Calling all BB captains

[tombetts92]

so i wanted to start this thread mainly to help some of the newer captians out when sailing their battleships. i have noticed that even at the higher tiers people still really struggle wiith how to sail battleships and they end up needlessly dying. I dont claim to be a amazing BB captain but there are a lot of you out there who ARE amazing battleship captains.

 

So my idea is for anyone who has some usefull tips and tricks for playing battleships this is the thread to share them in

 

see you in battle captains!

 

P.S i am aware that things like this have been done before but with the recent addition of German BBs i think it is time for a recap

[Msiiek]

2 tips that will make every BB player better than 90% of them:

 

- use WASD more often than once in a 5 minutes

- don't snipe from 20km+

[Mr_Burke]

I see alot of kongo players hanging back at the edge of the map, thinking they are this awesome 100% accurate sniper. I dunno why I see it more times with Kongo, than any other battleship.

[tombetts92]

2 tips that will make every BB player better than 90% of them:

 

- use WASD more often than once in a 5 minutes

- don't snipe from 20km+

 

i feel like this is something that is so so simple to do and will improve your skill by so much. its a shame more people don't do it.

 

i will add another one: just becuase your in a German BB and have turtleback armour does NOT  mean that its fine to go broadside to enemy BBs, you still have to angle you ship

[Xevious_Red]

Battleships can load more than just AP.

Although we all like it when you get those citadels, HE has good consistent results too, particularly on thinly armoured ships that you're likely to over penetrate.

[el_bloom]

When you get your homebase capped.... at least *THEN* engage closer and stop sniping for heavens sake !

 

Don´t be an a$$ !

[_Teob_]

I'll give BB captains a tip - shoot at DDs. If they are angled at all you have a pretty good chance to inflict normal penetration damage on them.

[tombetts92]

lets keep these great tips comming.

 

another one for those long range sniping BB players, in the latest update you get rewarded by taking potential damage so if you push and tank damage you will actually get MORE credits and xp

[Niibler]

My 5 cents:

 

Try other classes too.

[Zathras_Grimm]

A DD player so not sure about giving this advice, but please if an enemy DD is sighted by your DDs help them win the battle.

Having your DDs alive, scouting and throwing out torps (making enemy BBs zig zag and lose firing opportunities) has got to be better than being on the receiving end.

[tombetts92]

A DD player so not sure about giving this advice, but please if an enemy DD is sighted by your DDs help them win the battle.

Having your DDs alive, scouting and throwing out torps (making enemy BBs zig zag and lose firing opportunities) has got to be better than being on the receiving end.

 

this is great advice imo. lots of BBs automatically assume that shooting a DD isnt their job but you can actually do a huge amount of dammage to enemy DDs just with 1 or 2 hits

[RenamedUser_92906789]

here is my advice ... if you see a DD .. try ramming it :>>>>

[RegularLogic]

• Learn about the ship you're using and what the enemy team is using
• Learn how to use cover and what kind of cover you need when facing different types of ship
• Try not to be a torpedo collection agent and don't steam in a straight line when you KNOW there's something out there
• Use your minimap and the "Spotted!" indicator to try and figure out the most likely direction you were spotted from
• If you have the ability to snipe, feel free to, provided you're supporting your allies
• Learn the velocity of your main battery shells (going from fuso to nagato can be a little confusing)
• If you're in close range and you're passing a hostile ship, but your guns aren't tracking correctly, turn off the targeting assistance with "X" as this will mess with your aim
• Angle when appropriate, don't constantly give the enemy broadsides to fire at
• If you've fired your foreward guns, scan your rear gun firing arcs for other targets before committing to a single target

[Egoleter]

You best bet for advice is the battleship forum.

http://forum.worldofwarships.eu/index.php?/forum/307-battleships/

 

General rules:

- W, A, S, and D are your friends. If you use them regulary and in an unpredictable way torpedos will become a much smaller thread. Please only use those keys if you are on my team, my DDs love players who don't use them on the enemy team. And you want my DDs to love you, don't you?

- You might have a lot of range with your guns, but you become a lot more precise if you get closer. The more often you hit, the more damage you will deal, the more of a boon you will be to your team. If you use the WASD hack (see above) you can even avoid a few incoming enemy volleys.

- This goes for every ship: Don't show broadside to an enemy BB. They can citadel you just like you can citadel them. Angle your ship only as far as you need to fire your guns at your selected target, then go back to show as much bow or stern to the enemy as possible.

