User Guide

Submarine Class Selection
The type of submarine used can be selected for any of the single mission sce-
narios from a range of vessels available at that date. For Historic Missions, the
type of submarine used in the actual encounter is preselected. Each type of
submarine is displayed with statistical details by left-clicking on the list of
classes. Left-clicking on the Description button toggles to a brief description.
Confirm the choice of a particular class by left-clicking on the Select button.
For more details about the submarine classes available in S ILENT H UNTER see
the “Submarines” section on page 40.
Victory or Defeat
The scenario continues until the submarine is destroyed or all enemy vessels
are beyond contact range. This can be because they have been sunk, they
have outrun the submarine, or the submarine has evaded all pursuit.
At this point a scoring screen appears which correlates the level or realism
and the number of enemy vessels damaged or sunk and presents the score.
Left-clicking on the Exit button returns you to the Single Mission menu.
THE CAREER MENU
The Career Menu is where the campaign game begins. Starting at any point
in the war, a series of war patrols are performed that can then be compared
to those of some of the greatest submariners ever.
Starting a Career
Enter the name of the submarine’s commander and select a starting month
and year for this career. Up to twenty different careers can be accommo-
dated by the career roster; if all twenty positions have been used, a new
career must be entered over an older career.
The date chosen determines what classes of equipment are available to the
commander. This includes submarine classes, and features such as radar,
improved torpedoes, and radar detectors.
Best Careers
This option displays the top careers to date.
Main Menu
This button returns to the Main Menu.
SILENT
HUNTER
10 STARTING THE GAME: Submarine Class Selection
Sailing Model
The Sailing Model controls the maneuverability of the submarine, affecting
dive time, maximum speed in heavy seas, turn rate and the likelihood of the
submarine running aground. Realism drops by 10% for each reduction in
level; from Realistic to Intermediate and from Intermediate to Novice.
Difficulty Rating
The Difficulty Rating is based on the effects of changing the realism settings
above. The mission score for completed missions is modified by the level of
realism chosen. The higher the realism setting, the higher the potential score.
Realism and Japanese Anti-Submarine Warfare
The realism setting determines the effectiveness of Japanese anti-subma-
rine warfare (ASW). Throughout most of WWII, the Japanese Navy believed
that no submarine could dive below 200 feet and survive, so most of their
ASW efforts were expended at depths between 50 and 150 feet. In deep
water, U.S. fleet submarines could dive routinely below 200 feet and so
were able to survive repeated depth charge attacks.
In S ILENT H UNTER , the Combat Level setting can be used to increase realism
beyond 100%. This reflects Japanese ASW efforts that take into account the
full capabilities of U.S. submarines.
SILENT
HUNTER
9 STARTING THE GAME: Realism