USS Pensacola - Revision history

U38088265: /* Description */

2023-06-26T08:22:43Z

‎Description

U40820515: /* Description */

2023-06-25T23:58:07Z

‎Description

U38088265: /* Ammunition */ Converted to transclusion

2023-03-01T23:10:39Z

‎Ammunition: Converted to transclusion

U38088265: /* Scout plane */

2022-12-15T19:43:46Z

‎Scout plane

U40820515: /* Mobility */

2022-11-08T05:54:52Z

‎Mobility

U38088265: /* Survivability and armour */

2022-11-06T12:38:41Z

‎Survivability and armour

U40820515: /* Survivability and armour */

2022-11-06T05:09:39Z

‎Survivability and armour

U38088265: /* Anti-aircraft armament */

2022-11-04T10:56:54Z

‎Anti-aircraft armament

U40820515: /* Anti-aircraft armament */

2022-11-04T02:15:31Z

‎Anti-aircraft armament

U40820515: /* Secondary armament */

2022-10-16T18:46:30Z

‎Secondary armament

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 == Description ==
 <!-- ''In the first part of the description, cover the history of the ship's creation and military application. In the second part, tell the reader about using this ship in the game. Add a screenshot: if a beginner player has a hard time remembering vehicles by name, a picture will help them identify the ship in question.'' -->
-Laid down in 1926, the '''{{Specs|name}}''' (also called "Grey Ghost", a nickname given to her by Tokyo Rose) was the lead ship of the Pensacola-class of heavy cruisers. She would be completed in February 1930, and notably was one of the first 6 ships to receive radar in 1940. She would see action in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands and the Battle of Tassafaronga, and also provided extensive fire support throughout the war in the Pacific, including at Wake and Okinawa. After the war, she would help to transport veterans before being subjected to two atomic blasts as a part of operation crossroads. After being studied, she was later sunk as a target ship in 1948.
+Laid down in 1926, the '''{{Specs|name}}''' (also called "Grey Ghost", a nickname given to her by Tokyo Rose) was the lead ship of the Pensacola class of heavy cruisers. She would be completed in February 1930, and notably was one of the first 6 ships to receive radar in 1940. She would see action in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands and the Battle of Tassafaronga, and also provided extensive fire support throughout the war in the Pacific, including at Wake and Okinawa. After the war, she would help to transport veterans before being subjected to two atomic blasts as a part of Operation Crossroads. After being studied, she was later sunk as a target ship in 1948.
+Introduced in [[Update 1.93 "Shark Attack"]], Pensacola is very similar to other American heavy cruisers, with a slightly lighter main battery than the [[USS New Orleans]] and a lower battle rating to compensate. Although the {{Annotation|HE|High-Explosive}} and {{Annotation|SAP|Semi-Armour Piercing}} shells are lacklustre, the ship does stand out with great penetration for the rank. With relatively weak armour, she does however have adequate secondaries, notably gaining access to proximity fused rounds for her {{Annotation|5-inch|127 mm}} guns; with a fast fire rate, these are excellent for shooting down aircraft and destroying lightly armoured ships.
 == General info ==

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 == Description ==
 <!-- ''In the first part of the description, cover the history of the ship's creation and military application. In the second part, tell the reader about using this ship in the game. Add a screenshot: if a beginner player has a hard time remembering vehicles by name, a picture will help them identify the ship in question.'' -->
-The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} American heavy cruiser {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.93 "Shark Attack"]].
+Laid down in 1926, the '''{{Specs|name}}''' (also called "Grey Ghost", a nickname given to her by Tokyo Rose) was the lead ship of the Pensacola-class of heavy cruisers. She would be completed in February 1930, and notably was one of the first 6 ships to receive radar in 1940. She would see action in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands and the Battle of Tassafaronga, and also provided extensive fire support throughout the war in the Pacific, including at Wake and Okinawa. After the war, she would help to transport veterans before being subjected to two atomic blasts as a part of operation crossroads. After being studied, she was later sunk as a target ship in 1948.
 == General info ==

