Massachusetts

14.3

Massachusetts

Battleship | U.S.A. | Tier VIII

Tech Tree Position

stock

 top

General

Purchase price12,750

Hit Points66,300

Main Battery

406 mm/45 Mk.6 in a turret3 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire2 shots/min.

Reload Time30 sec.

Rotation Speed5 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time36 sec.

Firing Range18.27 km.

Maximum DispersionUnable to match configuration for query: artillery:pasb518_massachusetts::stock|artillerydispersion m.

HE Shell406 mm HE/HC Mk13

Maximum HE Shell Damage5,700

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell36 %

Initial HE Shell Velocity803 m./s.

HE Shell Weight862 kg.

AP Shell406 mm AP Mk8

Maximum AP Shell Damage13,100

Initial AP Shell Velocity701 m./s.

AP Shell Weight1225 kg.

Secondary Armament #1

127 mm/38 Mk.12 on a Mk.32 mount10 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range7.5 km.

Rate of Fire15 shots/min.

Reload Time4 sec.

HE Shell127 mm HE Mk32

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,800

Initial HE Shell Velocity792 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell5 %

AA Defense

127 mm/38 Mk.12 on a Mk.32 mount10 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second151

. . . Firing Range5.01 km.

20 mm Oerlikon on a Mk.4 mount25 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second90

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

40 mm/56 Bofors on a Mk.2 mount15 х 4 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second238.5

. . . Firing Range3.51 km.

20 mm Oerlikon on a Mk.24 mount5 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30.5

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed27.5 knot

Turning Circle Radius710 m.

Rudder Shift Time15.7 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range16.06 km.

Air Detectability Range9.74 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

14.3

Massachusetts

Battleship | U.S.A. | Tier VIII

Tech Tree Position

stock

 top

General

Purchase price12,750

Hit Points66,300

Main Battery

406 mm/45 Mk.6 in a turret3 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire2 shots/min.

Reload Time30 sec.

Rotation Speed5 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time36 sec.

Firing Range18.27 km.

Maximum DispersionUnable to match configuration for query: artillery:pasb518_massachusetts::top|artillerydispersion m.

HE Shell406 mm HE/HC Mk13

Maximum HE Shell Damage5,700

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell36 %

Initial HE Shell Velocity803 m./s.

HE Shell Weight862 kg.

AP Shell406 mm AP Mk8

Maximum AP Shell Damage13,100

Initial AP Shell Velocity701 m./s.

AP Shell Weight1225 kg.

Secondary Armament #1

127 mm/38 Mk.12 on a Mk.32 mount10 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range7.5 km.

Rate of Fire15 shots/min.

Reload Time4 sec.

HE Shell127 mm HE Mk32

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,800

Initial HE Shell Velocity792 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell5 %

AA Defense

127 mm/38 Mk.12 on a Mk.32 mount10 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second151

. . . Firing Range5.01 km.

20 mm Oerlikon on a Mk.4 mount25 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second90

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

40 mm/56 Bofors on a Mk.2 mount15 х 4 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second238.5

. . . Firing Range3.51 km.

20 mm Oerlikon on a Mk.24 mount5 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30.5

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed27.5 knot

Turning Circle Radius710 m.

Rudder Shift Time15.7 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range16.06 km.

Air Detectability Range9.74 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

VIII

12,750

Massachusetts — American premium Tier VIII battleship.

A South Dakota-class battleship. Designed subject to treaty limitations, the ship had well-balanced characteristics in terms of armament, speed, and armor protection. By the end of World War II, the ship had a very powerful AA defense.

USS Massachusetts is now preserved as a military museum ship in Fall River, Massachusetts. She was first released for sale worldwide on 29 June 2018. The ship is no longer available with the release of Update 0.10.1 in early 2021.

Player Opinion

Performance

Warning: The data presented in the AA Defense sidebar section may be incorrect.
Refer to the in-game Port screens for more useful data.

Massachusetts is the second South Dakota-class battleship to come to World of Warships, and — despite appearances — plays very differently than her sister Alabama in several ways. The primary differences are found in her main and secondary batteries.

Massachusetts’s main battery has a lower sigma value and worse dispersion than that of her sister, and will generally produce slightly worse shot groupings than Alabama. The difference is slight, but noticeable. It will lead to some accuracy issues at long range, and encourages captains to close the range against enemy ships in order to improve her hit percentage; this style of play is further reinforced by her reduced main battery range compared to Alabama as well.

