Colorado. I'm stuck... Your advice would be much appreciated

[Ferry_25]

Hi, I have a problem: the Colorado... I love this game and I'm playing it for nearly 3 months now. My favorite class are the BB's. I would qualify myself as an average player: not the ace like Ihatejuice (edit this if it's impropar: just want to pay respect to a very able player) and not the total noob borderhugging afker. Should you be interested you can see at my stats I'm quite OK with the BB battles: in the range of 50% victories besides the Colorado. I have roamed this forum, checked the Ichase and other instruction movies of this ship on YT and I have practised on the Co-op maps. I tried to rush into combat like a raging bull (didn't work because the ship is too slow to back out), I tried to keep it at a distance (not going in too quickly and wait until the enemy is whitin the 10 km range) hell I even tried DD tactics! I closely watch the minimap and angle as much as possible. But the result is always the same: I get hammered to the bottom over and over again. Even when I get the best cruiser cover possible, I keep eating shells and torps like I've got a magnet in my citadel. When I actually hit something I have the feeling it's by mere coincidence. Yesterday I actualy sank an enemy. I was so shocked: the rest of the red team sunk me 10 seconds after that. The only thing I'm always succesful in is being a floating AA... Planes are like bugs on your windscreen of your car. I've got my best commander on her (rank commodere) I tried all flags. All I can say is how much grains of sand resides on the sea floor....

 

Please: I'm not asking to win every game. I know that's impossible. I'm not harvesting pity as well: I just feel bad for the teams I play with cause I have the feeling they lose because I used the C...

 

Do you have any advice for me or can you say what I'm doing wrong given my info? Or should I just accept it all and "bypass" the Colorado with free XP? Granted: I'm a wallet player (I love this game so much I spent some money in it. Cash for which I work hard). I usually use the free XP for the present ship upgrades. (-;

 

 

[fruitnveg]

It's not a bad ship, contrary to many other opinions you will hear. I'd say your best bet is to engage your targets at 9-12km roughly and keep your angle tightish. At those ranges the AP of the Colorado's 16 inchers will punch through damn near anything and more importantly, it'll hit. The problem as you've identified is the ships speed. You need someone ahead of you to see what's around the corner because once you're committed at those ranges, it's do or die. It relies upon team fed information to be most effective and team fed information is never a given unfortunately. I'd say stick with it and you may learn to love it (a little bit of Stockholm syndrome never hurt anyone!). But if it still gives you so much trouble that you simply don't want to play it regardless, I can only recommend your Free exp through it.

[Admiral_noodle]

Hi there.

 

What I like is the fact you're asking for help and not complaining that the ship is at fault. Well done

 

I had the worst experience of all my BBs in the Colorado. Mainly because she is so slow for her tier I could actually go whole games without really seeing the enemy.

 

I did look at your stats. What I do notice is that you are doing only half to 2/3 damage and kills on all battleships you've played compared to me. I'm not saying you're bad or im a god - but I'm clearly getting more out of them than you. Even Colorado.

 

I do more damage and I survive more. Are you getting yourself exposed before you have a chance to deal damage? Impatient maybe? Getting stuck in places you shouldn't be?

 

The only way to really tell is for you to put some games up on YouTube or division up. I'd be happy to division with you sometime.

[IamTroublemaker]

The problem with that ship is that you start seeing more ships with bigger guns that can do massive damage to you, easily. I think playing it as a brawler works the best (low-mid range), especially if you have a division mate playing with you and supporting each other.

The guns pack a really big punch, especially if the ships are showing you their broadside, but the bad thing is that they got the "shotgun effect" and the shell dispertion is bad.

When you upgrade to the last hull (I recommend free xp-ing at least the first hull) you AA gets really good and lower tier carriers (and the ones that are same tier) will probably thing twice before sending their bombers and TBs at you, so that is a big plus for that ship, although its slow and has relatively slow rudder shift time so those TBs that get past your AA will be hard to avoid.

 

Always try to angle (sometimes even if angled you might take a lot of damage from higher tier ships) as exposing your broadside will make you receive a lot more damage. Also remember that all those higher tier BBs like NC, Iowa, Amagi and Izumo (probably the strongest broadside armor out of those 4) have relatively weak broadside armor and whenever they expose it try to punish them!