@@ Line 43: / Line 43: @@
 However, the guns have two main drawbacks. Firstly, they have the slowest reload speed of any 8-inch gun, with a fire rate of just three rounds per minute (20-second gun reload). This means that they fire much slower than their contemporaries, which typically have a fire rate of five rounds per minute (12-second reload). As well, the guns have the slowest horizontal turret rotation speed of any heavy cruiser, at just 3.1 degrees/second (comparatively, the Admiral Hipper's guns rotate at 6.8 degrees/second).
-{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
+{{:8 inch/55 Mark 9 (203 mm)/Ammunition|8 inch Mk.14 Common, 8 inch Mk.19 APCBC, 8 inch Mk.25 HC, 8 inch Mk.17 SP Common}}
 === Secondary armament ===
@@ Line 94: / Line 54: @@
 The guns themselves are relatively good at short-range defence, being capable of firing at 20 rounds per minute (3-second reload). As well, they have very good vertical and horizontal firing angles. However, take note that the guns fire at a low muzzle velocity of 657 m/s which should be accounted for when manually aiming.
-{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
+{{:5 inch/25 Mk.13 AA (127 mm)/Ammunition|5 inch Mk.36 AAC, 5 inch Mk.28 AAC-VT}}
 === Anti-aircraft armament ===

@@ Line 155: / Line 155: @@
 === Scout plane ===
-{{main|SOC-1}}
+{{Specs-Fleet-Plane}}
 Located amidships are two catapults with one SOC-1 scout plane each which provide unique offensive and defensive abilities, expanding tactical options. Ship-launched scout planes fly just like regular tree units but lack munition choices and cockpit views. Alongside the typical abilities of strafing, dropping 2 x 100 lb bombs, and capping zones, the SOC-1 and other scout planes have the added ability to lay down smoke cover (up to 3 times). Captains will be wise to remember to utilise the aircraft and consider when best to use it, for example to cap a point early or late in the match, to create a smoke screen to stymie enemy bombardment and repair, to attack enemy units directly, or perhaps something completely new! With two scout planes one can risk a cap attempt at the beginning of the match, saving the second for any opportunity that presents itself.

@@ Line 25: / Line 25: @@
 {{Specs-Fleet-Mobility}}
 <!-- ''Write about the ship's mobility. Evaluate its power and manoeuvrability, rudder rerouting speed, stopping speed at full tilt, with its maximum forward and reverse speed.'' -->
-Pensacola has decidedly average mobility for a cruiser, with a top speed of 60 km/h in Realistic battles and 70 km/h in Arcade - this is on par with most cruisers of other navies. The ship's turning circle and acceleration are nothing special, either.
+USS Pensacola makes {{Annotation|32.4 kn|60 km/h;37.2 mph}} at flank speed. This is the same speed as the preceding [[USS Portland]], and slightly slower than the later [[USS Pittsburgh]]. This speed will allow captains of USS Pensacola to keep pace or slightly surpass the speed of other nation's cruisers, though it will of course be outpaced by light cruisers and destroyers. While Pensacola is capable of making it to take objectives, the floatplanes are recommended to capture objectives, instead of painting a target on the ship. Pensacola's rudder takes approximately 3 seconds to respond at flank speed, and the speed falls to {{Annotation|23 kn|42 km/h;26 mph}} while in a sustained turn. Portland takes approximately 40 seconds to accelerate to flank speed, and 1 minute to come to a halt. Captains should be aware that USS Pensacola has a wide turning circle, similar to the preceding Portland, and should give any obstructions a wide berth, as she will be unable to quickly respond to avoid collisions.
 {{NavalMobility}}

