Near noon, the figure of the battleship, escorted by the light cruiser "Strasbourg" and three destroyers, finally appeared in people's sight.

Lechelton had already received from Field Marshal Ingnoll the completion schedule of five "Bavarian" class battleships, and it was a little regrettable that the two new battleships, "Württemberg" and "Saxony", would not be commissioned until around May 1917 due to the effects of the war.

The Germans were eager to get three Bavaria-class battleships into the fleet, but Lechelton had a "bad idea" not to rush to declare them in service, even if the three capital ships had already completed their tests, but to declare that they were still undergoing sea trials.

In this way, it was possible to achieve an ingenious "deception tactic".

Judging by the reports received by the "Bavaria", which has completed sea trials, the technical experts of the German Navy are generally satisfied with the performance of this class of battleships. The 72,000 hp power output provided by 16 oil-fired boilers and four steam turbines allowed the 30,000-ton standard displacement to reach a high speed of 24.5 knots, and it was even able to run 25.6 knots under overload.

This was enough to catch up with most of the battlecruisers of this era.

The four twin-mounted 380mm guns make it a powerful firepower that is not inferior to that of the British "Queen Elizabeth" class, and it is undoubtedly the most perfect combination of armor, firepower and speed of any existing warship in a country. Even from a distance, it still gives people enough intimidation.

After boarding, the German Emperor was slightly dissatisfied that this class of battleships had two fewer main guns compared to the latest "Archduke of Istria" class in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but the standard displacement of that class of battleships of the Austro-Hungarian Navy reached 32,700 tons, and with a reduced displacement of 2,100 tons, the engineers and technicians of the German Navy had already brought its performance to the extreme.

The tall bridge of the "Mecklenburg" is obviously very much in line with the taste of the German emperor who likes "tall and complete", and indeed, standing on the bridge at a height of almost twenty meters and looking down on the whole ship will indeed make people feel excited. Viewed from above, the overall wide hull gives a sense of safety, as if this is an impregnable and strong fortress.

Now there was a mood of eagerness to try and compete with the British.

The German Emperor and Field Marshal Ingnoll and Admiral Boll hoped for a dignified head-on duel with the British, while Spee and Hipper, accustomed to attacks from the sea, wanted to give the British a ferocious surprise attack. Helton Lee must have supported Spee's opinion, and he has never been a fan of the kind of war of attrition that goes against each other.

Back in Keel, Lee Hydon stayed behind to carefully study a new plan of naval warfare with Admiral Scheer, Admiral Spee, and Lieutenant General Hipper, and Lee Hayton prepared for a surprise attack on the heavily fortified fortress of Gibraltar, which was heavily defended by the British. This threatened to weaken the Royal Navy's home fleet, as the British Empire could not afford to lose Gibraltar and thus control of the Mediterranean.

They will definitely send reinforcements to Gibraltar.

"At that point, your chance will come." Lehedon leaned down on the chart table, "It will take another month for Mecklenburg to complete the test, in fact, it will take at least half a year for it to really form combat effectiveness, but we can't wait any longer. To deal a deep blow to the British before the latest five 'revenge'-class battleships enter service. ”

The Germans decided to start by drawing experienced sailors from the old pre-dreadnoughts, which would allow for a quick build-up of combat effectiveness.

"But what if the British chose to avoid war because of the weakening of their home fleet?" Admiral Scheer asked.

"No, the British would never dare to let go of the North Sea blockade, that would mean that it opened its mouth to the German fleet. They are now unable to send enough forces to the Mediterranean because they are afraid of our sorties. Hipper drew a circle with his finger on the chart table, "If they don't send the main fleet, I will again lead the battle cruiser fleet into the North Atlantic." This time, I will also take six cruisers with me. ”

"Don't worry, the fall of Malta has put enough pressure on their Admiralty that now that the Mediterranean Sea has been split in half, and oil tankers from the Persian Gulf now need to travel more than eight thousand nautical miles to reach the British. Inwardly, the British are more anxious to think of destroying you first, and then being able to throw their forces into the Mediterranean. Lechelton said.

What made the three leaders of the German Navy ambitious was the balance of power between the two sides, and now was the weakest period for the British Navy. With the commissioning of the three "Bavaria" class battleships, the German Navy currently has 23 dreadnoughts, while the British currently have only 33, but the British early 7 dreadnoughts have big problems with firepower configuration and armor, and the first three "German" class battleships equipped with 280 mm guns on the German side are also difficult to take on the task. In fact, the balance of power between the two sides is now 24:20, and the British have a slight advantage.

In terms of battle cruisers, the British had 10 battle cruisers, while on the German side it was 8 if you added two Austro-Hungarian battle cruisers, but the British had 6 "Invincible" and "Indefatigable" classes that were somewhat old, while the German side had only "von . Morality. The main guns of the Tann and Moltke were 280 mm, the 305 mm guns on the Seydlitz and the rest of the new battle cruisers were equipped with 330 mm guns.

Schell thinks that he can fight with his opponent, and even if he loses Germany, he will not lose anything, anyway, he will still be blocked by inaction.

Spee and Hipper, on the other hand, hoped to carry out a naval ambush on the British, and if they could destroy one of their detachments, the balance of power would be reversed, and the Germans would have the upper hand.

The idea was actually quite simple, that every movement of Hipper's fleet would provoke a frenzied pursuit and interception by Betty's British Speedy Fleet, and it would have been easy to lure him closer to the Skagerrak Strait.

"I have a feeling that something may be wrong with your code, why is it that every time Admiral Hipper makes an attack, he has been intercepted by the British fleet lately." Helton Lee said.

"We've also thought about it, and it's just the right time to use it for a deception." Hipper said we could always use the naval radio in Wilhelmshaven to signal that our main fleet was still in the harbor. ”

"When will the specific action be?" Lehydon asked.

"Well, around September, by that time the three 'Bavaria'-class battleships have formed combat effectiveness, and we will send them to the Kattegat Strait for 'testing' according to your construction." Spee replied that five battleships of the "German" class were also on the date of overhaul, and they were acting precisely with three cutting-edge battleships.

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