USS Cleveland class Light Cruiser

Look! Something that isn't Japanese! MERICA'! FUCK YEAH!!...Yeah I apologise to both countries respectively...

The first US ship I've been thoroughly looking forward to in the entire tech tree, and the one that actually got some respect in the way at this tier! All the American ships up to this point were ones simply built after WW1 ended, heck even during WW1. Now for some modern WW2 stuff with this cruiser line, and the Cleveland is named by many, the sweet spot in the American Cruiser line up until the Des Moines class Heavy Cruiser, which is the tier 10 cruiser. Yeah not many people like American Heavy cruisers due to the fact they're kind of ineffective compared to the Japanese heavy Cruisers which have torpedoes in them. But the US cruisers have it in spades when it comes to AA, and the Cleveland is the start of getting really good Anti Air defense.

Armed with 12 152mm guns in 4 triple turrets, the Cleveland dishes out fast DPM and devastating amounts of firepower with the use of a smaller caliber round. By this point, Japan's cruisers have 203mm guns, slower firing but heavier damage. The rival to the Cleveland is the Aoba class Heavy Cruiser, which is armed with 6 203mm guns in 3 dual turrets. The problem with the Aoba is that its got a HUGE citadel in the middle of the ship where its superstructure starts and ends with the funnel. The Cleveland one on one can destroy most cruisers with the power of its DPM, it just spews rounds endlessly. Its HE is the reason people HATE fighting this thing sometimes, unless they're in a tier 8 vessel, and this makes Cleveland number 1 priority for the most experienced players in the game. 

So the Cleveland is in reality a gunboat Light Cruiser, just there to fire and fire...and fire...but it also retains one of the best AA defenses in its tier, able to be extremely useful escorts for both Carriers and Battleships alike. Carrier players think twice before attacking anything that a Cleveland is defending. If there's a group of 2 or 3 Clevelands, a game can really be turned around if the enemy isn't prepared. In short, this is a must get for any American ship player, able to take on a whole variety of ships and provide great AA support. A nice addition to my Port. Now to get myself a New York class Battleship! Then the New Mexico, and hopefully the North Carolina and the almighty Iowa!


USS Cleveland class History:

The Cleveland class was introduced in 1942, following on the heels of the Atlanta class cruisers. Though excellent anti-aircraft vessels, the Atlanta class was shown to be very unsatisfactory in the anti-surface role. Furthermore, it was considered too lightly armored to directly engage other cruisers. Therefore, the Naval design board decided to design a new series of cruiser combining the excellent gunnery of the St. Louis class with the formidable anti-aircraft firepower of the Atlanta design. Enter the Cleveland design.

The design basis for the Cleveland class was heavily influenced by its gunnery. The war had just started and the Navy needed to step up production, creating as many cruisers as possible for the war effort. Due to the need to rapidly produce cruisers, the design board could not waste time researching newer components. Therefore, the Cleveland design would make use of the 6"/47 guns of the St. Louis class and the 5"/38 guns from the Atlanta class. To speed design even further, the hull was carried over from the St. Louis class with minor modifications.

The design board started with a hull like that used by the USS Helena (CL-50). Turret #3 was removed to allow for more 5"/38 guns to be carried. Additional armor and intermediate AA weapons were installed. Finally, existing power plants were utilized to allow for immediate production. However, all of the additional equipment made the ships extremely heavy. Stability problems heavily affected the ships. However, the navy needed more cruisers so production commenced immediately. Two initial cruisers, USS Cleveland and USS Columbia were ordered. Based on the two initial cruisers, the following ships were altered to improve their design and fix earlier issues.
The second batch of Cleveland class utilized several new features. A tumblehome hull was added to improve side protection and stability. The double bottom became a triple bottom. Additional generators and greater ammo capacity was also implemented. While these features marked the start of the production series, additional changes were placed on the newest designs. The Cleveland class was 600 feet long, 63 feet at the beam, and weighted 11,800 tons. (14,131 tons full load)

The Cleveland class carried the same 6"/47 guns as the Brooklyn class. The Mark 16  6"/47 gun was an excellent gun for its size. It could fire a 130 lb shell at a muzzle velocity of 2,665 feet per second. Maximum range was just over 26,000 yards. A unique feature of the guns was that they could elevate to 60 degrees, though loading could only be done at a maximum of 20 degrees. The Cleveland class carried 12 of these weapons in four triple turrets. (Two fore and two aft.)
5"/38

The Cleveland class also carried 12 of the tired and true 5"/38 guns. The guns were mounted in 6 dual turrets with one forward super firing over the main armament, one after firing over the main armament, two turrets port and two starboard. The 5"/38 were effective DP guns that were deadly against aircraft and light vessels alike. The placement of the guns allowed the Cleveland class to enjoy great arcs of fire all around the ship.

Medium AA firepower was provided by the 40mm Bofors guns. Initial ships carried 12 of these weapons, but by the end of the war they carried as many as 28. The 40mm Bofors provided excellent hitting power with a good rate of fire. They could obliterate aircraft with a single hit and their effectiveness was only increased with the introduction of the VT fused shells. Oerlikon 20mm Light AA firepower was provided with the Oerlikon 20mm cannons. 20 equipped the cruisers until 10 were removed to add extra space for more 40mm guns.

The Cleveland class was well armored for light cruisers. They had a 3.5-5" belt and a 2" deck. The internal design of the ship was greatly improved over preceding classes to provide greater damage resistance and structural strength. Turrets and Barbettes were protected by armor up to 6" thick and were well protected against the guns of other light cruisers. Protection under the waterline was also improved. The ship had a triple bottom to reduce torpedo damage. The engineering spaces were also modified to ensure that a critical torpedo hit would not completely knock out the power plants.

The Cleveland class carried the same power plant as the earlier St. Louis class. This standardization ensured improved reliability and easy access to parts should problems arise. The Cleveland class had four boilers and turbines producing 100,000 horsepower. This allowed the Cleveland Class to reach 32.5 knots and cruise for nearly 15,000 nautical miles.

Despite their problems, the Cleveland class was an excellent class of vessels. Their capabilities were high enough that many naval historians consider them the best light cruisers of World War 2. They combined excellent firepower on a well armored hull with good speed and range. Their firepower was such that they could even give some heavy cruisers a run for their money. The Cleveland legacy extended well beyond cruisers. Of the original order for 52 ships, 27 were completed with 3 cancelled. 9 ships were used to create the independence class light carriers. These light carriers made up the core of US naval power and helped to destroy Japanese power in the Pacific. 13 more Cleveland were reordered into the Fargo class configuration.