Scharnhorst B

13.11

Scharnhorst B

Battleship | Germany | Tier VII

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points56,300

Main Battery

283 mm/54.5 SK C/34 on a Drh LC/34 mount3 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire3 shots/min.

Reload Time20 sec.

Rotation Speed7.2 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time25 sec.

Firing Range19.87 km.

Maximum Dispersion258 m.

HE Shell283 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5 Kz.

Maximum HE Shell Damage3,200

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell20 %

Initial HE Shell Velocity890 m./s.

HE Shell Weight315 kg.

AP Shell283 mm P.Spr.Gr. L/4.4

Maximum AP Shell Damage7,600

Initial AP Shell Velocity890 m./s.

AP Shell Weight330 kg.

Secondary Armament #1

105 mm/65 SK C/33 on a Dop. L. C/31 mount7 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire17.91 shots/min.

Reload Time3.35 sec.

HE Shell105 mm Spr.Gr. Kz.

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,200

Initial HE Shell Velocity900 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell5 %

Secondary Armament #2

150 mm/55 SK C/28 on a Dop. L. C/34 mount4 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire8 shots/min.

Reload Time7.5 sec.

HE Shell150 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,700

Initial HE Shell Velocity875 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell8 %

Secondary Armament #3

150 mm/55 SK C/28 on an MPL/35 mount4 х 1 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire8 shots/min.

Reload Time7.5 sec.

HE Shell150 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,700

Initial HE Shell Velocity875 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell8 %

Torpedo Tubes

533 mm Drilling2 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire0.88 shots/min.

Reload Time68 sec.

Rotation Speed25 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time7.2 sec.

TorpedoG7a T1

Maximum Damage13,700

Torpedo Speed64 knot

Torpedo Range6 km.

AA Defense

105 mm/65 SK C/33 on a Dop. L. C/31 mount7 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second116.2

. . . Firing Range4.5 km.

20 mm/65 C/38 on a Flak 35 Vierling L/38 mount5 х 4 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

37 mm/83 SK C/30 on a Dopp LC/30 mount8 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second20.8

. . . Firing Range3.51 km.

20 mm/65 C/38 on an L/30 single mount10 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed30 knot

Turning Circle Radius800 m.

Rudder Shift Time14.5 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range15.19 km.

Air Detectability Range9.94 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

13.11

Scharnhorst B

Battleship | Germany | Tier VII

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points56,300

Main Battery

283 mm/54.5 SK C/34 on a Drh LC/34 mount3 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire3 shots/min.

Reload Time20 sec.

Rotation Speed7.2 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time25 sec.

Firing Range19.87 km.

Maximum Dispersion258 m.

HE Shell283 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5 Kz.

Maximum HE Shell Damage3,200

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell20 %

Initial HE Shell Velocity890 m./s.

HE Shell Weight315 kg.

AP Shell283 mm P.Spr.Gr. L/4.4

Maximum AP Shell Damage7,600

Initial AP Shell Velocity890 m./s.

AP Shell Weight330 kg.

Secondary Armament #1

105 mm/65 SK C/33 on a Dop. L. C/31 mount7 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire17.91 shots/min.

Reload Time3.35 sec.

HE Shell105 mm Spr.Gr. Kz.

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,200

Initial HE Shell Velocity900 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell5 %

Secondary Armament #2

150 mm/55 SK C/28 on a Dop. L. C/34 mount4 х 2 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire8 shots/min.

Reload Time7.5 sec.

HE Shell150 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,700

Initial HE Shell Velocity875 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell8 %

Secondary Armament #3

150 mm/55 SK C/28 on an MPL/35 mount4 х 1 pcs.

Firing Range6.3 km.

Rate of Fire8 shots/min.

Reload Time7.5 sec.

HE Shell150 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.5

Maximum HE Shell Damage1,700

Initial HE Shell Velocity875 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell8 %

Torpedo Tubes

533 mm Drilling2 х 3 pcs.

Rate of Fire0.88 shots/min.

Reload Time68 sec.

Rotation Speed25 deg./sec.

180 Degree Turn Time7.2 sec.

TorpedoG7a T1

Maximum Damage13,700

Torpedo Speed64 knot

Torpedo Range6 km.

AA Defense

105 mm/65 SK C/33 on a Dop. L. C/31 mount7 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second116.2

. . . Firing Range4.5 km.

