North Carolina - The First Battleship You Should Get

Watch me live on Twitch: / potatoquality_
North Carolina is by far the best battleship in the game to learn battleship mechanics. This ship rewards playing well and punishes playing poorly. I recommend it as the first battleship anyone gets if they want to learn how to play battleship.
I'm Potato_Quality, a member of O7, and probably one of the best battleship players in this game. Hopefully, on this channel, I can teach you a bit about how battleships are played. Thanks for watching.

[@Strangelove657]

An excellent ship that is a breath of fresh air after New Mexico and Colorado.

[@MiiFone1]

What? I thought you all wanted a line split based upon Colorado's traits. LOL

[@vtr0104]

@@MiiFone1 Why'd you have to go and remind us of that?.... It's enough that they're trying everything in the book to not admit their own mistake (the skin contest / event, the video they did to compare them with other ships to prove they're "good", the removal of the actually fun Massa and Georgia to force people to play Kansas and Minnesota, now that damage contest with some t-shirt giveaway). It's like they're afraid to let people have any fun, they want to turn the game into just a bunch of ships sitting 20kms away from each other trading salvoes.. Whenever they introduce something that might look like a bit of fun, they just gimp it right before release. They did it with the Odin's health, the Anchorage's AP and reload , the Pommern's dispersion, and now with the Commander Rework they're basically killing off Secondary builds while replacing them with that Eagle Eye bullshit. We're just gong to all end up playing Mikasas at T2 to get a feeling of fun in BB brawls.

[@andreid7277]

@@vtr0104 Correct! Mikasa is getting -30% secondaries dispersion with the rework. It's actually getting buffed!

[@vtr0104]

@@andreid7277 Maybe the Commander Rework was all a ploy to boost Mikasa sales :|

[@rudrakshmishra2761]

i cant tell you how happy i was when she arrived in my port (27kts op)

[@Foxbat2929]

As someone who's played past T8 on 4 of the other bb lines before getting NC, boy is she a joy to play

[@feanorn8409]

USN BBs were my first ever line. Back then i stoped at the NC, because too much T10 mm with 6 Shimas in both Teams spamming the not nerfed 20km Torps. But when i returned to her about a year later, i had tons of fun with it. I even oneshotted an Amagi from 19km once, no shit :D I wish i would ve recorded this. Iowas guns felt like as let down after the NC tbh. NC is still one of my top picks for T8 ranked.

[@misterdragon9253]

5 battles in and I love this thing. Easy-to-put-up with accuracy, FANTASTIC speed, and maneuverability, excellent heal (IMO compared to Colorado for the heal and speed points). Also, insane AA.

[@keithnelson1014]

B/c sucks ass dude

[@benstahlnecker8390]

NC was my second tier 8 after Bismarck. Really like the concealment and the guns. First game in that ship (almost fully stock) I sat bow-in at the center of Two Brothers. I shot down 61 planes (AFTER the CV rework) and did over 100k damage.

[@cmdrfrosty3985]

Similar story here. I'm new to the game and north Carolina is my first tier 8 ship. I sold my Colorado and immediately jumped into a game. I followed a nelson to a good position on a flank and we both wrecked an entire flank. I ended up with 4 kills 98k damage and nearly 20k aircraft damage.

[@benstahlnecker8390]

@@cmdrfrosty3985 Bismarck was my first tier 8, and was my favorite ship until I got Georgia. I'm sad to see the state that German battleships are in now. I hope the new secondary skill they're testing gets added as it is.

[@PK-lo6ws]

@@benstahlnecker8390 georgia is very good i have her. better decision than the thunderer i feel

[@phil21s]

Thanks for the video, quite educational. Coming from mostly playing Massa as high-tier BB with reasonable success, I have to say NC is a harsh mistress. I am working on getting better, but RNG and MM in conjunction with my inability to make her consistently work are just tanking my WR. Yet, somehow, I enjoy her.

[@T0ffik1]

Well with the accuracy = to speed of shells its a long go mistake, it was like that quite a while ago, but now vertical dispersion is affected from ship to ship - suboctavian said it at some point in podcast like 2-1,5 year ago. thats why russian bb's have such good dispersion on medium range (even when their ships have almost always highest velocity shells, or stalingrad - his shells should fly all over the world with his super fast velocity). Suboctavian said that if they must change it to have a somewhat balanced ship, they will change it. Miss the old wows (pre Lesta) where HE wasnt so OP (no conq's/thunderes), radars werent all present, CV's required skill and could be fucked up by AA if they were stupid, and actually BB's were accurate and punishing stupid missplays - back then the velocity was still affecting vertical dispersion from what we know and the slower the shells the better it was (and no imaginary rusky shells like slava/kreml/stalingrads/smolenks), only dont miss superheal op yamato and maybe the broken shima 20km torps (but now shima is kinda overnerfed hard).

