User blog comment:FlammeumDraco333/Tales From the Not so Blocky Seas/@comment-27820070-20150924050551

Ship Review- IJN Kawachi.

Yes. Something different rather then the usual NFL ship review, this time, it is about the IJN Kawachi. One thing that really surprised me was that the Kawachi in WoWS and the Kawachi in NFL are very similar in play style and have some of the same characteristics.

So in this review, its going to be a review of the Kawachi in TWO separate games, WoWS and in NFL, because there are differences.

...Ok I'll stop talking. --- First beginning with NFL. I think Doc and I can agree that Kawachi is literally slower then some of the early submarines in each of the respective navies. In fact, it is actually slower then the Nelson fully loaded when the Kawachi is fully loaded.

The gun placement is abit wonky at some times, and this can be a bleasing or a curse. Due to the Kawachi's guns on BOTH SIDES, you can easily deal with FLANKING ships, and you will be dealing with ALOT of flanking ships when you are in this. A Nelson can outflank this ship, so having guns on both sides help.

The bad news? Well, this means that you can only fire 4 of your guns maximum at one target at any given time, and that your kawachi is one of the most reliant ships on "angling" the ship, you angle too little and you can only fire 3 or even 2 of your salvos.

In terms of armor...its fairly good. Its not exactly Nelson-levels of armor or Dreadnaught level's of armor, but it is good enough and many of the 6" cruiser guns WILL bounce off, and you will be VERY VERY unlucky if a destroyer's AP shells hit and deal full damage.

The worst thing is that the turning circle. It is not good at all. I mean...its not County-Class level of bad, but it isn't good either. With a ship that so reliant with broadsides, you NEED every turn you can get to bring the maximum amount of your guns to your target.

The guns are average, but like many Japanese guns, they all have insane deck penetration.

Alright thats NFL done, so you can now stop looking at the post.

The Kawachi in WoWS is just...a big, flat, floating TURD of a ship. If you thought the Kawachi cannot get any slower then NFL standards, you didnt see nothing yet. You have to drive the Kawachi...17 knots at stock. 17. Knots.

Its even worse then you expect in WoWS. now, there is something clled Rudder shift time, making it even harder to turn your guns to your targets. Even worse, the gun angles aren't getting any better either.

The gun's are the biggest weakness. IT has a 9.8 km range FULLY MAXED. You know what has a 9.8km range?

The St. Louis.

And its not even a Battleship.

Even worse, you know whats faster then 17 knots (and the upgrade 20 knots)?

The St. Louis.

The only thing that will save you is the repair party consumable, but in most cases, that wont save this bloated PIG of a ship in WoWS. If you have a bunch of free XP, I recommend to immediately skip the Kawachi and get to the Myoko, it is infinitely better.

(And BTW, the Kawachi is so terrible that it would be FAIR to place it at tier 2. That is literally how bad the Kawachi is.)

NFL: Kawachi gets a 6/10.

WoWS: Kawachi gets a 666/10000000.