Where Massachusetts really departs from Alabama is in her secondary battery; indeed, Massachusetts is unique among American battleships with the power of her secondaries. Her secondaries fire faster, farther, and are far more accurate than those found on any other American battlewagon. Sporting a four second reload, a max range of 11.3km, and incredible accuracy with the right buffs — such as Mike Yankee Soxisix flag (), Secondary Battery Modification 1 , and the captain skill Manual Fire Control for Secondary Armament — Massachusetts are a terror to all enemy units that are spotted within range. Enemy destroyers in particular must be wary; these secondaries will tear them apart in very short order if they are not actively maneuvering while spotted under Massachusetts’s guns.

Massachusetts brings with her the typically powerful anti-aircraft battery that veterans of high tier American battleships are accustomed to. She packs in a few more 40mm Bofors mounts than Alabama, and her dual purpose 127mm guns remain as potent as ever. Just like Alabama, Massachusetts has a small turning circle allowing some tight turns for dodging torpedoes and shells.

All told, Massachusetts is an American battleship built for mid- and close range brawling, but may struggle at long range due to her dispersion and slow shell velocity (similar to North Carolina), but played well, and thanks to those secondaries, she can be a monster in players hands.

Pros:

• Quick main battery traverse speed
• Powerful main battery AP shells, with high damage and penetration
• Fast-firing secondaries with good range and accuracy
• Excellent AA defenses
• Excellent torpedo protection
• Good turn radius for a battleship, Massachusetts handles better than techtree counterpart North Carolina
• Improved Repair Party  consumable has a fast cooldown

Cons:

• Poor main battery range and accuracy
• Most of Massachusetts's AA are open mounts, and can be easily destroyed by enemy HE fire
• Exceptionally poor AP shell velocity
• Secondaries have fragile mounts, and rely mostly on setting fires rather than dealing raw damage
• Extensively covered in 32mm plating, vulnerable to HE spam
• Very vulnerable to citadel damage when showing a full broadside
• Unavailable for direct purchase

Research

As a premium ship, Massachusetts has no module upgrades to research.

Optimal Configuration

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Massachusetts are as follows:

• Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
• Slot 2: Damage Control System Modification 1 
• Slot 3: Secondary Battery Modification 1
• Slot 4: Damage Control System Modification 2
• Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1 

Commander Skills

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack			Defense
1	Gun Feeder -40% time to switch shell type. ★	Demolition Expert +1% chance of main and secondary HE shells causing a fire +15% to the fragmentation damage area of HE ordnance when firing at submarines. ★★	Consumables Specialist −7.5% cooldown time of all Consumables except:  Damage Control Party ,  Repair Party .	Emergency Repair Specialist -3% cooldown time of Damage Control Party  and Repair Party .	Incoming Fire Alert Receive a warning about a salvo fired at your ship from more than 4.5 km.	Preventive Maintenance −30% chance of main armament, engines, steering becoming incapacitated +15% to HP of secondary and AA guns. ★★
2	Grease the Gears +20% main turret traverse speed. ★★	Inertial Fuse for HE Shells +25% armor penetration of HE shells. Base fire chance reduced by half. ★	Brisk So long as the ship remains undetected: +10% ship speed.	Vigilance +25% detection range of enemy torpedoes +7% damage reduction of Torpedo Protection System. . ★★	Priority Target The detection indicator will show the number of enemies targeting you with main battery.	AAA & ASW Expert +15% continuous AAA and flak damage . +10% damage inflicted by depth charges. While AAA is active: −40% ship consumables reload time..
3	Super-Heavy AP Shells +7.5% AP shell damage −10% fire and flood damage received +25% fire and flood duration.	Long-Range Secondary Battery Shells +20% secondary battery firing range. ★★★	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% reload time of all armaments per 1% HP lost +0.2% AA continuous damage per 1% HP lost. ★★★	Basics of Survivability -15% repair, fire, and flooding duration. ★	Improved Repair Party Readiness −0.8% reload time of Repair Party each time your ship receives potential damage equal to 100% of the ship's base HP. After receiving 2M HP potential damage: +1 charge of Repair Party ..	Focus Fire Training In an active priority AA sector: •  +1.5% (to 5%) immediate damage. •  +25% continuous damage. •  +1 flak burst per salvo. −10% aircraft preparation time. −15% reload time of Airstrike armament..
4	Furious 1st fire / flood   −10% Main battery reload time 2nd etc. (up to 5), each   −5% Main battery reload time	Manual Secondary Battery Aiming −10% secondary battery reload time. −10% secondary battery dispersion. When firing at a manually selected target: dispersion gradually improves from -25% to -50%. ★★	Close Quarters Combat -10% reload time of main battery if an enemy ship is spotted within secondary range. ★★	Emergency Repair Expert Damage Control Party  and Repair Party : +1 charge (each). +10% action time . ★★★	Concealment Expert -10% detectability range of the ship.	Fire Prevention Expert -10% risk of fire. Three fires maximum. ★★★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful      ★★ - Frequently Useful      ★ - Occasionally Useful     No stars - Not Useful

