How to play destroyer World of Warships

How to play destroyer World of Warships

How to play destroyer World of Warships ? The destroyers of this nation are extremely fast, have incredibly powerful guns that have Very long ranges and excellent shell ballistics. These destroyers are actually destroyer leaders, which were larger destroyers. Russian shells travel very fast. Their HE shells hit hard and cause fires very often, while their AP shells have excellent damage and penetration. The hulls of these destroyers have a very large health pool, and they become quite thick at higher tiers. The Russian destroyers are very fast, but their manoeuvrability degrades at higher tiers. Do not expect these destroyers to be as good as the ones you see on PC, the stronger destroyers will not be in-game due to the tier restriction. As the engagement ranges are much lower, you cannot dodge as well. Their torpedos are very stealthy and fast but have poor ranges until Kiev’s upgrade. These destroyers also have terrible concealment. With an experienced commander at the helm, these destroyers can very often successfully duel battleships in the open with their guns alone.

Vladimir Trubetskoy seems to be the gun focused commander. He is an outstanding commander, with his inspiration providing a whopping 8% damage reduction, 5% range and a freaking ridiculous 8% fire chance. This is at a massive cost of 30% HE damage reduction. So, if you only want to shoot battleships use this skill. If you ever want to shoot a destroyer, do not take this skill. The IJN will beat you up in these fights as they have faster shells that take a huge amount of health away. Want to use the torpedo focused commander? yeah, no…

Destroyer Types

Players usually associate this ship type with low visibility, Smoke Generator, modest survivability, rapid-firing guns, and menacing torpedoes. However, depending on the power and efficiency of their specific armament types, in-game destroyers can be conventionally divided into three large groups.

Torpedo Destroyer The ships’ main parameters focus on stealth and strong torpedo armament, while their main battery has relatively modest characteristics.

To succeed at the helm of a torpedo destroyer, you need to follow a few rules.

Distance

Decide what distance you want to keep between your destroyer and opposing ships during battle. The maximum distance should be limited to the torpedo range; the minimum distance should be limited to the detectability range of your destroyer.

It goes without saying that you can approach enemies closer than your detectability range, but don’t forget that torpedo destroyers are easy prey at close quarters.

It would be wise to improve the concealment of your ship to have a chance of approaching your target without being spotted. For that, the essential Commander skills and upgrades for any torpedo destroyer will come in handy.

Position

Head to the area where your torpedoes will inflict the most damage. Your primary targets are battleships. And you should hunt your prey where it dwells—open waters near Key Areas, clusters of islands, and so on. A stealthy torpedo destroyer can be useful anywhere.

Stay vigilant while hiding behind a smoke screen. Always keep in mind that enemy torpedoes can come at any moment. Keep your bow or aft pointed toward any potential threats. Doing this, you’ll minimize your chances of being hit by random torpedoes. This trick, by the way, can also be used when capturing Key Areas. Experienced players sometimes reverse into Key Areas aft-first so they can gain speed and retreat more rapidly in case of danger.

Basic overview of destroyers

Main Nation Nations

IJN Destroyers- Great stealth and torpedos, generally suited for a ninja playstyle, striking from the shadows.

USN Destroyers- good all-round destroyers with heavy gunpower. Good for an “ambushing” playstyle.

KMS Destroyers- Very well rounded, Featuring good survivability, fast-firing torpedos, poor maneuverability, and long-range Sonar. Can be tailored to any playstyle you want

RN Destroyers- Good guns and decent torpedos, unique smokescreen, and a long-duration Sonar. Very well suited to a defensive playstyle.

Upgrades

• Hull – generally gives you more health and better maneuverability.

• Torpedoes – faster, longer range, bigger damage but sometimes a trade-off of one against another.

• Gunfire control system – increases gun range by 10%.

Consumables

• Damage control party – stops you from taking damage over time from fire and/or flooding and repairs damaged modules (guns, engine, rudder). This has unlimited uses but has a 60-second cooldown between uses.

