Tier 10's in today's coop... (maybe t9's)

[SKurj]

due to primarily playing casual and most of that being pve, i am not overflowing in credits.  I've come to the conclusion in the past that grinding tech tree T9's just isn't worth it in coop so once i finished the T8 grind i would freexp past the T9 and go straight to the T10..  T9 tech tree ships without a bonus package, cost credits and or boosters to grind in coop, it just doesn't make much sense to even bother.  The only T9's i currently have are premiums.  Alaska B, Pommern and JB. 

As to T9's i have freexp'd just not bought... Izumo, Seattle, PRupprecht, FDG - all of these i have also researched the T10, just not bought them as I didn't have the credits... apart from Yamato, my 1st T10

I finished Baltimore this weekend, so now i have Buffalo to fxp past as well... and once again I am thinking of spending the fxp to go straight to DesMoines... i think it might be my next T10 ..

Curious, which T9's and 10's you find good fun in coop apart from the GE BB's which i think is a given...

i finally have some credits mostly from selling camos.. and don't want to waste it on a high tier ship that will be a port queen...

[Ozium]

your missing out on lots of rewards for the T10's even if they are port queens,  co-op here too but have way over 100m silver.

just wish there were more things of value to spend it on besides ships ... 

[SKurj]

8 minutes ago, Ozium said:

your missing out on lots of rewards for the T10's even if they are port queens,  co-op here too but have way over 100m silver.

just wish there were more things of value to spend it on besides ships ... 

thats just it i am not holding out on the t10's just want suggestions for ships that work well in T10 coop specifically, i finally have enough funds to buy one... i just don't see the point in the T9's...

I currently have schlieffen, preussen, worcester, researched but not bought, thinking of fxp'in past buffalo for desmoines as well

 

but also curious as to which t9's i shouldn't skip with fxp... i hear alsace is perhaps worthwhile...

 

if its a good ship i will buy the bonus package too, but i have to admit bb's which are my favourite class are not meta for coop these days... 

[HazeGrayUnderway]

The problem with Tech Tree Tier IX is, even though some of them are great like Kitakaze (very good PVP bote), Jutland, Mogador, Rupprecht, is that once you have the Tier X, there's next to no reason to play the Tier IX.

 

Tier IX Rupprecht was one of the most pleasant PVE grinds I've ever done.  But now I have Tier X Schlieffen.  I haven't touched Rupprecht except for a few occasions like anniversary snowflake equivalents.

Tier IX Kitakaze is one of the best regarded ships in Tier IX for the PVP crowd, and she does fantastic work still in Co-Op.  But I got Harugumo, and if I have to knock out a lot of Main Battery Hit Missions (like the IJN Cruiser Mission right now), I'll use Haru because she has more Dakka than Kitakaze.

Tier IX Mogador is fantastic, but after I got X Kleber, I rarely touch Mogador at all anymore.  Kleber is just a better brute in Co-Op than her.  She is even a better Torpedo Bully than Marceau by a significant margin.

Etc.

 

Worthwhile Tech Tree Tier X's for Co-Op?

First and foremost is Schlieffen.  Fast, Mega Secondaries, has Torpedoes.  I have a Stealth - Brisk - Secondary Hybrid Build on her.

Kleber - Super fast, quick reloading, hard hitting torpedoes, great launch angles.  Mine is spec'ed for Stealth and Torpedoes.

Shimakaze - Because 15 fish is nothing to laugh off.  Stealth + Torp Build.

Hindenburg - Beast of a Cruiser in PVE.  Good 203mm guns that reload quickly, and you have 12 of them.  She packs tons of torpedoes.  If you need her to plink at range, she's quite good.  But she's at her best in torpedo range.

Des Moines - 203mm guns that fire as fast as a CL.  SHS AP shells with special bounce angles.  HE Spam, slam stuff with AP for Citadel hits, she does either well.  I have the Legendary Upgrade on her behaves very well when sailing.  Caveat is that Coal Ship Salem is somewhat like her, and if you have her, she's cheaper to run than Tech Tree Des Moines.  If you have Salem and Credits are on short supply, then I'd skip DM.  I love this CA so much from my PVP days.

Venezia - The ITA CA Line has issues but Venezia is a total beast carrying this entire line on the shoulders like Atlas.  She fires an absurd amount of SAP shells.  Devastating to DDs, and if you can get at a Battleship's superstructure, she'll do great damage there, too.  Broadside Cruisers?  AP Citadel them.  Go Lighthouse Build.