20 mm/65 C/38 on a Flak 35 Vierling L/38 mount5 х 4 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

37 mm/83 SK C/30 on a Dopp LC/30 mount8 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second20.8

. . . Firing Range3.51 km.

20 mm/65 C/38 on an L/30 single mount10 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second30

. . . Firing Range2.01 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed30 knot

Turning Circle Radius800 m.

Rudder Shift Time14.5 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range15.19 km.

Air Detectability Range9.94 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

VII

Special

Scharnhorst B — German special premium Tier VII battleship.

A German battleship designed for raider operations and fighting cruisers, including battlecruisers. When Scharnhorst B was built, she was faster than any ship of her type. The rather small caliber of her main battery guns was her main drawback, but that was offset by her higher rate of fire.

Scharnhorst B first went on sale on 29 November 2019 via Black Friday containers.

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 ()
283 mm/54.5 SK C/34 on a Drh LC/34 mount	3	25	258	3,200	20	7,600		0	0

	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 ()
Scharnhorst B.	56,300	16	360	3	7/4/4	10/5/8/7	2			0	0

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	Torpedo Tubes Reload Time (sec)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Damage (HP)	Torpedo Speed (knot)	Torpedo Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
G7a T1	0.9	68	7.2	13,700	64	6		0	0

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
FKS Typ 7 Mod. 1		0		0	0

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 160,000 hp	30		0	0

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4

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.

Scharnhorst B is in all respects save her paint scheme identical to Scharnhorst.

A rather peculiar capital ship, Scharnhorst B in World of Warships is officially a battleship, but frequently plays more like a battlecruiser. Her characteristics are very cruiser-like: top speed above 30 knots with a decent rudder shift time, plus a smaller-caliber main battery than other battleships that trades alpha damage and penetration for good rate of fire and muzzle velocity. These disparities set her clearly apart from from her Tier VII counterparts and sister-ship Gneisenau.

Her unique traits present her with a plethora of roles to play. Scharnhorst B performs very well as a cruiser hunter or destroyer killer; her undersized shells will not over-penetrate as often, allowing for increased damage output per salvo against light-skinned targets. She is also adept at engaging distracted or over-extended battleships. If forced to go toe-to-toe with another battleship, she must use her superior speed to control the engagement, unique turtle-back armor style to mitigate damage, and employ her torpedoes for punishing strikes. While her frontal and citadel armor are good, her side armor is weak enough to take devastating damage from enemy salvos if presented broadside. Scharnhorst B is most comfortable at mid-to-short distance engagements, where she can use her speed to stay at range and dodge oncoming shells, or close the gap to utilize her solid secondary armament suite and deck torpedo launchers to surprise her foes — further enhanced by the correct commander skills.

Pros:

• Unrivaled reload on a battleship; practically the fastest in the game at 20 seconds.
• Very good turret traverse, puts several cruisers and certain destroyers to shame.
• Her Armor piercing shells have a high chance of penetrating destroyers rather than over-penetrating. Especially true when the target is angled bow or stern to her.
• Strong secondaries and torpedoes for close in brawling.
• High speed and good maneuverability feel more like a cruiser than a battleship.
• Very durable; her turtleback armor scheme means she is very hard to citadel when close.
• Exceptionally versatile. Can be played as a battlecruiser, a typical battleship, or a flanker, depending on the map, team composition, and upgrade/commander skill configuration.
• Good anti-aircraft suite; when fully built for anti-air duties, she is deadly to enemy planes.
• Underestimating her guns can prove fatal to enemy ships.
• Easily can counter most destroyers due to fast reload and quick rudder shift time.

Cons:

• Lower alpha strike potential and penetration compared to her larger-gunned peers.
• Low gun caliber prevents overmatching in most cases, leading to more bounces as well as non-penetrations than most battleships.
• Large turning radius.
• Turrets and torpedo tubes are incapacitated very often, especially when brawling.
• Bow armor can be overmatched by battleships she will encounter when up-tiered into Tier VIII and IX games.
• Armor-piercing shells lose a lot of penetration value at long range, even against equal-tiered targets.

Research

As a premium ship, Scharnhorst B doesn't have any upgrades to research.

Optimal Configuration

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Scharnhorst B are as follows:

• Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1 *
• Slot 2: Damage Control System Modification 1 
• Slot 3: AA Guns Modification 1 *
• Slot 4: Damage Control System Modification 2

The module chosen for Upgrade Slot 3 will largely determine how Scharnhorst B will play. Equipping Aiming Systems Modification 1 is fairly common, and helps make both her main and secondary batteries more accurate. Players who take AA Guns Modification 1 are hedging their bets against enemy carriers at the expense of a higher chance of off-target shots. Neither of these choices lock the ship into a particular playstyle, and leave each player plenty of options with regard to maximizing Scharnhorst B’s impact on the battle.

