US Heavy Cruiser Tech Tree Guide - Your_SAT_Score

[HogHammer]

Note: These guides are courtesy of Your_SAT_Score from the old forum and saved by request.

Table of Contents:

- Introduction
- Skill level
- Who I recommend the line to
- Captain build and ship upgrades
- Armor and durability
- Main Armament
- Torpedoes (technically lack of)
- Anti-Air Defense
- Anti-Sub Airstrikes
- Maneuverability
- Concealment
- Consumable Options
- General Playstyle
- Individual Ship Rating
- Gameplay tips
- Final Thoughts

The following is my review of the US Heavy Cruiser tech tree line. 
My assessment is current as of January 2023 in patch 12.0. 
Barring major changes, this guide will remain relevant throughout the future. 
This guide also applies to the premium ships Indianapolis, Wichita, Tulsa, and Salem due to their similarities. 

Note: This guide will go into great detail, analyzing the individual parameters of these ships. 
If you want quick gameplay help, I recommend reading the "Captain build and ship upgrades", "General Playstyle", and "Gameplay Tips" sections.

Summary: Close-range cruisers with excellent firepower. Radar at high tiers gives them extra versatility against DDs. 

Skill floor: Above average

Their close-range playstyle and poor citadel protection make them unforgiving of mistakes.
More nimble ships are more challenging to lead due to the longer shell travel time. 

Skill Ceiling: Very high

Their performance scales significantly with game knowledge.
Knowing which BBs can or can’t overmatch you can help determine whether you can be aggressive.
For example, a Des Moines can run at a Bourgogne because the latter’s AP will bounce so long as DM remains angled.
Trying the same against a Kremlin is more likely to send the player back to port.
Knowing which islands you can shoot over also helps a lot for long-term survival.    

Recommended for:

- Team support/Objective control - Friendly DDs love it when you support them 
- High-risk high reward gameplay - Comes with the nature of aggressive gameplay
- Ranked/Competitive modes - Salem and Des Moines are sometimes used in competitive play
- Hard carry potential - High-tier US cruisers have the tools to effectively fight every ship class in the game

Not recommended for:

- Beginner cruiser players, Japanese and German cruisers are easier to learn
- Passive gameplay, they have poor performance at long range 

Captain build and ship upgrades: (used for all ships)

Randoms Build: https://share.wowssb.com/qxvH

Take the skills in the numbered order.
I highly recommend using one of the Doe brothers for their improved Gun Feeder and Grease the Gear skills.  
They are available in the armory for a relatively cheap 35k coal or 1,500 doubloons. 
Halsey is even better as earning the "Confederate" achievement reduces reload time by 20%, on top of having the Doe brother's enhanced skills. 

Skill Explanation:

• Gun feeder - Faster switch to AP rounds to catch the occasional broadside cruiser
• Priority target - Good to know how many players want to farm you
• Adrenaline Rush - Improves your firepower in the mid-late game after taking damage. 
• Concealment expert - Better concealment = better ability to position. You don't want to be spotted broadside to a BB as well. 

After your core skills, I recommend the following skills:

• Superintendent - Extra heal and radar can be game-changing during long matches
• Top Grade Gunner - -Synergizes well with her close combat specialty. You don't have to actually fight at close range, an enemy behind a tall rock can also activate the skill, letting you farm his allies. 
• Grease the Gears- Helps offset their poor turret traverse. 
• Survivability expert - Small, but useful boost in HP. 

Alternative randoms skills:

Consumable Enhancements is fine for buffing hydro and radar.  Replacement for Priority Target
Radio Location - Only useful for radar cruisers. Effective for chasing down DDs, but the skill itself is expensive. Not recommended except for specific niche builds. 

Co-op/Operations build:

https://share.wowssb.com/kK3s

This captain skill set maximizes the ship's ability to farm bots. 
Not recommended for randoms due to your excessively poor concealment. 

• Grease the Gears - Taken first due to constantly switching targets in operations
• Consumable Enhancements - Longer hydro to dodge waves of torpedoes
• Heavy HE - Free 10% boost in firepower. Concealment penalty is not a concern in PvE modes
• Survivability Expert - Last a little longer and hope the bots target someone else
• Top Grade Gunner - Free -8% reload time as 99% of the fighting is done within your detection range
• Outnumbered - Mainly for operations as sometimes you have to carry underperforming teammates. 
• Gun Feeder - Can quickly switch to AP to farm broadside bots
• Adrenaline Rush - Taken last as other skills provide more consistent boosts to her performance. 