Jinan - An acquired taste.  If you liked the other PA CLs, she is the zenith of the "Let's flood the map with torpedoes."   Stealth + Torp Build.

Preussen - The better replacement of GK.  Better gun angles.  128mm secondaries for fantastic pen, the 457s reload quickly.  I have mine setup for Secondary Spec but still have MBM3 for a good compromise.

 

[Ozium]

3 minutes ago, SKurj said:

if its a good ship i will buy the bonus package too, but i have to admit bb's which are my favourite class are not meta for coop these days...

i used the free bonus packages for line i expect to RB one day, yeah one day lol ... 

but wouldn't pay dubs unless was really in love with it and did well playing it, as too many good coal ships which offer good earnings and bonus cxp for same nation 

[SKurj]

5 minutes ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

The problem with Tech Tree Tier IX is, even though some of them are great like Kitakaze (very good PVP bote), Jutland, Mogador, Rupprecht, is that once you have the Tier X, there's next to no reason to play the Tier IX.

 

Tier IX Rupprecht was one of the most pleasant PVE grinds I've ever done.  But now I have Tier X Schlieffen.  I haven't touched Rupprecht except for a few occasions like anniversary snowflake equivalents.

Tier IX Kitakaze is one of the best regarded ships in Tier IX for the PVP crowd, and she does fantastic work still in Co-Op.  But I got Harugumo, and if I have to knock out a lot of Main Battery Hit Missions (like the IJN Cruiser Mission right now), I'll use Haru because she has more Dakka than Kitakaze.

Tier IX Mogador is fantastic, but after I got X Kleber, I rarely touch Mogador at all anymore.  Kleber is just a better brute in Co-Op than her.  She is even a better Torpedo Bully than Marceau by a significant margin.

Etc.

 

Worthwhile Tech Tree Tier X's for Co-Op?

First and foremost is Schlieffen.  Fast, Mega Secondaries, has Torpedoes.  I have a Stealth - Brisk - Secondary Hybrid Build on her.

Kleber - Super fast, quick reloading, hard hitting torpedoes, great launch angles.

Shimakaze - Because 15 fish is nothing to laugh off.

Hindenburg - Beast of a Cruiser in PVE.  Good 203mm guns that reload quickly, and you have 12 of them.  She packs tons of torpedoes.  If you need her to plink at range, she's quite good.  But she's at her best in torpedo range.

Des Moines - 203mm guns that fire as fast as a CL.  SHS AP shells with special bounce angles.  HE Spam, slam stuff with AP for Citadel hits, she does either well.  I have the Legendary Upgrade on her behaves very well when sailing.  Caveat is that Coal Ship Salem is somewhat like her, and if you have her, she's cheaper to run than Tech Tree Des Moines.

Venezia - The ITA CA Line has issues but Venezia is a total beast carrying this entire line on the shoulders like Atlas.  She fires an absurd amount of SAP shells.  Devastating to DDs, and if you can get at a Battleship's superstructure, she'll do great damage there, too.  Broadside Cruisers?  AP Citadel them.  Go Lighthouse Build.

Jinan - An acquired taste.  If you liked the other PA CLs, she is the zenith of the "Let's flood the map with torpedoes." 

Preussen - The better replacement of GK.  Better gun angles.  128mm secondaries for fantastic pen, the 457s reload quickly.  I have mine setup for Secondary Spec but still have MBM3 for a good compromise.

 

Thanks I knew you would have some input, i should have added i am not much for dd's, they and I just don't get along!!!  but moving on..

Yes Venezia! i keep forgetting to keep moving with my ITA cruiser grind, I have started Zara, but not far along

Hindenburg is definitely on my list, working through Hipper atm

PA cruisers.. i have little experience i will take a peek

thanks

ps yes i expected the t10 ge bb's for now i have gk and pommern to satisfy that itch..  oh i also have moskva and napoli , not sure how i feel about napoli just yet, prefer moskva for the guns...

 

[HazeGrayUnderway]

44 minutes ago, SKurj said:

Thanks I knew you would have some input, i should have added i am not much for dd's, they and I just don't get along!!!  but moving on..

