With a dual elevator fault you might well bust a flight level. I have never experienced it nor practiced in the sim, either, but I have known of real life cases where the crew requested altitude blocks.
with dual hydraulic or slats/flaps jammed you have no problem with that, even without AP/FD.
some checkys will screw you no matter what. I bet that if you had flown the holdings he would have screwed you for not requesting ATC assistance.
Of course, when being given vectors you still have to mind your navigation. specially with picky checkies. One advantage of the "vectors to remain 25 miles withing the airfield" is that a mere glance to the DME will tell you if navigation is OK. within 25, OK, approaching 25, be alert until they give you another vector, or even request it right away. Minimum brain power waste for navigation, maximum for troubleshooting.