Scharnhorst was the first battlecruiser built for the Reichsmarine after tearing up the Versailles treaty. As such, she was a curious combination of WWI and WWII ideas and configurations. While her armament was a bit on the light side, her armor was tough and her engines powerful. She and her sister had very historic careers.

At 5.5 units, Scharnhorst is a bit of an odd duck, especially given her size. That's not a lot of firepower for a ship that large. Then again, that's typical battlecruiser territory. With three triple turrets, she is one of the few Axis ships that can mount triple stern guns, and she can carry them very, very well.

The combination of low stern freeboard and a small turret results in a tight shot pattern close to the waterline that can tear ships apart, as Jim Pate did with his back in the day. On the other hand, given her length, any bow sidemounts are at best secondary weapons and more likely to get you in trouble than the enemy.

At 24 seconds, Scharnhorst has the speed, yes she does. With the three shaft drive, she doesn't quite have the acceleration, but that's not how she plays anyway.

Three shafts and twin rudders does mean that it's the return of the WWI dreadnought sit and spin glory days. With a good shaft and rudder setup, the Scharnhorst and just about spin, and that means that if you get those triples on target, you can pretty much keep them on target until they give up and run away.

The downside to all this is that the Scharnhorst is a big, long battlecruiser with plenty of freeboard. Her stern may sit low, but that's not the part people will be shooting at.

I would not recommend Scharnhorst to a beginner. Triple stern guns and more complex systems require a lot more skill to get tweaked out and running properly. Additionally, while she has some good firepower with those triples, the light armament on the bow, and target area make it way too easy to take a beating. In the hands of a skilled battler, she can make bank, especially when someone knows how to make those triples sing, and can minimize the incoming damage.

While I've never owned a Scharnorst, I've seen them battled quite effectively. I've also seen them battled quite poorly, especially by people who can't resist coming in for the sidemounts against ships that have haymakers or other weapons that can fight back effectively. She's one of the most beautiful ships in the Axis fleet, and can be one of the most deadly. Do you think you have what it takes to handle her?

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