Dogger Bank is the battle considered most likely to survive the counterfactual because both navies' established doctrines lead to the operation. The German force still includes SMS Blücher, whose lower speed limits the retreat. A possible British force includes three or four 13.5-inch ships and one or two 15-inch Tigers, although Australia may be occupied or damaged in Far East operations. A slower Indomitable could be left behind by the faster ships. Their advantage is assessed at about two and a half knots over Blücher and roughly one and a half over the German battlecruisers. More speed gives the British longer to engage, while German ships would have greater difficulty absorbing 13.5-inch and 15-inch shells than the 12-inch fire from Indomitable and the historical New Zealand.
Chapter · 1:10:45-1:15:40
Why Dogger Bank is the counterfactual's firmest battle
Dogger Bank remains likely because both navies' doctrines produce it, while the altered British force gains more fast 13.5-inch and 15-inch ships against a German line still slowed by SMS Blücher.