Großer Kurfürst
406 mm/52 Drh C/34 on a Drh LC/34 mount4 х 3 pcs. |
Rate of Fire2.07 shots/min. |
Reload Time29 sec. |
Rotation Speed4.5 deg./sec. |
180 Degree Turn Time40 sec. |
Firing Range20.61 km. |
Maximum Dispersion266 m. |
HE Shell406 mm Spr.Gr. L/4.4 Kz. |
Maximum HE Shell Damage4,800 |
Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell38 % |
Initial HE Shell Velocity810 m./s. |
HE Shell Weight1030 kg. |
AP Shell406 mm P.Spr.Gr. L/4.4 |
Maximum AP Shell Damage12,700 |
Initial AP Shell Velocity810 m./s. |
AP Shell Weight1030 kg. |
128 mm/61 KM40 in a turret10 х 2 pcs. |
Firing Range8.3 km. |
Rate of Fire15 shots/min. |
Reload Time4 sec. |
HE Shell128 mm Spr.Gr. Kz. |
Maximum HE Shell Damage1,500 |
Initial HE Shell Velocity900 m./s. |
Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell5 % |
150 mm/55 SK C/28 on a Dop. L. C/34 mount4 х 2 pcs. |
Firing Range8.3 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 % |
128 mm/61 KM40 in a turret10 х 2 pcs. |
. . . Average Damage per Second124 |
. . . Firing Range5.19 km. |
20 mm/65 C/38 on a Flak 35 Vierling L/38 mount4 х 4 pcs. |
. . . Average Damage per Second24 |
. . . Firing Range2.01 km. |
55 mm/77 Gerät 58 on a twin mount8 х 2 pcs. |
. . . Average Damage per Second195.2 |
. . . Firing Range3.99 km. |
20 mm/65 C/38 on a Flak 35 Vierling L/38 mount6 х 4 pcs. |
. . . Average Damage per Second38.4 |
. . . Firing Range2.01 km. |
Maximum Speed30 knot |
Turning Circle Radius1 050 m. |
Rudder Shift Time19.4 sec. |
Surface Detectability Range17.63 km. |
Air Detectability Range14.93 km. |
Grosser Kurfürst — German special premium Tier X battleship.
One of the last stages of a battleship design for the German Navy. The ship was fitted with triple main turrets designed at the outbreak of World War II. The project was developed based on combat experience and featured powerful torpedo protection, enhanced horizontal armor and more advanced AA guns.
Modules
Compatible Upgrades
Slot 1 |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Slot 2 |
|||||
Slot 3 |
|||||
Slot 4 |
|||||
Slot 5 |
|||||
Slot 6 |
Player Opinion
Performance
Sharing the name with one of König’s sister ships, Grosser Kurfürst (translation: "Great Elector", from the title of Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg) sits atop the German battleship line at Tier X. She lived up to her name when released, breaking the then long-standing stalemate of Yamato and Montana by simply entering into the fray. Subtlety is not Grosser Kurfürst’s forte because she is detected from quite a fair distance, with the largest detection radius of all Tier X battleships.
Due to her size she possesses an effective array of secondaries along with two pairs of guns — the same caliber as her predecessor Friedrich der Große — but with triple mounts with the same AB-XY configuration. Even Montana, which shares the same triple mount turret style and layout, will respect her for her heavy broadside, while the responsive turret traverse — among the quickest turret traverse speeds of Tier X battleships — can be made even faster with upgrades. Even more, she can surpass the American battleship through barrel diameter, with her last gun upgrade being 420mm barrels still mounted in four triple turrets while still retaining the excellent traverse speed. In addition, her bustling secondary batteries ensure that any enemy getting close enough for the guns to unload will be constantly whittled down, dealing heavy damage over time or outright destroying low health ships that get too close.
Her AA is fairly typical of other German battleships, with an adequate long range punch that sadly does not follow through as planes come closer to the ship itself. Planes that make it past the long range armament will have no trouble hitting her due to her large size and abysmal turning circle. Her armor is also typical of German battleship design, with a turtle-back armor scheme that will make citadeling her at close range near impossible. Her deck armor is also quite substantial at 50mm along the center meaning that long range plunging fire from low caliber guns will have difficulty penetrating her. With her large hit point pool — the largest in the game — she will be able to weather a large amount of armor piercing rounds and keep on fighting. As per standard for German battleships starting from Bismarck, Grosser Kurfürst is equipped with the Hydroacoustic Search consumable to help detect incoming threats such as torpedoes and destroyers attempting to get close or vessels hiding in smoke screens.