Armor and durability:

-    Above average HP pool for Tier 6-8, below average for Tier 9-11
-    Thicker bow/stern plating allows US CAs to bounce higher caliber BB shells than other cruisers
-    Mediocre citadel protection, often takes citadel hits when broadside
-    Almost non-existent poor torpedo protection

Baltimore is shown as an example. 

External Armor: (remember, this is meant to represent the typical US CA armor scheme; individual ships will have varying armor thickness, and some even have different layouts.)

Spoiler

Internal Armor: (remember, this is meant to represent the typical US CA armor scheme; individual ships will have varying armor thickness, and some even have different layouts.)

Spoiler

Blue line represents the waterline

US heavy cruisers have improved bow/stern armor for their tiers. 
Pensacola and New Orleans get 25mm bow/stern armor and can bounce 356mm or smaller AP. 
Tier 8 and above get 27mm armor, which will bounce 381mm or smaller AP rounds. 
When angled correctly, certain BBs cannot overmatch their bow/stern armor.
This overmatch mechanic can be used to great effect when fighting certain BBs as they struggle to damage you. 
Keep in mind higher caliber BB shells will ignore your bow/stern and deal significant damage. 

Other than their bow/stern armor, the rest of the ship is poorly armored.
Anything that overmatches the armor will almost always deal pen damage. 
The citadel shape is somewhat unusual, with a moderately sized mid-section and a narrowed section under the turrets. 
Like other cruisers, shots that land under the smokestacks will cause citadel damage.
However, US cruisers are less likely to take citadel hits under the turrets. 
If you are forced to show broadside, you can try manipulating the salvo to hitting the turret areas. 
Doesn't completely avoid the chance of a citadel hit, but it's better than nothing. 

Note that Des Moines and Annapolis uses a different citadel layout. 
DM citadel is just 1 long block sitting high above the waterline, making her easy to citadel. 
Annapolis citadel uses "spaced armor" similar to some French ships. 
Shells that penetrate the armor belt may detonate in the void between the armor and citadel, resulting in merely a pen. 

As for their torpedo protection, they have none. 
4%/7% damage reduction effectively does nothing, so take the torps in the bow/stern. 
Damage saturation mechanic will protect you more than the actual torp belt, or whatever counts as one.

Overall the armor scheme leaves much to be desired.
They are situationally tanky at best, and very squishy on a bad day. 
Not as bad as the British light cruisers, but it's bad enough to where you expect a citadel when showing broadside. 

Main Armament

-    Progressively faster reloads as you advance up the tiers
-    Short effective range due to their slow shells and limited gun range
-    Excellent AP firepower with improved penetration angles 
-    Excellent firing angles, most US CAs can fire full salvoes 30° off the bow or stern

US heavy cruisers are one of the few lines with enhanced AP penetration angles. 
Normally AP rounds will start the bounce check at 45°, ending at 60° where all shells are guaranteed to bounce regardless of the shell's actual penetration value. 
US heavy cruiser AP rounds instead start the ricochet check at 60° and auto-bounces at 67.5°. 
Basically, you can citadel ships at angles other AP rounds would ricochet. 
Keep in mind their actual AP pen is average at best for heavy cruisers,
You will penetrate armor at better angles, but it doesn't mean anything if you lack the pen to get through the armor in the first place. 
Against cruisers, you can land citadels under ~10km. 
Some BBs can be citadeled sub-5km under the front/rear gun, but generally it's better to aim for the upper belt for constant pens. 

As good as their AP is, HE will still be your primary ammo type as players tend to angle. 
HE is effective against all classes thanks to the 32mm pen. 
Only certain heavily armored sections of BB and cruisers can resist it, but it won't stop you from lighting fires. 
The heavy cruiser line is generally average for starting fires, though this isn't a problem as you already deal significant direct damage. 
Des Moines and Annapolis are the exceptions due to their high rate of fire. 

The US slow shells are a mixed blessing. 
On one hand, they can lob shells over low islands. 
A well-placed cruiser can farm out entire flanks while remaining hidden. 
However, they struggle at longer ranges due to longer lead times and limited gun range. 
DDs and fast cruisers can be hard to hit without a lot of practice. 

At least the guns themselves have respectable handling thanks to their excellent firing angles. 
It is possible to remain fully angled while firing full broadsides.
The slow turret traverse can be a problem at closer ranges, but otherwise can be overcome with practice. 

