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User:VanillaCupcake/Sandbox/Early Game Ships

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Introduction

The purpose of this guide is to help newer admirals prepare a basic but effective set of ships to allow them to proceed through the early game and into midgame.
It is divided into two stages - Stage 1 is focused on progress through standard maps up to 5-2, and Stage 2 is preparation for events as well as the rest of standard maps.

Due to prohibitive cost or limited and inconsistent availability, no ship mentioned in this guide is gated behind:

  • Large Ship Construction
  • Event-only limited time drops
  • Limited-time drops in standard maps
  • Drops exclusive to late standard maps (4-5, 5-3 and beyond, late World 7)

About Construction

It may be tempting to spam Construction for rare builds, especially to players who have experience playing other gacha games.
This is unhelpful in the long run, as repeated Construction (especially with large recipes) eats up a ton of resources and valuable Development materials, most of which is better used in leveling and developing equipment.

The recommended way to proceed with Construction is as follows (see Common Recipes for the recipes mentioned):

  • Do not do additional attempts outside of your "Factory" daily quests.
  • Construct using "Battleship Recipe" until you've acquired your first Battleship, then never touch the "Battleship Recipe" ever again.
    • Early access to a Battleship will make victories more likely against more powerful players in PVP Exercises.
  • Construct using "Carrier Recipe" until you've acquired your first Standard Carrier or Light Carrier, then never touch the "Carrier Recipe" ever again.
  • Construct using "Rare Destroyer/Light Cruiser" recipe until you've acquired two of the following ships:
Shimakaze  
Yukikaze  
Abukuma  

General Fleet Building Tips

  • It is better to focus on a smaller number of ships
Instead of spreading experience broadly through a large number of ships, its better to narrow down on select ships to raise.
Remember that a fleet can only contain up to 6 ships at a time, and a core of stronger ships will make it easier and more efficient to farm, clear maps, and train up other weaker ships.
  • Shipgirl levels mean little in and of themselves.
Aside from reaching set thresholds for remodel level requirements, Levels do not have much effect - there is little difference between a level 40 Kongou Kai and a level 70 one.
The stats gained from modernization ( Firepower,  Torpedo,  Armor,  Anti-Air) have a huge effect on the performance of your shipgirls.
There is a wide gulf between the performance of a modernized Kongou Kai and an unmodernized one.
  • Duplicate Shipgirls are not recommended early
Throughout the early and midgame it is not worthwhile to raise multiple copies of any girl, since you cannot have more than one of the same ship in a fleet at a time.

Stage 1: Standard Maps

Stage 1 of this guide is centered around the extreme early game, where an admiral is just starting out building their fleet and progressing through the first few worlds.
Most if not all of the ships listed here are readily available and have above average performance at their Kai remodels, allowing the player to progress smoothly and farm drops and experience efficiently.
They also have powerful Kai Ni remodels that require little to no investment of rare resources, meaning that the experience invested here doubles as progress toward their Kai Ni remodels in Stage 2.

You will encounter girls that are not mentioned in this stage. They've been left out because they:

  • Are too rare to reasonably expect a player to have
  • Are worse than recommended ships
  • Require limited resources (Blueprint, Action Report, etc) to perform but are not a priority target for Blueprints or Action Reports.

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.

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, as five serviceable and modernized Kai destroyers will be required to clear 3-2.

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.

Good DDs
Ships Explanation
   These two are unique in that they come online and reach their full potential (or most of their full potential) at only level 20. Their all around stats are excellent and Yukikaze will likely be your first reliable Torpedo Cut-In Destroyer.

However, they are both rare and difficult to acquire, so do not fret if they don't show up right or even at all. Both can be constructed through the rare DD/CL recipe, and also begin dropping in normal maps as early as 2-4.

  
  		 Top-tier DDs who, when at their final remodel, perform well in multiple roles or exceptionally well in a single role. While their Kai Nis will be out of reach for now due to their level requirement, it's good to get an early start in leveling them.
  
  		 Other destroyers who, while strong, are not as good as the above ships.
Other DDs
Ships Explanation
  
  
  
  
  
 		 The Mutsuki-class has 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.

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.

Best early game CL
Ships Explanation
  IJN CL are very unimpressive at Kai, but Kuma is an exception - her stats are very high in all areas, 10 more each than other Kai CL. She's also very easy to find, first appearing in 1-1 and everywhere hereafter. She shines brightly in the first few worlds, where surface combat against other ships is all that matters and no one is high enough level to reach their final remodels.

However, she has no utility capabilities and a low priority second remodel that needs a Blueprint - she will fall off compared to other CL later on.