Yes Venezia! i keep forgetting to keep moving with my ITA cruiser grind, I have started Zara, but not far along

Hindenburg is definitely on my list, working through Hipper atm

PA cruisers.. i have little experience i will take a peek

thanks

ps yes i expected the t10 ge bb's for now i have gk and pommern to satisfy that itch..  oh i also have moskva and napoli , not sure how i feel about napoli just yet, prefer moskva for the guns...

 

For Operations, I had used ITA Tier VIII Amalfi for a good number of games, and she treated me well.  Hell, most times I didn't even use the funky smoke those ships have.  What sets Amalfi apart from Zara is that Amalfi has the final version of Italian Cruiser shell flight characteristics that the line uses all the way into X Venezia.

 

Artillery Chart with the Italian Tier VI, VII, and VIII CAs.  I included Tier VIII Chapayev because the Russian 152mm guns are respected for how they behave at range.  Amalfi's is above and beyond better at range, which says a lot.

 

She has a 3x3 main battery and the reload is slow at 16 seconds.  But Amalfi's guns connect real good, and leading even against Destroyers is easy.

Venezia in Tier X has those same shell flight characteristics, and she can throw down 15 of them.  Slapping a DD around is satisfying when a lot of those shells hit.  Even DD players in PVP have complained about those SAP salvos from her.

[SKurj]

2 minutes ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

For Operations, I had used ITA Tier VIII Amalfi for a good number of games, and she treated me well.  Hell, most times I didn't even use the funky smoke those ships have.  What sets Amalfi apart from Zara is that Amalfi has the final version of Italian Cruiser shell flight characteristics that the line uses all the way into X Venezia.  Tier VI and below, ITA Cruiser shell flight characteristics actually suck.  Tier VII Zara gets better but it's not all that.  But VIII Amalfi are where you get the railguns.

 

Artillery Chart with the Italian Tier VI, VII, and VIII CAs.  I included Tier VIII Chapayev because the Russian 152mm guns are respected for how they behave at range.  Amalfi's is above and beyond better at range, which says a lot.

 

 

She has a 3x3 main battery and the reload is slow at 16 seconds.  But Amalfi's guns connect real good, and leading even against Destroyers is easy.

Venezia in Tier X has those same shell flight characteristics, and she can throw down 15 of them.  Slapping a DD around is satisfying when a lot of those shells hit.  Even DD players in PVP have complained about those SAP salvos from her.

i kinda like the ita cruisers, and yeah in coop may as well take the pot damage, no need for the smoke....  

what about the ijn line any point going past Mogami?

how about the french cruisers?  (not the new bc's)

 

honestly i think  current pve is perfect for cruiser play

[DrHolmes52]

I fxp'd the Izumo.  Just to get the Yamato (I had a permacamo for the Yama).  I tried the Roon, but mostly fxp'd it.  Bad ship for coop with one turret forward.

I've been comboing the Buffalo (fxp and boosted gameplay).  Best of the 3 so far.  If you don't get focused early, she can do work.  Try not to lead, look unthreatening, fire some HE.  Once the bots get distracted, get all 4 turrets working.  I like the Baltimore better, but it's OK.

I have the Biz, the Tallin, and the Cleveland at tier 9.  I think like you, I will focus the two cruisers before getting the Bismarck completed.

[Estimated_Prophet]

53 minutes ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

The problem with Tech Tree Tier IX is, even though some of them are great like Kitakaze (very good PVP bote), Jutland, Mogador, Rupprecht, is that once you have the Tier X, there's next to no reason to play the Tier IX.

(Cries in Fletcher.)

Given a choice; it’s always Fletcher over Gearing.

(And recently; Velos over Smaland.)

Quote

Tier IX Rupprecht was one of the most pleasant PVE grinds I've ever done.

For all intents and purposes, I haven’t done KM BCs, (think I only have up to T5.)

Quote

But now I have Tier X Schlieffen.

Outside derisively calling it the ‘Plan to capture Paris’ bote, and ‘the German Minotaur,’ all I know about it is I hate it.

Quote

Tier IX Kitakaze is one of the best regarded ships in Tier IX for the PVP crowd, and she does fantastic work still in Co-Op.  But I got Harugumo, and if I have to knock out a lot of Main Battery Hit Missions (like the IJN Cruiser Mission right now), I'll use Haru because she has more Dakka than Kitakaze.