 

 

EDIT: I could write a wall of text, but you will learn to use the ship in different situations by continuing to play it. It is not a bad ship at all!

[Niibler]

Hi there! What I like is the fact you're asking for help and not complaining that the ship is at fault. Well done

 

+1 on that!

 

Regarding the Colorado, it has a very particular playstyle but it's kind of rewarding when you get the hang of it. Like other say it has an excellent armor and it is clearly a brawler so engaging 9-12km or around that is a must in order to have accuracy and it will pack a strong punch!

Don't forget to keep angled to other BBs and don't go all Yolo, manage your positioning by planning ahead since it is a slow ship.

[JocMeister]

I played the Colorado before it was buffed and I found it an "okay-ish" ship. Huge step down from the NM though...but its a pretty horrible grind however you look at it. If you have any free XP spend it on the 2nd hull ASAP because the 1st one is REALLY bad. Personally I gave up after about 50 battles and used free XP to get to the NC. 

[Kenliero]

One of the key aspect in playing Colorado, is that you need to be patient and find an angle/route where you engage maximum of 2 enemies. Do not try to go tanking 3-4 enemies. With slow USN ships, you should use islands as cover, as you approach the enemy and try to find position where you don't have to fight the whole enemy team at once. If you have too many enemies in front of you, your Colorado can push ahead, but it can not turn and go back, because the turning itself takes too long time and you will get killed WHILE turning, where 3-4 enemies are pummeling you. so be smart about choosing the approach angle and use the islands to "block" some of the enemies. one-on-one situation Colorado is very strong ship.

[Purple_Alert]

3 months and you haven't unlocked the North Carolina? The col is the turnip of the line. Get his big brother ASAP and scrap that tier 7 turd.

More guns. Way more hp and really really good AA. It's a beast.

[Seikin]

I found it painful - until I had all the upgrades - and I do mean all. That last hull was a must, if I remember correctly it gives a pretty big boost to rudder-shift, and the guns just 'feel' more accurate with it. You also need the speed and range of the other upgrades. But, fully upgraded - I think its a great little ship. Yes, as others have said, once you commit, there's really not much backing out - and the short range/slow speed means you usually have to commit early (and by that, I mean I've already chosen my direction and am already steaming off as soon as the game starts). I find if I wait to see where others are going, there are so many slow-loaders(or wait-and-see-ers) that by the time you see where your team is going, and try to follow, you'll be too late to the fight - so instead, I just go - and hope somebody will go with me. If they do, they'll be rewarded by having a BB willing to go first and take the hits for them. If they don't - well, you can see pretty early on and will generally have time to turn - and the boat is pretty good a tanking/surviving for quite a while if you find you're alone and trying to hold a flank. 

It is a tough nut - and it does seem to get tougher the closer it gets. I think its a plunging fire/weak deck-armour thing. I take citadels from other BB's at long range - but very rarely (if at all) close up - as long as I'm angling. And with all the upgrades (including rudder-shift) - it starts to get reasonably nimble.

And yeah, up-close it can be citadels galore - I just always aim for the target most likely to result in a citadel. I'm not trying to finish off ships, I'm not looking to focus one ship until its sunk, I just go citadel-hunting. If I'm shooting at a furutaka and he's down to 10% health, but full-health Omaha comes round an island at 8km, broadside on, I'll hit the Omaha.. There's a pretty good chance I'll one-shot him (or at least make him wish he never came around that corner!).

 

But yeah, I think the Colorado being so team-dependent is probably what makes me complain so much about bad teamplay!

 

But now, I'm on the NC.. its still stock, and I'm struggling to make it work. It just doesn't seem anywhere near as tough as the Colorado..  Just hoping is because its stock.