• Smoke generator – generates smoke, which makes anyone inside or behind it “invisible” for a period of time. Works both ways, The user and the enemy ship cannot see through it.

• Engine boost – increases the top speed by 8%.

Destroyer VS Destroyer fights  Know thy enemy

USN- Very fast firing, usually the highest damaging guns That turn lightning fast. Struggle to land hits at 6+ KM and DPM takes time to “ramp up”.

IJN- Powerful guns with the best 1 salvo damage and good ballistics. However, the guns fire and turn slowly

KMS- Have the option of normal/big guns. Normal guns have weaker HE but very strong AP. Big guns have decent HE and great AP but over-penetrate often and have slower ROF

RN- Fast firing with excellent fire causing capabilities, DPM is second only to American Destroyers and shares their poor ballistics.

So who is likely to win fights?

Close range- American> Britsh> German>IJN

Long-range- German> American> British> IJN

Driveby shots- IJN> German> American> British

What do I do if I am spotted?

A} Run behind an island, especially if you are spotted through Radar or Sonar

B) Smoke up, run in a straight-ish line then turn behind the first wall of smoke then stop. If you slow down then lay down smoke you can easily be blind fired out of existence.

C) Run to the cover of allies, who will heroically save you take some shots until you can pop off detection.

D) Avoid running into islands.

Evasion tanking

This can be performed by the Faster and more maneuverable destroyers closer to late game

Basically, you use your engine booster, focus fire HE shells on an enemy battleship while occasionally firing torpedos. Dodge shells by moving in an unpredictable pattern and being more aggressive when their guns are reloading.

Detailed destroyer nations overview

There are currently 4 Base tech trees of destroyers in legends. There are the Kriegsmarine, Imperial Japanese, United States, and Royal Navy destroyers. Each nation has its own unique playstyle and role. Here is an overview of each nation and its ships from tier 4 onwards.

IJN Destroyers

Want to strike from the shadows? Show the world the power of Nippon steel and be the bane of sleepy battleship drivers everywhere?

well, then these are the destroyers for you.

The destroyers of this nation fall into the torpedo boat category. They feature the best concealment, hardest hitting and longest range danger pylons, Weaker guns due to their poor rate of fire, great agility, and poor survivability. While their guns lack in DPM, they do not lack in fire causing capabilities. While they cannot win fights against other destroyers, they are more suited to destroying larger ships with their torpedo armament.

Mustuki- The first destroyer to have the massive 610mm IJN torpedos. Mutsuki has laughable gun power, featuring just 2 guns. Its torpedo armament is more powerful, featuring 2×3 torpedo tubes. A good introduction into the Japanese torpedo boats.

Fubuki- Featuring an enhanced gun and torpedo armament over its predecessor. Fubuki has decent guns and a very powerful 3×3 Torpedo armament. The stock Fubuki has a paltry 6km torpedo range, so upgrading it is the first priority. Your upgraded torpedos can sink battleships in a single salvo, and even a hit or two can cripple a battleship for the rest of the game.

Akatsuki- Very similar to its predecessor. It has an impressive 6 guns, slightly stronger torpedos and very high speed of 38 knots.

Kagero- Stealthy, Incredibly powerful torpedos, but is in a painful 2×4 arrangement. Very stealthy but has a mediocre speed. Kagero also has access to a Torpedo reload booster consumable.

Playstyle- Capture objectives but escape gunfights. Best spotters in the game and their stealth torpedo capabilities allows them to pummel larger ships while keeping them spotted. Play conservatively during the early game, for you are much more dangerous to isolated ships that have no way of knowing where you are, and when your torpedos will strike…

USN Destroyers

Want to charge into a firefight? want to ambush ships larger than you using cover?

Well, then these are the destroyers for you.