At the other end of the spectrum, highly aggressive players will equip Secondary Battery Modification 1 in this slot; coupled with the Advanced Firing Training skill and a Mike Yankee Soxisix () flag, Scharnhorst B’s secondary battery range pushes out past 7.5km. In this configuration, Scharnhorst B puts out a punishing amount of secondary fire at a very long range; however, getting the most out of such a build requires that she spend significant amounts of time in close-combat with enemy ships. Players opting for this style of build are also encouraged to equip Auxiliary Armaments Modification 1 in Upgrade Slot 1 to help ensure the longevity of their secondary battery guns while under enemy fire.

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

Scharnhorst B can equip the following consumables:

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

Camouflage

As a premium ship, Scharnhorst B 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

• 

  Scharnhorst takes the lead.

• 

  Scharnhorst engages the enemy, leading a battleship and a cruiser.

• 

  Scharnhorst returns fire while angling against two enemy battleships.

• 

  Scharnhorst dodges a cruiser fired torpedo with ease. The cruiser was not so lucky.

• 

  Scharnhorst moves on to its' next target after destroying an enemy Amagi.

• 

  A Mikhail Kutuzov joins the Amagi in Davy Jones's Locker.

• 

  Scharnhorst attacks her next victim after destroying an enemy Colorado.

• 

  Scharnhorst scrambles a catapult fighter in an attempt to fight off enemy aircraft after destroying an enemy Colorado.

• 

  Flag of Scharnhorst. Given to players who purchased a special bundle containing Scharnhorst.

Historical Info

Scharnhorst, 1939

Construction

Builder: Kriegsmarinewerft Wilhemshaven,
   Wilhemshaven, Germany

Laid down: 15th June 1935

Launched: 3rd October 1936

Commissioned: 7th January 1939

---

Specifications

31,552 tons displacement, standard

234.9m Length

30m beam

8.69m draft

---

Machinery

Twelve Wagner high-pressure oil-fired boilers

Three Brown, Boveri & Co geared steam turbines

6,108 tons of oil

---

Performance

31 knots at 160,050 shaft horsepower

7,100nm at 19 knots

---

Armor

Main Belt: 320mm-70mm

Torpedo Bulkhead: 32mm

Decks: 95mm-50mm

Conning Tower: 350mm

Turrets: 360mm-180mm

Barbettes: 350mm-200mm

Fore and Aft Plating: 25mm

---

Armament

Main

Nine (3x3) 28.3cm/54.5 SK C/34 guns

Secondary

Twelve (4x2, 4x1) 15cm/55 SK C/28 guns

Fourteen (7x2) 10.5cm/65 SK C/33 dual-purpose guns

Anti-aircraft

Sixteen (8x2) 37mm SK C/30 AA guns

Fourteen (2x4, 6x1) 20mm SK C/30 or C/38 AA guns

Aircraft Facilities

3 Arado Ar 196A floatplanes

1 aircraft catapult

---

Complement

56 officers, 1,613 sailors

Scharnhorst B, 1943

Specifications

32,358 tons displacement, standard

234.9m Length

30m beam

9.9m draft

---

Armament

Main

Nine (3x3) 28.3cm/54.5 SK C/34 guns

Secondary

Twelve (4x2, 4x1) 15cm/55 SK C/28 guns

Fourteen (7x2) 10.5cm/65 SK C/33 dual-purpose guns

Anti-aircraft

Sixteen (8x2) 37mm SK C/30 AA guns

Thirty-Eight (7x4, 10x1) 20mm SK C/30 or C/38 AA guns

Torpedoes

Six (2x3) 53.3cm G7a T1 torpedoes

Aircraft Facilities

3 Arado Ar 196A floatplanes

1 aircraft catapult

Scharnhorst, circa 1939.

History

Design

With the commissioning of the last Deutschland-class vessel in 1936, the Kriegsmarine found itself in possession of warships that could outrun almost every ship that outgunned them, while being able to outgun almost every ship that could outrun them. The few exceptions to this were the British battlecruisers HMS Renown, HMS Repulse, and HMS Hood, and the Japanese battleships of the Kongo class. The entry of Deutschland and her sister ships into service led the French begin designing a new class of battlecruisers — the Dunkerque class — which would be larger, stronger, and faster.

