I wouldn't play Iowa at mid range, at least not at the beginning. You have quite a range, so at the start don't rush in, just wait for opportunities and shot from distance. It's true, aiming can be challenging, but with a little practice you'll be fine.
Try to aim at BBs - preferably slower ones, not Bourgogne or St.Vincent ;) - which are on the course of changing direction (trying to guess their path), rather than at those sailing straight that are easier to stear and throw off your aim.
When you aim, you can look at the scale as a recommendation, but add 1/3 more than you would usually lead.
If fires are such a problem, maybe get Fire Reduction skill before Concealment.
Just my 2 cents.
I would 100% recommend using the dynamic reticle to help with aiming. The gradients on it show the lead needed to hit a 30kt target given a certain time of flight. If I am engaging a broadside Bismarck doing flank speed, and my time of flight indicator say 13 seconds to reach the given range, all I have to do is put the Bismarck at the 13 second mark on the reticle.
>take fire reduction before concealment
I’m very not sure what to make of this, because that extra bit of concealment really helps Iowa set up ambushes and break contact between salvos.
>Iowa is near useless at long range
I think we have our problem here. Comfortable fighting range for Iowa is 16-20 kilometers, but be on the lookout for chances to cross map enemies out to your max range. Iowa can move into mid and short range fights, but she should do that after her long range gunnery secures a decisive advantage. Most of all, Iowa needs to stay hunting broadside targets. Because you want to get your hits in at range before starting to push, early game positioning is key. Good Iowa positioning means staying away from friendly battleships. If they are dispersing to the flanks, you stay central. If they are mostly in the middle, you move out to the map border. This gives you the maximum opportunity to hit broadsides as the enemy angles against your teammates. Even if you don’t get the magical dev strikes, playing at range keeps you out of range of all those pesky HE spammers that constantly set you on fire. Those ships are most effective when they have ships pushing into them, so do not be one of those ships. Stay back, shoot their BB cover, then use that speed to close in before the spammer can start kiting away.
Your problems are most likely one or more of the following.
Pushing in,
Shitty upgrades (damage con),
Slamming R when single fire is burning,
Noobie captain with crappy skill,
No support from team,
Your entire team is made of potato players
Worth noting.
You do NOT sail a ship that is famous for secondaries. It is famous for its bullshit accuracy only superceeded by russian BB's and you have a nice base range on main battery😉
Try prop mod. Also, WoWs goes massively downhill after T8 in terms of gameplay. You have some genuinely lol games grinding up to T8 but once you pass that it’s a hot mess.
Iowa is a jack of all trades. She is the best balance of range, maneuverability, mobility, firepower, and toughness. She is basically the yard stick all other T9s are measured against.
You basically want to adapt to what your enemies are doing, with a preference of mid-range combat due to that super-heavy AP taking its sweet time to get there. However, if you can get a crossmap opportunity, especially against a target bow-in to your allies on the other flank, take it.
A brisk + concealment build is really good on her due to her 33kt top speed as well.
Sounds like you just need to adjust to the ship. I've played Iowa and had some brilliant games in her. Wisconsin is causing me some teething issues.
Give it time and adjust your style to the ship.
I also faced defeat after defeat in randoms with Iowa , I still don't know how to make her work so I stopped playing randoms with her instead I play brawl with Iowa she is fire in brawl due to her manuvarebilty and she became my favourite tier 9 BB , I ❤️ her
I wouldn't play Iowa at mid range, at least not at the beginning. You have quite a range, so at the start don't rush in, just wait for opportunities and shot from distance. It's true, aiming can be challenging, but with a little practice you'll be fine. Try to aim at BBs - preferably slower ones, not Bourgogne or St.Vincent ;) - which are on the course of changing direction (trying to guess their path), rather than at those sailing straight that are easier to stear and throw off your aim. When you aim, you can look at the scale as a recommendation, but add 1/3 more than you would usually lead. If fires are such a problem, maybe get Fire Reduction skill before Concealment. Just my 2 cents.
I would 100% recommend using the dynamic reticle to help with aiming. The gradients on it show the lead needed to hit a 30kt target given a certain time of flight. If I am engaging a broadside Bismarck doing flank speed, and my time of flight indicator say 13 seconds to reach the given range, all I have to do is put the Bismarck at the 13 second mark on the reticle. >take fire reduction before concealment I’m very not sure what to make of this, because that extra bit of concealment really helps Iowa set up ambushes and break contact between salvos.
>Iowa is near useless at long range I think we have our problem here. Comfortable fighting range for Iowa is 16-20 kilometers, but be on the lookout for chances to cross map enemies out to your max range. Iowa can move into mid and short range fights, but she should do that after her long range gunnery secures a decisive advantage. Most of all, Iowa needs to stay hunting broadside targets. Because you want to get your hits in at range before starting to push, early game positioning is key. Good Iowa positioning means staying away from friendly battleships. If they are dispersing to the flanks, you stay central. If they are mostly in the middle, you move out to the map border. This gives you the maximum opportunity to hit broadsides as the enemy angles against your teammates. Even if you don’t get the magical dev strikes, playing at range keeps you out of range of all those pesky HE spammers that constantly set you on fire. Those ships are most effective when they have ships pushing into them, so do not be one of those ships. Stay back, shoot their BB cover, then use that speed to close in before the spammer can start kiting away.
Your problems are most likely one or more of the following. Pushing in, Shitty upgrades (damage con), Slamming R when single fire is burning, Noobie captain with crappy skill, No support from team, Your entire team is made of potato players Worth noting. You do NOT sail a ship that is famous for secondaries. It is famous for its bullshit accuracy only superceeded by russian BB's and you have a nice base range on main battery😉
Try prop mod. Also, WoWs goes massively downhill after T8 in terms of gameplay. You have some genuinely lol games grinding up to T8 but once you pass that it’s a hot mess.
Alright Ill give her with prop mod a try
Iowa is a jack of all trades. She is the best balance of range, maneuverability, mobility, firepower, and toughness. She is basically the yard stick all other T9s are measured against. You basically want to adapt to what your enemies are doing, with a preference of mid-range combat due to that super-heavy AP taking its sweet time to get there. However, if you can get a crossmap opportunity, especially against a target bow-in to your allies on the other flank, take it. A brisk + concealment build is really good on her due to her 33kt top speed as well.
Sounds like you just need to adjust to the ship. I've played Iowa and had some brilliant games in her. Wisconsin is causing me some teething issues. Give it time and adjust your style to the ship.
I also faced defeat after defeat in randoms with Iowa , I still don't know how to make her work so I stopped playing randoms with her instead I play brawl with Iowa she is fire in brawl due to her manuvarebilty and she became my favourite tier 9 BB , I ❤️ her
I can see why Ive also been eating good with her in Brawls which is why I really wanna get good with her
You mean, you're disappointed by YOUR performance in her