[Rawindra]

Hi, I have a problem: the Colorado... I love this game and I'm playing it for nearly 3 months now. My favorite class are the BB's. I would qualify myself as an average player: not the ace like Ihatejuice (edit this if it's impropar: just want to pay respect to a very able player) and not the total noob borderhugging afker. Should you be interested you can see at my stats I'm quite OK with the BB battles: in the range of 50% victories besides the Colorado. I have roamed this forum, checked the Ichase and other instruction movies of this ship on YT and I have practised on the Co-op maps. I tried to rush into combat like a raging bull (didn't work because the ship is too slow to back out), I tried to keep it at a distance (not going in too quickly and wait until the enemy is whitin the 10 km range) hell I even tried DD tactics! I closely watch the minimap and angle as much as possible. But the result is always the same: I get hammered to the bottom over and over again. Even when I get the best cruiser cover possible, I keep eating shells and torps like I've got a magnet in my citadel. When I actually hit something I have the feeling it's by mere coincidence. Yesterday I actualy sank an enemy. I was so shocked: the rest of the red team sunk me 10 seconds after that. The only thing I'm always succesful in is being a floating AA... Planes are like bugs on your windscreen of your car. I've got my best commander on her (rank commodere) I tried all flags. All I can say is how much grains of sand resides on the sea floor....

 

Please: I'm not asking to win every game. I know that's impossible. I'm not harvesting pity as well: I just feel bad for the teams I play with cause I have the feeling they lose because I used the C...

 

Do you have any advice for me or can you say what I'm doing wrong given my info? Or should I just accept it all and "bypass" the Colorado with free XP? Granted: I'm a wallet player (I love this game so much I spent some money in it. Cash for which I work hard). I usually use the free XP for the present ship upgrades. (-;

 

 

 

Well, I had looked on the stats of good BB-players in my clan. Everyone of them was better with the New Mexico on Tier 6 than with the Colorado on Tier 7. So I decided to avoid that ship and went directly to the North Carolina using free xp and doublons. My playtime is limited, so I am not interested in playing ships, which are no fun.

[Teaz]

First of all, a disclaimer: I'm a DD player, but grinding the USBB line to get my hands on the iconic Iowa.

 

The Colorado has a number of drawbacks compared to the North Carolina and especially her Japanese counterparts. One in particular, being the lack of a proper propulsion and hull points.

 

I am however having a good laugh in the Colorado, never mind the manouvers, just go straight at them. By this I don't mean a headless charge through the middle, but instead use the first 1-2 minutes to plot your course based on your team, and then stick to it - the Colorado gets punished the second you try to retreat or out manouver the enemy; well, unless of course your facing a New Mexico or fellow Colorado.

 

Even though the rearmounted turrets requires some angling (opening yourself for more hits), I find the "straight at them" approach rather effective! Anyhow, I play her like a dreadnought, but the guns are accurate and dangerous enough to open up at max. distance.

[Zuxx]

I don't have her so i can be wrong, but facing Colorado i found her to be very bouncy, she's probably a good brawler and not a sniper, close distance ( not too much ) and angle her, give it a try

 

[viceadmiral123]

Colorado is a brawler. It used to be a decent ship, player didn't know how to play it and WG buffed it. Now it's strong for it's tier. Play it for it's advantages.

[Seikin]

Colorado is a brawler. It used to be a decent ship, player didn't know how to play it and WG buffed it. Now it's strong for it's tier. Play it for it's advantages.

 

True..  Odd thing is though, most of the US line before the Colorado are brawlers too. I would have thought that by T7, the default play for the US line would be to get in and brawl. Doesn't always seem to be the case though.  Its still hard work until upgraded though..

[Babykim]

This interests me as well, because it has been a while that I finished the New Mexico. So Colorado has been recently buffed (turret rotation speed), but most people still don't like it.

[je1419]

Good thread. I am eagerly taking all advice since the Colorado is my next BB as well. I have been in the NM for too long now, spending credits on ship upgrades in other classes.

What I do to see if I'm playing a certain ship to it's potential is compare my stats on that ship to the EU stats for that particular ship, there are several sites that give this kind of information. For instance I use average damage dealt as my main metric.

You have for instance these sites, but I think there are others as well ???
http://www.warshipstats.com/

http://www.warships.today/

(I assume they contain the same data and statistics, but they present it differently)

[Seikin]

This interests me as well, because it has been a while that I finished the New Mexico. So Colorado has been recently buffed (turret rotation speed), but most people still don't like it.

 

It does still seem that many don't like it. I do - but didn't before I'd got all the upgrades.   But then I like the Furutaka. guess I just have weird tastes.

[Namolis]

Colorado is a brawler. It used to be a decent ship, player didn't know how to play it and WG buffed it. Now it's strong for it's tier. Play it for it's advantages.

