Captains! In our previous How to Play episode,
we shared some tips with you on how to play torpedo destroyers.
This episode is dedicated to the destroyers that rely mostly on their guns.
As in our previous episodes of the show,
we'll demonstrate gameplay techniques with the examples being Tier X ships—
both researchable and those available for in-game resources.
However, most of our advice and recommendations
are relevant to lower-tier artillery destroyers, as well.
One of the most important questions for a destroyer,
especially for an artillery one, is:
How can you survive in battle without strong armor protection?
There are two ways to protect your ship.
You can either utilize maneuvers in open water or use smoke screens.
The first strategy is good for such ships as Delny,
Khabarovsk, Marceau, and Kléber.
These destroyers have high speed and decent maneuverability.
Ragnar can also be put in that group—
her comparatively modest maneuverability is offset
with the Emergency Engine Power consumable with a high speed boost,
and she is armed with 152 mm guns
that have some of the best characteristics among guns found on other destroyers.
When playing these ships, it's important to keep a sharp lookout
for opponents who might engage in an artillery duel with you.
If you find yourself on the receiving end of an incoming salvo,
slow down and change your course sharply.
After missing a hit and before firing another salvo,
your opponent is most likely to assume that you're moving at a low speed.
Outwit your enemy and accelerate to the maximum speed.
Change your course one more time.
By utilizing such a choppy movement rhythm,
you'll make it much harder for your opponent to choose the right lead on you.
A nice aid for this tactic is the Engine Boost consumable.
Moreover, the game not only has upgrades
that improve the maneuverability of your destroyer,
but also the Engine Boost itself.
Movement is life—that's the main rule for any destroyer in battle.
Even if enemies damage your destroyer’s steering gears or engine,
it's important for her to remain mobile.
Commander skills and an upgrade will come in handy for that.
Now let's talk about the destroyers
that are more suited for firing from behind a smoke screen:
Harugumo, Elbing, Forrest Sherman, and Druid.
These artillery ships utilize the following tactic:
they choose a position on the map
that meets several requirements for setting a smoke screen.
Firstly, there should be targets within the main battery's reach
that can be fired at from your position in the smoke.
Secondly, it's important that no enemies
with surveillance consumables are nearby.
Thirdly, while you're behind a smoke screen,
you need somebody to spot targets for you.
Position your destroyer in the smoke in such a way
that you won't get hit by a random torpedo.
Always keep retreat routes in mind for when the smoke dissipates
or in case you're spotted.
The Italian destroyer branch with Attilio Regolo
at its apex deserves special attention.
Her Exhaust Smoke Generator can hide the ship even at maximum speed,
and she combines both gameplay styles in one ship.
The Italian ships deal their main damage
with their semi-armor-piercing shells,
which can be found in their magazines next to high-explosive shells.
SAP shells are especially effective in duels against other destroyers.
A successful salvo with these shells can deal heavy damage.
We need to mention, however, that the Italian ships have
the shortest firing range among all destroyers, as well as high detectability.
Obviously, the efficiency of an artillery destroyer
depends on the correct choice of target,
regardless of which playstyle she follows, be it maneuvers or smokes.
The most convenient targets are slow ships,
such as battleships and heavy cruisers.
Hitting these heavies with HE shells and setting them on fire
will give your enemies serious headaches
while doing a lot of good for you and your team.
What is also important is that such opponents can't frequently return fire.
Naturally, the fire intensity on the opponent's deck
and the damage inflicted with HE shells can be increased
by utilizing Commander skills and signals.
Of course, you can also go hunting for other destroyers,
especially the torpedo enthusiasts.
But don't forget that some destroyers can be equipped
with either Surveillance Radar or Hydroacoustic Search.
That's why you can easily go from being the hunter to being the hunted.
In any case, when fighting mano a mano against enemy destroyers,
the most important thing is to spot them in time
and then try to defeat them using your rapid-firing guns.
By the way, it's highly important to improve
the firing rate for artillery destroyers.
That's where the following Commander skills and upgrades will come in handy.
The most dangerous enemies for destroyers are,
without a doubt, cruisers—
especially light cruisers with rapid-firing guns.
If you encounter a cruiser at a short distance,
you might very well find yourself back in your Port in short order.
You should only engage in an artillery duel
when your opponent has little HP or is far away from you.
For the sake of safety precautions,
you can always additionally improve the firing range of your main guns.
Another important issue to take into account: enemy aircraft carriers.
Your AA defenses won't allow you to fend enemy air raids off
on your own all the time.
That's why, during air attacks,
you should determine in advance on which side bombs
or torpedoes will be dropped or rockets launched.
Activate the priority AA sector.
Perform a maneuver trying to avoid
or minimize the damage done to your destroyer.
And don't forget to deactivate your AA defenses after an attack.
We provided a thorough example on how deactivating your AA defenses
can help you avoid airborne attacks
in the previous episode about torpedo destroyers.
If you consider enemy aviation to be your main threat,
you can improve your AA defenses at any time.
We should note that the Commander skills
that are important for artillery destroyers
and focus on enhancing their main battery
will also add more power to the AA defenses.
Any destroyer, no matter whether torpedo or artillery,
needs to survive in battle for as long as possible.
The value of your ship increases greatly when a battle is about to end.
It's in this battle phase that a destroyer's life becomes much easier—
there are fewer opponents and plenty of targets.
Plus, survival is less unfathomable.
If your HP pool is low, that's not a reason
to run to the map border or die a hero's death.
Instead, you should carry out recon activities and capture Key Areas.
A live destroyer is a useful destroyer—
this rule is applicable not only to artillery destroyers
but to the entire ship type, as well.
At the beginning of this video, we asked a question:
"How can you survive in battle without strong armor protection?"
Here, various things may come in handy.
Druid, Khabarovsk, Delny, and Ragnar have Repair Party,
which can restore some portion of HP lost in battle.
Ragnar, Khabarovsk, and Delny, and some other ships from the Elbing branch
can boast of their armor in the central part of the hull,
which can withstand being hit with HE shells from the majority of destroyers.
As for the French destroyers, thanks to their special HP distribution,
it's not an easy task to sink them.
In addition, there are in-game skills
that improve the survivability of ships in battle.
Finally, throughout the entire video,
we've focused mainly on the main battery
and haven't said a word about torpedoes.
The majority of artillery destroyers surely have them.
Moreover, you'll also be engaged in fights when torpedoes
will be the main source of the damage you deal.
This armament type is effective at close-quarters
against heavily-armored targets, giving you the chance to rush on them.
The Italian ships are especially effective at this
since they can rush onto their enemies
with Emergency Engine Power activated
while simultaneously hidden by their Exhaust Smoke Generator.
However, you shouldn't rely exclusively on torpedoes
when playing artillery destroyers.
Vivid examples of that are destroyers Ragnar and Druid—
their lack of torpedoes doesn't prevent them
from demonstrating their high efficiency in battle.
We hope our advice will help you understand
the philosophy of artillery destroyers.
And if you still haven't tried these interesting ships out in battle,
now is the perfect time!