Ship:Colbert

14.8

Colbert

Cruiser | France | Tier X

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points36,100

Main Battery

127 mm/54 Mle 1948 on an Mle 1948 mount8 х 2 pcs.

Rate of Fire17.6 shots/min

Reload Time3 sec

Rotation Speed30 deg/sec

180 Degree Turn Time6 sec

Firing Range15 km

Maximum Dispersion127 m

HE Shell127 mm HE Mark 41

Maximum HE Damage2,100

Chance of Fire7 %

Initial HE Velocity808 m/s

HE Shell Weight31.5 kg

AP Shell127 mm AP Mark 42

Maximum AP Shell Damage2,600

Initial AP Shell Velocity808 m/s

AP Shell Weight32.5 kg

AA Defense

57 mm/60 Mle 1951 on an ACAD Mle 1948 mount10 х 2 pcs.

127 mm/54 Mle 1948 on an Mle 1948 mount8 х 2 pcs.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed33 knot

Turning Circle Radius620 m

Rudder Shift Time9.2 sec

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range12.1 km

Air Detectability Range7.4 km

Battle Levels

12345678910

X

Special

Colbert — French special premium Tier X cruiser.

According to post-war plans, the French Navy was supposed to receive six AA defense cruisers, but in the end, only two were built. One was constructed using the De Grasse hull, while the other was built from scratch according to a similar design. The project incorporated several modifications, comprising a reduced transom stern, greater hull width, and a novel armor system. Colbert was built in Brest. In the first half of the 1960s, the ship served as the flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron, and between 1970 and 1972, she was rebuilt as a missile cruiser.

Colbert first went on sale on 23 August 2019 in the Research Bureau for 57,000.

Modules

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Dispersion (m)	Maximum HE Shell Damage (HP)	Chances of HE shells causing a fire on target (%)	Maximum AP Shell Damage (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
127 mm/54 Mle 1948 on an Mle 1948 mount	17.6	6	127	2,100	7	2,600		0	0

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Colbert	36,100	10	80	8		10/8				0	0

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
PCA n° 10 Mle 1		0		0	0

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 87,000 hp	33		0	0

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4
Slot 5
Slot 6

Player Opinion

Performance

Warning: The data presented in the AA Defense sidebar section may be incorrect.
Refer to the in-game Port screens for more useful data.

Tier X French light cruiser Colbert is a unique take on a fast light cruiser with destroyer caliber guns. Regarded as one of the most skill intensive ships in the game, she possesses the highest damage per minute values for both AP and HE shells in the entire game alongside a fast but lightly armored platform prone to being a free devastating strike.

Armament:

Colbert carries eighteen 127 mm guns housed in eight dual turrets. As stated above, her damage per minute is the highest in the game, with over 590,000 HE and 734,000 AP dpm. Her HE shells should be used often as their decent fire chance and damage output allows Colbert to burn every ship to the ground through sustained fire. Due to their low caliber, the 127 mm guns only pen 21 mm thus players must shoot superstructure to deal effective damage on most targets. Her AP shells are quite strong against broadside targets due to the sheer dpm and should be utilized in such cases.

The shells have lofty arcs and have poor velocity, taking up to 12 seconds to reach the maximum base range of 13.8 km. This means that Colbert can play behind islands and lob shells on targets. The short base range also means that Colbert can play on closer islands without being spotted due to the short gun bloom after firing. This will not be the case if players decide to take Gun Fire Control System Modification 2, which increases the range to 16 km.

Hull:

As a super light cruiser, Colbert has very minimal armor protection and a low health pool (36,100). She has 16 mm bow and stern plating, meaning every ship with a gun caliber higher than 229 mm will overmatch and penetrate her hull. This makes every battleship and a decent number of cruisers a dangerous threat. Her citadel is also large and easily hit when broadside.

An interesting aspect of Colbert’s armor is the 50 mm belt that can bounce shells when angled. However, this cannot be relied on against players with good aim as her overmatcheable bow can also lead to citadels and dying very quickly.

