Thunderer
Tier X · Battleship · U.K. · Premium
Rating B- (Below average within its tier and class · overall score 47) · Stealthy battleship
A British premium battleship with eight 457 mm guns whose HE sets 2.96 fires per minute on paper, 37% above the tier X battleship average, making burning targets down its main strength. A fast 17.5 s reload and ~301 m dispersion at 12 km (8% tighter than average) put HE DPM 29% above average. Patch 9.3 raised AP damage from 1,800 to 1,900, but its AP salvo is still 11% below average, so a broadside hit lands softer than on other 18-inch battleships. A 10.8 s rudder shift is responsive and 11.16 km detectability helps it reposition, but its 28.91 kn top speed and 27.5 s acceleration are ordinary. Patch 9.3 also upgraded Sonar from I ×1 to II ×2 and Air Defense Alert from I to II (×2), improving its close-range destroyer defense and AA, while 2 charges of Precise Aiming System II and 4 Repair Kits (Additional Repair Kit specialty) shore up accuracy and survivability.
Key stats
- HP: 58,685
- Top speed: 28.91 kn
- Surface detectability: 11.16 km
- Main battery: 457 mm 4X2 · reload 17.5 s · range 14.52 km
This ship was designed as a battleship with increased firepower, and the designers drew from the ship construction experience gained by the British during World War II. The project was notable for having 457 mm main guns that had been developed in the early 1920s and were the most powerful British naval artillery system of the time.