[@killjoyxbycx4362]

Luv your vids bud, very helpful. I've only been playing a couple months now but obviously always trying to improve. Keep up the great work!!

[@YTPartyTonight]

Damn right! I’ve been saying it for years.

[@ICGedye]

Great vid and some top pointers along the way. My problem in this ship is I quite easily end up getting focussed on these days. Also WG have introduced a few premium ships that when well captained make stock ships look 2nd rate. I do love it though and the point about it being a well rounded bb is right. With such well rendered ships, it’s a shame battles aren’t more realistic, although there wouldn’t as much X factor for arcade gamers.

[@zktwo]

Thanks for the vid! Any thoughts on making a Bourg video? It's a fantastic ship and lots of fun, but I've found most youtube vids on it are pretty out of date. Would love to see your take on it.

[@s.31.l50]

I like the NC for the most part, but the shell velocity really killed it for me. I haven’t gone back to her since I got Iowa.

[@JTBacchanalist]

Thanks for this video. Being a brawler BB player only, I tried something new with the US line.

[@cesarpalmos8235]

Man Just got her last light after the a long time of grinding, dang it feels a couple tiers above even above t7

[@mynamesmatthew1551]

Yeah I’ve been playing world if warshops since February and I already have North Carolina

[@cesarpalmos8235]

@@mynamesmatthew1551 yeah ive been playing for a month or so

[@garf0001]

@@mynamesmatthew1551 warshop moment

[@jonathoncopeland7492]

I know this video is old but I played wow for about few months and almost have north Carolina unlocked. Is still good ship to this day in 2023

[@notdave2993]

I really hope they put this ship in legends! It’s one of my favorite ships.

[@flickzwowsl8048]

And it’s coming on Monday!

[@notdave2993]

@@flickzwowsl8048 I know and I’m so excited!

[@flickzwowsl8048]

@@notdave2993 Same!

[@domihun2009]

I should have dived into these kind of videos before starting head on with the Italian BB line and having a depressing WR both on Colombo and overall

[@bloodlines9610]

Going to see the North Carolina at the end of the month.

[@curtisripperger8419]

I love my NC. A few games after getting it. I had a full health Fiji magically appear right in front of my ship from around the corner of an island about 2 km away. Killed him with one Salvo from my front two turrets. It was awesome.

[@hectormorales4090]

Well, I decently decided to grind this BB line (new to the game) and seeing this video came at a great time since I just unlocked the Iowa just a couple of days ago. 😉

[@christianjohnson9190]

I got 2 really weird battles, so first time playing in the NC, I played the otherside of the first map, a sinop was chasing me it was very weird, then a few other battle later, I was in a situationn where I was being chased by a gneisenau, and he started telling me to stop running from him, I believe that I told him to come me and get me, asked my friendly enough reprise for a bit of help, the gneisenau got slapped not long after

[@mikestion4629]

First battleship I try and get, huh? Well alright. I already have the Colorado with all of its modules researched, I'll keep this in mind.

[@garf0001]

It took me 36 games with good flags and camos and with a pinch of good luck and a sprinkle of good teammates and great rng for you to hit those shots. You'll get to the NC in no time. Hell you probably have it now

[@mowtoll]

NC is good, i use it many times for sniping at 20-28Km distanse. but Massachusetts is better at shorter distanses specely if setup as a secondary build.

[@kevinpittman2517]

so how do we obtain the modded targeting thing u are using ?

[@np21__13]

Watching this vid rn as I play with the n Carolina on the same exact map lmao

[@doobedi]

How does this ship compare to the Uss Florida?

[@jtaylor12711]

My NC used to have such a good AA build that it could practically melt CV planes. Unfortunately War Gaming had to screw that up and neuter it.

[@ruffianeo3418]

I also had an AA build on my NC after admitting defeat regarding those crap slow shells where target ships crews have babies and still time to turn the rudder and evade those "oh so accurate" shots. And once you move up close where you can actually hit something with those Jon Woo shells, you are stuck bow in and get burned to death.

[@scoutsoldier7139]

This ship is amazing except her armor , the worst armor of tier 8 ships

[@erp-experts]

The NC is my 2nd favourite BB...only one that edges it is the HMS Conqueror lol...

The only thing I hate about the North Carolina is that it has a low velocity heavy AP shell.

[@jibster8849]

How do you modify your reticle like that tho?

[@sebulller]

well the US battleship line to Montana are very good at one thing... making cruisers regret their life choises. I feel like with that line i get more cruiser kills than bb kills... massive dmg absolutly... specially when they are boradside. So thats a good thing. But i still like IOWA more its a fun fast boat.