The best way to use her armor is to not be hit at all, which is helped through her excellent maneuverability characteristics. Her base maneuverability is not impressive due to average base speed and somewhat sluggish rudder shift time for a light cruiser. However, her tight turning radius and signature 20% French Engine Boost consumable allow her to swiftly traverse the map at 40 knots and assist in avoiding shells at range. Disengaging is also easily achievable with a good minimum concealment of 9.8 km.

Consumables:

Asides from the previously mentioned Engine Boost, Colbert has access to Hydroacoustic Search/Defensive AA Fire and an enhanced Repair Party consumable.

As with most cruisers, Hydroacoustic Search is the recommended choice as it allows for spotting torpedoes ahead of time and playing aggressively with islands.

The Repair Party consumable is enhanced in the way that it heals 50% citadel damage and heals 18.5% of her hp. This allows Colbert to take some hits and heal more health as long as she does not get outright deleted. She also gets 4 base charges of the consumable, allowing for plenty of health to be restored over time.

Anti-Aircraft:

Historically, Colbert was designed as an Anti-Aircraft Cruiser, but that does not carry well over into in-game performance. While her medium range AA dps is decent, she only fires 6 flak and has a lower (for a light cruiser) AA range of 6km. What this means is that Colbert will not be able to deny strikes on her own and relies on her allies to overlap AA auras to fend off strikes.

Battle Performance:

The term Glass Cannon applies heavily to Colbert and her role as a damage farmer. As she lacks armor and utility consumables such as Surveillance Radar, Colbert can only influence the outcome of games by dealing massive damage to enemy ships before her team dies. Thankfully, she is a ship that can do that, with the help of her rapid firing guns, high potential damage output, and high fires set per minute.

Colbert can be played in multiple ways depending on what the map allows and what ships are on the opposing team. Players must take into account how many cruisers overmatch their armor and judge how aggressive/passive they should play. The most common playstyle is to find safe island positions to lob shells from while remaining undetected. This relies on allied ships to maintain spotting but is safer in terms of risk. Experienced players will push the hull closer, utilizing her lofty arcs to take aggressive islands and pump out more damage. The aggressive playstyle encourages the use of the base range of the ship, allowing her to fire at targets without being spotted due to the lower gun bloom that comes with lower range.

Open water is also possible thanks to the high top speed and good maneuverability characteristics. This playstyle requires players to pay the maximum amount of attention to enemy ships and awareness of crossfires to dodge salvos while simultaneously pumping out damage. As long as fights are isolated and with enough skill in dodging, Colbert can kite targets for extended periods of time.

Division play is another option for Colbert, specifically a division with a smoke destroyer. Colbert benefits heavily from smoke screens as her low smoke fire penalty allows her to play closer to enemies and farm without being spotted. As long as the players are aware of cruisers with surveillance radar and proper screening by the destroyer, this division can be very impactful.

Overall, Colbert is a high risk high reward ship, with great damage output potential. Alongside the tendency to explode, Colbert needs to deal a lot of damage in order to impact the game and not doing so leads to being a detriment to the team. She is not a ship recommended for newer players and those unfamiliar with lightly armored cruisers to spend 57,000 research bureau points on.

Pros:

• Highest HE and AP dpm in the game
• High fires per minute
• Tight turn radius
• Good concealment
• 50 mm armor belt
• Access to Engine Boost 
• Improved Repair Party  with 4 base charges

Cons:

• Low HP pool
• Mediocre Anti-aircraft defenses
• 16 mm plating
• Large citadel
• Sluggish rudder shift time

Research

As a premium ship, Colbert has no module upgrades to research.

Optimal Configuration

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Colbert are as follows:

• Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
• Slot 2: Engine Boost Modification 1
• Slot 3: Aiming Systems Modification 1
• Slot 4: Propulsion Modification 1
• Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1  or Steering Gears Modification 2
• Slot 6: Main Battery Modification 3 or Gun Fire Control System Modification 2

A standard Colbert build takes advantage of her good concealment and boosts her gun range for more comfortable gameplay from range. This build is not the best/most optimal for dealing damage but is useful for players that are not yet comfortable in super light cruisers.

