Thanks, Beaver! I just thought of something; since I will more than likely be battling in the Maryland Attack Group(IRCWCC), we will probably be in same battle sometimes.
Jackson, if you battle with IRC, she's a 5.5unit battleship, If i were you i would set her up with triple stern cannons and a single gun of each side of the bow, and have the pump going a mile a minute Nikki
That mile-a-minute thing is hilarious, Nikki! But to save money, I think I will have a triple stern cannon facing slightly to the left(starboard) of the Scharney, and a rotating cannon sticking out from one of the secondary turrets on the port side of the Scharnhorst. Also, for better suvivability, I will have two pumps pumping a mile a minute.
Just a note, two pumps sound like a good idea at first, but they allow you to take more damage than you should. The amount of holes you can take with two pumps will take a long time to patch. If you battle her well, you really shouldn't need the extra pump. Just something to ponder upon.
How about a straight triple stern cannon, with one rotating gun on either side of the Scharnhorst, and one pump? I knew that the left side was called port, but since I was looking at it from the stern, right became left, and left became right!
How about a triple stern with a 1.5 unit bow sidemount and a 1 unit pump? Use the triple sterns as your primary weapon and the side mount for "on fivers" and convoys. Rotate cannons are not the easiest thing to build from what I hear.
There are a few things here... Generally speaking.. if you can mount a sidemount at the cost of a single stern gun, you should because that is where the points and the fatal damage come from. So in those terms, you should go with sidemounts in A and B turrets with 2 guns in C, either shooting straight back or you can try to get a little down angle with the 15degree offset position. The other truth here is that you have not battled yet and maybe the existence of more sidemounts will get you in trouble on the water. Hard to say. Also you mentioned mounting a gun in one of the secondaries - you can't. In fast-gun you can only mount guns in the main armament locations (with some exceptions for ships whose main armament locations are physically too small to house the gun). Last note. You are taking advice from people, that is good, but you may wish to be careful about who you absorb from. Some are more experienced than others. Bearing in mind that I have never met most of the people here, you should remember that not all advise comes from depth of first-hand knowledge, and post count means little. Of folk who I know offhand have posted in this thread... I have been battling/building and fiddling for 6 (I think that's right, or was it 7?) seasons now, but have never been to a Nationals event. Nikki has battled (in Treaty) but she has not completed a ship. @Beaver has been here for several years and I'm certain is one of the few people here to have possibly read almost every post on the site - but his first battle was Sunday (his build is a great evolution though, you should check it out) so he has very little in-combat experience. @jch72 (Ron Hunt) has been around and knows what he is talking about. @mike5334 knows his stuff, @irnuke has been in the hobby a while and I'm pretty sure also knows what hes talking about. @absolutek is also solid.
Triple sterns and a 1.5 unit rotating sidemount (covers both sides) in B turret is my preferred setup for a DKM Scharnhorst for a new captain. It is the same way I set up my first one in 1993. Treat it like a big cruiser, hit and run, only use the sidemount when necessary or a really good opportunity presents itself, and you will stay out of trouble for the most part. Only after you have been in a couple of battles and have corrected any drivetrain/rudder/pumping problems is it the correct time to experiment with multiple sidemounts in this ship.
You don't see many ships with a rotating gun in fast gun. Reason is the coil cannon is a tricky beast to get to rotate in a barbette. Unlike Big Gun where the mag is part of the rotating cylinder. Most opt to not have the rotate as it takes time to master the use of it in combat and in most cases the rotate is either knocked out of position or fails or the action around the ship is so fast by the time you line up the rotate the target is out of position for firing on. In Fast gun the rotate is more a novelty item but helps for disadvantaged ships that have odd setups. Scharnhorst is one of those ships that doesn't really need it. Two sidemounts and dual sterns and a Good single pump is a well balanced setup for this ship all around. Basic but very reliable and Scharnhorst is no slouch in the Maneuvering department, with a low freeboard no problem to get good waterline and below waterline hits.
#CantTellIfYoureJokingOrSerious.... So the serious answer.... ramming is not allowed and is penalized, but it is a fact of life in this game, and newbies tend to be especially prone to it. We had a young man locally, also in a Scharnhorst, who frequently found that he had trouble stopping when he wanted to stop. But I think most everyone understands its a part of the learning process, so if you run down a few people accidentally your first year you will probably be forgiven (though your friends may cut a wider path around you). With that said, it is also not a good thing to be doing, will cost your team points, and if you appear to do it intentionally or through lack of care, will start to tick people off.
Scharnhorst, I can speck for that, I have a tendy to go petal to the medal in a friends cruiser. I don't mean two, I just can't stop fast enough..
I think for a beginner, perhaps it would be best to start with triple sterns and either a stationary sidemount or a rotate up front. Run it like a cruiser, run around the periphery, take your shots when you can. The triple sterns + speed are the main threat on a boat like Scharnhorst, using the sidemount(s) up front is asking for it (I know, because I ran a Scharnhorst with 2 bow sidemounts and dual sterns for a bit when I was really new to the hobby). You can always change the cannon setup later.