I hardly play KitKat except for flakes. Mostly because of personal dislike. Pretty much use Haru for the reasons you gave.

Quote

(snip)

(No comment, because no high tierMN DDs.)

Quote

Shimakaze - Because 15 fish is nothing to laugh off.  Stealth + Torp Build.

Hindenburg - Beast of a Cruiser in PVE.  Good 203mm guns that reload quickly, and you have 12 of them.  She packs tons of torpedoes.  If you need her to plink at range, she's quite good.  But she's at her best in torpedo range.

Des Moines - 203mm guns that fire as fast as a CL.  SHS AP shells with special bounce angles.  HE Spam, slam stuff with AP for Citadel hits, she does either well.  I have the Legendary Upgrade on her behaves very well when sailing.  Caveat is that Coal Ship Salem is somewhat like her, and if you have her, she's cheaper to run than Tech Tree Des Moines.  If you have Salem and Credits are on short supply, then I'd skip DM.  I love this CA so much from my PVP days.

Agree the above, but don’t have V or J.

Quote

Preussen - The better replacement of GK.  Better gun angles.  128mm secondaries for fantastic pen, the 457s reload quickly.  I have mine setup for Secondary Spec but still have MBM3 for a good compromise.

Because of how used to GkF I became grinding the old UU mission, Preussen gets ignored.

I’ve decided more shots per salvo outweighs fast reload.

Without diving into details, I haven’t noticed P’s secondaries being any more useful than G’s.

[HazeGrayUnderway]

18 hours ago, SKurj said:

i kinda like the ita cruisers, and yeah in coop may as well take the pot damage, no need for the smoke....  

what about the ijn line any point going past Mogami?

how about the french cruisers?  (not the new bc's)

 

honestly i think  current pve is perfect for cruiser play

IJN Heavy Cruisers are IMO, more catered to PVP.  They are at their best kiting, chucking torpedoes into the face of pursuing enemy players.  For Co-Op, that is not ideal.  Their torpedo launch angles favor side-rear angles, again, great for fighting retreats in PVP, but not "LET'S GO BRAWL" mode that is Co-Op.  I like Zao in PVP, she's great, but not for Co-Op.

Now, for Operations, it's a bit different because Ops has way more to it than pure knife fighting.  Tier VIII Mogami will do great work, even if you only focus on using her guns.  But IX Ibuki and X Zao?  No, you don't need them.  I'd say for your Credit issues, VIII Mogami is worth it, but don't splurge past that.

 

French Cruisers?  They're okay but they don't exactly excite me.  They're quick when they got Engine Boost going but I dunno... They don't get me going in Co-Op like other CAs do.  In PVP it's different because these CAs are super annoying to deal with when they stay at 16km+, have Engine Boost going, and they're peppering your BB with HE.  For Co-Op?  That's not important.  Even their torpedoes suck.  You don't have many of them, their range isn't that good, and their damage sucks.  But I guess it's better than nothing.

 

For Co-Op, Cruisers are pretty good.  But I still mostly play Battleships for Co-Op.  Which is funny, because in Random Battles, I'm a Cruiser Main.

18 hours ago, Estimated_Prophet said:

Without diving into details, I haven’t noticed P’s secondaries being any more useful than G’s.

There shouldn't be a difference between GK and Preussen's secondaries.  Preussen is really just GK hull but with 457s on better gun angles.  Secondaries are the same.

[ZARDOZ_II]

2 hours ago, SKurj said:

Curious, which T9's and 10's you find good fun in coop

Tech tree?

T-10: Gearing. Mino. Des Memes (I like Salem a bit more given it's a 'special' with better credit income). Harry-gumo. 

T-9: Fletcher. Iowa once in a while. Rupprecht. And I kinda like FdG for some strange reason. 

[Jagerbomb_2021]

I play mainly cruisers and stick to Coop and operations. The T10 cruisers I like are Hindenburg and Worcester.  I ground the French and Russian cruisers to 10 but generally I get middling performance out of them. Right now I'm working on the Pan-Asian and British CL and both are T8 right now. The Italian and US CA are both at T7. The Worcester has a 21 point captain on it and it's setup so I have a 3.7 second reload. My avg damage in it is a little over 92K. I find the Pan-Asian line way too squishy for my taste and have taken a break from it to work on the British line.

[Estimated_Prophet]

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

I like Zao in PVP, she's great, but not for Co-Op.