Experienced players may choose to run the build named the “Church build” by other experienced Colbert players. This build takes Steering Gears Modification 2 and Main Battery Modification 3, boosting ruddershift time and damage per minute of the ship and enhancing the playstyle of using aggressive island positions to make space and deal damage from closer ranges.

Commander Skills

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack				Defense
1	Grease the Gears +15% main battery traverse speed.	Swift Fish +5% torpedo speed.	Consumable Specialist −7.5% cooldown time of all Consumables except:  Damage Control Party   Repair Party . ★	Gun Feeder -40% time to switch shell type.	Incoming Fire Alert Receive a warning of a salvo fired at your ship from more than 4.5km. ★★★	Last Stand The ship remains able to move and maneuver - slowly - while the engine or steering gears are incapacitated. ★★
2	Demolition Expert +1% chance of main and secondary HE shells causing a fire. +15% to the fragmentation damage area of HE ordnance fired at submarines. ★	Fill the Tubes -10% torpedo tubes reload time.	Consumables Enhancements +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search, Surveillance Radar, Smoke Generator, & Engine Boost. ★★	Eye in the Sky Spotting Aircraft: • +2 charges • -50% cooldown time.	Priority Target The detection indicator will show the number of enemies targeting you with main battery. ★★★	Focus Fire Training In an active priority AA sector: •  +1.5% (to 5%) immediate damage. •  +25% continuous damage. •  +1 flak burst per salvo. −10% aircraft preparation time. −15% reload time of Airstrike armament..
3	Heavy HE and SAP Shells +10% HE and SAP shell damage. +15% ship detectability guns 149mm and up. ★★★	Pack a Punch +15% torpedo damage. +20% secondary battery range..	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% reload time of all armaments per 1% HP lost +0.2% AA continuous damage per 1% HP lost. ★★★	Heavy AP Shells +5% damage for AP shells 190mm and larger.	Superintendent +1 charge to all consumables. ★	Survivability Expert +450 HP per ship tier. ★★
4	Top Grade Gunner -10% reload time of secondary batteries If enemy ship is spotted within detectability range, -8% reload time of main battery. ★★★	Outnumbered If there are fewer allies than visible enemies within the ship's base main caliber firing range: +8% ship speed -10% main battery dispersion. ★	Radio Location Shows the direction to the nearest enemy ship. The enemy is alerted that a bearing has been taken..	Inertial Fuse for HE Shells +25% armor penetration of HE shells Base fire chance reduced by half.	Concealment Expert -10% detectability range of the ship. ★★★	AAA & ASW Expert +25% continuous AA and flak damage. +15% damage inflicted by depth charges. While AAA is active: −50% ship consumables reload time..
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful      ★★ - Frequently Useful      ★ - Occasionally Useful     No stars - Not Useful

The “Church build” chooses to optimize damage output while also considering some concealment options in order to boost the strengths of the ship. The skills should be taken in this order:

Last Stand: To protect against engine destruction and preserve rudder shift Consumable Enhancements: Extend duration of Engine Boost to over 4 minutes Adrenaline Rush: To increase damage output Concealment Expert: To decrease concealment to 10.9 km Survivability Expert: To increase HP pool and healable health Heavy HE and SAP shells: To increase HE damage without concealment penalty due to low caliber Top Grade Gunner: To decrease reload time further Incoming Fire Alert: To aid in dodging shells at range

Phillipe Auboyneau is the recommended captain due to the Improved Survivability Expert he provides.

Consumables

Colbert can equip the following consumables:

• Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
• Slot 2: Defensive AA Fire  or Hydroacoustic Search 
• Slot 3: Engine Boost 
• Slot 4: Repair Party 

Camouflage

As a premium ship, Colbert comes with Default permanent camouflage and a set of permanent combat bonuses.

