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Without further ado:
~Intro~
So you뭭e decided to pick the IJN line and you뭨e tired of being bombed to the stone
ages in your ship. Strapping on any old cannon won뭪 work to AA so you뭨e going to
need a few things to help you on your way to shooting down planes.
1) DP Gunners: Always good to have as they have access to better Anti-
Aircraft guns then other weapons sailors.
2) Guns of 'A'type classification.
Note: For best results keep your to-be DP gunners as armament sailors till 65
minimum. This ensures that they뭭e got enough reload ability as the AA gunners, DP
gunners class loses out on reload ability.
For any know how information such as the Golden Angle ( though they may not be
updated post ONF)please refer to www.trainworld.us Also check out Obst뭩 AA
beginners guide at www.nf-guides.com. Another good guide to check out is Lord
Kelvin뭩 "Reapers of the Sky" thread in the US forum. It has some very useful
information relating to tactics and such.
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~Equipment~
The IJN enjoys a good set of anti-aircraft weaponry, even boasting the longest
range gun, the vaunted 4.7뮃 AA gun. The IJN tactics are centered more on ninja-ing
your ships, so our AA is meant more to snipe enemy scouts. If you뭨e from KM you뭠l
have to get used to a one shot one kill mentality unlike the spray and pray type
shooting of KM.
**As most IJN players forego the use of singles I won뭪 point those out, however if
you have questions post them anyways**
=Weap .ons=
Lvl 34 3뮃/60 Type 98: This is one of the starter AA guns you뭠l be able to use.
Acquired at lvl 34 you get it early enough and it뭠l provide you with some decent
protection. This weapon has a higher reload compared to other IJN Guns so you뭠l be
able to spray some of your shots. However the weapon has a very short range so
you뭠l have trouble defending a large area. This weapon is suited however to
defending areas close to your ship. Also the damage of the weapon isn뭪 that great
so you might need multiple shots to bring down your target. These weapons also
have the ability to be used on surface targets however I wouldn뭪 recommend that
as they don뭪 have the punch required to reliably engage other ships
Golden Angle: 48
Max Angle: 90
Lvl 36: 4.7뮃/45 Type 10: Welcome to the cream of the crop of IJN AA guns. This
weapon boasts the longest range of any AA gun in Navyfield, and also has the
ability to one shot all scouts and most bombers. Beware that the spread of this gun
won뭪 be very good if you뭨e using at lvl AA Gunners so it might be hard to hit things.
Also the range of this gun is so extreme that most BOs won뭪 be able to spot the
planes or the shells they뭨e firing. Now this may give a negative outlook on this
weapon but remember, from your BB4 career onward, and even on our BB1, this will
be your weapon of choice for anti-air coverage.
Please note** for best reload ability,
do not class your armament sailors until lvl 64+ (into chief DP gunners) for best
reload ability**
Golden Angle: 27 ( use 28 to reliably hit at max range)
Max Angle: 75
Lvl 42 3.9뮃/65 Type 98: This weapon is one of the heaviest AA guns the IJN has to
offer; as such it should only be used as a main armament for CLs and DDs. The
weapon itself has decent range and very good damage so you뭠l be able to oneshot
most things that come in your range. These weapons can also mount HE shells so
defending yourself is easier, however again they lack the stopping power to engage
anything over DD class. One aspect that you can exploit with these weapons (in the
anti surface department.. ) is the HA ability of the weapon. They offer alot better
damage, however accuracy will suffer.
Golden Angle: 38
Max Angle: 90
Lvl 48 5뮃/40 Type 89: This weapon is often looked on as a replacement to the 4.7s,
however don뭪 be tempted by its higher reload value. The 4.7s are in every way the
better weapon. However, if you want to give it a try the 5뮃 AA guns have a decent
reload speed and good damage. Again, you will feel the lack of range compared to
the 4.7s
Golden Angle: 39
Max Angle: 90
Lvl 54 5뮃/50 Type 3C: The other 5뮃 weapon in the IJN arsenal is also one of their
better DP Guns. This weapon has a decent engagement envelope as well as good
damage. Again reload hinders it뭩 performance and this weapon is also outshined by
the 4.7s, but if you뭨e using a DD and need the ability to multitask between air and
surface this is your gun.
Golden Angle: 38
Max Angle: 55
Lvl 58 6.1뮃/60 Type 3: Usher in the heavy hitter of IJN AA. Only ever used as a main
armament weapon for our CAs and CLs, this weapon boasts extremely good
damage and ok range(**NLD Varients**). The guns themselves also allow you to
block (The N version, I뭢 not sure about the A version I뭗 need some help verifying
this). Please note that after the ONF patch, these weapons now have a shortened
reload speed as well as the same range as the 4.7s. Also please not that the A
version of this weapon can now only carry Anti-Air shells.**
Golden Angle: 27 (A varient) 31-33 (NLD Varients)
Max Angle: 55
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~Ships~
The IJN offers a wide variety of AA platforms ranging from lowly DDs to CAs to our
mighty BB4 BB5 and BB6. However most ships require the use of the main armament
to make use of the decent AA capabilities.
Recommended ships:
Akitsuki/(Kai): The reason these two ships, yes you can use both of them, are in the
recommended section is that they can comfortably mount the 3뮃 AA guns and allow
you to have a quick speed. Although not taken seriously by others, this ships 4 R
mounts allow you to put up a good sized barrage for close in encounters.
Tsukikei: This DD allows you to fit the 3뮃 guns with ample amounts of ammo, but for
the serious AAer the 4.7s should always be used. The 5R mounts give you a nice
broadside and the ship is quick enough to reach the hotspots. Beware that you
won뭪 be able to defend yourself against surface threats with the 4.7s so you뭠l have
to rely on others to help you out in a crisis. Another option to use is the 3.9s as they
offer decent range and the ability to defend yourself against other DDs.