[@dragoon3359]

i don't get it by the time you get to the NC shouldn't you already know how to play the Battleships or does it change at t8?

[@dajuanvariste4751]

Nah it doesn’t change bro, you should pretty much be familiar with battleship play just don’t show broadside unless you have too

[@ericraymond3734]

I must respectfully disagree about not moving up to the Iowa. I just did, and I found that for my play style (heavily long-range sniping from cover) the increased shell velocity more than compensated for slightly worse sigma and maneuverability. I also find that bow tanking, when I need to do it, works better in an Iowa. I sold my NC. Bias: I'm very good at gunlaying, so it may be that I notice the degraded sigma less than most players.

[@tank2003ful]

What aiming sight your using

[@richardcobb4287]

Go dark...I understand what that is but not how to do it. Is it a skill you can access?

[@elbystump56]

After suffering through the Colorado the NC was like a whole new world of BB's. It still holds my record of AA kills at 59, surprisingly more than my Massa. After the NC I expected the Iowa to be the pinnacle but was again disappointed. Just due to how sluggish it seemed even though it is a faster ship, also seems more squishy than the NC and too easy to burn down. Then on to the Montana which isn't really my favorite playstyle but with those 12 guns I get more dev strikes than ever before in any American BB's but like the Iowa I can't really push with it. So yeah I agree that the NC is the best tech line American BB for it's tier and my playstyle. Like it so much I gave it a permanent camo.

[@vtr0104]

You're gonna laugh, but my largest AA kill count was 67 I think, in the Colorado, in a match where I did nothing but run away and #justdodge Ryujo airstrikes :)). Like you mentioned though, it almost feels like the NC is the peak of the USN BB line. I just got to Iowa a couple of weeks ago and although I tried playing it like the NC, it's just so huge and sluggish that people have no trouble focusing you down. And I even tried the same build with the Steering Gears but still too slow. I can't imagine the Montana after being much better. The NC feels like a really balanced package, good AA, punchy guns, good handling and decent speed, plus really tanky if you use your head. And you can push and hold objectives and be a nuisance, not like a Bismarck or anything (though I do run secondaries on my NC, for DD deterrence) but still good. I had bought the Massa because of this, but it doesn't really play the same, and even though the guns are the same on paper, the NC is more consistent at hitting stuff.

[@williamregal8503]

i just got the north cal 1st game 3 kills shes a fking awesome ship =)

[@tkoragen3527]

I like my Colorado and never tried Kansas or NC... But... That's me :)

[@phm904]

new mexico and colorado is a pain to my back

[@DennisLN2012]

avoid Kansas.

[@jakubslavik5595]

The last T8 battleship i got :D But yeah, she's great.

[@electricvault3850]

can you link the sight mod?

[@tacticalai5519]

Is it said my first battle ship over teir 7 was geroiga that I got from coal

[@RobbertLobik]

Lol, me too. Guess you have many lower tier ships now?

[@michaelchristy506]

The first battleship I should get? You are aware that you need to grind with previous battleships to get to it like every other ship, right?

[@luketfer]

I just could not get on with the slow shells. By contrast I loved the Iowa.

[@williamgrand9724]

Been playing since release, still don't have it lol

[@Aluminati1]

@@oddy1637 Being a remarkably shitty player

[@hendrickvanmahendra5061]

Mee too becuz im playing wot but now i already have montana

[@Carvetii]

its Flamus favourite BB as well for the very reasons you say sloppy play gets punished good play gets rewarded

[@samuelwong4152]

And its true, unlocking NC, along the way, up to tier 7, those BB are TRULY garbage and extremely frust to play..... I got the Collorado from recent Mission Reward...... Otherwise Im not bothered to play / unlocking USA BB

[@zentangogames8033]

Definitely a "keeper" in any port 👍

[@TheNeilBlack]

More like North Carolina - The Worst Battleship You Could Get. I seriously hated this ship so much. I just finally finished grinding through it and I have no plans to ever play it again. I would 100% rather play my Colorado in a T9 match with two CVs than my North Carolina in a T8 match with mostly T6 ships. The guns felt like throwing whiffle balls at my targets and the armor felt like paper, issues I haven't had with any other US BB, or any of the German BBs I've ground up so far (up to T6 in that line). Even angled in as well as I know how I just get slapped down over and over again. I get higher average damage three tiers lower in the Konig and Texas. North Carolina has been my worst battleship experience in this entire game.

