DDs - The More I Play The Less I know

[Jakeshuffle]

Good morning Everyone,

I have been playing for about six months or so now and I just don't understand the game sometimes. I love DDs but I get caught in the classic blinders and just get destroyed by not paying attention. I'm wondering if I'm falling for a trap by trying to get the cap right away? I know DDs play very differently and I've been trying to find ones that work with how I play but I think I just play wrong lol. As an example, I have 5.8km detectability so I think I'm good to go to be on the caps or at least real close by. With how many ships have radar these days am I just throwing myself to the wolves by getting so close to cap within the first 4 minutes of the game?

[yss_turtleship]

I've been playing for just a little bit over a year but still learning a lot about how to play the DD class which I main. I will let the more experienced players reply but here are some of my observations.

• Staying alive is the greatest priority, especially at the beginning of the game
• DDs play differently from other classes  and each DD is different and needs to be played differently
• Develop your minimap awareness skills. This is akin to being a pilot who has an Instrument Rating and can fly in any weather. Without it, they can only fly when the weather agrees and is limited. Without expanding your minimap awareness you are limited. I am still working on this myself.

[Justin_Simpleton]

Noob DD player here.  I'm playing just one line of DDs, European, and concentrating on trying to just spot and not shoot.  When I get the spotting figured out, I'll be working on my shooting.  Meanwhile, just blast out torps and take a cap when you can.  

[Admiral_Karasu]

Yes, as a DD your first priority is staying alive to make a bigger impact later on in the battle. Throwing your battle by getting your DD quickly sunk when trying to cap against all odds is not going to help you or your team to win, despite maybe you getting pings and 'encouraging' comments from people on your team.

I'm not a good player, mind you, so take my advice with a grain of salt. What you may be facing when trying to cap early is very likely at least one red DD, potentially someone who is either better, or has better guns, or better stealth, and who brought friends with him, meaning something like a cruiser in the background or maybe even two, and potentially with radar. Your team, on the other hand, might be better at using chat and pinging than at providing support you need.

Capping is only half of the capping aspect of the battle, the other is cap defending or cap denial. Two ways to do that, if you are good enough you can periodically engage the enemy DD to reset the cap, but the conditions I outlined above may make this risky still. If you have good stealth and there is no enemy radar close to the cap, the most risk free option is to spot the enemy DD capping, and just let your support fire at it. If the enemy DD uses smoke, you can always try area denial with your torps.

These decisions you pretty much have to do on the fly and there's many aspects that you have no influence over. It's important to learn to play the DD you have to its strengths and learn its weaknesses. It's really good if you have a good knowledge of the ships you will be facing as well. Obviously, too, the higher the tier, the diceyer it gets, and the higher point captain you will need. Concealment expert is pretty much a must for all DD's.

[HogHammer]

These are just my thoughts, but DDs can be the most rewarding and fun warships to play @Justin_Simpleton .  They do, of course, take a lot of practice, and I would encourage you and others who are new to DDs to play other nations as well.  There are some excellent videos on Youtube also which can help with tactics and how to/how not to play them.

[Took]

45 minutes ago, HogHammer said:

These are just my thoughts, but DDs can be the most rewarding and fun warships to play @Justin_Simpleton .  They do, of course, take a lot of practice, and I would encourage you and others who are new to DDs to play other nations as well.  There are some excellent videos on Youtube also which can help with tactics and how to/how not to play them.

Also watch Twitch,,   watch Maltese Knight,, watch Obnoxious potato ..  very good dd players..   can learn map positioning from them,, but if your team doesnt shoot at what your spotting,, your screwed anyways.. so just have fun,, torp boats is  good way to learn dd's at first then get in to gunboats..

[yss_turtleship]

38 minutes ago, Took said:

Also watch Twitch,,   watch Maltese Knight,, watch Obnoxious potato ..  very good dd players..   can learn map positioning from them,, but if your team doesnt shoot at what your spotting,, your screwed anyways.. so just have fun,, torp boats is  good way to learn dd's at first then get in to gunboats..

Ripper DD on YT also!

[Ensign Cthulhu]

Go watch Destroyer Kuroshiokai's vids on Youtube. Some of them are getting a bit long in the tooth now, and the meta has changed somewhat with the introduction of new ships, but his vids offer very good general principles that are still valid. He's the reason I stuck with both IJN destroyer lines all the way to Tier 10, and a lot more besides. 

[Col_NASTY]

1 hour ago, Took said:

but if your team doesnt shoot at what your spotting,, your screwed anyways.

DD main here. 99.999% Lone wolf.  I was horrible with DDS until I realized I was ALONE.  Once you accept that,  it becomes much easier.  

Whenever you actually get  support it is AWESOME! 

Never let people in chat goad you into CAPPING too soon or going into sure death to spot for them as they hide.  Those same people will run away and leave you there as soon as the fighting starts.

Once you make your own decisions and play to the objectives in a safe but effective way,  then you will get better and better and begin to LOVE DDs.

Just don't let the back row heros get you killed while they stay safe.

OH.. and like they said WATCH ALL THE VIDEOS YOU CAN FIND!

