean misses. The fourth is seen to impact on the ship's stern, but does not explode. LtCdr Sloniker orders an immediate pursuit, ahead flank, and all hands to the torpedo room.
  
  LtCdr Sloniker's rage is palpable. Also, I probably should have pushed the 'battle stations' button sooner.
  
  
• 1700: The merchant vessel begins to turn, alerted to USS Plunger's presence. LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat immediately surfaced and pursuit flank.
  
  
• 1705: On the surface, USS Plunger can outrun the merchant vessel, especially as it continues to make sharp turns in the hopes of spoiling torpedo fire. Not wishing to enter range of whatever guns it may have, LtCdr Sloniker orders reduction in speed to ahead 1/3, aiming to maintain a range of about 1500 yards.
  
  
• 1707: Tube four reloaded. LtCdr Sloniker waits for the merchant vessel to begin turning away from USS Plunger, then fires a slight leading shot, anticipating the ship will make a right turn next.
  
  
• 1708: A sudden eldritch scream freezes the world seconds before the torpedo will either hit or miss. Some would later say that it sounded much like the captain's name...

• 1942, March 15, 1709: The world unpauses.
  
  My mom's got pneumonia, and she chose that exact moment to yell for help loud enough for my headset to pick up. Needless to say, I didn't want to keep her waiting. In real life, the streamers had to wait over ten minutes to find out that...
  
  LtCdr Sloniker has guessed correctly. The torpedo impacts the merchant vessel approximately 1/5 of the way down the length of the boat. Fire immediately breaks out on-deck.
  
  To quote myself from the stream, 'Holy poo poo, we hit something!'
  
  
• 1711: The merchant vessel is listing forward, but it is still maneuvering and has not lost speed. LtCdr Sloniker decides to put a second torpedo into it, then depart before planes can arrive.
  
  
• 1717: Tube one is loaded. LtCdr Sloniker orders the tube opened and waits for his chance.
  
  
• 1719: USS Plunger fires a second torpedo. This one, unfortunately, is a clean miss. Not wishing to linger any longer, LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat away from the merchant vessel.
  
  
• 1725: A last-ditch effort to put another torpedo or two into the ship is made, this time with the aft tubes. Both tubes miss.
  
  
• 1726: While no planes are visible, the officer on deck hears a faint drone, possibly a plane's engine. As a precaution, LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat to periscope depth.
  
  I actually did hear a droning sound while on the deck view, and I actually wasn't sure if it was a plane or not. At this point, though, I wanted to be super cautious.
  
  
• 1743: The merchant vessel is seen capsizing through the periscope. The crew rejoices.
  
  In actuality, this was just Silent Hunter 4's psychic 'you sunk my battleship merchant freighter!' message. Real Fleet Boat delays the message--in stock, you're told the instant the ship is doomed--but can't eliminate it without also eliminating your credit for the kill.
  
  
• 1758: As no plane has been sighted, LtCdr Sloniker orders the boat surfaced. It proceeds on course to Darwin, Australia, ahead two thirds. LtCdr Sloniker reports kill, receives this message:
  
  GOOD WORK X NO NEW OBJECTIVE AT THIS TIME X PATROL ANOTHER AREA OF YOUR CHOICE OR RETURN TO BASE X
  
  This also completed the 'sink something' objective from earlier.
  
  
• March 18, 2146: Diving officer reports fuel reserve below 10%. However, LtCdr Sloniker estimates only half that will be needed to reach Darwin.
  
  
• March 20, 1212: Diving officer reports fuel reserve below 5%. USS Plunger is less than 20 nautical miles out of Darwin.
  
  
• 1326: USS Plunger pulls into Darwin, refueling and re-arming. LtCdr Sloniker considers setting out again on immediate patrol, but the earlier high mood on board is shaken by news from the shore of the fleet's losses in Java,
  
  and I have a certain need to sink something and safely return to port at least once,
  
  so he elects instead to order the boat back to Fremantle.
  
  
• March 25, 0440: After an utterly uneventful five-day trip around the west coast of Australia at flank speed, USS Plunger returns home.