In practice, your guns perform best under ~12km. 
While you can still hit larger ships, other heavy cruisers have the advantage as they will land more shells at greater distances.  
Against DDs, I don’t recommend shooting past 11km unless he is critically low.
Low effective range becomes a notable weakness at high tiers where large map size and passive meta can make approaching very difficult.
Instead, hold your fire until you can get close. Force them to fight at your ideal combat ranges. 

Excellent AP and good HE. Avoid sniping contests and you will be fine. 

Torpedoes

Spoiler

Aside from Phoenix and Omaha, US tech tree cruisers do not carry any sort of torpedo armament. 
Your guns already murders anything that gets close, so this usually isn't a problem. 
However, lack of burst damage is a notable drawback at point blank range. 
If the guns can't kill in 1 salvo, then healthy BBs and cruisers will usually delete you in return. 

Anti-Air Defense

-    Above average AA overall
-    AA is mostly concentrated in the mid and short range
-    Access to DFAA, shares slot with hydroacoustic search
-    Highly vulnerable to air attacks

Spoiler

(Slightly exaggerated for effect, might not be completely historically accurate)

You would think US AA would be good, but sadly this isn't always the case. 
CVs will easily fly around their meager flak bursts and the long-range continuous AA doesn't deal much damage. 
Their AA is mostly concentrated at short and mid-range, meaning plane kills happen after the strike. 
DFAA usually doesn't change this, though you can kill an entire attack squad if you get lucky. 
Expect enemy CVs to get 2 attacks off, sometimes 1 if the CV is lower tier or has already taken damage. 
At least you will kill a few planes, which may matter if you survive to the late game. 

This leads to the other problem: durability.
US cruisers often take heavy damage from any attack, whether it be AP bombs, torps, rockets, or even enemy BBs joining in on the dogpile. 
Maneuverability is key to your survival, literally, just dodge their attacks. 

Overall while US cruiser AA is technically good, it's just not good enough. 
If anything gets through, either you dodge or you die. 

ASW Airstrikes

-    Identical ASW as other same-tier cruisers
-    Can strike from a distance, but low damage

Spoiler

             When your depth charges deal full damage to the enemy

US CAs share the same depth charge airstrikes as other heavy cruisers. 
Deals minor damage, but generally better than getting shot to pieces trying to run over the sub. 
Radar can also catch subs on the surface, letting you get 1 strike off before he dives.
Airstrikes can also be used to bait out enemy AA, giving keen players a rough estimate of the enemy’s position.  

Maneuverability

-    Generally average top speed, but mediocre at Tier 9-10
-    Very tight turning circle, usually the tightest of their respective tiers
-    Extremely responsive rudder shift 
-     Sorry, no meme for this one 😞

US cruisers are generally very maneuverable with a small turning radius and fast rudder.
With fast reactions, you can dodge or angle to anything thrown at you, whether it its shells or torpedoes. 
They aren't fast boats, but they usually have enough speed to run away. 
Well, except for battlecruisers and French ships. 

Concealment

-    Better than average surface detection (except Pensacola)
-    Better than average detection by planes

Aside from Pensacola, US heavy cruisers have very good concealment.
This synergizes with their close-range playstyle, helping them ambush ships and radar DDs.
Only the Japanese and British cruisers will routinely outspot them, and neither wants to get into a close-range fight.
Their air detection radius is better than most, but not enough to stop enemy CVs from spotting them for free.
Stealth is your greatest asset, letting you avoid long range fights so you can position to your advantage. 

Consumables

-    Standard Cruiser Damage Control Party
-    Standard Defensive AA OR Standard Hydroacoustic Search 
-    Standard Ship-based Fighter consumable, Tier 9-10 can also use the Spotter plane consumable, but shares the same slot
-    Access to 10km radar starting at Tier 8 Baltimore (shares same consumable slot as the planes)

Spoiler

            Cursed Des Moines build. Yuro, what have you done?

Pensacola and New Orleans have the typical cruiser consumable options: Damage control party, DFAA/Hydro, and fighter plane.
Hydro is recommended as the close combat nature of US cruisers usually involves dodging waves of torpedoes. (+10% evade if Eurobeat is playing in the background) 
I don't recommend DFAA unless you are fighting 2x Tier 6 CVs every game.
It won’t shoot down many planes, but hydro may not be useful if you can't get close. 
Fighters are mostly to stop follow-up attacks, they won’t work until after the enemy has finished their initial run.
You are forced to use them, so may as well put them to work. 

