This new top Italian Battleship, the RN Conte di Cavour, will join the ranks of the mightiest ships within the Bluewater fleet. Meet one of the most interesting ships in the “Kings of Battle” major update!
RN Conte di Cavour: A Battleship for Italy at Rank VI
Features:
- 320 mm caliber artillery.
- Good air defense.
- Comparatively weak armor.
Vehicle History
After the London Naval Treaty, Italy decided to strengthen its battle fleet. For external and internal reasons, the creation of a new class was abandoned in favor of the decision to comprehensively modify two existing ships — battleships Conte di Cavour and Giulio Cesare. The Conte di Cavour — the lead ship of the series built in 1911 — was redesigned by 60-70%, with work on the ship completed in 1937. With the outbreak of hostilities of World War II, she took part in the Battle of Calabria. In November she was attacked by Swordfish torpedo aircraft in the port of Taranto and went down from a direct hit from a torpedo to the side. She was raised in July 1941 and after being towed to Trieste, she was not put into service and did not take part in any further battles. In 1943 she was captured by the Germans, and in February 1945 was lost to Allied bombing.
Meet RN Conte di Cavour!
This brand-new flagship battleship will join Italy's Bluewater fleet and interestingly is a participant in both World Wars. Featuring a decent arsenal in the form of its main caliber cannon that can fire armor-piercing shells, as well as effective air defense weapons, which are lacking on so many other ships constructed near to the First World War period. Let’s dive into the details!
Interesting: Battleship RN Conte di Cavour was named in honor of Count Camillo-Benso di Cavour, the first Prime Minister of Italy.
When the RN Conte di Cavour arrives in the game, it’ll be a ship for the more skillful players — it’ll rarely forgive mistakes, but with competent use, it’ll be a team leader both in the number of destroyed enemies and the amount of support provided. What are its main caliber weapons? The familiar Duilio 320mm GK. These guns do not have the best characteristics in rate of fire or in caliber, but having said this, its fire rate of 21 shells per minute is competitive enough! In addition to this, armor-piercing shells can also be used, which are comparable to the early 14" (356 mm) ammunition of the Japanese Imperial Navy, providing you with fantastic capabilities in duels at any range of battle. Its main caliber weapons are complemented with auxiliary batteries in the form of six twin barrel turrets with 135mm guns, with 3 per side.
Moving onto the armor and survivability of the RN Conte di Cavour, which is a bit on the weaker side. The most protected part of the armored belt is located below the waterline — there, the armor is 250 mm thick, while above water, the side is protected by two belts of 220 and 130 mm of armor. The turret armor is better — 280 mm in the area of the frontal part and up to 240 mm at the sides. In terms of crew, the Conte di Cavour has a crew of just 1,280 people, which is a decent enough amount!
What other strengths does the RN Conte di Cavour have? Its anti-aircraft capabilities shine. These guns can fire at enemy aircraft with 135 mm high-explosive shells that contain remote fuzes for longer ranges. This ship’s second line of defense is in the form of 10 x 65 mm Ansaldo-Terni rapid-firing guns located on single mounts, which may be familiar to those of you who use the RN Etna light cruiser. Against low altitude aircraft attacks, 20 mm Breda cannons with a total of 31 barrels is great for additional protection. For such a battleship, these additional weapons are a big plus, as it allows it to survive air attacks when not amongst allied ships. In addition to this, we’d like to note that the EC3/ter Gufo radar is on this ship, which helps to detect any threat from the air.
In your matches: Pro-tips when using the RN Conte di Cavour by Igor, Naval Game Designer: “In my opinion, the RN Conte di Cavour should not be considered as a pure representative of the Battleship class — in terms of characteristics, it’s closer to the Kronshtadt or USS Alaska. Don’t engage enemies from the very beginning of the battle and don’t stop at nearest islands. Keep maximum distance, maneuver and concentrate on the use of armor-piercing shells of the main caliber guns and putting auxiliary caliber guns with automatic control. Use HE-TF for the 135mm guns — in duels against battleships, it’s unlikely to help, but this type of shell significantly enhances anti-aircraft and anti-coastal boat potential!”
Coming in based on its historical design, in which it never had the chance to see combat, Battleship RN Conte di Cavour will appear in the game at rank VI of the Italian Bluewater Fleet with the release of the “Kings of Battle” major update. Until then, enjoy your matches and see you soon!