TIRPITZ

Country
German

Class
Battleship

MMweight
8.0

Obtain Method
Prism

Arena rating

D

PVP rating

A

Tirpitz is one of the most popular battleships of the German Kriegsmarine during the second world war. Tirpitz is a Bismarck-class battleship, but also armed with torpedoes. Tirpitz was the heaviest battleship built by an European navy.

Tirpitz has 4×2 380 mm guns with better accuracy than Bismarck. It also has quick reload, which makes it more competitive than Bismarck at medium range. At long range, the air drag severely reduces its shell velocity and penetration (on top of having bad accuracy). Tirpitz is not suitable for sniping. Tirpitz has good secondary guns, but the range is pretty short for a German battleship.

Tirpitz has side-launched torpedoes, like Gneisenau. The torpedoes alone won’t suffice to one shot a battleship, so the player must reduce the enemy’s HP first to below 45000. Remember that torpedo damage resistance exist. For example, torpedo damage taken by Yamato is much less than Gascogne because Yamato has very high torpedo damage resistance. Sometimes, the player needs to launch the torpedoes from both sides to properly sink the enemy. The torpedo range is short, but it doesn’t matter because the torpedoes should only be launched from point blank range to get as many hits as possible. Side-launched torpedoes are superior to bow-launched torpedoes (like H39) because it gives much more flexibility.

Tirpitz has similar turtleback armor scheme with Bismarck. The citadel is well protected at short range, but can be penetrated at long range. Even without citadel damage, Tirpitz still takes a lot of penetration damage. It’s also pretty easy to get burned. To minimize damage, bowtanking is recommended. A bowtanking Tirpitz is hard to sink, unless there are multiple enemies attacking it. Turn to angle the ship left and right regularly to throw off the enemy’s aim.

Tirpitz is the only German battleship that doesn’t have improved damage control, improved repair, and underwater search. Tirpitz’ survivability is much lower than Bismarck during intense combat. It’s also much riskier to push where there’s an enemy destroyer lurking. This is perhaps to balance it with Bismarck because Bismarck doesn’t have torpedoes.

Tirpitz has fast speed. It’s slower than French battleships but faster than anyone else. This means Tirpitz can rush and chase the enemy comfortably.The maneuverability is also not bad. Tirpitz can outmaneuver the enemy and dictate the engagement.

Playstyle

Tirpitz is not suitable for sniping. The ideal engagement range is within 12 km. Tirpitz has turtleback armor, fast speed, secondary guns, and side torpedoes which makes it a monster in close combat. It’s a good ship to push the enemy formation.

At the start of the battle, sail to a flank while using islands as cover so you don’t get sniped. Push together with your teammates (or bots). If possible ask your teammates to support you from the side. Shoot broadsiding enemies first. Always angle against enemy players. Alter your sailing direction and speed. When the range between you and the enemy is < 6 km, prepare to launch your torpedoes. If one torpedo strike is not enough to sink the enemy, turn then launch your torpedoes from the other side. Secondary guns will help you burn the enemy down.

In global arena, getting close is almost impossible. To save you from headache, don’t choose German ship in arena. If you meet a CV in PVP, just play like usual. Kill the bots in the process. If possible, kill some players too. You will die quickly, but this will give time for your ally CV to carry the match.

Is it worth to buy?

Tirpitz is strong and fun to use in PVP. It’s also very beginner friendly. At low tier, there are not many good players, so having a good ship really helps winning battles. Of course, it doesn’t work in arena just like other German ships.

Tirpitz is a prism ship. If you want to buy it, you have to spend money. If you play PVP quite often, it’s worth to buy. However, if you want a ship for arena, Tirpitz is not the choice. Also, keep in mind that this is not a pay-to-win game. Skills matter more than the ship. If you play badly, you’ll be sunk easily.

Strengths
Good HE penetration, fast reload, good secondary guns, has turtleback armor, has side torpedoes, has fighter planes, long damage control duration, short damage control cooldown.
Weaknesses
Bad accuracy, high air drag, large size, low damage, easy to get burned, bad concealment, bad AA.
General playstyle
Pushing, brawling, bowtanking
Preferred fighting range
Short to medium range

Recommended Build

Equipment
Slot 1: adv. disaster retardant module
Slot 2: steering gears enhancement module or engine enhancement module
Slot 3: aiming system module or secondary battery enhancement module
Consumables
Slot 1: elite damage control
Slot 2: elite repair
Crew Skills (after basic skill)
Captain: boost morale – hull protection – artillery warning
Gun: crack gunner – secondary battery enhancement – high speed aiming
Engine: steering master – quick shift – adv. quick shift
Damage control: emergency flooding – buoyancy reserve – extinguish
Torpedo: excess charge – engine maintenance – weak point attack

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