Let's trade knowledge on the Warspite!

[Dontlookatthisname]

A few questions how to best use this monster in battles.

 

1) It seems to take a remarkable amount of pounding from the front when angled bow in. Should I be trying to use the good shift time to get my bow more inline with the incoming fire so I can bounce the rounds? Or should I just stick to a longer range 13-14 km and use the accuracy to my advantage. I'm well accustomed to the New Mexico and figured Warspite would be similar but enough 4k-9k salvos in the front have me reconsidering this approach. Should I get the rudder shift and just try to play like a cruiser with an emphasis on dodging fire and only relying on the heal instead of armor?

 

2) Fires don't seem to be as big of an issue due to the very potent heal. However the shorter immune time on damage repair and the lower cooldown make me think I should put the fires out ASAP and then pop the repair after I have enough damage taken to be worth using. I run the flags and prem consumables along with an SI captain so I have 5 charges of healing. What are other people doing with this type of situation?

 

3) Her AA is a little light compared to the US style. But her secondaries are great. Should I ditch BoS for the increased secondary ranges? And if so should I get the  modules for increased secondary range? How good is Warspite against close in threats with a solid secondary build?

 

i love this ship and I'm trying to push my average performance up a bit. What other tactics and ideas do you guys have? 

[Jmthebigman]

1:http://forum.worldofwarships.com/index.php?/topic/59399-premium-ship-review-hms-warspite-20/

2: trial and error in different situations.

3: yes buff secondary range on warspite its amazing to shred DD's, also helps with AA making it better than most other BB's vs CV 1 tier below.

[biddypapa]

A few questions how to best use this monster in battles.

 

1) It seems to take a remarkable amount of pounding from the front when angled bow in. Should I be trying to use the good shift time to get my bow more inline with the incoming fire so I can bounce the rounds? Or should I just stick to a longer range 13-14 km and use the accuracy to my advantage. I'm well accustomed to the New Mexico and figured Warspite would be similar but enough 4k-9k salvos in the front have me reconsidering this approach. Should I get the rudder shift and just try to play like a cruiser with an emphasis on dodging fire and only relying on the heal instead of armor?

 

2) Fires don't seem to be as big of an issue due to the very potent heal. However the shorter immune time on damage repair and the lower cooldown make me think I should put the fires out ASAP and then pop the repair after I have enough damage taken to be worth using. I run the flags and prem consumables along with an SI captain so I have 5 charges of healing. What are other people doing with this type of situation?

 

3) Her AA is a little light compared to the US style. But her secondaries are great. Should I ditch BoS for the increased secondary ranges? And if so should I get the  modules for increased secondary range? How good is Warspite against close in threats with a solid secondary build?

 

i love this ship and I'm trying to push my average performance up a bit. What other tactics and ideas do you guys have?

 

 

I'm not an amazing player, but I feel qualified enough to offer some advice:

 

 

1. Warspite can bounce shots from anything under 16" (I believe 16" overmatches), but in my experience its tanking comes from absorbing damage due to its enormous effective hp pool, and not so much mitigating it with armor. I think you seem to understand this, and that's good. However, playstyle tends to be tier dependent. At T8, you can't really play it like an escort since it can't keep up with other BB's, and you certainly can't snipe with it effectively. What I do is try to play a medium range harasser/opportunist/cruiser killer and abuse the rudder shift to shake off high tier enemy BB fire. Use islands for cover, and take advantage of relatively low concealment. In same tier you absolutely you want to brawl with it, it's not even a question. If facing T7 BB's be wary of them, but don't be afraid of them, and continue to bully the opposition.

 

 

2. I usually heal through a single fire if I'm engaged, but if I break engagement I will definitely put it out. Otherwise, I reserve it for multiple fires or flooding. If you put out one fire and are still fighting, expect to be reignited. As always, if you get dive bombed, don't put out the fires right away, because you're just getting setup to trade fire damage for flood damage.

 

 

3. I run a secondary build and it's a blast. It can really, really throw off DD's because you don't expect a max secondary range of 7.5km with the signal, or 7.2km without. The dispersion is awful, but what counts are the fires and module damage. Even more important is if you're defending a point, you can keep resetting the control point with your secondaries while still keeping an arm's length from torpedoes. When brawling against other ships, the damage from secondaries will accumulate quickly, and it's not uncommon for me to have games where I have 12,000+ secondary damage. A more normal amount is 5-8k, but again the utility of the range matters more than the damage output.

