Exact same dude.
I add:
You are the low tier each game with the VLT 2. Knowing thats a premium boat, i suggest 3.3 or 3.0 at least.
Even PT-59 (3.0) is better value in game in “dive in” on points or hide and seek with isles.
I dont try La combattante yet. But large map with 90% cruisers… let me doubt
REAL AND TRUE.
Hello all,
After some days spading the tree and starting the painful grind to La Combattante, here are my 2-cents take on the french coastals.
The Darne-only gang (VTB’s 8, 9 (premium), 11, 14 have their speed for them, but that’s all. They are all nearly identical, and the rifle-caliber mg is close to unpotent. Try to aim for all the different hull modules with AP-ammo, and you can rack some victories over bots.
BR seems ok, just because 0.3 or 0.7 is not possible… Maybe you can use them in high-tier battles to troll crazy DD’s between islands, but the 2km-ranged torpedo won’t get you far.
The VTB’s 13 and 19 bring something new to the game, a single 20mm Oerlikon that you should consider as your first real weapon of the tree. Stay back in these low-tier battles, support the AI-bots of the team and you should do ok. BR 1.3/1.7 is OK in my opinion.
Now for some diversity, the MTB-96 is not really notable. It’s like the Vosper-2 in the UK-tree, but with… oh, right, 2x7,7 mg’s. Great for a continuous fire, but don’t expect miracle. BR seems ok for this one, but 1.7 would have been better though.
The first really interesting boat of the tree is the L9059. Very diverse armament, with the 2 QF 25pdr, a 40mm Bofors and its 2x20mm Oerlikon companions. I really found that it was a well-rounded support ship. The slow-firing 25pdrs have a MORTAR behavior, so try to hide and make hell rain on the pesky huge barges you can find in the opposite team. These shells are slow, but have a really marked bell trajectory and can lead to some suprising hits on hiding enemies.
Best approach while advancing would be to tack while presenting as much as possible your left broadside (better firing angles with the 25pdrs). Most importantly, use your 40-mm AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE. It will be your main defense gun, but its firing angles are really blocked by the bridge.
BR seems ok for this one, you got a great weapon choice.
The oddity in the tree is the not-threatening looking ARRAS, which is essentially a cargo ship.
History time here, the guns of the vessels during the monarchy were engraved with the motto : “ULTIMA RATIO REGUM”, meaning “the last argument of the King”. This sentence could be applied to the peaceful-looking ARRAS. If you manage to hit any coastal adversary you see, you will just blow it to pieces. Spaded, it’s also surprisingly maneuverable while going forward, but slow as a rock backwards.
You can also engage the reserve DD’s you see, but if they decide to target you specifically don’t try your chance. 138,6mm guns are great but slow, your 75mm is a “light” support, and the 8mm “AA defense” are negligible. If a plane targets you, once again you are dead. BR 3.0 seems ok too with this surprising boat.
Next, La Surprise is a nice… surprise (ha, ha). You got the same guns than the HMS Brissenden, sided by trusty Oerlikons without many dead-angles.
I have to say that it’s my favorite in the tree. Her main drawbacks are her speed paired with the DD spawn. If you manage to sail to the center of the coastal-boats melee, you will be the main threat to them. AI-gunners keeping their attention on the approaching planes will be a relief too. If you second-spawn with her, you can even engage confidently the low-tier DD’s you meet. 3.3 is a really good BR when she can shine without being OP at all.
Now for the greatest scandal in the coastal tree… VLT’s. VLT-2 got at least 2 Oerlikons (the same you see on your coastal vessels since BR 1.3), to maintain the rate of fire, but the only 2 slow-firing unstabilised 40mm bofors are lackluster when you trade fire with any PG-02, Albatros, Jaguar, PT-xxx, MPK… you see.
Compare these boats with the PT’s in the US tree. Maybe the US ones are a bit slower, but armed like any Texas firing range. When the US ones are packing torpedos, they bear 4 or them with a 5.2km range (vs 2km for the VLT’s)… Orientable tubes are a great addition, but once again you have to be at 2km only.
I really can’t see why the VLT’s are higher in BR than say a PT-810. Right now, even the premium one doesn’t feel reliable to grind. I used only “normal” ships to grind while having preordered the VLT2. My advice would be to let them aside while waiting for a BR-reduction. Grinding for La Combattante will be a loooong way, but even slower if I use VLT’s.
I am really looking for La Combattante, because she looks gorgeous, but unfortunately I don’t hold high expectations for the SS-11 turret (maybe she needs her actually used SS-12 ?)
My opinion on this long-awaited tree is that it really lacks diversity for one part, but got some really hidden gems on the other. L9059, La Surprise, Arras are really great additions and I hope to see more coastal boats for France in the future, especially for numerous Avisos that the Royale employed, up to the mighty modern coastal ships.
Have fun with these new toys, and see you on the battlefield.
