Best Battleship: Underwater Protection

Underwater Protection Yamato Iowa Bismarck Richelieu King George V Vittorio Veneto South Dakota
Compartmentation
(V= Void, L=Liquid loaded, starting from outboard moving inward)
4
(4V)
4
(2L + 2V)
2
(V + L)
4
(2V + L + V)
3
(V + L + V)
2
(L + V)
4
(2L + 2V)
System Breadth 23.46' 17.9' 18.04' 22.97' 13' 23.69' 17.9'
Armor Belt Depth Deep Deep Shallow Shallow Shallow Shallow Deep
Raw Rating 10 8 8 10 6 10 8
Comments Yamato's system suffered from ineffective joins between the lower and upper armor belt. Her belt was penetrated by American air-dropped torpedoes which had warheads below her minimum designed explosive loadings. Not a very effective design for the weight. Extremely good design, though not as wide as some. The carrying of the armor belt down to the hull bottom added strength, but the rigidity of the armor plate could possibly have caused sheer of the plate away from the hull bottom. Still, a very good design. Not very deep, and a shallow belt. The critical damage inflicted on this system by 14" underwater hits from Prince of Wales demonstrated its vulnerability. The Richelieu had a very good design, with good depth and usage of both void and liquid compartments. She also used a water-exclusion material (a bouyant solid foam encapsulated in foil packets) in her outer compartment which was designed to eliminate excessive trims resulting from flooding (and which apparently worked as advertised). Shallow system, and not bounded at the top by an adequate deck protection, meaning that the explosive force of a hit was vented upward into the hull spaces. The worst system of the seven. The Pugliese System was innovative, but susceptible to damage from defective seam joins. It also did not protect as well against multiple hits in a given area, and was very difficult to repair. Extremely good design, though not as wide as some. The carrying of the armor belt down to the hull bottom added strength, but the rigidity of the armor plate could possibly have caused sheer of the plate away from the hull bottom. Still, a very good design.
Adjusted Rating 9 9 7 10 5 8 9

The basic rating is a function of the standoff width in the system. I dinged Yamato for her defective joint structure, and for not using liquid-loaded tanks outboard. I dinged Bismarck for having a shallow belt, which directly contributed to a crucial underwater hit she took at the hands of Prince of Wales. I dinged King George V for her shallow belt and the fact that the top of her system was not bounded by deck armor, which directly contributed to the loss of the Prince of Wales. And I dinged Vittorio Veneto for defective seams, inability to take multiple hits in the same location, and being a real pain to repair, due to the curved bulkheads which comprised the system. And last, I upped Iowa's and SoDak' base ratings a point, because of her deep belt, and the very efficient usage of void and liquid-loaded tanks.

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