 

 

Overall the ship is still pretty squishy, and it really suffers at sustained incoming fire, but if you can moderate your damage intake, you will go the distance with careful planning and engagement selection. I used to drive this thing straight at the enemy and assume it'd work. It doesn't, the ship has to fight in engagements where its repair party won't be overwhelmed. If an IJN BB is sniping at you, do your best to juke its shots, but keep your focus on things nearer to you. Your goal is conquer and control objectives, not to chase a ship you can't catch while taking fire the whole time. Another note is the shell flight time is higher than the NM. Don't forget to lead further, especially on faster ships. Lead where you think it should be, and then lead some more because I promise you will underestimate the flight time every time on cruisers and fast BB's.

 

 

Anyone feel free to correct me, I'm always willing to learn strategies for my favorite ship

[TheDreadnought]

I need somebody to help me out with this ship.  I'm a decent BB player. . . I just seem to fail at Warspiting.

[Camping4XP]

To sum up how I play my Warspite, buff secondaries, charge into the fray, fix bayonets for close quarter combat and prepare grappling hooks. Works well for me. She's got great secondaries for her tier use them. Get every possible buff you can get your hands on for the secondaries. 

[Jiggiwatt]

I need somebody to help me out with this ship.  I'm a decent BB player. . . I just seem to fail at Warspiting.

 

It can take a little getting used to, my first few battles in it didn't go terribly well and it took me about a dozen or so to get the hang of it. Granted, I don't play BB's much so maybe not having any pre-existing habits helps. What I typically do is:

 

1 - At the beginning of the match, head straight for the enemy. If I have cruisers/destroyers who I can follow, I do so. Given the slow speed of the ship, you need to move up early or you're not going to be able to influence the match.

2 - Use islands for cover during your initial approach, taking some long distance shots as the opportunities present themselves.

3 - Once you get in close, make sure that you have planned properly so that you don't end up having to swing your guns around given the loooooong turret rotation time.

4 - Proclaim, "God Save the Queen" and pray to St. George every match.

 

The Warspite is great at fighting other ships in the 5-10km range, she likes a good knife fight. The secondaries, especially if your equipment and captain are setup properly, will wreck havoc on other ships. Every time I get close to another BB, my secondaries set them on fire. Anytime I get close to a destroyer, as long as I keep my eyes on them to avoid torpedoes I can avoid using my main battery and let my secondaries do all the work. 

[Pugilistic]

Wow, a thread in the battleship forum that doesnt seem like the posters are in fuzzy footie pajamas with costume accesories. 

 

Planning where you're going is really crucial, and its the cause of most of my bad outcomes, because lots of maneuvering means you arent shooting because of the excrutiating turret traverse. 

 

I too use a secondary flag/module/skills build, but dont have the 5-point skill yet. Even without this, driving Warspite in a destroyer infested area is like having a St Louis or Bogatyr strapped to each side.  

[Camping4XP]

Wow, a thread in the battleship forum that doesnt seem like the posters are in fuzzy footie pajamas with costume accesories. 

 

Planning where you're going is really crucial, and its the cause of most of my bad outcomes, because lots of maneuvering means you arent shooting because of the excrutiating turret traverse. 

 

I too use a secondary flag/module/skills build, but dont have the 5-point skill yet. Even without this, driving Warspite in a destroyer infested area is like having a St Louis or Bogatyr strapped to each side.  

 

And its troll turning radius makes dodging torpedoes easier

[Pugilistic]

 

And its troll turning radius makes dodging torpedoes easier

 

True. And true. 

[Retnav54]

Sadly though, what I'm reading of the changes to upgrade modules in 5.7, the Warspite will lose her long range secondary battery.

The Secondary Battery Mod 2 module, which added 20% to the range of the secondary battery, is being deleted. In it's place, there will be some combination module (Aiming Systems Mod 2 I believe it's called), that will only give a 5% bump to range and dispersion for the secondary battery. Only Tier 9 and 10 BB's will have access to a module that gives the old 20% boost to secondary range.

Whereas with the old module and 20% boost, plus the appropriate skills, you could get 7.2 km range without flags, with the new module and only a 5% boost we're talking a max of 6.3 km - we'll loose nearly a full km of range on the secondary battery.

