Without treaties, a two-tier destroyer fleet emerges

A classroom counterfactual assumes that naval limitation treaties never take effect and that the smallest cruiser types disappear. This is a design exercise rather than an account of the real treaty negotiations. One tier consists of fast torpedo destroyers between roughly 1,850 and 2,250 tons full load, usually around 2,000 tons, with only the guns needed for their basic work. The other reaches about 3,500 tons full load, commonly with nine guns in triple mounts and two quintuple torpedo launchers. The larger ships resemble enlarged Darings and use their extra volume for internal protection as well as weapons.