Hipper: The Art of Knowing When To Run.

[Ensign_Cthulhu]

I topped the team in this battle, but it doesn't mean I don't owe my remaining colleagues a debt of gratitude for keeping their **** together. The push on the western flank was quite weighty, and if I'd stayed to fight instead of running I'd have been an early casualty.

This game features two enemy ships that were experimental or limited-release at the time the battle was fought. USS Minnesota is the new Tier 9 "Slow/Heavy" US BB, seen in her final form as an early-bird ship, and HIJMS Hizen was in super-test.

Tagging @_BBaby, who was the Hizen driver, in the event that he would like to add his team's side of the story. (It is understood that he cannot say anything about the particulars of his ship.)

[Usedcarjock]

KMS Cruisers, more than any other cruiser line IMO grow exponentially stronger the longer they last in the game. Their HE Pen allows them to keep consistent damage pouring onto heavily armored, bow on ships, while their AP punishes broadsides. As the game reaches its endgame, if you properly used its health pool, a KMS cruiser can effectively bully any ship in the game at close range starting from the Hipper class up, doubly so if you have a Heal.

[Mahrs]

The KM cruisers are funny in that they tend to shine at >12 km and <6km - closing that gap can be challenging indeed.  I have always maintained they are tactician's ships - they rely heavily on good target selection and positioning to create opportunities to use their high-alpha-but-otherwise-awful AP shells.  The Hipper carries enough torps to make same tier BB regret their life choices...but only if they're suicidally close.  They're great ships when it comes to punishing mistakes and similarly unforgiving of your own, I think.  Once upon a time they boasted good AA.  Having no idea how to actually play Hipper, I spent all my time kiting about with double rudder equipped. 

[Ensign_Cthulhu]

1 minute ago, Mahrs said:

Once upon a time they boasted good AA. 

Depending on context, they still do.

I know co-op isn't the best test of anti-aircraft capabilities, because the bots don't dodge, weave or use any other form of mitigation and their attacks don't hurt much, but I've shot down over fifty bot planes in a single battle in the Hipper and I daresay a foolish CV driver who didn't have their act together could feed me plane kills just as adequately.

[Nevermore135]

3 hours ago, Usedcarjock said:

KMS Cruisers, more than any other cruiser line IMO grow exponentially stronger the longer they last in the game. Their HE Pen allows them to keep consistent damage pouring onto heavily armored, bow on ships, while their AP punishes broadsides. As the game reaches its endgame, if you properly used its health pool, a KMS cruiser can effectively bully any ship in the game at close range starting from the Hipper class up, doubly so if you have a Heal.

I agree, and now that she has 25mm plating, Yorck at tier VII is quite capable of this as well when top tier.

[STINKWEED_]

Unfortunately, many start running 30 seconds into the battle

[KilljoyCutter]

The German cruisers are probably my favorite single line of ships from tier IV up.  

From Yorck up, they're probably the toughest cruisers in the game, and Hindenburg is a freaking revenant compared to most cruisers.  

Going to miss them when cruisers get ruined by the skill rebork. 

 

[handybilly]

Yes, they are just not very fast and have lousy concealment and you must be aware of that. I rarely head to the extreme flanks in a German CA or CL unless I got a lot of support.  If you are alone it is just too easy to get caught by faster ships. I highly recommend trying out the Munchen. It is a great ship and fun to play. Very fast, excellent concealment, turns like a whip, and reloads in five seconds. Great late game dd hunter and early game daka daka boat. The Un-Cola of German cruisers.  Oh, just don't get hit....

[kgh52]

1 hour ago, STINKWEED_ said:

Unfortunately, many start running 30 seconds into the battle

Excluding CV's, which by nature are backline huggers, ships of all classes run & hide for no reason.

[_BBaby]

On 10/20/2020 at 7:27 AM, Ensign_Cthulhu said:

Tagging @_BBaby, who was the Hizen driver, in the event that he would like to add his team's side of the story.

I don't remember the specifics of the battle, I just remember seeing you in a Hipper and realizing afterward that you hard carried   My div mates and I all thought we had an easy win being BB mains and top tier (by a lot, we were like the only 9s). Early on I thought you were easy meat, but you kited away and helped D then showed back up to resist Conan in the Minnesota. Great map control and a phenomenal job! Needless to say our division was done for the night after that upset. 

 

I do recall the Minnesota being not too happy about being stealth fired at the end of the game (17:00 in video)

[Ensign_Cthulhu]

36 minutes ago, _BBaby said:

Early on I thought you were easy meat,

When I saw that the Hizen and the Minnesota were pushing on my side and that things were starting to fold in the West, that pushed all my "Get out of Dodge" buttons. It screamed high-tier seal-clubbing* BB div, and I knew that If I'd stuck around any longer, you would have had me for lunch. 

I don't need to ask you about the Hizen. I can put the pieces together from what's public knowledge - Izumo guns in Montana layout on a Yamato hull is my first impression; and knowing the Izumo from having ground it, I had no desire to stay and face that in a Tier 8 cruiser. I was absolutely stunned when (a) we pulled our fingers out and cleaned up on the east side and (b) managed to kill both of you in brand-new and relatively unknown ships. 

36 minutes ago, _BBaby said:

realizing afterward that you hard carried

2000 base XP, but I am willing to concede that some of my team-mates deserved at least as much. I was surprised as hell when I found myself top of team, as it felt like I'd spent most of the game running away. Granted, I'd also spent most of the game setting both of you on fire , so maybe that helped. 

36 minutes ago, _BBaby said:

not too happy about being stealth fired at the end of the game

Just a high enough arc and just a low enough hill that it hid me while letting me shoot over.

36 minutes ago, _BBaby said:

Needless to say our division was done for the night after that upset. 

Aww, poor baby. 

Needless to say, I'm not enjoying the thought of facing you guys again - I probably won't be as lucky next time! 

 

 

* = That is, the clubbing of high-tier seals.