The destroyers of this nation have great guns with shell arcs that touch the moon( no wonder they won the space race), slow, decently hard-hitting torps with good flooding chance, and are very, very stealthy. Unfortunately, you are stuck with 6.4km torpedos until Benson with the torpedo upgrade. American destroyers have the best gun DPM currently, and can fight all other destroyers in a brawl. They also have the longest-lasting smoke. They perform well around islands, as their shell arcs allow them to fire over small islands while undetected. As they generally have short torpedo ranges, they can also use islands to ambush other ships.

I will have the T3 here just because it’s very fun

Clemson- A very fun seal clubber. With the artillery upgrade, it has a total of 8 guns and 12 torpedos. Charge into battle, flatten the enemy destroyer and smoke up to burn battleships. Then a banzai charge at the end of the game to get great damage games.

Farragut- Very fast-firing guns, solid top speed and faster torpedos over her predecessor. That’s it really.

Mahan- You finally get the capability to stealth fire torpedos, albeit through a very small window. Faster guns, better torpedos, better health, lower speed.

Benson- Faster firing guns, faster speed, finally get 9.2 KM torpedos. Largely the same as her predecessors

Fletcher- Better guns, torpedos, the usual jazz. You can get some pretty ridiculous DPM with the main battery reload module.

Playstyle- Contest caps, act as the frontline. The American ships are very versatile and can be tailored to your own playstyle. You win every 1 vs 1 destroyer fight as close range, but the Germans have a few advantages at longer ranges. You can act as the first wave of defense for your allies, laying down smoke, spitting out torps at advancing ships(as the ships move towards your torpedos, the range is less of an issue). Set floods and fires, then switch to AP and devastate ships with your DPM.

German Destroyers

Can’t choose between a destroyer and a cruiser? Want to send other destroyers running for the hills?

Well, then the german destroyers are for you.

German destroyers are the most balanced of the destroyers. Great gun handling with great AP shells, fast reloading torpedos, and a long-range hydroacoustic search consumable that spots all torpedos and ships in a radius. Weaker HE shells but very strong AP shells for a destroyer. Some ships also have the ability to mount 150mm light cruiser guns on a destroyer hull. While these destroyers do have a great HP pool, they are quite wide and take AP penetration more often. The later tiers turn like oil tankers and taking a battleship salvo when angled will result in them exploding like one. Generally quite fast. German torpedos have great characteristics in all categories except alpha damage.

T-22 – The low point in the line. 360-degree turrets but with weak artillery. Torpedos are decent and reload quite fast. She does not have the good german shell ballistics and has a short duration smokescreen.

Ernst Gaede- Oh boy is this one an upgrade. Great health, great torpedos, and she get the famed german hydroacoustic search with the B hull upgrade. She also features the ability to mount 128mm or 150mm guns. The 128 m guns feature a faster ROF, greater DPM. The 150mm guns are the same size as those found on light cruisers. These feature better alpha damage, superior ballistics, penetration and gives their normally anaemic HE shells good fire-starting capabilities.

Leberecht Maass– Huge health pool, Good guns and torpedos, fast speed and has the manoeuvrability of a brick underwater. She loses access to the 150mm mounts but gains an extra gun mount, and retains access to the hydroacoustic search consumable.

Z-23– Great at everything, best cap bully and cruiser harasser.

Playstyle- Better at Taking over caps, RN destroyers are better at defending them. Go into a capture point with support from allies, push the other destroyer out with your torpedos and hydroacoustic search. Your 128mm AP can wipe the floor with other destroyers, especially at the range when they are less likely to over-penetrate. 150mm guns can surprise cruisers with your firepower. Choose targets with weak armour like the Nurnberg when they are low on health and broadside, please do not get into a duel with a Baltimore or Hipper. It will not end well for you.

Royal Navy Destroyers-

Want to lock down an area from hordes on enemies? Prefer solo fights because teamwork is overrated?

Then these are just the destroyers for you.

