Cherbourg

12.8

Cruiser | France | Tier VIII

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VIII

9,000,000

Cherbourg — French Tier VIII cruiser.

A project of a super-heavy cruiser, close to the Dunkerque-class ships, with her main armament comprising eight 305 mm guns.

Cherbourg was first released in Early Access in Update 0.11.4.

Modules

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Dispersion (m)	Maximum HE Shell Damage (HP)	Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell (%)	Maximum AP Shell Damage (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
305 mm/50 Mle 1930 in a turret	2.1	30	196	4,050	17	8,200		0	900,000

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Cherbourg (A)	43,100	16	305	2	7	12/4/6/7				0	1,350,000
Cherbourg (B)	49,500	16	305	2	7	16/6/7				36,000	2,100,000

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
PCA n° 8 Mle 1		0		0	900,000
PCA n° 8 Mle 2		0		24,000	1,400,000

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 130,000 hp	31.9		0	900,000

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4
Slot 5

Player Opinion

Performance

Warning. The data presented in the AA Defense sidebar section may be incorrect.
For a graphic summary of ships Tiers VIII thru XI see LittleWhiteMouse's "Actual AA DPS".

Tier VIII Cherbourg is the first ship in the French large cruiser tech tree, splitting off the heavy cruiser line at Tier VII Algérie. Fast, maneuverable, and sporting a heavy main battery, she performs the intermediary role between a cruiser and battleship perfectly.

Main battery

Cherbourg’s major defining feature is her massive guns for a cruiser. At Tier VIII, a cruiser with a main battery of eight 305mm guns is a fearsome prospect. With these large guns comes the benefits of high armor-piercing (AP) shell damage, high shell velocity, excellent firing range, and the ability to fire all guns directly over her bow. However, while Cherbourg is classified as a cruiser, her guns feature battlecruiser dispersion. This means that her shells will have relatively tight horizontal and vertical dispersion when compared to most standard battleship guns, but worse than standard heavy and light cruisers. She also has a lower sigma value, which means that the shells don’t tend to group closely together. This can lead to some inaccurate - and occasionally frustrating - salvoes. Cherbourg’s guns are arranged in two quadruple-barrel turrets that boast excellent firing angles but modest turret traverse speeds. Along with her excellent AP shell performance, Cherbourg also has usable high explosive (HE) ammunition. It’s not all good news for Cherbourg’s guns, though; with battleship-sized guns comes a battleship’s reload: 29 seconds! This can be temporarily improved through the use of a Main Battery Reload Booster , which will reduce her reload time by 50% and allow her to fire off two salvoes within a short time.

Another unique feature of the French large cruisers is their surprisingly powerful secondary gun battery. Cherbourg has numerous secondary turrets, and while their high explosive shell penetration is modest, they have improved accuracy. When built for secondaries, Cherbourg’s secondary guns can pose a significant threat to destroyers that stray too close.

Survivability

Cherbourg’s armor leaves a lot to be desired. For a cruiser, she has excellent protection: somewhat standard bow and stern plating for a cruiser, but thicker belt armor that will shatter all HE shells and some smaller-caliber AP shells. Captains do need to take care while engaging enemy battleships, as any 380mm or larger AP shell or larger will overmatch the bow and stern plating and possibly penetrate the citadel. Therefore, angling perfectly bow-in to engage these battleships is not advisable. Instead, she should angle slightly, to bounce shells off her thick belt armor. Note that her upper belt is still relatively thin and can be overmatched by (and receive full penetration damage from) 406mm and larger guns. Cherbourg’s citadel is narrow and protected by a slight turtleback, but captains should still take care to avoid showing broadside to enemy vessels. As a large cruiser, fires are a threat to Cherbourg given their 60 second duration, twice as long as most cruisers. She also receives twice as much damage due to floods than other cruisers. A decently large hitpoint pool means she can take more punishment than the conventional heavy cruiser. Her Repair Party  consumable allows her to recover some hitpoints, but captains should do their best to avoid taking damage when possible.

Maneuverability

Cherbourg shines when it comes to speed and maneuverability. She’s fast but has a long rudder shift for a cruiser. Additionally, she has a small turning circle that will make dodging torpedoes much easier with her relatively small size. To further increase her already impressive top speed, she has access to an Engine Boost  consumable that can push her top speed to just under 40 knots. Thanks to this, Cherbourg can disengage quickly or adapt to rapidly evolving combat situations with ease despite her rather large detection range. Captains should use Cherbourg’s excellent handling and speed to mitigate the amount of damage she takes.