 

[Camping4XP]

Sadly though, what I'm reading of the changes to upgrade modules in 5.7, the Warspite will lose her long range secondary battery.

 

The Secondary Battery Mod 2 module, which added 20% to the range of the secondary battery, is being deleted. In it's place, there will be some combination module (Aiming Systems Mod 2 I believe it's called), that will only give a 5% bump to range and dispersion for the secondary battery. Only Tier 9 and 10 BB's will have access to a module that gives the old 20% boost to secondary range.

 

Whereas with the old module and 20% boost, plus the appropriate skills, you could get 7.2 km range without flags, with the new module and only a 5% boost we're talking a max of 6.3 km - we'll loose nearly a full km of range on the secondary battery.

 

 

 

Seriously? Wow.. Her secondaries are a big reason as to why I play her.. 

[Retnav54]

 

Seriously? Wow.. Her secondaries are a big reason as to why I play her..

 

Some late breaking news.... Over in LWM's Warspite review thread, a gent posted a comment from Mr Conway on the EU server, to the effect that Warspite will get to keep her Secondary Battery Mod 2 module... she gets to keep her long range secondary battery.

 

 

[Sir_Davos_Seaworth]

Love the Warspite! Yeah, she might be the best brawler at her tier. Best ship I've played so far.

[Camping4XP]

 

Some late breaking news.... Over in LWM's Warspite review thread, a gent posted a comment from Mr Conway on the EU server, to the effect that Warspite will get to keep her Secondary Battery Mod 2 module... she gets to keep her long range secondary battery.

 

 

 

YEEEES! I can continue my yolo playstyle with her!

[Dunaraz]

 

Some late breaking news.... Over in LWM's Warspite review thread, a gent posted a comment from Mr Conway on the EU server, to the effect that Warspite will get to keep her Secondary Battery Mod 2 module... she gets to keep her long range secondary battery.

 

 

 

Yeahhh!!! You made my day with this good news. This is a good decision Wargaming!! The Warspite is his long range secondaries. 

[KaptainKaybe]

I hope it's true. This ship is all about getting within secondary gun range. She can brawl and utterly shame destroyers, making her fairly unique as a battleship. I'd hate to lose that advantage.

 

OP, I'm no expert, but here's my advice for playing her:

 

Get up close and personal! Aside from the potent secondaries, her belt armor is really amazing, but her deck is not. She is not a long range sniper, despite her accurate guns. Within around 10km, most shots will hit her belt. If you're angled, she takes virtually no damage up close. I've weathered fire from three or four ships up close plenty of times and just laugh. That being said, she's slow and like all battleships, she needs some support. Don't overextend. She cannot run away from a fight.

 

As mentioned above, don't be afraid of destroyers. Instead, destroyers brown their pants when a Warspite is nearby. The secondaries all fire HE and hurt destroyers like nothing else. Even when I am having a bad day and can't hit with my main guns, I've often get one or two destroyers kills from secondary fire alone. Her tight turning circle and rudder shift means she can dodge torps even better than most cruisers and even some destroyers.

 

Basically, think of the Warspite as a battleship with a pair of light cruisers strapped to it's sides.

[CanadianArmoured]

Just watched the WoWs announcement on 0.5.7 and it looks like a secondary build on the Warspite will give it even further range on its secondaries.

slot 2:    Aiming systems mod 1 gives you =+5% to secondary range and -5% to dispersion

Slot 3:   secondary battery mod 3 +20% to range  -15% to dispersion -25% to reload of secondaries

add to that BFT -10% reload of secondaries

                  EM  .7 degrees faster traverse

                  AFT  +20% range increase of secondaries

                  Manual Secondaries  -15% dispersion

so after the update the Warspite will have even better secondaries and should melt any DDs or CLs that stray too close

I'm looking forward to it.

[FirestormMk3]

I hope it's true. This ship is all about getting within secondary gun range. She can brawl and utterly shame destroyers, making her fairly unique as a battleship. I'd hate to lose that advantage.

