Just starting KM BBs - which ship to use?

[Whiskey_Rebel]

Hey all. After many games in KM cruisers, I'm giving the BBs a shot. What ship should I spend my time in to learn them? Konig? Bayern? Something else?

Thanks for any advice. 

[Lert]

The one you enjoy. Kaiser is powerful, Konig is quite good, Bayern is mediocre, Gneisenau presents a paradigm / meta shift, Bismarck is - ... a bit overtaken by meta shifts and power creep.

[black_hull4]

1 hour ago, Whiskey_Rebel said:

Hey all. After many games in KM cruisers, I'm giving the BBs a shot. What ship should I spend my time in to learn them? Konig? Bayern? Something else?

Thanks for any advice. 

Bayern. A Hull(SMS Bayern)represents the dreadnoughts of WW1, and can teach you how to play the tier 3-5 ships. Fully upgraded, (KMS)Bayern is reminiscent of the later WW2 commerce-raiders & the Fuhrer's ambitious designs, and will teach you the playstyle of Tier 7-10. In addition, you can practice realistic convoy raids by taking a fully upgraded Bayern into Aegis & Killer Whale.

♦

[ObiphanKenobi]

1 hour ago, Lert said:

The one you enjoy. Kaiser is powerful, Konig is quite good, Bayern is mediocre, Gneisenau presents a paradigm / meta shift, Bismarck is - ... a bit overtaken by meta shifts and power creep.

 

[thehelmsman]

Bayern is still one of my favorites in the line; it's very well-rounded. Decently fast and maneuverable, good armor, 15" guns which overmatch tier 6-7 enemies, and dispersion that isn't as erratic as it used to be. About the only real downside is its lack of tools in the form of consumables. That said, it's less powercrept than the tier 7+ German battleships are.

@OP Basically, stick to the WWI-era designs and you'll be fine.

--Helms

[Whiskey_Rebel]

I'm surprised to hear that Bayern is meh. I seem to see a lot of them; I assumed they were well-regarded. 

[MnemonScarlet]

1 hour ago, Whiskey_Rebel said:

I'm surprised to hear that Bayern is meh. I seem to see a lot of them; I assumed they were well-regarded. 

The Bayern is fine except for her shells. She has WW1 guns firing WW1 AP, neither was ever updated, so her penetrative power is a bit lacking.

[HazeGrayUnderway]

10 hours ago, Whiskey_Rebel said:

I'm surprised to hear that Bayern is meh. I seem to see a lot of them; I assumed they were well-regarded. 

Even in the old skill system, Bayern was an odd duck for me.

Personally, I Secondary Spec'ed pretty much all my German BBs, except for Gneisenau who did an AA Spec in the old system.  Bayern was different because I had problems with her on my grind.  Seeing a lot of Tier VIII games and being forced to fight a lot more at range against very powerful BBs made me switch out my Secondary Spec for ASM1 & Stealth / Survival Build.  After that I had a better time with Bayern.

 

I haven't taken Bayern into PVP with the new Skill System in place, but double checking on Fitting Tool, she looks like a great candidate for Dead Eye.  With Stealth Build she has 12.1km detection range, which is on the very good side for any BB at any tier.

8 hours ago, MnemonScarlet said:

The Bayern is fine except for her shells. She has WW1 guns firing WW1 AP, neither was ever updated, so her penetrative power is a bit lacking.

Pretty much, her shells are the letdown.

 

For a Tier VI, her concealment can be great.  Her speed is good at 25kts.  Her protection is fantastic for the tier.  1.8 Sigma is okay considering New Mexico in this same tier has 1.5.  But Bayern's shells are the weak link.  The AA sucks also, which would be bad against CVs, especially if they're bringing AP Bombs.

[Whiskey_Rebel]

Thanks all. I'm here for the secondaries, so I may see how long I can stand Bayern. It sounds like Gneis may also be a 2ndary letdown. Ugh.