Colorado
{{WoWs_Ship|Promo=
|Anno=
|Performance= The very pinnacle of the American dreadnought and one of the Big Seven, the Colorado is the last ship of this type you will be in within the US battleship line and you might say that she is one very tasking ship. A massive departure of the other two super dreads New York and [[ShipNew Mexico, the Colorado, despite being often jeered by some as "Craporado" due to her agonizing research run and adverse ergonomics to those that are not used to the more punishing handling of this dreadnought, behaves more like a close-in brawler, slowly closing the gap with other battleships with her thick armor as she can NOT unload shells very far unless you install a range upgrade mod. As you do this, be very aware of your surroundings such as torpedoes or bombers of any type because even with her sound torpedo bulge and insane durability for a dreadnought, she is not infallible. If you do get close, however, you will find it easier to deal with cruisers or other battleships as your expected range where you are most effective in smashing other ships is about 14 km instead of relying on your maximum range for it and the armor is here to take a lot of punishment for you to move in and punish them. Colorado is the last in the line of Standard-type dreadnoughts, and her successor, North Carolina, will have a very different play style.
|Pros=
- All-or-nothing armor: she has the same solid 343mm (13.5 inch) thick all-or-nothing armor layout as New Mexico, being easy to angle and providing a large immune zone.
- Good gun characteristics: she has good damage and penetration on guns, as well as a reasonably tight shell grouping.
- Powerful Anti-Aircraft armament: Modernized hull's AA suite will shred mid-tier squadrons, making Colorado an unappealing casual target or flyover.
- Fighter seaplane is available to replace spotting planes to enhance AA defense.
- Decent maneuverability: her tight turning circle will make evading torpedoes easier.
- Equipping the Artillery Plotting Room modification upgrade can reduce the range gap with her Japanese tier counterpart Nagato
|Cons=
- Poor stock configuration and long grind: she has almost no AA, a poor rudder shift, speed, and poor range and gun characteristics when stock, making her grind a very punishing experience
- Poor gun range on the ship: she will still be outranged by her counterpart Nagato even when upgraded, and her gun range is within her surface detection range without camo.
- Very low mobility: she retains the sluggish 21kt speed of her predecessors characteristic of pre-WWII US battleships.
- Low health pool: her HP is worse than Nagato, her fellow standard New Mexico, and even the Tier V Kongo.
- Low number of guns: having four less guns than her predecessor, hitting accurate shots is much more important.
- Poor close-quarters defense: her secondary armament pales in comparison to Nagato.
|Research=
Despite how slow this ship is stock, you should be used to that by the time you get the Colorado. The first Hull upgrade is HIGHLY recommended to be researched first as it not only gives you the standard HP increase, good AA rating, and rudder shift time, but it also gives you WWII era shells. These shells not only do more damage, but the AP ammo seems to have better penetration values as well. After getting the first hull upgrade, the Propulsion upgrade is recommended since even with the upgrade every ship at her tier is faster than her. After than, you have the option of either the fire control or the C hull. The fire control gives her a firing range the same as her spotting distance, but bear in mind this ship is not very accurate at long ranges. The C hull will not only increase your AA to a very respectable amount for tier 7, but also increases the minimum armor on her citadel, which should further increase the effectiveness of armor angling.
As for upgrades, It is recommended that you mount AA guns mod 1, Artillery Plotting Room Modification 1 to increase range if you so wish and is highly recommended if you cannot stand her low range, Damage Control System modification 2 to accelerate repair and extinguishment of fire as you won't always have your Damage Control Party available, and Steering Gears modification 2 to reduce her rudder shift time.
The Colorado class battleships were a group of four battleships built by the United States Navy after World War I. However, only three of the ships were completed: Colorado, Maryland, and West Virginia. The fourth, Washington, was over 75% completed when she was canceled under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922. As such, the Colorado class ships were the last and most powerful battleships built by the US Navy until the North Carolina class entered service on the eve of World War II.
The Colorados were the final group of Standard-type battleships, designed to have similar speed and handling to simplify maneuvers with the line of battle. (The South Dakota class which was to follow would in several ways have been a departure from this practice.) Apart from an upgrade in striking power to eight 16-inch guns, the ships were essentially repeats of the earlier Tennessee class. The Colorados were also the last American capital ships built with four turrets and twin-mounted guns. The change to larger guns was prompted by the Japanese Nagato-class battleships, which also mounted eight 16-inch guns.
All three ships had extensive careers during World War II. Maryland and West Virginia were both present during the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. Maryland escaped relatively unscathed; West Virginia was sunk in the shallow waters of the harbor but subsequently raised and repaired. All three ships served as artillery support ships during amphibious operations. Maryland and West Virginia were present at the last surface action between battleships, the Battle of Surigao Strait during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944. The three ships, put into the reserve fleet after the end of the war, were scrapped by the late 1950s.
Historical Accuracy
Two of the Colorado's historical secondary armaments, notably the M2 Browning and 5"/38 caliber gun twin turret, are missing. The machine gun was equipped on all three Colorado-class battleships in 1941, while the twin turret was mounted on Colorado's sister ship, the USS West Virginia, during its 1942 modernization.
- The Colorado's B and C hulls represent overhauls to the ship during World War 2. Its spotting aircraft & catapult fighter, however, are still in pre-war markings.
- The Colorado's propulsion was rated at 28,900 hp from the very beginning. There was no 27,000 hp downgrade.
Colorado steaming off New York City, c. 1932
Colorado (B) hull, 1943
Hull of Maryland under construction c. 1917
USS Maryland in March 1944
USS West Virginia in her final configuration, June 1944. Note 5"/38 twin turrets and number of AA guns; this configuration does not exist on the in-game Colorado
Illustration of the Colorado class design, created in 1917
West Virginia in October 1935 off Hawaii
Maryland on 9 February 1942, little changed from her pre-war configuration
USS Colorado
USS Maryland
USS Washington
USS West Virginia
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