Starting with the Tier 8 Baltimore, US heavy cruisers get access to one of their defining gimmicks: 10km radar.
When activated it reveals all surface ships within range, no matter if they are in smoke screens or behind islands.
Radar will also extend your viewing range during cyclones, giving you an extra 2km buffer where you can stealth fire other ships.
If you catch them at close enough range, you can even kill them in your long radar duration.
Radar is equally deadly to both DDs and CLs, forcing them out of smoke and putting them into a vulnerable position.

Radar also happens to share the same slot as the fighter and spotter consumables.
Unless you are memeing around, never trade your radar for a fighter or spotter.
There is no realistic scenario where either plane is worth using.
If you really need the extra range, take range mod instead.  
For high-tier ships, hydro is highly recommended to avoid losing half your HP to torps. 
Tier 10 and supercarriers will strike though your defenses anyways, so don't bother with DFAA.  

General Playstyle

Early Game: 

This is arguably the hardest part of the game due to the sheer number of options available. 

On certain maps, you can rush to nearby islands and guard the caps. 
Sleeping Giant A side, Shatter A/C caps, and Shards are good examples where you can safely get close in the early game. 
Once in position, you can poke your bow out and farm enemies. 
Back up if you come under focus fire, rinse and repeat. 
While this tactic is easy to use, more experienced players tend to shy away as it ties you into that position. 
It can be difficult to move away should the enemy rush you with overwhelming strength. 
Check out the "Island Gameplay" section of Gameplay Tips for further help. 

You don't always have to play for caps though. 
Sometimes securing the flanks lets you out-position the enemy so you can take the caps later. 
Northern Lights 9/10 flank and Sea of Fortune west side are prime examples. 
While contesting caps are nice, it's often better to kill the enemy or push them away. 

Of course, sometimes matchmaking gives you the Ocean map or spawns you away from islands. 
In those cases, don't be afraid to kite in open water.
Play similar to other kiting cruisers like the German or Japanese cruisers. 
Doing damage is good, but don't take unnecessary risks. 
You have a full 20 minutes to play, so don't rush it unless your team is literally exploding. 

If you feel very confident in your mechanical abilities, you even just ignore caps entirely and go farm damage. 
US cruisers can output amazing damage, though the skill difference is surviving long enough to impact the match. 
Radar can always be saved for discouraging DDs from permaspotting you. 

Mid Game: 

Mid-game is generally shaped by how well your DDs performed in the early game. 
If your team is up on caps, you can camp near a contested cap and ambush enemy DDs trying to play the objective. 
In the meantime, continue to farm enemy ships that wander into your gun range. 
In the rare case where the enemy team has lost all their DDs, just go farm damage.
They probably won't try for the objective, so may as well boost your PR before the game ends. 

If your team is deficient in caps or DDs, your radar becomes more important as the team relies more on you to counter enemy DDs. 
Try to stick near objectives or allied DDs.
The latter will be more confident with your support should they run into enemy opposition. 
While you should prioritize shooting enemy DDs, don't forget to farm other ships. 
Not only does this boost your Personal Rating, but more importantly sinking enemy ships first is a good tactic to improve your own survivability. 
Basically, you have to balance between supporting your DDs, killing enemy ships, and your own survival. 
Can get complicated at times, but this aspect of decision-making gets easier with more experience. 

Late game:

US Cruisers are amazing late game due to their ability to 1v1 most ships in the game. 
Unless you are fighting a higher tier ship or a German battlecruiser, you should come out on top. 
Radar also ensures enemy DDs can't take caps for free. 
It's impossible to go into specifics due to the infinite late game possibilities, but generally speaking focus on maintaining a point lead. 
Send healthy ships to secure the caps and run down their weakened ships. 
Damaged ships can provide support if the enemy is distracted, but it can be better to run away if they risk dying and giving the enemy free points. 

Quick Individual ship assessment

Pensacola: 8/10

Excellent ship, easily one of the best Tier 6 cruisers.
She plays remarkably similarly to other BBs due to her hard-hitting guns, slow turret traverse, and poor concealment. 
That being said, she has a notoriously easy-to-hit citadel. 
Whatever you do, make sure you are angled to any AP threat because Pensacola has practically no belt armor.
As long as you stay angled, you will smash other ships with your hard-hitting salvoes. 
Once you learn how to play Pensacola, the rest of the line should be relatively smooth grinding. 
Make sure to start with a 10pt captain. Not having Concealment Expert is painful even at this tier. 

