If you were going to build an allied slugger, what would you build? I would rank the sluggers in this order Baden: gun placement, casements, maneuverability (2 rudders) Nassau: Very maneuverable, casements, very short Konig: Same as Baden but ½ unit less Viribus Unitis: Gun placement, maneuverability I would prefer to build an allied slugger, but can’t come up with a competitive hull. Queen Elisabeth: is not maneuverable enough, & does not have the casement protection that the German boats have. Tennessee/Colorado: With only one rudder will be handicapped. I have not seen one (probably for good reason) Invincible: can’t turn with German boats, No casements I quickly graduated from cruisers, They are targets to me. Ran a Nassau for a season (loved it). Ran an Invincible for a season. It just did not perform the way I wanted it to. USS Washington is my current ship. Great ship, but I prefer belows to chewing up above. Is there a hull out there that I am not thinking of? Keith Maxwell
Steve, Do you have a recommendation for a fiberglass hull for a Q.E. with casements? What venue do you battle? I will be battling Fast Gun. Keith
I'm not aware of any with the casements molded in but then again I don't know much. On my QE project, I'll be building the casements simular to a VU I did several years ago.
Don't forget that local rules here in seattle area allow the Mackensen (if you don't mind axis)... class 5 , 24 seconds, 2 rudder gun placement similar to baden, lots of casemates.... and I know at least three locals who have unbuilt kits, and stephen has asked me to update the drawings for his laser... There is also the Provence (Bretagne class) that I hope to get kitted this fall.... it takes legal solid area to the rediculous extreme
I've run a QE for several years. She'll pivot on her bow. Not on A or B turret like Baden, but close enough. You can out run Badens in a QE.
Tugboat said Can you elaberate on that? QE is high on my list. I just have not seen enough of them to make a good decision. Seemed to me that the Nassau would tunr circles around it. But the the Nassau will turn circles around most.
QE is also faster, has more stringers, and has two rudders. She's generally regarded as a pretty maneuverable ship.
Turning isn't everything. It helps, but there are other factors to consider for an effective Allied Slugger. The Iron Duke class tends towards low profiles and good turning. It also gets 26 seconds speed which translates to more water over the rudders to help turning. It has modest casements in the right spots to help get cannons down closer to the water. The HMS Erin is another half decent slugger. It is essentially a shorter Iron Duke. Class 4 (4.5 units), 28 seconds, low profile, twin rudders, and cannons low to the water. There is more than a few British Dreadnaughts that have not been built yet that may also fit the bill. Overall though, I would not worry overmuch about min maxing a ship. Ship reliability is the most telling factor on how well a ship performs, not the number of casements or how well it turns.
My first choice would be a Baden, but there are already (2) in work in our club. As well as the Nassau. I still am not convinced that there is an allied boat that can go toe to toe with them. I would love the layout of the Colorado and West Virginia class, but our rules give such a disadvantage to a single rudder boat that I will not expend the money or time to build one. Building a wood boat would be fun, but I think that I should stick to a fiberglass hull for now. The fact that there has not been demand enough for some of the British Dreadnaughts is rather telling in my opinion. Keith
If you are asking for advice on an Allied slugger, 'Baden' would not appear in my advice. If you want a Baden, build a Baden.
Locally we don't tend to play much straight up axis vs allies, so if your concern is team balance, don't worry about that part. Its more 'sort out the teams as fair as possible and if we can make a theme, cool'. Who other than Hovey has a Baden under construction locally?
Checking to see if there was something out there that I was missing. I have been out of the game for 10 years. Some things have not changed. The rudder rule: 3. Ships with two or more rudders, or greater than 700 feet length overall, may have 50% more total rudder area than allowed above. Gives a distinct advantage to duel rudder ships. With the money and time required to build these, why would you build a boat with a built in handicap. When I chose the N.C. class it was with my eyes open. Speed manuverability, and tripple aft is a killer combination. The sidemount are not as affective as I would like. For my next build I want a slugger. As far as sluggers go The Baden is (in my opinion) the best as I would prefer allied. If I could build a Colorado class with duel rudders it would be a no-brainer. Looking more and more like a Baden.
Nick, Both the Cascade Column and your signature say YOU are working on a Baden/Bayern. I assumed that you had it in work. Keith
Oh, good point. Its not going to be finished anytime soon. If you decided to build one, you'd probably finish before me.
I think you are overthinking it, Keith. I'd daresay that even though my Erin did not turn as well as most of the Axis pig boats (especially the Westphalen), the Axis still respected it. Some will say it is the cannons. IMO, it was due more to the fact that the cannons, along with the rest of the boat, was extremely reliable and let me concentrate on doing damage to other ships instead worrying if the ship was going to sink. I started in the hobby worrying that I needed the absolute best ship. What I have learned is that the ship is not what makes a good battler, but the ship's reliability and how the captain uses it. I have built boats with single rudders. Boats that were considered dogs and unworthy to battle competitively. I've seen other captains battle single rudder boats well enough to gain respect. I'd say build what you like, not what may be the "perfect" boat. As for NCs ... they don't impress me. Heh. Doesn't mean I don't respect the captains that can use them well.
