Mankind has no universal recipe for every occasion,
though there have been many attempts to create one.
So you've finally done all the research and purchased her,
your first Tier VIII ship New Orleans,
achieved through great effort and perseverance.
Here she is, the cruiser of your dreams,
beautiful and majestic, like the Lincoln Memorial!
Having thoroughly enjoyed her beauty and lost a couple of battles,
it’s probably time to figure out how to dominate the seas with this ship.
Every player dreams of a ship that can sail faster than a destroyer,
sink a cruiser one-on-one, shoot down each aircraft from a carrier,
and penetrate a battleship with every salvo,
while being invulnerable to enemy fire,
except for some scratches that would make her look even cooler.
Well, no.
Nothing is perfect in this world.
Advantages come at a price.
If you win in armor, you lose in maneuverability;
if you install more powerful guns, you require a longer reloading time.
And if you try to balance all this, you'll get some kind of average solution,
a workhorse for all intents and purposes.
A decent medium-level ship, doomed to carry out the support role,
stay on the second line, and provide cover fire.
Obviously, cruisers as a ship type were conceived as such.
You can put up with this and get plenty of enjoyment simply from... versatility.
Besides New Orleans, there are as many as five cruisers in Tier VIII.
So what's she like compared to them?
More than average in almost every characteristic.
And this is what can be utilized as her key advantage.
Effective tactics consist of making use of her strengths
and carefully treating the weaknesses.
So what nice and useful features can be offered by New Orleans?
Of course, it's her primary armament. With an average range of fire,
New Orleans can boast a good penetration capability with armor-piercing shells
due to a lower angle of approach.
This is a national trait for US cruisers at Tiers VII through X.
Her guns feature good grouping of shots and accuracy,
14 seconds of loading time, and decent turret traverse speed.
The ship's survivability is OK,
as her citadel is low and her armor is thick enough for a cruiser.
But the cruiser's key strength is the best maneuverability in her tier,
if you're able to put it to good use of course.
There's the Surveillance Radar.
Active for 30 seconds,
it allows you to make three salvoes at a destroyer hiding in smoke.
The ship's anti-aircraft armament is also good, but
only for self-defense,
since the long-range AA guns are weak and their engagement area is small.
New Orleans' armor can be penetrated by any battleship.
And there are no torpedoes on board.
Now let's see how we can add some flavor to New Orleans, to have more fun.
There are two routes: salt and pepper, AA guns and primary armament.
In the first case, the modules and perks are evident;
but if you go this way, the ship will become a kind of watchdog,
accompanying battleships during the first half of the battle
and hunting heavily damaged enemies at the end.
As for pepper, it's a lot more curious.
Make sure you install the Surveillance Radar, reinforce the primary armament,
increase survivability, and... don't stick your neck out.
Your main targets will be destroyers and single sailing cruisers of your tier.
When facing the latter, you just angle your ship to the enemy properly and...
have a lot of fun.
When you are alone, do not approach enemy battleships.
The same for high-tier cruisers.
Of course, you could, but the consequences will be yours.
As for a close engagement, it's not that you shouldn't get into one—
there's just no point. And don't forget to maneuver.
Constantly.
It's like jogging every morning— it makes your life longer.
By following this advice
you will be able to make the most of this ship's superb maneuverability,
good artillery, and availability of radar,
as well as experience true pleasure from taking down destroyers in smoke
and penetrating cruisers.
A good battle with New Orleans is a long battle.
This ship reveals her potential closer to the end of the battle,
so it's worth surviving until then.
And remember:
Des Moines is ahead, so keep on sailing.
World of Warships
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