AI constant helming
 

When you make an attack on a group of ships they will start constant helming along their base course. Does anybody know how long they will they do that before they return to base course on a constant heading?

Time varies, a lot has to do with size of group, type of ships, and the skill levels. Roughly hour to two they will somewhat resume normal helming but individual ships may continue to constant helm.


Best thing can do if want them to really settle down, is get ahead on their base course and lost contact...visual, radar, and sound. Check your sonar and make sure can no longer hear them yourself. Then turn around and go back down base course to reestablish contact, this allows them to regenerate and typically will be back in "normal" mod instead of "alert" , i.e. constant helming.

Thank you both, that is very helpful. I had no idea that sonar could detect beyond radar range.

Yes, its kind of a flaw in design of SH 4 in some ways, player can hear contacts in way too far, some cases 20,000+ yards, while your sonar operator is limited to track and reporting contacts based on the limits of the equipment set in the files.roughly 8000-10000 yards, depending on the mod.

Real life hydrophones had effective range but then a skilled operator under right conditions could often pick up noises quite a bit further than the listed range(like in SH 4, but not as far) of say 10,000 yards listed range. There were a lot of variables involved, not a black or white thing.


In the sensor hierarchy in SH4, when on surface with radar, radar ranks higher than the sound , so depending on the mods using (Some mods have hydrophones way too powerful, stock also) will nearly always detect contacts on radar or visual first when surfaced (another flaw, hydrophones were ineffective on surface when ship was underway due to prop/engine noises)

I used to always pull ahead and set up for another attack but after reading some patrol reports and with ability to do historical night surface attacks in TMO, I tend to attack, pull away then attack them again while they are disorganized. Can be a challenge while they constant helm but, their zigs are pretty easy to figure out typically and if can get in close, fired a spread, will get hits and sink them. Some times can get 2-3 attacks in before have to pull ahead before dawn, let them calm down, then conduct a submerged attack at or just after dawn.