User:VanillaCupcake/Sandbox/Early Game Ships
this one's more aimed at newer players
note that most of the notes between here and the tables and are more for me as a reference to keep me focused on what this guide is fundamentally about. It will be cleaned up later.
it's for getting a basic set of ships available across a variety of types. Any ship in this guide will be accessible in non-event maps and it will be assumed that the player has no access to ships currently exclusive to time limited events, late main-map or LSC exclusive drops, or time limited drops in main maps.
it will come in two stages: basic readiness and then rounding out more event focused stuff
first half will be focused on a small number of ships that are both available early and "come online" early with the goal of allowing the player to efficiently clear standard maps and farm them for experience and drops.
The second half will be focused on getting enough ships to field any variety of combined fleet and to round out empty niches not covered in part 1 (anti air, anti-installation, OASW, CAVs, etc)
TODO: consider special marking for ships on this page that are rare, and a special tab denoting where they should be farmed
PART 1: you just started the game and are a super beginner
(maybe I can have these in separate clickable tabs? I dunno how to make that work)
first half will be focused on a small number of ships that are both available early and "come online" early with the goal of allowing the player to efficiently clear standard maps and farm them for experience and drops. It will be assumed that the player does not yet have access to remodel blueprints and no ship that requires a remodel blueprint to perform will be listed here.
Generally it is better to focus your experience and modernization fodder into a smaller number of ships first, and then you can use them to help carry and train more girls.
lastly it is not worthwhile to raise multiple copies of any girl as you cannot use multiple of the same ship in a fleet at a time.
anyone not mentioned in any table is some combination of:
- too rare to reasonably expect a player to have
- worse than recommended ships
- requires limited resources to stand out from the rest of their class
Destroyers (DD) are weak in daytime surface combat, but make up for it via their performance in anti-submarine combat, night battle, and other utility purposes. They are also frequently very helpful in achieving preferential routing on maps and are sometimes needed to even reach the boss at all. Early on, you should pick five of these to raise. Note that nearly all IJN destroyers are effectively identical at Kai, so the goal here is to pick up and begin leveling those who have stand-out Kai Nis that do not require Blueprints or Action Reports.
Ships | Explanation |
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Any member of the Mutsuki-class |
These ships have universally poor performance in combat, but their below average resupply cost makes them efficient in expeditions. Keep some and use them to run expeditions only. |
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In terms of in-game performance, these ships have no redeeming traits - they have mediocre stats and do not have a second remodel, so they're stuck this way forever. Do not level them unless you really love them. |
Heavier than destroyers, they perform better in daytime combat roles and can fill a wide variety of utility purposes. Many maps in the main game require one to get preferential routing, but there is rarely, if ever, room for more. They are very important for branching in World 2, so you should train two of them so that you can still sortie to these maps while one is repairing.
These CL are, for the time being, primarily here to be rotated in Kuma's place if she is repairing or fatigued. All IJN CL except Kuma are the same at Kai, but these three are chosen specifically because they are the first CL that a player should aim to remodel to Kai Ni later on.
= Very similar to CL, and they start as CL, but they trade all utility and shelling firepower for devastating torpedoes and the ability to launch them pre-emptively. However, they are somewhat fragile and are sometimes penalized in map routing. Both CLT listed here should be leveled.
Similar to CL, but they trade some of the utility for more raw firepower and armor. Many very early game fleets will only have room for 2 at most. There are also Aviation Cruisers CA(V), which fit into the same slot in a fleet and trade some offensive power for the ability to carry Seaplane Bombers and Seaplane Fighters, an ability that will be important later. For now, level two of them at the very most (but at least one).
They can carry seaplanes and equip minisubs, allowing them to perform an opening torpedo. However, their stats are generally poor. Their key use early on is routing, particularly allowing you to achieve optimal routing in World 2. There are only two available to you at the start, and you should collect both.
Heavy ships whose primary roles are heavy pre-emptive strikes and securing air superiority. They're quite rare at first and you aren't allowed to bring many to one map, in most cases. Thankfully, the game gives you Akagi for free. For now, try to acquire and level one only (alongside Akagi). Some are better than others, but the differences between them are not large and you should take whoever you can get.
