KMS Bismarck

KMS Bismarck

''In real life, Bismarck was the pride of Hitler's naval strength. She was armed with 88 guns total. Bismarck wielded eight 380mm main guns, twelve 150mm secondary guns, sixteen 105mm AA/AT heavy flak guns, sixteen 37mm SK/C AA flak guns, and twelve 20mm flak AA/AT guns. Her main armor belt was 320mm thick, the turret armor was 360mm thick, and her deck armor was roughly 110mm thick. Her maximum speed was 32 knots, thus classifying her as a fast battleship. Bismarck was laid down in July 1936, launched in February 1939, and comissioned in August 1940. At the time of Bismarck's construction, the Washington Naval Treaty was still in effect, and ships could weigh no more than 32,000 tons. While sources at the time claim Bismarck weighed 32,000 tons, the truth was a highly guarded secret. Bismarck in the official records weighed 50,100 tons. ''

''Bismarck's first, and only mission was code-named  Exercise: Rhine. The mission was officially recognized as Operation: Rheinübung. The objective was to have Bismarck get out in the Atlantic, and to destroy Allied convoys headed for Britain. At the time, the escorts guarding the convoys were light cruisers and destroyers. This meant that no allied ship escorting convoys could stand up to a ship the size of Bismarck. ''

''Bismarck left Bergen, Norway, with the Admiral Hipper class cruiser, Prinz Eugen, on May 21, 1941. The two were spotted by a Spitfire scouting aircraft. The Royal Navy quickly dispatched two of its finest capital ships- HMS Prince of Wales, and the pride of the Royal Navy's naval power: HMS Hood. On May 24, 1941, Bismarck and Prinz Eugen exchanged fire with the two British vessels in the Denmark Strait. In less than ten minutes, three hits on Hood detonate her midships magazine. The massive explosion twisted and sheared the mighty vessel into 3 parts. (The midships segment sank immediately, whereas the bow and stern sank in a V-shaped form, in three minutes.) Out of Hood's 1,419 crew, only three survive. Prince of Wales kept firing until her guns were jammed, and having suffered 14 crippling hits, retreated for England.''

''The Royal Navy dispatched practically all their ships to find Bismarck. A week after Hood's destruction, Bismarck had her rudders jammed, and could't be steered. She was cornered by the following ships; HMS Rodney, HMS King George V, HMS Norfolk, HMS Dorsetshire, and the HMS Sheffield. After taking over 400 shell hits, and 5 torpedo hits, Bismarck is reduced to a burning, sinking hulk, but refuses to go down. As Dorsetshire tried to sink Bismarck with 3 torpedoes, Bismarck is rocked by scuttling charges. She then heels over to her port side, capsizes, and disappears beneath the North Atlantic. Only 229 of over 2,000 men survive.''

In the game, Bismarck is not really worth the trouble. She is armed with four 380mm turrets, six 203mm turrets, and eight 152mm turrets. Her deck comprises of 600mm Lightweight armor, yet the rest is made of hull parts and bridges. Her maximum speed is 32.8 knots, making her slow, and lumbering.

My advice: If anything, purchase Bismarck only for her parts.