Hi everyone! Today we’re covering Germany’s huge battleship project. H-39 will be the new top rank ship in the German Bluewater fleet in the upcoming Eagle’s Shadow major update!

Introducing the H-39

H-39 will be Germany’s biggest and strongest battleship, weighing in at over 63000 tons. She’s also the longest ship in the game, at around 277 meters! Despite the visual similarities she’s very different to Bismarck, so let’s have a look.

Feature Spotlight: 406 mm guns

The ship is equipped with eight 406 mm guns in four dual turrets, making it the largest caliber weapon available to Germany. The performance of the cannons is similar to the American 406 mm, found on the likes of South Dakota and North Carolina. As such, few enemy vessels will be able to withstand an accurate salvo from these guns, they are comfortably able to defeat the armor of enemy battleships within most combat ranges. The reload speed is slower than Bismarck however, at 2 shots per minute on a trained crew.

Using the H-39 in Battle

H-39 is a relatively comfortable battleship to use. Its external belt armor is slightly thinner than Bismarck, but its internal armor setup is stronger across the board, which gives H-39 better protection overall. The only weak area of protection is towards the front and rear of the ship. If front-on or angled slightly towards an enemy, shells will be able to bypass the thick internal protection and cut straight into the magazine, so make sure you don’t angle the front or rear of the ship too strongly towards an enemy.

Your torpedoes can be a relatively successful weapon too, as they are fairly uncommon in the higher ranks of battleship combat. The launchers are positioned at the front of the ship however, which may require some careful angling to align correctly. If you need to change direction, consider firing off a set of torpedoes as you do so. It is generally not worth weakening your armor protection by aiming straight at enemy ships, so fire your torpedoes if the situation allows, rather than relying on them.

The giant turrets of H-39 traverse relatively quickly for their size, making reacting to new threats convenient and fast. As long as the enemy does not have an angle into your rear or forward magazine, H-39 will be able to withstand a lot of incoming fire if you maintain a good distance. Also, keep in mind the relatively weak anti-air protection of the ship, and position around allies with stronger defenses.

Developer Comment: H-39 is a very fitting top ship for Germany. The weakness of Bismarck could be considered to be the guns, which H-39 solves with room to spare. She may not be particularly agile or well defended from the air, but if she’s positioned effectively at long range there are few battleships she’ll struggle to engage, regarding both offense and defense. Stick with the team for protection from the air and stay at the longer ranges and she’ll treat you very well.

Vehicle History

Design work on what would become H-39 began in 1937, with an order to improve on Bismarck and match any potential rival's main battery. Hitler wanted the guns to be larger than any existing adversary, but this would push displacement of the ship past 80,000 long tons, a size and draft that German ports could not reasonably handle without major dredging. As a result a more manageable 406 mm battery was chosen, and battleship H was ordered on April 14th 1939.

The keel was laid at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg on July 15th 1939. The work was slow going, H only had around 800 tons of steel in its keel, with the war in September 1939 suspending the work. The meager keel rested on the slipway until November 1941, the navy then ordered the keel to be scrapped, reusing the steel for other projects. Following the loss of Bismarck and bomb damage to Scharnhorst, the design continued on paper. These events lead to the proposal of thicker deck armor and larger 42 cm guns, among other various planned improvements. Direction shifted shortly after however, with most designers moving onto U-boats, which led to battleship work ceasing entirely in August 1942.

That’s all for today, we hope you’re looking forward to giving this huge battleship a try in the next major update. It’s not far off now, stay tuned!

Please note that vehicle specifications may be subject to revision and change before being added to the game.