BoghieWanKanobie

Yeah, it is worth. How long does it take to get 12 million credits - not very long. And, 90K FreeXP - what else are you going to spend it on. However, Wargaming 'would have had me at hello' if the 10pt captains WERE the historical captains. I REALLY want an Admiral Vian. I have the Cossack because of him - what a stud. I think I'm going to do a bit of research on the others now. Yeah, Wargaming would have had me at hello - and they wouldn't even have to take me out to dinner.

Going to blend these together... Job 1: KEEP your DDs ALIVE Job 2: KILL the enemy DDs Keep your DD(s) alive while in any ship class. Do it even if I am floating around as your flanks DD - I suck, but I suck horribly in a DD. Keep even DD Turds like me alive. DDs are your eyes and ears and they dominate late game. Even I will accidentally spot stuff while floating aimlessly around. Given almost any situation where you have a reasonable choice of targets, target the enemy DD over anything else. That will blind the enemy shooters on your flank. That will give your DD(s) the chance to dominate the game.

Lots of options... The one thing you definitely don't want to do is run away and blind fire your ASW. Sometimes you just have to stand your ground. Subs are extremely fragile. I really haven't had much trouble against them. I don't think I have dealt with an Alliance (spelling?) and I have just cracked Tier VIII in the tech tree so there is that. Basically, think of dealing with a sub in the same way as I was coached in basketball to handle a full court press. Most of the time you attack the press. Some of the time you post up and methodically deal with it. You never just scatter and one-on-one it. Way too many players in this game are passives that just scatter at any sign of competition. Then you are picked off one by one. Same same with CVs. Fight them, keep them spotted, pen them in - everybody wants to gank subs. Your whole team will be on that guy.

First, actually read and 'study' Ariskandir's post 'How to Dodge Homing Torpedoes' . If you are overly worried about subs then you are likely stationary, straight lining, or otherwise out of position. This is similar to dealing with carriers. Unless you are in 'snapshot' range then subs are just kinda DDs. If you are in 'snapshot' range in a ship as you describe then you ain't doing it right regardless of what you are up against. Ariskandir covers various methods of dealing with homing torps in that very concise thread. It really should be a locked thread - oooo, and it is. Ok, given that you have read that thread and have not remained the easiest of targets, how do you attack a sub. I think if I were picking a ship to specifically hunt subs - while still being able to survive surface combat and CVs - I would grab a HE spam cruiser with ASW. That combo gives you nice guns to deal with surfaced subs and ASW to kill them - or, at least give them a reason to stand off you. Both of these weapon systems can be used while dealing with the torps to some extent. Also, don't 'blind fire' your ASW. ASW is your heavy hitter, hit with it. Also, don't be a lone wolf. You don't have to clump up, but be ready to support with ASW and gunfire and be able to be supported by the same. Everybody wants to gank subs - give them the chance. If you run into a sub captained by a Purple Toga Player and he/she/symbol is inside your OODA loop then get ready for a good Death Pic. At least you can send that to Zath But, that is the case with anything - eh...

And, if I remember... I saw him in the Forum about six months later - and, he had a lot of recent games... Too funny. I remembered the same thing. Not saying this chap will do that. Folks will do what is right for them.

@dominicusD, yes and no... Let's handle the 'No' first: Assuming you chumped it up and some player just has to be mad about it - are you going to mysteriously fall out a high rise window in Moscow? Nope. Then, it really doesn't matter. Now, the yes: Do you know the effort it took for that guy to message you? It ain't much, but it is more than most will do: You had to draw the players attention - in his eyes you stood out among 10 other players for all the wrong reasons He had to think you were the reason for the loss. You were not the middling yodels doing the normal yodeling. After the game he had to right click your name Put you in his contact list Find you in his contact list Right click your name in his contact list and, send you a wonderful port gift straight from the heart. Given the above, I would: Look at his stats If his stats suck I would casually review the complaint. If he is horrid his complaint is likely garbage, but you never know. If his stats were average+ I would really contemplate the complaint. It could be a learning tool even if tactless. You might find the acorn you were snuffing for. And, if you are participating in a Zero Sum mode like 'Ranked' and you are a duffer at that tier, maybe get a bit better. If you are not ready for Tier VIII don't play it in 'Ranked' or whatever. Why are stats important: If you are not gaming the stats (and that will be obvious) then they tell you where you were, where you are going, and where you need to improve to reach your goals. If your goal is to be a PermaBad then I guess they are of no value, but if you want to reach middling-decent and you are statistically bad then break them down and improve. Stats don't lie. Your teams are statistically the same as some 54%er when the game count is high enough. However, a 54%er will do something to go +6% over the average duffer, a 42%er will do something to go -6% on the same team. The curve is VERY peaky. That is, a 54%er is probably in the Top Quintile while a 42%er is in the Bottom Quintile. If you want to reach the attainable goal of being middling-decent just look at your stats and work to improve one of them. Not hard. What is the value of being middling. Well, the next step is being good. It would be nice to be good at something you spend time, energy, and even money on. And, if you are average you are doing average things. Erazer is purple, goes to purple places, does purple things. Erazer can carry a game if you do average. Similarly, if you don't do dumb then nobody notices you doing dumb and you do not get slammed during in-game chat - and nobody bothers with tracking you down in port. GLHF