Consumables

Cherbourg has access to a large selection of consumables that improve her combat capabilities. She uses the standard cruiser Damage Control Party  consumable, which should be managed carefully as she is subject to the 60-second fires that are characteristic of most large cruisers. Captains can also choose between a Hydroacoustic Search  to spot torpedoes and enemy vessels or Defensive AA Fire  consumable to provide a valuable 50% boost to the continuous damage of her AA guns and quadruple her flak damage for 40 seconds. In the third slot, captains again have a choice of consumables: either the characteristic French Engine Boost  consumable or a Catapult Fighter  consumable. The Engine Boost consumable improves her acceleration and increases her top speed by 20% (compared to the standard 8% of other ships), while the catapult fighter helps to repel air attack. The Repair Party  consumable will prove useful when increasing the amount of damage that she can sustain, keeping her in the fight longer (See Survivability above). Lastly, she has access to a Main Battery Reload Booster  to briefly improve her rate-of-fire.

Anti-Aircraft Defenses

Cherbourg’s anti-aircraft battery is unremarkable. While the long- and medium-ranged auras do mediocre damage, the short-range aura is capable of dealing large damage numbers to enemy planes. Captains that wish to increase her AA performance can swap her hydroacoustic search for the Defensive AA Fire  consumable. (see Consumables).

Battle Performance

Cherbourg is a capable ship in the right hands. She will perform best when captains know how to make the most of a situation, repositioning and flanking when the opportunity arises. Since her rudder control is above average, varying your speed to position yourself in ambush positions quickly is a deadly advantage Cherbourg is gifted with. Given her poor armor, big guns, and good maneuverability, Cherbourg should be played at medium- to long-range, where active dodging can mitigate some of the damage she will receive. Captains are strongly encouraged to switch between ammunition types given the combat situation to best maximize this ship’s full potential. Use the Main Battery Reload Booster 

to briefly improve her rate-of-fire, either to capitalize on an enemy providing a good target or to ward off an enemy ship’s charge.

Pros:

Large-caliber guns with high shell velocity and good damage
Access to a Main Battery Reload Booster 
Excellent maneuverability and speed for a large cruiser
Good survivability and armor for a cruiser

Cons:

Long (battleship) reload on the main battery guns
Susceptible to high explosive and semi-armor piercing (SAP) damage and overmatch
Mediocre anti-aircraft battery
Large detection radius for a cruiser
60 second (battleship-length) fire duration

Research

Researchable upgrades for Cherbourg:

Hull: Upgrade to Hull (B) for improved survivability and maneuverability. Research of this module unlocks progression to Brest.
Gun Fire Control System: Upgrade to PCA n^o 8 Mle 2 for an extra 10% range on the main battery.

Optimal Configuration

Should captains choose to improve her AA performance, choosing the Defensive AA Fire consumable is recommended
Captains can choose between a Hydroacoustic Search or Defensive AA Fire consumable; the former is recommended due to its versatility
The Engine Boost consumable is recommended to improve her acceleration and increase her top speed by 20% (compared to the standard 8% of other ships)

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades are:

Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
Slot 2: Engine Room Protection or Engine Boost Modification 1 * or Damage Control System Modification 1 
Slot 3: Aiming Systems Modification 1
Slot 4: Damage Control System Modification 2 or Propulsion Modification 1 * or Steering Gears Modification 1
Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1

Engine Boost Modification 1 is recommended in slot 2 for players that have large coal reserves, to further boost Cherbourg's Engine Boost duration. But for those short on coal, it may be better to save that upgrade for the higher tier tech tree large cruisers.
In Slot 4, both Propulsion Modification 1 and Steering Gears Modification 1 are viable options. Damage Control System Modification 2 is available for players that want to reduce her 60 second fire duration, but is less optimal.

Commander Skills

The Honoré brothers feel particularly well-suited for the French large cruisers with their improved Grease the Gears skill.