3 Times.

Edited August 16, 2023 by Col_NASTY

[AdmiralMcintosh]

I got a little advice for you on DDs but it's not my expertise mind you, well to me what a DD should do at the beginning of the match is to take control of cap and defend it from the enemy team and ambush those who are within range by shotgunning them with your torp spread. Try to kill the enemies DDs first by using your HE guns and torps cause after that the enemy is at quite the disadvantage. Hug around the islands and wait for the BB's to come and kill them. Like I said I don't really play this class much but I know how to survive and make a contribution.

Edited August 16, 2023 by AdmiralMcintosh

[Type_93]

5 hours ago, Jakeshuffle said:

Good morning Everyone,

I have been playing for about six months or so now and I just don't understand the game sometimes. I love DDs but I get caught in the classic blinders and just get destroyed by not paying attention. I'm wondering if I'm falling for a trap by trying to get the cap right away? I know DDs play very differently and I've been trying to find ones that work with how I play but I think I just play wrong lol. As an example, I have 5.8km detectability so I think I'm good to go to be on the caps or at least real close by. With how many ships have radar these days am I just throwing myself to the wolves by getting so close to cap within the first 4 minutes of the game?

I’m no unicum player, but I do know how to play DDs effectively. Add me in game and I’ll show you the ropes of DD play. 

[Type_93]

1 hour ago, AdmiralMcintosh said:

I got a little advice for you on DDs but it's not my expertise mind you, well to me what a DD should do at the beginning of the match is to take control of cap and defend it from the enemy team and ambush those who are within range by shotgunning them with your torp spread. Try to kill the enemies DDs first by using your HE guns and torps cause after that the enemy is at quite the disadvantage. Hug around the islands and wait for the BB's to come and kill them. Like I said I don't really play this class much but I know how to survive and make a contribution.

I’ll disagree.  Capping first shouldn’t be your objective. Never die for a cap. Spot. That’s your main duty of finding the enemy ships. 

[AdmiralMcintosh]

1 minute ago, Type_93 said:

I’ll disagree.  Capping first shouldn’t be your objective. Never die for a cap. Spot. That’s your main duty of finding the enemy ships. 

Well we all got our different views on DDs.

[Guest Capt_of_Satisfaction]

3 hours ago, Col_NASTY said:

DD main here. 99.999% Lone wolf.  I was horrible with DDS until I realized I was ALONE.  Once you accept that,  it becomes much easier.  

Whenever you actually get  support it is AWESOME! 

Never let people in chat goad you into CAPPING too soon or going into sure death to spot for them as they hide.  Those same people will run away and leave you there as soon as the fighting starts.

Once you make your own decisions and play to the objectives in a safe but effective way,  then you will get better and better and begin to LOVE DDs.

Just don't let the back row heros get you killed while they stay safe.

OH.. and like they said WATCH ALL THE VIDEOS YOU CAN FIND!

3 Times.

Good advice here.  Don't be goaded.

Capping is fine depending on the circumstances and what DD you're in.  Many variables, like spawn point, how many red radar boats, how many other DDs, what support you have, etc.   Positioning in the cap is also critical, like not facing red, make sure you are turned and angled away from the cap zone so you can get out of dodge quickly.  Timing of when to cap is very important.  Some DDs are better for capping than others.  Radio Location and Dazzle are good skills to have as well, once again, depending on DD.  Sometimes capping is a waiting game, positioning and timing.  Also, I can't emphasize enough how you must monitor your mini-map often, especially since you mentioned the "classic blinders."  This was an issue for me my first few years.  Get in the habit of checking MM quite frequently.  If you keep yourself aware of what's going on around you and not getting zoned in on who your attacking in the moment, things will improve, trust me.  You're a bird, keep your head on a swivel and don't sit a lot unless you're island camping and fire starting.  Still, be checking that MM.  Also, spotting and harrassing is sometimes far more valuable than capping.  It just depends.  Capping takes skill and practice.

Lots of great Youtube on DD play as mentioned.  DestroyerKuroshiokai is my favorite.  He's very analytical.

Edited August 16, 2023 by Capt_of_Satisfaction

[Guest Capt_of_Satisfaction]

13 minutes ago, Type_93 said:

I’m no unicum player, but I do know how to play DDs effectively. Add me in game and I’ll show you the ropes of DD play. 

^ I would take him up on this if I were you :-)  That's a very nice offer!

[Jakeshuffle]

Oh my gosh, thank you everyone for the pointers and help! I'm also trying to memorize what ships have radar and whatnot but...that will take a while haha.

[SureBridge]

3 hours ago, Jakeshuffle said:

Oh my gosh, thank you everyone for the pointers and help! I'm also trying to memorize what ships have radar and whatnot but...that will take a while haha.

At the beginning of the match it will show what the enemy ships are, and what nationality. If you see a US, British or Russian cruiser at T8 or higher it probably has RADAR. There are some exceptions but that saves you a lot of memorizing. 

I think that it is useful to "learn to DD" with the Euro line (slow and no smoke) because it forces you to think about maneuverability rather than smoke farming (which can be a terrible trap at T8 when you get hit by radar and focused into oblivion). Always make sure you have an escape route, bonus points if that escape route has a friendly cruiser, BB or both in close proximity. Play with friends in a div, so that you know you can count on support (and comms) it makes a world of difference!