The Lolorado did not use to be a decent ship. It had the worst win rating of any battleship. Maybe you made it work, but most of us didn't. Before it got buffed it suffered many maladies, but chief among them was DPM: it had only 168k (iirc), which was a huge step down from the NM. It was also worse than the NY. And the Wyoming. After the reload buff, DPM went up to 198k, which is better, but still worse than the NM. The NM also have a much better alpha. In fact, the only thing the Lolo's weapons had going for them over the NM, (or Fuso, or NY or even Kongo) was a slightly better penetration vs high tier battleships, so it could pen them at a greater range - but then again, you shouldn't be at range in this ship, should you. It was and still is objectively worse than the NM against cruisers and destroyers, where high penetration sometimes does more harm than good. Gun dispersion was outright atrocious at some point, but that has been improved more than once. Still isn't good at range, but that's a general US BB characteristic. Armor and AA and maneuverability have always been decent. Speed has always been bad. Health has always been criminally low.

 

I'm certain they have played around with both armor and penetration values several times. I used to walk all over Colorados in my NM, but I don't anymore. I think that's partly because of obvious buffs to the Lolo, partly bc of stealth buffs and partly bc of stealth nerfs to NM penetration and/or dispersion. WG didn't react until ranked - and then they saw that almost everyone used their NM.

 

So, to the OP: the Lolorado's strength lies in combat vs other battleships. Her weaknesses lies in combat vs (multiple) cruisers and in slow speed. Your AA sort of "just is there" - it's mostly close range AA and doesn't rattle, so you can't make *active* use of it, but its a nice bonus to have whenever a carrier shows up and gives you *a little* more leeway in moving away from the fleet. Try to go in early and be conscious of your placement on the map - try to stay in relatively central locations and don't get suckered into following someone to the edge of the map. You die first in a rout, but turning away doesn't automatically mean a rout will happen and it still buys you time to use that mediocre DPM well. Target BBs to put that penetration to good use. Your good turning circle lets you dodge torpedoes better than IJN or higher tier US BBs, so as long as you don't go in straight lines very long, you can be in the first line of a charge. You get away with showing your side more than other high tier BBs, but try not to - you still take more damage, and it's a terrible habit to have when you play T8+.

 

As much as everyone will tell you that this is a brawler, I would still recommend the 16% range module if you can afford it. At long ranges it's more of a lottery to hit stuff, but at least your dispersion makes it less likely that the target will leave the threat zone entirely even if it changes speed or heading after your shots leave the barrel. Again, your penetration is good, so that lets you get some lucky citadels at long range every now and then. Also; you're slow, so sometimes you can't help it that you are far away from the action - and its certainly better for your sanity to do *something* than just watch your ship creep along while your friends die.

[pra3y]

The Colorado is actually a pretty decent ship. Not gonna bother about the pre-buff, post buff part since I've only played it post buff and its not really advice anyway, which is what OP wants.

 

Alot of the stuff have already been mentioned before. If you can, I'll advice you to free exp a) propulsion b) range c) hull b in that order since a) its too slow so the extra speed would help b) allows you to start shooting earlier c) just as important but if you don't mind the Colorado's speed or initial lack of range. Of course you can grind but this will help out abit. If you do free exp though then you will only have to grind to hull c, which turns the Colorado into a beast. With a combination of BFT and AFT, it would be extremely difficult for a CV to get any decent damage out of you, since hull c's AA suite is extremely strong (eg; one on one against a Hiryu Captain that did not bunch up his/her planes but sent them 1 by 1 resulted in 30+ planes being shot down. This also lead to the next part, an assumption I just thought of. Although the Colorado is slow, its rudder shift time after upgrade is pretty decent. This coupled with it being "short" compared to most other longer BBs allow it to execute somewhat tighter turns and also somewhat turn faster (correct me if I'm wrong). 

 

Map awareness wise its good that you watch the mini map but at the same time when you watch make plans on what you want to do or where you want to go. When looking at the map, since you are in a BB that is already very slow, keep a lookout for where the DDs are and if you're able to identify which nation they're from it'll help. If its an IJN DD then proceed on with caution and don't sail straight. Keep on turning (helps with avoiding torpedos, especially the long range ones. Even if you can't avoid them, you'll take lesser) if the situation allows for it (i.e. you wouldn't get a broadside from other ships). If its a USN DD then start worrying when they get close. Russian DDs I don't really know. If its tier 6/7 above run if you don't have backup?

