Favourite ships open two revealing design counterfactuals

Do you have a favourite ship?

Renown is the favourite battlecruiser. Orion, Nelson and Rodney, and the unbuilt Francesco Caracciolo class stand out for different design and historical reasons.

Renown is the favourite battlecruiser, while Orion stands out as the often-forgotten first super-dreadnought. Nelson and Rodney are presented as having more speed potential than their official figures suggest. A modest displacement increase or a third shaft could have changed their performance. The answer then contrasts Italy's built dreadnoughts with the unfinished Francesco Caracciolo class. In this counterfactual, Caracciolo could have delivered much of what the Royal Navy wanted from the Queen Elizabeth concept and influenced later design expectations.