Ship Review:
IJN Kongo

After a somewhat rough start, the Japanese called up their British friends and asked them to build them a battlecruiser that was better than anything they had. They got it. Kongo was fast, sleek, good looking, hard hitting, and better protected than anything the Brits built in WWI. Go fig. She and her sisters also had much longer and more successful careers. Go fig.


Firepower: B The Kongo has a delightful turret arrangement with four turrets on the centerline. The bonus is that the stern turret is perfect for a close to the waterline haymaker, and the X turret, while further forward, has this happy little casemate notch below it that a haymaker barrel will just nestle right into. (Unlike the Tiger...) The result is that with 4.5 units, you put your 50 round aft haymaker in Y and 75 round haymaker in X, for that extra deadly down angle. Then, you put your third sidemount in the bow, where you either mount a rotate, or if the rule passes, put a lovely fixed sidemount in A turret, again with plenty of down angle. The end result is pretty much the ultimate "Death Y"...

Nassau


Speed: A

Kongo is a speedy 24 second battlecruiser with 4 shafts and good acceleration. She does best when optimized for acceleration for those back and forth haymaker brawls.


Maneuverability: B

Kongo has twin rudders, and while nice, she is also relatively long and turns okay, but not really great. Actually similarly to Seydlitz and Derfflinger, good enough.


Target Factor: B

The Kongo is long, but she has plenty of casemates, and her forecastle deck isn't super long. Her stern area has quite low freeboard and is hard to hit, so overall, she's okay.


Skill Floor/Ceiling: Moderate/High

Kongo isn't exactly an easy ship for the beginner, mostly due to difficult construction but should be okay for the moderate to experienced battler. Battling wise, she requires a certain amount of skill to do well, and can be very rewarding to a skilled battler. With three and a half sidemounts, she actually has more sidemount firepower than Nagato, and with that low stern, they can be put to good use. Her only limitations are limited maneuverability, and lack of thuggability compared to the bigger ships.


Conclusion:

I've battled with and against many Kongos over the years, and I've always found them to be effective boats, even back in the days when they only got two sidemounts. That X turret haymaker is just nasty and I've seen many a ship fall to its power. I have one, and intend to battler her someday soon.

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