Signals

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Charlie Kilo +5% ship HP; +2.5% squadron HP.	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration. ★	India Yankee -20% to fire duration. ★	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy. ★	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire.
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. ★★	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time. ★★	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts.	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★★★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used. ★★★
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator .	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire . ★★

Gallery

Historical Info

Colbert, 1959

Construction

Builder: Arsenal de Brest, Brest, France

Laid down: 17th May 1954

Launched: 24th March 1956

Commissioned: 5th May 1959

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Specifications

9,085 tons displacement, standard

180.5m length

20.3m beam

6.5m draft

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Machinery

Four Indret boilers generating steam for two sets of CEM Parsons geared steam turbines

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Performance

33 knots at 87,000 shaft horsepower

4,000 nm at 25 knots

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Armor

Main belt: 50-80mm

Decks: 50mm main deck

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Armament

Main

Sixteen (8x2) 127mm/54 Model 1948

Anti-aircraft

Twenty (10x2) 57mm/60 Model 1951

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Aircraft

One helicopter

History

Design

The last pure-gun cruiser built by the Marine Nationale, the Colbert was the sole product of what was initially a far more ambitious program. After the Second World War, France was desperately short of cruisers – only three heavy cruisers survived, all obsolescent and useless designs used only as depot ships, as was one of the older light cruisers, while others were used as training ships. Of the six modern La Galissonnière-class light cruisers, half were lost at Toulon, while the other half managed to survive the war. These three cruisers – Glorie, Montcalm, and Georges Leygues – would form the core of France’s post-war cruiser force.

Immediately following WWII, the French Navy began to work on its future fleet structure. As early as March 1945 studies were begun to explore the possibility for a new type of light cruiser with twelve 152mm guns in four triple turrets (the project was abandoned in January 1948). According to the fleet plans drawn up in 1946 and 1947, the Marine Nationale wished to operate two (initially three) battlegroups, one of which could be placed at the disposal of the new NATO alliance. In order to achieve this, a force of twelve cruisers were planned by 1960 – three new light cruisers, and six specialized anti-aircraft cruisers. Ultimately, though, France’s financial situation prevented this from being completed, even with a substantial injection of cash from NATO funds (read: America) in 1949. No additionally light cruisers could be ordered, and ultimately only two of the six anti-aircraft cruisers could be completed – the first was the cruiser De Grasse, laid down before the war and completed to a revised design serving as the prototype for the new AAW cruisers, and the second was Colbert herself, based on De Grasse’s completed form.

Colbert weighed in at about 9,230 tonnes standard, and 11,587 tonnes fully loaded – about a thousand tons lighter than the 9,530/12,520-ton De Grasse. The hull was slightly shorter and beamier, which contributed to the slower design speed. Propulsion power was 86,000 CV on two shafts (Parsons shaft geared turbines) for a design speed of 32 knots. Power was supplied be four Indret 45 kg/cm² (450ºC) boilers, and despite the reduction of fuel load (from 1,850 tons to 1,708 tons) endurance was substantially increased (from 6,000 to 7,000 nm at 18 knots). Due to the ship’s purpose-built role as an anti-aircraft cruiser, she carried considerably less armour, with a 50-80mm armour belt protecting her machinery spaces and a 50mm armour deck over the machinery spaces.

The armament remained identical to what was fitted on De Grasse – sixteen 127mm/54 Mle 1948 in eight twin mounts. The gun was largely a copy of the American 5”/54 Mk.16, and used the same ammunition – firing shells of 31-32 kg at a velocity of 808 m/s with a 9,000-meter AA ceiling, the guns had good ballistic performance and a high rate of fire in the order of 15-18 rounds/minute. Fully dual-purpose, the guns were serviced by four directors, each equipped with a rangefinder and a DRBC 31B fire control radar. This long-range air defence capability was backed up with a powerful battery of medium AA guns, the ubiquitous 57mm/60 Mle 1951. This French AA system was based around the Bofors 57mm AA gun, which fired 2.6 kg projectiles at a velocity of 865 m/s and a cyclical rate of fire of 120 rounds/minute. They were divided into four groups (fore, aft, port beam, starboard beam), each controlled by a director with a DRBC 31A fire control radar.

