Colorado appreciation thread

[Gunerstile]

Disclaimer: This is not a troll post.

 

After only a few games with C hull and an engine upgrade I started to love Colorado, to the limit that I decided not to buy upgraded Gun Fire Control System.

I'm a fanboy of Japanese Imperial Navy in general and when I started this game last summer in open beta coming from WoT I knew I was here to stay. Naturally I immediately started the grind towards Yamato and I loved all the ships in that line so far (I only got to Amagi in the process), even the dreadful Kawachi, but that was due to the fact that Kawachi was my first ever BB and I was relatively new to the game so I did not feel the awful inaccuracy and armor of the ship but so....let me start talking about what this thread is about, the mighty Colorado. 

Somewhere in the middle of farming the Japanese BBs I thought to give it a go with American ones. And...I suffered with SC all the suffer that I missed while I was playing the Kawachi (due to my incompetence and general obscurity of the game while I was playing the Kawachi) because I learned what punish BB can pack meanwhile playing the Japanese ones, and my general knowledge of the game has improved. Story goes on to Wyoming, NY, and New Mex....not much to say about those. I liked the ships, they were different than Japanese and in a surrounding where there were only 8 lines to play (back in open beta there were only American and Japanese ships) it was something fresh to do in a game. I kinda stopped at New Mex because I thought that it was all that line had to offer and because I thought that it was the peak of conventional American battleship building (you know that NC and Iowa are "new designs" you can even read it on NC's description in-game), why? Well I read a lot of forum post at the time,  and heard from people (and still the general consensus is that Colorado is very bad ship, probably the worst BB in the game) about the Colorado, how it was bad, inaccurate, out ranged and out gunned, slow, not armored enough, and on and on...so I didn't want to bother with it just to get to NC and Iowa (Montana really doesn't attract me, so I will probably never get it). So from all this text you can see how dreadful was I about playing the Colorado (grinding, farming, call it what ever you want, just to get the NC as soon as possible).

And I bought it!!!

Oh my god, the stories were true, but I was kinda reserved because I also know that stock stuff can be painful. I waited for all the upgrades to be mounted and to try and evaluate the ship then. I can tell you that B hull is almost as bad as the A stock hull. It gives you better AP shells yes, better rudder, better armor, and some AA, but it was still damn bad ship with the B hull. You get penetrated always and you are still slow as a slug. Engine upgrade pushes you to 21 kn. and note that this is one of only two real weaknesses of the Colorado (mounting a speed flag on a Colorado might not be such a bad idea, but to be honest I still didn't try it). The reason I am telling you all this about the B hull is because I've read somewhere or watched some YT video, about how to get over with Colorado as soon as possible and painless as possible, is that you should get the B hull and the things suddenly start to look better, well its not true. You need C hull for that, and not just that things will be little better, but ship will begin to shine.

C hull gives you more armored citadels and insane AA. Armor wise its still not that good, you will get penetrated from the front (at least you wont be taking any citadels from the front) and that is the second real weakness of the ship, the armor. Now, remember that at the beginning of the post I told you that I didn't get the upgraded range module? Here is the explanation and my view of the Colorado and why he actually is the peak of American conventional BB designs (at least so far and in-game)

 

Colorado Is a Brawler, which means he should fight other ships at closest range possible. Compared to Nagato, which is also a brawler, Colorado doesn't have good secondaries so do not relay on them as much as you can do that in Nagato. Preferred shooting range is 8-11 km. Going closer than 8 brings you to close to the potential torpedo attacks. Maximal (stock) range is 15.2 km but best advice regarding the Colorado I could give you is just forget about that 15 kms. I know that sometimes it can be hard to achieve that max range and even harder the optimal range but (use this as an advice for all your BBs not just Colorado) you mustn't be scared to close in, particularly when sailing in Colorado. Torpedoes, the main bane of BBs are easily avoided thanks to the Colorado's amazing rudder and tight turning circle. To further help your Torpedo avoiding skills, always change speed together with turning so DDs can never be sure where are you heading actually. And after all you are battleship and you are meant to take damage for your team. I just have a feeling that all the people that spoke ill about Colorado and created its reputation were actually just playing him wrong, here's why.

My preferred and advised upgrades are following: Main Battery Modification I, AA Guns Modification II, Damage Control System I, and Steering Gears Modification I.