Consumables

Massachusetts equips the following consumables:

• Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
• Slot 2: Repair Party 
• Slot 3: Spotting Aircraft  or Catapult Fighter 

Camouflage

As a premium ship, Massachusetts comes with Default permanent camouflage and a set of permanent combat bonuses.

Signals

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Charlie Kilo +5% ship HP; +2.5% squadron HP.	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.
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding.	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 .

Gallery

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  Massachusetts launches a catapult scout to help her aim.

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  She shoots...

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  ...She scores!

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  The sibling rivalry runs strong as Massachusetts opens fire on her sister Alabama.

Historical Info

USS Massachusetts, 1942

Construction

Builder: Bethlehem Steel Corporation; Quincy,
   Massachusetts, United States

Laid down: 20 July 1939

Launched: 23 September 1941

Commissioned: 12 May 1942

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Specifications

37,970 tons displacement, standard

44,519 tons displacement, full load

207.26m length

32.96m beam

8.91m draft

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Machinery

Eight (8) Babcock & Wilcox boilers

Four (4) General Electric steam turbines

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Performance

27.5 knots at 130,000 shaft horsepower

15,000 nautical miles at 15 knots

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Armor

Main belt: 310mm, 32mm outer hull plating

Lower belt: 310-25mm

Decks: 152mm armored deck, 38mm weather deck,
   16mm splinter deck

Bulkheads: 287mm

Barbettes and Turrets: 440mm barbette, 457mm face,
   241mm side, 305mm rear, 184mm roof

Conning tower: 406mm side, 184mm top

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Armament

Main

Nine (3x3) 406mm/45

Secondary

Twenty (10x2) 127mm/38

Anti-aircraft

Sixty (15x4) 40mm Bofors cannons

Thirty-five (5x2, 25x1) 20mm Oerlikon cannons

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Aircraft

Total

Three (3) Vought OS2U "Kingfisher"

History

Design

The South Dakota-class battleships were the next evolution in battleship design from the previous North Carolina-class. Still designed in the late 1930s, they remained under the limitations imposed by the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty and the subsequent 1936 London Naval Treaty. Originally conceived to be more additions to the North Carolina-class ships, it was decided to delay their design by a year in order to implement some solutions to the shortcomings discovered on the preceding “fast-battleship” class.

The South Dakotas were the first “fast-battleship” class of the US Navy to implement sloped armor plating to address the issue of high angle oncoming shells from plunging fire, especially from 406mm shells. Due to the design itself being of an advanced phase already when this decision was made, only the main armor belt — located interior of the ship — was able to be angled inwards by 19 degrees, which stretched from the main deck down to the bottom plates. Moreover, the bottom plate armor and other major longitudinal armor sections were thickened in comparison to the North Carolina-class.

As a consequence of the additional armoring to increase the survivability of the South Dakota-class ships, they had to be made shorter to meet the displacement restrictions of 35,000 tons imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty. Subsequently, whey were roughly 14 meters shorter than their predecessors of the North Carolina class. The design requirements for the South Dakotas still required them to maintain the same top speed of 27 knots as the North Carolinas; more powerful propulsion systems were required and some creative design choices were made in order to fit everything into the more compact hull as a result. The machinery compartments were re-organized in order to squeeze in all of the boilers, turbines, and accompanying evaporating and distilling equipment, as opposed to North Carolina’s more dispersed engineering arrangement. Furthermore, the machinery rooms themselves took up to two deck spaces, as the boilers were placed on a level above the rest of the machinery to allow the propeller shafts — connected to their respective turbines — to run their full length, unhampered. One interesting design feature resulted from the changes: the bottom hull ended well before the stern of the ship, and the two outer propeller shafts formed a “skeg”, or an enclosure, around the inner propeller shafts. This had the added benefit of providing additional protection from torpedo damage.

