USS Enterprise (CVN-80)

The Enterprise, as seen in-game.

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## Background History

The USS Enterprise (CVN-80) will be the third Gerald R Ford-class aircraft carrier to be produced in the United States

Built for the United States Navy, Construction of the ship began in August 2017, and is scheduled for operation by 2028.

## Overview

The Gallant hero serving under the Star-spangled Banner, bold and boisterous with its massive aviation capabilities, being formidable as it possesses both the bomber and drone slots, all topped with an insatiable thirst for liberation and revenge. The Enterprise woos those who profess in raining terror from the sky, bringing an unparalleled experience to even the most experienced of players.

Be not misled, however, the ship also brings along its own drawbacks. Not only does it lack an anti air mount, it also suffers the issues experienced by its predecessors. Its extravagant price also ensues that only the bravest and noblest captains get to uphold the honor of commanding it.

## Tactics

### Playing as an Enterprise

Players who grew fond with the Gerald may feel comfortable with commanding this ship, and therefore many of the aforementioned ship's tactics will apply to the Enterprise also, albeit with a significant increase in combat capabilities. The ship's main and foremost advantage would be its ability to wield bombers, and also its Grenade Launchers which will be of crucial use against subsurface targets and in close-combat with surface units.

At the prelude of the match, deploy the ship's aircrafts and detect enemy units as quickly as possible. This will provide a significant strategic advantage to both the player and their team. Once the enemy warships have been spotted, try attacking the most vulnerable and separated units, cutting down their fleet ship by ship at a time. This will leave the remaining ships in an overwhelming struggle and with limited combat capabilities.

Be warned of encroaching submarines, however. They can still be a sizeable threat to the ship, therefore make good use of the ship's grenade launchers. Furthermore, battleships will still be the Enterprise's natural enemies, since they can expel large portions of the ship's health pool with their shells, even from afar.

### Playing along an Enterprise

**Escort the HVT.** As foreboding as the ship may seem, it will still require assistance at certain situations. The ship is somewhat lacking in air defense for an aircraft carrier, and it will be the prime target for battleships, especially with its poor speed and massive target profile.

**Priority Targets.** Submarines and battleships should be dealt with first, providing clearance for an allied Enterprise to deploy and operate aircraft with minor disruptions. Draw as much fire away from the capable allied Enterprise, if possible.

**Strike Together.** The fact of the matter is, an enemy's air defenses can handle X number of threats, and in that then X+1 will penetrate them. If an Enterprise is conducting a strike, do your best to fire missiles against the enemy, distracting their air defenses and giving the Enterprise's planes better chances of destroying the enemy.

### Playing against an Enterprise

The ship will not sink without a ferocious skirmish, but do not be intimidated.

The ships that will be in the best position to sink an enemy Enterprise would be a battleship or an opposing assault carrier. Battleships can inflict damage to the ship from a distance; and the Missouri, especially, can also neutralize the ship's bomber apart from just dealing damage. The bomber(s) from other assault carriers as well will find the ship an easy bombing target.

Submarines may fare well in sinking the ship, but the player must maintain a low profile at all cost. If the ship happens to be accompanied by a fast escort ship(s), then avoid attacking the ship altogether unless if the escorts are dealt with.

Arming a ship with an S-500 missile will also be very detrimental to the Enterprise's bomber and drone, although this tactic is only practical to do so on a ship with more than a single missile slot.

## Suggested Armaments Setup

The ship, with its flexible armaments setup, can be armed with various weapons that will furthermore improve the ship's performance. Below are some suggested weapons setup. But, bear in mind that these are just suggestions.

* Grenade Launcher: RUR-5B ASROC.
* Strike Fighter: F-35 (for high damage potential), ~~F/A-XX (for multirole aircraft)~~ (New Rafale-M excels better than both previously recommended units without costing gold, however it is much more expensive than an average TIII strike fighter)
* Bomber: PAK DA (effective against surface units, can be automated by AI), H-20 (for a multipurpose variant), B-21 Raider (for high DPS strafe runs, be careful with enemy's AA)
* Drone: S-70 Okhotnik-B (for Shoot and Run), Kus-FS (for High damage bombing runs.)
* Fighter: F-22/J-20
* Helicopter: SV-22 Osprey, WZ-19 CAIC (for a faster detection of enemy ships at the prelude of a battle), KA-58 Black Ghost (for better resilience against submarines), MUH-1 (for better offensive capabilities against surface units).
* Autocannon: Marlin (40 mm) (has lower damage but higher range), 3M-47 Gibka (Anti-Tank) (has higher damage, but can be affected by missile deterrents), RAPIDFire (To compliment the quite mediocre AA capabilities the Enterprise has compared to other carriers, bar the Shtorm)
* First anti air defense slot: Kashtan-M, Pantsir-ME, ANSEQ-3 (for players with the "hero" status).
* Second anti air defense slot: Sea RAM, ANSEQ-3 (for players with the "hero" status).

## Advantages and Disadvantages

### Advantages

* Very high durability, the third highest in game.
* Has the highest aviation capability of all aircraft carriers in game, having access to both a bomber and drone slot.
* Comes equipped with grenade launchers, allowing for a certain degree of anti submarine defense.

### Disadvantages

* Very low maneuverability, on par with the Ulyanovsk.
* Air defense is somewhat lacking, having only six mounts in total.
* Very large dimensions, and will be especially vulnerable to projectiles even from a distance.

## Trivia

* The ship is the ninth warship of the United States to bear the name of "Enterprise".
* An old in-game model of the ship used to have guard rails at the ship's bow, but these were removed on the ship's finalized iteration.
* Interestingly, the Enterprise is an assault carrier while her sister, USS Gerald R. Ford, is just a regular aircraft carrier.
* The Enterprise has a thinner island than Gerald R. Ford, and is much bigger and armed with grenade launchers, making it a bit more powerful then the actual ‘future’ ship under construction.
* While Enterprise will be a future Gerald R. Ford class aircraft carrier, there is a planned USS Doris Miller (CVN-81), although so far it is only planned. The USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) is currently under fitting out.
* The ship initially had a durability of 340,000; but was decreased to 332,000 in an update.