You are playing 2 Tiers higher. You are now playing at an average of Tier 9.4. You will be running up against the best players in the game. Your internal stats can be better, but their understanding of the game gives them a tremendous edge. Those players simply do not care if you damage the Noobs around them, they will kill you with aggression, positioning, angling, etc.. If you dropped bat to Tier VII or VIII my money is that your WR will start going up. However, you might be ready for the challenge at Tier XI - so...

Like diamonds, Captains are forever A ship is just a ship. That fling will likely not last. However, the Napoli is used in Clan Battles. I am in the same position as you. I have about 200K coal and am looking at either a captain or grinding a bit more for a Napoli. Since I have Luigi both options are in play for me. However, Luigi is the only high end captain I have - so Lutgens or Kuznetsov are also options since I am enjoying the Soviet cruisers and German battlecruisers.

I would like to take the time to thank Mordt and you guys. This discussion is helpful to me. I never really understood the power of a 7% buff to dispersion.

Someone posted a similar question in ClydePlaysLive's Twitch chat. This was an amazing comment by FoamingJetty: Well, there it is. The answer is 42. And, you will be spotted, just make sure it is your decision. I cannot recommend the following two streams more than the succinct and concise comment quoted above. You want to learn, these streams would be a great place. ClydePlaysLive: www.twitch.tv/clydeplayslive FoamingJetty: www.twitch.tv/foamingjetty Another great stream for a budding cruiser main (since he is a cruiser main and that seem rare) is: TustNe1: https://www.twitch.tv/trustne1

fuchsJaeger, 1st, these are my bona fidis. My stats. <sarcasm>The very reason I can yammer in this thread with great authority!!! (1)</sarcasm>. That out of the way, after watching the Mainz and Belfast games here are the good to great things: You survive. You have a vote mid to end game. I think that is why your WR is better than it should be considering the internal stats (kills, survival). You do seem to see threats well and you seem to want to be able to use 'terrain' well. I think you are prioritizing survival over aggression. But, this thread is about improvement. Your vision of threats is good, but your positioning for those threats is gawd awful. Watch your replays with that thought in mind and see for yourself. How many times do you have vision on a threat and remain broadsided to that threat. In fact, in the Belfast game (winning one) you initially set yourself up to be broadsided to everyone on the enemy team. Use that vision advantage to configure yourself for a blend of survival (kite or nose in) and aggression (give yourself enough room to kite/maneuver. That border hugging positioning on the Belfast game required a kiting format - your north/south positioning resulted in you ONLY being able to straight line to the north for 'evasion'. Your would have been destroyed if spotted. A kiting position would have allowed a south, a south east, or a mix of movement. Other examples are prevalent, but I'll give one other that happened mid-game in the Mainz game. You spotted that Duncan while you were unspotted - yet you remained broadside and fired off a salvo. Turn out or turn in. Make yourself a hard target. That Duncan was either much more concerned about something else or he/she was a Noob. You are playing high tier games, don't count on either of those things. And, you had all day to configure yourself before firing. You are EXTREMELY passive. You are playing the limit line, not the concealment line. In a cruiser you WILL be spotted and you have to support the win while spotted. You should be in a defensible position (in cover, kiting, bow in, whatever), but you have to be willing to lob some effective steel downrange. I don't think 16km is effective range for you. You don't want to be THE Priority Target, but a cruiser has to be in the fight to do anything. On this, it is weird that you have IFA, it flares up for obvious reasons (you broadsided the Soviet Soyuze (sp???) for multiple volleys in the Mainz game), and you take no evasive action. You were completely focused on the CV for whatever reason and took huge and game ending blows from that BB. I don't think you hit any WASD keys in that whole time. BTW, why chase a carrier around the map - see below. You are living till you don't. This is not really presented in the replays, but your survival rate is low. I'm going to surmise that you are not sinking anything and doing minimal damage and then you get ganked by multiple ships 3/4ths of the way through the game. You are playing WAY TO DEFENSIVELY. For example, in the Belfast game (winning) you did not support that DD with any real steel downrange. That dude did everything by himself. On the other hand, it was a stud move to smoke him when you did - that one move may have won that game. But, that move was again defensive. You have got to position yourself to be both defensive and aggressive. The conceal line is your friend. A small target Belfast with smoke is probably a very hard target to hit. In the Mainz game I saw the same issues. You have got to accept that to have an effect on the game you have to take a risk. Just minimize that risk. Not everything will be perfect. When in a knife fight you will get cut, just win the fight. Focus on positioning yourself while unspotted to get the first salvo in while being a crappy target. And, take the time to ensure you get that first salvo on target. If you do that you have the first shot advantage and you have taken the edge. Finally, even though you came through for the DD in the Belfast game I am certain he would have appreciated seeing some shells flying over his bridge from someone on that flank - you. In that Mainz game, why focus the CV? He/she is a chip damage enemy and your team needed you where the enemy was. If the CV was any other ship (see the Amagi in the Belfast game) than you were the dude who was chasing the kiter. When I played basketball on a traveling team we had a term - LTD (Leave The Dork). Just 'Leave The Dork' to do dork stuff. The CV wasted your time. The Amagi pulled you out of the fight and wasted your time. The Amagi was no threat, the CV was a minimal threat. For that Amagi to become a threat he/she would have to sail back into vision. He/she would get one salvo off, but then you/team could adjust. Leave that dork on the blue line doing dork stuff. Notes: (1) I suck, pay much more attention to the advice of good players