New Orleans: 3.5/10

New Orleans is basically a user-friendly version of Pensacola. 
What she loses in broadside salvo weight she compensates with better concealment and turrets that actually turn. 
Although the citadel is smaller, her 25mm extremities armor is ineffective at this tier because 380mm guns are now commonplace. 
However, the main issue with New Orleans is her Tier 7 matchmaking, particularly when uptiered. 
Not only are Tier 9 ships a massive jump in powerlevel, but the long-range and passive meta is also a difficult transition from the closer-range fighting in mid-tiers.
New Orleans will struggle in those matches, even compared to other Tier 7 ships.
It's not so much New Orleans is a bad ship, but rather that she suffers the curse of Tier 7 matchmaking. 

At least you can play her in operations. 

Baltimore: 9/10

Baltimore is an amazing ship and arguably the first true jack-of-all-trades cruiser.
She improves on her predecessor in nearly all aspects, then goes 1 step further by receiving the radar consumable. 
Her radar is unique in that she is the only US heavy cruiser who can stealth radar, (radar ships that her outside her detection range)
Basically, Baltimore can ambush DDs unfortunate enough to spot her. 
When facing lower-tiered and inexperienced DD players, Baltimore becomes a formidable DD killer. 
Doesn’t apply as much to fast gunboat DDs like Le Fantasque, but they don’t want to fight you under 8km.

Balti is also very strong against cruisers and battleships with smaller than 380mm guns.
The only things she worry about is the lack of heal and 406mm+ BBs.
Still, if you abuse your concealment and island shooting advantages,
Baltimore will be a powerful foe even in Tier 10 matches. 

I recommend playing Baltimore until you level up the captain to 13 points. 
You want Superintendent on Buffalo for that extra heal. 

Ranked:
In ranked, Baltimore is a decent anti-DD cruiser.
However, BB players know this and will spare no expense to kill you. 
Still, with proper positioning and a little support, Baltimore can prove one of the better cruisers for Tier 8 ranked. 
    
Buffalo: 4.5/10

Buffalo is ok as a ship, but not comfortable to play due to her matchmaking and turret arrangement.
The 2 front 2 back turret arrangement makes it harder to use islands.
Her arcs are still good but positioning to fire over islands is harder since going bow in costs you half your guns.
Tier 9 matchmaking is also unkind as fighting totally balanced superships is not fun. 
Of course, Buffalo is still extremely powerful when downtiered.
Smaller maps heavily favor her and she can prey on inexperienced T7 and T8 DDs.
Buffalo isn’t the worst T9 to grind, but you won’t miss her when you get Des Moines. 

Des Moines: 9/10

Des Moines is literally the "Haha 203mm autoloaders go brrrrr" meme. 
Anything that tries to exist within 12km is met with overwhelming freedom.
With her absurdly fast reload, she can quickly kill almost every ship in the game. 
10km radar ensures she can even liberate DDs from existence. 

However, Des Moines will quickly get smashed just as quickly if not handled carefully. 
Almost anything will citadel her broadside if it's not properly angled. 
At close range, BBs can also citadel you through your bow/stern. 
It doesn’t help that it’s difficult to position a short-range cruiser in a long-range meta.
Still, Des Moines is one of the best ships in the line, and is generally considered the best T10 cruiser for randoms.

Unique Mod: 
Her unique mod essentially gives her Minotaur acceleration 
This turns DM into an amazing dodging machine, though heavily reliant on player skill to be successful. 
If you run her unique upgrade, I recommend taking Incoming Fire Alert or Priority Target to help you dodge. 

Ranked:
Des Moines is also excellent in ranked due to her sheer versatility.
Radar is invaluable for countering DDs while her firepower can deal with almost everyone else.
The main exception is a decent CV player ignoring your AA to drop bombs or torps on your head.
Still, if you can survive the main threats, you will rank out quickly.  

Clan Battles/Competitive:
Des Moines role in competitive is that of a 10km point defense weapon, guarding caps and chokepoints with her radar. 
She can also be used in smoke divs, though Nevsky is typically used instead. 
If her 10km radar is not needed, Salem is a better pick due to her superheal. 
Unfortunately, both ships suffer from her lack of effective range and predictable positioning. 
Enemy teams can safely farm her from distance and move in once they are neutralized. 
Due to this, Moskva is typically used for her higher durability, 12km radar, and the ability to fight back. 
Normally DM would be good at lower leagues, but falling off at around high storm/low typhoon. 

