Azur Lane: Leipzig Missile Cruiser Class

Beyond visual Range

Know your enemy and yourself, and you will not fear a thousand battles. If you know your enemy but not yourself, you will suffer defeat for every victory you gain. If you do not know yourself or your enemy, you will be defeated in battle.

This is the very concept of battle in the Art of War. The art of fighting your enemy without fighting him, flanking him, outmaneuvering him, winning an unequal war of attrition; all of this had to be rethought when the era of missiles and the BvR doctrine began in the late 1940s and early '50s. Even if you think you're safe, you're not, because a missile is headed right for your foxhole and is about to make the hole bigger and you are nonexistent.

But what if this concept is put into reality, as it is in the form of two missile cruisers and an enemy fortress? The latter of which has the sole ability to disintegrate several Task Forces (Taffys) long before they are able to mount a counterattack?

Quite simply, don't be in their reach while they're in yours.

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Shortly after the destruction of the forward VLS on the Nürnberg, firefighting began immediately. The fires were quickly isolated and extinguished. In all this brief chaos, Leipzig maneuvered in close to help contain the fires on deck. With its three water cannons on the port side, she quickly dumped about 90m³ of water and foam on the high intensity flames.

It took only about two and a half minutes to extinguish the flames and the danger of secondary explosions. In the end, only two crew members operating the ammunition elevator and blast doors suffered burns and blown out ear membranes.

Fortunately, the ammunition for the forward gun was saved by the blast walls and closed MK V Bulkheads, preventing any heat and toxic fumes to sneak into. Only the VLS had to be flooded and declared a total loss of functionality.

The fighting around the firefighting proceeded, nonetheless. Various aircrafts of both sides fell into the water, either as scattered debris or a fireball. The SneaSnakes, Rotary Machine Guns 27 and the Oto Melaras kept shooting down enemy jet bombers and any incoming rockets.

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The fighting had reached its climax when another wave of bombers arrived, followed closely by Siren ships spotted by both ASEA and SIMONE from Nürnberg and Leipzig. Anti-ship missiles were quickly fired to destroy any capital ships in the enemy formations, removing by far the greater threat to any friendly ships in the vicinity. Apparently, the U-boats were dealing deadly blows to the mass-produced autonomous ships, as one water geyser followed another.

Though the U-boats needed time to consolidate their positions as the Pawns and Knights quickly moved to their location to intercept them, by that time the Z-class destroyers, K-class light cruisers, and Iberian counterparts quickly countered and intercepted the dangerous fighters. Soon the fighters were hunted down and eliminated from the board, with the humans and Kansen taking only minor damage, and one Iberian destroyer, the Lepanto, taking engine damage and being forced to retreat to the backline.

Following the destruction of the Queens and Rooks by the AShMs, the German and Iberian battleships quickly eliminated the incoming Bishops, while the battlecruiser line maneuvered around the enemy line, destroying the remaining Knights and Pawns. It was a slugfest, with shells and lasers flying back and forth. Casualties were light and minimal for the combined fleet, while the Sirens took 60-80% casualties, crippled and sunk, before retreating.

Apparently, many thought that this was the perfect opportunity to quickly eliminate and exploit the fragmented force and destroy it piecemeal. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and the order was met with a defensive posture. It was obvious that the Sirens were stalling for time to pull off something big that could endanger entire fleets of allied ships.