A good summary, shows me once again that I haven’t missed anything. 🐌
Somehow the french battleships feeling bugged. I played germany and france high tier recently and while Scharnhorst and Bayern do massive damage with every salvo, the french ap grenades seem to do almost nothing, even with their large filler. OK, they have a bit less penetration, but really? While I do 10-15k damage with german ships, with france I mostly stuck below 5k. Also the french secondary batteries land their shots miles away from the crosshair if both ships arent standing still while the german 150mm are always spot on.
There seems something really fishy here…
Hello there, fellow Naval enjoyers,
After ±1 week I unlocked La Combattante, and did some games with her and her mighty missiles (joking).
Well, apart for her gorgeous 3D model, I am not really enthusiastic. I will keep parading her until I’m spaded though.
You are not really fast, and the armament is the same as the VLT-1 (2 Bofors). SS11 are very, very situationnal, and I have yet to destroy someone with them (outside of the test navigation ofc). Bofors are quicker to dispatch speedboats, and I am really disappointed with their effects on medium coastals (like LE Orla, USS Asheville, MPK xxx). Maybe I am still not experienced with that weapon in a naval situation, I have yet to find where to aim them to use them at best.
Targetting Coastal trailers like the Drache will be disappointing, due to the emptiness of their hull.
However they have a fear factor when they hit an enemy, but that’s not really a great thing because that enemy will then target you. And you can’t escape fast enough, so you are just sitting there.
Using Bofors while a SS11 is flying is a bit tricky, because you often have to correct your deflection BUT center the aim on the target when the missile is about to hit. Do it too early and watch your 40mm shots land in the water. Do it too late and… well, the missile misses.
Overall, you have to play the french coastal tree as the bluewater one. If you are alone on the front, you are doing it wrong. Only the VLT’s can sometime have a miracle moment and get some kills if you are not targeted. I even did some games racking 6-7 kills without losing a VLT1.
Use your boats to cover your team, harass the enemy and hide.
@ Gaijin : mandatory demand : Moar french coastal boats please!
if you’re calling for only ‘boat’ not corvettes or frigates, said news is that Gaijin has no chance. There are already most of French motor boats in game.
There’s an entire thread dedicated to the discussion about balancing of the French Coastal tree - French naval coastal tree BR should be this
and you can rack some victories over bots.
Wait, you have bots in BR 1.0 coastal battles?! Or are you just trolling the skill-level of other players 🤣
Thanks for the link, I will participate to this thread then !
Sometimes you wonder…
But usually the 1.0 Coastal games I did were 4-6 players, and the rest of the team is only named AI bots (Gerhard, Nobosuke and their friends)…
Yesterday I even had a really “funny” game again, with 4.X “player” bots, with their weird names and using only USS Gearing. I was the only human there…
La Combattante is useless, there is no speed, there are no torpedoes, there is no survivability.
BR should be somewhere 3.3.
Everything above 3.3 is 2 BR’s higher than it’s actual ability!
Admittedly that’s only 3 boats, but still…
And the VLT-1 and -2 are going down to 3.3, but I still think all 3 ships will be 1 level too high even with this.
I don’t think they could justify selling a 3.0 coastal boat for $30… probably why it was over BR’d to begin with.
Overall, aside from the Arras, the lineup is quite poor and lacking in substance. If this were 3 months after the addition of French Bluewater, Id give them a pass. But we waiting a full year after Bluewater intro and this was the best they could muster? Not impressed. Especially for 30$.
Now, it remains to be seen over the next few updates. We have 3 coming in 5 months. I assume, I hope… perhaps pray, that more vehicles are coming down the pipeline.
Though its WT Naval… which is a sad meme at this point.
Pretty sure cost is linked to tier rather than BR, so T3 vehicles are all $29.99 regardless of BR.
Might be wrong, but it’s the impression I get every time something new goes on sale - cost = (Tier-1 x $10!)
time to blow the dust off this thread
marne was recently added, it turned out to be a very tanky boat capable of taking numerous hits from even others of its own kind thanks to its small compartments, while being able to reply in kind with its four 100mm guns. in fact, it was so great gaijin had to move it from 3.0 to 3.3
aconit was also added, it’s very much just the same as the brantford; very tanky and robust with a great armament layout
its one of the worst coastals in-game sure the worst french, with 3.7 it mostly get into 4.3 matches where it had no chance vs the russian op boats. as already mentioned the missiles are useless. And as rank V it takes eternity to grind one modification (e.g. speed upgrade or artillery)
I’ve got 3 pending suggestions for coastal french boats, La Rieuse, a P400 ship, La Confiance, the P400 succesor and l’Albatros, a modified fishing boat
Also two from me:
D’Entrecasteaux which was a large aviso, something more capable than Marne and even the La Surprise. Plus: it had quite a history and could carry up to 56 mines, which would make it the first coastal vessel armed with mines for the French. Would nicely fill in the right lane of the French coastals.
And Doudart de Lagrée, and interesting French river patrol vessel, something for BR 2.0 or so, way worse than the BR 2.3 Aconit, but a unique, interesting vessel (perhaps event/battlepass-worth), that fits into that “french build floating hotels” meme ;P.
Sad thing about bouganville class is that unlike Marne, it will have destoyer/frigate spawn, and bouganville class is very slow ship