With submarines being introduced to War Thunder Naval, I’d like to suggest another historically interesting vessel type Q-ships.
Rather than appearing as conventional combat vessels, Q-ships would visually resemble ordinary merchant ships and could be incorporated into cargo convoys alongside regular AI merchant vessels.
Their concealed armament could be deployed through a mechanic involving removable or retractable panels, revealing their guns when the player chooses to spring the ambush.
This would introduce an interesting element of deception into naval combat. A submarine approaching what appears to be an easy merchant target could instead find itself facing an armed opponent.
Their primary role would naturally be to surprise submarines, particularly those operating at close range against merchant shipping. However, they could also potentially pose a threat to unsuspecting surface vessels.
Unlike conventional warships, Q-ships would not rely on speed, manoeuvrability or heavy armour. Their effectiveness would instead depend on positioning, concealment and choosing the right moment to reveal their weapons.
There would obviously need to be some consideration around balancing and how the game identifies friendly and enemy vessels.
For example:
- Q-ships could be visually indistinguishable from ordinary merchant vessels until their weapons are deployed.
- Concealed weapons could have a deployment animation, preventing them from immediately bringing their full armament to bear.
- Their relatively poor mobility and limited protection would make them vulnerable once identified.
- They could be incorporated into convoy-based objectives, providing an additional layer of uncertainty for submarine players.
Historically, Q-ships were operated by several navies, including the British, German and other Allied and Axis forces.
Given their origins as converted merchant vessels, they could also offer an interesting opportunity to introduce a relatively universal selection of vessels across the various naval nations.
With submarines arriving in War Thunder Naval, it seems like an excellent opportunity to introduce some of the unconventional anti-submarine warfare vessels and tactics that developed in response to the submarine threat.
Q-ships would bring something genuinely different to naval gameplay: deception, ambush tactics and the uncertainty of not knowing whether an apparently harmless merchant vessel is actually a heavily armed opponent.