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack				Defense
1	Grease the Gears +15% main battery traverse speed. ★★★	Swift Fish +5% torpedo speed.	Consumables Specialist -10% cooldown time of Main Battery Reload Booster, Torpedo Reload Booster, Spotting Aircraft, Catapult Fighter, and Defensive AA Fire. ★	Gun Feeder -40% time to switch shell type. ★★★	Incoming Fire Alert Receive a warning of a salvo fired at your ship from more than 4.5km. ★★	Last Stand The ship remains able to move and maneuver - slowly - while the engine or steering gears are incapacitated. ★
2	Demolition Expert +1% chance of main and secondary HE shells causing a fire. +15% to the fragmentation damage area of HE ordnance fired at submarines. ★	Fill the Tubes -10% torpedo tubes reload time.	Consumables Enhancements +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search, Surveillance Radar, Smoke Generator, & Engine Boost. ★★★	Eye in the Sky Spotting Aircraft: • +2 charges • -50% cooldown time.	Priority Target The detection indicator will show the number of enemies targeting you with main battery. ★★★	Focus Fire Training In the priority AA sector: +25% continuous damage. +1 flak burst per salvo –10% reload time of Air strike armament.
3	Heavy HE and SAP Shells +10% HE and SAP shell damage. +15% ship detectability guns 149mm and up. ★	Enhanced Torpedo Explosive Charge +15% torpedo damage.	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% reload time of all armaments per 1% HP lost +0.2% AA continuous damage per 1% HP lost. ★★★	Heavy AP Shells +5% damage for AP shells 190mm and larger. ★★	Superintendent +1 charge to all consumables. ★★★	Survivability Expert +450 HP per ship tier. ★★
4	Top Grade Gunner -10% reload time of secondary batteries If enemy ship is spotted within detectability range, -8% reload time of main battery. ★★★	Outnumbered If there are fewer allies than visible enemies within the ship's base main caliber firing range: +8% ship speed -10% main battery dispersion.	Radio Location Shows the direction to the nearest enemy ship. The enemy is alerted that a bearing has been taken.. ★★	Inertial Fuse for HE Shells +25% armor penetration of HE shells Base fire chance reduced by half.	Concealment Expert -10% detectability range of the ship. ★★★	AA Defense and ASW Expert +20% continuous AA damage. +20% flak damage. +15% damage from depth charges.
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful ★★ - Frequently Useful ★ - Occasionally Useful No stars - Not Useful

Consumables

Cherbourg equips the following consumables:

Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
Slot 2: Defensive AA Fire  or Hydroacoustic Search 
Slot 3: Engine Boost  or Catapult Fighter 
Slot 4: Repair Party 
Slot 5: Main Battery Reload Booster

Signals

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Juliet Charlie -100% to the risk of magazine detonation. ★★	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration. ★★	India Yankee -20% to fire duration. ★★	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy. ★	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating.	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time. ★	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts. ★	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★★★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used. ★★★
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator .	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire . ★

Note: Use of the Juliet Charlie signal makes detonation impossible.

Gallery

References

Ships of France

Destroyers	II Enseigne Gabolde • III Fusilier • IV Bourrasque • V Jaguar • V Siroco • VI Guépard • VI Aigle • VII Vauquelin • VIII Le Fantasque • VIII Le Terrible • IX Mogador • X Kléber • X Marceau • X Kléber CLR
Cruisers	I Bougainville • II Jurien de la Gravière • III Friant • IV Duguay-Trouin • V Émile Bertin • VI La Galissonnière • VI De Grasse • VI Dupleix • VII Algérie • VII Toulon • VIII Charles Martel • VIII Cherbourg • VIII Bayard • IX Saint-Louis • IX Brest • IX Carnot • X Henri IV • X Marseille • X Colbert • ★ Condé
Battleships	III Turenne • IV Courbet • V Bretagne • VI Normandie • VI Dunkerque • VI Dunkerque B • VII Lyon • VII Strasbourg • VIII Richelieu • VIII Gascogne • VIII Champagne • VIII Flandre • VIII Picardie • IX Alsace • IX Jean Bart • IX Jean Bart B • X République • X Bourgogne • ★ Patrie
Aircraft Carriers	VI Béarn

