GUAM

Country
United States of America (USA)

Class
Cruiser

MMweight
9.0

Obtain Method
Prism

Arena rating

C

PVP rating

C

Guam CB-2 was an Alaska-class large cruiser. The large cruiser designation is coined by the US navy. It’s often referred to as a battlecruiser by other parties. The Alaska-class large cruisers were intended to become cruiser-killers, capable of seeking out and destroying post-treaty heavy cruisers. Due to being commissioned late in the war, Guam saw relatively limited service during the war. 

Guam has good penetration, good accuracy, and long range. Guam’s firepower is pretty good. It can burn battleships and punish broadsiding enemies nicely. However, slow shell velocity makes it hard to aim at maneuvering targets, especially at long range. The shell arc is high, so Guam can lob shells from behind island easily.

Guam has good armor for a cruiser. The side armor is the same as Alaska, which means it’s pretty tanky when angled. Strangely, Guam’s bow armor is not as strong as Alaska. This is further complicated by the fact that Guam will face higher tier battleships more often than Alaska. This makes Guam relatively less tanky compared to Alaska. Still, when facing battleships with less than 406 mm caliber (and no MAP), Guam can tank for a long time.

Just like Alaska, Guam’s speed is rather slow and it has less acceleration level than other cruisers. The maneuverability is bad for a cruiser although it’s average for a battlecruiser. The surface detectability is bad because it has big size. The AA performance is similar to Alaska and Oregon City. In its MMweight, that amount of AA is no longer sufficient to defend itself even with fighter planes.

Playstyle

At the start of the battle, sail to a flank. Don’t sail too forward. Don’t get yourself spotted first. Remember, shooting will increase your detectability range so don’t do that unless you absolutely need to. If the enemy is spotted, let your battleships shoot the enemy first. You need to find a big island to hide behind. Ideally, you want to be able to lob shells to the enemy but the enemy can’t see or shoot you back. Shoot after you get a good position. If you’re getting shot, just move closer to the island to hide or run away.

Finding a good island might be hard due to its big size. If there’s no such island, fight in open water at more than 14 km from enemy battleship. Angle your ship away from the enemy (kiting position). Speed juke to dodge shells. You can try this simple speed juke tactic: sail at 1/4 speed when the enemy isn’t shooting, accelerate to full speed when the enemy shoots at you, reverse if the enemy shoots in front of your ship. Turn your ship away to increase its effectiveness. Don’t show broadside. If you can’t dodge, try to take the shells on the belt armor while angled. If your HP is low, just run away and stop shooting. Once you get out of your basic detection range, you won’t be spotted anymore. Because in open water you need to fight at long range, your damage output will be low. But at least you can live longer.

If you’re brave and there’s no enemy that can overmatch your armor (406 mm+ caliber or MAP ammunition), you can play aggressively. Point your bow towards the enemy or slightly angled. Stay beside an island to cover your citadel. If there’s no island, alter your speed regularly (between half speed and reverse) and turn slightly to the left and right to throw off the enemy’s aim. This playstyle allows you to get much higher damage output, gain map control, and help your teammates survive. However, if you’re getting focused, it’s hard to retreat.

To maximize your effectiveness, try to create a crossfire with your teammates. If your teammate is tanking, you sail to the side of the enemy ship and shoot at their broadside. This maneuver might be hard because Guam is slow and big, but it’s worth trying. Keep your ship angled all the time.

Guam has bad concealment. It’s not good for capturing bases and spotting enemies. In a CV battle, always stay close to allied ships (especially BBs and CV) so you can protect each other with overlapping AA and anti-air barrage consumable. Speed juke and keep yourself angled. Your damage output will be low but you can be useful.

Is it worth to buy?

Different from Alaska, Guam’s main selling point is its firepower. It needs a good teammate to tank damage for it. The only time it can move aggressively is when there are no ships that can counter it (high caliber battleships, CVs, destroyers).

Guam is a prism ship. If you want to get it, you must spend money. If you already have Alaska, you can buy Guam at a discounted price. Both of them are not worth to buy.

Strengths
High caliber guns with good penetration, good range, good accuracy, and good damage. Decent armor. Has fighter planes.
Weaknesses
Slow shell velocity, slow speed, bad acceleration, big size, bad concealment, bad AA.
Consumables
Advanced DC (20 secs duration, 20% dmg reduction), elite repair (3 charges), anti-air barrage (4 charges)
General playstyle
Kiting, flanking, pushing, bowtank with island cover, lobbing shells from behind island
Role/specialty
Offtank, damage dealer
Preferred enemy target
BB, cruiser

Recommended Build

Equipment
Slot 1: adv. disaster retardant module
Slot 2: engine enhancement module
Slot 3: cruiser aiming system module
Consumables
Slot 1: large cruiser adv. damage control
Slot 2: elite repair
Slot 3: elite anti-air barrage
Crew Skills (after basic skill)
Captain: artillery warning – hull protection – boost morale
Gun: crack gunner – high speed aiming – burn the ship behind
Engine: quick shift – adv. quick shift – steering master
Damage control: emergency flooding – buoyancy reserve – extinguish

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