Atago, (ARP Takao, ARP Maya,) and maybe Refit Maya ('44) are probably the best IJN heavies for Co-op.

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

For Co-Op, Cruisers are pretty good.  But I still mostly play Battleships for Co-Op.  Which is funny, because in Random Battles, I'm a Cruiser Main.

Jack of all trades, perhaps favoring battleships. (Totals pretty evenly split, with cruisers leading.)

In Randoms I would have said I preferred destroyers, but cruisers are my highest total, (3,325, DDs second at 2,920.)

[HazeGrayUnderway]

16 hours ago, Estimated_Prophet said:

Atago, (ARP Takao, ARP Maya,) and maybe Refit Maya ('44) are probably the best IJN heavies for Co-op.

Jack of all trades, perhaps favoring battleships. (Totals pretty evenly split, with cruisers leading.)

In Randoms I would have said I preferred destroyers, but cruisers are my highest total, (3,325, DDs second at 2,920.)

I was just sticking to the Tech Tree ones, because the Premiums are oddities to them that are different to the Tech Tree Botes.  But yes, Atago is great.  Better torp launch angles to make good use of those powerful IJN fish.  She even has Repair Party.  When Random Ops was preparing to go Live, I knew she was going to be a popular ship.  One of the most solid Cruisers you can bring into Ops right now.  Even in Newport, I've seen some Atago players do some high risk stuff and end up doing well.  They line those torpedoes up right, it's BIG MONEY for them.  The long range torps with good launch angles as well as high speed, Repair Party makes Atago good even in close in maps like Narai and RR.  Even in maps where things open up in range more, those previous assets + lots of good 203mm guns makes her a very good, all around Cruiser in places like Ultimate F-U, Killer Whale, etc.

 

My ship splits.

Co-Op I heavily favor Battleships.

RIP my Carriers with the CV Rebork, I had some RTS Carriers that did good work in Co-Op.

 

For Random Battles I'm more even between Cruisers and Battleships, but Cruisers are what I did the most.

 

My Tier VII+ Random Battle Cruisers, minimum 20 games played, sorted by WR%.

Des Moines was my most played, most successful Tier VII+ Cruiser.  I had Cruisers that did more damage than her, but they were not as successful as her.  The reason was I heavily leveraged the Cap Contesting and Anti-DD work as a Radar Cruiser with DM, and not as a Damage Farmer.  My main job was to help my DDs against enemy DDs at the cap.  It was a good, successful style of play for me using DM.  But it's also pretty stress inducing because there is no room for error that close to enemy Destroyers, and being the easiest ship to spot for the red team, because I'm a Cruiser and not a DD.  If I screwed up, I'd be the biggest, squishiest thing in <15km range to several enemy BB players looking for the easiest thing to Citadel.  On the flip side, I had my more passive, Damage Farming Cruisers for Randoms.  Just stand off and farm damage.  Don't worry about trying to play the caps in short range, let someone else get deleted for that.  Farm your damage and get your good personal numbers, win or lose.  A good friend of mine was like me, he too was great in Des Moines.  But every now and then he preferred to just Cruise along farming damage.  His bote of choice for that was Zao.

"Oh our flank was collapsing?"

Zao can just go Full Ninja, easily lose contact, chuck long range torpedoes and maybe get lucky, and speed away.  Good luck in catching her.  Maybe open up with guns again later, she had the range and shell flight characteristics to make hits at a distance.

 

My only other Cruiser that bridged the gap, being able to win a lot and still do good damage is Hindenburg.  My DM won more though.

 

RIP the Pre-USN Cruiser Split Cruisers.  Old Tier IX Baltimore was an interesting story for me.  When I first did the US Cruiser grind, that line was quite bad and WG had to do numerous buffs to Tier VII-IX USN Cruisers.  At the time they were VII Pensacola, VIII NOLA, and IX Baltimore.  They were without a doubt, the worst 3 ship grind in the game.  When I first got Baltimore on that initial grind she was frustrating and sucked balls, and I FreeXP'd to Des Moines.  I gave up on her (WG: "Mission accomplished").  However, after the multiple buff passes were done, IX Baltimore was low key a good CA.  Good concealment, good Radar range (she was using the better Tier IX Radar), 8.8 seconds reload with MBM3, good agility, and she still had Repair Party.  This was stuff that prepared you for Des Moines.

