Cruiser - Pan-America Tier X Almirante Irízar
Captain & Ship Build and Strategy Guide
- Build focus: Secondary battery performance, Combat Instructions, survivability and close-range combat
- Main battery: Twelve 152 mm guns with a 6-second reload and 17.8 km range
- Primary ammunition: AP for broadside targets and HE when AP is not effective
- Secondary battery: Twelve 120 mm AP guns with a 6.3 km base range
- Combat Instructions: Improves main and secondary AP damage by 45%, doubles main-gun AP penetration capability and increases secondary range by 32%
- Charge mechanic: Main battery hits charge Combat Instructions; current published data shows 2% progress per hit
- Combat Instructions duration: 60 seconds
- Secondary upgrade: Main Battery Modification 3 is preferred over Auxiliary Armaments Modification 2 to charge Combat Instructions more quickly
- Commander: Lisboa is an excellent choice and synergizes particularly well with Irízar's gameplay
- Acceleration: Improved acceleration makes Steering Gears Modification 1 the preferred Slot 4 choice
- Hydro upgrade: Hydroacoustic Search Modification 1 is recommended
- Alternative upgrade: If you do not have the Hydro modification, use Damage Control System Modification 1
- Playstyle: Close-range damage farming built around charging Combat Instructions with the main battery before unleashing enhanced AP secondaries
- Secondary range: Approximately 12.6 km with the Combat Instructions bonus and dedicated build
- Key strength: Powerful AP secondary battery and strong Combat Instructions burst
- Key weakness: Small HP pool, weak armor and low speed leave the ship vulnerable outside Smoke and cover
- Applies to: Pan-America Tier X Almirante Irízar
Almirante Irízar is an unusual Tier X Pan-American cruiser built around fast-firing 152 mm guns and an AP-focused secondary battery. Its damage potential comes from combining the main battery with Combat Instructions rather than relying on conventional long-range cruiser play.
The secondary build is the most distinctive way to play the ship. Her AP secondaries become much more threatening when Combat Instructions are active, while the additional range allows Irízar to contribute meaningful damage once fights move into close and medium ranges.
Combat Instructions should be treated as part of the ship's normal firing cycle rather than a panic button. Current mechanics reward repeated main-battery hits, so maintaining consistent fire before committing to an engagement helps prepare the activation. Once triggered, the bonus improves the performance of both the main battery and AP secondaries for a limited period.
Positioning is especially important because Irízar has a relatively small HP pool and weak protection. Avoid taking sustained focus fire in open water. Islands are valuable for approaching safely, breaking enemy firing lines and forcing opponents into ranges where the secondary battery becomes relevant.
Smoke Generator gives Irízar another way to control engagements. Use smoke to disengage, reposition or create a window where the ship can continue firing without being exposed to every enemy gun. Hydroacoustic Search is particularly useful when operating near islands, caps and other areas where destroyers or torpedoes may become a threat.
Once the distance falls below roughly 10 km, the ship becomes much more dangerous. Try to enter these fights with an escape route already available rather than sailing directly into the enemy team. The goal is to create short periods of overwhelming AP damage before withdrawing, rather than remaining exposed indefinitely.
The ship's low speed also makes early-game positioning important. Do not overextend at the start of the battle because recovering from a bad position can be difficult. Stay close enough to support your flank, but preserve enough space to retreat before enemy battleships and cruisers can focus you.
Almirante Irízar performs best when the battle gradually moves toward mid and close ranges. Its combination of fast-firing guns, AP secondaries, Smoke and Combat Instructions gives it strong finishing power once enemy ships are already damaged or committed to a fight.
The key to this build is patience. Build Combat Instructions through accurate main-battery fire, choose engagements where the enemy cannot easily focus you, and activate the bonus when both your main guns and secondaries can remain active. Played this way, Irízar can turn a controlled close-range engagement into a very high-damage window.