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 {{Specs-Fleet-Armour}}
 <!-- ''Talk about the vehicle's armour. Note the most well-defended and most vulnerable zones, e.g. the ammo magazine. Evaluate the composition of components and assemblies responsible for movement and manoeuvrability. Evaluate the survivability of the primary and secondary armaments separately. Don't forget to mention the size of the crew, which plays an important role in fleet mechanics. Save tips on preserving survivability for the "Usage in battles" section. If necessary, use a graphical template to show the most well-protected or most vulnerable points in the armour.'' -->
-USS Pensacola was built during the Washington Naval Treaty-era cruisers, meaning it had to compromise somewhere to stay under the treaty limit of 10,000 tons displacement, while still meeting the Navy's needs for firepower and speed. In the case of USS Pensacola, the compromise was on armour protection. She has light protection for a heavy cruiser, though of course this still outstrips light cruisers and destroyers.
+USS Pensacola was built under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, meaning that it had to compromise somewhere to stay under the treaty limit of 10,000 tons displacement, while still meeting the Navy's needs for firepower and speed. In the case of USS Pensacola, the compromise was on armour protection. She has light protection for a heavy cruiser, though of course this still outstrips light cruisers and destroyers.
-USS Pensacola's main belt has a thickness of {{Annotation|3-inches|76.2 mm}}. This covers the entire midsection of the ship to protect the machinery spaces, from below waterline up to the armoured deck. The armour forward and aft of this main belt thickens to protect the magazines, {{Annotation|3.5-inches|88.9 mm}} covering the rear magazine and {{Annotation|4-inches|101.7 mm}} protecting the forward magazine. This can be expected to protect from destroyer guns at most ranges and light cruisers at long range, though at close range (inside of 3 km) anything larger than a {{Annotation|5-inch|127 mm}} gun will most likely be able to punch through the armour. Speaking of the magazines, these are positioned slightly above the waterline, making them a relatively easy target to hit provided the enemy is at a close enough range to be able to penetrate the ship. Captains are recommended to make course corrections to prevent accurate fire on the magazines.
+USS Pensacola, like other American cruisers, has no anti-torpedo bulges. She relies purely on her internal bulkheads to contain the flooding in case of a hit, and hits to the magazine will almost certainly destroy the ship. Captains need to be wary of torpedoes inbound, as USS Pensacola is not equipped to handle these well.
-USS Pensacola, like other American cruisers, has no anti-torpedo bulges. She relies purely on her internal bulkheads to contain the flooding in case of a hit, and hits to the magazine will almost certainly destroy the ship. Captains need to be wary of torpedos inbound, as USS Pensacola is not equipped to handle these well.
+The turrets have {{Annotation|2.5 inches|63.5 mm}} of armour on the face, {{Annotation|1.5 inches|38.1 mm}} on the roof and a paltry {{Annotation|0.75-inch|19.1 mm}} plate on the sides and rear of the turret. This means that captains should avoid exposing anything other than the face of the turret to enemy fire, as even the 40 mm Bofors can easily penetrate and knock the turret out of action from the sides or rear. As for the armoured deck, it is {{Annotation|1 inch|25.4 mm}} thick, and serves only to detonate armour-piercing bombs higher in the ship, as it is incapable of stopping any but the smallest bombs.
-The turrets have {{Annotation|2.5-inches|63.5 mm}} of armour on the face, {{Annotation|1.5-inches|38.1 mm}} on the roof and a paltry {{Annotation|.75-inch|19.1 mm}} on the sides and rear of the turret. This means that captains should avoid exposing anything other than the face of the turret to enemy fire, as even the 40 mm bofors can easily penetrate and knock the turret out of action from the sides or rear. As for the armoured deck, it is {{Annotation|1-inch|25.4 mm}} thick, and serves only to detonate armour piercing bombs higher in the ship, as it is incapable of stopping any but the smallest bombs.
+In short, USS Pensacola does improve on armour compared to earlier cruisers in the American bluewater fleet such as the [[Omaha (Family)|Omaha-class]], but captains should not rely on her armour to save the vessel as with other later, non-treaty-compliant heavy cruisers. It is recommended to keep the range high and attempt to target lighter cruisers and destroyers, and accurately aiming for weakspots on newer/heavier cruisers.
 === Mobility ===