- Don't be to fixated on a single target. Use your right mouse key often and look for more promising targets. I often see a single ship pulling away three or more BBs and cruisers form my own team by running away. Instead of looking for better pray they follow him on a grand tour around the map wasting time and ammo they could put to better use.

- DDs are valid targets. If you see them, with your guns are loaded, shoot them. Even an overpenetrating AP shell will hurt them badly.

- Capturing zones is something a BB can and should do as well.

- Don't support your team by staying 15 kilometers behind them. 2 to 5 kilometers behind your DDs is giving those DDs cover and as you are closer to the enemy you will hit them more often. As you provide your hitpoints as a target your cruisers will also survive longer.

- Don't use your repair on the first fire that you recieve from an HE spamming cruiser. You can wait for a few more and extinguish them all together. In the mean time you can give the cruiser hell. Don't panic.

[Aotearas]

I see alot of kongo players hanging back at the edge of the map, thinking they are this awesome 100% accurate sniper. I dunno why I see it more times with Kongo, than any other battleship.

 

That's only because with other BBs you can't hug the map border and still be within firing range. It's not like they WANT to be closer ...

[Ubertron_X]

vs CV: But your bow or stern in the direction of incoming torpedo bombers. But your broadside in the direction of incoming dive bomber. Mind other threads while doing this.

vs DD: If you have nobody to spot the DD for you just run away. Most DDs will not be able to torp you from behind.

vs CA: As CAs will usually not travel in a straight line for a longer time learn to shoot them while they turn. Each ships inherent turning radius makes these shots rather predictable. Only use damage control party in case of 2 or more fires.

vs BB: Use HE on bow-on BB. Always angle against enemy AP shells.

 

General: Low stealth ratings will give you the opportunity to close very near before revealing yourself and also the opportunity to phase out of view if you stop shooting. Ships like Iowa or Tirpitz can go as low as 12.2km spotting range, which can be devastatingly near for any opponent.

[Spuggy]

If your secondary battery isn't firing you aren't doing it right. That's essentially how to battleship

[anonym_MfZ6T7iwWpUC]

Part of the problem is new players upgrading to the next ship too fast. They end up at higher tiers before they fully understand how to play. They also see posts on the forum about how crap certain ships are, and skip them without learning anything. You only learn how to play, by playing, and that takes a lot of games

[anonym_MfZ6T7iwWpUC]

Double post.

[Shirakami_Kon]

You can actually dodge close range launched torps even if you're going full speed if you quickly put the BB on reverse and turn the rudder all you can to turn into the torps. Doing those two things at once drops the speed extremely fast to the point you can manage to dodge torps by slowing down and see them just pass in front of your ship.

 

Edit: For example, my record with that is with a Kongo dodging Izyaslav torps launched at 1'6 km from my ship.

[G01ngToxicCommand0]

I have another tip for battleship drivers: Don't play them, cruisers are much more fun to play and if you are bad at playing BBs at least in cruisers your failures do not have as large an impact on your team.

[albinbino]

My tip. Dont be fast on trigger.  When your guns are loaded hold fire for little bit, when you have target ship on your aim try to predict movements of that ship and then shoot for best effect (broadside). For example if you see ship making turn, be patient, wait for several seconds or even more, to have devastating shot on your target.

[TheCinC]

I'll just refer to the topic linked in my sig..

 

Happy hunting!

[xxNihilanxx]

When you have lost over half your health and are being focused by half the enemy team , or even when you're not, and a friendly DD* pops smoke for you.... stay in the smoke or, at the very least, stay behind it. The DD will spot targets for you and you can recover your health and do damage without taking return fire.

 

*Please note - if you are that friendly DD then please make sure there are no torpedo boats around when you do this.

[Nargoth73]

I am an avid BB player (now on the lovely German line) and the tips I can give:

 

* Pay attention to the minimap.

* Form a mini-fleet with other ships. When there are carriers present, try to make an anti-air umbrella.

* Don't shoot randomly at the start of the battle (really, why would you)

* Don't shoot at random targets far away if you are not detected. Get closer and when you are detected, take that shot. You are much more likely to hit the target.

* Use secondaries, us torps if you have them.

* If in a pinch and you have no way out, try to ram another BB. Might as well take one with you.

* Pay attention to chat, be friendly and use chat to coordinate attacks. Don't spam the F-keys. Don't flame and rant.

* Congratulate your team and your adversary every now and then. It makes for a better game experience.

* Don't take advice from an old fart like me.

 

TL;DR

Play as a team, pay attention to chat and don't be a donkey.