The whole reason why you should avoid putting the Artillery Plotting Room Modification I is as I stated above. If you use Colorado to shoot from afar you wont hit anything and you will not to god at all. Colorado is simply "In your face" ship. Having to mention that, you have to be really careful where are you taking it. Have in mind what I've said earlier, Colorado is a slow ship so you have to be extra careful about the map situation awareness and you need to know whats in front; what are you gonna face. Because if you miss the main action on the map, you will miss the whole game. Ships speed will actually help you to see where the main battle will occur, because you will lag behind, so go right for it, not for map border, but have in mind, charging in to too many enemies will simply get you killed (as same as in any other BB). Having that kind of setup with minimal range, I strongly recommend you to mount Type 1 camouflage to maximally reduce your spotting range so you can get closer to the enemy without being detected, because most of your enemies can out range you, but be no discouraged. Sail towards your enemy, when you get in range start shooting and just wait until you get to your preferred shooting range, you will see how much more you can hit your target than shooting it from 15+ km. 

AA is one of the ships best features so you might wanna consider putting some AA skills on your captain. Me personally have Manual Fire Control but AFT might just be as good choice. You can really feel safe about the enemy air strikes. With my Colorado I was able to shoot down 37 planes in one battle with one t7 and one t6 CV. If you see enemy Hiryu, you can count that you will be able to shoot down one whole squadron and some planes of second squadron before he is able to drop, and plus some planes on their way home.  

 

I was never good at summing things up and writing the conclusions, but..The Colorado is the ship that shouldn't be shooting form further than 15 km because you will simply miss everything like a stormtrooper. You shouldn't be afraid of closing in the distance because, you are good at dodging torpedoes. You should spec the ship and the captain for max AA, because its the strongest feature of the ship, plan ahead, watch your step and you might be surprised how Colorado will surprise you.

 

[GulvkluderGuld]

The Colorado is a great ship. It recieved some buffs after release that took it from average to good.

I keep mine in port and take her for a spin every now and again, and she is one of my favorite ships. Despite having a fully upgraded NC, Colorado is often just more fun.

What I love about the ship is the C hull guns. Railguns I should say - it has fantastic shell-arcs. Much better than the NC at tier 8.

 

Armor.  It can be penned from the front, yes, but only if you go bow-on. Keep her angled 15-30 degrees and you will bounce almost everything fired at it including 16' guns.

Her weakness is deck armor and plunging fire, which is why NC's makes her cry, since bow-on NC's can pen her while she cant pen the NC due to flat arc.

Also she doesnt like Tirpitzes due to torps + slow speed.

 

But in tier 7 games. Oh boy.

It can shoot down en entire strike ranger's massed formations (6+ planes never makes it into range). It beats it's opposite tier 7 BB, the Nagato inside its range (better armor).

And it is an absolute beast at pushing! There are also weaknesses (it is SLOW and vulnerable to max-range kiting), but nothing short of massed CA BBQ (oddly enough, often Atlantas) can stop it cold.

Torps and DDs just makes it laugh before those mighty 16' guns sneeze the dd back to port and the graceful maneuverabilty lets the torps sail harmlessly by.

 

That is my 2 doubloons.

[Namolis]

The Colorado used to be a god-awful ship, stock it was perhaps the worst in the game, fully upgraded, still probably the worst battleship tier for tier (save for Izumo when it was bugged). The buffs Colorado recieved were actually quite numerous: Reload buff, turret rotation buff, sigma buff, healing buff and a rudder buff.

 

When pretty much every part of a ship is improved, it will end up being allright in the end.

 

Also, it's competitors on both T6 (NM and Fuso) and T8 (NC and Amagi) have all had some small nerfs since Colorado was hospitalized.

 

Colorado still has some problems, though: It still has lowish health, and it still dies to HE spam. Until people understand that you need 406 mm guns to bother challenging its armor, Colorado will do fine. I have no trouble going up against them in my Fuso or NM, but it requires HE spam and keeping some distance to work.

[22cm]

I m just grinding that piece of crap,  playing solo and non divisioning,  and it s a freaking nightmare.  Basically most of the games are based on 2 scenarios. 

 

1. You go by chance to the same side of the map as most of the enemies.  When your teammates see them,  they run away,  leaving you alone because you can t run at 18-19 knots…  you get focused by all the enemies and die like a hero… but you get to do some damage,  yay! 

 

2. You go by misfortune on the side of the map that no enemy wants to go,  except maybe 1 lonely destroyer,  by the time you turn back your teammates die like noobs to the enemy team,  and you rush back to defend base at 18-19 knots,  while the before mentioned lonely destroyer tries to stick up some torps in your behind.  If you arrive there in time,  you again get focused by all the enemy tea,  and die like hero again. 

