Why a floating battleship may no longer be a fighting battleship

The damaged German ship remains fast and able to fire despite a heavy list, water sweeping over the hull, damaged engines, and the loss of much of its ammunition. Staying afloat is different from retaining useful fighting power because firing heavy guns at such an angle would worsen the list, while machinery damage should reduce speed. The design's quantity of steel is compared with the N3 concept before it absorbs repeated 18-inch hits and continues scoring improbably accurate broadsides in a tight turn. Structural buoyancy, mobility, weapon operation, and combat effectiveness are separate thresholds of survivability. The eventual sinking does not validate the combat behaviour that preceded it. A game's final sinking time cannot by itself measure historical resilience.