Suggestion for Naval HMS Victoria (1887)
This is my first post in this group, so I hope it doesn't seem out of place. Sorry if it is.
I was wondering what everyone thinks about Pre-Dreadnoughts and late era Ironclads getting added to the Bluewater fleet, going in the 5.0-6.3 BR gap, and all the Battleships get moved up in BR. Would this make that BR more balanced, since a Cruiser going against a Battleship is most of the time a hopeless 1 sided fight for the most part, at least from my experience playing them anyway.
To show an example of what ship's could be added, I decided to use the HMS Victoria as an example of what could go into that BR, perhaps a 5.3 vessel. Below is some history of the ship, then followed by it's stats (and lots of calculating, comparing her Compound Armor strength to Early WW1 Krupp Armor).
HMS Victoria (1887)
HMS Victoria was a Victoria Class Turret Ship of the Royal Navy, and was the Flagship of the Mediterranean Fleet after she was completed. At the time she was one of the fastest, strongest, and most powerful ships of her time
She was laid down on June 13th, 1885, and was Built by Armstrong, Mitchell & Co, at Elswick Yard. She was Launched on April 9th, 1887 and was commissioned in March 1890. She was also the first battleship to be powered by Triple Expansion Engines and also have a Steam Turbine, connected to a Dynamo, giving the ship electrical power. Victoria and her sister, The Sans Pareil would be the only two of this class built, and both by different builders. Both subsequently also had rams at the end of their bows, as ramming was still viewed as a viable form of fighting the enemy.
While both ships were brilliant for their time, they were not flawless. Initially, the Royal Navy wanted their preferred 13.5 Inch (340mm) Guns to be their main armament, but couldn't obtain them. Instead they went for the massive 16.25 Inch (413mm) 111 Ton Guns. While undoubtedly extremely powerful, the barrels had relatively short lifespans, only lasting around 65-70 shots until needing to be replaced. Reloading the guns were also no easy task, taking an average of 3 minutes to reload both guns, including the guns to return to their reloading position.
The Class also had relatively low freeboard, reaching to merely 10 feet. Due to the ships shape, they'd eventually be nicknamed "The Slipper" and "The Pair of Slippers" if Victoria and Sans Pareil were together.
While both ships served in peacetime, that didn't mean trouble wouldn't occur. On June the 22nd, 1893, HMS Victoria collided with the HMS Camperdown while performing fleet maneuvers during a training exercise. Camperdown's own ram penetrated Victoria's Hull, causing Victoria to capsize in merely 13 minutes, taking 358 of her 583 crew members down with her. This tragedy marked the end for Victoria's Career.
General Stats:
• Displacement: 10,470 Tonnes
• Length: 340 Feet
• Beam: 70 Feet
• Draught: 29 Feet
• Horsepower: 14,000
• Speed: 16.75kn, 31 km/h, 18mph. Natural Draught
17.3kn, 32 km/h, 19.9 mph. Forced Draught
2X BL 16.25-inch (413mm) Mk I naval guns Stats
• Mass: 111 Tons
• Length: 43 feet, 7 Inches
• Barrel Length: 40 Feet, 8 Inches
• Shells 1,800lb (820 kg), Armor Piercing, Common, and Shrapnel
• Muzzle Velocity: 2,087 Feet Per Second (636 m/s)
• Elevation: 13 Degrees upward, -5 Degrees Down
• Maximum Firing Range: 12,000 Yards (11,000 Meters)
• Rate of Fire: 0.29-0.33 Rounds Per Minute
• Potential Penetration:
When initially tested, the Guns could penetrate up to 35 Inches (889mm) of Iron at 1,000 Yards, albiet loaded in low pressure during the test, reaching 1,690 feet per second (515 m/s). If we convert to that Krupp Value, it should roughly be around 21.2 Inches (433mm, corrected) of WW1 Krupp Steel at 1,000 Yards. These are only rough calculations though.
1X BL 10-inch (254mm) Naval Gun Stats
• Mass: 32 Tons
• Barrel Length: 315.5 Inches (8,064mm)
• Shell: 500 Pounds (228.8 kg) Armor piercing and Common
• Calibre: 10-Inch (254mm)
• Muzzle Velocity: 2,040 feet per second (622 m/s)
• Maximum Firing Range: 10,000 Yards (9,100 Meters)
12X BL 6-Inch (152mm) Naval Gun Stats
• Mass: 4.5 Tons
• Barrel Length: 153.2 inches (3,891 mm)
• Shell: 100 lb (45.36 kg)
• Calibre: 6-Inch (152mm)
• Muzzle Velocity: 1,913 feet per second (583 m/s)
• Maximum Firing Range: 10,000 Yards (9,100 Meters)
12X QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss (57mm) Guns Stats
• Mass: 821-849 ib (372-385 kg)
• Length: 8.1 feet (2.5m)
• Shells: 57x307R, 9.7 ln (4.4 kg) Common Shell and Steel Shell
• Calibre: 2.244 Inch (57mm)
• Muzzle Velocity: 1,818 Feet per second (544 m/s)
• 6X 14 Inch (360mm) Torpedo Tubes, 4 on Deck, 2 Submerged
• 1X Bow Ram
Armor
Her armor does not stretch to the ships entire length, hence why the bow and aft are unarmored. This was an intentional choice since the Navy wanted to prioritize more important departments, such as the engines and magazine for protection. It performed more like a citadel. Her armor was made of Compound Armor. The compound itself consisting of an open-hearth steel face was cast on top of a hot wrought iron back plate, and the compound plate in which a steel face plate was cemented to an iron back plate by pouring molten Bessemer steel between them. So, I’ll be displaying her armor stats, firstly showing the Compound armor effectiveness in mm, then converting the armor into Krupp Effectiveness, also in Inches and mm.
• Main Belt Stats
18 Inches of Compound Armor (457mm) Backed by 178mm of Teak
WW1 Krupp Equivalent:
10.9 Inches of Krupp Steel (278mm) Backed by 178mm of Teak
• Bulkheads Stats:
16 Inches of Compound Armor (406mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
9.2 Inches Of Krupp Armor (247mm)
• Turret Stats:
17 Inches of Compound Armor (431mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
10.3 Inches of Krupp Steel (263mm)
• Redbout Stats:
18 Inches of Compound Armor (457mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
10.9 Inches of Krupp Steel (278mm)
• Forward Screen to Battery Stats:
6 Inches of Compound Armor (152mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
3.6 Inches of Krupp Steel (93mm)
• After Screen to Battery Stats:
3 Inches of Compound Armor (76mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
1.8 Inches of Krupp Steel (47mm)
Conning Tower Sides Stats:
14 Inches of Compound Armor (355mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
8.2 Inches of Krupp Steel (210mm)
• Conning Tower Top Stats
2 Inches of Compound Armor (50mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
1.2 Inches of Krupp Steel (31mm)
• Deck Armor Stats
3 Inches of Compound Armor (76mm)
Rough WW1 Krupp Equivalent
1.8 Inches of Krupp Steel (47mm)
But yeah, If you've made it this far into the post, thank you for reading it. What do you guys think? Should ships like Victoria be added to the game, and would they be good vessels for 5.0-6.3? Let me know what you think.