Secondary CL
Ships Explanation
   Average performance at Kai, but excellent utility performance at Kai Ni.
  Same as the above, but she is a rare drop who at this stage of the game will only show up in Construction through the rare DD/CL recipe.

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.

Other CL
Ships Explanation
   Exactly like the Mutsuki-class destroyers - poor in combat, but efficient for expeditions. Send them on expeditions only.

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.

Torpedo Cruisers
Ships Explanation
   The torpedo queens. They remodel early and have the highest torpedo stat out of all shipgirls by a significant margin. They are extremely powerful right out the gate and they will stay that way forever.

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).

Good CA(V)
Ships Explanation
  A relatively common CA that has exceptional stats at Kai. She later remodels into a CAV and continues to perform well at all stages of the game.
  Another CA with high Kai performance and a great final remodel. Somewhat uncommon, but she's needed anyways for the quest to unlock your 3rd fleet.
  Remodels into a CAV at the very low level of 10. Likely to be your first CAV.

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.

This is a very difficult choice
Ships Explanation
   The only two AV available outside of events and late game maps. They're not great, but they're all you've got. They remodel into CVL at level 15 and onwards, but at least one should be kept as an AV.

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.

Caption text
Ships Explanation
  The game gives her to you for free as the reward of a very early and very easy quest. Great all around stats, good plane capacity. Definitely use her.
  Very similar to Akagi, but she trades a bit of firepower for the largest single aircraft slot in the game. The best of all choices here due to her solid stats and best-in-class aircraft capacity. Can be found in 2-3 and early world 3.
   At Kai, they're effectively identical. The weakest of the 6 Kai IJN CAs. Like Kaga, they start dropping in 2-3 and early world 3.
   Better than Souryuu/Hiryuu, weaker than Akagi/Kaga. You will not see them outside of doing the CV recipe in Construction, as they only drop in 4-4 and beyond.

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 recommended for new admirals to start clearing 2-5 monthly as early as possible in order to begin acquiring medals (and by extension, remodel blueprints).

You should level two of them - one fast, one slow.

Slow CVL
Ships Explanation
  The best CVL at Kai stage - good stats, good plane capacity. The only demerit is that she's slow, which won't matter too much in these early stages except for World 2-5. She has a sister ship named Hiyou who is identical at base and Kai, but Jun'you has a final remodel to work towards and Hiyou does not.
Fast CVL
Ships Explanation
   Remember those AV from earlier? They're the strongest of the fast Kai CVL, but they do not reach Kai until level 35 and their base CVL form is very weak. It's best to level them as AV while running World 2 maps and then perform both remodels back to back once they reach level 35.
  Identical to Shouhou at Kai, but has a very strong Kai Ni. However, she is very rare and does not drop until late in the main game. If you see her at all, it will be as a side result of attempting to craft CV through Construction. Do not aim to craft her specifically - she can be target farmed later on.

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.

Battleships, Fast Battleships
Ships Explanation
  
  		 Their performance at Kai is identical to one another. They drop in the boss nodes of all World 2 maps. Solid stats with a reasonable resupply cost.
   Stronger at Kai than the Kongou sisters, but very rare, especially Nagato. They also have a noticeably higher resupply cost.
Aviation Battleships
Ships Explanation
   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.
Other Battleships
Ships Explanation
   The most common BB drops. Worse than the others in every way. Use them if they're your first battleship, but bench them once you get any other (F)BB(V).

Fleet Unlock Quests
Ships Explanation
  
 		 Required to open up the 2nd fleet for expeditions. Naka and Jintsuu are extremely common, but Sendai is a little more difficult and should be target farmed in 1-3.
  
  		 Required to open up the 3rd fleet. Similar to the Sendai-class, Myoukou is rarer and the other 3 are much more common. She's best farmed in World 2: 2-1, 2-2 B, all over 2-3.
  
  		 Required to open up the 4th and final fleet. All are fairly rare but drop in boss nodes all over World 2, particularly 2-3.
Repair Ship
Ships Explanation
  Extremely important, and the sooner she's acquired the better. She grants the player access to Akashi's Improvement Arsenal which allows the improvement of equipment, and her ability to gradually repair lightly damaged ships greatly aids Instant Repair conservation efforts. She should be immediately placed in the player's PVP fleet when acquired to get her to Kai, where she gains the ability to repair an additional ship and a boost to her Improvement success rate.

She drops in the boss node of 1-5, 2-5 and 3-5. The easiest place to farm her is in 1-5, but it requires an HQ level of at least 50. Since 1-5 is the best place to focus level DD/CL, she can hopefully be encountered while training your light ships.