 

In 2017 I embarked on a goal to improve my Tier IX Baltimore stats.  Below were my IX Baltimore stats when I started work on her.

 

In my Cruiser stats list I showed earlier, you can see what I finished with by the time the USN Cruiser Split happened and Baltimore got bumped down (for the worse) to Tier VIII.  In Tier VIII she's a pale shadow of her Tier IX version.  Before the USN Cruiser Split and after the buffs to Tier VII-IX USN CAs, Baltimore was a natural, training evolution to prepare you for X Des Moines.  A great Cruiser.  Baltimore was no longer that as a Tier VIII, and her replacement in Tier IX, Buffalo, is so alien in playstyle and setup to Old IX Baltimore and the later X Des Moines.

 

I'd rather have Old Tier IX Baltimore than the current IX Buffalo.  Buffalo has more firepower, but Old IX Baltimore was stealthier, handled better, shot faster, and was way better as a Radar Cruiser for PVP.

 

There was a period when I was salvaging my IX Baltimore stats that I ambushed around an island at short range an Iowa player.  The SHS AP at short range can easily Citadel Iowa.  The Iowa sailed together with a Division / Clan mate of his, another Baltimore, but I smashed that Iowa before both could get me.

On 4/15/2017 at 8:57 PM, HazeGrayUnderway said:

When Baltimore gets the drop on an Iowa.

 

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

11 minutes ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

RIP my Carriers with the CV Rebork, I had some RTS Carriers that did good work in Co-Op.

Bogue was my most played ship, (1,000-ish games, 700+ Co-op, GkF is catching up,) and having it taken away is partly why I hate the CV rework so much.

[Efros]

I really enjoyed Duncan and only fxped to get St Vincent due to impatience.

[HazeGrayUnderway]

2 hours ago, Estimated_Prophet said:

Bogue was my most played ship, (1,000-ish games, 700+ Co-op, GkF is catching up,) and having it taken away is partly why I hate the CV rework so much.

Here's all my Tier VI+ CV Co-Op stats.  I had IX Essex, old VI Ryujo, VII Hiryu, V Bogue, V Zuiho, VII Ranger, VI Independence, old VIII Shokaku in those days, but apparently I never brought them into Co-Op.

RTS Midway and Hakuryu did way more damage for Co-Op in that era.

RTS Tier IX Taiho was a beast.  She could Triple TB Cross Drop just like Hakuryu did, just did it 1 tier lower with worse planes, and could hit Tier VII ships.

Enterprise took several baseball bat swings to the face with the CV Rebork.

New Kaga does as much damage as my old RTS Kaga, but remember that RTS Kaga was a Tier VII and was doing that with Tier VI planes.  In Random Battles, RTS Kaga was a nightmare in Tier VII.  You prayed the enemy Kaga player was incompetent, or your own team's CV(s) knew how to contest the skies.  Otherwise you were f***ed if RTS Kaga decided to pick on you.  BB, Cruiser, DD, didn't matter.  RTS Kaga Torpedo Bomber cross drops, combined with how the torps came in staggered waves meant that even a DD had difficult time dodging a literal web of torpedoes.  You something in like a Tier V New York?  RIP, bro.

==

I really hate what they did with Enterprise.  She's pretty freaking useless now.  Hell, in Operations, I'll happily take Hornet over Enterprise now, and Hornet isn't good, either.

==

I did not have Graf Zeppelin during her OP RTS days.  I got her post-CV Rebork.  When WG first released Graf Z in the RTS days, she was in such bad shape that she got pulled from the shop like 2 weeks after release.  WG then overbuffed the-ever-living-**** out of her and she became a monster for the rest of the RTS era.  CV Rebork, she isn't the same.  Mega Secondaries still just like in the RTS days, but in RTS her Torpedo Bomber squads were nightmares before the Rebork.  CVs were my least played ships in the RTS era, but I played them enough and had to learn how to stymie Graf Zeppelin players from molesting my team.

[Estimated_Prophet]

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

Here's all my Tier VI+ CV Co-Op stats.  I had IX Essex, old VI Ryujo, VII Hiryu, V Bogue, V Zuiho, VII Ranger, VI Independence, old VIII Shokaku in those days, but apparently I never brought them into Co-Op.

Never went past T8 before 0.8.0.