Cruisers

Japan	I Hashidate • II Chikuma • III Tenryū • III Katori • IV Yūbari • IV Kuma • IV Iwaki Alpha • V Furutaka • V Agano • V Yahagi • VI Aoba • VI Gokase • VII Myōkō • VII Omono • VII Tokachi • VII Maya • VII ARP Myōkō • VII ARP Ashigara • VII ARP Haguro • VII Southern Dragon • VII Eastern Dragon • VII ARP Nachi • VIII Mogami • VIII Tone • VIII Atago • VIII Shimanto • VIII Atago B • VIII ARP Takao • VIII ARP Maya • IX Ibuki • IX Takahashi • IX Azuma • IX AL Azuma • X Zaō • X Yodo • X Yoshino • X Yoshino B • X Kitakami
U.S.A.	I Erie • II Chester • II Albany • III St. Louis • III Charleston • IV Phoenix • V Omaha • V Marblehead • V Marblehead Lima • V Rattlehead • VI Pensacola • VI Dallas • VII Atlanta • VII New Orleans • VII Helena • VII Indianapolis • VII Atlanta B • VII Boise • VII Flint • VIII Baltimore • VIII Cleveland • VIII Wichita • VIII Anchorage • VIII Congress • VIII Rochester • VIII San Diego • VIII AL Montpelier • IX Buffalo • IX Seattle • IX Vallejo • IX Alaska • IX Tulsa • IX Alaska B • X Des Moines • X Worcester • X Puerto Rico • X Salem • X Austin • ★ Annapolis
U.K.	I Black Swan • II Weymouth • III Caledon • IV Danae • V Emerald • V Hawkins • V Exeter • VI Leander • VI Devonshire • VI London • VI Dido • VII Fiji • VII Surrey • VII Belfast • VIII Edinburgh • VIII Albemarle • VIII Cheshire • VIII Tiger '59 • VIII Belfast '43 • VIII Hampshire • VIII Nottingham • VIII AL Cheshire • VIII STAR Edinburgh • IX Neptune • IX Drake • X Minotaur • X Goliath • X Plymouth • X Gibraltar • X Monmouth • X Defence • ★ Edgar
France	I Bougainville • II Jurien de la Gravière • III Friant • IV Duguay-Trouin • V Émile Bertin • VI La Galissonnière • VI De Grasse • VI Dupleix • VII Algérie • VII Toulon • VIII Charles Martel • VIII Cherbourg • VIII Bayard • IX Saint-Louis • IX Brest • IX Carnot • X Henri IV • X Marseille • X Colbert • ★ Condé
U.S.S.R.	I Orlan • II Diana • II Diana Lima • II Novik • III Aurora • III Bogatyr • III Oleg • III Varyag • III AL Avrora • IV Svietlana • V Murmansk • V Kotovsky • V Krasny Krym • V Mikoyan • V Kirov • VI Budyonny • VI Molotov • VI Admiral Makarov • VII Shchors • VII Lazo • VIII Chapayev • VIII Tallinn • VIII Mikhail Kutuzov • VIII Ochakov • VIII Pyotr Bagration • VIII Bagration • VIII Dmitry Pozharsky • IX Dmitri Donskoi • IX Riga • IX Kronshtadt • X Moskva • X Alexander Nevsky • X Petropavlovsk • X Stalingrad • X Smolensk • X Sevastopol • X Kommissar • ★ Novosibirsk
Germany	I Hermelin • II Dresden • II Emden • III Kolberg • IV Karlsruhe • V Königsberg • VI Nürnberg • VI Admiral Graf Spee • VI Leipzig • VI HSF Admiral Graf Spee • VII Yorck • VII München • VII Weimar • VIII Admiral Hipper • VIII Prinz Eugen • VIII Mainz • VIII Schill • VIII Mainz B • VIII Cross of Dorn • IX Roon • IX Siegfried • IX Ägir • IX Admiral Schröder • IX Roon CLR • X Hindenburg • ★ Clausewitz
Pan-Asia	I Chengan • III Ning Hai • V Chungking • VI Rahmat • VI Huanghe • VII Chumphon • VIII Harbin • VIII Irian • VIII Wukong • IX Sejong • IX Dalian • IX Mengchong • X Jinan
Europe	I Gryf • VI Elli
Italy	I Eritrea • II Nino Bixio • III Taranto • IV Alberto di Giussano • V Raimondo Montecuccoli • V Genova • VI Trento • VI Duca d'Aosta • VII Zara • VII Duca degli Abruzzi • VII Gorizia • VIII Amalfi • IX Brindisi • IX Michelangelo • X Venezia • X Napoli • X Napoli B • ★ Piemonte
Netherlands	I Van Kinsbergen • II Gelderland • III Java • IV De Ruyter • V Celebes • VI Kijkduin • VII Eendracht • VIII Haarlem • VIII De Zeven Provinciën • IX Johan de Witt • IX Van Speijk • X Gouden Leeuw
Commonwealth	VI Perth • VI Mysore • IX Hector • X Brisbane
Spain	I Júpiter • II Méndez Núñez • III Navarra • IV Almirante Cervera • V Galicia • VI Baleares • VI Canarias • VII Asturias • VIII Cataluña • VIII Numancia • IX Andalucía • X Castilla
Pan-America	I Hércules • II Almirante Barroso • II Almirante Abreu • III Vicente Guerrero • IV Córdoba • V La Argentina • VI Almirante Cochrane • VII Coronel Bolognesi • VII Nueve de Julio • VIII Ignacio Allende • VIII Almirante Grau • IX Santander • X San Martín

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Compatible Upgrades