Stage 2: Late Standard Maps, Extra Operations, and Event Readiness

Stage 2 roughly follows Stage 1, although it is possible for someone who isn't finished with the basics to make small forays into an event to collect some rewards.

Here the focus expands beyond a small core of effective ships - you want some unique and rare ships that perform specific functions, fill empty niches not covered in Stage 1, and overall you want to increase the number of leveled, remodeled and modernized ships in your fleet to the point that you can put together any type of Combined Fleet. Ships that were mentioned in Stage 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. Furthermore, historical bonuses will be mentioned in regards to the girls that frequently have them, especially night battle attackers.

It's important to note that depending on the contents of an event, Easy difficulty may be fully clearable without everything outlined here - but it is best to be fully prepared. Events tend to run for over a month, so if you are not ready when one starts you can use the time to focus your efforts towards what you need to clear the event maps.

You should aim for a minimum of 8 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. With everything outlined in this part of the guide (and an equivalent set of equipment), a player should be able to clear the entirety of any event on at least Easy difficulty, and some early maps might be doable on Medium or even Hard.

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 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 8 combat ready DDs, you should aim for a minimum of:

  • 3 Surface Combat DDs
  • 2 Anti-Installation DDs
  • 1 Anti-Submarine Warfare DD
  The Best
Ships Explanation
  Superb. Excellent stats - high night battle attack power and good starting luck. She is also able to equip Tanks and all types of Landing Crafts, making her an effective anti-installation attacker as well. On top of her high stats and ability to take on multiple attacking roles, she's also has historical damage bonuses in maps more often than any other DD in the game, often making her a key boss killer. She can also equip all types of Command Facilities.

The only real downside is her high remodel level of 75, but it's worth it.

  Surface Combat DDs
Ships Explanation
 
 		 The difference between them and other destroyers becomes less pronounced or even disappears as other DDs reach their final remodels, but they're still strong and the fact that they require only a small amount of experience to do their job is valuable, allowing you to funnel more EXP into other ships.
 
 		 These two are quite similar to each other: they sport the highest and second highest night battle attack power among DDs, respectively, but they're also very rarely historical ships. Don't let that discourage you, though - they're still amazing picks. Ayanami has a much higher starting luck, but her remodel level is a lot higher too.
  Respectable offensive stats, high luck and a fairly low Kai Ni level. While she's not as outright powerful as Yuudachi and Ayanami, she's frequently a historical ship in events. If you're willing to invest more levels into her she is also able to do opening ASW attack with buildable equipment around level 71, making her an effective anti-submarine specialist as well.
  Frequently a historical ship and has and high starting luck, but otherwise worse than those above her due to her average stats. However she is able to equip Command Facilities and Landing Crafts, giving her some extra utility and allowing her to function as a second-string anti-installation ship.
  Excellent stats, but poor luck. Has an alternate form where she trades her huge stats for anti-sub and anti-installation abilities, but this requires the very high level of 85.
  Anti-Installation DDs
Ships Explanation
  Excellent stats, able to equip all types of tanks and landing crafts. Her high stats also allow her to moonlight as a Surface Combat DD.
  Offensive stats are not as high as Michishio's, but in return she is frequently a historical ship, especially in European events. She will have higher highs, but lower lows than Michishio - consider sticking with Michishio if you prefer more consistent performance.
  Anti-Submarine Warfare DDs
Ships Explanation
  Can perform OASW attacks regardless of equipment at all times. However, she is a rare drop from 2-3 only and requires her Kai remodel to be effective, which is at level 55. Highly recommended regardless, as not needing certain gear or level to OASW makes her very flexible.
  If Johnston utterly refuses to appear, more levels can be fed into Shigure as a less versatile backup.
  For the terminally desperate. A dedicated ASW specialist with only average stats elsewhere. Uncommon drop and only appears in 2-4, 2-5, and 4-2. Only resort to her if you can't find Johnston and really don't like Shigure for some reason.

The DD below are important to have not for combat, but for various utility outside of combat.

Other DDs
Ships Explanation
  A Mutsuki-class DD that is uniquely able to equip Landing Crafts at only Kai. Once you get access to Daihatsu Landing Crafts, she's a good boost to your expedition income without tying up your anti-installation attackers.
  A large chunk of the quest tree is locked behind Quest A34, a composition quest that requires Uzuki as a member of the fleet. Very rare early on, she cannot be constructed and drops only in the boss nodes of 2-5, 3-4, 4-4 and 5-1.

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 is likely to end up on the bench as her lead over other IJN ships disappears at this point.

