The French Strasbourg battleship with its non-standard armament layout is the main reward in the Raider Hunter vehicle event!
Strasbourg: An Event Vehicle Battleship for France at Rank VI
At a glance:
- Improved armor!
- Main battery guns at the front.
- Good speed.
- Reconnaissance aircraft.
- Radar.
- Mediocre air defense.
During the interwar period, France urgently needed new competitive battleships that would comply with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty. In 1932, two Dunkerque-class battleships were ordered for the French Navy, designed as a response to the latest warships of the leading naval powers. Strasbourg was the second battleship of this type, built at the Ateliers et Chantiers de Saint-Nazaire (Penhoët) shipyard and launched in December 1936. With the outbreak of World War II, she took part in the hunt for the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee and escorted French convoys.
After the capitulation of France, Strasbourg was sent to the port of Mers-el-Kebir in Algeria, where she was soon attacked by the Royal Navy, but was able to break through to Toulon. Strasbourg remained there until 1942 as the flagship of the Vichy fleet, without taking part in any significant combat missions. In 1942, after Hitler ordered the occupation of the south of France, the crew of the battleship, among others, was ordered to scuttle the ship. Strasbourg was raised in 1943 and the dismantling of the ship for metal began. On August 18th 1944, Strasbourg was bombed by U.S. aircraft and was sunk again. The ship was raised again in 1946, however the restoration of the battleship was considered too costly and in 1955 Strasbourg was sold for scrap.
Introducing Strasbourg!
The vehicle reward in the Raider Hunter event is the Strasbourg battleship, the sister ship of the Dunkerque! Strasbourg has an unusual main caliber gun arrangement and has reinforced hull armor, all while maintaining excellent mobility. Diving into the details!
Let’s first look into the differences between the well-proven Dunkerque battleship. Despite all of its advantages, the Dunkerque has a noticeable downside and that’s its armor. Armor in the most important areas can be penetrated by any battleship, which forces you to limit the tactics needed when playing this ship. The Strasbourg on the other hand partially solves this problem, as the thickness of the main armor belt has increased from 225 mm to a quite acceptable 283. Plus, the thickness of the armor on the slopes and armored deck have increased, and the already decent main battery turret armor has slightly improved. The result of this is good protection from enemy fire, allowing you to bully even the best battleships in the game at long distances!
The interesting part of the Dunkerque-class battleships is their unusual gun arrangement. Strasbourg has two four-barrel turrets that are concentrated at the bow of the ship, while 16 secondary caliber guns are positioned closer to the stern with an onboard salvo possible from 10 of these guns. Eight 330 mm caliber guns can fire high-explosive and semi-armor-piercing shells at a rate of two shots per minute with a trained crew, which is about standard for battleships. Perhaps one of the most noticeable disadvantages of the Strasbourg is its anti-air defenses. Like the Dunkerque, there’s only two-larger caliber machine guns and slow-firing 37 mm guns. A big advantage for detecting air threats is the ME-140 / MR-126 radar (found only on the Colbert heavy cruiser).
Despite the reinforced armor, Strasbourg retains remarkable performance characteristics for a battleship, with a relatively small turning radius and a maximum speed of 30 knots (over 54 km/h). A pair of Loire 130C hydroplanes that can lay smoke screens and even capture points are a very useful bonus!
You can get the Strasbourg battleship for France in the Raider Hunter event that started today! Click below to see the full details about this event.
Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.