They're like Standard Carriers, but with less of everything (including deployment cost). Map routing is kinder to them and sometimes requires them. Note that this is the first point at which ship speed comes into account in this guide. Every ship mentioned prior to this point is Fast, but from here on out some will be Slow. Most standard maps don't penalize slow ships, but 2-5 does and it's important for new admirals to start clearing 2-5 monthly as quickly as possible in order to begin acquiring medals (and by extension, remodel blueprints). You should level two of them - one fast, one slow.
Heavily armoured and with high daytime firepower, they're also very expensive to sortie and repair. They come in three flavours: Battleship (BB), Aviation Battleship (BBV), and Fast Battleship (FBB). Unlike with CVL, their speed will not be important at this stage as it is not recommended to take Battleships to 2-5. Most standard maps will not let you bring many, so only train two, with at least one being an Aviation Battleship for 1-5 farming.
Ships | Explanation |
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Great BBV at Kai, with solid stats and plane capacities. They start as BB and remodel to BBV at only level 10. Drops in the boss nodes of 2-2 and onwards. |
Ships | Explanation |
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The most common BB drops. Worse than the others in almost every way. Use them if they're your first battleship, but bench them once you get any other (F)BB(V). |
(this section needs a better name and better formatting, I'll fix it later)
In the end, you should have a small but well rounded fleet of 5DD, 2CL, 1~2 CA(V), 2 CV, 2 CVL, 1BBV, 1 (F)BB, 1 AV, 2 CLT. This combination of ships, if Kai and modernized, will allow you to tackle every main world map from 1-1 up to 5-2.
PART 2: An Event is coming up and you want to do it
This comes mostly or entirely after Part 1, although it is possible for someone who is not done with the basics to make small forays into an event to collect some rewards.
The goal here is to pick up some unique rare ships that perform specific functions and to increase the number of leveled and modernized ships to the point that a player can put together any type of Combined Fleet. Ships that were mentioned in Part 1 that you did not train at the time will be revisited in Part 2, and ships with poor Kais that were not mentioned in Part 1 will be visited in Part 2 now that Kai Ni remodel levels are more reasonable to attain.
Additionally, now that you have a collection of strong modernized ships, leveling and training will be more efficient and we'll be able to start leveling some ships up to their Kai Ni remodels. Some Blueprint remodels, too.
Furthermore, historical bonuses will be mentioned in regards to the girls that frequently have them, especially night battle attackers.
You should aim for a minimum of 10 DD, 3 CL, 4 CA/V, 4 CV, 4 CVL, 4 FBB, 1 BBV, 1 AV, 2 CLT, plus a few specialized ships that will be mentioned specifically farther down.
TODO: Considering adding SS(V) and DE to this part
At this point directions for where to collect specific key ships, if they're hard to find, is also given out, as it is feasible to begin target farming them. Construction is 100% not recommended at this point as farming gets you a better chance at ships per resources spent and gets you additional experience, too.
Destroyers
Destroyers as they reach Kai Ni will begin to differentiate from each other and become more specialized in the kind of roles they can perform. You should aim for a variety of DD who are capable of surface combat, anti-installation duties, anti-submarine warfare, and anti-air.
Regarding the earlier mentioned minimum of 10 ready DDs, you should aim for a minimum of:
- 3 Surface Combat DDs
- 2 Anti-Installation DDs
- 1 Anti-Submarine Warfare DD
- 1 Anti-Air DD
TODO: Consider adding Naganami - look into how early a player can reasonably pass 5-3 and access the Naganami quarterly quest.
Light Cruisers
Following up on the CL mentioned in Part 1. Abukuma takes center stage here and will likely be your first blueprint target: Sendai and Isuzu are also K2'd for night battle gear and OASW/AACI, respectively. Kuma takes a backseat as her lead over other IJN ships disappears at this point.
TODO: write more about CLs when polishing this up
Heavy Cruisers
Heavy Cruisers are often, but not always interchangeable with CAV in maps. Compared to CAV they often have superior base stats, but are unable to carry Seaplane Bombers and Seaplane Fighters. Sometimes they can be used where CAV cannot, and sometimes CAV can be used where CA cannot.
For the most part, they're restricted to performing only as beatsticks - with the exception of Maya, who has formidable anti-air presence. I recommend training Maya and at least one surface combat CA.
