The Tiger Cub counterfactual brings forward a cruiser purchase judged likely in 1914 or 1915 to 1912. Battlecruisers were becoming too expensive to provide in the numbers required for worldwide presence, while Britain already had 9.2-inch gun expertise and manufacturers willing to improve the weapon. Earlier orders would fill the gap before the war. Political reluctance to ask for another class while armored cruisers and early battlecruisers remained in service is the proposed explanation for the delay.
Chapter · 0:01-5:03
Why the Royal Navy might have built Tiger Cubs
A plausible 1912 procurement choice puts 9.2-inch cruisers between increasingly costly battlecruisers and the light cruisers needed for worldwide service.