@@ Line 34: / Line 34: @@
 However, the guns have two main drawbacks. Firstly, they have the slowest reload speed of any 8-inch gun, with a fire rate of just three rounds per minute (20-second gun reload). This means that they fire much slower than their contemporaries, which typically have a fire rate of five rounds per minute (12-second reload). As well, the guns have the slowest horizontal turret rotation speed of any heavy cruiser, at just 3.1 degrees/second (comparatively, the Admiral Hipper's guns rotate at 6.8 degrees/second).
 {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
 ! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
@@ Line 84: / Line 85: @@
 The guns themselves are relatively good at short-range defence, being capable of firing at 20 rounds per minute (3-second reload). As well, they have very good vertical and horizontal firing angles. However, take note that the guns fire at a low muzzle velocity of 657 m/s which should be accounted for when manually aiming.
 {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
 ! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
@@ Line 140: / Line 142: @@
 {{main|1.1 inch/75 Mk.1 (28 mm)|AN-M2 (12.7 mm)}}
-The {{Annotation|1.1-inch|28 mm}}/75 Mk.1 gun, otherwise known as the "Chicago Piano" (because it was the size of a baby grand-piano), was the standard anti-aircraft armament for most United States Navy ships prior to the introduction of the [[Bofors L/60 Mark 1 (40 mm) | 40 mm Bofors]] cannon - Pensacola carries two of these quad-gun mounts, on the port and starboard side of the bridge respectively. These guns are mediocre at best;  they have a good fire rate, similar even to some heavy machine guns, but the shells lack punch in comparison to larger 37 or 40 mm medium antiaircraft shells common at this rank. Captains should also be advised that the guns only have a HEF-T belt, which leaves them ineffective against coastal vessels with armour.
+The {{Annotation|1.1-inch|28 mm}}/75 Mk.1 gun, otherwise known as the "Chicago Piano" (because it was the size of a baby grand piano), was the standard anti-aircraft armament for most United States Navy ships prior to the introduction of the [[Bofors L/60 Mark 1 (40 mm)|40 mm Bofors]] cannon - Pensacola carries two of these quad-gun mounts, on the port and starboard side of the bridge respectively. These guns are mediocre at best; they have a good fire rate, similar even to some heavy machine guns, but the shells lack punch in comparison to larger 37 or 40 mm medium anti-aircraft shells common at this rank. Captains should also be advised that the guns only have a HEF-T belt, which leaves them ineffective against coastal vessels with armour.
 Pensacola also carries four AN-M2 anti-aircraft guns. The AN-M2 is a navalised anti-aircraft version of the popular Browning machine gun. This gun is rather ineffective at dealing significant damage to enemy aircraft, and is only effective within ~1.5-2 kilometres at most. As well, keep in mind that these guns have a long 12-second reload after the gun's magazine has been used.

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:46, 16 October 2022
Line 84:		Line 84:

	The guns themselves are relatively good at short-range defence, being capable of firing at 20 rounds per minute (3-second reload). As well, they have very good vertical and horizontal firing angles. However, take note that the guns fire at a low muzzle velocity of 657 m/s which should be accounted for when manually aiming.		The guns themselves are relatively good at short-range defence, being capable of firing at 20 rounds per minute (3-second reload). As well, they have very good vertical and horizontal firing angles. However, take note that the guns fire at a low muzzle velocity of 657 m/s which should be accounted for when manually aiming.
		+	{\| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
		+	! colspan="8" \| Penetration statistics
		+	\|-
		+	! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" \| Ammunition
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Type of<br>warhead
		+	! colspan="6" \| Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		+	\|-
		+	! 1,000 m !! 2,500 m !! 5,000 m !! 7,500 m !! 10,000 m !! 15,000 m
		+	\|-
		+	\| Mk.36 AAC \|\| HE-TF \|\| 35 \|\| 35 \|\| 35 \|\| 35 \|\| 35 \|\| 35
		+	\|-
		+	\| Mk.28 AAC-VT \|\| HE-VT \|\| 36 \|\| 36 \|\| 36 \|\| 36 \|\| 36 \|\| 36
		+	\|-
		+	\|}
		+	{\| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
		+	! colspan="10" \| Shell details
		+	\|-
		+	! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" \| Ammunition
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Type of<br>warhead
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Velocity<br>(m/s)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Projectile<br>mass (kg)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Fuse delay<br>(m)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Fuse sensitivity<br>(mm)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Explosive mass<br>(TNT equivalent) (kg)
		+	! colspan="3" \| Ricochet
		+	\|-
		+	! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
		+	\|-
		+	\| Mk.36 AAC \|\| HE-TF \|\| 657 \|\| 24.42 \|\| 0 \|\| 0.1 \|\| 3.16 \|\| 79° \|\| 80° \|\| 81°
		+	\|-
		+	\|}
		+	{\| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
		+	! colspan="12" \| Proximity-fused shell details
		+	\|-
		+	! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" \| Ammunition
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Type of<br>warhead
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Velocity<br>(m/s)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Projectile<br>mass (kg)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Fuse delay<br>(m)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Fuse sensitivity<br>(mm)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Arming distance<br>(m)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Trigger radius<br>(m)
		+	! rowspan="2" \| Explosive mass<br>(TNT equivalent) (kg)
		+	! colspan="3" \| Ricochet
		+	\|-
		+	! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
		+	\|-
		+	\| Mk.28 AAC-VT \|\| HE-VT \|\| 657 \|\| 23.45 \|\| 0 \|\| 0.1 \|\| 457 \|\| 23 \|\| 3.25 \|\| 79° \|\| 80° \|\| 81°
		+	\|-
		+	\|}

	=== Anti-aircraft armament ===		=== Anti-aircraft armament ===