HEAP on the Zao

[yashma]

I'm not sure if this has been posted yet, but I've seen some gifs of the Zao using HEAP and that HE penetration looks fantastic, easily able to penetrate the Yamato's belt armor.  Given the already high fire chance of the Zao, this might actually be a viable pick.  Is taking HEAP on the Zao going to be worth it?  Given that HE shells that fail to penetrate only have half the fire chance, using HEAP might not actually affect the the fire starting rate all that much, as there are going to be a lot fewer shells failing to penetrate.  

 

 

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Also, does anybody know how to imbed gifs in forum posts?

[weednot43]

If you are 3.5km away from a Yami, in a Zao and not setting up a ambush to torp him, then you are doing it wrong.

[IronWolfV]

Question, anyone try it on German cruisers? Does it help at all?

[Fast_Battleship_Iowa]

Zao 8" HE should be more than enough to penetrate bow and stern armour of 32mm at that range. Problem is at greater ranges where it comes in at an angle and shatters on impact.

[ryuukei8569]

Zao 8" HE should be more than enough to penetrate bow and stern armour of 32mm at that range. Problem is at greater ranges where it comes in at an angle and shatters on impact.

 

Its not the angle thats the problem there, its when firing at further ranges your more likely to hit the 50-57 mm deck armor.

[TabbyHopkins]

This....

 

There will be sadistic science to do.

[SCygnus]

 

Its not the angle thats the problem there, its when firing at further ranges your more likely to hit the 50-57 mm deck armor.

 

R.I.P Montana, Again.

[Phoenix_jz]

Isn't HE penetration = 1/6(caliber)?

 

So Zao HE pen should be 38.3mm, so with HEAP(+25% pen) that should be 47.92mm.

 

You fire chance would then drop from 19% to 13%, barring any other captain skill or flag bonuses

[garfield001]

I'm not sure if this has been posted yet, but I've seen some gifs of the Zao using HEAP and that HE penetration looks fantastic, easily able to penetrate the Yamato's belt armor.  Given the already high fire chance of the Zao, this might actually be a viable pick.  Is taking HEAP on the Zao going to be worth it?  Given that HE shells that fail to penetrate only have half the fire chance, using HEAP might not actually affect the the fire starting rate all that much, as there are going to be a lot fewer shells failing to penetrate.  

 

https://gfycat.com/FreshFortunateBeardedcollie

 

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Also, does anybody know how to imbed gifs in forum posts?

 

You may want to test it from further away. I'm not sure how you're going to get that close in a real battle. You should test it to max or close-to-max range, then compare it to normal HE and for completion sake, compare it with AP. You could also compare the results at different angles: full broadside, full bow tanking, 45 degree angle, etc.

[Cruiser_Chicago]

When you take HEAP on the Zao or any other 203mm CA, penetration increases from 33.8mm to 42.3mm. That means you only gain the ability to penetrate the amidships deck of the NC, Iowa, and Montana while severely nerfing your fire chance at the same time. That's not a good trade-off.

[IronWolfV]

When you take HEAP on the Zao or any other 203mm CA, penetration increases from 33.8mm to 42.3mm. That means you only gain the ability to penetrate the amidships deck of the NC, Iowa, and Montana while severely nerfing your fire chance at the same time. That's not a good trade-off.

 

Considering the low fire chance for for a KM cruiser to begin with, might be a worth while trade.

[1nv4d3rZ1m]

 

Considering the low fire chance for for a KM cruiser to begin with, might be a worth while trade.

 

[yashma]

Isn't HE penetration = 1/6(caliber)?

 

So Zao HE pen should be 38.3mm, so with HEAP(+25% pen) that should be 47.92mm.

 

You fire chance would then drop from 19% to 13%, barring any other captain skill or flag bonuses

That was my first thought.  But failed penetrations only have half the fire chance, so taking HEAP would cut back on failed pens.  I just don't know how much HEAP would affect that though, but if it lead to drastically reduced failed pens, it could actually increase damage overall.  

 

You may want to test it from further away. I'm not sure how you're going to get that close in a real battle. You should test it to max or close-to-max range, then compare it to normal HE and for completion sake, compare it with AP. You could also compare the results at different angles: full broadside, full bow tanking, 45 degree angle, etc.

 

This wasn't me doing the testing.  I was just linked to these gifs, and became very curious if other people had done any more digging. 

[IronWolfV]

 

 

OK sure, since it has decent fire damage, but tell that to Konisberg, Nurnberg, and Hipper/Eugen.  Roon isn't bad off with DE so I can start a good number of fires, and I am sure Hindenburg carries on with roon.