However, despite her impressive offensive and defensive assets, much of it is a double edged sword, helping and harming depending on the situation. Both of her guns are rather inaccurate at long range, becoming deadly only once they pass the mid range for battleships of ~11km. Her 406mm guns have a better reload rate than those found on Montana, but lack Montana’s super-heavy AP shells which hampers her penetration at range while also reducing her damage per shell. Her 420mm guns are not large enough to overmatch the 32mm bow armor most battleships have at Tier X , and while she can match Montana damage per shell with the 420s, they have a longer reload time than the 406s (32 seconds versus 29 seconds, respectively). Additionally, her armor is not unbreakable as it may seem. At long ranges her deck armor is still not sufficient to stop plunging fire from other battleships from penetrating, meaning her citadel is relatively easy to penetrate at a considerable distance. Also the armor belt is actually among the thinnest at Tier X, topping out at 380mm. While she will almost never take citadel damage, her massive size and armor belt mean she will take higher-than-average normal regular penetration damage; the side benefit to this is that regular penetration damage heals back more than citadel damage when using Repair Party . At close range, the trade off is well worth it when Grosser Kurfürst takes a 10k-30k salvo while other battleships are destroyed in a single salvo right into their citadels.
Finally, her size also betrays her as she is remarkably easy to hit and has the largest turn radius out of all Tier X battleships at over a kilometer. While her rudder shift time is fairly quick, she is so long that she takes a while to actually begin responding to turns. Even with Hydroacoustic Search active, captains should expect to sustain heavy damage when torpedoes are inevitably being sent at her if she is not already responding. Fire and flooding are also a concern, since they deal damage based on a percentage of maximum hit points, causing her massive health pool to work against her when volleys of enemy high explosive shells start fires and torpedoes cause flooding.
Grosser Kurfürst captains should expect to sustain heavy damage from all sources as she is large and easily visible from range, but she will give back better than she gets if allowed to close the range. Play to her strengths: she is not a sniping battleship, and belongs up close and personal where her peers have difficulty countering her armor scheme, large secondary battery, and rapid traverse of her guns.Pros:
- Like Montana, she possesses a heavy broadside than is capable of destroying ships in one volley.
- Fast at 30 knots.
- Extremely good turret traverse of 40 seconds before captain skills or upgrades.
- Very large secondary battery with range starting at 7.5km.
- Bow is heavily sloped with thick plating, only a lucky Yamato shell can penetrate it.
- Second largest health pool in the game, second only to Kremlin.
- Has access to German Hydroacoustic Search .
- Extremely durable; can endure severe damage to either close the gap or to get away to heal.
- Play style is similar to dreadnoughts; the closer she gets, the more dangerous she becomes.
- Citadel is turtle-backed and is also located under the waterline, making it extremely hard to hit at close and medium range.
- Very good shell velocity.
Cons:
- Very tempting target due to her being the biggest ship in the game; any decently accurate strike such as dive bombers or cruisers can reliably hit her
- Anti-aircraft suite is decent at long range, but mid- and short-range AA bubbles are weak and leave her vulnerable to enemy strike planes.
- AA guns are easily destroyed under sustained fire.
- Lowest range out of her peers at 20.61km.
- 420mm guns have a reload of 32 seconds, it is tolerable. But that extra 3 seconds could be costly.
- Decent rudder shift is marred by poor turning circle and long response time.
- Bow and stern deck armor is only 32mm, making it vulnerable to overmatch hits from Yamato and Musashi.
- German turtleback armor is vulnerable to plunging fire, making her extremely weak against a distant Yamato
- Huge superstructure allows for massive HE damage and is easily lit on fire.
- Turrets are poorly sloped so can be disabled by large caliber shells at close range.
Research
Availability of researchable upgrades for Grosser Kurfürst is as follows:
- Main Battery: Grosser Kurfürst captains are offered an intriguing choice of main battery guns: her stock 406mm barrels that reload in 29 seconds, or these 420mm ones that reload three seconds slower but have more damage per shell. The choice of which guns to mount is largely captain's preference; those looking to punish cruiser players more quickly will likely prefer the 406s, while those seeking the additional damage against enemy battleships may opt for the 420s.
