It's an inevitable consequence of a rock-paper-scissor design, where every class has at least one strength and one weakness, but players play as though it's them v the entire enemy team.
On VERY rare occasions I have managed to have some of the team want to work together, and the results have always proved far more effective in the part of the battle where that occurs.
If your DDs scout but focus on staying alive and sometimes even use smoke, your CAs provide boosted AA fire for your BBs while firing at CA/DD targets spotted by your scouting DDs, and then your BBs fire at CA/BB targets while being screened from enemy DDs and having massed AA from themselves and supporting CAs, that combination is very deadly to a disorganised enemy.
But good luck getting it to happen.
Most likely way of getting it is to have a full squadron with a BB, CA and DD in it.
Most people seem not to provide any thought whatsoever to how they play. They seem not to grasp what their vessel is best suited to do, and conversely what its weaknesses are.
And then there's domination, where people think pushing a flank then chasing a CV miles away is more important than capturing zones and then holding them.
It's disturbing to think how much of the population seems incapable of much thought beyond "find red dots and pew pew", but that's how it seems to be. There are many times where I would love to be able to appear on another player's screen and seek to understand their thinking (not rant at them, but genuinely ask them to explain what they are trying to do and why), because I simply can't relate to the overwhelming levels of stupid I see over and over.
Sad but inevitable.
As for maps?
If it's domination, grab zones. The central one is usually crucial, so a smart DD player will attempt to grab that immediately. Then it's far MORE important to deny the enemy the ability to take zones you hold. Nothing else matters as much. Let them sit back and take pot shots at 20km; it won't make a difference to the result. And do NOT bother to push far past the zones; you need only hold them, not take the whole map/kill every enemy.
If it's not domination, concentration of force. Crucial for your BBs to be prepared to push a flank eventually, but (much like WoT) there's something to be said for killing the brave/stupid enemy players who advance alone early in the piece. At some point your heavies need to press an attack; one reason for SO many draws is there are loads of coward BBs who sit at the back and never bother to use their health reserves (including regen) to force the issue.
CVs IMO should be using fighters either to screen their own BB force OR find enemy DDs then take them out with dive bombers. If you can remove an enemy's DD forces you've gone a long way towards winning IF your BBs have some courage. If your CVs have used their fighters to defend your BBs, they can send their torp bombers to follow the enemy ones returning to their carriers. Why get shot to bits on a defended BB/CA line if they can go hammer the enemy CV attempting to recover its own planes (that hopefully are greatly reduced after running into your own BB/CA force with fighter cover in attendance).
And when you come to the 'push' phase, don't leave the cap entirely undefended. Your DDs/CAs need to be prepared to go deal with the inevitable enemy DD who tries a stealth cap.
That is generally how I see it.
Usual rules apply.
Don't go alone if you're a BB/CA.
Don't go into narrow spaces as a BB unless you KNOW for certain where the enemy DDs are. Even CAs have torps, but at least your guns can wreck CAs.
Don't make yourself an isolated target for planes. BBs should at the very least be with another BB or two. If you can have a CA nearby, all the better.
This game is pretty simple in principle. That so few seem to grasp it is enough to make you wonder at the mental capacities of a lot of humanity.
p.s. that Ice Block map is the worst IMO. It's just daft. Proper combined arms needs SOME room to be done properly, and you spend so much time trying to avoid collisions it's simply pants on head stupid.
All credits to Steeltrap
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