Z32

Z32

Z12 Erich Giese

Z46

Z32

Z12 Erich Giese

Z46

Germany

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.7	4.7	4.7

Class:

Destroyer

Research:14 000

Purchase:32 000

Show in game

Description

The Type 1936A (Mob)-class, Z32, 1942 is a rank II German destroyer with a battle rating of 4.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.87 "Locked On".

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Main fire tower30 / 20 / 15 mm

Hull16 mm (steel)

Superstructure8 mm (steel)

Number of section7

Displacement3 597 t

Crew343 people

The Z32 offers very little additional protection except the basic hull with 16 mm of steel armour and a superstructure with 8 mm of steel armour. The gunshields on the single 15 cm mounts are 12.7 mm thick and the gunshields on the 20 mm Flakvierlings measure 8 mm of armour, therefore only offering protection from small calibre machine gun fire.

The only significantly armoured part of the ship is the twin 15 cm turret on the front, with around 30 mm of armour frontally and 20 mm on the sides, offering enough protection to resist some early destroyer rounds, thus making it last longer in bow-in engagements.

Having no additional armour means most cannon, autocannon and even machine gun equipped ships can punch through its hull, meaning this destroyer isn't any more survivable than its predecessors in terms of armour.

A small difference however, is the slightly larger crew complement with 343 men, even surpassing the complement of the Z22 Anton Schmitt with 323 crew, and making this the 3rd highest destroyer crew count after the USS Sumner and the Leningrad.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB84 / 31 km/h

RB68 / 25 km/h

Mobility Characteristics
Game Mode	Upgrade Status	Maximum Speed (km/h)		Turn Time (s)	Turn Radius (m)
		Forward	Reverse
AB	Stock	___	___
	Upgraded	84	31
RB/SB	Stock	___	___
	Upgraded	68	25

A larger gun calibre whilst retaining the same number of guns as on the regular Type 1936 results in a displacement of 3,597 tons and a speed of around 68 km/h, making the ship slightly slower than its predecessors, although hardly noticeable.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB1 886 → 2 451

RB2 888 → 3 754

Total cost of modifications13 700

19 800

Talisman cost860

Crew training9 200

Experts32 000

Aces320

Research Aces250 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

160 / 400 / 100 %

130 / 130 / 130 %

Modifications

Seakeeping	Unsinkability	Firepower
Dry-Docking Research: 550 Cost: 790 100 Rudder Replacement Research: 620 Cost: 890 115 Propeller Replacement Research: 690 Cost: 1 000 130 Engine Maintenance Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 200	Damage Control Division Research: 550 Cost: 790 100 Fire Division Research: 620 Cost: 890 115 Smokescreen Research: 620 Cost: 890 115 Shrapnel Protection Research: 690 Cost: 1 000 130 Ventilation Research: 690 Cost: 1 000 130 New Pumps Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 200 Ammo Wetting Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 200	150mm_ger_c36_naval_he_base_fuse_ammo_pack Research: 550 Cost: 790 100 37 mm Spgr Lh 37 Research: 550 Cost: 790 100 Anti-Air Armament Targeting Research: 550 Cost: 790 100 150mm_ger_c36_naval_he_dist_fuse_ammo_pack Research: 620 Cost: 890 115 Auxiliary Armament Targeting Research: 620 Cost: 890 115 Improved Rangefinder Research: 690 Cost: 1 000 130 Primary Armament Targeting Research: 690 Cost: 1 000 130 Torpedo Mode Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 200

Armament

Primary armament

Turret2 x 15 cm/48 KC/36 cannon

Ammunition240 rounds

Vertical guidance-10° / 65°

3 х Turret15 cm/48 KC/36 cannon

Ammunition120 rounds

Vertical guidance-10° / 30°

The main armament of the Z32 comes in the form of 5 powerful 15 cm/48 KC/36 cannons, in 3 single mounts aft and one twin mount at the front. The large calibre of these cruiser guns result in a rather slow reload of 7.5 seconds and therefore a maximum of 8 rounds per minute. This however is compensated by the large amount of explosive filler and shrapnel the shells release on impact, as well as the noticeably better muzzle velocity retention, giving a much easier time aiming at longer ranges.

Weapon placements: 15cm main guns (red), torpedo launchers (green), 3.7 cm secondary weapons (yellow) and 2 cm anti-air cannons (blue)

The turret traverse of a mere 10°/sec for the single mounts, and 7°/sec for the twin mount encourages a more careful approach to targets at longer range, as a quick turn with the guns at close range is simply not possible.

The HE shell has a TNT equivalent of around 3.91 kg and a muzzle velocity of around 835 m/s, making it a great choice for medium ranges against destroyers of any kind.

The second shell type, a semi-armour piercing capped shell has good penetration, a TNT equivalent of 3.32 kg and a muzzle velocity of around 835 m/s. Furthermore, this is the only destroyer shell able to reliably threaten a large portion of cruisers at ranges of around 5,000 m. An accurate player will be able to ammorack most early interwar cruisers, or at least cripple them severely.

The last shell, an HE with time fuse, can be used against aircraft if aimed carefully.