Having learned the intended operational specifications of Dunkerque and her sisters, German designers began development on improved versions of the Deutschland-class, known as Panzerschiff D and Panzerschiff E. Shortly after, however, the French laid down Strasbourg, which was a more heavily-armored Dunkerque and would again outclass the nascent German designs. The Kriegsmarine responded by designing an even more powerful ship, this time with a third turret — to help overcome the difference in firepower between the two classes — a tougher armor scheme, and a stronger propulsion to allow high speeds.

This step was — strictly speaking — not entirely legal. The Treaty of Versailles forbade Germany from possessing any warship in excess of 10,000 tons displacement. With the new class being designed for a displacement in excess of 30,000 tons, they were in clear violation of their treaty obligations. Subsequently, Hitler reached out to Great Britain and initiated negotiations of a new Anglo-German Naval Treaty, which partially legitimized the construction of the new ships. Whether the treaty fully covered the legitimacy of the new ships remains topic of discussion even today.

The armament of these ships consisted of three triple turrets with 283mm guns, the same caliber as those found on the Deutschland class. However, these guns were modified to increase their performance: the barrel was lengthened, and the weight of the shell increased. Additionally, the reloading and hoist system saw an improvement to allow a faster rate of fire, with reloads of 17 seconds being achieved during trials. Despite these improvements, German command knew that the 283mm guns were not competitive against larger surface units and planned early on to replace these guns with more powerful 380m twin turrets (the same as would later be mounted on the Bismarck class). One of the reasons to not install the turrets from the get-go was to not provoke the ire of their British neighbors, as negotiations with them were ongoing.

The secondary armament was a mixed load out of twelve 150mm guns, mounted in four twin and four single mountings, and a dual purpose battery of seven twin 105mm guns. In 1942 — following the usage of these ships as merchant raiders — both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau received two triple torpedo launchers that had been removed from light cruisers Nürnberg and Leipzig. The mid-range anti aircraft armament consisted of eight twin 37mm Flakzwilling 30, which were designed as a weapon against medium bombers; against mono planes, however, these guns would have limited effectiveness. Short range AA was provided by a steadily increasing number of 20mm guns in both single and quad mountings.

The propulsion was upgraded from the Deutschlands. Unlike the diesel propulsion of their immediate predecessors, the Scharnhorst class went back to traditional steam propulsion, able to crank out 125,000 shaft horsepower across three shafts; output could be pushed up to over 160,000 in times of great need. This gave the Scharnhorst class a design speed of 31 knots, with the highest noted speed being above 33 knots. A stern catapult would allow them to operate seaplanes for the purposes of scouting.

The protection of the Scharnhorst class was drastically improved. The main armor belt was 320mm thick, and behind it followed a 105-110mm strong turtleback, which would deflect shells away from the vitals at short combat ranges. The horizontal protection consisted of a 50mm strong main deck, and the vital areas had an additional 80-95mm strong armored deck.

During their service these ships saw several modifications. The most important ones were the addition of an Atlantic bow in 1939 to improve the seaworthiness, the removal of the optical rangefinders of the A-turret in 1941 due to the lenses being constantly coated with water, the aforementioned addition of triple-tube torpedo launchers in 1942, and the continual addition of radar and sensory equipment for the purpose of detecting and engaging opposing vessels.

Service

Scharnhorst officially completed trials in July 1939 and all modifications were completed near the end of August 1939. She began World War II by returning to Kiel where she received repairs for blast damage sustained during training. On 21 November 1939, both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau were ordered to sea in the Arctic. During this patrol, they encountered and sank the armed merchant cruiser HMS Rawalpindi, returning to Germany for maintenance in January 1940.

Having completed a second, failed sortie into the North Sea, the pair returned to port in time to participate in the invasion of Norway. Sailing in April, they, along with ten destroyers, were to cover the invasion of Narvik. Encountering HMS Renown on 9 April, Gneisenau came off the worse in an inconclusive engagement, with Scharnhorst sustaining significant environmental damage from the heavy seas.

Returning to port and making good all damage, both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau again sailed in support of German operations in Norway in June. On 8 June 1940, they encountered aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and her escorts, destroyers HMS Ardent and HMS Acasta. They sank Glorious, but Scharnhorst was torpedoed by Acasta and was forced to make for Trondheim. Scharnhorst eventually returned to Germany in June, but it would be the end of the year before she was back in action.

