The final major design window is a sustained lesson in capital-ship compromise. Eighteen-inch and 16.5-inch guns are compared for range, penetration, turret rotation, reload time, and likely engagement distance before the design settles on twelve 16.5-inch weapons. Speed remains at 30 knots while belt and deck armor compete with sonar, radar direction finding, automatic loading, bulkheads, a triple hull, and torpedo protection. Small changes to draft, machinery, conning-tower armor, and the 3-inch battery recover the final tons needed to complete the ship. Available yard capacity limits the order to four Rodney-class ships, assigned to Scapa Flow as the cornerstone of a future fleet.
Notable Point · 2:21:28-2:52:52
Rodney-class gun, armor, and speed compromise
The late design session builds a new Rodney around 16.5-inch guns, 30 knots, heavy protection, and enough yard capacity for a four-ship squadron.