SeaRaptor

Could even do it as a flashback clip in next year's show. ;)

<o Huge props to @clyde_plays for the hard work that went into assembling the show (and all the video editing!). It was an honor to be asked to participate, and I hope he continues things next year!

I'm absolutely certain we're all VERY excited for there to be more hybrid battleships in World of Warships, amirite?

I really enjoyed doing that. It was a bit slow to assemble - I am NOT the world's best video editor - but I enjoyed highlighting her work to more people. I think she needs the break, though. Still, if there is interest, I might reach out to her and see if she'd let me work on some of her back catalog. Lord knows there is enough there.

The stream this video was clipped from was one of the only ones I've had "interactions" with subs recently. Earlier in the evening I had absolutely crapped all over a sub with my Haida depth charges, and was feeling pretty good about things. Until this game in Loyang. I discovered later that the main reason for why this particular game feels so awful is because of the vast gulf between the damage of the depth charges of the two ships: Haida (5100 damage) versus Loyang (1700 damage). Haida's bombs hit nearly 3 times harder, which honestly feels appropriate to me given how hard they are to deliver effectively. I realize that things are still in motion regarding the blast radius of K-bombs and depth charges and such, but IMHO that kind of discrepancy is too large. I'm all for national flavor, but not at the expense of gameplay and/or player experience. I think the feedback I would have for WG based on this game is that they need to do a better job of standardizing DD depth charge damage. Small variations are fine and, honestly, expected. This isn't that.

More baguettes are inbound to the game as a new French premium cruiser introduces a split in the corresponding branch. Tier VII's Toulon brings the supercruiser concept down into the mid-tiers, which is both interesting and scary.

This was actually one of the better things they did as a part of the rework, IMHO. The increase to AA range in the old commander skill tree was gross. I forget the exact number now, but I used to run a table where I compared AA values by cruiser by tier; the key to the impact of that skill wasn't the linear range increase, it was the AREA increase of the AA bubble in question. Buffing old Cleveland - to pick an easy example - from her stock of 5.8km (I think?) to 7.2km was something like a 60% increase in the area of her AA bubble.

I remember when they first added the "accuracy" stat thinking that it would be a neat way to balance and differentiate some of the different nations/classes/ship types. "Oh, American BBs have more accurate AA - more of their AA DPS lands on target" or "German BB AA is average and just like everyone else" or "Japanese cruiser AA is sub-par and less accurate than its contemporaries". Alternately, I thought that perhaps they might use it to tweak AA values post-rework. BB AA being 75% accurate not getting it done? Turn it up to 80% and see what happens. But it's never been used. Ever. I don't even know if it serves a purpose anymore. It's just another "balancing factor" in holding back AA values. Ever since the AA rebalancing in summer of 2019, very few AA values have been touched at all. It's pretty obvious that a whole lot of players aren't happy with the current state of AA, but one wonders what WG thinks or if its even on their radar?

Honestly, hull aside, the sniping threat is a problem for the same reason it's an issue for Saipan: the total and complete lack of an outer AA bubble.

This is how I feel about her right now as well, but the proof is in the pudding. It's easy to judge a ship on paper stats alone, but they don't tell the full story. Without knowing her reticles or seeing her plane speed in action it's hard for me to gauge. The sniping threat is incredibly real. This is a "fleet carrier" that could get sniped by the likes of Saipan, even.

I would openly campaign for this ship as a T6 premium if I thought it would help.

The Regia Marina had only begun to dip their toes into naval aviation at the onset of World War II, but that legacy is soon arriving via Tier VIII Premium Italian aircraft carrier Aquila. Join me as we learn a bit more about Wargaming's design of this ship in-game.

Why the concern about overmatch? With SAP the full pen is the goal. 36mm of penetration absolutely makes a total hash of a non-zero number of heavy cruisers and battleships, provided you know where to aim.

Thanks, I could find this data on WOWSFT!

Tier VIII Premium American cruiser USS San Diego has come to live testing, which means we can finally have a look over the ship and talk about where she stands. She's been a touch controversial leading up to this (as most forum regulars are aware).