In season 20 of clan battles, Des Moines may see more use as many of her dangerous BB matchups have been restricted. 
The extra effective survivability and interesting cap layout may give her a useful role in this season. 
Kleber lineups will pose a problem, but DM with the proper support can prove powerful in smaller maps. 

In King of the Seas, she is a map-dependent pick and occasionally a Nevsky replacement for smoke train strategies. 

Annapolis: 9/10

Essentially the Des Moines with an extra turret in the back.
Not only does she have more firepower, but the narrow citadel and resulting spaced armor can prevent a lot of citadels when angled.
Her funny button (burst fire) fires off 36 shots in 3 seconds, easy dev strikes against close-range DDs and cruisers.
For all her strengths, she suffers from the same drawbacks as DM.
Smart players will stay at range and focus her down.
Still, if you can get her to within 12km of the enemy, she will literally drown enemies in a hail of 203mm shells.
The only reason Annapolis isn’t a 10/10 is because Conde exists. 

Competitive modes
Annapolis isn’t commonly used because Conde is just way too strong. 
The latter is practically unkillable while farming down entire teams. 
Annapolis needs smoke to function properly, and she is still limited by her gun range. 
10km radar isn't worth using. 

General tips

Getting close in the early game

Aggressive early-game positioning is important for supporting your DDs and keeping enemies off the cap. 
If you haven't already, turn on ship detection radius and radar range on the minimap.
We will use this to check our position to ensure radar covers the entire cap

The most common way to get close is with islands. 
Use them to block line of sight as you approach. 
For some caps, it is possible to hug a nearby island to protect your side. 
There, you can stick your bow out or position just slightly behind to fire over the island. 
Not all islands are tall enough or in safe positions to use. 

Spoiler

Note that my left flank is completely protected. I can also back up and turn around if the enemy pushed to the 9/10 line. 

As opposed to sitting on the island, you can use the island to mask your broadside as you do the turnout. 
This puts you in a kiting position, ready to receive an enemy push. 
On certain maps you can time it when an enemy DD enters the cap.
This was you surprise the enemy DD with radar while being able to dodge potential incoming fire.

For open water positioning, use your DD as an early warning detection
Stay approximately 6-7km behind him and ask him to smoke 2-3km before he enters the cap.
This way you get radar coverage of the cap should the enemy DD try contesting. 
Remember to use hydro as an angry smokescreen attracts a lot of fish. 

Island Gameplay 

US cruisers perform well around islands, using them to get closer and fire behind cover.
As mentioned earlier, cuddling next to an island and using bow guns is a common tactic. 
The island protects one side and you can back up to safety if necessary. 
Simple, but effective tactic.
Just don't stay for too long or otherwise you will get overrun if the enemy pushes with overwhelming force. 

To be honest, using islands is something you have to learn from experience. 
Use the Neighbor's spot as an example of what good island cover looks like. 
It doesn't have to be tall or big island, as long as it keeps you hidden then it's doing its job. 
Experience is a good teacher of what works and what doesn't. 

Spoiler

Another example of using islands as cover. I know Gokase is not a US ship, but this example applies to all ships including US cruisers. 
Note how far I am away from the island between me and Queen Elizabeth. 
With some creative positioning, you don't necessarily need to hug islands to remain undetected while firing. 

On an unrelated note: I hate Gokase. Pensacola is a far superior ship. 

Open water kiting

While US cruisers are not ideal in open water, this is still important to master as islands are always available. 

The goal of kiting is to outtrade the enemy and slow his push. 
Think of it as a fighting retreat; you force the enemy to bleed HP for each inch of water they take. 
To kite, first you point the bow away from the enemy. 
Stay angled to the enemy while keeping most/all your guns available. 
If the enemy tries to push, then you move away and maintain distance.
When done correctly, the enemy will struggle to hit you while you deal damage in return. 

Against BBs, you typically will kite at ~12km-max range.
BBs hurt and staying near max range gives you enough time to dodge. 
You can get closer against lower-caliber BBs since you can just angle to their AP. 

Vs cruisers, usually, it's between 10-12km since they are harder to hit. 
Closer is nice, but this also makes it easier for enemies to hit you and may result in unnecessary damage. 