Recommended CL
Ships Explanation
  Excellent CL who can fulfill a variety of roles, the most notable being the ability to perform pre-emptive torpedo attacks without needing to be a CLT or SS(V). She also has solid combat stats and the ability to equip all types of landing crafts and tanks. Stays relevant for a very long time due to her torpedo ability alone.
  Comes with a full set of night battle gear as stock equipment at Kai Ni. She also has solid stats, but it's unlikely she'll be used over Abukuma if the fleet calls for a single CL only - the main reason you are leveling her is for the quickest and easiest access to the useful night battle gear.
  At Kai Ni, she gains the ability to OASW automatically regardless of ASW stat or equipped gear. She also gains access to special AACI setups that allow her to perform an okay AACI with minimal equipment slot usage, and it is in fact possible for her to do both of these things at once. Her offensive power is mediocre, however - her main use is OASW and AACI.

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.

  Surface Combat CA
Ships Explanation
  IJN's best non-blueprint-eating CA in terms of raw combat power. While she only has a very tiny edge in attack power compared to her sisters at Kai Ni, she also has a serviceable luck stat which makes her potentially able to run a Torpedo Cut-In setup for very high damage.
 
 
 		 Myoukou's three sisters. Very slightly weaker in exchange for reaching Kai Ni slightly earlier. Only level one if you did not opt to level Myoukou during Part 1 - otherwise they can be saved for later.
  Anti-Air CA
Ships Explanation
  Excellent CA. While her Kai is painfully average, she shines bright at Kai Ni with a substantial increase to attack power and access to two powerful AACI setups that are exclusive to her. These setups are also relatively light on equipment slots, allowing her to maintain night battle double attack while running AACI.

Her performance increases even further with the use of a Reinforcement Expansion, which effectively acts as a full extra equipment slot. Consider giving your first Reinforcement Expansion to Maya.

Other CA
Ships Explanation
  Uncommon CA, but drops in the boss nodes of many maps. She blocks off a lot of the quest tree, most notably a chain of quests that grant access to 6-4 and 6-5.

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.

Mogami-class
Ships Explanation
  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.
  Mikuma 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.
 
 		 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.
Tone-class
Ships Explanation
  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.

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.

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:

Important Quests

Quest info Rewards
F13
機種転換
Model Conversion
  
0 		 
0 		 
0 		 
50
Scrap 2 Tenzan while your Secretary is a carrier equipped with Type 97 Torpedo Bomber (Tomonaga Squadron)!
 
Tenzan Model 12 (Tomonaga Squadron)
Notes Requires: B25
Only 1 Type 97 Torpedo Bomber (Tomonaga Squadron) will be converted into the reward.
  • Any   are carried over.

※It is highly recommended to improve the Type 97 Torpedo Bomber (Tomonaga Squadron)  to   first.

F14
機種転換
Model Conversion
  
0 		 
0 		 
0 		 
50
Scrap 2 Suisei while your Secretary is a carrier equipped with Type 99 Dive Bomber (Egusa Squadron)!
 
Suisei (Egusa Squadron)
Notes Requires: B25
Only 1 Type 99 Dive Bomber (Egusa Squadron) will be converted into the reward.
  • Any   are carried over.

※It is highly recommended to improve the Type 99 Dive Bomber (Egusa Squadron)  to   first.

F15
機種転換
Model Conversion
  
0 		 
0 		 
0 		 
50
Scrap 2 Reppuu while your Secretary is a carrier equipped with Zero Fighter Type 52 Model C (601 Air Group)!
 
Reppuu (601 Air Group)
Notes Requires: B28
Only 1 Zero Fighter Type 52 Model C (601 Air Group) will be converted into the reward.
  • Any   are carried over.

※It is highly recommended to improve the Zero Fighter Model 52C (601 Air Group)  to   first.

🦃 Cranes
Ships Explanation
  If Abukuma is a player's ideal first blueprint remodel, Shoukaku is second. Her Kai Ni has extremely high stats and plane capacity, and her Kai Ni A form turns her into an armoured carrier (CVB) which gains the ability to shell at moderate damage.

Her remodel level is extremely high (80, then 88), but the pain of reaching that high level is lessened by the general ease of leveling carriers over other types of ships.

  Extremely similar to Shoukaku - she trades away some firepower in return for a slightly more effective aircraft layout.

Both cranes additionally require Prototype Flight Deck Catapults to remodel, which are obtained by clearing a rather large chain of quests.