Aviation Cruisers
As you gain access to more equipment, maps, and events, CAV in their usage begin to branch out from CA. While their stats are typically lower on average, they gain access to equipment that CA don't - anti-installation rockets, Seaplane Bombers and Seaplane Fighters.
All CAV start out as CA and must be remodeled to Kai (Mogami-class) or Kai Ni (Tone-class) before they become CAV. I recommend trying to get two. The Mogami-class at Kai are much weaker than Tone, but do not require a blueprint to function as a CAV.
Ships | Explanation |
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Mogami is the best of the Mogami-class Kai CAV - she's extremely available, has a very low remodel level of 10, and the highest plane capacity. There is little reason to not use her as one of your CAV. | |
Mogami is the second best of the Mogami-class Kai CAV, and she comes with the rare and beloved 20.3cm No.3 Twin Gun at only Kai - but she's the most difficult to get. She can not be constructed, and only drops from the boss nodes of some very inconvenient maps. | |
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They have the same stats as Mogami, but need level 35 for Kai and have a lower aircraft capacity. Like Mikuma, their drop locations are both inaccessible and difficult to farm. |
Ships | Explanation |
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CAV that retain a CA's higher combat stats. She also comes with a copy of the perpetually useful 20.3cm No.3 Twin Gun .
Warning: She requires the use of a Blueprint to remodel to Kai Ni. As blueprints are very short in supply during the early game and there are many high priority blueprint targets, do not remodel her to CAV unless something you are doing requires 2 CAV and you are unable to get your hands on Mikuma, Suzuya, or Kumano. |
TODO: look into feasibility of a player completing 5-3 at this stage in the game - Suzuya Kai Ni can get a Kyoufuu Kai out of it
Seaplane Tenders
Not much to say here - other better AV are still out of reach, so you have to stick with your Chitose/Chiyoda. Having one at A remodel and modernized to max is good enough.
Standard Carriers
Much more accessible now, and Akagi and Kaga take somewhat of a back seat to the much more useful Kai Ni remodels of the other four who are highly recommended not just because of their superior stats, but because they grant access to very powerful and important aircraft.
Due to their abilities and because of the excellent equipment they grant, I recommend getting all four of the following CV to Kai Ni if possible - plus, some Carrier Task Force maps call for up to four CV to be brought.
WARNING:The quests centered around these ships that grant access to powerful aircraft do so by converting equipment that you already have obtained into newer models. These equipment conversion quests are unique in that they copy over all Improvements from Akashi's Improvement Arsenal, and taking advantage of this quirk is currently the only way to get Improvements onto these newer model aircraft. Make sure the source aircraft are upgraded to +MAX through Akashi before completing the these quests:
F13
F14
F15
F22
F24
F25
F26
F27
F28
F29
F30
TODO: make the above warning prettier
Both cranes additionally require Prototype Flight Deck Catapults to remodel, which are obtained by clearing a rather large chain of quests. (TODO: elaborate on this probably)
TODO: look at feasibility of a player completing bm07 at this stage in the game, as it is required for a second catapult which is in turn required for Iwamoto and a second Crane K2.
Light Carriers
CVL fulfill the exact same role as in Part 1, but unlike CV here they have no cool quests that grant them access to cool equipment. Furthermore, the distinction between Fast and Slow CVL becomes more important here, as events are typically rougher on routing based around speed. The recommended number of CVL to have at this stage in the game is at least three, with at least two being Fast.
Battleships
Much to do here. It's possible for events to call for as many as 4 FBB in one fleet, and quests for the earlier mentioned Shoukaku Kai Ni and Zuikaku Kai Ni require both Ise Kai and Hyuuga Kai. You do not need to Kai Ni them all - Kai and max modernized is fine for most.
Since standard maps are very restrictive on how many battleships you can use in a fleet, I recommend leveling many of them in PVP.
Submarines
Difficult to utilize because of their fragility, but can sometimes be used for special "sub tank" setups or to freely do certain unlock steps in event maps. Getting any one to Kai and modernized is enough.
Ships | Explanation |
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Mostly quite similar in stats, but I-168 is weaker than the rest. |
Coastal Defense Ships
Very small ships. They're ASW specialists - but they're also slow, fragile, and horrible at surface combat. I recommend grabbing one and getting her to Kai in the event of dedicated anti-submarine maps.