I'd also take up Type 93 on his offer - he's pretty terrifying to play against, and I would check his recent (past 7 and 30 days) to see if *those* are unicum rather than his overall averages...

[Type_93]

3 hours ago, Jakeshuffle said:

Oh my gosh, thank you everyone for the pointers and help! I'm also trying to memorize what ships have radar and whatnot but...that will take a while haha.

You’ll get there bro. Nothing substitutes for experience, the more you play the more you’ll learn. 
One of the biggest tips I can share is to make your mini map bigger. This will let you know what red ships are there, where your support is and you can guess where certain ships might want to hang out. Radio location is a must for DD play. 
All the regular posters here are solid veteran players. Heed the advice you get here and roll it into your own playstyle.

PS. Thanks for the props guys, even if I’ve been playing like crud lately! 

 

[CriMiNaL]

i think the OP might have gone up to higher tiers to quickly from what I read, learning how to dd should be done at the lower levels so you are competant once you reach higher levels.

Certain coutries DD's will play certain ways and by learning this, will make you a good DD player.

As far as racing to the cap, you have to look at the red teams composition and know what has radar, hydro, better detection than yourself, this will decide on what you do first up, and as much sometimes its great getting a cap, often it will be flipped if your team has not supported you in some way

[Jakeshuffle]

6 hours ago, CriMiNaL said:

i think the OP might have gone up to higher tiers to quickly

You would be so, soooo correct lol

[dommo77]

On 8/17/2023 at 1:38 PM, Jakeshuffle said:

You would be so, soooo correct lol

Apart from excellent advice that other forumites gave I would urge you to try British DD line. It has few features that make them very forgivable for less experienced players - from tier VIII at least. They have hydro that although is short range but it runs forever, and helps to avoid torpedoes and other surprises (like ambushes behind the corner of the island), and tackle new threat - subs. Their smokes are short duration but they have many, and excellent to avoid combat or hide from planes. You can shot single torpedoes, this is very helpful when facing charging bow in ships. Their guns are also excellent with high fire chance and good AP, and they have one of the best tier for tier concealment, which helps to survive. 

As for tactics - do not worry too much about caps, first of all make sure you know where the biggest threats are - which side red CV chose to support, where are red DDs and radars, how your team is positioned - do not count for help, always assume that you're alone, but if you have other teammates near the cap you are contesting there's always a chance that they focus radar cruiser of pesky DD that you just spotted. 

GL & HF, and don't get too frustrated, DD game is difficult and complex, be patient. 

[Verblonde]

On 8/16/2023 at 8:37 AM, Jakeshuffle said:

With how many ships have radar these days am I just throwing myself to the wolves by getting so close to cap within the first 4 minutes of the game?

As others have said, getting an early cap (that can be lost again later) is not worth getting sunk for - in almost any DD, your primary mission is 'not die'; everything else is secondary to that. Of course, if the opposition are daft, and let you nick said cap, go for it - the steady tick of the victory points it generates may put pressure on the other side.

Vision control is a key part of many DD's play, although the degree varies enormously. I'm personally pretty poor in most non-sneaky DDs, as I struggle a bit with knowing when not to open fire ("what is this *not* opening fire of which you speak? Are you mad?!"). For the sneakier ones (arbitrarily, say 6 km ish and better), understanding how the vision mechanics work, and playing around them can be very powerful (and gives you an edge over a worryingly large number of opponents).

On a related note, it's worth learning - as much as you can - which things have radar and hydro; they're the big threat if you're trying to be sneaky (besides CVs and bloody submarines, of course). Early on, a broad-brush approach is a good start (as someone mentioned earlier, assume all Russian, American, and Pan Am cruisers have radar; British ones *can* from T8, but commonly don't. The new EU DDs get short-burn radar, and T8+ PA DDs can take it, but commonly don't. Besides that, it's the premiums you need to be concerned about; for example, I often do horrible things in Ranked with Orkan, because - I think - people often forget she has radar. Learning all of them just takes time.).

Speaking of submarines and CVs: CVs will ruin your sneaky play; if a CV decides to concentrate on you, there is rarely anything much you can do - in that case, your job becomes to make yourself as hard to kill as possible (use every trick you know e.g. judicious smoke, hard turns at the right time, when to activate/deactivate your AA, and not forgetting sector reinforcement). You want to make the CV waste as much time as possible until they either go after someone easier, or the game ends with them largely neutralised. Submarines on the other hand are - for the reasons done to death elsewhere - a damn nuisance; if you think there is one in your sector, go somewhere else - they out-spot you, and - unless the opposition are idiots - if you try and run one over to use depth charges, the rest of the red team will blow you out of the water.

[Jakeshuffle]

6 hours ago, dommo77 said:

I would urge you to try British DD line.

I kid you not, I just went back to the Cossack I got WAY back when. I like it more than my Black, or at least I like it for different reasons. That Hydro is no joke, over 3 minutes when I have the coal upgrade.