 

OP, I'm no expert, but here's my advice for playing her:

 

Get up close and personal! Aside from the potent secondaries, her belt armor is really amazing, but her deck is not. She is not a long range sniper, despite her accurate guns. Within around 10km, most shots will hit her belt. If you're angled, she takes virtually no damage up close. I've weathered fire from three or four ships up close plenty of times and just laugh. That being said, she's slow and like all battleships, she needs some support. Don't overextend. She cannot run away from a fight.

 

As mentioned above, don't be afraid of destroyers. Instead, destroyers brown their pants when a Warspite is nearby. The secondaries all fire HE and hurt destroyers like nothing else. Even when I am having a bad day and can't hit with my main guns, I've often get one or two destroyers kills from secondary fire alone. Her tight turning circle and rudder shift means she can dodge torps even better than most cruisers and even some destroyers.

 

Basically, think of the Warspite as a battleship with a pair of light cruisers strapped to it's sides.

 

Those accurate guns really are great for mid range citadel strikes.  It should be noted that the secondaries don't all fire HE though, just the turrets.  The 152mm casemates fire AP.  It's still basically Omaha guns with Star Wars stormtrooper accuracy though, so when RNGsus allows they will tear up cruisers.

[KaptainKaybe]

Firestorm, her secondaries fire HE exclusively. It's not like the IJN BBs that have a mix. That's why the Warspite's secondary guns are so deadly ... it's basically a 7.6km aura of flaming destroyer murdering nastiness around her.

[Fiona_Marshe]

Wow, a thread in the battleship forum that doesnt seem like the posters are in fuzzy footie pajamas with costume accesories.

 

Planning where you're going is really crucial, and its the cause of most of my bad outcomes, because lots of maneuvering means you arent shooting because of the excrutiating turret traverse.

 

I too use a secondary flag/module/skills build, but dont have the 5-point skill yet. Even without this, driving Warspite in a destroyer infested area is like having a St Louis or Bogatyr strapped to each side. 

 

You *DO NOT* want the 5-pt Secondary captain skill for Warspite.  Repeat: *DO NOT TAKE IT*, its a trap.

 

The 15% accuracy buff (being only T.6) is not worth losing the area-denial ability of all your secondaries firing at everything in sight, automatically.  It is possible to fight both sides of your ship without the skill and still throw AP at a third target.

The best 5-pt skill for a Warspite is the Stealth upgrade.  *sneaks up to 16km->fires AP from stealth/detected->drops back into stealth before enemy BB can fire back*

[KaptainKaybe]

Just watched the WoWs announcement on 0.5.7 and it looks like a secondary build on the Warspite will give it even further range on its secondaries.

slot 2:    Aiming systems mod 1 gives you =+5% to secondary range and -5% to dispersion

Slot 3:   secondary battery mod 3 +20% to range  -15% to dispersion -25% to reload of secondaries

add to that BFT -10% reload of secondaries

                  EM  .7 degrees faster traverse

                  AFT  +20% range increase of secondaries

                  Manual Secondaries  -15% dispersion

so after the update the Warspite will have even better secondaries and should melt any DDs or CLs that stray too close

I'm looking forward to it.

 

Except that Secondary battery mod 3 is only available to ships tier 9 and above. Warspite won't get access to it at all. This is why Warspite and Tirpitz owners are raging all over the forums right now. Their secondary range boost is going from 20% to 5%. That's a pretty significant nerf for ships that specialise in getting very very close to the enemy. And even some IJN BB builds are very secondary heavy.

[theanhtb]

 

You *DO NOT* want the 5-pt Secondary captain skill for Warspite.  Repeat: *DO NOT TAKE IT*, its a trap.

 

The 15% accuracy buff (being only T.6) is not worth losing the area-denial ability of all your secondaries firing at everything in sight, automatically.  It is possible to fight both sides of your ship without the skill and still throw AP at a third target.

The best 5-pt skill for a Warspite is the Stealth upgrade.  *sneaks up to 16km->fires AP from stealth/detected->drops back into stealth before enemy BB can fire back*

This is actually new to me and very reasonable  15% is nothing like 60% at high tiers.

Wonder if it' still more accurate if I still designated a target though? Like the the Manual AA skill gives you 100%, but by designating alone will give you 200% (so skill + Ctrl click = 300%)

Thanks for the great tip bro! 

[Fiona_Marshe]

Manual designation gives the usual +10% ? bonus to accuracy.  Your other secondaries continue to fire at any other target in range and LOS.