[@ashleighelizabeth5916]

For what it's worth North Carolina is usually facing much deadlier adversaries than you will at tier 5 6 or 7. The pace of gameplay is also much faster on her than it is on the weaker ships found at tier 5 6 and 7. I've ground up through tier 8 in both North Carolina and Bismarck for the German battleships and I can tell you in both cases the quality of competition definitely went up. I've also ground up to tier 7 with the British battleships and it took me a fair amount of adjustment to go from Queen Elizabeth to King George V. If you are struggling with North Carolina it might be the case that you aren't ready for tier 8 play. I'm marginal at that level myself but I do much better most days (that I'm not badly outclassed by MM) in my tier 6 New Mexico. It's not because New Mexico is a better ship it's because the quality of ships and players I face isn't as strong in Nex Mex as it is North Carolina IMO. I have the same problem with the German battleships. I do much better in Gneisenau than I do Bismarck and it's pretty obvious to me that Bismarck is the better ship there but I'm just not good enough for her. I'm finding the same thing out about my new Thunderer that I just bought out of the armory, the ship is amazing but I am most definitely not. And I'm not solid enough to be a good tier 10 player. I will be really interested in how you feel about Bismarck. I was really looking forward to her for a number of reasons but once I finally got her and started taking her out I was deeply disappointed by her especially compared with how well I made Gneisenau work sometimes.

[@TheNeilBlack]

​@@ashleighelizabeth5916 I do just fine in my Iowa. Not amazing, but I like the ship and I don't get frustrated in 90% of my games like I do with North Carolina.

[@jayvee8502]

For me NC is one of the best among T8 BBs. It has good concealment that you could surprise enemy ships except DDs.

[@hendrickvanmahendra5061]

Nope bro its good, just good

[@TheNeilBlack]

Happy to report from four years later that I was a foolish noob and the North Carolina is actually a solid T8 ship. It's become my goto battleship for T8 now.

[@-----0-----]

DISCLAIMER: JFI, IMHO, I do not claim to be the best source, this opinion may be wrong so treat it accordingly. North Carolina is the worst of my BBs :) From best to worst (V-IX): King George V Strasbourg Sinop Izmail Gneisenau Kongo Georgia Piotr Velikiy Bismarck Massachusetts California Texas Normandie Kansas Oklahoma North Carolina

[@mynamesmatthew1551]

I got 20 plane kills in 5 seconds with an anti aircraft gun setup

[@soarinskies1105]

God I remember this was the first tier 8 tech tree ship that I got. God I look at my stats over the 200 games that I played in her, and they are literal Garbage.

[@TheNeilBlack]

It's also my first T8 ship. I just finished grinding through her to Iowa, and it's been my worst experience in any BB in the entire game.

[@samuelwong4152]

Indeed the first BB you should get, and other tier 8 BB will be SHIT...... and its true...

[@sinisabalentovic9617]

Wg destroyed the ship for me....B hull is wrong shaped at bow and aft and i cant stand that !!

[@DennisLN2012]

mejor que kansas es todo sentido // better than kansas in every way

[@victorfelix5718]

Contrary to the opinions of everyone, this ship never works for me

[@DocHock67]

Accurate this ship ? It cant hit ships even from 5 to 10 km. Its one of the last ship lines i habe to grind. Firing HE and ramming is the way to get damage. I guess in general that WG implemented a simple dice based mechanic and just talks about a not existent armor penetration logic.

[@Ensign_Cthulhu]

"By far the best battleship in the game to learn battleship mechanics." So what are you waiting for? Get onto the public test server and flog the living shit out of it, n00bz! I liked this ship enough to give it one of last year's New Year permacamos. However, I would disagree with you on it being the best learning BB. IMHO that title belongs to New York or Texas, because their very slowness makes you think VERY carefully about where you are going to put your ship. I had a great time in the New York, and it's a shame that lack of port slots (a problem since remedied, thank you WG) and credits (at the time) led me to sell her when the grind was over. Still, I already had the Texas in port, which is much the same thing. I liked my US Standards grinds.

[@rancorusia]

while i agree that the texas and new york are better for learning the basics, you learn a lot more at tier 8 than 5

[@zograf4572]

I didnt like it. Iowa is more my cup of tea.

[@mgkpraesi]

No. German Weapons only. No matter what Game.

[@machoalright]

gimmicky armour? i see what you did there to the german ships... but german ships are better to learn. it makes you go with the other ships and does not reward you if you stck in the back and do nothing. unlike the american ships.

[@PotatoQuality]

The turtleback armor is a problem when learning to play battleships. It teaches you bad habits because you can't really get citadelled when you go broadside. The point of the NC is that it teaches you good habits that translate well to all other battleships.

[@machoalright]

@@PotatoQuality it teaches to stay at a distance, all BB's should angle not only the US you have the french the brits and the germans that can be hurt if they dont.