DG: Tsushima "result"

[Enforcer]

Hi everyone

I've played the Tsushima battle over and over again (mostly with the Japanese side) and I'm wondering why the game is so incredibly strict...

after some practice I managed to sink 34 Russian ships at the cost of 17 of my Japanese vessels... result: undeniable or humiliating defeat...

now, yesterday I really got stunned:


I lost 7 ships, the enemy 31 and one heavily damaged: result: A DRAW??? !!!!

Is this because of the historical result? Then again, in Distant Guns, the Russians have crews of equal quality as those of the Japanese (which wasn't the case in the historical battle) , morale doesn't play a role in this game... that's 2 superadvantages for the Russians' side in this game...

I don't get it? :blab:

[Haida]

I don't pay much attention to the scores for that very reason. You achieved an excellent result there, don't know why you didn't get a victory. I've never been able to do well playing the Japanese side at Tsushima. I can sink nearly all the Russian ships but always lose 2 or 3 battleships (Mikasa always gets blown out of the water) and 7 or 8 of the armored cruisers and a lot of the lighter ships. What's your secret?

[Enforcer]

Well, speed is the Japanese side's big attribute, so you can fully exploit it. Of course, luck also plays a role, as in all seabattles. I'll give you an overview what I did.

(by the way, I always play "Tsushima" from the start, not the "engaged" map)

I turn my second line of ships (you know, Chin Yen, Itsikushima and those older cruisers) away from the firing Russian cruisers, with the rear pointing to the Russians. (In that way, chances of getting hit are minimized). In that second line, there are also 4 destroyers available, I let them sail at high speed to the very last Russian Ships: that hospital ship Orel and transport Kostroma and sink them. I wait until that transport fleet is scattered and practically left alone (they are even slower than most other Russian ships so you just need to wait a little while) and finish them of with some ships of my second fleet. (result: 9 Russian ships lost and my ships only slightly damaged due to the light armament of that transport fleet)

At the beginning of the game, slow down your main forces or let them sail away from the Suvorov (Mikasa and Idzumo formations), it's a good thing to delay the brunt of the battle. Meanwhile my fast and well-armed protected cruisers lead by Kasagi (which is armed with 2X203mm guns) can close in (at about 5000-4000 meters) to the Borodino class battleships from the side. The main Russian battleships won't return fire with their big guns (they only fire at armoured cruisers and battleships) ;only the Russian coastal battleships - which lay far behind - will fire at your cruisers. Now and then, some 203mm shells will strike the Suvorov (which I indicated a target, of course). This will only cost the Russians light damage, but it can make a difference.

While doing all this, I make sure that ALL my Japanese ships head in the direction of my main force. However slow and painfully obsolote those Itsikushima and Chine Yen ships may be, they have 305mm guns... so in order to reduce the risks of losing important capital ships, unite your fleet, you can attack the Russians from many angles at one time, they can't do that to you.

Now, I only turn my main fleet to the Russians when my other ships are becoming visible from the decks of Mikasa and so on :p. What happened during my DRAW:mad: was: The Russian main fleet started making circles (this is an AI bug which may happen to your own manoeuvres too, if you turn by succession) : result: the 4 Borodino class ships were the first to emerge from the circle and steamed at full speed to my main fleet, the others (Oslyabya and all the smaller battleships) stayed behind, doing another cirkle turn :hush:, leaving the 4 Russian capital ships to almost my whole Japanase fleet, while Oslyabya and the rest lay at least 3 kilometers behind the Suvorov.

Eventhough I was surprised how many damage these 4 seperate Russian battleships could inflict to my huge Japanese fleet, before eventually being sunk. After that, the only real challange was the Oslyabya, the smaller Russian battleships' 305 mm guns often take way too much reload time.

That's about it

[Shanghai Slim]

I let them sail at high speed to the very last Russian Ships: that hospital ship Orel and transport Kostroma and sink them.

You started a battle by attacking and sinking a hospital ship? Oy!

Barbaric Japanese!

[/kidding]

[HMSWarspite]

Also a very gamey strategy (exploiting hard and fast AI targetting, etc). Try and beat them with a straight engagement. The key to saving Mikasa is try to avoid her ever being concentrated on effectively for long (make sure the Russians contact well down your line and close to parallel, engage one to one so that all Russian ships get shot at) and watch Mikasa like a hawk. As soon as she goes to medium damage, detach and head away then slow and let her fight fires. I have never lost her due to damage, always to fire, and leaving her engaged at full speed will ensure this. This doesn't always work, but I have had some success with it. Even at worst I have lost 1 BB in exchange for 6+ Russians and all the auxillaries. The fire issue works for you as well - get out of effective range of the heavily damaged Russians as fast as possible, and let them burn!