 

It s a piece of crap because it s too slow to change sides,  when you happen to go to the same side as most of the enemy team,  and your team does not run away like [edited]but stay and fight,  then you will have a great time. 

[SV_Kompresor]

Lol, I didn't read most of your post because it's too long but I more or less know what you were saying, and count me in.....

Colorado is one of the best BBs in the game.... The guy above just doesn't now how to enjoy it

It has excellent armor and AA, turrets rotate quickly, and it has very accurate guns

[Vanhal]

I like Colorado. Before buff it was nightmare. Now only HE spam is really dangerous.

 

Although i just finished Izumo and compared to that, every ship is fun. I even feel like opening "Karlsruhe appreciation thread" with the "Hey, at least it's more fun than Izumo" main thought.

[22cm]

Lol, I didn't read most of your post because it's too long but I more or less know what you were saying, and count me in.....

Colorado is one of the best BBs in the game.... The guy above just doesn't now how to enjoy it

It has excellent armor and AA, turrets rotate quickly, and it has very accurate guns

 

Oh, yeah,  because it s so awesome,  on the WR for the last 2 weeks,  Colorado is the 21th out of 25 existent BBs in the game 

[SV_Kompresor]

 

Oh, yeah,  because it s so awsome,  on the WR for the last 2 weeks,  Colorada is the 21th out of 25 existent BBs in the game 

 

That doesn't make it any less awesome

[22cm]

 

That doesn't make it any less awesome

 

Exactly,  and on its own tier,  7, managed to be only  better than Pensacola,  Ranger and Hatsuharu,  but hey,  it s still awesome. 

[SV_Kompresor]

 

Exactly,  and on its own tier,  7, managed to be only  better than Pensacola,  Ranger and Hatsuharu,  but hey,  it s still awesome. 

 

Indeed it is

[GulvkluderGuld]

I m just grinding that piece of crap,  playing solo and non divisioning,  and it s a freaking nightmare.  Basically most of the games are based on 2 scenarios. 

 

1. You go by chance to the same side of the map as most of the enemies.  When your teammates see them,  they run away,  leaving you alone because you can t run at 18-19 knots…  you get focused by all the enemies and die like a hero… but you get to do some damage,  yay! 

 

2. You go by misfortune on the side of the map that no enemy wants to go,  except maybe 1 lonely destroyer,  by the time you turn back your teammates die like noobs to the enemy team,  and you rush back to defend base at 18-19 knots,  while the before mentioned lonely destroyer tries to stick up some torps in your behind.  If you arrive there in time,  you again get focused by all the enemy tea,  and die like hero again. 

 

It s a piece of crap because it s too slow to change sides,  when you happen to go to the same side as most of the enemy team,  and your team does not run away like [edited]but stay and fight,  then you will have a great time. 

Did you by any chance freeXp your way up the US bb line or do you still play stock colorado? Slow speed is not exactly unique to the colorado as it shares that miserable weakness with all previous us bbs.

 

Or put another way, your commet makes me wonder why you didnt quit us bbs long ago. I learned to deal with the slow speed at tier 5 and maybe a little at tier 6. Certainly i had it down at tier 7. 

[22cm]

Did you by any chance freeXp your way up the US bb line or do you still play stock colorado? Slow speed is not exactly unique to the colorado as it shares that miserable weakness with all previous us bbs.

 

Or put another way, your commet makes me wonder why you didnt quit us bbs long ago. I learned to deal with the slow speed at tier 5 and maybe a little at tier 6. Certainly i had it down at tier 7. 

 

Veery simple answer: on higher tiers, maps get bigger, so the slow speed makes you unable to react in time to what happens on the map. On tier 4-5, smaller maps compensates the slow speed so it s manageable.

 

I would believe that maybe it s me that I don t get along with this ship, but as I said, on tier 7 it is only better than Pensacola, Hatsuharu and Ranger, ships that are known to be difficult.

[GulvkluderGuld]

Veery simple answer: on higher tiers, maps get bigger, so the slow speed makes you unable to react in time to what happens on the map. On tier 4-5, smaller maps compensates the slow speed so it s manageable.

 

That can't be the only reason you consider it a piece of crap. 

Most games on larger maps I've been in end up as camp-fests. Speed hardly matters when the battle line is stationary.

If one entire flank goes, then usually the game is lost regardless. That isn't the ship's fault. 

 

If you happen to take the Colorado off to your teams weak side, it can make a formidable roadblock.

It can basically hold that flank alone for 5-10 mins depending on how many red ships are there. 