In late December 1940, both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sailed as part of Operation Berlin in the Atlantic. Forced back to port by bad weather and mechanical failures, both ships returned within days, but sortied again on 22 January 1941. This time they managed to break into the Atlantic, and proceeded to sink twenty-two ships, returning to Brest in occupied France in March 1941. Here they became favorite targets of the Royal Air Force, with both ships being severely damaged and spending much of the year under repair and refit. It was here where both ships were refit with torpedo banks that had been landed by cruisers Leipzig and Nürnberg.

Having been joined in the meantime by cruiser Prinz Eugen on 11 February 1942, both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau left Brest for Operation Cerberus (which famously became known as the "Channel Dash"). While the force managed to evade British attacks, both Gneisenau and Scharnhorst struck mines, Scharnhorst twice. All ships reached Kiel on 13 February. Scharnhorst spent several months under repair.

It was not until January 1943 when Scharnhorst was finally returned to action, and she was sent to the Arctic. With the increasing presence of Allied air and sea power, Scharnhorst failed to make port in Narvik until March, her earlier attempts having been abortive. Moving to Altafjord, she remained at anchor — with the exception of a single sortie with Tirpitz — until December 1943.

Her final voyage (which is now referred to as the Battle of the North Cape) began on Christmas Day, 1943. Ordered to intercept two Russia-bound convoys, she sortied with five destroyers under the command of Konteradmiral Erich Bey. Having intercepted one of the convoys on 26 December, Scharnhorst, which had separated from her destroyer screen, was in turn intercepted by the convoy screen, which contained battleship HMS Duke of York, heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk, light cruisers HMS Belfast, HMS Jamaica, and HMS Sheffield, and eight destroyers. Engaged, Scharnhorst fought against numerically superior forces blind, as her FuMO 27 radar was disabled early on due to shellfire from Norfolk. Eventually, Scharnhorst was damaged by gunfire, then torpedoed, finally sinking with heavy loss of life.

Historical Inaccuracies

• Scharnhorst’s camouflage represents her appearance when she was sunk in the Battle of the North Cape in December 1943. She is still wearing her coat of arms which was removed in September 1939.
• Scharnhorst’s camouflage when she took part in Operation Zitronella in September 1943 is missing.
• Scharnhorst’s paint scheme during Operation Cerberus in February 1942 is also missing.

Historical Gallery

• 

  The wappen (coat of arms) of Scharnhorst.

• 

  Launching ceremony of Scharnhorst, 3 October 1936.

• 

  Scharnhorst underway, date and location unknown.

• 

  Scharnhorst, circa 1939.

• 

  Scharnhorst in port during the winter of 1939–1940.

• 

  Scharnhorst in Kiel during the winter of 1939-1940.

• 

  An icy view of Scharnhorst's forward battery, 1939-1940.

• 

  Scharnhorst in port.

• 

  Scharnhorst firing against HMS Glorious.

• 

  Scharnhorst at sea.

• 

  Gneisenau (fore) and Scharnhorst (distance) as seen from Prinz Eugen during Operation Cerberus, February 1942.

• 

  Second view of Gneisenau (fore) and Scharnhorst (distance) from Prinz Eugen during Operation Cerberus, February 1942.

• 

  Aerial reconnaissance photo of Scharnhorst in Kiel after the Channel Dash, 1942.

• 

  Scharnhorst in Altafjord, Norway, 1943.

• 

  Survivors from Scharnhorst disembarking in Scapa Flow.

• 

  Memorial in Wilhelmshaven, Germany for Scharnhorst's crew.

Video

References

1. German battleship Scharnhorst - Wikipedia
2. Scharnhorst-class battleship - Wikipedia

Ship Change Log

See here for links to Update notes.

• Available for testing by supertesters in the game starting from Update 0.8.10.
• Available for purchase in the Premium Store during the Black Friday sale from November 29 to December 6, 2019. Could also drop from Black Friday containers.
• Update 0.8.11:
  • The main battery dispersion ellipse was adjusted to that ​​of American and British battleships.
• Update 0.9.0:
  • Fixed camera errors during the game.
• Update 0.9.2:
  • Penetration of 105 mm secondary battery HE shells increased from 18 to 26 mm.
• Update 0.9.5:
  • Small changes to geometry and textures.
• Update 0.10.0:
  • Increased accuracy of secondary battery guns
  • The firing range of the secondary battery was increased to 6.3 km.
• Update 0.11.1:
  • Acceleration slightly decreased while engine is damaged.

Ships of Germany

Battleships