The superstructure of the South Dakota-class was taller and narrower than previous American battleships. Due to the concentration of propulsion machinery in the midsection, the design required only one funnel as opposed to the usual two, saving some deck space. From the onset the South Dakota-class were designated the role of fleet flagships, therefore a flag bridge was placed above the ship's command bridge in the conning tower specifically for this purpose.

USS Massachusetts (BB-59), second-to-last of the South Dakota-class battleships, was laid down at Bethlehem Steel Corporation in Quincy, Massachusetts on 20 July 1939, launched 23 September 1941, and commissioned on 12 May 1942. She was the seventh ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the sixth state.

Service

Immediately after her shakedown cruise in the Caribbean, Massachusetts — lovingly dubbed "Big Mamie" by her crew — set sail for the Atlantic on 24 October 1942, where her formidable first mission would be serving as the flagship for Admiral Henry Hewitt during Operation Torch – the Allied invasion of French North Africa. Just over two weeks since she set sail from the USA, Massachusetts found herself in her first battle against Vichy French forces on 8 November when the Naval Battle of Casablanca begun. Supported by USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37), USS Wichita (CA-45), and four destroyers, Massachusetts came under fire from shore batteries outside Casablanca, and she responded by opening fire on French battleship Jean Bart anchored in Casablanca harbor.

Forced to retreat from mainland France to escape advancing German forces only to fall into hands of Vichy French forces, Jean Bart only had one of her two quadruple 15-inch turrets installed. At a range of 22,000 meters, Massachusetts pounded Jean Bart for an hour and a half, disabling Jean Bart’s only operational turret, and sinking a pair of merchant ships. Massachusetts unleashed her fury upon the Vichy French ships, also sinking a pair of L’Adroit-class destroyers and the Duguay-Trouin class light cruiser Primauguet. She moved on to bombard shore batteries and ammunition dumps, until she was ordered back to the United States on 12 November. She had fired 786 of the 800 16-inch rounds she carried, expending 98% of her ammunition, with several kills and a disabled battleship to her name.

Transiting via the Panama Canal, Massachusetts arrived at New Caledonia to fight in a new theater: the Solomon Islands campaign. Despite the Allied victories at the Coral Sea and Midway, the Solomons were a grueling stalemate that gradually turned towards the favor of the Allies. Massachusetts protected convoy lanes and supported operations from March 1943 onwards, providing cover for aircraft carrier strike groups across the Gilbert Islands. On 8 December 1943, Massachusetts joined a six-battleship strong force that bombarded the island of Nauru, a lynch pin in the Japanese efforts in the Solomons, causing severe damage to the vital shore installations, including a phosphate-production center.

Her next big mission was a daring and aggressive strike on the Japanese stronghold of Truk, in an attack dubbed Operation Hailstone. On 17 February 1944, Massachusetts joined the massive force including 5 fleet carriers and 4 light carriers, alongside six other battleships that fell upon Truk. The Japanese lost two light cruisers, four destroyers, over a dozen transport vessels and hundreds of aircraft, and were dealt a severe blow to their morale. As part of Task Force 38, Massachusetts defended her task force against heavy Japanese air attacks as her allied carriers raided Saipan, Tinian, and Guam. Much of Massachusetts’ duty with Task Force 38 was protecting allied carriers and supporting naval landings, and she kept this up until 1 May 1944, when she was finally able to retire to the mainland United States for a few months of crew leave and some much-needed maintenance.

Her refit complete, Massachusetts sailed from Pearl Harbor at the beginning of August with a fresh coat of paint to re-join the war in the Pacific. Sailing from her new base in the Marshall Islands on 6 October 1944, Massachusetts joined the final great naval battle of World War II: the Battle of Leyte Gulf. In the days before this, "Big Mamie" supported fleet strikes against Okinawa and Taiwan on 10-14 October. When the battle truly begun, Massachusetts provided anti-aircraft cover for Task Group 38.3, while American fleet carriers sunk four Japanese carriers off Cape Engaño. Aside from finding herself fighting Typhoon Cobra — which claimed 3 destroyers and hundreds of sailors from Task Force 38 — Massachusetts’ duties in the final years of the war were almost exclusively guarding carriers that struck Japanese-held islands across the Pacific, edging ever closer to the Japanese mainland itself.

On 1 July 1945, Massachusetts received her final mission: to join the Third Fleet’s last offensive against Japan. On 14 July, she joined an American/British/New Zealand force that bombarded Japanese mainland industrial facilities on Honshu around Tokyo. Her last bombardment was on 9 August, where Massachusetts herself fired the last 16-inch shell of World War II.

