I agree with those whom have the opinion that the IJN under water hit concept was more of an aberation, and that this type of hit ocurring consistently is unlikely. The sea water impares the progress and stability of the shell, and consumes most of its energy.

With Bismarck even if it just passes just below the lower edge of the belt, a shell must travel through more than ten meters of sea water (at short battle ranges). At shallow angles of fall, as would be the case of short ranges, a shell normally must traverse through a lot of sea water before it can pierce the hull below the belt. It's not likely to happen unless several vairables come to together in combination. But this only occurs at particular speeds (Pugleise's studies indicated around 30 knots for battleships) and only at a particular spot. Slot 6: APRM1 (You could go reload here if you want).The wake or wave form can form a trough just before midships reducing the amount of water that a shell must traverse though to get below the belt. I tend to go with steering or the damage control but propulsion can be used. Slot 4: You have some choices and they are all viable imo. The rest of the modules are the same as other BBs that I build The reason why this is so important is because it gives you -11% to the maximum disperion of the main battery! Yes, it is 3mil credits but it is well worth it. One of the most important modules that you will access to on the Iowa and later the Montana is the Artillery Plotting Room Mod 2. I also pick these captain skills in the same order everytime (the only place I can see a shift is the FP or CE choice).

I build the Iowa just like I do most other BBs: PT, EM, SI, CE, FP, BoS and AR.

I see some of the other captains have done a great job in outlining skills and builds. Now, that we got that out of the way let us try and help you with a build. The Iowa is not designed to sit in one spot and back up. The other thing I see a lot with Iowa players is they tend to back up and not use their speed/maneuverability as an advantage. What I mean by that is because the Iowa is so fast you can leave your support or find yourself over-extended very quickly. The first is the speed, yes it is awesome to sail around at over 30 knots in a BB but this can often get you into places too fast. There are a few features of the Iowa that I see players use incorrectly. This ship can be fantastic if played correctly or it can be a nightmare.

Congrats on progressing through the tech tree and getting to the Iowa.

World of warships iowa commander