🐉 Dragons
Ships Explanation
  The best CV that doesn't need a blueprint or a Prototype Catapult. Much higher firepower and capacity, compared to her previous form, but somewhat awkwardly distributed aircraft slots. Grants access to the very powerful Tenzan Model 12 (Tomonaga Squadron), potentially the most powerful Torpedo Bomber in the game (providing Type 97 Torpedo Bomber (Tomonaga Squadron) is improved before conversion).
  Very similar to Hiryuu Kai Ni, with slightly lower stats and slightly worse aircraft distribution. Grants access to Suisei (Egusa Squadron), the most powerful Dive Bomber in the game.

CVL fulfill the exact same role as in Part 1, but unlike CV here they have no quests that grant them access to powerful 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.

Fast CVL
Ships Explanation
  Zuihou is highly recommended due to a variety of reasons: She's explicitly needed to get the 2nd of the first two available Prototype Catapults, and she has a very powerful K2 with solid stats and slots (but a high remodel level). She is difficult to get however, and some target farming will be needed to hunt her down.
 
 		 Great fast CVL that start out as AV. While their AV and base carrier forms are quite weak, they reach Kai Ni at only level 50 and reach 95% of their potential at Carrier Kai form at 35.
  Compared to Chitose and Chiyoda, she trades some overall aircraft capacity for a larger biggest slot and better firepower. However, her Kai is fairly weak and she does not reach Kai Ni until level 75. She's still solid, but Chitose and Chiyoda will give similar results for lower experience investment. Don't train her early unless you really don't like Chitose or Chiyoda for some reason.
Slow CVL
Ships Explanation
  Excellent capacity, stats, and aircraft distribution - she also comes with a valuable Prototype Reppuu Late Model and 12cm 30-tube rockets as stock equipment. Her only downside is her slow speed and high level requirement.

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.

Fast Battleships
Ships Explanation
 
 
 
 
 The only FBB you can obtain outside of events. All are useful and with solid stats - and while they're perfectly serviceable at Kai if experience is short in supply, their Kai Ni gives a good boost in stats. All four should be leveled, as events sometimes need you to run 4 FBB at one time.
Aviation Battleships
Ships Explanation
 
 		 Still great BBV. While they're slow and they're behind Kongou-class Kai Ni in raw stats, their class allows them to be used in Transport Combined Fleets and their ability to carry seaplane bombers and seaplane fighters comes in useful. They should both at least be acquired and Kai'd, not only for potential use in events but to allow access to a second Prototype Flight Deck Catapult via quests that require them.
Slow Battleships
Ships Explanation
  Extremely useful at Kai Ni due to her special ability to activate the Nagato-class Full Broadside special attack (often called "Nagato Touch), potentially granting the player the ability to punch through very powerful enemy boss fleets. She also has the niche ability to equip all landing crafts and tanks.

As an extreme downside, she both requires a Blueprint and a very high level (88). If you don't expect to have a Blueprint for her, leveling her can be put on the backburner for now.

  Very similar to Nagato, but slightly worse in that she has less Luck, is historical less often, and is unable to equip landing crafts. She's much more common than Nagato, so she can be leveled in place of Nagato if Nagato cannot be found.

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.

SS(V)
Ships Explanation
 
 
 
 
 Mostly quite similar in stats, but I-168 is weaker than the rest.

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.

DE
  The only real choice - other DE are either event exclusive or locked late in World 7, and also have much higher remodel levels. Kai with max armor modernization is enough for her.

Used for naval landings, they are extremely fragile but can equip all types of tanks and landing crafts as well as seaplane fighters but are extremely fragile. But sorties are not their primary use - they really shine in that they allow you to freely develop three very important pieces of equipment: Type 2 Fighter Toryuu, Type 1 Fighter Hayabusa II, and Daihatsu Landing Crafts, the latter of which is vital for two reasons - equipping them increases your resource income from expeditions, and they are the initial building blocks for all anti-installation tanks and landing crafts.

LHA
Ships Explanation
  The only realistically obtainable LHA - the other, Akitsu Maru, is locked behind LSC and Events (and Shinshuu Maru is better, anyways). She can be Kai'd for potential use in landing operations and for an extra Daihatsu Landing Craft as stock equipment, but that's optional - her primary use is allowing you to develop the aforementioned land planes and DLC.

She drops in one location only - the boss node of 2-3.

Locations

Quick reference for where to find uncommon or rare ships recommended in this guide. Most recommended is in bold.

under construction while I figure out how to colour letters

Destroyers
Ships Location
  2-4:E F L M
4-1:J
Construction: 250 /30 /200 /30 
  3-1: G
3-3: M
4-2: L
5-2: O
Example Example
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