In 1970 the ship began a major refit that largely reworked the design, to make it better optimized for modern anti-aircraft warfare. All armament and fire control were stripped from the ship and the superstructure reduced. Ballistic armament was reduced to two 100mm/55 Mle 1968 single mounts forward, modern dual-purpose guns firing 13.5 kg shells at 867 m/s with a 6,000-meter ceiling and 9,000-meter effective range. Rate of fire was an impressive 60 rounds/minute, and fire control was conducted via directors using the DRBC-32C fire control radar. However, the main anti-aircraft armament was the twin launcher for the Masurca Mk.2 mod 2 SAM (Surface-to-Air Missile), a super-sonic (Mach 3) anti-aircraft missile with a range of 55 km and 30 km ceiling. 48 missiles were carried in the magazine, with the entire system weighing 450 metric tons. Target acquisition was first achieved with DRBV-23C Jupiter air search radar, a long-range 2D radar that would identify, out of the incoming, the two highest-priority targets, which would then be transferred to the pair of DRBR 51 fire control radars, which provided guidance for the Masurca Mk.2’s (which on paper used a semi-active radar homing, and thus required terminal guidance from the DRBR 51’s – however the mod.2 had a simpler proximity fuse and was extremely reliant on the fire control radars). Two missiles could be in the air and guided at the same time, although it was also possible to fire off multiple missiles, picked up by the guidance radar while they sped in the general direction of the target. However, the missiles were bulky, and thus slow to load from the magazines onto the launching arms. The refit was completed in 1972, and shortly after the missiles were replaced by the updated mod.3 versions, with a superior guidance system (a true SARH system). In 1980, four single box launchers were added for the MM38 Exocet anti-ship missiles, as were the associated DRBV 51 Triton fire control radars. These subsonic sea-skimmers (315 m/s) had a range of 42 km and packed a 165 kg warhead.

====Service====

Historical Gallery

• 
  A great side view of Colbert steaming out of port.
• 
  Colbert as she sat as a museum ship from 1993-2007.
• 
  Colbert from a nice angle as a museum ship.
• 
  Colbert sitting in mothballs waiting to be scrapped.

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References

1. French cruiser Colbert (C611) - Wikipedia

Ship Change Log

• Available for testing by supertesters in the game starting from Update 0.8.4.

Testing Changes

• Apr 20, 2019:
  • Preliminary characteristics.
• May 27, 2019:
  • Bow and stern plating thickness increased from 13 to 16 mm.
• June 13, 2019:
  • Repair Party consumable changed:
    • Restoration of casemate (non-citadel) damage increased from 50% to 60%.
    • Restoration of citadel damage increased from 33% to 50%.
• June 21, 2019:
  • Improved initial acceleration dynamics.
  • Number of charges of the Repair Party consumable increased from 2 to 3.
• July 10, 2019:
  • Detectability by air increased from 6.0 to 7.41 km.
• Aug 2, 2019:
  • HE shell fire chance decreased from 9 to 7%.
  • Main battery reload time increased from 3 to 3.5 s.
  • Main battery firing range decreased from 15.5 to 13.8 km.
  • HE shell damage increased from 1,850 to 2,100.
  • AP shell damage increased from 2,450 to 2,600.
  • Acceleration dynamics reverted to standard values.

• Update 0.8.7:
  • Available in the "Research Bureau" section of the Armory for 57,000 Research points.
• Update 0.9.2:
  • Armor thicknesses changed: side armour - 21 mm, deck - 16 mm. Previously, the central part was 30 mm.
• Update 0.9.3:
  • Main battery reload time decreased from 3.5 to 3.4 s.
  • The amount of HP restored by the Repair Party consumable was increased from +0.5% to +0.66% of the total HP pool per second.
  • Minor fixes to textures and ship model.
• Update 0.10.0:
  • Improved acceleration and deceleration dynamics.

Ships of France

Cruisers