Remember these are just general guidelines for kiting based on my experience.
Your ideal kiting position will vary depending on your health, enemy crossfire, and even available support. 

A good kiting position is one that best balances survivability and damage output while forcing enemies away from their next objective. 

Spoiler

An example of open water kiting, using Gokase as an example.
I know it's not a US cruiser, but the kiting principles apply to every ship. 
See how my ship is already angled away before firing. 
By staying at roughly 12km, I give myself enough time to dodge shells while still being able to return fire. 
If the BBs give chase, then I can run behind the island.
In this case they don't take the bait, but I still deal some damage to them before they exit my gun range. 

Pushing

US cruisers may perform well at close quarters, but that alone doesn't mean they are good at pushing. 
They aren't tanky enough to survive extended fights, though they can still quickly overwhelm DDs and cruisers. 
Most BBs will overmatch your bow, so be very careful when pushing into them. 
Limit enemy angles when pushing so that 1 or 2 can shoot you at a time. 
Use the back gun whenever possible.
Your turret angles are good enough to fire all guns while remaining angled. 
If you need to disengage, it's usually best to dive behind islands. 

Farming Fire Damage

The idea is to juggle fire damage between multiple ships, earning you witherer and/or arsonists in the process. 
BBs and large cruisers are good targets as they take the full 60s fire duration. 
As soon as you light 1 fire, immediately switch targets. 
Skilled players will usually let 1 fire burn, but others may immediately DCP 1 fire. 

If the enemy does use DCP, time your next HE salvo so that it hits just after the immunity period ends. 
Most BBs DCP lasts 15s, with Japanese BBs taking 10s and US BBs 20s. 
If done correctly, you can light a permanent fire that drains up to 20% of their HP. 
DCP cooldown is 80 seconds, so keep spamming them until they catch fire. 

While farming damage feels great, do not tunnel vision so hard that you lose track of the match. 
Farming does you no good if you ignore the DD taking your home cap for the win. 

Using AP

AP is devastating against broadside ships, dealing amazing damage against both BBs and cruisers. 
They are best used under 10km due to shell flight time, though they remain effective against oblivious enemies at longer ranges. 
For cruisers, aim for the smokestacks and rear guns to maximize the chance for a citadel. 
If the enemy angles, you can usually sneak a citadel hit under the bow turrets unless he completely bows in. 
As good as your AP is, you can't overmatch Tier 6+ cruiser bows, so switch back to HE and continue farming.
Gun Feeder is highly recommended as you can quickly switch back to AP if he accidentally shows too much side. 

Against battleships, aim for the upper belt for constant penetration damage. 
Don't bother going for citadels unless you are under 4-6km and the BB is completely broadside.
If by some miracle you have survived this long, aim under the front or rear turret. 

Friendly smoke

US cruisers synergize well with DD smokescreens, letting them get close without the need for islands. 
Works best with coordinated divs, but sometimes you can also coordinate with random DDs in chat. 
For coordinated divs, ask your DD to stay 1-2km in front. 
Tell him to lay smoke the instant you are spotted. 
The DD should curve the smoke to give you room to maneuver in case random torps happen to spawn nearby. 

For rando DDs, I recommend you ping where the DD should lay the smoke ahead of time. 
You don't want to be typing into chat while a BB snipes you across the map. 
Remember to compliment him once he lays the smoke. 
This is an example from the destroyer's point of view: (Mainz is used as an example, but US cruisers can follow the same steps.)

Spoiler

Mainz and I are communicating on deploying smoke.
Mainz is following at a safe 3km behind while I lay the smoke. 

As you can tell, the extended smoke gives Mainz a lot of room to maneuver. 
Remember to use hydro as torps are naturally attracted to smoke. 

Side note: MiniHannibal65(the Mainz player) is a Community Contributor who streams regularly on Twitch. I recommend you give him a follow on his twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/minihannibal65

Radar

Who. Has. Radar??? You. Have. Radar!!!
Radar reveals all enemies with 10km, rendering them vulnerable to you and your allies. 
DDs and some light cruisers hate you as they can no longer safely keep you spotted or smoke up to farm you. 

The most common usage is to cover caps to dissuade enemy DDs from playing the objective. 
You don't need to radar immediately. 
If you wait until they are halfway done, you can also farm a few defense ribbons before kicking them out. 