 

While it may have less gun then a New Mexico, I find that its dispersion is actually pretty decent.  It would help not to swap shells right at the start of the round. A Colorado with the range module upgrade and the range upgrade can shoot up to 19+km without a spotter plane. Stick with HE at the start and if your DDs or CV spotted a DD or cruiser just lob those shells at them. They can't really fire back from that kind of range (since you're still pretty far away). I manage to hit a DD at about 15km on the Ocean map before with enough lead (Provided that the enemy DD does not swerve and dodge, since nothing really dangerous is close to it yet, estimate how much lead is needed and fire. I guarantee at least 1 shell will hit that unsuspecting DD or cruiser, which is fun. Also it comes with the added benefit of torching a cruiser like a Cleavland before they torch you)

 

Finally, as alot of people have mentioned before, the Colorado is a brawler. While the guns (in my opinion) are fairly accurate, it would be bad to snipe the entire match since not all of us are really that accurate and RNG also plays a part. Pick fights that are reasonable i.e. don't continue sailing towards a Mogami, 2 Atago and a Nagato. This is where being aware comes into play. Firstly there are too many enemy ships for you to handle, second the cruisers will out DPM you and third the cruisers will out DPM you. While slow, the Colorado is decent at doing a retreating fight, angling to fire a full broadside before angling back so run if you have no support and punish them for chasing you. Don't be afraid of taking damage either. Maybe its because of the higher tier ships and also because of its size but I find it harder to take/dodge hits as a North Carolina. Most of the dreadnought, fireproof and unsinkable that I got is from the Colorado. Take those hits and if its really too much retreat and heal. The Colorado can take a pounding. Don't let a few torps or shots turn you back. Push if need be and at close range even against a DD (again keep on turning. Expect any ship that can launch torpedos will launch them at you) the Colorado can be very dangerous (AFT on secondaries helps. I got Damage control 2 module as well to deal with fire and flooding)

 

 Apologies for the wall of text and hope this helps

[Ferry_25]

Thanks for all the advice guys! To my shame I do not know how to record a game... This image wraps up my problem pretty well... Lost game (of course...) OK we were over-tiered in the match but still. It was a small Island map. I didn't rush in right away and tried to get to 2 isolated ships. The rest of them were far off. But before I could even get into range I got one shot, halving my HP's, I tried to angle, got shot furthermore and the end was 5 torps hitting me whithout mercy. I did shoot back of course but you can see the miserable result. I know I'm not the best shot around but neither am I the worst. 48 shots. 0 hits... At least I should have scratched some paint?? OK, not to be pittied! Other games with other ships went great today! My conclusion is: I cannot handle her!

 

[Ferry_25]

Sorry, I cannot post my pic for some reason...

[HipHopHippopotamus]

Sorry, I cannot post my pic for some reason...

 

Hey bro.Today i researched and bought colorado.Its fully stock.I can say that i am impressed by it because i didnt except it after all the crying posts i have read about it.He does pretty good damage,its dispersion till 13-14km is better than new mexico.I have sanked around 6 ships today at 7 battles.Yeah the speed sucks and the range too but i find colorado better than new mexico(a ship that i really enjoyed and pwned with...).The AA at first hull is really bad.So far so good.I can say that i start enjoying playing with it.Cant really understand why u strugle...

[caldark]

Once fully upgraded its pretty decent.. Stock its pretty bad and a massive step down from the BB before it.

 

I have Warspite and I love that ship.. Colorado is very similar maybe not quite as tanky but you can play a similar role... well at least thats how I play her and I do ok for the most part.. I still only have the second hull waiting to the 3rd.

[mjfred]

Realy enjoyed the Colorado.

One thing I found helped was not using the increased range module but going with the AA one.

The C hull is an AA monster. While the extra range module just gives you the chance to miss and then get spotted early.

It's a good brawler, but sometimes everyone wimps out and leaves you to tank and die.

I didnt blame the Colorado for other players desperately wanting to show full broadside turning to run back full speed to the edge of their range.

[scousersuk]

Colorado is designed by wg as a skip ship they want u to pay free XP it