Secondary armament

2 х Turret2 x 3.7 cm SK C/30 mounting

Ammunition4000 rounds

The secondary armament is provided with 2 twin 3.7 cm SK C/30 mounts, both in the middle on the ship, one port and one starboard. These have a fire rate of 30 round per minute and provide antishipping capabilities against smaller patrol vessels with HE and AP, as well as minor anti-air support with time fused HE shells.

Anti-aircraft armament

4 х Turret2 cm/65 C/38 automatic cannon

Ammunition2000 rounds

Belt capacity40 rounds

Fire rate480 shots/min

2 х Turret4 x 2 cm/65 Flakvierling 38 automatic cannon

Ammunition8000 rounds

Belt capacity40 rounds

Fire rate480 shots/min

The main anti-air defence consists of six 20 mm emplacements in total. Four in single mounts distributed in the front, aft and in the middle of the ship, and two quadmounts located front of the bridge and between the second and third main gun. This gives the Type 1936A decent anti-air capabilities for close range encounters, although for longer ranges, this calibre is insufficient.

Additional armament

Setup 18 x 533 mm G7a torpedo

The Type 1936A features 2 quadruple torpedo mounts in the middle of the ship, attached in the center for a full traverse to both sides, enabling a full broadside of 8 torpedoes.

The torpedoes are the standard 533 mm G7a torpedoes of the German navy, with a maximum speed of 81 km/h, a maximum travel distance of 14 km and an explosive warhead 358.4 kg of TNT. Not particularly outstanding in any kind or form, but still useful for screening capture points or chokepoints and close range panic launching.

Usage in battles

The Z32 is an excellent ship boasting massive firepower. Due to its non-existent armour, good muzzle velocity, slow firing and slow traversing guns, the Type 1936A is best used on medium or long ranges, where evasive manoeuvres can be made and enemies have a harder time hitting you. Following this, the Type 1936A should not be in the first line of attack, it should be played more like a support, staying further away, and making use of its longer range weaponry. When engaging at close range, the insufficient rate of fire becomes apparent and multiple enemies from different directions can easily overwhelm the slow reacting destroyer, in these situations a precise shot in the ammorack can do the trick and is much more reliable than with smaller calibres. Furthermore, the large calibre is capable to overcome even the anti-fragmentation armour of American destroyers without losing much of your explosive power, and therefore countering those American vessels.

Having the semi-armour piercing (SAP) shell equipped gives the Type 1936A another, more unique role, namely the role of a cruiser killer, being one of the few destroyers to be able to do so. Since your destroyer is the definition of a glass cannon, even more when facing cruisers, it is important to stay concealed behind islands or simply by not shooting whilst closing in to a range of around 4-6 km. A few salvoes into the sides of the cruiser where the ammo is located is usually enough for most early interwar cruiser designs like the USS Trenton, the Krasny Kavkaz, or the Köln.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent long range firepower
• Powerful SAP round against cruisers
• High explosive mass
• Large crew compartment
• Effective close range anti-air

Cons:

• No hull armour
• Slow turret traverse
• Lackcluster anti-air for longer ranges
• Slow firing cannons, every salvo counts

History

Even before the outbreak of WW2, the Naval High Command of the Kriegsmarine was concerned about the firepower of its most modern destroyer vessels. Fearing they may be outgunned by comparable vessels of other nations, a study was initiated in 1936 about the possible upgunning of the Type 1934 and 1936 class destroyers with 15cm main guns.

The study quickly revealed that, although this upgrade was theoretically feasible, in practice it resulted in severe stability issues on the affected vessels and actually hampered their abilities more than increasing them.

However, whilst the Type 1934 and 1936 class destroyers kept their original 12.8cm main guns as a result of the conducted study, the Naval High Command didn't wish to abandon the idea completely and ordered for modifications to be made to the existing Type 1936 design in order to accomodate for the desired firepower upgrade.

This resulted in the creation of Type 1936A which was ordered into production in 1938 and consisted of a total of 8 ships. Although this class was designed to allow for the realization of the desired firepower upgrade, it still suffered from the same problems highlighted by the initial study and was known to have reliability issues with its steam turbines.

In 1940, the first of a total of 7 Type 1936 (Mob) destroyers were laid down. These were designed in an effort to address some of the known issues of the upgunned Type 1936 destroyers as well as to simplify their design in order to allow for shorter construction times.

Only a handful of the upgraded Type 1936A and 1936A (Mob) destroyers were lost in combat during WW2. In fact, more than half of the ships of these two classes survived the war and were used by several allied nations post-war, including the US, UK, USSR and France. The last remaining ships of this class were decommissioned from active service in the late 1950s.

- From Devblog

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Z32 from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Links to articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the ship;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] Type 1936A (Mob): Punching Above Its Weight

Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau Aktiengesellschaft
Destroyers
Type 1934A	Kleber**
Type 1936	Z20 Karl Galster · Z22 Anton Schmitt
Type 1936A	Z25 · Marceau*** · Z32
Type 1936B	Z43
Type 1936C	Z46 · Z47
Battleships
Nassau-class	SMS Westfalen*
	*Previously Aktien-Gesellschaft „Weser"
	**Z6 Theodor Riedel before war reparation to France
	***Z31 before war reparation to France