But if you go there, you should've already been able to count ships on the minimap and cross off missing ships on the teamlist, so you know what you will go op against. The slow speed works in your favour too.

[Leo_Apollo11]

Hi all,

 

I posted this 1 + month ago in:

 

"Colorado Starter Guide - What Should You Upgrade?"

http://forum.worldofwarships.eu/index.php?/topic/42487-colorado-starter-guide-what-should-you-upgrade

 

 

Hi all,

 

I must say that I was a bit "afraid" of "Colorado" because of all thing written about it but, thus far, my "Colorado" experience is most excellent!

 

I played 20+ battles thus far (without Premium - just with some flags used) and managed to fully re-train my "New York" 12 points captain (200.000 silver = 50% re-train) in just 10 battles and it took 20 battles altogether to get to "Hull B" + "Speed" + "Range" modules.

 

Also I must say that I love my "New Mexico" (and will keep it with its 12 point captain) and for me the "Colorado" is not that different at all (yes - 12 vs. 8 barrels is significant but the 406 mm counts). Damage wise I am almost at average with "Colorado" and climbing so I think I will do at least as good as with my "New Mexico"!

 

BTW, I opted for full range update (19.4 km) because I think every bit counts - I managed to kill unsuspecting and moving enemy cruisers on several occasions at 20+ km with spotter plane with just one salvo... they never knew what hit them...

 

 

Leo "Apollo11"

 

 

P.S.

Few days ago I was just 1-2 seconds away from my first "Kraken" with my "Colorado" with my shells in the air when the ticker ended... argh...

 

 

Leo "Apollo11"

[Seikin]

I see a lot of people playing this ship now. Mostly they sit at the back, and are often among the last ones left and also often among the lowest scorers.

 

Makes me think that many people either just don't get that its a brawler, or don't know how to brawl (or maybe just don't like to brawl - if that's the case - pick a different boat!). 

Its a boat that at long range:

• Has crap accuracy (and not great range either)
• Has crap deck armour so is MORE likely to be citadelled
• Has crap speed so is more likely to end up out of the battle, playing 'catchup' to the other boats.
• Will still get torped - but only after all your potential support has been taken down.

 

But at close range:

•  Accuracy doesn't matter too much, but guns are punchy enough to make a mess of pretty much anyone up close.
• Has fantastic belt armour which bounces all-sorts when angled well
• Has great agility giving advantages in positioning with other BB's and decent Torp defence (esp whe you have a friendly DD spotting them for ya)
• Has great AA defence. You don't need to sit behind an AA screen. With the AA module/skills, you ARE the AA screen!
   

I don't know. I can foul up a push, get into a mess and sink in the first 5 mins of the game and still come out in the top3 scorers, while I see those that sit at the back come out bottom 3..  So yeah, I can see how people may think the boat is rubbish, doesn't perform and not fun.

 

Take risks and play it to its strengths - its a great ship for that!

 

[Gunerstile]

I see a lot of people playing this ship now. Mostly they sit at the back, and are often among the last ones left and also often among the lowest scorers.

 

Makes me think that many people either just don't get that its a brawler, or don't know how to brawl (or maybe just don't like to brawl - if that's the case - pick a different boat!). 

Its a boat that at long range:

• Has crap accuracy (and not great range either)
• Has crap deck armour so is MORE likely to be citadelled
• Has crap speed so is more likely to end up out of the battle, playing 'catchup' to the other boats.
• Will still get torped - but only after all your potential support has been taken down.

 

But at close range:

•  Accuracy doesn't matter too much, but guns are punchy enough to make a mess of pretty much anyone up close.
• Has fantastic belt armour which bounces all-sorts when angled well
• Has great agility giving advantages in positioning with other BB's and decent Torp defence (esp whe you have a friendly DD spotting them for ya)
• Has great AA defence. You don't need to sit behind an AA screen. With the AA module/skills, you ARE the AA screen!

   

I don't know. I can foul up a push, get into a mess and sink in the first 5 mins of the game and still come out in the top3 scorers, while I see those that sit at the back come out bottom 3..  So yeah, I can see how people may think the boat is rubbish, doesn't perform and not fun.

 

Take risks and play it to its strengths - its a great ship for that!

 

 

Exactly a description of a battle I just had, We had 2 Colorados, me and the other guy. I died somewhere on the middle of a team and the other guy died last near the map border on The Ocean, I finished first in team, he finished last, and yes we lost the battle. 