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

Enterprise took several baseball bat swings to the face with the CV Rebork.

Never rant Enterprise in RTS Randoms.

Strafe, plus zero confidence in my ability to do so. Did play 200 Co-ops with it.

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

New Kaga does as much damage as my old RTS Kaga, but remember that RTS Kaga was a Tier VII and was doing that with Tier VI planes.  In Random Battles, RTS Kaga was a nightmare in Tier VII.  You prayed the enemy Kaga player was incompetent, or your own team's CV(s) knew how to contest the skies.  Otherwise you were f***ed if RTS Kaga decided to pick on you.  BB, Cruiser, DD, didn't matter.  RTS Kaga Torpedo Bomber cross drops, combined with how the torps came in staggered waves meant that even a DD had difficult time dodging a literal web of torpedoes.  You something in like a Tier V New York?  RIP, bro.

Maybe five Randoms in Kaga?

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

I really hate what they did with Enterprise.  She's pretty freaking useless now.  Hell, in Operations, I'll happily take Hornet over Enterprise now, and Hornet isn't good, either.

Mostly work with my torpedo bombers, getting better with the other things; but with Enterprise and Kaga, I dread getting mostly T9 or T10 games, because that effectively me I’ll accomplish jack; either because I won’t go near anything, or whole squads get wiped out if I try.

1 hour ago, HazeGrayUnderway said:

I did not have Graf Zeppelin during her OP RTS days.  I got her post-CV Rebork.

Same.

Mostly use her to speed spot, or for KM CV tasks, because I dislike the KM tree carriers so much.

[FltCaptAlan]

22 hours ago, Estimated_Prophet said:

Atago, (ARP Takao, ARP Maya,) and maybe Refit Maya ('44) are probably the best IJN heavies for Co-op.

I don't know so much about co-op but the T7 Maya is still great in ops, even with the T8s, I can still take the top of the scoreboard with her, even when the T8s come out to play, and not just with random teams, but what do I know, I still take Pensi into random ops, and often take a high spot (top 3) on the scoreboard, such as this run of Cherry Blossom,

[Estimated_Prophet]

12 minutes ago, FltCaptAlan said:

I don't know so much about co-op but the T7 Maya is still great in ops, even with the T8s, I can still take the top of the scoreboard with her, even when the T8s come out to play, and not just with random teams, but what do I know, I still take Pensi into random ops, and often take a high spot (top 3) on the scoreboard, such as this run of Cherry Blossom,

Pensy is better than many give her credit for.

One bc of my favorite vids is the player that Ranked out in Pensacola. (Old Ranked.)

[HazeGrayUnderway]

6 hours ago, Estimated_Prophet said:

Never went past T8 before 0.8.0.

Never rant Enterprise in RTS Randoms.

Strafe, plus zero confidence in my ability to do so. Did play 200 Co-ops with it.

Maybe five Randoms in Kaga?

Mostly work with my torpedo bombers, getting better with the other things; but with Enterprise and Kaga, I dread getting mostly T9 or T10 games, because that effectively me I’ll accomplish jack; either because I won’t go near anything, or whole squads get wiped out if I try.

Same.

Mostly use her to speed spot, or for KM CV tasks, because I dislike the KM tree carriers so much.

RTS Enterprise was pretty OP.  The funny thing for me was before her release and it became known she'd be a Tier VIII CV with Tier VII planes, I thought she was going to be trash.  But her healthy reserve of fighters, double TB squads of 6 planes each, and double AP Dive Bomber squads still made her dangerous despite the lower tier planes.  She was an OP monster in the RTS days in PVP.  For Co-Op she still did well.

 

For was at her best in PVP.  The large fighter reserves meant she could outlast a lot of CVs in air-to-air.  She still retained good surface ship attack capability with her 4 bomber squads.

 

Forgot to mention how much of a fall Saipan took with the move from Tier VII -> VIII with the CV Rebork.  In Tier VII she was a terror during the RTS days.  Especially in air-to-air.  Tier IX Corsairs on a Tier VII CV, coupled with the unique gimmick that no other CV had:  She could "strafe" out of a dogfight and not lose a plane.  Then she had AD-1 Skyraiders for tough bomber capability.  When I saw we had a Saipan on our team in the RTS days, I felt our team had a great shot of winning, provided he was half competent.  After the CV Rebork, she became terrible.