HMS Vanguard

[Dr_Venture]

Alright  So.....with the line spoiled whatcha guys think...time to clamor on for an HMS Vanguard premium?

I'm thinking...maybe a tier 7 premium?

[BladedPheonix]

more likely an 8

[YamatoA150]

T8 w/ Lots of Buffs; some of them as a result of the RN BB line flavoring, the rest just to help it fit the tier.

• 15" Mk IIs (instead of Mk Is)
• 30s Reload
• Same HE/AP shell performance as KGV's 15" Mk II (may or may not have short-fuse AP; the LINE RN BBs currently have short-fuse AP, trading improved CL/DD damage for reduced damage to regular battleships)
• 30s Traverse (instead of 45s like NelRod/KGV/Lion/Conqueror)
• Buffed Rudder Shift (like KGV)
• Lowered Citadel if Necessary
• Probably gets Radar or AADF as a gimmick consumable (Radar if the RN BB line retains it for T8~10)

 

Remaining Weakness

• Gigantic Turning Radius (either its historical 940~ meters, being worst in tier and rivaling the T9 FdG for turning radius, or reduced to 820~ meters or so; worse than KGV but about the same as Amagi)

 

Wildcards

• Questionable TDS
• Secondary Range (could be better than same-tier KGV, but lower than Bismarck/Tirpitz; roughly Amagi's range)

 

Aside from the ridiculous HE Firestarting rate, most of the buffs would turn Vanguard into a very "generic" battleship; compared to its counterparts.  No major weaknesses aside from turning, but no major advantages over tier rivals, aside from either a Radar gimmick or AADF using post-war AA equipment.  Assuming she also gets short-fuse AP, she'd be more cruiser hunter than battleship hunter as well.

 

[Teahee]

1 hour ago, YamatoA150 said:

T8 w/ Lots of Buffs; some of them as a result of the RN BB line flavoring, the rest just to help it fit the tier.

• 15" Mk IIs
• 30s Reload
• Same HE/AP shell performance as KGV's 15" Mk II (may or may not have short-fuse AP; the LINE RN BBs currently have short-fuse AP, trading improved improved CL/DD damage for reduced damage to regular battleships)
• 30s Traverse (instead of 45s like NelRod/KGV/Lion/Conqueror)
• Buffed Rudder Shift (like KGV)
• Lowered Citadel if Necessary
• Probably gets Radar or AADF as a gimmick consumable (Radar if the RN BB line retains it for T8~10)

Remaining Weakness

• Gigantic Turning Radius (either its historical 940~ meters, being worst in tier and rivaling the T9 FdG for turning radius, or reduced to 820~ meters or so; worse than KGV but about the same as Amagi)
• Questionable TDS

 

Yeah I would mostly agree with this implementation, except for a few areas: 

 

Radar: Please no radar on BBs (preferably at any tier). Battleships are slowly becoming the "Jack of All Trades and Master of Most of Them", and steadily pushing cruisers out of many of the roles they were initially meant to fill. Adding radar at tier 8 would be even more problematic due to it being the tier of competitive gameplay, and a radar-equipped BB (especially a premium one bought for real money, as opposed to Missouri being bought with free exp) would raise very real concerns about "Pay to Win" in the game. 

 

Buffed Rudder Shift: I know that this is a balancing factor, and that in-game rudder shift differs wildly from real life, however I think that BB's should still remain the least maneuverable class in WoWS. Giving a BB the agility of a cruiser directly counters CV air attacks and DD torpedoes - two of the main things meant to counter BBs as a class. A BB with the agility of a cruiser is in many ways just a bigger, stronger, well-armored cruiser. This again ties into my concern about BBs becoming too good at too many things, and cutting out the niches where the other ship classes traditionally belonged. 

 

TDS: Historically at least, the Vanguard had a very advanced torpedo protection system, however I'm not sure how WG evaluates the effectiveness of TDS in game statistics. Indeed, seeing what has happened with Alabama and North Carolina, it is quite possible Vanguard will have a weak TDS as a balancing measure. But in this case, I would much prefer that she has a stronger TDS but loses the amazingly quick ruddershift that seems to be the "quirk" of the RN BBs. 

 

[ArmouredCarriers]

Since they're introducing an imaginary 15in-armed ship based on a KGV hull, that kind of cuts the ground right out from beneath the actual 15-in armed ship using an evolved KGV hull (Vanguard)

[Battlecruiser_Siegfried]

Tier 8, unquestionably. She's the same size as an Iowa.

[Carl]

Yeah probably T8, though not the AAA monster we expected unless the MKII 5.25" mounting is a LOT better than the MK I, she won't be bad for tier unlike KGV and Nelson, but she'll be in the same boat as Lion and Conqueror, good without an AAA build, meh once AAA builds come in.

[renegadestatuz]

She'd be more a tier 8. And since they've removed the 14inch guns off KGV in the line and have put them onto a tier 7 premium code named "Monach" which is a KGV sister(more than likely PoW or DoY), I highly doubt we'd see Vanguard at tier 7.

[Raulmacca]

Vaguard is a t8. 5  better than bismarck all day but its lack of 16" guns ruined it,  still best royal yatch ever with a very deep tds as i recall. 

[Phoenix_jz]

I doubt we'll see her for a while, since we've already got quite a few here or seemingly on deck (Warspite, Hood, and whichever KGV this 'Monarch' turns out to be).

 

She'd need the 15" Mk.II's, though, for tier VIII.