[Seikin]

 

Exactly a description of a battle I just had, We had 2 Colorados, me and the other guy. I died somewhere on the middle of a team and the other guy died last near the map border on The Ocean, I finished first in team, he finished last, and yes we lost the battle. 

 

​And I'll bet you came out of it thinking 'this is a nice ship', and he came out of it thinking 'This ship is junk!' 

[Xerkics]

I really like colorado its pretty reliable at penning and almost never sees tier 8+ matches .

My first game after patch in it , it killed quite a few planes but it was never enough to stop the cv actually dropping it was more over the course of a game 1 and 2 at a time. So AA seems better but not to the point where CV werent a deadly threat so same as before really. Im saving for nagato this weekend and looking forward to comparing the 2.

[Gunerstile]

I really like colorado its pretty reliable at penning and almost never sees tier 8+ matches .

My first game after patch in it , it killed quite a few planes but it was never enough to stop the cv actually dropping it was more over the course of a game 1 and 2 at a time. So AA seems better but not to the point where CV werent a deadly threat so same as before really. Im saving for nagato this weekend and looking forward to comparing the 2.

 

Out of the two I still think Nagato is better ship, just because its speed. It has better range, better speed and worse AA. Nagato is almost a faster Colorado, you just wont be able to kill that many planes with Nagato, but for compensation you will get much better secondaries. 

[Nodorf_]

Looking at MY bb stats.. For ME, Colorado is better than Nagato. Col suits MY playstyle better. For YOU, it maybe the opposite. As I say, it all comes down to if the ship suits you or not. Playing Colorado as a brawler, my record is 175k dmg, and still lose tho. I really like the ship.

[fgibert]

Well for me it is the same story as the OP.

From what I had read before I unlocked it, I dreaded my first battle in this ship, struggled with hull B and stock engines, but fully upgraded, wow it rocks.

 

Sure from time to time, you have to suffer a game where there are no enemies on your flank, and you end up doing nothing, whether the battle is lost or won, it will be without you. But get into the thick of the battle, and it is a fun and efficient ship, with all the characteristics of a brawler (armor, punchy guns, agility). 

This is a ship that reward map awareness, because if you must get close to play your part in the battle, you must also recognize when it's time to put some distance. This ship cannot survive being focused by 2-3 HE spamming cruisers or smoked US destroyers.

 

And for those complaining that it can be penned from the front, well sure, but so does the Nagato (had a game a few days ago where I put 30k damage right in the bow of a Nagato that thought he had the better position)

 

I often play with a friend who also has this ship, and a pair of coordinated Colorados going for a brawl is something scary (not a scary as two New Mexicos, but still...). The combined AA means a nice no-fly zone except for tier 9 carriers.

[Nechrom]

You have to be very careful when choosing what routes to take because it takes too long to get into a better position if your first route choice isn't good.

Subsequently you might have to be a bit too aggressive sometimes to ensure that you are in a position where you can make a difference.

Other than that it's a great ship. Good guns and the armor is great.

 

Obligatory battle result screenshot:

[_Flyto_]

Colorado is a great ship - my favourite BB so far.

She has a bad reputation left over from before major changes.

[anonym_N94VxxjvHv2p]

Trollorado is one of the ships i enjoyed the most, though difficult to use properly. You must use it as a pure brawler, trying to put their guns INTO their enemies or at least carve your name in their hulls. The closest, the better.

My stats on BBs show it. 2nd in damage after the allmighty Fuso (one of the easiest BBs to play even from stock), and in a decent 5th position in WR. BUT you must be somewhat cautious with it, as its speed makes her very unforgiving. Wrong choice at start and you can find yourself completely alone in one side of map, with nothing to fire at, or on the contrary, having to battle almost the entire enemy team (with or without help from your team)

My recomendation: at start move towards the center of map, and from there turn towards where the fight is more intense, and get into the thick of battle like a bulldog. If you try to seat back and snipe with it, then you are doing very very bad, and will end last of your team.

[CPL_Sivi]

Well i was happy when i sold it . Me and colo just didn't got along. I even freexped last 20k cause i couldnt take it anymore. Now NC is a blessing for me after colo. Even stock i feel she is so awesome that she doesnt need actual upgrades. Only downside from colo is turning speed.Everything else is real upgrade. Speed, armour, accuracy, range, damage per shell, penetration, even AA on stock hull is superior than upped Colo. I will get her a steering mod and i suppose things will improve with b hull. I will not trash colorado cause it probably is not as bad as i felt it. But i am so glad that torture is over for me For all of u that feel the same pain, NC is the cure. She will put smile back on ur face so Colo is worth the grind.