Yubari: This lowly ECL is hard to use in the modern GB environment because it lacks
any feasible gunsets. Although it is a capable anti-surface ship, it is also a very
effective AA platform when you put the 3.9뮃 guns on it. These weapons allow you to
oneshot most scouts. Though you뭠l be vulnerable in front of your battleline, the thin
profile of the Yubari allows the user to escape serious damage unless your beam is
to the shooter.
Mogami CL/CA: These two ships (though really of one class) are excellent AA
platforms and are the first ships you뭠l be able to seriously use the 6.1 A variant of
guns for anti-aircraft duties. Though the CA version is quite slow it still has a decent
OH speed to help it reach the hotspots. The CL version however has an excellent
cruising speed which helps it evade and catch other planes. Some people like to mix
armaments with the 6.1뮃 guns on the R slots and a smaller weapon on the T slots.
This setup gives you an ok setup, however you뭨e weighing yourself down for
nothing as 2 slots per side is nothing to write home about. Learn your angles and
you shouldn뭪 need to use the T-slots.
Myoko: This ship is a capable anti-surface threat; however it doesn뭪 differ much
from the Mogami series of ship for an AA setup. Keep the same setup as the
Mogami뭩 and you뭠l be fine.
Kongo: This BB1 has trouble lasting in GB environments, but the 6 T-slots, 3 per
side, are excellent for using AA. Some people like using the 3뮃 guns but that hinders
your ability to hide yourself permanently. Using the 4.7뮃 AA guns will give you a good
broadside and allow you to keep you and your surroundings invisible.
Yamato/Super Yamato: (I뭭e linked these together for AA performance as they both
boast the same number of T-slots, though they play differently against other ships,
they뭨e largely the same against air threats). Once you뭭e reached this stage you뭭e
reached the top IJN AA boat. Using anything but the 4.7뮃 AA guns is an insult to you
and your cohorts so use them and nothing else. The number of T-slots coupled with
360 degree coverage means these ships are some of the most feared AA ships.
Amagi: Though by this level you shouldn뭪 be reading this guide, I뭠l still include it. 6
T 뻮lots per side coupled with the long range 4.7뮃 guns should keep you well
covered against any threats you come up against. Another useable setup, though
low on ammo, would be to use the 6.1 A version of guns. This would give you an 18
barrel broadside which would be purely awesome, but again, lack of ammunition
would become an issue. Pick your shots carefully, and have fun looking like an
overpowered beast.
Asama: For a little bit of money you can get a decent AA ship. Though not
comparable to the Moltke, it is one of the better PCAs out there for AAing. Just strap
on some 4.7뭩 and you뭠l do quite well. One thing to note is that at any one time you
can fire 270 degrees around you. The one area you don't have coverage is behind
you
B65 Project: This BB greatly resembles the Yamato series of battleships. Though the
play style is quite the same (minus the range of main armament), the AA package is
both different and similar. If you stick with the 4.7s you뭠l have great long range
coverage, while if you use the 5뮃 DP Guns you뭠l have a good area defence weapon
with good anti-surface capabilities. Though this setup is still outshined by the 4.7s
awesomeness One aspect in which this battleship differs from the Yamatos is it does
not have the benefit of 360 degree coverage, so you뭠l be lacking any AA fire to you
Bow and Stern.
Other non-gunline Ships that are possible are the TW set of ships. Keep in mind that
the true value of these ships are in torpedoing other ships, the AA setups can still
break up a grind though.
Kuma
This CL has many R-slots but they are very small. Best setup is 7 x 4.7" single
barrels (only 6 per side will actually fire) and the advantage here is that single barrel
version has faster reload than dual barrels. Only valid alternatives are 7 x 5.0"
single barrels or 7 x 3.0" dual barrels DP guns (load both AA and HE shells).
Kuma-Kai
Not too much different from Kuma. The pro is that now you can also fit 5 x 4.7" dual
barrels, but you'll lack some ammos. So you may prefer sticking with single barrels
but you'll lack damage (only 5 shells for every boardside). 5 x 3.0" dual DP are still
possible.
Kitakami
This CL is tied with the Mogami CL for the best IJN non-BB and non-CA platform for
AAW. Simply put 10 x 4.7" dual barrels in the T-slots and see all those planes die
fast to your fire! Only valid alternative is 10 x 5.0" dual barrels (the type 89), which
has faster reload and greater damage but halved range. A side note: you can put
hedgehogs in R-slots!
Thanks to Angus and Alex for adding information on Amagi setup as well as the TW
AA setups.
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~Tips~
=Basics=
~Whilst AAing, remember lead the shadows and not the planes
~Try and line all of you guns up on a target and stay perpendicular
~Remember your golden angles and once they make it past that area keep
increasing your angles until you뭨e hitting them
~Downing bomber waves and scouts will gain you recognition from BB drivers,
however if you뭨e good enough you뭠l find yourself being bombed a lot
~Dodge Dodge Dodge! Once you get better at AAing you뭠l want to change positions
constantly
~Keep an eye on the horizon. A lot of times you뭠l be caught with aircraft inside your
golden angle range by not paying attention. Constantly scan the edges of your
visual range to spot any aircraft coming in. Also if you play with sound pay attention
to aircraft noises.
~Fin~
If you have anything else that should be noteworthy to add, or any suggestions
please send me a PM. Please note that this is a rough draft and the guide may be
subject to change.
Thank you, and happy hunting
Krauts08
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