Spoiler

Same example as the Island positioning tip. 
I radared the Akatsuki as soon as I had a clear shot on his expected location (i.e. when I was spotted)
Take note of the minimap. I used the radar circle to ensure I had full radar coverage of the cap. 

Radar can also be used to ambush ships in smoke. 
A well-timed ambush will heavily damage, if not outright kill the ship when done correctly. 
First of all, don't immediately radar. Let the enemy slow down or back up in smoke. 
This way they remain stationary during the first few critical salvoes. 
If he is unaware of your presence, try getting closer so you can land more hits. 

You can also use radar to discourage DDs from spotting you. 
If you are spotted even after firing guns, you can try a radar to potentially catch and damage the DD before he retreats.
Doesn't always work against smart DDs, but you can damage less capable DDs if timed correctly. 

Even if you can't shoot the radared target, don't forget you may have teammates who can. 
This way you can flush enemies out of cover or just push them away so your team can advance. 

Finally, always use radar just before you die. 
There is no reward for holding on to extra charges and spotting that random DD will still give valuable info to your team. 

For optimal radar performance, enable radar range to be displayed on the minimap.
This way you can use the minimap to better catch enemies on the edge of your range. 
I also recommend using the "3D Radar" mod found in Aslains and Modstation as it shows the radar ranges of you and your allies on the game map. 

While radar is a powerful tool, it's not worth sacrificing your ship for. 
Better to play safe. You can always use your radar later, but you can't use it if you are dead. 

CV games

While CV games are not fun for most ships, US cruisers hate their ability to counter island gameplay. 
Good CV players can use islands to hide from your AA, minimizing both damages taken and giving you little time to react. 
Lack of mobility also makes you a sitting duck. 

Play more passively at the start until you know where the CV has spawned. 
Avoid hugging islands for long periods, especially if the CV is on your side. 
At the very least, be in a kiting position ([edited]into the island) and be ready to run if the CV attacks. 
It is easier to dodge in open water. 
Try to limit the angles that enemy BBs can shoot at you.
May not always be possible, but do the best you can to dodge.

Passive matches, aka everyone, is hiding behind spawn

Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do in these situations. 
You can lockdown caps or try switching flanks, but if the enemy doesn't want to play, then it is what it is. 
Advance safely, moving cover to cover. 
Be in position in care the enemy does grow a pair and comes back in. 

Not all games are winnable

You will get unwinnable games from time to time.
Even the best players with the most try-hard divisions cannot win 100% of their games. 
At the end of the day, World of Warships is a game designed for entertainment (and farming whales for profit)
If WoWs is making you miserable, it's time to take a break.
Get up, walk around, do something productive. Anything to get your mind off of WoWs. 
You can always come back later. 

Final Thoughts

Overall US heavy cruisers are a powerful tech tree line. 
While they aren't the easiest ships to play, their sheer firepower and utility lets them hard-carry games that few others can match. 
Because of this, they are arguably the strongest indicators of a player's skill. 
Anyone can average 120k damage by safely kiting in spawn all game. 
But it takes skill to properly balance aggression and restraint to be successful in Des Moines. 
If you want to truly get gud, then play the US heavy cruisers. 

I quite enjoyed my regrind on my alt account. 
Not only do I not have the pressure of keeping my stats, but I also get a feel for how newer players may experience WoWs. 
After all, I am not using 21-point captains or have enough signals for every game. 
It also shows how strong the US CAs remain despite being one of the oldest cruiser lines in the game. 
Newer cruiser lines may have 300 torp tubes or spawn entire air forces out of thin air. 
But even with their fancy gimmicks, they still can't match the simple effectiveness of just having radar and good guns. 

Sources used

https://app.wowssb.com/

- Used for all relevant ship parameters. I highly recommend using them to test-build your ships before investing points into your captain. 

https://shiptool.st/

- Used for ship comparisons

World of Warships armor viewer

- Baltimore's bulkhead armor is just sad

As this is my first tech tree line guide and second guide overall, feedback is welcome so future articles will be of higher quality. 
For now, I intend to keep my guides on the long side due to the amount of detail needed for each section. 
Shorter guides might be more readable but at the risk of the reader not getting the full picture.
That being said, this guide is about ~6800 words long or roughly 27 pages in Microsoft Word.
If you prefer shorter articles or don't mind the long read, then let me know in the comments so I can adjust the length for future guides. 
I may also consider adding a video in the future if it helps demonstrate my advice. No commentary, though. That's too much work.