This is for all you predreadnought fans out there. The time before February 10, 1906 was a fascinating period of technological development and experimentation. It saw the introduction of modern armor, guns, and torpedoes. Yet it was also a period of stagnation, where ship size only increased slowly, and primary armaments quickly settled upon two twin turrets with large-caliber guns. Naval engagements migrated from hundreds of yards up to thousands of yards, up to ten thousand yards. Ships grew from 10,000 tons (or less) up to a massive 16,000 tons, and armor evolved from wrought or cast iron to compound, then homogenous steel, Harvey steel, and finally Krupp steel. The stage is set, now time for the question: If you could build one predreadnought battleship and one armored cruiser from every major naval power (Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, USA), which ships would you choose? In other words, what would you consider to be the definitive battleship and/or armored cruiser for each major naval power?
Ruirik II from Russia in the Armored Cruiser Catagory. SMS Blucher HMS Warrior USS Tennesse San Giorgio Not sure about the French Armored Cruisers. Torn between E. Quinet and E. Renan classes IJN Tskuba Too early for most rule sets but the Italian Garibaldi class. Good for Italy, Spain, Japan, Argentina(I think) For Battleships HMS Majestic USS Louisiana SMS Pommern Danton class Potemkin IJN Katori Not always the best or most famous, but the ones I am most fond of
Another that is not the best of class but I have always liked was the St. Louis Class semi-armored cruisers.
I like the Dantons. I have read someplace that they were among the best of the pre-dreadnaughts. But that is probably due in-part to the fact that they were also perhaps the last pre-dreads built. So they probably utilized knowledge gained by all the other earlier ones. I also like the Blucher, and Rurik. Just because they are cool. Mikey
I am quite partial to the Mikasa, and I also like the Borodino. That one is such an odd design, with its odd tumblehome hull, secondary gun turrets, etc. Forget Space Battleship Yamato, here comes Space Battleship Borodino!
