The revised ceiling changes the value of older and smaller capital ships, as well as the specifications of future construction. Roughly 20,000-ton vessels armed with 12- or 13-inch guns could not fight effectively against 42,000-ton ships carrying 16-inch guns. They would be little better than death traps, which would influence British, Japanese, and American choices about which ships to retain or replace first. The same logic leaves pre-dreadnoughts still further behind. To emphasize their obsolescence, the video argues that HMS Hood could defeat the world's combined surviving pre-dreadnought force.
Notable Point · 24:29-25:34
Why undersized capital ships would become death traps
A 42,000-ton, 16-inch-gun standard would make surviving 20,000-ton ships and pre-dreadnoughts dangerously ineffective.