They are typically the slowest and do not have access to the engine boost consumable, but they are very manoeuvrable and have insane acceleration. This in addition to your shell arcs means that you perform very well with islands as cover, as you are less likely to get beached. They have access to a very long duration hydroacoustic search, the ability to fire torpedos tube by tube and very short, but very fast reloading smoke with many charges. They trade their speed boost for excellent acceleration. You can go out torps launched and guns blazing, then use your smoke as an escape and repeat it until the enemy is dead. Their tea-infused shells have almost twice the fire chance as those of American destroyers shells even though it is a smaller shell calibre.

Acasta- Pretty mediocre. Decent guns, decent torps, decent concealment. It also has poor survivability, poor shell ballistics and damage, bad speed and bad torpedo firing angles.

Icarus- Good stealth and better torpedos. Other aspects remain largely the same, but you now have access to the British hydroacoustic search consumable, which has a long duration.

Jervis- The line starts to get better here. Very competitive gun and torpedo armament, supplemented by great concealment and hydroacoustic search. Best fire-starting capabilities of any destroyer at this tier. however, her guns lack penetration with poor ballistics.

Lightning- An excellent bote. Superb concealment, excellent manoeuvrability, strong gun battery with flamethrower capabilities and 360-degree turret traverse. The best firestarter and cap contester in the game

Playstyle- These destroyers perform very well holding up a capture point. A high number of smoke charges, good hydro and torpedoes are excellent tools for defence. Is a battleship push incoming? single launch torpedos so that every single one hits the bow of a battleship, and burn its superstructure. Hydro acts as a screen against other DD’s and their torpedos.

Soviet Destroyers

Isyaslav (III)

Excellent main battery for the tier, which hits hard and fires fast. She is a torpedo menace and is able to charge into brawls and shred other ships with her hefty torpedo armament. She is quite fast and is very agile too. An excellent start to the line

Podvoisky (IV)

An absolutely ridiculous speed of 42 knots base, an incredibly powerful main armament and a meaty hull makes this destroyer the best at her tier. Her guns traverse slow but have 360-degree turret traverse. Due to her heft and speed, she has a slow rudder shift and a large turning circle.

Gnevny (V)

A general downgrade from her predecessor. She is much slower and does not gain much other than a small increase in DPM

Minsk (VI)

You resume your journey in Russian balance with big guns and vodka powered engines. You reach a blistering speed of 43 knots. Your guns have a very high chance to cause fires, to use this to bully battleships form long ranges. Torpedos should be saved for last-ditch efforts.

Kiev (VII)

Excellent guns with long ranges placed in a 2×3 turret arrangement. Her guns have excellent ballistics with incredible damage output. She has a large health pool and a good secondary armament for a destroyer. Kiev on PC can trade out her smokescreen consumable for a repair party. You get usable torpedos with 8km range after her torpedo upgrade.

Tashkent (VII)

Tashkent should be the tier VII Russian destroyer, as it was actually built unlike the kiev. plus, we can claim Russian bias because the Americans get the tier 9 Fletcher. Tashkent is a lot clumsier than Kiev, but has more HP and faster shell velocity than the Kiev.

Playstyle

Long-range Kiting ships. Use your incredible range and HE shells to burn down battleships and cruisers from max range. Your AP DPM is incredibly potent, so give up shooting HE on broadside targets to shoot AP at their superstructure, this will rack up damage incredibly fast. Use HE after they have burned their damage control party or are angled. Use commander skils for rudder shift, speed, range and shell buffs. These are not beginner-friendly ships, you have to rely solely on your guns for the majority of the tech tree. You can easily gun down other destroyers in mid ranges. The American destroyers will shred you in a close-range gunfight, so watch out. They have a hard time hitting you past 7KM.

go 3-4KM behind your capping destroyers so that both of you will be spotted at roughly the same time. Protect your buddy from enemy destroyers. After the initial capping, move to areas with less enemy density and kite a battleship or two towards your allies. Since the battleship meta is to sit in spawn and not do much, focus on the active battleships then farm the campers. You win all destroyer engagements at long ranges. The British and especially the American can match you at close ranges. Past 7KM however, every small movement of your rudder will allow you do dodge all their shells.