Optimal Configuration
Upgrades
The recommended upgrades for Grosser Kurfürst are as follows:
- Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
- Slot 2: Damage Control System Modification 1
- Slot 3: Aiming Systems Modification 1 *
- Slot 4: Damage Control System Modification 2
- Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1 *
- Slot 6: Main Battery Modification 3 *
Aiming Systems Modification 1 or Secondary Battery Modification 1 () are both extremely good choices in Upgrade Slot 3 , depending on whether captains build for secondaries or not. For Upgrade Slot 5, Concealment System Modification 1 reduces her detection range. With appropriate camouflage, she can choose when to engage the enemy or give a surprise shot to unnoticed enemy. Main Battery Modification 3 is the top choice for Upgrade Slot 6; the -20% loading time for secondary armament offered by Secondary Battery Modification 3 () is of little benefit, unless using a proper secondary build, and AA Guns Modification 2 () is only recommended for captains that intend to division with a friendly aircraft carrier (thus guaranteeing that they are paired up against an enemy carrier).
Another choice available to players is the unique Großer Kurfürst upgrade Improved Ammunition Hoists () from the Don't Come Close personal combat mission. This will give the captain a -15% to both main and secondary armament reload time, at the cost of -7% main turrets traverse speed and -8% main battery maximum firing range. It is advisable to use the Expert Marksman commander skill and the Spotting Aircraft consumable to counteract the negatives.
Commander Skills
Großer Kurfürst is often configured either for secondary power, or in a survival build.
Secondary Battery Build: Captains who value their secondaries as an important source of damage should invest in Basic Firing Training, Adrenaline Rush, Manuel Fire Control for Secondary Armament, Advanced Firing Training and Inertia Fuse for HE Shells. This build will leave her commander with two Level 1 skills. It is recommended to use these for Preventative Maintenance, which will also protect her secondaries, and Priority Target. Manual Control for Secondary Armament is a strong skill in this build, but it only allows the ship's secondaries to fire at a single target at a time. Some captains will prefer this skill; others will not. Due to how overmatch mechanics work, Inertia Fuse for HE Shells helps her 128mm secondaries with the overmatch of most ships, including T10 BBs, who have a minimum of 32mm deck and plate armor, allowing her secondaries to actually damage to those armor parts. (With IFHE, 128mm can overmatch 41mm of armor and below and do damage. 48mm and below for the 150mm.)
Recommended Commander Skills | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cost (points) |
Endurance | Attack | Support | Versatility | ||||
1 |
★★★ |
★★ |
★ |
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
★ |
★★ |
★★★ |
|
|
|
★★★ |
|
3 |
★★★ |
|
|
|
★ |
★★★ |
|
★★ |
4 |
★★ |
★★★ |
|
|
★★★ |
|
|
★★★ |
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful ★★ - Frequently Useful ★ - Occasionally Useful No stars - Meh Χ - Not recommended |
Consumables
Grosser Kurfürst can equip the following consumables:
- Slot 1: Damage Control Party
- Slot 2: Repair Party
- Slot 3: Spotting Aircraft or Catapult Fighter
- Slot 4: Hydroacoustic Search
Camouflage
Type 1, 2, or 5 camouflage can be equipped for credits; Types 2 or 5 are recommended at a minimum to reduce the accuracy of incoming shells.
Players who wish to spend doubloons can equip Grosser Kurfürst with Type 20 camouflage that lowers her detection radius, reduces the accuracy of incoming shells, reduces her repair costs, and increases the amount of experience she earns.
Signals
As a Tier X battleship, it is recommended to mount the following signals on Grosser Kurfürst: India Delta (), India Yankee (), Mike Yankee Soxisix () if a secondary build is used, and November Foxtrot (). November Echo Setteseven () can be used if the player has selected an anti-air build, and Sierra Mike () for higher speed can also be useful. The various economic flags can also be useful.
Recommended Signal Flags | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Combat | |||||
★ |
|
★★★ |
★ |
|
|
|
★★ |
★ |
★★ |
★★★ |
★★★ |
|
|
Note: Use of the Juliet Charlie signal makes detonation impossible.
Gallery
Großer Kurfürst, after emptying her main barrels, supported by a fellow Großer Kurfürst and Prinz Eugen.
Großer Kurfürst and a friendly Baltimore provide long-range artillery support, while moving closer to the front lines.
Großer Kurfürst spearheads the push, the friendly Baltimore in tow, her starboard secondaries already ripping into an enemy ship.
Historical Info
Historical Gallery
Video
References
https://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNGER_16-52_skc34.php
https://forum.worldofwarships.eu/topic/107061-gro%C3%9Fer-kurf%C3%BCrst-secondary-build/