After the war, Massachusetts sailed to Puget Sound again, and following training operations off the California coast in 1946, she joined the Atlantic Fleet Reserve at Norfolk, Virginia on 27 March 1947. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register come 1 June 1962. Rather than heading to the breakers, however, "Big Mamie" was saved from the scrapyard by the joint effort of veterans and citizens of Massachusetts and was successfully transferred to the USS Massachusetts Memorial Committee on 8 June 1965. She sailed to Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts, where she has remained ever since, barring a visit to a Boston shipyard in 1998-1999 for overhaul. Massachusetts is open today as a museum ship, owner of 11 battle stars, bearing the distinction of having fired the first and last American 16-inch shells of the war, and notable as the mightiest ship amongst the ensemble present and open at Battleship Cove.

Historical Inaccuracies

• Massachusetts is depicted in 1946 condition, when she was still painted in Measure 22 camouflage (Navy Blue lower hull with Haze Gray above that). However, while the ship was still in Supertest, Wargaming replaced it with Measure 32/1D. This dazzle camouflage was designed in 1943 but was never applied to Massachusetts or any other ship of her class.
• Despite the in-game images showing Massachusetts in Measure 22 camouflage, the scheme is not available on the ship, having been removed during Supertest.

Historical Gallery

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  USS Massachusetts (BB-59) under construction at Bethlehem Steel Corporation.

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  Massachusetts being launched on September 23, 1941.

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  Massachusetts being refueled at sea.

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  Massachusetts off the coast of Point Wilson, Washington.

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  Massachusetts off Casablanca, 8 November 1942.

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  A large ship resting on the water under a bridge, smaller boats are visible in the foreground along with a ripple effect on the water.

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  Massachusetts refuels two Fletcher-class destroyers, 1944.

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  Massachusetts shelling Kamaishi, Honshū, Japan on 14 July 1945. Outbound projectiles of a full broadside of her 16" guns are visible in upper left of photo.

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  Massachusetts, starboard stern quarter view.

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  Massachusetts in Battleship Cove in 2012.

Video

References

1. USS Massachusetts (BB-59) - Wikipedia
2. South Dakota-class battleship (1939) - Wikipedia
3. Naval Legends: USS Massachusetts - News - World of Warships
4. Naval Legends: USS Massachusetts - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube
5. USS Massachusetts: South Dakota-Class Battleships. Warships Expedition (EU) - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube
6. USS Massachusetts: South Dakota-Class Battleships. Warships Expedition (NA) - World of Warships Official Channel - YouTube

Ship Change Log

See here for links to Update notes.

• Available for testing by supertesters in the game starting from Update 0.6.12.

Testing Changes

• Sep 19, 2017:
  • Preliminary characteristics.
• April 17, 2018:
  • Secondary battery firing range was increased from 5 to 7.5 km.
  • The Repair Party consumable's cooldown was reduced from 120 to 60 s, and from 80 to 40 s for the premium consumable.
  • The Damage Control Party consumable's action time was increased from 30 to 20 s, and its cooldown was reduced from 180 to 120 s, and from 120 to 80 s for the premium consumable.
  • Sigma was decreased from 1.9 to 1.7.
• May 23, 2018:
  • The characteristics of the Repair Party consumable were adjusted.
    • Action time was reduced from 30 to 20 s.
    • Cooldown was decreased from 180 to 120 s, and from 120 to 80 s for the premium consumable.
  • Secondary battery reload time was decreased from 6 to 4 s.
  • Accuracy of the secondary battery was increased by 40%.
  • Main battery traverse rate was increased from 4 to 5 deg/s.
  • Main battery firing range was decreased from 23.54 to 18.27 km.
• June 7, 2018:
  • A new permanent camouflage was added to Massachusetts by popular demand.

• Update 0.6.13:
  • The survivability of air defense weapons was tested and brought to a single standard. The change affects 40mm guns.
• First appeared on sale in July 2018.
• Update 0.9.7:
  • Minor fixes to geometry and textures.
• Update 0.10.1:
  • Massachusetts was removed from sale in the Armory and the Premium store.
• Update 0.10.11:
  • Fixed model and textures of the ship.
• Update 0.11.3:
  • Minor fixes to geometry and textures of the ship.
• Update 0.11.7:
  • Fixed camera position for the Exterior tab when selecting flags.

Ships of U.S.A.

Battleships