Tater_Dawg (streamer) showed me how to use one captain on ships of different classes. Only one of them can be Tech Tree (your Hannover), but then you can train him for DDs, Cruisers, CVs, and Subs. You probably already know that because he is a 21 pointer, but... I think the only things I can bring to the conversation are: The vision line is your life line. Plan your salvos around that vision line. Be butt toward the enemy (kiting) so you can shoot and scoot. Then, be paying attention to 'Priority Target'/'Incoming Fire Alert'. If you remain unlit, or are not a 'Priority Target' then dial in another salvo. If IFT flares off run like hell and DON'T SHOOT unless someone got way inside your vision line. That should not happen if you are doing it right. If you are somebodies 'Priority Target' make yourself a difficult target. Speed juke a bit, do a bit of A/D wiggling, etc. - but stay in the area. Get more salvos off. Regardless, your game should be played on the vision line or after it - not inside it. The max range line is your limit line and your bait the shot trap. You will likely hit nothing way out there. Don't fire at targets on the limit line if it means you will be spotted. However, make yourself kinda inviting for the enemy to take a pot shot. It is a wonderful thing when some dummy lights himself up for a terrible percentage shot that you can just juke. The area between those lines is where you will shake your money maker. Almost always focus down DDs. Maybe take a peek at the player panels and note the clan battle colors and/or the kill count. See someone with 4 kills, focus him/her over some doof (like me) floating around aimlessly with no kills. However, in general ALWAYS focus DDs. It is your job. It's WHY your ship was built the way it was built. By focusing down the enemy DDs you give your DDs a chance to dominate the game. By allowing your DD to die early you are just setting yourself up for some post-death typing about how awful the team is or whatever. Your DD CANNOT die - even if he/she is an idiot. Even an idiot (I am a major idiot in a DD) can flop around and spot things by accident. If your DD dies, IMMEDIATELY assume a fighting kite attitude. Do NOT push in. And, still focus their DD(s) from a kite. Some of your best games (damage and WR) are from a weak side kite done well. I also looked at your stats. You seem to be able to win without doing much damage. I have the same issue. We are NOT good players. Both our WRs are below 50%, but we DO win more than we should. However, if I were you, I would very much focus on positioning (see above) and getting some kills. You need to make the enemy fear you. Right now they don't care about you. Something is amiss there. You need to be sending more steel downrange - and, you need to be doing it more effectively. I have to guess that you are shooting from beyond your personal effective range. Get in a bit closer, take more careful shots, and be ready to skedaddle. Earlier this year my comfortable range was about 10km, it is probably up to about 12 - 13km now. It takes work. Stick with it. Happy Hunting.

Eh, There is very little - or NO - similarity between the spotting mechanics of WoWS and WoT. For one thing, in WoT, once you are spotted you are spotted (whether you fire or not) for ten or more seconds. You cannot get unspotted even if you move behind hard cover. Also, the equivalent to 'Priority Target' does not activate for three seconds - that is, you are lit for three seconds and then the signal goes off. Finally, if you are lit you do not have ongoing notification of being lit. Personally, I find being spotted in WoWS is much less dangerous than being lit in WoT. In WoWS I have found it is mostly dependent on YOUR decisions on when you get spotted. Therefore, you should have an out plan.

Give the British battlecruisers a try. Battleship guns, better accuracy, better mobility, and stealthier. Might be the sweet spot for you. I'm really enjoying them...

I think you answered your own question here... What @HazeGrayUnderway mentioned is important. Cruisers are more survivable than destroyers, but they can vaporize in a blink. You like the high tier heavy cruisers because they don't mist their way back to port like some wayward magician's trick. However, that survivability is just slight of hand if you are positioned incorrectly. Yeah, you will live longer, but your affect on the game is really no different. Everybody else has more armor, more jukes, more of everything. You plinging around for more time does not do more to help your team. Maybe spend more time in the Tier VI - VIII cruisers BECAUSE they force proper positioning, proper timing, and proper targeting. Then again, note my WR. Me is trash.