I’m going to be a little critical of aspects of the Suma design. While it’s displacement was similar to other budget CLs of the period, the use of surface only 5” guns and DP 3” guns was contradictory. You could have mounted 6 twin DP 5” mounts (50% greater firepower) for the same weight and likely better HAA had you eliminated the 3” weapons. This would also allow the ships to fill an AA cruiser role AND allow for more medium/light AA mountings. Alternatively, you could have done 6” mounts in lieu of the 5” ones, giving your ship a credible threat against larger cruisers for minimal weight gain; useful for an independent vessel. I don’t know is the game models this well, but the 3” mountings would massively increase crew requirements, limiting endurance and range while increasing casualties in any engagement. Ultimately, you have a 7,100 ton vessel with the armament and AA power of a large destroyer.
Appreciate the critique! A more uniform and heavier 5' gun armament would have been an interesting choice, however a 6 twin DP 5' setup would have come with the "crowded centreline" modifier, giving a 20% debuff to rate of fire (or wing turrets), so firepower would not have been quite as high as hoped. And I would point out that 3' guns do provide useful firepower against transports and DDs as well, especially when used as auto-cannons. You are absolutely right though, that its not a good AA cruiser, nor can it stand up to other cruisers well. But if we manage to use it as designed, that might hopefully never occur.
Interesting that you went for a CL for this role; I personally tend to use my CAs as the long-range independent raiders while my CLs are the ones with the fleet support roles. Lets them actually stand up and fight most ships that protect trade, so you end up with a more effective raider that can also suck up more resources to stop. The downside, of course, is that they're much more expensive, so you can't make as many of them.
I also like a CA design, however I always design for speed as a raider class. I tend for a 3 x 8" turret design with 2 upfront and always 30+ knots. Fun when 8" autoloaders rock up.
@@julianc3682 Aye, that's about my design philosophy as well! Generally makes them strong enough to fight off anything they can't outrun, and fast enough to outrun anything they can't fight.
Submarines are pretty abstract in the game. You can not design or control them, but build different types (coastal, normal, long range, missile). They act on the strategic map and give you some info on the tactical level.
