How to deal with destroyers

Hi folks!

Today, I'll talk a bit about how to deal with destroyers, given how popular (and deadly) they are with many experienced players.

Most players will experience this scenario: Your battleship has all its main guns pointed at the target, you've got them clear in your sights. Suddenly, the lookout cries "torpedoes!", and before you can do anything, a full broadside of torpedoes crashes into you, sinking you to the bottom of the sea. What happened - you didn't even see him coming! Welcome to fighting against destroyers.

Destroyers already have low observability to start with, and it can be reinforced with visibility-reducing equipment (from tier 6 on) and camouflage. You can't shoot at ships you don't see. Even without these measures, they can hide behind islands, dash out and launch, just to disappear again.

Or how about this one. You're chasing a destroyer, they went behind an island, but they'll come right out again, so you've got your guns ready - just to have them peek out, launch their torpedoes at you, and move back again. Got to close? You're dead.

So what do you do about these pesky fellows?

Enemy fleet composition

Before you even start the battle, take a look at the enemy fleet composition on the loading screen. How many destroyers do they have? Are they commanded by computer players, or real ones? Computer players are hugely less dangerous. They play destroyers like light cruisers - they'll go mostly on straight course, using their main guns a fair bit, and only fire torpedoes if they've got a sure shot. Human players on the other hand often have some more elaborate tricks up their sleeves.

Scout

At the opening of the battle, be aware that destroyers are going to be the first enemy ships you'll encounter, on account of their speed, so be ready. The key is to spot them before they get into kill range. There are several good ways of doing this:

• let your fleet's destroyers do it - they will be the first one to spot them
• if you have a carrier in your fleet, it can scout ahead with planes (computer players are bad at this, they wait until targets are spotted before launching)
• if the battle you're playing includes areas of control, watch for enemy units taking neutral maps - these are usually destroyers (again, due to being fastest). Given the importance of control areas, human players will most likely go for them
• Some higher-level German cruisers have a "sonar" special ability, which can be used early on to extend their detection range

Destroyer vs destroyer

Once you've scouted the enemy destroyers, the next steps depend quite a bit on what class of ship you're running. If you've got a destroyer yourself, you can tangle with the enemy, which can be great fun and exciting, but it's also dangerous and often time-consuming. You'll need to get a close-range shot off without being hit yourself - close range, because destroyers are very mobile, and without being hit, because torpedoes can easily one-shot you. 

A lot comes down to island / cover play and prediction. If you can successfully predict your enemy's next move, you've got a good chance to win. Are they sailing parallel and suddenly turning? They most likely just launched their torpedoes. Go into full reverse immediately, don't wait until you can spot them. Expect turns, so don't shoot at where the guidance system points you at - they most likely won't stay on course. Shoot at where they will be after the turn - but again, torpedoes move slow, so you've got to shoot close-range. Also keep in mind reload times, they take quite a while, and whoever misses their shot first is going to be rather defenceless for a bit. Fan your torpedo shots, don't send them all down the same lane. This makes them much harder to dodge, and you don't need many hits to take out a destroyer.

Lastly, use your guns, with AP shells - destroyers have thin armour, and you can do some decent damage while torpedoes are reloading. Keep dodging.

Cruiser vs destroyer

You're your fleet's designated destroyer hunter. You're fast, your guns have great range and fire quickly. You've got enough health and armour to take some glancing torpedo salvos. It's your job to take out enemy destroyers before they can wreak havoc on your heavies. Especially light cruisers are well-suited for this job.

The most important part to remember is to keep your distance. You don't want to get closer than 5km to the enemy destroyers, or you'll find yourself dodging torpedoes. Often, it's a good idea to run ahead with your own vanguard, and then go into reverse once destroyers are spotted, keeping them at a good firing range. Definitely use your AP ammo, since your guns can tear through their weak armour quickly. For example, a tier 6 German "Nürnberg" class light cruiser can sink most destroyers of same or even slightly higher tier with three good salvos from her main guns.

They will try to dodge once they've been shelled, so be prepared to do some predicting - at longer range, your shells take a bit of time to get there. If they manage to slip away, you can give chase (beware of ambushes), or switch to a more promising target if there are others around.

If your cruiser has torpedoes, save them for close-range encounters. I've sunk many destroyers who thought they could ambush me behind an island, only to find me in full reverse and six torps coming their way on the other side.

Battleship vs destroyer

I'd treat them as target of opportunity. Your main guns will obviously do severe damage to them, but they take a long time to reload, and the last thing you want is a close-range encounter with destroyers. Trying to hit destroyers at long range is usually not a great use of your limited shots.

Carrier vs destroyer

With your low health and high score value for sinking, you're a primary target for enemy destroyers. Get your planes to scout them, and make sure to check those "back channels" - on some maps, the islands are positioned such that destroyers can sneak by on the side of the map and do a "carrier run", taking you out. Fighters can be used to keep an eye on these corners, if you suspect that someone may come a-sneakin'.

Dive bombers are quite good against destroyers, but they're small targets, so there's a chance all your bomb drops are going to miss. Hitting destroyers with torpedo bombers is quite difficult - they're turning quickly, so get your launches in as close as possible. Often it's better to use torpedoes against other targets and hit destroyers with bombers instead.

Keep an eye for enemy ships trying to break through your lines. If they're making a run for you, hit reverse gear to increase the distance. Don't underestimate the flexibility of light carriers - if destroyers get close, you can turn and make a run for it, while getting the bombers out frequently. Also, use your main guns (with AP ammo), destroyers often forget about those. 

Still, your best defence against a destroyer is not to be near one.