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Greetings Captains,
Welcome to this week’s edition of the New Player Captain's Log! For those of you who aren't sure what this is or what it might do, feel free to check out the introductory post here.
With each topic I discuss, I also added a question at the end to see how y’all feel about things in comparison to how I feel. I just thought it would be an interesting way to get some discussion going!
Without further ado, let’s proceed with this week’s Log!
Accomplishments
Here’s a list of personal milestones that I hit during the week:
1. Experimented with a classes of ships that I am less comfortable in
2. Played my first Brawls match
Focus Points of the Week
Here’s a list of the focus points for this week:
1. Start my journey with Japanese DDs
2. Start to refamiliarize myself with CVs a bit
Similar to previous weeks, I am going to talk about the specific ships (or ship lines) that I focused on during the week as opposed to the individual events or topics.
Japanese DDs
Based on recommendations that I received in a previous iteration of the New Player Captain’s Log, I started my journey with Japanese destroyers. If you have read this log in the past, you’ll know that DDs somewhat terrify me. I am someone who generally plays things a bit safe in this game, and DDs seem like a class of ship that is inherently a little riskier, as they have less health and tend to thrive the closer they get to an enemy. Let me just say that I am glad I only got through Tiers I-IV so far for a few different reasons. First, I got to play a decent chunk of bots in Randoms, which gave me a little more familiarity with the ships. Second, the Japanese DD line splits here, and I am not really sure which line I should take. Seeing how Shimakaze is so popular (and has a Supership at the end of that line), it seems like I should lean that way but I am unsure. As for my performance in this line so far, it has been very much a roller coaster. I had a few games where I got multiple kills and survived, and I had a few games where I got deleted and made little impact. I will say that I think I am getting a little better with maneuverability and usage of smoke, but I am eager to get some tips on how to perform optimally in this line.
Question: Which Japanese DD line do you prefer, and why?
Ranger
After my experimentation with the Ark Royal a few weeks back, I wanted to spend some time refamiliarizing myself with CVs this week. CVs have always tended to be a class that I can survive in, but not have a lot of impact on the match. Since I am still in the earlier tiers (Tier VI for this week), I have mainly been trying to take chunks out of BBs who might be hanging out alone, or taking advantage of cruisers or DDs that may overextend. With the Ranger, I did not have a lot of success. Oftentimes I don’t get great positioning (either I am too far away or I get to close and get detected) and I find that my damage is minimal. To be clear, I am making contact for the most part, but I am just not doing hefty chunks of damage like I want to be doing. I think I need to spend some time learning CV strategies a bit more with my good buddy @Ahskance . Regardless, advice for this newbie is always welcome!
Question: Which nation’s CV line would you suggest to someone who is still learning how to use them effectively?
Ise
I for one was very excited to see that Brawls would be 12v12 BBs at Tier VI for this most recent iteration. If you have read this log before, you know that I have been hanging in the middle tiers and love my BBs so this was a no-brainer for me to try out! I decided to take the Ise out for the first time, as I had no experience with hybrid battleships and I figured she could be quite useful in this kind of mode. Turns out, I think I am right! She doesn’t do tons of damage with her main battery or her torps, but the sheer volume of artillery at my disposal in this game type made it a really thrilling game. I did notice that due to the flight deck, her turret angles are more than frustrating, but specifically for this Brawl, I’ll take that sacrifice. I am unsure if Ise’s utility (and thus, hybrids as a whole) will extend beyond this Brawl, but I am excited to keep experimenting with her in the coming weeks to see if my interest in her holds over.
Question: A 12v12 Brawl with only BBs is not a typical mode. How do you feel about hybrids outside of this format?
I think that about covers it this week! I want to remind everyone that the New Player Captain’s Log is also designed to be a place for new players to reply with their experiences or seek advice as well, so feel free to join in on the conversation below!
See you next week for some more New Player musings. Fair winds and following seas!